The Catalans suffered a defeat when they faced Malaga last time out but will have to recover in time for their important match against Man City in the Champions League.

Barcelona stepped into Camp Nou on Saturday hoping to leapfrog rivals Real Madrid to the top of the league with star man Lionel Messi hoping to overtake Cristiano Ronaldo in the race for the golden shoe. However the Blaugrana were left shell shocked as the game ended with them being at the receiving end of a 1-0 defeat, thereby bringing an end to their 11 game winning streak.

The defeat not only results in the club losing ground in the race for the league title but could also potentially disturb the morale of the team before a big Champions League game. To make matters worse for the Catalans, Man City after a run of disappointing performances have returned to their best and will be in a buoyant mood ahead of the game.

Despite suffering a setback, Barcelona will still enter the fixture as favourites and one defeat should not really hamper their ambitions for the season. Pellegrini and City will definitely come well prepared for the tie in order to prove themselves in the Champions League, but Barcelona have enough quality in their squad to get the better of them.

Absence of Yaya Toure

Yaya Toure's participation in the Africa Cup of Nation's exposed a major flaw in the Man City squad. Whereas they have a number of midfielders in their ranks who are capable of changing the game, none of them can influence the match like Yaya Toure can.

In his absence the Citizens managed a victory in just one of their six matches which shows just how much the team depends on the talismanic midfielder. He returned back to the squad in the match against Newcastle and was as influential as ever.

Man City will however not be able to make use of his services in the all important game as he serves suspension for the red card he received in the match against CSKA Moscow, something Barcelona can take full advantage of.

Target the central defenders

Man City defenders have shown their vulnerability a number of times this season and with the attacking line up Barcelona have they should definitely exploit it. It will be interesting to see if Pellegrini  chooses to hand a start to Eliaquim Mangala alongside Vincent Kompany or whether the experienced Martín Demichelis will get the nod.

Mangala despite of being a huge talent is inexperienced something which has been evident through his performances this season. Demichelis on the other hand had a huge impact during the match between the two sides last season unfortunately for City, it was not to their benefit. The Argentine brought down Lionel Messi in the first leg which not only resulted in a penalty for the visitors, but also a sending off for the Man City man with the Citizens forced to play with ten men for the majority of the second half.

The ever reliable Vincent Kompany has also been seen making the odd mistake, the most notable of which was his foul on Nacho Monreal in the match against Arsenal which propelled the Gunners into picking a victory.

The incredible trio can guide Barcelona to victory

The front three have been in impeccable form for the Catalans and should they click in the match against Man City, the Citizens will have a momentous task at hand to keep the ball away from the net. Neymar and Messi in particular have been phenomenal and have scored 17 and 26 goals respectively in the league this season. Suarez on the other hand is still finding his feet in a new league but his addition has added another dimension to the team.

Together the combative trio has scored 68 goals between them in all competitions with 37 for Messi, 24 for Neymar and seven for Suárez. They have also provided a combination of 32 assists with 18 coming from Messi, four for Neymar and 10 for Suárez.

Barcelona is a team made of winners and one defeat is surely not enough to break them down. The players will definitely be eager to respond after the defeat and Man City should expect a much more fierce Barcelona side than the one they faced last season.
 

 

Match details, result and original broadcast info

Manchester City 1 - 2 Barcelona

February 24, 2015 2:45pmEtihad Stadium (Manchester)

This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.

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