Paris Saint Germain seemed to represent a much more complicated task for Los Blaugranas when the two teams were paired after the Round of 16. Following their baffling display last week, the French champions seem to have everything against them to make it to the next round, and while their star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic will return, it's quite uncertain how the team can hold Barça's MSN attack without being damaged. Will Laurent Blanc's men be able to shock football experts around the world, or will this second leg be a walk in the park for Luis Enrique and his crew?
Barcelona's performances at Camp Nou leave no room for error
Laurent Blanc stated in the pre-match press conference that his team "had nothing to lose, but this will not be a field trip". If his side wants to have a legitimate chance of eliminating the hosts, they will have to perform some kind of a miracle to stop Barcelona's attacking force. Los Blaugranas have scored an average of two goals per game in their most recent seven games at their stadium while playing the UEFA Champions League, and to make matters worse, Barcelona has lost only one game out of the last 31 playing at home. Their only loss came on May 1st, 2013, when they were defeated by Bayern Munich 3-0. In this Champions League edition, Los Culés have only conceded twice in four matches at Camp Nou, giving their visitors practically no chances of progression.
Marc-André Ter Stegen has been crucial to the team's success in this Champions League edition, with great performances such as the one against Manchester City in the Round of 16.
After another home loss, history repeats itself?
Paris Saint Germain have only made it to the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League in the 1994-95 season, and their record when losing the first leg of a two-game series is not one that forecasts a miracle. Considering last week's game, Les Parisiens have lost four first legs in their European tournament participations, and they have been eliminated the previous three times. To make matters worse, when they needed to win the second leg after losing at home, in each of those three times the team left empty-handed, scoring one goal and conceding six times.
Zlatan's chances of upsetting his former team-mates are rather slim
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The tournament's stats don't give PSG much chances
Even without considering Barcelona or Paris Saint Germain's previous stats, it seems that the tournament's history is not with the French side. Out of 48 two-legged series that ended with a 3-1 score in favor of the visiting team, only two matches have seen the visiting side in the second leg move forward. That is, the team that won the first game ended up making it to the next round 46 times. So, if Blanc's men mean business, they will surely have to play a perfect game against the heavily-favoured Blaugranas.
In red, the column you should consider for this game's first leg result.
