Barcelona host Paris St Germain for Wednesday's Champions League Group F showdown on something of a high after securing a seventh straight victory in all competitions on Sunday, according to forward Pedro.
Barca appear to have put consecutive La Liga defeats just over a month ago to Real Madrid and Celta Vigo behind them and Pedro came off the bench to score in Sunday's 5-1 romp at home to city rivals Espanyol in the Spanish top flight.
Wednesday's clash at the Nou Camp will decide which of Barca or PSG finishes first in the group and avoids a fellow pool winner in next week's draw for the last 16, with both sides already assured of their place in the knockout round.
With one match to play, PSG lead on 13 points thanks to their 3-2 victory against Barca in Paris in September. Barca have 12 in second, with Ajax Amsterdam on two points and APOEL Nicosia on one.
"We are confident and on a positive run," Pedro told Barca TV after Sunday's match. "We have played well against teams like Valencia, Espanyol, rivals who are on good form.
"It (the PSG game) is going to be very tough, we know their potential and what it's going to cost us. But we are counting on our fans and on our good rhythm and the confidence we are bringing."
Pedro, a World Cup and European Championship winner with Spain, has had limited playing time this season following the arrival of Uruguay forward Luis Suarez.
Suarez opened his Barca account in the 4-0 win at APOEL last month but has yet to score in La Liga in six appearances and was replaced by Pedro with around 20 minutes left on Sunday.
Pedro said competing with Barca's formidable forward line of Suarez, Lionel Messi and Neymar was a big challenge.
"Competing with the trident is tough but I have to make the best of it," added the 27-year-old.
"What I am trying to do is learn from them, improve every day and helped my team mates as best I can. I have always have talented team mates here at Barca and that means you have to perform at a high level."
Comments
0 comment