Samir Nasri says Barcelona are not as good as Bayern Munich as he backed Manchester City to achieve mission impossible in the Champions League and turnaround their two-goal deficit when the two teams meet at the Nou Camp next month.
Following Tuesday’s 2-0 loss in their last 16 first-leg tie at home, the Etihad outfit have to score at least three times in the Nou Camp on March 12 to have a chance of reaching the last eight.
But Nasri said his side will use previous performances, such as City’s fine 3-2 win at holders Bayern Munich in December and thumping victories at Manchester United and Spurs, as a reason to believe they can still succeed.
“We will have to gamble, but why not? We went to Munich and beat them, so we can do the same,” said the Frenchman, who felt the game changed when Martin Demichelis was sent off, leading to Lionel Messi's controversial 54th minute opener from the penalty spot.
“We will fight until the end.
“It will be an open game, they will come like Barcelona, they do not stay at the back and defend. They will come and play, so we will have plenty of space. Sergio Aguero will be back [after injury], we will be fitter, so why not?
“We believe in ourselves. We won at Munich, we have won at United, Spurs, and by big scores. Everything is possible. 3-1? We can do it. When you play like this, you have to believe, we have quality.
“Against Bayern, for 60 minutes we did not touch the ball. They are the best team we have played, Bar-celona are not. If it was not for the penalty, it was 0-0. The referee got it wrong. There was a foul on Jesus Navas first, we saw the footage and it was not a penalty. It is really frustrating, this decision, because before it was a close game.
“Bayern was not the same. They scored goals without a mistake from anyone, they showed us how great they were.”
The statistics are very much against Manuel Pellegrini’s side as of the 326 teams in European competition history to have led 2-0 from the first away leg, 318 have progressed to the next round. That gives City a 2.5 per cent chance of reaching the quarter-finals.
So while it will be a stunning result if City can overcome the deficit, Bayern did beat Barca 3-0 in last season’s semi-final, while Valencia won 3-2 at the Nou Camp in La Liga this month.
“Before the game we said it is a game of 180 minutes, and we can do what Valencia did and beat them at home,” added Nasri.
“They played without fear. I watched the game. I saw [Sofiane] Feghouli on the right, he just went on and on and on – he made the difference – while [Pablo] Piatti, who is 1m 64cm, he scored with a header. They played without fear and that is what we need to do.”
Having 26-goal striker Aguero back will give City a fighting chance after they failed to make the most of their opportunities, and Barca were ruthless with theirs.
Nasri added: “He makes a difference, but you have to find the perfect balance to play this Barcelona team.”
City v Barca: Stat attack
4 – shots by Alvaro Negredo (right), only one on target.
5 – the victory ended Barcelona’s five-match winless streak against English teams.
8 – Before their triumph at the Etihad, Barcelona had won just one of their last eight games in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
28 – total touches of the ball by Manchester City winger Jesus Navas. Joe Hart finished with 34.
133 – pass attempts by Barcelona midfielder Xavi. City’s highest was Yaya Toure with 59.
959 – passes attempted by Barcelona in the match (a season high for the club) compared to City’s 491.
