FCBARCELONA.CAT

19.02.2008 20:22

Deco senses team is on form

Marc Guillén / Sandra Sarmiento

In his press conference before the game with Celtic, Deco has said that he feels Barça are on fine form and knows they need to win on Wednesday, despite the fact that this tie is a two legged affair.

Deco feels that “recovering two such players as Eto'o and Touré is very important for us. Now almost all of the players are available to the coach and that will do us good. We all want to play, as is normal. And I don’t think that’s a problem. Not only that, but the whole team is working well together”.

“We have to attack but also be careful”

He feels that Barça need to stick to what they know in Glasgow and look for a win. “We don’t know how to play any other way. It is very important for us to avoid problems getting the ball forward, and keeping possession so that they can’t use their direct approach and always to be secure at the back” he said.

Deco cited the recent cup games with Sevilla and Villarreal as perfect examples of how to deal with two-legged matches. “There are two games and you shouldn't risk too much when you know there is a return leg. You have to attack but also be careful" said the Portuguese midfielder.

Dangers of Celtic

Deco does not think there is any one Celtic player that merits special attention, but that Barça should work on dealing with their direct approach and aggressiveness, especially when they have their fans behind them. “In terms of support, Celtic’s fans are among the strongest there are” he said.

He also expects Celtic to give the game everything they can for the entire 90 minutes. But he also knows that the Scottish side cannot afford to defend all the time, as at some point they are going to obliged to take some risks.