Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde insists his side will play ‘with no fear and only excitement’ during their Champions League clash with Manchester United.
The Blaugrana suffered a traumatic exit at this stage of the competition last season when Roma came from 4-1 down on aggregate to eliminate them.
“We have no fear, we only have a lot of excitement,” Valverde told reporters at his pre-match press conference.
“We know that we are facing a great team but these are the games that excite you when you are in football and we know we are in a strong position to go through.
“This will be a contest between two great sides who will believe they can progress through to the semi-finals, it is an excellent opportunity.
“The Roma loss will be a reminder for us of how tough this competition is and how we cannot assume anything, and we will be mindful of this in each round.
“We know what Manchester United have achieved in the Champions League this season, they have already won three away matches with many in the last minute.
“We are aware of what damage they can do and especially with their attacking players, we know they are very fast and dangerous.
“We must try not to concede but also to score – that is the priority and it would be absurd not to approach the game with this mindset.”
