Manchester City cannot afford another defeat on Tuesday at home to Barcelona, who thumped them 4-0 two weeks ago, having taken just one point from their last two Champions League Group C matches. That third successive win for the Catalan pass-masters means they need only a draw in the return game to ensure their annual qualification for the knockout stage. City, however, are in danger of losing second place in the table to Borussia Moenchengladbach, who sit one point behind them going into a home tie with Celtic. Although they beat Borussia 4-0 on matchday one, Pep Guardiola's side still have to travel to Germany for a game that could decide which team qualifies with Barcelona. Former Barca coach Guardiola was as chastened after the Nou Camp loss, when Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick and City goalkeeper Claudio Bravo was sent off, as he was on a previous return there, which resulted in a 3-0 loss for his Bayern Munich team in the 2015 semi-final. At least Bayern recovered some self-respect by winning the second leg 3-2 on that occasion and a repeat would suit him perfectly. Achieving it would also be a historic result for the Premier League leaders, who have lost all five previous meetings between the clubs, including round of 16 games in 2014 and 2015. At least they ended a run of six matches without a win — the worst of Guardiola's managerial career — in emphatic fashion on Saturday, romping to a 4-0 success at West Bromwich Albion, where Sergio Aguero and Ilkay Gundogan both scored twice. Aguero was surprisingly left out of the game at the Nou Camp, but Guardiola will need him at his best on Tuesday. "Aguero is a special player, we need him a lot," the manager told reporters after the West Bromwich game. "He is one of the best. I am going to help him to be much, much better. We know how important he is for us when he can convince us how good he is and how important he is for this club." While City will believe they can make inroads into a makeshift defence still missing Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba and Aleix Vidal, there will be greater concern about how their own back-line will cope with the dazzling trident of Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez. That may well prove to be the key to the contest. PSG look to unpredictable Cavani for goals at Basel Paris St Germain's Edinson Cavani has wasted countless chances this season but has also converted more than any striker in Europe and they will again rely on his marksmanship in the Champions League at FC Basel on Tuesday. With 10 Ligue 1 goals in as many games and four goals from three Champions League matches, the Uruguayan is the highest scorer in the five big European leagues despite an unfortunate reputation for not being the most clinical finisher. With Zlatan Ibrahimovic having left PSG to join Manchester United in the close season, Cavani took over the central striking role at the Paris club and only AS Roma's Edin Dzeko has scored as many league goals this term. Yet Cavani started the season being jeered for a wasteful performance against Metz and although he scored against Arsenal in the Champions League in September, was widely blamed — and blamed himself — for missing a hatful of chances in a 1-1 draw. "He is a versatile forward, he's the number nine we need," PSG fullback Thomas Meunier said after Cavani netted the only goal in a 1-0 Ligue 1 win at Lille last Friday despite only two of his six goal attempts finding the target. "Even if he misses chances, he's always in the good rhythm, he's always at the right place and he's very dangerous. We could even make his life easier if we were more precise." PSG, second in Group A with seven points from three games, will reach the last 16 if they beat Basel at St Jakob's Park. Under new coach Unai Emery, who took over from Laurent Blanc, PSG have been less flamboyant but remain confident they are on the right path. "It is a bit tougher this season but we know we can do better," their Italy midfielder Marco Verratti said. "We create a lot of chances and we concede only a few." Despite a 3-0 win against Basel in the first meeting, PSG will be wary of their hosts, who are 12 points clear in the Swiss Super League following a 2-0 victory over Grasshoppers. "We've been playing well but there are a few things we can still improve," said Basel attacking midfielder Matias Delgado. Coach Urs Fischer warned that his side must be more focused after taking their foot off the gas against Grasshoppers. "We had the game under control but after an hour we gave them the keys," he said. "We cannot let this happen." — Reuters
