A former captain of Barcelona, who now plays in Serie A, has shared his unyielding allegiance to his former club ahead of a vital UEFA Champions League semi-final tie against Inter Milan at San Siro.
The 33-year-old, who maintains a deep-rooted connection with Barça’s European journey, expressed his faith in the current squad and their ability to handle the pressure of such a high-stakes game.
In conversation with Mundo Deportivo, he said he would not miss the tie for all the money in the world and was positive that the team could perform in the big matches.
The former captain, Sergi Roberto, gave his tactical view of the upcoming battle, suggesting that Inter will take an aggressive style.
He said that Inter will not want to sit back when it is their home match and are unlikely to want to adopt a deep shape, as Barcelona had done a number on them in the second half of the Camp Nou match recently.
Roberto believes that Inter will look to press high, but believes that Barça’s front players and possession style will counter this.
He mentioned one of the key battles for Inter is to account for the brash brilliance of Barça’s 17-year-old, Lamine Yamal.
Roberto suggested that Inter Milan may need to change their shape, and that we may see things like an extra defender or a deeper midfielder to manage the threat from Yamal.
Remembering defeats in the past in the Champions League and notably the two collapses against Roma in 2018 and the memorable result against Liverpool in 2019, Roberto accepted that the psychological aspect of these games can weigh heavily.
However, Roberto viewed the team as a psychological force, in part, because it was younger players who were most likely unaffected by those darker nights.
”Mind can play tricks, but these kids are unscarred,” he said while rallying around this newfound belief.
As this new generation of Barcelona players prepares to face challenges posed by Inter, it can be interpreted that when Roberto spoke of this new mental transition, it is an indication that they believe they can script an opportune rewriting of their European framework.
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