Puyol wary of Stuttgart threat

VfB Stuttgart  v  Barcelona

Barcelona captain Carles Puyol admits his side could be in for a bad night if they underestimate the threat posed by in-form Stuttgart in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.

Barca make the trip to Germany having bounced back from their first league defeat of the season eight days ago against Atletico Madrid by thumping Racing Santander 4-0 on Saturday night.

That was the Catalan giants` sixth victory in seven league games, but they will now come up against a Stuttgart who are in just as good form.

Stuttgart may still be struggling down in ninth place in the Bundesliga but they too have won six of their last seven and at the weekend thrashed Cologne 5-1 away from home with Cacau netting four of his side's goals.

When the draw was made back in December Stuttgart were in the midst of a 10-match winless run in all competitions, but it is a different story now and a wary Puyol said: "They're playing better now and they are a dangerous team.

"If we don't go there focused, we could really have a bad time,'' added Puyol, who scored one of his side`s goals as they beat Stuttgart 2-0 away during the group stages of the 2007/08 Champions League.

Barca have struggled badly with absentees recently and the Champions League holders will again be without Seydou Keita and Eric Abidal.

Key duo Xavi and Dani Alves have at least made the trip to Germany, but neither has yet been given the all-clear to return to action following injuries.

Full-back Alves has been absent for a month due to a calf problem while Xavi picked up a thigh injury during the defeat to Atletico that had been expected to keep the Spain international out for around 15 days.

Striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who was a late withdrawal ahead of Saturday`s win over Racing with an ankle problem, has also been included in a 20-man travelling squad in the hope he will be fit to feature.

Stuttgart coach Christian Gross is likely to be without left-back Arthur Boka for both meetings against Barca after he suffered a dislocated shoulder in training prior to the Cologne match that could keep him sidelined for a month.

That was one of the few negatives on what was a memorable weekend for the Bundesliga outfit, which saw striker Cacau make a stunning return from his four-week injury lay-off.

"I was really looking forward to this game after my long break,'' said Cacau. "And the way the game went makes it particularly beautiful.''

Looking ahead to the clash, the Brazilian-born Germany international told Barca TV: "We've got nothing to lose. Barca are favourites and we maybe have a 20 or 30% chance of getting through, but we will be trying to make the most of our opportunities.

"We have to get a good result at home, because when Barca play at home it is very difficult to win. I hope they may be over confident and not commit themselves completely.''

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Zairi won`t under-estimate Bordeaux

Olympiakos  v  Bordeaux

Olympiacos striker Jaouad Zairi is adamant Bordeaux will put their recent struggles behind them and pose a significant threat in their Champions League encounter.

Les Girondins have not looked at their formidable best in recent games although they still lead the way in the Ligue 1 table.

And they can at least point to wins in their last two games as evidence they are back on track.

Neither the defeat of St Etienne, nor the win against a Lorient side down to 10 men for three-quarters of the game were convincing, however, results which came after losses to Monaco and Rennes.

The wobble has led to speculation in France that Laurent Blanc's men's air of invincibility has evaporated but Zairi is not convinced ahead of the first leg of their last-16 tie.

The former Sochaux and Nantes forward told RMC: "Bordeaux have no reason to worry. They have a quality squad with a great coach.

"Laurent Blanc is very influential and he can achieve a lot. We are doing a lot of video analysis on Bordeaux but first we are concentrating on our own game.

"We beat Arsenal in our own stadium and we will give the maximum to win.''

Having home advantage could be significant with the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium in Athens renowned for its atmosphere.

"It's very hot, the fans are fanatical,'' added Zairi. "The crowd is like our 12th man. They can turn the game around for us. The atmosphere is very impressive.''

Olympiacos' Serbian coach Bozidar Bantovic, who took over following the departure of Brazil legend Zico last month, is expected to be without Diogo and Luciano Galletti but fellow South American, midfielder Dudu, could return from injury.

Bordeaux president Jean-Louis Triaud believes his team's position has changed now they are into the knockout stages.

Les Girondins were drawn alongside European giants Juventus and Bayern Munich, as well as Maccabi Haifa, in Group A and were expected to fight it out for third spot and a place in the Europa League with the Israelis.

But Blanc's men defied the odds by finishing top with five wins and a draw from their six games.

And having played the part of underdog, Triaud believes they are now favourites going into the Olympiacos tie.

He told RMC: "Olympiacos are a respectable opponent.

"Although not that much is known about them, we know they are hard to play against, especially at their home ground.

"Overall, we were happy with the draw as we avoided the larger teams.

"I would like to think we are favourites. Although that may not be the case in Athens, over the two legs, that is reasonable.''

Olympiacos drew 1-1 at Ergotelis on Saturday while Bordeaux were handed the weekend off by Ligue 1 authorities to give them more time to prepare for the trip east.

The visitors' only absentee is captain and midfielder Alou Diarra, who has a thigh injury.

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Vidic back in contention

Manchester United  v  Portsmouth

Nemanja Vidic is back in contention as Manchester United look to reclaim the Premier League's top spot by beating crisis-club Portsmouth at Old Trafford.

Vidic has been missing since suffering pain from a nerve in his leg prior to the encounter with Wigan at the end of December but has trained this week and could be involved - if not this weekend, then the crucial trip to Aston Villa on Wednesday.

Rio Ferdinand serves the second match of a four-game ban although United have appealed against the additional match imposed for a "frivolous'' appeal against the first one.

Edwin Van der Sar believes Manchester United have the awareness that separates them from the rest.

The Dutch goalkeeper is confident they can kick on and lift an unprecedented fourth successive title.

Van der Sar, 39, knows what it is like to have that winning mentality.

"Experience definitely helps,'' he told www.manutd.com. "You've been there before - through narrow escapes and must-win games. You know how to handle them. The more you go through these situations the better you are at dealing with them.

"There's a moment in your career where it clicks and you think `I`ve been in this situation before, I know what to do, I know what to expect'. That comes in handy sometimes."

Nigeria striker Kanu is expected to be back in the Portsmouth squad.

Nadir Belhadj, Hassan Yebda and Aruna Dindane all played in the 1-0 defeat at Fulham after their international duty ended.

On-loan defender Ricardo Rocha could make his debut having been on the bench at Craven Cottage.

Avram Grant has challenged his Portsmouth players to believe in themselves and give everything for the cause as the Barclays Premier League's bottom club look to pull of a shock at United.

Pompey remain cast adrift following the Fulham defeat. However, a battling display deserved a better result, with Grant's team more cohesive following the return of African Nations Cup trio Nadir Belhadj, Hassan Yebda and Aruna Dindane.

The off-field saga at Fratton Park continues, as Hong Kong-based businessman Balram Chainrai took control in a fourth change of ownership before he then declared "zero interest'' in completing a full-blown buy-out.

Pompey also face a winding-up order from HMRC over a £7.5million VAT bill, for which a High Court hearing is due next Wednesday. However Grant maintains his squad deserve great credit for producing consistent performances on the pitch, if not always getting their just rewards.

"We have shown over the past couple of months that when people thought we were down, we recovered and gave everything,'' said Grant. "I have no doubt the players will give everything again against Manchester United.

"When you see the fact that they keep coming onto the pitch, again and again, giving everything that is good. I always believe - and I do not want to see anyone in my team who does not believe. This is football - anything can happen.''

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