Season-defining Napoli clash a huge opportunity – Barcelona’s Xavi

Barcelona coach Xavi Hernández called Tuesday's meeting with Napoli the biggest match of the season as the Spanish champions aim for a first Champions League quarter-final since 2020.

Victor Osimhen canceled out Robert Lewandowski's Italy opener in the first leg to exit the round of 16 ahead of the second leg at the Olympic Stadium.

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This is Barca's first time in the Champions League knockout stages since 2021 after failing to advance from the group stage in each of the previous two seasons, while their last quarter-final appearance was a infamous 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich four years ago. There is.

“This is the most important match of the season so far,” Xavi said in his pre-match press conference. “We're really up for it. It's been a while since we've reached the quarter-finals, so it's a huge opportunity.

“There is a desire to do well and compete with a great opponent. [Napoli] I haven't been at my best [this season] but the basis is the same as that of the team that made them the Italian champions last year. I hope it’s a magical night.”

Xavi has already announced he will step down this summer and, with Barca eight points behind La Liga leaders Real Madrid and out of the Copa del Rey, Europe represents his last chance to win silverware this season.

However, Xavi, who won La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup as Barca coach last year, said the focus should be on getting the club back among Europe's elite, not on him.

“I'm not important [on Tuesday]”, he added. “It's about the club and the team. I already have an expiration date. I will tell the players not to be afraid.

“It’s an opportunity to be among the eight best teams in Europe. We have to come back to it, four years later.”

Asked if Barca, five-time Champions League winners, most recently in 2015, would be able to compete with the other quarter-finalists, Xavi replied: “I see teams with different potential, but we can compete with any other team.

“We are in a difficult financial situation. We have not been able to do everything we wanted. We have had to adapt to these circumstances, but the club has made a huge effort since I have been here.”

A lot has changed since the first leg. Napoli, under new manager Francesco Calzona who took charge of their first match against Barca, beat Sassuolo and Juventus and drew with Turin.

Barca, meanwhile, lost Frenkie de Jong and Pedri to injury, leaving them short in midfield with Gavi already out. Alejandro Balde, Marcos Alonso and Ferran Torres are also still out.

In defense, Xavi must decide whether to start the experienced Iñigo Martínez or opt for 17-year-old Pau Cubarsí, who has been a La Liga regular but was left on the bench at Napoli.

Since then, Cubarsí has ​​continued to improve, with Xavi praising his “captain's performance” in Friday's 1-0 win over Mallorca, as Barca kept their third consecutive clean sheet.

Goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen was impressed by Cubarsí.

“Talking about the player, at his age he is doing a spectacular job,” Ter Stegen said at the press conference. “But also, on a personal level, he is a very approachable person. He is always open to improving and working hard.

“He's at the beginning of his career, so we all hope he continues like this. Imagine [how] he can still improve a lot. He's in spectacular form and we have to take advantage of it.”

Ter Stegen also lamented Xavi's decision to step down at the end of the season, saying the players would give everything for him to leave with a bang.

“Knowing him, I felt bad,” the Germany international added of Xavi's announcement in January. “We [the players] are responsible for these decisions, but we follow the same line as always.

“He told us that it doesn't stop and we know that. We have to give everything, also for him. He is a great coach. He has again taken us to these heights that we struggled to reach these last years.

“Obviously, for me, it’s a shame that he’s leaving, and it’s difficult to accept that he’s leaving, as a player and a friend.”