Paris St G
Barcelona
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- KO 19:45
Barcelona forward Lionel Messi admits he "did not feel good" after struggling with injuries last season.
The Argentine suffered a trophyless campaign with his club, and lost in the 2014 World Cup final to Germany.
But he has found his form again this season, scoring 45 goals in 44 games.
On the eve of their Champions League quarter-final first leg with Paris St-Germain, he said: "It was a year I have tried to forget quickly to get back to my best with effort, work and joy."
The 27-year-old needs one more goal to reach the landmark of 400 for the Catalan side, as they come up against PSG for the third time in the competition this season, having already met in the group stages.
Records in 2014-15 | ||
|---|---|---|
Paris St-Germain
|
Barcelona
| |
Zlatan Ibrahimovic (28)
|
Top scorer
|
Lionel Messi (45)
|
Javier Pastore (11)
|
Most assists
|
Lionel Messi (22)
|
Marco Verratti (3,357)
|
Most passes
|
Lionel Messi (2,762)
|
95
|
Goals scored
|
136
|
43
|
Goals conceded
|
30
|
Luis Enrique's men are top of La Liga, two points ahead of rivals Real Madrid, and face Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey final.
"Last season, I had an inconsistent campaign. I was out for a long time with injuries and I missed a lot of games," added Messi.
"Thankfully now I feel very good. We went through times that we won everything. Every year we would win a title and sometimes the fans and us didn't value what we were doing.
"We had a bad year when we didn't win anything and now, when the success comes, we give it the importance it deserves and we enjoy it more because we know how difficult it is to achieve."
Laurent Blanc's side, chasing a quadruple of their own, will be without top scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who is suspended for the first leg after being sent off against Chelsea in the last 16, while midfielder Marco Verratti is also banned.
Defender David Luiz is out injured and there is a doubt over Italy midfielder Thiago Motta.
"It will be very difficult but it could be extraordinary," said French midfielder Blaise Matuidi. "We have already shown that we can compete against them and even beat them. We will need to be at 150%, even with all the absences. We will give everything."
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