Ernesto Valverde: High hopes for the Champions League

Ernesto Valverde spoke to the press on Monday evening ahead of the Champions League debut against PSV Eindhoven, a young side he reckons “are quite capable of giving us and the other teams in this group a very tough game … They play an attacking game, so we’re going to have to defend well.

The Barça boss singled out Mexican Irving Lozano and 20-year-old Steven Bergwijn as particular dangers in the Dutch ranks.

“PSV are the Dutch champions and one of the strongest teams in Europe” he added. “They like to control the play and I can’t see them changing that for the sake of a single game.”

Dreaming big, early start

“We all want to win this competition. The Champions League is always a special motivation for the players and that’s ideal for the team.”

The game kicks off at the unusually time of 6.55pm CET, but Valverde is sure that won’t affect the attendance at the Camp Nou. “We hope people come because this is the first in the competition. We know they will support us and make an effort to get to the ground.”