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Luis Enrique reacts to PSG’s potential Chelsea tie in Champions League draw | Football
Paris Saint-Germain head coach Luis Enrique insists Chelsea are an ‘incredible’ team ahead of their potential Champions League last-16 tie.
The Champions League holders drew 2-2 with Monaco in the second leg of their play-off tie on Wednesday night to progress 5-4 on aggregate.
PSG will now play either Chelsea or Barcelona in the last-16 stage, with the draw due to take place at 11am on Friday.
When asked about the prospect of PSG playing either his former club Barcelona or Chelsea in the Champions League knockout phase, Luis Enrique told Movistar: ‘Neither will be easy.
‘Since it doesn’t depend on me, I’ll adapt to whatever comes. They are two incredible teams.
‘Barca is very special to me and is already becoming a classic for me. Like Manchester City and Real Madrid. Barcelona is a unique city and the club is special.
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‘And if we get Chelsea, we’ll have a few things to work on.’
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Luis Enrique also claimed PSG’s tough Champions League league phase has meant that his players are already acclimatised to high-pressure fixtures in Europe.
‘We deserved this qualification but it was difficult because for me the result was complicated, it was a tricky match,’ Luis Enrique said.
‘There are moments when you lose precision and it’s difficult to recover the level. We have to be happy with what we did, with having overcome this difficult moment.
Who can the Premier League teams play in the Champions League last-16?
Arsenal will play either Bayer Leverkusen or Atalanta
Chelsea will play either Newcastle United or PSG
Liverpool will play either Atletico Madrid or Galatasaray
Man City will play either Bodo/Glimt or Real Madrid
Tottenham will play either Atletico Madrid or Galatasaray
Newcastle United will play either Chelsea or Barcelona
‘What I can say is that if there’s one team in the Champions League that played against the toughest group, it’s us. We’re used to playing against any team.
‘Of course, we want to improve, but we faced a very high-level opponent. Chelsea or Barca would be tough, but if there’s one team that’s ready, it’s us.
‘We have to keep doing the same thing, we’re ready to play any team, in any competition.
‘It’s been a unique season, we’ve had a lot of injured players. That’s not an excuse, but it’s important to have the whole squad available. There are three months of competition left, and we have the same mentality to go out and win.’
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