“It doesn’t necessarily have to be Chelsea or Barcelona. Preferably a team who are a bit easier to play our own game against. In that sense I’d happily take a bit of luck in the draw. And it would be nice if we had the first leg away as well.”

-Bayern Munich winger and German International Bastian Schweinsteiger (25) in an interview with Bundesliga.de

“We have set a very high standard and now we are like slaves to that … but we have to overcome such difficulties … we have to charge our batteries and liven up. If we don’t go full out, we won’t win.”

Daniel Alves, FC Barcelona right back, at a press conference.

“When I won the Champions League, there was a time when we raised the trophy, I was standing next to Carles Puyol and I will never forget that. It is an image that will always be in my head!”

Former Barcelona legend Ronaldinho during an interview with UEFA’s official website.

“We depend on us and we should not seek excuses. I am convinced we will win the league because we have a very talented team and we depend on us.”

Joan Laporta, FC Barcelona president, celebrating the 50th anniversary of PB Vallès de Sabadell.

“The team’s reaction when they were reduced to 10 men leads one to be optimistic, but there are certain players that are not up to rub.”

Johan Cruyff, former FC Barcelona coach, in his weekly article in El Periodico.

“Barcelona is the place where I intend to live when I’ve finished my career. Whenever I’m going to party there, I have a home, some business, friendship with the players, with president Joan Laporta. My wife has friends there. I have the idea of being a sort of ambassador of FC Barcelona, working for the club in the city or elsewhere. I’m already working on it.”
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“Lionel Messi and Xavi are the best I have seen. I played against Messi in an international friendly and his footballing ability is amazing, particularly his dribbling at pace and the precision of his finishing. I also really admire Xavi because of the way he dictates games and has been with the same club since he was young.”

Tottenham Hotspur winger and Croatian international Niko Kranjcar (25), during an interview with Hotspur Magazine.

“I can’t believe the president of Barça has come here. We are very happy. It means a lot to us.”

Arsene Hanyrwa, aged 16, a refugee at the Kiziba camp, Rwanda.

Asked if Chelsea are the only team who can stop FC Barcelona winning the Champions league:

“No, for me the best team is Barcelona, because they have won six titles and they’re still playing well. It’s difficult [to predict a winner of the Champions League] because, look, Liverpool were knocked out,  and we too, and there are teams who have changed considerably so, today I would say my favorite is Barcelona.”

“Guardiola was already a coach when he was playing – he’s never stopped being a coach and he’ll never stop being a player. His way of understanding football is very close to that which Johan Cruyff believed in and he’s putting that into practice now.”

Juan Manuel Lillo (44), former coach of Dorados Sinaloa – the Mexican team Guardiola played for, current coach of Almeria.

“Barcelona have the power of recovery, as they have good habits that can take them where they want to go.”

Spanish national team coach Vicente del Bosque, at a press conference on Monday.

“Right-back is the least appreciated position on the pitch. That’s why it’s becoming harder to find classic wing-backs. It’s one of the most complete positions – you run a lot, mark, attack, cover the centre-backs, go in midfield, and close down very well. I don’t get why when a team are losing it’s always a wing-back who is substituted – generally the right-back. That doesn’t encourage kids to play there!”

“We had done more than enough to be better than to be drawing 1-1. We did things right tonight. We were ourselves again, we played a very good game and were well organized. This is the way forward, as I said, tonight we found ourselves again.”

Pep Guardiola, FC Barcelona coach, in a press conference after the game against Malaga.

“When I was child I was a fan of Barcelona. I still like to watch their games.”

Mesut Ozil (21) ,Werder Bremen star and German international in an interview with UEFA answering the question “Who are your favourite team?“

“There is a beauty that is bred in Barça’s academy, a beauty that reflects everything good about the game. It is an essence purer than mere numbers, and long may it continue.”

Rob Hughes; article published in the NY Times.

“Everyone in Holland thinks that Barca is a bunch of good players who go out onto the pitch and simply improvise. No tasks, no instructions, basically trying to play ball nicely and score goals. This couldn’t be further from the truth. We work extremely hard, in particular without the ball. We have the task to repossess the ball within three seconds. Guardiola is totally explicit. If a player of the opponent gets the ball, we immediately circle in, like a pack of wolves. The whole team tightens up and puts pressure. The moment we lose the ball is effectively the best moment to repossess it, because the opponent’s team is not placed well. They’ve been hunting us and in that turn around time, is our chance to overwhelm them. And we train this endlessly.”

Zlatan Ibrahimovic (28), Barcelona striker qouted in a interview published on worldcupblog.org

“I think the arrival of Cesc would be very good for us all, for the fans especially, because he is a great player with great quality. If he comes to Spain he can demostrate the player he is…I do not know but I think Cesc is more for Catalunya than Madrid but that’s for Barcelona to talk over. Anything can happen.”

Villareal Captain and Spanish International Marcos Senna, 33.

“We cannot afford to make any expensive errors, but I see that the team want to win the Champions League again and to do that we must give everything.”

Carles Puyol, FC Barcelona captain and Central Back, at a press conference.

“He’s the best coach, he has proved it, right? It’s obvious with the progress Barca is making, that Pep is doing a great job. In light of the results, Pep has done excellent and deserves everything.”

Former Barcelona manager and current Galatasaray coach Frank Rijkaard hails his successor Pep Guardiola as the best coach in the current era.

“Milan had their dominance with people like (Paolo) Maldini and (Franco) Baresi, then, at the start of the decade, Valencia, Real and Barca were all in the semis. In recent years English teams have done well and got to a lot of semi-finals and finals. But you have to go with Barcelona. They have the experience of winning it last year and they are top of their own league too. You just cannot write off a team with all that quality.”

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, speaking at a pre-match press coference ahead of his side’s clash against AC Milan.

“I’ve always said Real Madrid start the season nine points clear of everyone else. The three when they play at the Vicente Calderon, the three when we go to the Bernabeu and the three when Barca come here. I’ve also noticed that whenever Barcelona loses at the Calderon, they win the league”.

Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo, speaking at a press conference after his clubs win against Barcelona.

“Yes, they are games with many goals because it’s something historic. Hopefully this time there will also be many goals but only ours.”

FC Barcelona defender Gabriel Milito (29) when asked about the recent high scoring games between Barça and Atlético Madrid.

“We can’t make excuses in that respect (Absences of players). We have to take the absences as they are. We simply have one added difficulty to overcome. We’ll take the challenge.”

Iniesta, FC Barcelona midfielder, at a press conference Friday.

“They [Barcelona] are a great team, a team that knows very well how each other plays even with their eyes closed. I talk a lot to Eric [Abida] and Titi [Henry] and they tell me that a nice atmosphere prevails, that they all go in the same direction and that all that is important for adaptation is shown each week… and last season they have won a lot.”

Bayern Munich winger and France international midfielder Franck Ribery (26) during an interview with former France and Bayern Munich player Bixentu Lizarizu for the program Le Club de Liza

“I have said plenty of times, the referees don’t enter my thinking, I don’t care if they leave us with 10, 9 or 8 players. Or, if they blow three penalties against us, we will have to score four. What happens is our responsibility. The best thing to do is to look at yourself — and with me that’s what we’ll always do.”

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola at a press conference after the Getafe match.

“I have never hidden that one day I would return to Barcelona. I have been a blaugrana since I was nine months old when I first entered the Camp Nou with my grandfather, I never stopped going to the stadium and have been a cule all my life. For one reason or another I had to leave, but you never know what can happen in the future”

Former La Masia graduate and Arsenal skipper Cesc Fabregas, in an interview with Catalunya radio on Wednesday.

” I have been to Camp Nou a few times to see friends like Puyi (Carles Puyol) or Gerard (Pique). But I don’t like to bother them after the game. I just go, watch the match, and then leave.”

Cesc Fabregas, Arsenal Player.

Written by: J.M. Spencer

“I take those whistles as a challenge, I know I will eventually end up playing at my level and that the fans will applaud it”

FC Barcelona player and Ukranian international Dmytro Chygrynskiy, during an interview with catalan sports paper ’sport’.

“Happiness is never complete (at Barcelona). There’s always someone pointing the finger. If you play up front and don’t score you have to live with it but judging them by their goals alone is as easy as it is incorrect. Their movement, on and off the ball, creates a great advantage of an unknown value.”

Former Barcelona coach, player and legend Johan Cruyff told on his weekly column in ‘El Periodico’ that both Thierry Henry and Zlatan ibrahimovic still contribute a great deal to the team despite their recent goal drought.

“We wouldn’t be where we are this season without Puyol. He’s the player who’s performed most often and he’s solving a lot of problems.”

Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola praises skipper Carles Puyol at the post match press conference on Saturday.