(Photo by Jasper Juinen/Getty Images)
Barcelona v Rubin Kazan
Tuesday 20 October 2009, Camp Nou
UEFA Champions League Football
Kick-Off: 19:45 UK (20:45 CET)
Barcelona
Barcelona welcome Rubin Kazan to the Nou Camp having taken four points from their opening two Champions League matches.
Still, Pep Guardiola will be hoping for an improvement in play for Tuesday night's Barcelona vs Rubin Kazan clash following Saturday’s 0-0 draw with Valencia.
Barcelona have brightly outshone opposing teams to start the season, both domestically and in the Champions League. However, after a busy week of internationals, the Blaugrana lacked the cutting edge in front of net when they traveled to the Mestalla on Saturday.
The draw marks the first time this season that Barcelona have failed to take three points from a league match.
Pedro started in place of Zlatan Ibrahimovic in attack for Barca on Saturday after the Swedish international picked up a knock while on international duty, though it is believed that the tall Swede will be fit in time for Tuesday’s Barcelona—Rubin Kazan clash.
Rubin Kazan
Rubin Kazan is a relatively new name on the tips of tongues across Europe this season. However, Gurban Berdiyew’s men are proving that they belong in Champions League discussions in seasons to come.
The 2008 Russian League winners have followed up their success from a year ago and currently top the domestic table with five games remaining.
Still, as they travel to Spain, Berdiyew will know the quality of football played by Barcelona is a quality unparalleled by any team Rubin Kazan has faced in the domestic league this season.
With the likes of Barcelona and Inter in their group, Kazan are not expected to advance from the group stage.
But, with the pressure off, Berdiyew’s men will look to build off a strong 1-1 draw with Inter on matchday two and give Barca all they can handle in this Barcelona v Rubin Kazan fixture.
Prediction
This is the first Barcelona v Rubin Kazan meeting to date, so there are no past results to analyse. Barca have won three of their last four matches against Russian sides at the Camp Nou.
While Kazan have a number of interesting players, most of whom are still relatively unknown, Barcelona should recover quickly from the 0-0 draw with Valencia on Saturday and return to their winning ways.
Barcelona v Rubin Kazan Prediction: Barcelona 3 - Kazan 0
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Read our other Champions League previews too, including AZ vs Arsenal in Holland, Liverpool vs Lyon at Anfield and Inter vs Dynamo Kiev at the Mezza Stadium.
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