At the pre-match press conference, facing the flashing lights of the media, Wenger, dressed in a suit, spoke eloquently.
"Undoubtedly, this is a difficult match. We will face the strongest team in all of Europe at Camp Nou."
"Yes... we did secure a three-goal advantage in the first leg, but that doesn't mean we have already qualified."
"Looking at history, it's not hard to find that Barcelona is a team that performs far better at home than away."
"They often struggle significantly away from home, but once they return to their home ground, they can easily sweep aside opponents."
"Facing such a super strong team that is almost invincible at home, we must start over, forget the score of the first leg, treat the current score as 0:0, and assume we hold no advantage. Only by doing this can we maximize our chances of preserving the fruit of victory."
On the other side, when Guardiola was interviewed, his expression was serious, no longer as gentle and refined as usual.
Clearly, for Espanyol, this match would be an extremely difficult battle to overturn the deficit.
Even though Barcelona's record at Camp Nou is brilliant, Guardiola had no confidence facing the current Arsenal team...
Especially after losing by three goals in the first leg, this was even more the case.
"Our opponent is very strong; the result of last week's match has proven this..."
"I cannot make any promises. I can only guarantee that Barcelona will give their absolute best in this match, striving not to disappoint the fans who came to support us."
Back in the locker room, Wenger spoke to the players who were making their final preparations before the match:
"Lads, this match will be very tough. You must be mentally prepared."
"Of course, don't be afraid of the opponent. The fact that we beat them 6:3 in the first leg fully demonstrates that we are the stronger side."
"Furthermore, Barcelona is currently troubled by the League. Their bitter rivals Real Madrid are only two points behind Barcelona, so their key players have to expend energy in the League, which is also an advantage for us."
"Believe me, the longer this match drags on, the more the scales of victory will tip towards us."
"Come on!!!"
After Wenger finished his pre-match pep talk, Fly immediately took the lead in stirring up the atmosphere: "Screw Barcelona!!!"
"Screw Barcelona!!!"
With Fly leading the way, the other Arsenal players also started cheering loudly.
Even Fabregas was deeply affected by the atmosphere. If it weren't for his deep love for Barcelona, he almost blurted out those words himself.
In the Barcelona home team locker room on the other side, Guardiola was sticking small notes onto the tactics board.
"We made too many mistakes in the first leg..." His finger traced over Messi's name, and he added, "The key today is possession, controlling the tempo."
Guardiola suddenly looked at the Spanish defender who was overwhelmed by Fly last week and reminded him:
"Piqué, you are responsible for marking Fly. His off-ball movement is more dangerous than any statistic."
"Remember, do not stick your leg out unless absolutely necessary, and at the same time, pay attention to maintaining the distance between yourself and the goalkeeper. Do not give him enough space to sprint."
"Otherwise, once this guy, who is arguably the fastest on Earth in the first thirty meters, gets going, we will be helpless..."
Piqué nodded with a grim expression upon hearing this.
The humiliation from the last match was still vivid in his memory. He swore that he would get his revenge in this match!
Especially when he thought about his woman advising him not to provoke Fly and to maintain a good relationship with him, God knows how frustrated he felt deep down...
Piqué wasn't a fool; he knew the reason his woman advised him.
It was nothing more than Fly having a very good family background, so it was best not to provoke him if possible...
Additionally, he also had a 'Modern Bestselling Queen' superstar girlfriend. Shakira needed to have a good relationship with Taylor if she wanted to expand into the North America market.
Otherwise, if she, a Colombian, offended the popular rising star in the United States, it would only make her already difficult journey in America even harder...
Piqué couldn't help but feel annoyed whenever he thought about these things.
Understanding it was one thing, but accepting it was another...
The proud Piqué felt extremely unhappy thinking that his woman had to rely on that annoying brat Fly.
But there was nothing he could do. His family only had some influence locally in Catalonia. He could only watch helplessly at what happened across the Atlantic in America, powerless...
Since he was helpless against Fly in other aspects and even had to rely on him, Piqué could only hope to give him a hard time on the pitch!
The team crest on the armband brushed against the tactics board, making a slight sound.
That was the sound of Captain Xavi communicating with Guardiola.
Barcelona's number one star, Messi, sat on the bench in the corner, repeatedly checking the studs on his boots.
The crushing defeat in the first leg made him, already taciturn, even more silent...
At this moment, the Argentina's eyes were like ice-cold daggers, filled with killing intent.
Iniesta handed him a bottle of sports drink. The two spoke softly in Spanish, occasionally looking out the window – the singing of the away fans penetrated the double-paned glass, and they could vaguely hear shouts of "Adams! Adams!"
"Léo, we cannot disappoint the fans who came here to watch the match..."
Messi nodded upon hearing this, and with a firm tone, he said:
"Don't worry, Andrés, we will win, I swear..."
With 5 minutes left until the match, the referee team summoned both sets of players. Arsenal players and Barcelona players all walked out of the locker room and entered the players' tunnel.
The Main Referee for this match was the England Howard Webb. The most controversial match this bald referee officiated in his life was the 2010 South Africa World Cup final.
In that World Cup final, Howard Webb was "ruthless," directly issuing 14 yellow cards and 1 red card, which was quite controversial.
Especially the famous scene – De Jong's kick to Xavi Alonso's waist, a moment that earned De Jong the infamous nickname "De Jong of the South" and became a famous image in football history, Webb only showed a yellow card.
Given the strict officiating standards in that match, this malicious, potentially injurious tackle should undoubtedly have resulted in a red card.
But ultimately, "De Jong of the South" escaped dismissal...
Howard Webb was therefore criticized by various experts after the World Cup.
Even Asia's famous commentator Larry openly mocked his bald hairstyle.
However, according to Fly's memory, this Main Referee also had instances in his officiating history where he refused to award Messi a penalty and directly sent the protesting Guardiola to the stands, indicating that this guy was not a "pro-Barça" referee.
Thinking of this, Fly couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. He was afraid that UEFA would appoint a favored referee for Barcelona in this match. In that case, with the double buffs of the referee and home advantage, Barcelona really might be able to inflict a crushing defeat on Arsenal at home.
Following the Main Referee onto the pitch, the roar of the crowd immediately flooded his senses.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Camp Nou!" The voice of the stadium DJ boomed through the loudspeakers.
"First, let's introduce the home team players..."
When Messi's name was announced, the roar from the stands almost lifted the roof. Camp Nou seemed to be experiencing an earthquake.
Fly stood in the away team line, feeling the terrifying atmosphere created by the home fans, and couldn't help but smack his lips.
Barcelona fans are truly insane...
Just then, a close-up of Fly appeared on the large screen, right after Messi.
Deafening jeers rang out, clearly indicating that the Barcelona fans who came to Camp Nou were very dissatisfied with Fly, who had scored a hat-trick against their home team last week...
Facing the jeers of nearly a hundred thousand people, Fly raised his hands high, a smile on his face, and waved to the crowd, like a king inspecting the subjects under his rule.
This action provoked an even stronger reaction from the Barcelona fans in the stands. For a moment, an endless stream of foul language poured towards Fly.