UEFA Champions League action resumed on Wednesday with a set of mouth-watering clashes between Europe's football powerhouses. But there's no more intriguing match out there than the group stage rematch between Barcelona and Ajax Amsterdam at Amsterdam Arena.
Barcelona has been in a funk as of late after losing back-to-back Spanish La Liga games at the hands of rival Real Madrid 1-3 and lowly Celta Vigo 0-1.
However, Barca midfielder Sergio Busquets believe it's still too early to push the panic button, expressing his confidence his team will figure out how to end their recent woes.
"When you lose you have to improve because there are clearly things you're not getting quite right. We are always self-critical, whether we win or lose. We have keep working to improve, there's nothing else we can do. Hopefully we can put an end to this poor run," Busquets said in an interview on FCBarcelona.com via ESPN FC.
With 2-0-1 (6 pts) record in Group F, Barcelona isn't assured yet of a spot in the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League, as Ajax (0-2-1 for 2 pts) and APOEL (0-1-2 for 1 point) could still make a strong run in the last three games of the group stages.
On the other hand, a Barcelona win against Ajax will give the Catalonian ballclub some breathing room or perhaps the chance of snatching the no.1 spot from group leader Paris Saint-Germain (2-1-0 for 7 points).
Meanwhile, Ajax head coach Frank de Boer his team should assert themselves more against Barcelona if they want to avenge their 3-1 loss two weeks ago at Camp Nuo and keep their Champions League bid alive.
'We need to disturb as a team. We have to give them no air to breathe. Two weeks ago we really had too much fear of Barcelona. Respect is allowed, but fear - of course - is not. I would therefore also like to see passion and confidence," according to De Boer in an interview with De Telegraaf.
Live Stream, Game Stats & Results: Barcelona vs. Ajax match will begin at 2:45 p.m (US EST) on Sky Sports & HD (UK only), Fox (US only). Live Stream feed is available on Sky Go (UK only), Fox Soccer2Go (US) and Sports Stream, while Game Stats, Highlights and Results can be found on ESPN FC Scoreboard. Goals & Highlights will be televised on Sports Stream at 5:45 p.m (US EST).
