New Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says that Barcelona are the best in the world, but that he is equally concerned about facing Borussia Monchengladbach in the Champions League.
City take on Barca, who are coached by Luis Enrique, at the Camp Nou on Oct. 19 and then host them two weeks later at the Etihad Stadium in a Group C that also includes Celtic and Gladbach.
And former Barcelona manager Guardiola, who joined City after three seasons in charge of Bayern Munich, told Catalunya Radio: "We will play against the best. Nobody plays better than Barca."
Barcelona's attacking trio of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar combined to score a jaw-dropping 131 goals in all competitions last season, 10 more than in the 2014-15 campaign.
"The three players upfront [Messi, Suarez and Neymar] make the difference but there is also a lot of work that goes at the back," Guardiola added.
"You can see in the way they play that work has been done at the back and is what Luis Enrique has done and will continue to do in the coming years. They are the best and it's a great test for us. We will see what level we will give."
Guardiola led Barca to unprecedented success during his four-year tenure, during which he won 13 trophies -- including two Champions League -- before his departure for the Bundesliga in 2012. And Manchester City are expecting him to bring success on both the domestic and European fronts.
The Blues open their Group C campaign at home to Borussia Monchengladbach on Sept. 13 before traveling to Glasgow to face Celtic on Sept. 28.
Gladbach finished fourth in the Bundesliga, 33 points behind champions Guardiola's Bayern Munich, and had to go through qualifying to reach the group stages of Europe's elite club competition. But City's new manager is not taking the Germans lightly.
"I'm worried about Monchengladbach," the 45-year-old said. "I know them very well. The Champions League starts in the first round and not in the knockout stages. You cannot make mistakes. If you relax in the first two games, you are out."