Football
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Barcelona not overconfident against Arsenal - Luis Enrique

Barcelona coach Luis Enrique says there is chance of his team slipping up due to overconfidence in Wednesday's Champions League round-of-16 second leg at home to Arsenal.

Barca go into the game at the Camp Nou as huge favourites to progress given their 2-0 win in last month's first leg at the Emirates Stadium thanks to two Lionel Messi goals.

The Blaugrana side also go into the game unbeaten in their last 37 games in all competitions, with an eight-point lead in the La Liga table and through to the Copa del Rey final, leading to much talk they are set to repeat last season's Treble achievement.

Asked if overconfidence would be a problem for his team given their excellent situation, the Asturian coach told the pre-game news conference that his team knew they could not relax against a team capable of turning the situation around if giving a chance.

"We have done the first part of the job, we must do the second," Luis Enrique said. "I don't have any doubt that the players will not [be over confident]. They are capable [of a comeback] for sure. For their potential as club, and for the players they have. This is not a game to relax in. It is a very good result, but if you concede first, the doubts can arrive. We want to try and get ahead on the scoreboard. We are aware we need to play a good game to get through this tie."

Luis Enrique said he hoped his team could repeat their performance from the first meeting when they had dealt well with the threats Arsenal had presented.

"In the first game there were things we had to do, which were able to do," he said. "They pressed us high up, which we dealt with. They are good on the break, we saw that in the first leg. They are good in the air with [Danny] Welbeck and [Olivier] Giroud, have players coming from deep to get behind us. We managed it well in first leg, but we must do that again tomorrow."

Former Barca forward Alexis Sanchez would be extra-motivated on his return to the Camp Nou, Luis Enrique accepted.

"It could be a stimulus for Alexis, of course, he was here three seasons," he said. "He is a very important player, for Arsenal and for his national team [Chile]. He has great quality, is physically strong, attacks space well, improved his tactical knowledge at Barca. He is a difficult player to stop."

Ex-Real Madrid playmaker Mesut Ozil and England winger Theo Walcott were other of the Arsenal players who would need watching, said Luis Enrique.

"Quality players, like Ozil, Alexis, Walcott, all their attacking players, who come from the second line. We have to defend them with individual marking, and also with the whole team covering. There is just one ball out there, and we want to keep that as long as possible. It is difficult, but we are doing that better than our rivals, which is helping us in games."

Asked if he could follow Gunners manager Arsene Wenger and do 20 years in one coaching job, Luis Enrique laughed at the idea and said short term spells suited him better personally.

"Madre mia... that's impossible here," he said. "Impossible for me, although there are no doubts about Wenger's level as a manager. I don't have enough information to judge Wenger's current situation, but all the time it is more difficult for coaches. There are more teams who can win things. So it makes it difficult to spend so many years in one job. Here nobody gifts you anything. I do not like signing long contracts, that would also save clubs money. If I am not convinced I can help my team, then I would not continue, would not make sense to me."

One of Messi's goals in the first leg was a penalty he scored past Arsenal goalkeeper Peter Cech, although the Argentine then again missed from the spot against Getafe last weekend, meaning Barca as a team have only converted 10 of 20 penalties awarded this season.

The run remained strange but would not lead to any change of policy or takers, Luis Enrique said.

"It remains something of an anecdote, which surprises us all," he said. "But football is like that. I see them confident, Leo primarily, and Neymar and Luis too. I see them as going to score the next time they have a chance to do so. To take a penalty it is always a pressure situation. I am sure we will score the next time. Until now it is not cost us anything -- no points or no games. It has not been too important. I have confidence in my players."

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