Even with Paris Saint-Germain up 4-1 over FC Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 tie, Mauricio Pochettino is not yet declaring victory.
PSG pulled off the grand 4-1 win against Barca in the first leg where Kylian Mbappe notched a hat-trick.
The Champions League is one competition that is regularly filled with monumental comebacks. There were not any notable comebacks last season due to the switch to a one-legged tie for the quarterfinals and semifinals. But as seen in years past, many clubs have the potential to pull off shocking comebacks.
Pochettino knows very well how teams can put together such grand wins, especially as his now-former Tottenham side pulled off a comeback win over Ajax in the Champions League two seasons ago. And as he detailed to AFP (via L’Equipe), the tie against Barca is not over just yet.
“In football anything is possible, the most incredible can happen, both positive and negative,” Pochettino said. “Sometimes the unthinkable can happen. But we are positive. We prepare every match in the same way, always with the mentality of generating positive feelings and of thinking that we have to win yet another time to go to the next round.”
Barca would need to score four goals in the return leg while keeping PSG off the scoreboard in order to orchestrate a La Remontada part two. A mere one goal scored by PSG in the second leg could put a massive dent in any of Barca’s comeback aspirations.
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