Adrien Rabiot's brace helped Juventus to a much-needed 3-1 win over Maccabi Haifa in the Champions League on Wednesday, boosting their hopes of progressing from Group H.
The Bianconeri approached the match requiring a victory after successive European losses against Paris Saint-Germain and Benfica, and they hit the front through Rabiot's powerful first-half finish.
Angel Di Maria starred with a hat-trick of assists, including a sublime pass to allow Dusan Vlahovic to double Juventus' lead shortly after the break.
Juventus came under pressure after Dean David raced through to reduce the arrears, but Rabiot's late header made the points safe and eased the pressure on Massimiliano Allegri.
Vlahovic twice went close as Juventus started strongly, seeing a well-placed strike turned away by Matt Cohen before dragging a poor effort wide from Filip Kostic's cut-back.
Maccabi posed a threat on the break throughout the first half, leading to jeers from a nervous home crowd, but the Bianconeri made the breakthrough when Rabiot darted onto Di Maria's pass to blast into the roof of the net 10 minutes before the break.
Di Maria was again involved when Juventus extended their lead five minutes after half-time, picking out Vlahovic with a sublime outside-of-the-foot pass before the Serb slotted into the bottom-right corner.
Omer Atzili struck the foot of the post as Maccabi refused to go down without a fight, before Vlahovic was denied a double by the offside flag after converting from yet another Di Maria pass.
David ensured a tense finish when he rounded Wojciech Szczesny to give Maccabi hope with 15 minutes remaining, but Rabiot had the final say, securing Juventus' win by nodding Di Maria's corner home eight minutes later.
What does it mean? Juventus stay alive in Group H
Juventus approached Wednesday's match having lost three successive Champions League games. Had the Bianconeri fallen to a fourth consecutive defeat for the first time in the competition's history, their hopes of progression – and Allegri himself – may not have recovered.
But the Bianconeri – led by their outstanding midfield duo Rabiot and Di Maria – shook off any first-half nerves to move within four points of PSG and Benfica.
Di Maria equals Messi with creative masterclass
Di Maria was limited to one substitute appearance in Juventus' first two European matches of the campaign after struggling with an injury, and the Bianconeri may be left to rue his early absence if they fail to escape Group H.
Since the start of the 2007-08 campaign – when Di Maria made his first Champions League appearance, no player has bettered his tally of 35 assists in the competition.
Only his legendary compatriot Lionel Messi has teed up as many Champions League goals during that spell.
Rabiot ends long wait
Rabiot looked every inch the natural goalscorer as his brace led Juventus to a vital win, but the France international had endured a long goal drought prior to Wednesday's double.
The 27-year-old's first-half effort ended his 50-game run without a goal in all competitions, and represented his first strike since he found the net against Bologna in May 2021.
What's next?
Juventus will face a huge test of their Serie A credentials when they travel to Champions Milan on Saturday, while Maccabi Haifa go to Maccabi Bnei Raina on the same day.
Chelsea will host Milan on Wednesday in what could well be a must-win fixture for the Blues, who sit last in Champions League Group E.
England has not been a happy hunting ground for Milan, but the group leaders and reigning Serie A champions will be hoping for a change of fortune when they roll into Stamford Bridge.
Meanwhile, Mykhaylo Mudryk will get a chance to show why he is considered one of the top young talents in Europe as Shakhtar Donetsk head to the Santiago Bernabeu to take on Real Madrid.
Paris Saint-Germain will look to change their poor historical record against Benfica, with Kylian Mbappe on the brink of becoming the club's record European goalscorer.
Stats Perform has dug up the most interesting facts and angles for each contest on Wednesday.
Chelsea v Milan
This is the first time these two teams will meet in the Champions League since they were in the same group in 1999, with both of those matches ending in draws. They have not met in a competitive game since, with all four of their 21st-century contests coming in the International Champions Cup (Chelsea won three of those with Milan recording one victory).
Chelsea have only lost twice at home to Italian teams in continental competition, collecting eight wins and three draws. They lost to Lazio 1-2 in 2000, and to Inter 1-0 in 2010.
Milan's record in England also gives no reason for optimism, with only one win from 20 tries in European play (D7 L12).
Olivier Giroud was subbed off in Milan's dramatic 3-1 win over Empoli on Saturday. The France striker could become the 10th player to score for and against Chelsea in the Champions League, and first since Loic Rémy for Lille in December 2019, should he net in this meeting.
Real Madrid v Shakhtar Donetsk
This is the third consecutive season these sides have met in the group stages. It is the fifth time teams have ever been paired together in three consecutive seasons, and Shakhtar was involved in the most recent occasion as well, against Manchester City from 2017-18 through to 2019-20.
Over the past two seasons, they have split the wins evenly, with Shakhtar winning both games in the 2020-21 campaign, before Madrid triumphed in both fixtures last season.
After a win and a draw in the first two matchdays, Shakhtar boast the highest shot conversion rate in the competition, scoring with five of their 10 shots, including two goals from 21-year-old rising star Mudryk.
On the other side, Vinicius Junior leads the Champions League with 33 chances created and seven assists from open play since the start of last season, and he shares the mantle for most goal involvements at 18 with Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski.
Benfica v Paris Saint-Germain
Benfica are looking to extend their surprisingly strong record against Paris Saint-Germain, having won three of their six previous meetings (1D 2L) in European competitions, including the past three in a row. Their last fixture came in the 2013-14 season, with Benfica winning 2-1 at home.
In fact, Benfica have enjoyed plenty of success while hosting French sides, with five consecutive home wins – twice against Lyon, as well as beating Lille, Monaco and PSG.
However, PSG are a different beast now then they were back in 2014, and have only lost one of their past 11 matches in the group stage (8W 2D).
At only 23, Mbappe can become the club's all-time leading scorer in European competitions with one more goal. He is currently tied at 30 with Edinson Cavani.
RB Leipzig v Celtic
These sides both won their home fixtures when they were matched up in the 2018-19 group stage, and they will be desperate for a result as they enter Wednesday's game with only one point between them in Group F.
Celtic will be looking to make history as they have never won a European game away in Germany (10L 3D), failing to score on nine of those 13 occasions.
But it might be a case of a stoppable force meeting a movable object, as Leipzig have not kept a clean sheet in their last seven home games in the competition. They have only shut out their opponents twice from 15 Champions League home games.
Jota will be the key for Celtic's chances, with his six chances created trailing only Napoli's Piotr Zielinski (eight), while only Madrid star Vinicius is credited with more take-on dribbles (11) than Jota's nine.
Other fixtures:
Manchester City v FC Copenhagen
23 – Manchester City are two games away from tying Manchester United's record of 23 consecutive Champions League home fixtures without a loss. They are unbeaten at home in the competition since 2018.
62 – City's Erling Haaland averages a goal every 62 minutes in the competition, netting 26 goals in 21 appearances. He is well clear of second-placed Mario Gomez, who scored his 26 goals on an average of every 102 minutes.
Sevilla v Borussia Dortmund
1 – Borussia Dortmund have only won one of their past 11 trips to Spain in the Champions League (L7 D3), but that win came from their most recent opportunity, against Sevilla in February 2021.
3 – Sevilla have failed to score in each of their past three Champions League games. They have never gone four consecutive games in European competition without scoring.
Juventus v Maccabi Haifa
29 – It has been 29 years since Maccabi Haifa defeated an Italian team in European competition (3L 1D), with their only victory coming in 1993 against Parma.
8 – The Israeli side have lost all eight of their Champions League fixtures since 2002, by a combined aggregate score of 13-1.
Salzburg v Dinamo Zagreb
6 – Salzburg can become the first Austrian team to ever go six games unbeaten in the Champions League if they can avoid defeat against Dinamo Zagreb, with three wins and two draws from their past five.
23 – The last time Zagreb kept a clean sheet away from home in this competition was 23 years ago, drawing 0-0 against United at Old Trafford in 1999. Since then, they have conceded 52 goals in 18 away games (2.9 per game).
Massimiliano Allegri says Juventus' Champions League clash with Maccabi Haifa is a "must win" following their difficult start to the 2022-23 season.
A 3-0 victory over Bologna in Serie A over the weekend saw the Bianconeri finally snap a winless streak that started in August, having lost their first two European games to Paris Saint-Germain and Benfica.
But that result has not fully masked the struggles of a side that have looked ill at ease with themselves this term, off the pace all too frequently at home and abroad, with them yet to claim a Champions League win this term.
The visit of the Israeli Premier League champions – the lowest ranked side in the competition by UEFA Club Coefficient – therefore represents a match in which they must prevail to further stem their troubles.
"We must win, but we don’t need anxiety," Allegri cautioned. "One game does not solve all the problems. Hopefully, we'll win.
"It's not an easy game. Maccabi played well in Lisbon [a 2-0 loss to Benfica] and played an even match with PSG [a 3-1 loss]. They press high, and it's going to be tough. We have to respect them.
"It's useless to think about the other teams if we don't win both games against Maccabi. Tomorrow is our most important Champions League game."
Allegri added that he expects to rotate players amid a heavy fixture schedule through October, as teams race towards the start of the Qatar 2022 World Cup next month.
"Surely, we will change something," he noted. "We have a packed fixture list. I can rotate a bit during the game."
Christophe Galtier was relieved to see his Paris Saint-Germain side bounce back from an "average" first half to beat Maccabi Haifa 3-1 in Champions League Group H on Wednesday.
The Ligue 1 champions fell behind to Tjaronn Chery's strike midway through the first half, but they went in at the break level thanks to Lionel Messi's close-range finish.
The Argentinian's goal saw him move clear of long-time rival Cristiano Ronaldo as the player to have scored against the highest number of opponents in the Champions League (39).
It also meant he became the first player in history to score in 18 different Champions League seasons.
Kylian Mbappe and Neymar added to Messi's goal in the second half as PSG won their opening two matches in a Champions League campaign for the first time since 2019-20 under Thomas Tuchel, when they went on to reach the final.
While Galtier was unimpressed with his side's below-par display in the first half, he praised his players for the way they reacted to his instructions after the break.
"We had two or three big situations in the first period and they had some too; they pushed hard in what was a big atmosphere," he told RMC Sport 1.
"We were not well organised and we were quickly cut in two. It made for a very difficult first period. We had to rectify things and after the break we were much more compact.
"The opponents are always of very good quality in the Champions League. We had to react after the first period which was average, especially on a tactical level.
"We were cut open, our team block was low and Maccabi pushed high. From the moment the front three went down to get back in the block, we were better.
"It was not a question of lack of effort, but a question of poor analysis of the pressure between our midfielders and our attacking trio."
Mbappe's strike means he has now scored 30 goals in 46 Champions League games for PSG, taking him level with Edinson Cavani as the club's highest scorer in the competition.
Like his coach, the 23-year-old was not impressed with PSG's first half and says they need to improve quickly.
"We fell asleep a bit and we conceded this first goal," he told Canal+. "Then we reacted well. We started to install our game and make differences. We were able to score the second and seal the win at the end with the third.
"We have to improve. We will have to work. We work during the week but now we have to get results quickly because the important things will happen quickly, like the World Cup."
Christophe Galtier was relieved to see his Paris Saint-Germain side bounce back from an "average" first half to beat Maccabi Haifa 3-1 in Champions League Group H on Wednesday.
The Ligue 1 champions fell behind to Tiaronn Chery's strike midway through the first half, but they went in at the break level thanks to Lionel Messi's close-range finish.
The Argentinian's goal saw him move clear of long-time rival Cristiano Ronaldo as the player to have scored against the highest number of opponents in the Champions League (39).
It also meant he became the first player in history to score in 18 different Champions League seasons.
Kylian Mbappe and Neymar added to Messi's goal in the second half as PSG won their opening two matches in a Champions League campaign for the first time since 2019-20 under Thomas Tuchel, when they went on to reach the final.
While Galtier was unimpressed with his side's below-par display in the first half, he praised his players for the way they reacted to his instructions after the break.
"We had two or three big situations in the first period and they had some too; they pushed hard in what was a big atmosphere," he told RMC Sport 1.
"We were not well organised and we were quickly cut in two. It made for a very difficult first period. We had to rectify things and after the break we were much more compact.
"The opponents are always of very good quality in the Champions League. We had to react after the first period which was average, especially on a tactical level.
"We were cut open, our team block was low and Maccabi pushed high. From the moment the front three went down to get back in the block, we were better.
"It was not a question of lack of effort, but a question of poor analysis of the pressure between our midfielders and our attacking trio."
Mbappe's strike means he has now scored 30 goals in 46 Champions League games for PSG, taking him level with Edinson Cavani as the club's highest scorer in the competition.
Like his coach, the 23-year-old was not impressed with PSG's first half and says they need to improve quickly.
"We fell asleep a bit and we conceded this first goal," he told Canal+. "Then we reacted well. We started to install our game and make differences. We were able to score the second and seal the win at the end with the third.
"We have to improve. We will have to work. We work during the week but now we have to get results quickly because the important things will happen quickly, like the World Cup."
Paris Saint-Germain forward Neymar took to social media swiftly after the 3-1 victory over Maccabi Haifa in the Champions League to complain about his booking.
The Brazilian scored PSG's third in Israel, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe both already on the scoresheet as Christophe Galtier's side responded after Tjaronn Chery had given the hosts a surprising lead.
Neymar was left frustrated with German referee Daniel Siebert though, who elected to issue a yellow card for his antics after finding the back of the net – despite it being his customary celebration.
The 30-year-old wasted no time in expressing his feelings on the matter, taking to his Instagram account to unleash his thoughts under a caption of "football keeps getting more annoying!"
"Another victory, congratulations, but we move on right? There it is; a celebration is a yellow card, another one for the list for NJ (Neymar)," he said.
"It's only with me that these things happen to. Next time I will warn the referee's that I am going to do it."
Neymar then took his views to Twitter in a series of posts, writing: "I'm asking now, okay?
"Total lack of respect for the athlete. This kind of thing can't happen. I take the yellow for simply not having done anything and I continue to be harmed.
"And the judge? He will not even say he was wrong. A lot of lack of respect."
He then posted a clip of his celebration alongside the name of Siebert, adding the use of emojis to reflective of his antics.
Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar were all on target as Paris Saint-Germain came from behind to beat Maccabi Haifa 3-1 in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Tjaronn Chery gave the Israeli side hope of a famous victory when he powered home from close range in the 24th minute.
But PSG responded well to that early setback and pulled level before the break when Messi stroked home following fine work by Mbappe.
France international Mbappe put the visitors ahead and Neymar then sealed the three points late on as PSG made it two wins from two in Group H following last week's victory over Juventus.
Josh Cohen denied a clean-through Mbappe after just 70 seconds, while at the other end Gianluigi Donnarumma got down well to keep out Mohammad Abu Fani's strike in the ninth minute.
Maccabi stunned the Ligue 1 giants shortly after the midway point of the first half when Chery stole in at the back post to volley home Dolev Haziza's superb cross from six yards.
PSG restored parity eight minutes before the interval, though, when Messi clipped home from close range after Mbappe's low cross from the left had been deflected into his path.
Frantzdy Pierrot squandered a golden opportunity to put Maccabi ahead again early in the second half, the forward narrowly directing Pierre Cornud's cross past the post.
Messi was denied by a wonderful save from Cohen, but there was nothing the Maccabi goalkeeper could do to keep out Mbappe in the 69th minute as the 23-year-old curled past him after latching onto Messi's pass.
Neymar then put the seal on the victory two minutes from full-time when he latched onto Marco Verratti's ball over the top and fired a crisp finish past Cohen.
Lionel Messi has moved clear of long-time rival Cristiano Ronaldo as the player to have scored against the highest number of opponents in the Champions League.
Paris Saint-Germain forward Messi has now found the back of the net against 39 teams in the competition after pulling his side level at 1-1 against Maccabi Haifa on Wednesday.
It moves him one clear of Ronaldo, who will not catch him this season given Manchester United are playing in the Europa League in the 2022-23 campaign.
Messi's goal also saw him become the first player in history to score in 18 different Champions League seasons.
There was no shortage of thrills and spills on matchday one of the Champions League, and Wednesday's action promises more of the same as one of the world's most in-form strikers faces his former club.
Erling Haaland has made a spectacular start to his Manchester City career, hitting 12 goals in all competitions since his move from Borussia Dortmund, but how will he fare when his old team visit the Etihad Stadium?
Elsewhere, Graham Potter will hope to have an immediate impact in his first game as Chelsea's head coach as they bid to bounce back from last week's 1-0 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb.
Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain, meanwhile, are among the favourites to be crowned European champions, and will both be hopeful of making it two wins from two outings.
Ahead of another intriguing set of European ties, Stats Perform trawls through the Opta data to highlight the most noteworthy facts for each game.
Manchester City v Borussia Dortmund
City striker Haaland netted 15 times in 13 Champions League appearances for Dortmund, and few would bet against the Norwegian haunting his former team on Wednesday.
Haaland helped himself to a brace at Sevilla last time out, bringing him to 25 Champions League goals in just 20 appearances – the highest tally managed by any player in their first 20 games in Europe's premier club competition.
The visit of BVB will represent a landmark outing for City boss Pep Guardiola, taking him to 150 Champions League games. Only five other coaches have reached that tally, while only two have earned more victories than Guardiola's 94 – Alex Ferguson (102) and Carlo Ancelotti (99).
The omens are certainly good for the Premier League champions, who are unbeaten in their last 20 Champions League home games, winning 18 and drawing two. That represents the longest such sequence by an English side since Chelsea's run of 21 without defeat between September 2006 and December 2009.
Dortmund, meanwhile, have not won at an English side in the competition since beating Arsenal 2-1 in October 2013.
Chelsea v Salzburg
Defeat to Dinamo Zagreb spelled the end of Thomas Tuchel's Chelsea reign last week, and Potter is the man entrusted to ensure they avoid back-to-back continental defeats when Salzburg visit.
Chelsea have never previously lost their opening two games of a Champions League campaign, and last lost consecutive games in the competition in 2019-20, when they were beaten by Bayern Munich in both legs of a last-16 tie.
This will be the first meeting between Chelsea and Salzburg, with the Blues only losing one of their previous four European ties against Austrian teams (W1 D2). Salzburg, meanwhile, have never beaten an English side in European competition in six attempts (D1 L5).
But the Blues will have to be wary of Matthias Jaissle's young guns at Stamford Bridge, and may need to keep a particularly close eye on Noah Okafor.
The 22-year-old has four goals in his last five Champions League outings for Salzburg – only Haaland (eight) has ever scored more for the club in the competition.
Real Madrid v RB Leipzig
Holders Madrid are looking to secure consecutive wins when they host RB Leipzig at the Santiago Bernabeu, and are unbeaten in their last 11 Champions League games against German opponents, scoring at least two goals in all of those matches (27 in total).
Leipzig, however, are unbeaten in their three European clashes with Spanish sides (W2 D1) and will be looking for a result comparable to their 2-1 quarter-final win over Atletico Madrid in 2019-20.
Los Blancos possess a remarkable amount of experience at the highest level; should Luka Modric feature, he will become the first 37-year-old outfield player to play a European Cup/Champions League game for Madrid since Ferenc Puskas in November 1965 against Kilmarnock.
Coach Ancelotti, meanwhile, is on the brink of his 100th win in the Champions League, and could become just the second boss to bring up such a century in the competition (after Alex Ferguson with 102).
Maccabi Haifa v Paris Saint-Germain
Kylian Mbappe scored a terrific brace to get PSG's European campaign off to a flying start against Juventus, and a trip to Maccabi Haifa gives him the opportunity to make club history.
The striker has scored 29 goals in 45 Champions League outings with PSG, scoring against 14 of the 17 opponents he's faced with the French champions. One more goal will see him level Edinson Cavani's record of 30 goals in the competition for the Ligue 1 side.
He could be aided by the in-form Neymar, who has provided eight assists for Mbappe in the Champions League, more than any player has assisted another in the competition since the start of 2017-18.
The final member of their revered forward trio, Lionel Messi, also has his eyes on making history.
Messi has scored against 38 different teams in the Champions League, the same amount as his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo, and will be keen to claim the record outright when he faces Maccabi for the first time on Wednesday.
Other fixtures:
Rangers v Napoli
1 – Wednesday's rearranged match will be the first competitive meeting between Rangers and Napoli. The Serie A side have only faced a Scottish team in European competition once before, exiting to Hibernian in the Fairs Cup in November 1967.
3 – Piotr Zielinski was directly involved in three of Napoli's four goals as they thrashed Liverpool last week (two goals, one assist). This is already his best campaign for goal contributions in the competition since joining Napoli.
Milan vs Dinamo Zagreb
6 - Milan have failed to win any of their last six home games in the Champions League (D3 L3), their longest run without a home victory in the competition.
31.8 – Dinamo Zagreb had just 31.8 per cent possession against Chelsea on matchday one, the lowest of any team who managed to avoid defeat in their opening game.
Shakhtar Donetsk v Celtic
3 – Shakhtar's Mykhailo Mudryk was one of three players to be directly involved in three goals on matchday one (one goal, two assists), along with Robert Lewandowski and Zielinski.
1/13 - Celtic goalkeeper Joe Hart has only kept one clean sheet in his last 13 away Champions League games, with his last coming at Roma in December 2014 (for Manchester City).
Copenhagen v Sevilla
8 - Spanish sides are unbeaten in all eight of their Champions League games against Danish clubs (W6 D2) – only against sides from the Czech Republic (13) have Spanish teams appeared more often without defeat.
3/4 - Sevilla have lost three of their last four Champions League group-stage games (W1), as many as they lost in their previous 22 such matches (W10 D9).
Juventus v Benfica
2 - Juventus have lost their last two Champions League games. Only once in the history of the European Cup/Champions League have they lost three in a row, doing so between May 1968 and September 1972.
4 – Benfica's Alejandro Grimaldo has been involved in four goals in his last four Champions League games (one goal, three assists), more than he was in his first 27 games in the competition (two goals, one assist).
Neymar has roared back to form for Paris Saint-Germain after accepting he fell short of his high standards last season, according to coach Christophe Galtier.
The Brazil star has been PSG's outstanding forward, managing 10 goals and seven assists in eight starts and one substitute appearance so far.
He is close to matching last season's returns already, having scored a modest 13 times and assisted eight goals in 28 games during the 2021-22 campaign.
It has been a return to the Neymar of his prime Barcelona days, and PSG are enjoying the benefits.
"I think it would be disrespectful to think it is just down to me and my technical staff," Galtier said. "Neymar has an awareness of the fact that his performances were not as good last season.
"He has high targets. He came back fit at the start of pre-season. He worked very hard before that. My staff and I decided to play him in the best position to be an artist.
"When Neymar is in a good state mentally and physically, that is what he does and that is how he performs well. The key thing to understand is that, as the coach, he is a player who works extremely hard for the team both going forward and in terms of winning the ball back."
Galtier's team will play Maccabi Haifa on Wednesday in their second Champions League group game, having made a winning start last week against Juventus.
The teams have only met twice before in European competition, with both of those games coming in the Cup Winners' Cup first round in 1998-99. The side from Israel won 4-3 on aggregate but go into this rematch with few expecting them to get the better of star-studded opposition.
Maccabi Haifa have lost each of their last seven Champions League games, going down by an aggregate score of 10-0. Only one team in the history of the Champions League have lost eight in a row while failing to score each time, with Dinamo Zagreb doing so between November 2015 and December 2016.
For PSG, Kylian Mbappe has either scored or assisted in each of his last nine Champions League games (8 goals, 4 assists). He has found the net in each of his last five games, his longest scoring streak in the competition.
As well as Mbappe and Neymar, PSG can also call on Lionel Messi, who is set to face Israeli competition for the first time in the Champions League. A goal in this game would make Messi the outright leader for the most different sides scored against by one player in the Champions League. He is currently on 38, level with Cristiano Ronaldo.
PSG are back in Israel barely six weeks after playing the Trophee des Champions match in Tel Aviv, where they beat Nantes 4-0, with Messi and Neymar both among the goals.
"While we had the support of the Israeli fans for the Trophee des Champions, this time we will be playing in a stadium that will be behind its team," Galtier said.
"It will be a heated atmosphere. In terms of the Israeli league, I am convinced every team in Europe is hard to play against. Everyone tries to raise the bar, and Israeli football has significantly improved with coaches who are well travelled and can take what they have seen elsewhere and bring in foreign players that boost their teams."
PSG are without injured defender Presnel Kimpembe, and Galtier is deliberating over whether to persist with his 3-5-2 formation after losing such a key figure.
Missing out on prime target Milan Skriniar in the transfer window, when Inter held firm, is looking increasingly like a major blow for the French side.
"We wanted an extra centre-back because it's a crazy schedule now," Galtier said. "We were right about that. I understand that the president couldn't change the stance of Inter, and we are going to work with the squad that we have here.
"I have some versatile players, and we will see how it goes. Will we have to change the system? Possibly. We also have some very good young players who can slot in to the upcoming games. That is why it was important for us and for [football advisor] Luis Campos to get that centre-back, but unfortunately we did not manage to."
Robert Lewandowski and Erling Haaland will swiftly come toe-to-toe with their former teammates following Thursday's group-stage draw for the Champions League.
Fresh from his move to Camp Nou in the transfer window, Lewandowski will return to familiar surroundings with Barcelona and Bayern Munich – who boast 11 Champions League titles between them – drawn in a tough Group C along with Inter.
And another reunion will see Haaland come up against Borussia Dortmund, whom he left to join Pep Guardiola's Manchester City. They find themselves in Group G alongside Sevilla and Copenhagen.
Another heavyweight clash will take place in Group H, with Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus set to lock horns.
Benfica eased through to the Champions League group stage with a 5-0 aggregate thrashing of Dynamo Kyiv on Tuesday, while Maccabi Haifa and Viktoria Plzen also qualified.
The three teams will now look ahead to the draw on Thursday when they will find out who they will be facing in the group stage.
Last season's quarter-finalists Benfica built on an impressive 2-0 first-leg victory against a rusty Kyiv side with first-half goals from Nicolas Otamendi, Rafa Silva and David Neres essentially killing the tie by half-time at Estadio da Luz.
Meanwhile, Haifa scored late on to earn a thrilling 5-4 aggregate comeback win over Red Star Belgrade in Serbia to reach their first Champions League group stage since the 2009-10 season.
A 90th-minute own goal from Red Star striker Milan Pavkov was enough to progress the Israeli side, who had been 2-0 down on the night after winning the home leg 3-2.
Haifa will be joined in Thursday's draw by Plzen, who also advanced after coming from behind to beat Qarabag 2-1 on aggregate.
A first-half goal from Filip Ozobic had put the Azerbaijani side in front after a goalless first leg, but Jan Kopic and Jan Kliment bagged after the interval to turn the game around and get their team into the group stage of the competition for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign.
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