Kaka fears Barca Friday 8 December, 2006
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Milan star Kaka admits he hopes to avoid Barcelona in next week’s Champions League draw.
The Rossoneri qualified for the Round of 16 as winners of Group H and now await the outcome of the December 15 draw in Nyon to learn who they will face in February.
“I don’t really think we should be choosing opponents, although I have to say nobody would be happy to be drawn against Barcelona,” the Brazilian told uefa.com’s magazine.
“They have a wonderful squad and seem to have got themselves together after a very difficult first round, however nobody knows how things will be in February.
“Barcelona are certainly not unbeatable and we might have to be the ones to prove it,” continued Kaka, who is one of the competition’s top scorers.
“Because of our difficult situation in Serie A, it’s natural for us to have high hopes for the Champions League and every player would love to lift that trophy someday.
“But we can’t forget that it’s in Serie A that we need to book our place for the competition next year. There is a lot of work to do,” admitted the trequartista.
“Nobody appreciated being beaten by Lille, especially when Milan are in a very unusual and unpleasant situation in the domestic League,” explained the former Sao Paulo man.
“It’s not for me to underestimate the effort put on by AEK and Lille, but perhaps we unconsciously lifted our foot from the gas pedal a bit for those two matches.
“In any case we are talking about a club used to winning. People are always going to be demanding results from us,” concluded the 24-year-old.