Manchester City host Barcelona in the second of their Champions League Group C meetings on Wednesday.
Here, we look at some talking points ahead of the game.
CAN CITY STOP MESSI?
Prior to the sides' clash at the Nou Camp a fortnight ago, City boss Pep Guardiola conceded he did not know what instructions he could give his players to stop the lethal Lionel Messi. And so it proved as the Argentinian maestro helped himself to a hat-trick in a game in which he was otherwise relatively quiet. That begs the question of what damage could he do if he was really on song? City may come up with a plan, but might still need a Messi off-night. They will hope his subdued performance in Saturday's poor 1-0 win over lowly Granada indicates his present form.
AGUERO PLAYS THIS TIME
Much was made of Sergio Aguero's unexpected absence from the starting line-up in Barcelona and whether that indicated a lack of trust between Guardiola and the striker. There were certainly occasions earlier in the season when Guardiola had said Aguero needed to be offering more to the team than goals. But Guardiola denied there were any issues and it may simply have been a tactic that backfired. After Aguero roared back to form with two fine goals against West Brom and was described as "special" by Guardiola, it would be an even bigger surprise if he misses out again.
CITY'S BAD RUN OVER
City will be relieved to have ended their recent poor sequence with a comfortable win at West Brom on Saturday. After six games without a victory - their worst run since 2008 and the worst of manager Pep Guardiola's career - questions were starting to be asked of their resolve. Another bad result at The Hawthorns, with Barca next up, could have started to erode confidence.
PLAYING OUT FROM THE BACK WITH CABALLERO
Guardiola has made it clear he will not be changing his approach following the recent poor run. That includes his belief in playing out from the back even though it went spectacularly wrong with Claudio Bravo's sending off at Barcelona. Bravo will be suspended for this return fixture, meaning another opportunity for Willy Caballero, but the back-up keeper will be expected to play the same way.
NOT ALL ABOUT GUARDIOLA THIS TIME
The build-up to City's game at the Nou Camp was dominated by Guardiola's return to his spiritual home. With that out of the way, there is less focus on the managers this time and more on the action on the pitch. That should help City.
WILL THE CROWD BE UP FOR IT?
The relationship between City supporters and the Champions League has undoubtedly been a slow-burner, with excitement not quite matching that for big domestic occasions. On top of that, City fans' disdain for competition organisers UEFA is well known and continues to manifest itself in the booing of the Champions League anthem, which some argue sets the wrong tone. But there have been nights when passions have ignited and last season's run to the semi-finals was a step forward.
GROUP SITUATION
The Barcelona hammering, coming after a draw at Celtic, has left City in a battle to get out of this group. Another bad result could put them at risk of losing out on second spot to Borussia Monchengladbach or Celtic.
Source: PA-WIRE
