UEFA Champions League holders Barcelona could book their spot in the knock-out phase when they travel to Viktoria Plzen.
Holders could secure place in the last 16 on Tuesday night
UEFA Champions League holders Barcelona could book their spot in the knock-out phase when they travel to Viktoria Plzen.
A Barca victory in the Czech Republic, combined with anything other than a win for BATE Borisov over AC Milan in the other Group H match, would see the Pep Guardiola's side secure their berth in the last 16.
Guardiola's men are level on seven points with leaders AC Milan heading into the fourth round of fixtures, with BATE and Plzen propping up the group with just one point apiece.
Barca sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta said just prior to his side's departure for Prague on Monday: "Before the group stage, the first objective was to qualify. The second objective is to be first, but the most important thing is to get through and be in the draw for the last 16. So a win will mean we can relax a little."
Pressure
Zubizarreta is not expecting it to be easy at Eden Stadium though, recalling the first meeting between the two sides at Camp Nou where Barca needed a late goal from David Villa to seal a 2-0 win.
He added: "The fans there create a lot of pressure. And our opponents have a challenge, which is to beat Barca, something which puts you on the map.
"Viktoria showed us that they are not a team who get daunted, they take risks and they look to create chances. We had a lot of chances in the Nou Camp, but that didn't scare them much either."
The first meeting between the two sides saw Messi - having netted 16 times in his opening 12 competitive matches for Barca this season - draw a rare blank in front of goal, and it sparked a three-match barren run that led to talk of some sort of goalscoring crisis for the Argentina ace, who could reach 200 goals for the club on Tuesday.
However, the 24-year-old responded to that with a hat-trick in the opening half-hour of Saturday's 5-0 league defeat of Real Mallorca - his third treble of the season and 13th overall for Barca.
Speaking after the game, Messi said: "It's crazy to say I was in crisis, just because I'd gone three games without scoring."
Messi's latest hat-trick saw him move onto 199 competitive goals for Barca and, having climbed above Laszlo Kubala into second place on the club's all-time scoring list earlier this month, he now has Cesar Rodriguez's record of 235 in his sights.
Barca are without Pedro Rodriguez and Ibrahim Afellay, while Xavi has a minor calf injury and Alexis Sanchez is unlikely to be risked.
Plzen's hopes of securing a top-two berth in Group H look slim after picking up just a point from their opening three games, which came at home to BATE in round one.
They have been in good domestic form recently though, winning their last three games and scoring 12 goals in the process, and midfielder Milan Petrzela believes that is a handy boost heading into Tuesday's match.
"When you score goals, self-confidence grows and a more confident player certainly helps. You believe in yourself more, plus we have already face them so we know what to expect," said Petrzela, who netted in all three of those victories.
"I think this game will be similar to the one in Barcelona. Barcelona will definitely want to win and will come here with the same tactics. They play their football and it will be very demanding physically."
