Simonsen revels in Barça mastery

Former Ballon d'Or winner Allan Simonsen is backing his old side FC Barcelona to become the first team in 20 years to lift the European Champion Clubs' Cup in consecutive seasons.

Barça spell
Crowned European Footballer of the Year in 1977, the Danish midfielder spent four years at Camp Nou after building his reputation first at Vejle BK and then with VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach, the club he helped spur to UEFA Cup glory in 1975 and 1979. Simonsen claimed the 1982 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup during his time at Barça and he believes Josep Guardiola's troops have the talent to taste European success again this term, following their win over Manchester United FC in last season's UEFA Champions League final.

'Top of the top'
"It's difficult, but I think they're big favourites," he told uefa.com, expecting the team to recover from a 2-1 home defeat by FC Rubin Kazan on Matchday 3. "If they manage to play like they did last year, then they will win it for sure, because I think that at the moment they are the top of the top." The 56-year-old still calls Barcelona home so is well-placed to comment on the current crop. "They're really the best team in the world. The way they're playing – I haven't seen anything like it for years. It's great to be a part of it because I'm living in Barcelona and I see nearly every game, either in the stadium or on television. I really look forward to every match they play."

Small players
The closest Simonsen came to lifting the trophy himself was in 1977 when his Mönchengladbach side were defeated in the final by Liverpool FC. Simonsen scored the German side's goal and would later become the only player to score in all three major European club finals, the European Cup, the UEFA Cup and UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. A diminutive winger who loved to race past defenders and score goals in his heyday, Simonsen naturally feels a close kinship with the Catalan outfit's leading lights. "They have so many good players, but the smallest players in the team are the strongest at the moment," he explained. "[Lionel] Messi, [Andrés] Iniesta, Xavi [Hernández] – very small players but technically fantastic. I love them a lot, because in addition to their skill they're very quick as well, so they have everything."

Denmark emergence
The former Faroe Islands and Luxembourg coach will also be a keen observer of next summer's FIFA World Cup, with Denmark having won their qualifying group to reach their first major tournament since 2004. Simonsen was a member of the first Denmark team to grace a major finals when his penalty against England at Wembley helped send Sepp Piontek's side through to the 1984 UEFA European Championship, and he is proud of his role in that pioneering lineup. "That match told our fans and the team that we could win anywhere in Europe," he said. "We had great players then, like Barcelona and Real Madrid today. They were playing for big clubs all over Europe and had good technique and very good skills, plus we had a very good trainer and our fans were always behind us. That was the secret."

Allan Simonsen was talking to uefa.com during the Budapest leg of the UEFA Champions League Trophy Tour, presented by UniCredit. To watch part of this interview in the uefa.com Magazine, click here.