Iniesta out to silence Barça sceptics

FC Barcelona midfielder Andrés Iniesta is determined to dispel any doubts that have started to swirl around the European champions when they vie to salvage their UEFA Champions League title defence against FC Internazionale Milano on Tuesday.

Elimination fears
A loss and a draw with FC Rubin Kazan have left Josep Guardiola's troops third in Group F, and though they are just a point behind leaders Inter, defeat at Camp Nou combined with a victory for Rubin at home against FC Dynamo Kyiv would end the Catalan club's hopes of advancing. That represents quite a turnaround in fortunes for the team that swept aside all before them en route to clinching the treble last term, and there was further frustration on the domestic stage this Saturday when a 1-1 draw at Athletic Club allowed Real Madrid CF to take over at the Spanish Liga summit.

Crowd support
"I don't know if there are doubts about us or not," said Iniesta. "I understand that there's a lot at stake; that's the truth. I understand this situation makes people doubt us, but we know that our fans are behind us. When the team is doing well it's easy to support us, so I'm convinced they will be there for us tomorrow. The crowd is always there for the big games."

Day of enjoyment
The Spanish international is convinced a combination of the quality within the Barça ranks and the backing of a full house at Camp Nou is all his side need to down José Mourinho's visitors. "This situation means we need to win to move a step forward and the team has its mind set on getting out of this situation and going on to face more important games like this one," he explained. "It's essential for Camp Nou to be full and to play with a crowd that makes our opponents feel uncomfortable. It's a day to enjoy ourselves, for the team to give its all and to boost confidence with an important win."