Galatasaray must make history

By Graham Hunter

Whatever complications Galatasaray SK coach Fatih Terim faces at the moment his team talk for the final Group H game against Barcelona in the Camp Nou should not feature among them.

Win may not be enough
Quite simply, the 2000 UEFA Cup and UEFA Super Cup winners must win to retain any hope of fulfilling their original billing as second favourites behind Louis van Gaal's all-conquering side. To do this Terim's players must inflict Barcelona's first home defeat against Turkish opposition – and even that will not be enough if Club Brugge KV win away to FC Lokomotiv Moskva. Meanwhile, a draw at the Camp Nou will leave Galatasaray in third or fourth place depending on the result in Moscow.

Bleak backdrop
The last fortnight has provided a bleak backdrop to this crucial match for Terim and his club's estimated 17 million supporters. A 2-1 home defeat against Lokomotiv in their last Champions League game was followed by a 6-0 defeat against bitter rivals Fenerbahçe SK and a 0-0 draw with Adanaspor which cut their lead at the top of the Turkish league to one point.

'Somebody has to pay price'
"Somebody has to pay the price and that person is me," Terim admitted after the Fenerbahçe defeat. "But Galatasary have had a lot of great victories in the past. We have achieved great results when we have needed them most and I believe we will do it again in Barcelona. I understand that Louis van Gaal might rest some of his regular first-team players which may give us more opportunities of reaching the second phase but, above all, I will ask my players to show commitment and pride."

Quartet missing
It does not help Terim, however, that he will be without Ümit Davala, Ümit Karan and Emre Asik - all left behind in Istanbul for disciplinary reasons - as well as the Brazilian Jorge Felipe, who looks likely to return to Brazil.

Injuries and suspension
Van Gaal is more limited by injuries and suspension than anything else. Barcelona are the only side to have won every Champions League group game so far, yet their quest for a clean sweep will be hampered by the absences of Marc Overmars, Luis Enrique, Patrik Andersson, Phillipe Christanval and Fabio Rochemback due to a injuries. Gabri García will also be missing through suspension.

'We want to win'
The Dutch coach has refuted the idea that he views the final game as an opportunity for experimentation - despite his decision to field an inexperienced team in the 1-0 victory over Club Brugge KV in Belgium two weeks ago. "We are at home now, not playing away," he said. "These are entirely different circumstances to the game in Belgium. We want to win and we want the financial benefit which comes with taking three points. Plus there is also the prestige of winning every group game."

Reply to criticism
Van Gaal continued: "Apparently we were criticised in Turkey for my team selection in the last game but those critics were proved wrong. Every coach has the right to use his squad and his team as he sees fit. I made a good decision and we won."