Messi.

What to tell the players when you play Barcelona?

Press? Stand off?

I'm Spurs; Dawson, King etc.

Always mark closely, hard tackling.

Thanks, I will give it a try.

Well no.

You should never tightly mark very pacy players. Gives them too much space to run into, you want your players to stand off.

kick him out of the game, nothing to worry about then ;D

Play super defensive with 2-3 def mid and counter attack with a fast poacher, 2 fast wingers, and a deep-lying playmaker. The key is to keep your formation and avoid through balls. Also clear ball to the flanks and exploit the sides.

I done Barca in the CL Semi-s recently. 4-2 on Agg.

1st leg (h): I tried to play my own game. Went 1-0 down. 1-1. 2-1 down. Then we scored 3 without reply. I basically fought fire with fire. Their ropey defence was caught out, but my defence also wasn't brillian.

2nd leg (a): Defening the 2 goal lead, I took off a striker for a defensive midfielder. High Line, losts of pressing. Ground out a 0-0

Always have your Left Back on Full Back -Defend, and make sure he is a solid defender.

My strategy is to set up a sniper in the crowd.

(Just kidding - I love Messi and Barca)

Hard tackling, defend deep so there's isn't space behind the defence where his pace will destroy you.

I normally play a "Moyes-esque" formation of 8-1-1, four of which man-marking Messi and long-balling up to the lone striker.

Usually get beat 10-0 but it's because the game is crap, not my tactics.

Sometimes if I'm playing a vastly superior team I just go all out attack. Sometimes I get hammered but occasionally I get an amazing result, they just don't expect it.

u shud sit deep and play a deep central midfield to deny space for their little ones...!!

also if messi plays wide right you shud try to either double up on the left with a defensive winger or play a right footed leftback ie arbeloa, and show him onto his right foot

Sometimes if I'm playing a vastly superior team I just go all out attack. Sometimes I get hammered but occasionally I get an amazing result, they just don't expect it.

This might be crazy enough to work especially for npower teams playing big teams in Carling/Fa cup.

My strategy is to set up a sniper in the crowd.

(Just kidding - I love Messi and Barca)

Careful with that.you don't want to mistakenly snipe your GK.

Sometimes if I'm playing a vastly superior team I just go all out attack. Sometimes I get hammered but occasionally I get an amazing result, they just don't expect it.

This is actually what I do I never worry about the opposition; I'm always focussing on giving them something to worry about. Usually works. I've never defensively set up to nullify an opposition - the most I've done is utilise a DMC in my standard formation if my squad is weak in relation to the league overall.

I played against Barcelona not along go in my Liverpool save in the CL quarter finals, away I decided that my team was good enough to score a goal or 2 wasn't too bothered if I was outscored as long as i got an away goal or 2 so played a counter attack system but still rather attacking set up. I lost 4-3 at the Nou camp after going ahead once and then having to equalizing twice before succumbing to a 4-3 defeat to a late goal. Bare in mind Messi was absent for the first leg, second leg at Anfield I treated them like any team visiting Anfield, apart from making a plan to keep Messi quiet which involved Danny Wilson shifting to LB and Arturo Vidal shifting to DM but on the left side. I simply instructed my players to show him out wide and used hard tackling, he basically did nothing all game and I managed to win 5-0