Unai Emery believes Barcelona are among the leading contenders to win this season’s Champions League, praising the standard Hansi Flick’s side have reached ahead of Aston Villa’s trip to the Camp Nou on Tuesday.

The Premier League team travel to Barcelona for a demanding European fixture. Emery has made clear that his squad will need to withstand the hosts’ attacking threat and perform with considerable resilience.

The Villa manager also pointed to Barcelona’s strong record in European competition, saying the club is operating at a level matched by very few sides.

Speaking before the match, Emery said only a small number of clubs have the quality to claim the Champions League this season, and included Barcelona in that group.

"They’re the favourites to win this competition, given their current form and what they’ve accomplished over the past decade," Emery stated. "We can count them on one hand - five teams - and one of them is Barca. If Barca play at their best, they can beat anyone. They’re going to push us very hard, and we’ll have to play with a lot of character."

ASA