The first final of the Valverde era

Ernesto Valverde faces his first real test as Barcelona manager since taking over the reigns in summer. If he losses, and his team are eliminated from the Champions League knockout stages, their season will largely be seen as a failure - and for many that has cost them their job.

Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi came to the Catalan giants rescue in the first fixture at Stamford Bridge, cancelling out Willian's goal in the first half. However, Chelsea were arguably the better team throughout the match and deserved to go into the second leg with a slim advantage if it had not been for a defensive mistake.

To avoid an upset, Valverde will use the full strengths that his squad offer. Messi, whose wife gave birth to their third son at the weekend, is back in the fold after missing the 2-0 win over Malaga while Iniesta appears to have won his fitness battles, although he may not be risked in the starting XI if he isn't quite 100 per cent.

On the other hand, Chelsea will have no choice but to attack as they must score one goal to cancel out the away goal from the first fixture. It may result in a change of tactics from head coach Antonio Conte, who so far has been happy to sit back and punish teams on the counter, although he cannot risk his opponents doing the same to them.

The Camp Nou will, therefore, be the perfect venue for such a finely poised match, the last in a Round of 16 which has seen plenty of upsets and which the quarter-final draw will take place on Friday in Nyon.

Barcelona have a great opportunity to win the treble, one that would be magnificent given the upheavel at the start of the season, and would propel Valverde to the heights of admiration in the Catalan capital.

There's no doubt that this match against Chelsea on Wednesday could make-or-break his first year as Barca boss.