Barcelona vs AC Milan: No Excuses for Barca to Fall to Rossoneri at Camp Nou

Barcelona can blame the dodgy pitch at the San Siro all they want for their scoreless draw against AC Milan in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals.

But if Lionel Messi and the superb Spaniards come up short against the Rossoneri on the well-groomed grounds at the Camp Nou on Tuesday, then they'll have only themselves to blame.

That being said, the Blaugrana's complaints about the conditions at the Stadio Meazza aren't exactly unfounded or unsupported. Long-time Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger cried foul over the playing surface when his Gunners were ground to a pulp in Milan in the previous round.

Even Giorgio Marchetti, the director of competition for UEFA, tacitly admitted that conditions at the San Siro, which the Rossoneri share with arch rival Inter Milan, are merely "acceptable":

"The pitch in Milan is a recurring problem of the microclimate inside that stadium and there is nothing more the two clubs can do. Inter and Milan try to get through the problem by re-laying the turf, but many games are consequently played in less than ideal conditions.

"Having said that, the Stadio Meazza playing surface was acceptable. It's only normal that there is a difference between acceptable and ideal.

"Everyone already knows about this problem and I don't know if it can be resolved quickly. [Milan vice-president] Adriano Galliani spoke about a new type of surface, but it's not up to us to say which is best for the stadium."

Of course, there will be no going back to Milan to replay this particular result. The Rossoneri were subjected to the very same conditions, though, in Barca's defense, they're probably much more well-attuned to succeeding in that gap between acceptable and ideal.

Still, the task falls to Barcelona to now live up to their own expectations on their own turf in front of their own supporters. They can ill-afford to dominate in nearly every statistical category (as they did last week) and not have the score reflect their efforts.

That is, unless the Blaugrana are prepared to let their European title defense go by the wayside, unless their use of tiki taka is to become less a boon to their possession, than a bust to their ability to put the ball into the net, especially against Milan's stout defence.

Ideal conditions or no, it's time for Barcelona to step up and show the world why they are the greatest champions in club football today.

Follow @J0shMart1n