With Barca already guaranteed first place and Panathinaikos certain to finish bottom, the only remaining battle in Group D heading into the final round of matches is the race for second place. FC Copenhagen currently occupy that spot and they boast a one-point lead over Rubin prior to the visit of a Panathinaikos side who have picked up just two points in five games. That would suggest Copenhagen are firm favourites to join Barca in the next phase, but Rubin - who have the same head-to-head record against the Danish side with both clubs having won 1-0 against the other at home - will be hopeful of causing an upset at the Nou Camp, despite Barca's stunning form. Pep Guardiola's troops are unbeaten in 19 competitive matches and in their last nine outings they have scored 36 goals in claiming eight wins - including a 5-0 mauling of bitter rivals Real Madrid in their last home match. However, Rubin have a good record against the Catalan giants, drawing two of their three previous meetings with Barca whilst also claiming a shock 2-1 win at the Nou Camp in last season's group stages. Another glimmer of hope for Kurban Berdyev's team is that Guardiola could opt to ring the changes for a match that has little riding on it for the Spanish champions. In naming his squad for the encounter, Guardiola omitted David Villa, Xavi, Pedro Rodriguez and Dani Alves, along with the injured Gabriel Milito and Seydou Keita, and has called up five players from the reserves. Nevertheless, the 18-man party still includes four Spanish World Cup winners, plus superstar Lionel Messi, who took his tally to 18 goals in his last 13 appearances with a brace in Saturday's 3-0 win at Osasuna. Alves said of the Argentinian, who along with club-mates Xavi and Andres Iniesta was today shortlisted for the FIFA Ballon d'Or award: "For me he is a living legend for how he plays and how he surprises us day by day." Barca's win over Osasuna, which came after a frantic and controversial race to Pamplona by train and coach due to the air traffic controllers' strike in Spain, kept Guardiola's men two points clear at the top of the Primera Division standings. Rubin are unbeaten in their last 14 matches in all competitions since losing to FC Copenhagen away in mid-September, although they did not play this weekend as their Russian Premier-Liga season finished on November 28. Rubin drew their final game 0-0 against Lokomotiv Moscow, leaving them in third place in the standings, 10 points behind champions Zenit St Petersburg.
