BARCELONA -- Pablo Zabaleta has said Manchester City must be perfect if they are to get a positive result from Wednesday's Champions League clash with Barcelona.

City have met Barca in the round-of-16 in two of the past three seasons, losing all four matches.

Zabaleta, who was involved in all four of those games and was sent off in a 1-0 loss at the Camp Nou in March 2015, is expected to return to the starting line-up after sitting out City's 1-1 draw with Everton on Saturday.

The 31-year-old former Espanyol defender told a news conference: "We need to perform at the same level as them, we can't make mistakes.

"You can't lose your concentration, you need a perfect game to beat Barcelona -- that is the key. Not every team comes to the Camp Nou and wins -- there are moments when you can suffer but hopefully not [tonight]. Hopefully we can control the game as much as we can and win the game playing the way we wanted to."

City boss Pep Guardiola has pledged to continue with City's high-pressing game at the Camp Nou to try to dominate possession and control the match.

Pablo Zabaleta is way of Barcelona's attacking trio and Lionel Messi in particular. Urbanandsport/NurPhoto via Getty Images

That could put pressure on a defence coming up against an attacking trio of Luis Suarez, Neymar and Zabaleta's Argentina teammate Lionel Messi, who is back after recovering from a three-week injury layoff.

"Leo is always a key factor for Barcelona -- he is the best player in the world," Zabaleta added. "Having him in the squad just changes everything.

"We have seen he has recovered from his injury quite well. He played in the second half against Deportivo and didn't need much time to score.

"We know we need to be ready and they have three players upfront who can make a huge difference. Neymar and Messi are two extraordinary players. They have such an ability to create an imbalance in the rival teams and can make a difference at any time.

"As a defender you can play a perfect game but in the 90th minute you can lose your balance and they make that difference at that time."

On former Liverpool striker Suarez, he said: "Luis is one of the best strikers in modern football so he's a player who for every defender it is difficult to play against.

"He's very intelligent, with ball ability to create chances and define, without the ball always closing down spaces and trying to start the play and go out to the sides. It's important not to give him any advantage. If we give him a chance it could be difficult for us."