Nolito stresses that Manchester City must put their Nou Camp nightmare behind them and beat Barcelona at the Etihad Stadium tonight if they are to qualify for the Champions League knockout stages.

The Spain international was part of the City team that suffered a 4-0 humbling at the hands of Luis Enrique’s side thanks to a Lionel Messi hat-trick and a late strike from Neymar.

Nolito is wary of Barcelona’s threat more than most after joining City from La Liga side Celta Vigo this summer and knows that back-to-back defeats to the Spanish champions could hand Borussia Mochengladbach or Celtic the ascendancy in the race to qualify from Group C.

"If we want to qualify for the next round we need to win this one," Nolito said.

"We have some difficult games left and the first one is Barcelona. We know how strong they are but we are going to try to take some points off them."

Barcelona, however, will be without first choice defenders Gerard Pique and Jordi Alba for the trip to Manchester and Andres Iniesta will also not feature due to a knee injury.

But, taking into account the sheer wealth of talent in their squad, Nolito knows that City would be naïve to think his side are in for an easier ride this time round.

Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar are still are expected to start for the Catalan giants as they aim to secure top spot in Group C with two games to spare.

"Even if they have players missing it is still Barca we are playing against. They have a very strong squad," He added.

"Whatever player plays can make it difficult for you.”

Sergio Aguero was a shock omission from the City side at the Nou Camp two weeks ago but, after ending his six game goalless run with a brace against West Brom on Saturday, Nolito believes that his teammate could be the deciding factor in tonight's contest.

"I think he is one of the best strikers in the world and we are proud to have him in the team," He said.

"We hope he can have one of those days where he scores many goals and hopefully we can win the match."

Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Show all 22 1 /22 Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings David De Gea - 7 out of 10 Facing just one shot on target, the Spaniard will have been expecting a more taxing afternoon but nonetheless marshalled his backline well at set-pieces. 2015 Manchester United FC Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Antonio Valencia - 5 out of 10 Was exposed all too often by City’s faster and more industrious talents before becoming a liability when the anarchic Kevin De Bruyne switched sides. 2015 Manchester United FC Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Phil Jones - 7 out of 10 Reduced Wilfried Bony to a mere irritant rather than a credible threat, forcing the Ivorian striker out wide to search for scraps which seldom came his way. 2015 Getty Images Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Chris Smalling - 7 out of 10 Described by his captain as ‘one of the best three centre-halves in the world,’ the England man continued his impressive start to the season with another assured outing. 2015 Getty Images Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Marcos Rojo - 8 out of 10 Delivered a minor masterclass in the art of man marking to nullify Kevin De Bruyne’s threat as the Belgian endured a frustrating afternoon. 2015 Manchester United FC Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Bastian Schweinsteiger - 7 out of 10 A calming presence amid a hectic midfield battle, the experienced German made amends for his lack of pace with pin-point accuracy on his distribution. 2015 Manchester United FC Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Morgan Schneiderlin - 7 out of 10 Shadowing the imperious Bastian Schweinsteiger in the centre, the former Southampton man ghosted into pockets of space carelessly afforded to him by his City counterparts. 2015 Manchester United FC Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Juan Mata - 7 out of 10 Surrendered possession cheaply in the opening period but become more of a menace after the restart, in a more advanced role just behind Wayne Rooney. Getty Images Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Ander Herrera - 7 out of 10 Perhaps unfortunate not to be awarded a penalty after a tangle of legs with Raheem Sterling, the little Spaniard has a knack of finding himself behind enemy lines. 2015 Manchester United FC Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Anthony Martial - 6 out of 10 Had little room to manoeuvre on the left wing, a position Louis van Gaal has insisted upon lately, and inevitably cut an isolated and frustrated figure. 2015 Getty Images Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Wayne Rooney - 7 out of 10 After turning 30 on Saturday, the United skipper led from the front. Delivering a display epitomising his responsibilities, his most memorable contributions came in front of his own goal. 2015 Getty Images Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Joe Hart - 7 out of 10 Forced into making a decent save late on to deny Chris Smalling from point blank range, the England goalkeeper remained alert despite a largely uneventful shift. 2015 Getty Images Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Bacary Sagna - 7 out of 10 Refused to gallop down the line as often as City supporters would have liked, preferring to quell the dangers of Anthony Martial - to great effect. 2015 Getty Images Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Vincent Kompany - 7 out of 10 Booked in the first half for a succession of clumsy challenges, the Belgian was forced to walk on eggshells in the second period. Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Nicolas Otamendi - 7 out of 10 Rarely giving Wayne Rooney a moment of peace, the indomitable Argentinian defender is settling into his new role at City with the authority it demands. Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Aleksandar Kolarov - 7 out of 10 Dealt with the unpredictable nature of Juan Mata with swagger before enjoying a relatively uneventful final 23 minutes up against Jesse Lingard. 2015 Manchester United FC Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Fernando - 7 out of 10 An assured, if unremarkable, outing from the Brazilian meant it would have taken a Herculean effort by the United attackers to break the deadlock. Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Fernandinho - 6 out of 10 Impotent in front of goal and often absent at the back, this was an exasperating afternoon for the usually so comfortable midfield general. 2015 Manchester United FC Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Kevin De Bruyne - 6 out of 10 A marked man throughout, the Belgian was forced into rushing any opportunity which came his way. Enjoyed more success up against Antonio Valencia on the left. Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Yaya Toure - 6 out of 10 Sarcastic jeers greeted the Ivorian midfielder’s 77th minute substitution after he spent the afternoon trying and failing to singlehandedly bamboozle his way through United’s defence. 2015 Getty Images Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Raheem Sterling - 6 out of 10 Had the opportunity to wreak havoc down the right, up against a cumbersome Antonio Valencia, but his turn of pace proved more effective when tracking back. Manchester United vs Manchester City player ratings Wilfried Bony - 5 out of 10 Increasingly isolated in attack, this was an outing which will do little to silence the unhelpful – and unflattering - comparisons to injured Sergio Aguero. 2015 Manchester United FC

City manager Pep Guardiola was pleased to see his side end their six game winless run with a 4-0 victory over West Brom at the Hawthorns but realises that they will have to take their form up a couple of notches if they are to pull off a shock result against Barcelona.

"We have to play like a final. It's not a final for them, it is a final for us,” Guardiola said.

"There are just three games left and we dropped two points in Glasgow, so we have to recover those points in the next two games.

"I have never entered a match thinking we can't win but we have to play almost perfectly.

"It's always difficult to win Champions League games and it's always difficult against Barcelona 11 v 11, but when it's 10 v 11 it's almost impossible."

His opposite number and former teammate, Luis Enrique is also not taking the challenge ahead too lightly in spite of his side's demolition job a fortnight ago.

"I think Pep's Man City have a lot of things going for them, they can do many things," Enrique said.