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The Serie A team sailed through to the last 16 of the Europa League with a 5-0 aggregate win, after a comfortable 3-0 second-leg victory over Cluj on Thursday.

A brace from Fredy Guarin and a late goal from Marco Benassi was enough to secure the victory over the Romanian side.

And Stramaccioni, talking to reporters after the game, said he was now looking forward to facing Spurs.

"They're a top side, at Champions League level, but we're Inter and we'll show what we're about," he said. 

Flores has been struggling for form in recent weeks and lined up with Victory's reserves at training on Friday, with new arrival Francesco Stella taking the Argentine's place in the first team's forward line.

Former Adelaide United man Flores limped off the training field at the end of the session, with the Victory coach indicating his misfiring star recruit is in doubt for the trip to Gosford.

"Marcos Flores had got a bit of a quad strain so we'll see how he is," Postecoglou said.

The Reds went into the second leg of the last-32 clash 2-0 down on aggregate after defeat in Russia and needed four goals on Thursday to progress after Hulk scored early on at Anfield.

Two Luis Suarez free kicks and Joe Allen's close-range strike gave Liverpool hope but they ultimately fell short on the away goals rule - a fact that did not detract from Rodgers' assessment of his players' performance.

"I'm very proud of the club and the players tonight," he told reporters.

David Moyes' men trail fourth-placed Tottenham by six points, and have won just one of their past five English Premier League fixtures.

Next up is a difficult trip to face Norwich, a game in which Baines insists his team-mates must do everything they can to bring home all three points.

"They are a good side, Norwich," he told the Liverpool Echo. "They started the season well.

"We have found it tough against them and we had a tough game against them down there last season. They are strong at home.

The Barcelona forward was handed the armband in 2011 by coach Alejandro Sabella.

The team has flourished under the 25-year-old's leadership, having lost just one 90-minute match during the past 12 months.

Maradona, a former skipper of the national side himself, said he foresaw the leadership qualities Messi possessed during his time as coach of the team in 2010.

Speaking in an interview with DeporTV, he said: "I saw him in that position, as a leader, not just because a charlatan cannot be captain. I was right.

The Spanish champions have all but surrendered their domestic crown to Barcelona, while they face a tough challenge in progressing to the Champions League quarter-finals following their 1-1 draw with Manchester United in the first leg of their last-16 tie.

The club have also been subject to continuing rumours of dressing-room disharmony, particularly since Mourinho's shock decision to drop captain Iker Casillas at the end of last year.

But Alonso has played down suggestions of a spat between the pair and insists he remains one of the best coaches in the world.

After an exodus of star players in the off-season and a poor start to the campaign, AC Milan have turned a corner in recent weeks, climbing to third in Serie A before comfortably seeing off the Champions League favourites at San Siro on Wednesday.

Berlusconi was full of optimism for the remainder of the season following the victory, and took a swipe at those who dismissed the club's chances of competing with the top sides back in the autumn.

"Last night, without too much effort, we beat Barcelona – the best team in the world," he told reporters.