Barcelona are travelling by bus to Tuesday’s Champions League semi-final first leg at Inter Milan, showing not even grounded flights and a huge volcanic ash cloud can halt the brilliance of Lionel Messi and Co.

Inter, though, did manage the rare feat of stopping the holders and their Argentine magician from scoring back in September when they met in a goalless draw in the group stages at the San Siro.

A 0-0 draw in the La Liga derby with Espanyol on Saturday and tired limbs from the 985-km bus trip, including an overnight stay in Cannes, will also give Inter hope that Barca will not be at their sparkling best.

An ash cloud from an Icelandic volcano has stopped air transport for much of Europe but Barca are not making excuses.

“With so many hours together on the coach, I am sure it will help us to be more united and to create a tight-knit group to beat Inter,” midfielder Sergio Busquets told a news conference.

“It’s a long journey and it’s not something we are used to but with music and some films I’m sure the trip will feel much shorter.” Coach Pep Guardiola, without the injured Andres Iniesta but with former Inter striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic and left back Eric Abidal back in his squad, has plenty of time to mull tactics.

In recent games, Guardiola has dropped one forward in his habitual attacking trident in favor of a full back, Daniel Alves or Maxwell, who have played in an advanced role to help combat opponents’ attempts to crowd the midfield.

However, it was not very effective on Saturday.

Meticulous Inter coach Jose Mourinho will have taken note of how Espanyol successfully harried and disrupted Barca’s creative department, keeping Messi and Xavi largely under wraps with close man-to-man marking.