(CNN) -- Coach Jose Mourinho has told his Real Madrid players to heed the wisdom of Albert Einstein ahead of Wednesday's Champions League semifinal first leg against Spanish arch-rivals Barcelona.
Having been crushed 5-0 by Barca in this season's first "Clasico" clash in the Catalan capital in November, Mourinho has successfully resorted to more defensive tactics to earn a draw at the Santiago Bernabeu and then victory in the Spanish Cup final last Wednesday.
Real's strategies in those matches bore more resemblance to the Portuguese coach's winning formula against Barca while in charge of Inter Milan in last season's Champions League semis than the all-out attacking blitz that saw Madrid crush Valencia 6-3 on Saturday.
"Each competition is independent of the other and each match has its own story," Mourinho told reporters on Tuesday. "It's the Champions League. We have to give our best without being influenced by what happened before.
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"I don't have a magic potion to beat Barcelona. I work very hard and very seriously, and I spend many hours trying to help the people around, but a few months ago we lost 5-0 and I was the manager then."
Mourinho, seeking to become the first coach to win the European title with three different clubs, hinted that he will again try to stifle Barca's attacking potency as he quoted the world's most famous physicist.
"I told my players there was someone called Albert, Albert Einstein, who said that there is a force more powerful than steam, electricity and atomic energy: will. And this guy Albert was not stupid," the 48-year-old said.
"For me there are no favorites. It's the Champions League semifinals -- two rival teams who know each other very well. Two teams with long traditions, whose players know what it is to be successful, who know how to win things and play big matches."
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Captain Carles Puyol has returned to Barcelona's squad to boost coach Pep Guardiola's defensive options, but key midfielder Andres Iniesta has been ruled out with a calf injury.
Puyol missed Saturday's 2-0 win over Osasuna and the Copa del Rey final defeat by Real, having gone off with a thigh injury during the previous weekend's El Clasico clash in Madrid.
Iniesta, who scored Spain's winner in the 2010 World Cup final, is expected to be back for the following week's second leg, Guardiola told reporters on Tuesday.
Argentina center-back Gabriel Milito was named in the squad despite going off against Osasuna, but fellow defenders Maxwell, Adriano and Eric Abidal are sidelined along with forward Bojan Krkic.
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Guardiola has called up fullback Martin Montoya and midfielders Thiago and Sergi Roberto from the reserve team.
Mourinho has welcomed back loan striker Emmanuel Adebayor and winger Angel Di Maria, who missed Saturday's 6-3 win at Valencia due to injuries.
But injured midfielders Sami Khedira and Fernando Gago missed training along with suspended defender Ricardo Carvalho, meaning France international Lassana Diarra has a chance of taking one of the holding roles.
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