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Mr Juncker said a no-deal Brexit would have "catastrophic consequences" and said he was doing "everything to get a deal".
And he said he did not have "an erotic relation" to the so-called backstop, which he said he was prepared to remove from a withdrawal agreement, so long as "alternative arrangements [are put in place] allowing us and Britain to achieve the main objectives of the backstop. All of them".
In a UK exclusive interview with Sky's Sophy Ridge, Mr Juncker confirmed that he had been sent documents by Prime Minister Boris Johnson outlining draft ideas for a new Brexit deal. [...]
"I think we can have a deal. I am doing everything to have a deal because I don't like the idea of a no-deal because I think this would have catastrophic consequences for at least one year.
"We are prepared for no-deal, and I hope Britain is prepared as well - but I'm not so sure."
Asked if he had received the proposals from the British government, he said they had arrived "yesterday night" but he'd had no opportunity to read them yet. But he added that he had spoken to Mr Johnson on the phone "without knowing the content of the British proposals".
But Mr Juncker did confirm to Sky News that he was now prepared to get rid of the controversial backstop plan, designed to prevent the return of a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland, but only on condition that "alternative arrangements [are put in place] allowing us and Britain to achieve the main objectives of the backstop." [...]
Mr Juncker agreed that a deal would revolve around the idea that Northern Ireland would follow EU rules on food and agriculture, with other checks being done away from the border.
"It is the basis of a deal. It is the starting and the arrival point," he said. "The internal market has to be preserved in its entirety." [...]
Asked if that meant that the backstop could go, he answered: "If the objectives are met - all of them - then we don't need the backstop. It was a guarantee, not an aim by itself."
He remains hopeful that a deal can be done before he leaves office.
"Brexit will happen," said Mr Juncker.