It will be a 'Clash of the Titans' as two premier clubs of world football go head to head in the semi-final of Europe's elite football tournament. Who will inch closer to the the final in Berlin?
Pep Guardiola is set to return to his former home ground on Wednesday night, but this time as a rival coach. It will be an emotional return for Pep as he faces his former side in the semi-final at Camp Nou. Guardiola, who is manager of German heavyweights Bayern Munich, has already secured the Bundesliga title. His eye is now on Europe's premier cup, the Champions League.
With his treble hopes dented by Jurgen Klopp's Borussia Dortmund, this will be an even harder test for Pep to overcome his in-form former side and make way to the final in Berlin. Bayern will make their 4th straight semi-final appearance in the Champions League setting a new club record.
Only Barcelona (6) and Real Madrid (5) have made more consecutive semi-final appearances. Bayern have a good record at the Camp Nou, winning three of their four visits here and losing one. Though they ran a 6-1 riot against Porto at the Allianz Arena in quarterfinals, Bayern haven't been in a great form since.
A list of injuries also add to their woes which include, David Alaba (knee), Bastian Schweinsteiger (ankle), Medhi Benatia (hamstring), Franck Ribery (ankle), Arjen Robben (hip), Javi Martinez (knee) and Tom Starke (ankle). Polish striker, Robert Lewandowski too has a broken jaw, but is determined to make an appearance using a custom made mask.
The previous time these two sides met in a Champions League semi-final, resulted in a 7-0 thrashing of the Spanish giants on aggregate. The then Bayern manager, Jupp Heynckes, eventually led his side to a treble, winning the Bundesliga title, DFB Pokal Cup and UEFA Champions League. Watch the video highlights below.
(Bayern Munich vs Barcelona 7-0 All Goals)
Barcelona, on the other hand, come to match from a sublime form. The Catalans still hope of completing a treble, with the Copa del Rey, La Liga title and UEFA Champions League all in contention. They are in a superb form, winning an astonishing nine of their previous ten games in all competitions and drawing one.
The Spanish giants have netted an incredible 20 goals in their previous five fixtures without conceding a single goal. Barcelona have faced Bayern twice in an European Cup semi-final, the latter advancing on both occasions.
The forward trio of Barcelona, Lionel Messi, Neymar jr. and Luis Suarez, famously known as MSN, have netted an incredible 108 goals between them. One hundred and eight. That's only seven goals less than the entire squad of Bayern Munich netted this season. Surely this will act as an added advantage.
The match will also see the Alcantara brothers go face to face. Thiago and Rafinha, the former playing for Bayern. Thiago didn't get much playing time for his former side, Barcelona, and made a sensational €25million move to Bayern Munich under his former manager Pep.
If not more, Bayern are expected to leave the Camp Nou with a narrow defeat and expect to host the Catalans at Allianz Arena in a bid to defeat them and advance to the finals.
Kick off: 7th May, 12:15am
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