Champions League Prediction: Barcelona vs Bayern Munich

Lothar Matthaus - Lewandowski is better than Messi

Barcelona vs Bayern Munich

Venue: Estadio da Luiz

Betting Odds: Barcelona 3.60 ; Draw 3.80 ; Bayern Munich 1.95

Probability of Win: Barcelona 26%; Draw 25% ; Bayern Munich 49%

Bayern Munich and Barcelona are ready to lock horns in the Champions League in what appears to be a mouth-watering quarter-final.

Both the teams had a comprehensive victory in the round of 16, with Bayern being the dominant side thrashing Chelsea on 7-1 aggregate.

Barcelona

Predicted XI: Ter Stegen; Semedo, Piqué, Lenglet, Alba; De Jong, Busquets, Vidal; Messi, Suárez, Roberto 

Doubtful: None

Unavailable: Umtiti (knee)

Change in Squad: None

Barcelona have endured a chaotic season but are seeing the Champions League as their last resort.

The Catalans lost their dominance in both the La Liga Copa del Rey after failing to win any of the domestic trophies.

Nonetheless, they are looking for retribution in the Champions League, having defeated Napoli 4-2 on aggregate recently.

Players to watch out for

Lionel Messi

The Blaugrana skipper has come under fire this season after not inspiring his side to any of the trophies. Regardless, the 33-year-old has won the golden boot of La Liga while recording 21 assists – the most by any player in a single season.

Bayern have many things that concern us because they are a very complete side – they’re able to press you, they have lot of options in attack, they defend well. But we have the ability to overcome presses and have the ball and they know if we get through their press, we can really hurt them. I don’t see one team dominating. It’s whoever takes their chances that’ll get through the tie.

Quique Setién, Barcelona Manager

Bayern Munich

Predicted XI: Neuer; Kimmich, Boateng, Alaba, Davies; Thiago, Goretzka; Coman, Müller, Gnabry; Lewandowski

Doubtful: Zirkzee (foot)

Unavailable: Pavard (ankle)

Change in Squad: Hugo Novoa (added); Ethan Ampadu, Frederik Jäkel, Timo Werner, Hannes Wolf (removed)

The Bavarians are a force to reckon with, especially under the tutelage of manager Hans-Dieter Flick. The successor of Niko Kovac has led Bayern to a series of impressive wins since taking charge.

Having already won the Bundesliga title and DFB Pokal, Bayern are eyeing for a treble this season.

Last meeting in the Champions League

When both teams met last time in the quarter-finals in 2015, it was Barca who emerged victorious under Luis Enrique. Barca went on to win the Champions League trophy that season.

Players to watch out for

Robert Lewandowski

The Polish striker has been in incredible goal scoring form this season, with his latest heroics coming against Chelsea as he had scored a total of 3 goals in both the legs.

You cannot compare Lewandowski and Messi. Lewandowski is a world-class centre forward. He guarantees goals and sets up goals. Messi has been by far the best player in the world in recent years. He is an exceptional player. I don’t know if there will be another player like him in the future. We’ve thought about how to stop Messi, but I’m not going to tell you here. The most important thing is that we have to play against him as a team. We need to play smart and try to put pressure on him.

Hans-Dieter Flick, Bayern Munich Manager