Arguably the most anticipated Champions League clash in years, tonight’s meeting between Bayern Munich and Barcelona has all the ingredients for a classic.
Much of the talk surrounding the Champions League semi-final has rightfully focussed on the fact that the four remaining teams are indeed the best sides in Europe right now, but when it comes to Bayern Munich v Barcelona tonight, you really are talking about the best of the best.
Barcelona, of course, will be taking part in their sixth successive Champions League semi-final this evening, a remarkable achievement even taking into account the quality of their side over that period, while Bayern have appeared in two of the last three finals and, being truthful about it, really should have triumphed on their own turf against Chelsea last season.
It should be added that while there is no sign that Barcelona are about to lose their place amongst the European elite, it is nigh on impossible that Bayern won’t continue to compete at the top end of the Champions League for years to come.
Factors in their favour include the imminent arrival of Pep Guardiola, the age profile of an already talented squad and the acquisition of players such as Mario Gotze, who probably won’t be the last player to make the switch to Munich before the summer’s out.
Hell, he might not even be the last Borussia Dortmund player to make that switch. It’s ominous for the rest of Europe and even more ominous for any domestic rivals intent on upsetting Bayern’s domination at home as Dortmund have done in recent seasons.
Normally, Barcelona would be made favourites against any side without question and although they are narrowly favoured by the bookies to go through again here, Bayern have been tipped by many pundits on the basis that they have probably been the best side in the competition to date.
Juventus were expected to provide stiff opposition but were swatted aside without Bayern having to worry about the inconvenience of conceding a goal at home or away. Arsenal proved a far greater threat at the Allianz Arena, but the fact that the job was as good as done in the away leg and the absence of Bastian Schweinsteiger certainly had an effect.
The home tie against Arsenal was the only time that Bayern have looked uncomfortable in the competition to date – although they did lose to the might of BATE Borisov in the group stages – and even in the absence of Mario Mandzukic (suspended, quite ridiculously, for being kicked in the shin by Giorgio Chiellini against Juventus) and Toni Kroos, they still look like a force to be reckoned with.
Manuel Neuer is a safe presence behind a defence that has been notoriously stingy this season, Schweinsteiger and Javi Martinez will keep things ticking over in midfield and Ribery, Muller and Robben have all looked dangerous at various times in the knockout stages.
Calm down Arsenal fans, Bastian Schweinsteiger is a key figure for Bayern and isn’t going anywhere for a while
Up front, meanwhile, the introduction of Mario Gomez in place of Mandzukic mightn’t be the worst thing against a defence that, in the absence of Carles Puyol, often struggle against the type of physicality that Gomez will provide. Gomez is on form too, having scored a hat-trick in just six minutes against Wolfsburg last week.
The omens are good for Bayern then, but underestimating Barcelona, despite their indifferent form, is the worst thing they could do and we’re sure they won’t. They mightn’t have hit the heady heights in this season’s competition that they have in the past but Barca on their day are still the best team around and they have the best player around, even if that Messi lad won’t be quite at 100 per cent for tonight’s encounter.
Even still, he’s worth the risk. Barca were half a team in their home leg against PSG until Messi came on and changed the game, providing an outlet that appeared to have been missing before his introduction and a purpose that certainly been absent for the first hour or so against the French side at the Camp Nou.
As always, Barca will seek to control possession in the Allianz Arena, but one of the most fascinating aspects about this game as opposed to the other semi-final – where the counter-attack is king – is that only Barca are better in terms of controlling possession than Bayern in the whole of Europe.
In that regard, Barca will be pleased that Toni Kroos isn’t around to annoy Sergio Busquets for the best part of 90 minutes but one or both sides are likely to have to deal with something they’re not used to on a regular basis: not having the majority of the ball.
How both midfields go about trying to counteract the other will be fascinating to watch but with that area of the field likely to be as crowded as Coppers on All-Ireland Final night, the wide players – Pedro, David Villa/Alexis, Dani Alves and Jordi Alba on one side and Robben, Ribery, Lahm and Alaba on the other – may end up having a telling impact.
Too many games these days are given the ‘epic’ tag without ever deserving it, but this is truly one of the most anticipated ties in many a year. Hopefully, it delivers.
Just to remind you all folks, if you’d like to be in with a chance of winning the quite brilliant prize of an all expenses paid trip to the semi-final second leg between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund in the Bernabeu, head over yonder and enter our Heineken Champions League vine competition, but hurry up, the deadline is on Thursday.
Good luck!
