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Barcelona and Bayern Munich are set to lock horns in the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League at the Estádio da Luz in Portugal. Both sides are European heavyweights and share a rich history in the competition as they look to pip one another for a place in the semis.
Bayern Munich have been unstoppable since the restart and romped to their eighth successive Bundesliga crown. In the Champions League, they brushed aside Chelsea in the Round of 16 with a comprehensive 7-1 victory on aggregate.
Barcelona, on the other hand, surrendered the La Liga title to Real Madrid and had to be on their toes to see off a stubborn Napoli side in the previous round. The Catalans registered a 4-2 victory over two legs against the Serie A outfit and are set to face one of the most feared teams in world football currently.
Both sides have talked the talk in the build-up to the game and that has seemingly added more spice to what promises to be an intriguing battle between two fantastic teams.
Barcelona will look to finish an underwhelming season on a high and win their first Champions League title since 2015, while Bayern Munich are looking to complete an unprecedented treble after winning the Bundesliga and the DfB Pokal.
On that note, here are five things Barcelona need to do to beat a star-studded Bayern Munich side and make it through to the semi-finals.
#5 Nullify Thomas Muller's threat
Thomas Muller has enjoyed a stunning renaissance under Hansi Flick and is one the most vital cogs of this Bayern Munich side. Stationed in a free role behind Robert Lewandowski in a 4-2-3-1, Muller is often tasked with acting as the link between the midfield and the attack.
Over the years, his unique skill-set has seen him flourish in such a role and this season, he has seemingly rolled back the years and delivered a series of eye-catching performances for the Bavarian giants.
Barcelona cannot afford too much room for the 30-year-old to operate in full flow and will need to nullify his threat in and around the penalty area. Muller's clever movement and deftness in key attacking areas are important features of Bayern's philosophy and Barcelona have their work cut out to prevent the German from influencing the game.
#4 Be wary of Bayern Munich's counter-attacking prowess
With Serge Gnabry on one flank and one of Ivan Perisic or Kingsley Coman on the other, Bayern Munich are blessed with devastating pace and can torment any team on the break.
Canadian left-back Alphonso Davies is also a threat in such situations, with the young speedster establishing himself as one of the quickest players in the game currently.
Barcelona have not defended as well as they'd have liked this season and could be blown away by the pace and direct running of the Bayern Munich wingers. Assuming Barcelona's manager Quique Setien starts with a 4-3-3, the likes of Frenkie de Jong and Sergi Roberto will need to cover ground in midfield adequately and prevent balls from being played in to the runners.
Nelson Semedo and Jordi Alba will also have to be on the top of their games to contain the Bayern Munich front three, while Antoine Griezmann would have to ensure that he tracks back to help out defensively like he has done so several times in the past.
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#3 Ensure Lionel Messi occupies the right areas to be an attacking threat
Once again, Barcelona have pinned their hopes on their talisman Lionel Messi to bail them out of a tricky situation against Bayern Munich. The Argentine maestro has been their saving grace several times this season and was unsurprisingly their best player in the second leg against Napoli.
Barring Frenkie de Jong, the rest of his teammates looked lacklustre and failed to support him in the final third. However, Messi took matters into his own hands and scored a stunning solo effort to Barcelona 2-0 up on the night, while he also won the penalty which Luis Suarez converted just before halftime.
In what was a below-par first-half performance, Barcelona managed to put one foot in the quarterfinals, thanks in no small part to their talisman. Bayern Munich, however, will pose a very different challenge.
Barcelona cannot afford to have Messi dropping into midfield to create goalscoring chances and apply the finishing touches all by himself, as Bayern Munich have too much quality in the centre of the park.
The likes of Frenkie de Jong and Sergi Roberto will have to ensure that Messi gets the ball in the right areas, as they are set to come up against Leon Goretzka and former Barcelona star Thiago Alcantara.
#2 Suarez and Griezmann need to ease the goalscoring burden on Messi
While Lionel Messi will undoubtedly take centre stage, a lot will depend on Luis Suarez and Antoine Griezmann, who have blown hot and cold this season. Since making a big-money move to Barcelona last summer, Griezmann has failed to hit the ground running despite showing flashes of his brilliance and has not been potent enough in front of goal.
Suarez, on the other hand, boasts a decent goal tally despite having his season curtailed due to an injury. However, even the Uruguayan striker has not been consistent enough, due to which Messi has largely taken on the goalscoring responsibility himself.
A Champions League fixture of such high magnitude is the perfect stage for the pair to ease the burden on their talisman, who was once again the star of the show in the previous round against Napoli.
Single-legged ties are an advantage for Barcelona in the sense that Messi can single-handedly put teams to the sword on his day, but they cannot go into a Champions League quarterfinal against Bayern Munich with that kind of mindset and expect to secure a positive result.
#1 Setien needs to be more proactive with substitutions
In his short Barcelona stint thus far, Quique Setien has proved that he is not a fan of making too many changes to his starting XI during the game. The former Real Betis manager has been criticized for leaving it too late with his substitutions, as speculation surrounding his future intensifies with each passing day.
A prime example is the Round of 16 second leg clash against Napoli, where Setien waited till the 84th minute to make his first change and used just two of his five substitutions.
Nevertheless, the Barcelona manager has a fully-fit squad at his disposal barring Samuel Umitit and should turn to his bench of things go south against Bayern Munich
The likes of Arturo Vidal, Riqui Puig and Ansu Fati could all be usable options off the bench against Bayern Munich, while the return of Ousmane Dembele is also an unexpected boost for the Catalan club. Barcelona's squad is far from perfect, but they have enough quality to make changes against Bayern Munich if one of their players is off-colour on the night.
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