Lisbon (AFP)
Place the shock of the quarter-finals, Friday in Lisbon: FC Barcelona of Lionel Messi challenges Bayern Munich, announced favorite of the Champions League, in a duel of giants. Objective, to join in the last square the PSG and Leipzig, first poster of the semi-finals.
Paris, which hopes to have finally conquered all its demons after its fabulous last-minute "remount" on Wednesday against Atalanta (2-1), will again be favorites on Tuesday against the Germans and their young coach Julian Nagelsmann, who meet for the first time in their history at this level of competition, just four years after their rise to the Premier League.
But RB Leipzig proved mental qualities similar to those of the Parisians on Thursday to eliminate Atlético Madrid thanks to a goal from Tyler Adams in the 88th minute (2-1).
But barely 24 hours after Atlético-Leipzig, this unprecedented Champions League "Final 8" in the Portuguese capital has shifted to another dimension.
On the program, another Hispano-German duel, but above all a poster between two of the biggest clubs on the continent, each winner of the competition five times already: Bayern Munich of Robert Lewandowski and FC Barcelona of superstar Lionel Messi (9 p.m., 19:00 GMT).
"A final", summarizes the Spanish daily Mundo Deportivo, as this match will be decisive for the Catalan formation, at the end of a white season where Messi will have often seemed to hold on his shoulders all the hopes blaugranas. "Barça clings to the magic of Messi", also notes the newspaper Sport.
- The untouchable Bayern -
Catalans coach Quique Setién expects "a balanced game, which no one is going to dominate".
An omen? Four times already Bayern and Barcelona have faced each other in the knockout phase of a European Cup (once in the Europa League and three times in the Champions League), and each time the winner of this duel then won the competition.
The Bavarians flew over their national competitions this season, winning the cup-championship double. They atomized all their opponents in the Champions League: eight wins in eight matches, including a beating inflicted on Chelsea in the round of 16, 3-0 in London and 4-1 in Munich. They have been undefeated for 27 matches, with 26 wins and a draw!
Of the 31 goals of the "Rekordmeister", Lewandowski scored 13. At the top of the Champions League scorers list, this athlete is 31 years old at the top of his game, and the years do not seem to have a hold on him .
He is supported by one of the most sharp collectives in Europe, from goalkeeper Manuel Neuer to supersonic winger Serge Gnabry (a quadruple in October during the 7-2 at Tottenham), via the pillar of central defense David Alaba, whom Rummenigge has already compared to Beckenbauer, or Joshua Kimmich and Thomas Müller, essential pillars of this team of stars.
- Barcelona dependent on Messi -
Barcelona, on the other hand, are still looking for their balance at the end of the season, and their success in the Champions League has relied heavily on the sole talent of Messi, still stratospheric at 33 years old.
"Yes, Messi can help us win the match, that's obvious, but I have always believed in the strength of the team, and Leo also needs good team-mates," said Catalan coach Quique Sétien.
Lately, the two other attacking stars, Antoine Griezmann and Luis Suarez, have not looked at their peak. The French, flagship rookie of the summer of 2019, struggles to find automatisms with his teammates, and the Uruguayan is going through a bad phase.
The fact remains that Barça has one of the most beautiful squads in the world, and that he also records the return to the group of Ousmane Dembélé, who could enter the end of the match as a joker, according to Sétien.
"Barça are the best team in the world, and we will prove it," said midfielder Arturo Vidal on Thursday. Bayern fans think the same about their team: this dream poster will leave a giant behind no matter what.
© 2020 AFP