Barcelona v Bayern Munich Betting Tips: Will Bayern be too strong for Messi & co?

It’s hard to see a chink in Bayern’s armour. They’re solid at the back, the midfield runs the game and Robert Lewandowski is having the best season of his career up front. Add in the technical quality throughout the side and the winning mentality forged over eight straight league titles, and Barcelona face a daunting task.

History doesn’t favour the La Liga giants either. Bayern have won five of the eight Champions League clashes between the two clubs – no team has a better record in this competition against Barca.

Quique Setien can call upon Sergio Busquets and Arturo Vidal again here, but Thiago Alcantara is likely to be the key figure in midfield – a player schooled at Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy.

Thiago is Bayern’s metronome, prompting and probing, bringing the likes of Thomas Muller and Serge Gnabry into play. Other than Vidal, there isn’t much energy in the Blaugrana midfield – they may find it hard to stop the Spain international from dictating proceedings.

Saying that, the unique format of this year’s competition could work in Barcelona’s favour. Over two legs, you’d expect Bayern’s current superiority to tell. But over just one game, a single moment of magic could be enough to seal victory. And no one delivers jaw-dropping displays of skill as consistently as Messi.

He should line up alongside Luis Suarez and Antoine Griezmann in attack. As individuals, they’re all up there among the best in world football. But Griezmann’s arrival has skewed the balance slightly. As a result, everything now seems to go through the Argentine. Can Bayern keep him quiet to seal their progress?

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All odds and markets correct as of date of publication