Barcelona Hope to Make Home Leg Count

Champions League | Preview

30/04/19

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The UEFA Champions League resumes this week and we have a cracking semi-final to look forward to on Wednesday night as Barcelona welcome Liverpool to the Camp Nou.

This is a huge clash between two giants of European football. Both clubs have tasted plenty of success in the competition and will want to add another title to their impressive list of honours. With the second leg still to come at Anfield, both teams will be hoping to take something from the match.

Barcelona come into this game having sealed the domestic title on the weekend thanks to a narrow 1-0 win over Levante. Lionel Messi was required to come off the bench to score the winning goal and extend Barcelona’s unbeaten run to twenty-two matches not including the Supercopa Catalunya.

Home form has been excellent and trends show Barcelona have won each of their last eight games in all competitions. You must go back to the 11th November to find the last time they lost a home match and that was against Real Betis is La Liga.

Barcelona have a fantastic record at the Camp Nou in the Champions League. They have won twenty-eight and drawn three of their last thirty-one home games in the competition. Trends show Barcelona have scored 2 or more goals in twenty of their last twenty-two home Champions League matches, making them very dangerous in attack.

However, they have kept one clean sheet in their last three and will not want to concede an away goal.

Liverpool played their Premier League game on Friday night, which has given them plenty of time to recover ahead of this match. They made light work of bottom of the table Huddersfield Town who were comfortably beaten 5-0 at Anfield.

That result means Liverpool have won each of their last ten games in competitions and have remained undefeated in their last nineteen. Trends show they have won fourteen of those nineteen games, with the other five ending in draws.

Liverpool have won four and drawn one of their last five Champions League matches. Away form has improved and they have won their last two games at Bayern Munich and Porto but prior to the win in Germany, Liverpool lost five straight matches, including two in the group stages this season.

The Reds have scored in each of their last three away Champions League games but have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last eight on the road.

Team news and Barcelona will welcome Lionel Messi back into the starting XI having been on the bench on the weekend. Rafinha is the only play definitely unavailable and the hosts should be at full strength.

Liverpool have doubts over striker Roberto Firmino who missed the Premier League game on Friday with a muscle injury. Adam Lallana and Fabinho are also doubtful.

This should be a cracking game of football, with two in-form teams going head-to-head. Liverpool do not lose many games but they have suffered two defeats away in the Champions League this season and this could be their third. However, Liverpool should get an away goal in defeat that could be very important.

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