Preview: Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich

All eyes will be on Pep Guardiola on Wednesday night when he takes his Bayern Munich side to the Camp Nou - a venue where he served Barcelona with such distinction as both a player and a head coach.

There will be no room for sentiment in this first-leg encounter, though, with a place in the final of the Champions League at stake.

Barcelona

© Getty Images

Played five, scored 20 and conceded none - that is the form that Barca take into their clash with the German champions.

Having hammered Getafe 6-0 at the end of last month, Luis Enrique's men went two better against Cordoba at the weekend as they hit their hosts, who were relegated as a result, for eight.

Three of those goals were scored by Luis Suarez, who seems to have now found his feet following his big-money summer switch from Liverpool. The Uruguayan international has scored five goals in his last two outings and 10 in eight appearances.

His form as part of the attacking trio alongside Lionel Messi and Neymar, who have scored a record-breaking 108 goals between them this term, sees Barca top the La Liga standings and has also been a major reason behind their positive displays in the Champions League.

Barca are a particularly imposing force in front of their own supporters at the Camp Nou, where they have lost just once in their last 32 UEFA competition matches, winning on 25 occasions. But who inflicted that defeat? Ironically, it was Bayern back in 2013.

Overall, the Catalans have played host to German opponents on 25 occasions, from which they have recorded 17 wins and suffered seven defeats.

It was the French that provided the opposition in the quarter-finals, with Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain being routinely defeated 5-1 on aggregate.

Recent form: WWWWWW Recent form (all competitions): WWWWWW

Bayern Munich

© AFP

Prowling up and down the Bayern technical area on Wednesday night, no doubt in a sharp-looking suit, will be Guardiola - the man who oversaw Barca's most successful ever period.

During what was a golden four-year spell at the helm in Catalonia, Barca won no fewer than 14 trophies, including the Champions League on two occasions.

Yet, every manager has a ceiling and in 2012 Guardiola decided that he had taken his boyhood club as far as he could. A 12-month sabbatical followed, before he took up the unenviable task of following in the footsteps of Jupp Heynckes, who had just guided Bayern to a treble.

Unsurprisingly, five trophies have followed - one of which was this year's Bundesliga title. Guardiola, though, wants more, particularly after his side were humbled in the semi-finals of the Champions League by Real Madrid last season.

The 5-0 aggregate thrashing remains the most hurtful defeat of Guardiola's managerial career and it is known to be a driving factor behind his desire to make amends this time around.

However, if Guardiola is to topple his former employers, his side will have to improve upon their recent uncharacteristic patchy form. They may have thrashed Porto 6-1 in the second leg of the quarter-finals, but that was only after they had suffered a 3-1 loss in the first meeting.

Meanwhile, a much-changed Bayern team were defeated 2-0 away at Bayer Leverkusen last time out. Such results could well be a cause of concern for Guardiola as he prepares to head home.

Recent form: LWDWLW Recent form (all competitions): LWWWDL

Team News

© Getty Images

Not only is Guardiola's injury list an extensive one, it has also robbed him of some of his key players for this encounter.

Dutch winger Arjen Robben, who has flourished under Guardiola's management, has been ruled out for the remainder of the season with a calf injury that he suffered during his comeback game against Borussia Dortmund last month.

Defenders David Alaba and Holger Badstuber will also play no part, while Guardiola has doubts as to the availability of both Franck Ribery and Robert Lewandowski, the latter of whom is suffering with a broken nose.

Javi Martinez returned to action following a cruciate knee ligament injury at the weekend, but a match of such magnitude is likely to be too much for the Spanish midfielder, who will start on the bench.

Thiago Alcantara is due to feature, though, having swapped Barca for Bayern in the summer of 2013.

With regards to Thiago, it could be a family affair for the playmaker, with his brother Rafinha Alcantara expected to be named in the Barca squad, albeit as a substitute.

Unlike his former teammate, Enrique has a virtually clean of bill of health as far as his squad is concerned.

That means that he must pick between who starts at centre-back out of Gerard Pique, Javier Mascherano and Jeremy Mathieu, with the former two of that trio the favourites to be given the nod.

Between the posts, as has been tradition in the Champions League this term, Marc-Andre ter Stegen will deputise for number one goalkeeper Claudio Bravo.

Barcelona possible starting lineup: Ter Stegen; Alves, Pique, Mascherano, Alba; Busquets, Rakitic, Iniesta; Suarez, Messi, Neymar.

Bayern Munich possible starting lineup: Neuer; Bernat, Benatia, Boateng, Rafinha; Lahm, Schweinsteiger, Alonso; Thiago, Gotze; Muller

Head To Head

Worryingly for Barca, they have never beaten Bayern without Guardiola in charge.

The 44-year-old's triumph over his current employers came at the Camp Nou in 2009 when Messi, Samuel Eto'o and Thierry Henry were all among the goals.

The most memorable games between the two sides, though, were played after Guardiola's departure in 2013. Bayern stunned the footballing world by winning the first leg in Germany 4-0, before hammering home their advantage thanks to a 3-0 victory in Spain.

In total, there have been eight games between the teams, with Bayern leading 5-1 overall.

© Sports Mole / SM

We say: Barcelona 2-0 Bayern

Had this game been played 12 months ago, it could well have been a different prediction. Bayern may have won the Bundesliga recently, but their form has not been great of late and it seems that injuries are starting to take their toll. In contrast, Barca are flying and will be in confident mood heading into this tie.