Josep Guardiola returns to the stage he graced as both player and coach when his FC Bayern München side visit FC Barcelona for the first leg of their UEFA Champions League semi-final.
• Guardiola's homecoming to the club where he won three European crowns will dominate the build-up but Barcelona minds will be focused on gaining revenge for their 7-0 semi-final defeat by Bayern two years ago.
• Both teams left a marker in the quarter-finals as Barcelona swept aside Paris Saint-Germain 5-1 on aggregate while Bayern overturned a 3-1 first-leg deficit by beating FC Porto 6-1 in Munich.
Previous meetings
• Bayern have won three of their four past encounters with Barcelona at the Camp Nou, including a 3-0 success in the 2012/13 semi-finals.
• Juup Heynckes's eventual champions had already won the first leg 4-0, Thomas Müller scoring twice and Mario Gomez and Arjen Robben once each. Robben and Müller struck again in the return, either side of a Gerard Piqué own goal.
• The lineups for that second leg on 1 May 2013 were:
Barcelona: Valdés, Alves, Bartra (Montoya 87), Piqué, Adriano, Song, Xavi (Sánchez 55), Iniesta (Alcántara 64), Villa, Fàbregas, Pedro.
Bayern: Neuer, Lahm (Rafinha 77), Boateng, Van Buyten, Alaba, Martínez (Tymoshchuk 74), Schweinsteiger (Luiz Gustavo 66), Robben, Müller, Ribéry, Mandžukić.
• Bayern won the clubs' only other semi-final meeting 4-3 on aggregate on their way to lifting the 1995/96 UEFA Cup. Otto Rehhagel's side drew 2-2 in Germany before prevailing 2-1 away to a Barcelona outfit that included Guardiola and goalkeeper Carles Busquets, father of Sergio.
• Guardiola was coach of Barcelona when they earned their only previous two-legged victory over Bayern in the 2008/09 UEFA Champions League quarter-finals. Lionel Messi scored twice as they dominated the first leg 4-0 at the Camp Nou before a 1-1 draw back in Munich.
• Luis Enrique was in the Barcelona team downed 1-0 at Bayern in the 1998/99 group stage. Bayern then came from behind to edge it 2-1 at the Camp Nou, where they would return for that season's final loss to Manchester United FC.
Match background
Barcelona
• Four-time winners Barcelona are seeking their eighth final appearance.
• Barcelona have won all five home games in this season's UEFA Champions League, including a 2-0 success over Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-finals. They are unbeaten at home in the competition since crashing to Bayern in 2013 – the sole reverse in their last 32 UEFA Champions League home matches, of which 25 have been victories.
• The Blaugrana have an overall home record of W19 D1 L7 against Bundesliga sides. Messi notched five goals – a UEFA Champions League first – when Barcelona overwhelmed Bayer 04 Leverkusen 7-1 in the 2012/13 round of 16.
• They have won 13 of their 18 previous two-legged ties with German teams, including semi-final triumphs over Hamburger SV in the 1960/61 European Champion Clubs' Cup and 1. FC Köln in the 1968/69 European Cup Winners' Cup.
Source:-Nairaland.com
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