UPDATE: Thomas Muller scored in the 25th minute to give Munich a 1-0 lead through 45. There were two handballs against Barcelona that were not called. In the 49th minute Mario Gomez gave Bayern Munich a 2-0 lead.
When the Champions league quarterfinals were announced, the entire world went abuzz over a matchup between red-hot Bayern Munich and Juventus. Imagine the attention that will be placed on Tuesday afternoon's battle between that same Munich side and an equally potent Barcelona side. Not to mention the fact that superstar Lionel Messi will start for Los Cules in the semifinals battle.
The Barcelona camp seems to be confident in its chances at reigning victorious in this tilt. "It is a tough but thrilling challenge before us. We face a European giant, and once again football sets us before the chance to prove whether or not we deserve to play the final," said Barcelona defender Dani Alves during a recent interview.
Midfielder Andres Iniesta told El Mundo that his team was not afraid of the German side. "Sense of fear? No, we never feel that way. I have full trust with my team-mates that we will be in the Champions League final."
He added, "We will play our game, we won't change our script. I know we can make it difficult for them."
Even though he is confident in a finals appearance, Iniesta did acknowledge the quality of the competition.
"The truth is that Bayern have spent years doing things well. They have won the league with much comprehensiveness and they are a historic club," he said. "Now they are primed to win something great - they are in the German Cup final, they are in the semi-finals of the Champions League - they are living a dream in football."
The theme of confidence also extends to the German side. "We are confident and we are assuming we will go through," said Bayern's director of sport Matthias Sammer about defeating Barcelona.
Barcelona wins if... It controls and contains Munich. Like their matches against Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona should expect aggression from the Germans; it is unlikely that they hold the ball that long in this contest. However, they must find a way to play their game and tire out an overzealous Bayern Munich.
Bayern Munich wins if... it plays as PSG did in the quarterfinals. The Parisian side pressured Barcelona into mistakes and created chances on the counterattack. Munich has more weapons and will undoubtedly cause more problems. They need to capitalize when they get those opportunities.
Prediction: Munich wins its home game 2-1.
Start Time: 2:45 PM EST
TV: Fox Soccer Channel
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