Barcelona v Juventus preview: Spanish giants chasing another Champions League comeback
Wednesday 19 April 2017 20:39, UK
Barcelona will be chasing another Champions League miracle when they host Juventus in the second leg of their quarter-final at the Nou Camp on Wednesday night.
For the second round in a row, Luis Enrique's side have given themselves a huge mountain to climb after losing 3-0 in Turin last week, when Paulo Dybala struck twice and Giorgio Chiellini added a third for Juve.
Barcelona managed to overturn a 4-0 deficit in the last round of the competition against Paris Saint-Germain, but the Italian champions should prove sterner opposition.
"We will try right until the end," said Luis Enrique. "Those who experienced the night against PSG at Camp Nou will have another chance to enjoy a historic evening. Right until the 95th minute, we have to be united.
"We have to get the fans involved in our game and our intensity. We need Camp Nou to bounce to experience another special evening. Many results at home and the recent comeback against PSG are statistics that invite optimism. We have to create a collective crazy atmosphere so our players can perform at their best.
"We need to intimidate a team like Juventus to the maximum. If we score the first goal, Camp Nou will get the second and the third will come by itself."
Team news
Javier Mascherano (calf), Arda Turan (groin) and Jeremy Mathieu (ankle) all trained with the squad on Tuesday morning, while Sergio Busquets is available after missing the first leg through suspension.
Neymar missed their weekend win over Real Sociedad through suspension and should return to the starting XI, while Andres Iniesta was a second-half substitute in that match and is set for a recall to the line-up.
Dybala suffered an injury in Juventus' weekend win at Pescara but should be fit to face Barcelona, while the rest of the team is set to be unchanged from the first leg.
Dani Alves, Leonardo Bonucci, Sami Khedira, Alex Sandro, Gianluigi Buffon and Chiellini were all rested on Saturday and should be restored to the starting line-up by Massimiliano Allegri.
Opta stats
No team has ever overturned a 3-0 first-leg defeat in the Champions League knockout stages in eight previous attempts, although Barcelona managed the biggest ever comeback in the last round by eliminating PSG 6-5 on aggregate after a 4-0 first leg defeat.
Juventus' last trip to the Nou Camp to face Barcelona ended in a 2-1 win, back in April 2003, courtesy of goals from Pavel Nedved and Marcelo Zalayeta. The Turin side later made it to the Champions League final only to lose on penalties to AC Milan.
Barcelona have won their last 15 Champions League games at the Nou Camp (50 goals scored, 7 conceded), all since Luis Enrique took charge. It's currently the longest run in the competition and two short of the record held by Bayern Munich (16).
Barcelona have scored at least three goals in seven of their last eight Champions League home games. However, Barcelona have lost three of their last six Champions League games, as many losses as in their previous 26 games under Luis Enrique.
Barcelona have reached the quarter-finals for the 10th consecutive season, the longest run in the history of the Champions League. However, they have been knocked out at that stage in two of the last three seasons.
After failing to reach the last four of the Champions League from 2003/04 to 2013/14, Juventus now have the chance to make the semis for the second time in the last three seasons (after 2014/15).
Charlie's prediction
Can Barcelona do it again? Instinct tells me no, as much as I'd like to see it. I said before the draw that the dark horse I liked was Juve, with a blend of experience at the back and energy going forward.
They've also got the best goalkeeper ever, certainly in my lifetime, in Buffon and again at 1-0 he produced a world-class save to deny Iniesta.
Lionel Messi will be eyeing up another big performance and Neymar, who was the star against PSG, is available again so it will be a fantastic match up with Alves, who I'd be surprised not to see going into the book.
Barca were useless at PSG, although they weren't that bad Juve and I can see them getting the three goals they need, but I think that defence will crucially let them down.
Charlie predicts: 3-1 and Neymar to score first - 35/1 with Sky Bet
Betting
Barcelona are 9/2 to overhaul their first leg deficit and just 1/2 to win on the night, with Juventus 19/4 to record another victory over the Catalans. Luis Enrique's men drifted from favourites to 16/1 to lift the trophy following their first-leg loss, with Juve 3/1 only behind Barca's great rivals Real Madrid.
Messi is the 3/1 favourite in the first goalscorer betting and enhanced from 2/1 to 4/1 to bag a brace in Sky Bet's Price Boosts, while Dybala is 9/1 to break the deadlock again.
