Barcelona handed major boost as six Bayern players are ruled out for UCL clash | OneFootball

Barcelona faces their first big test under Xavi’s leadership on Wednesday when they take on Bayern Munich in the final group stage game. The importance of the result goes beyond saying for the Catalans, for a negative result could see them knocked down to the Europa League.

The game at Allianz Arena will be a difficult test for the young team, but developments at the German cap could provide a ray of hope for the Spanish side.

Also read: Predicted Barcelona lineup vs Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann has confirmed that six players are unavailable for the clash against Barcelona.

“Leon [Goretzka] ended training early, and will not play tomorrow. Serge [Gnarby] picked up a slight adductor issue during the game against Dortmund and will also not feature. Choupo-Mouting is still having some issues, and hasn’t been able to train yet.”

He also talked about Joshua Kimmich, who tested positive for COVID-19 and will consequently miss the game. Marcel Sabitzer and Michael Cuisance are unlikely to take part as well.

“Joshua [Kimmich] will be tested tomorrow and should be able to leave quarantine. But, tomorrow’s game will be too soon for him. Michael [Cuisance] also hasn’t trained. Lucas [Hernandez] looks good. Marcel [Sabitzer] will need some more time, and is still training individually.”

The Bundesliga leaders are missing several players for the Champions League clash. However, they do have several potent options on the bench to replace the absentees and will look to field a strong line-up against the garnet and blue.

Also read: How will Bayern Munich line up against Barcelona

Leroy Sane and Kingsley Coman are expected to start on the wings. In midfield, Corentin Tolisso and Marc Roca could be trusted with a starting spot. The attacking midfield position could be occupied by either Jamal Musiala or Thomas Muller.

Barcelona will fail to qualify for the Round of 16 if they lose tomorrow and Benfica wins. Though all eyes will be on the game between Benfica and Dynamo Kyiv, Xavi will look to secure qualification without depending on external results.

The hosts are coming off a confident win over arch-rivals Borrusia Dortmund in Der Klassiker. The tide is in Bayern’s favour, but Barcelona will hope to pull off a miracle in Munich.