Barcelona v Borussia Dortmund Match Result
Many people will regard Barcelona as banker material to win this Champions League first leg encounter. According to the football betting sites, there’s a 74% chance that Barca will land a success and you can see why the bookies aren’t taking any chances with their prices. After all, Hansi Flick’s side are arguably the strongest in Europe right now and they’ll be hosting a side who are only mid-table in the Bundesliga.
Barcelona have fluffed their lines a couple of times at the Nou Camp this season. They have won eleven of their fourteen home matches but lost the other three. They are power scorers considering that forty have been netted in front of their own supporters, with the team having enjoyed a massive unbeaten run since 21 December.
That means it’s now twenty games and counting since the Catalan side last experienced a defeat, with six consecutive victories being racked up since a crazy 4-4 draw with Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey. We saw March open with a 2-0 victory over Real Sociedad before two successes against Benfica to navigate their way through to the quarter finals of this competition.
There was then an impressive 4-2 win away to Atletico Madrid in La Liga to really stamp their title credentials, with comfortable wins coming against Osasuna and Girona. It’s hard to see how Borussia Dortmund are going to stop this attacking machine and they are rank outsiders to get anything from the game.
Dortmund reached the final of this competition last season but don’t seem equipped to do the same this time around. After all, they have only won three of their thirteen away games in the Bundesliga this term, with the German side having produced a smart performance to claim a 2-1 success away to Lille to go through.
Goals Under/Over
At the time of writing, six of the previous seven Barcelona games have gone over 2.5 goals. We are talking about the most prolific team in Europe right now, with Barca having covered this line themselves in games against Benfica, Atletico Madrid, Osasuna and Girona. To score four against Atleti was no mean feat and all of them came as part of a late dramatic comeback onslaught after trailing by a couple of goals.
With Robert Lewandowski continuing to find the net on a regular basis, there’s an argument for going Over 3.5 Goals and that outcome can be backed at a shade of odds-against. There’s the possibility that Borussia Dortmund will score a goal even if it’s likely to be of the consolation variety, although only two of their previous five games have gone over the 2.5 goal line.
BTTS
Although the bookies have a firm idea that Over 2.5 Goals is going to be a likely outcome, the price is a good deal longer when it comes to BTTS Yes. We can be fairly certain that Barcelona are going to find the net in this clash considering that you have to go back to Sunday 15 December to find the last time that Hansi Flick’s side failed to find the net.
That was a 1-0 defeat against Leganes. Since then, it has been goals galore and we’ve usually seen the net bulge multiple times. The main question comes down to whether Borussia Dortmund are going to create many chances. They haven’t found the net too many times on the road although a 2-1 victory away at Lille was impressive.
Dortmund failed to find the net in a recent away clash at Leipzig which they lost 2-0, although the visitors did have nine shots on target only to be frustrated. They also had eight shots on target when winning at Lille where the German side showed plenty of character to come from behind and they also had eight shots off target.
First Goalscorer
Robert Lewandowski is a Borussia Dortmund legend, having achieved lots of records for the yellows before signing for Bayern Munich. He is one of the best strikers that the world has ever seen and will now hope to fire Barcelona to a Champions League success. It would come as no surprise to find the Pole open the scoring and he’s now on forty for the season.
The 36-year-old never goes too long without a goal. Two were pilfered against Girona, with this coming after a goal against Osasuna. He also found the net away to Atletico Madrid, with Dortmund likely to struggle with their former marksman, although Barca have plenty of other attacking options.
Ferran Torres is another one to consider and the Spaniard has four goals in as many games, with a brace at the Wanda Metropolitano helping his team to a decisive La Liga victory. The former Manchester City man could be on the scoresheet here, with Lamine Yamal having also recently found the net against Benfica, Atletico Madrid and the Netherlands.