On Wednesday night, Champions League side FC Barcelona were waiting to find out who their rival would be, safe in the knowledge that their homework had already been done. Barcelona convincingly beat Benfica on Tuesday and are now among the eight best teams in this year’s Champions League. Pedri took control of the match, Lamine Yamal provided the magic and Raphinha the goals in a perfect match for Hansi Flick’s men. Barça managed to get into the Champions League quarter-finals after a brilliant game, especially in the first half.
Last night they found out who their opponents would be after the game between Lille and Borussia Dortmund. After the 1-1 draw at Signal Iduna Park, the tie was completely open going into the second leg. Bruno Génésio’s team had not yet lost at home in the Champions League. However, thanks to a penalty goal from Emre Can and a moment of genius from Max Beier, the Germans were able to turn around Jonathan David’s early goal (1-2) and secure their place in the quarter-finals.
Barça and Borussia will now face each other in the quarter-finals in a very special match for Hansi Flick and Niko Kovač, who shared the Bayern bench six years ago. When the now Dortmund coach was dismissed after a humiliating 5-1 defeat to Eintracht, the Bavarian team turned to the now Barça coach to take the reins.
Now they will face each other from different benches and Flick will have to be careful against a fearsome Borussia. The Germans are an attractive team to watch because of their style of play, which is attacking, vertical and combative, and because of several of their players, who are capable of deciding games.
This season, Borussia Dortmund and Barça have already faced each other. Specifically, their paths crossed on matchday six of the preliminary group stage. Hansi Flick’s side emerged victorious from that match, with a narrow 3-2 win at Signal Iduna Park thanks to goals from Raphinha and Ferran Torres, who scored twice. Serhou Guirassy was the scorer for the home side.
When will Borussia and Barça play in the quarter finals?
The quarter finals between Barça and Borussia Dortmund will play the first leg on Wednesday April 9th at 21:00 in Montjuic. The return leg will be played on German soil on Tuesday April 15th, also at 21:00.