Sports
UCL: Barcelona, Atletico Madrid at war as Bayern host Benfica
UEFA Champions League action returns and a Spanish La Liga battle headlines the start of the quarterfinals.
Barcelona hosts Atletico Madrid at Camp Nou, while Bayern Munich welcomes Portuguese club Benfica to the Allianz Arena for their first leg of the round.
Barcelona recently suffered a defeat to one Madrid club at home, but it will be hoping to earn a better result against the other one at Camp Nou on Tuesday.
Luis Enrique will be without Aleix Vidal, Jeremy Mathieu, Adriano and Sandro Ramirez, but Neymar, Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez should all be healthy and ready to compete.
Read also: AWC: Oshoala’s arrival thrills Falcons coach
Atletico head coach Diego Simeone will likely have centerback Diego Godin and midfielder Yannick Carrasco back in his arsenal. Fernando Torres is expected to play and contribute alongside an in-form Antoine Griezmann.
Barcelona suffered a 2-1 defeat to Real Madrid over the weekend, ending its 39-game unbeaten run. Despite the loss,
the club’s attack has scored at least one goal in its past 22 games.
Similarly, Bayern Munich will begin its quest to reach the UCL semifinals for a fifth consecutive season against Benfica.
Jerome Boateng and Holger Badstuber will not be available to Bayern manager Pep Guardiola, and there is a possibility that Arjen Robben may not be fit enough to play in the first leg.
However, Frank Ribery and Thomas Muller are entering the match in excellent form, and the Portuguese side will have Lisandro Lopez, Luisao, among others, missing from action.
Jardel will return to Benfica’s roster after serving a suspension in the clubs last UCL contest, and if the visitors are to upset the clear favorite in Bayern on Tuesday, Kostas Mitroglou or Jonas will surely have to score.
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