Barcelona vs. Manchester United: Preview and betting tips

Barcelona clearly dominated the Champions League play-offs in their last meeting in the spring of 2019. However, back then Manchester United was still in the recovery phase, now they have made a lot of progress towards the front. Will that be enough for the Catalans, who are playing in very good form?

Both teams are in form

Barcelona last lost to Bayern on 26 October and since then only Espanyol have managed to turn them around for points in the city derby. However, Xavi’s charges have probably already seen each other celebrate the New Year, as this duel took place on 31 December last year.

Moreover, in the last 7 matches, the Catalans have only scored once and that was before defender Jules Koundé, who is one of the team’s highest rated players, had to hit the ball into his own net.

Manchester United certainly can’t boast such a form, but even so, in the last 6 games they have only lost points in a 2-2 draw with Leeds United. The results are good, but the performances on the pitch are not so good.

Moreover, Erik ten Hag counts a number of losses when several key figures cannot play for various reasons. However, compared to the Premier League, at least the key man of the midfield Casemiro can come in and his La Liga experience will definitely help.

Barcelona have good memories of United

Barcelona are just good at Manchester United! Two Champions League finals and the aforementioned double playoff match, which they dominated with a 4-0 aggregate score. In these last 4 matches, the English have scored only one goal.

But will it be different now? Ten Hague’s strategy will very likely be about trying to catch the Spanish side off guard with speed. For most of the match, however, we can expect to see the Catalan footballers on the ball.

In addition, Robert Lewandowski, who has scored 5 times in 5 Champions League games, will be ready at the top, adding 14 league goals and 4 in Spanish cups.

On the other hand, he will rely mainly on Marcus Rashford, who has already scored 21 goals for the Red Devils this season. In the last three games he has played, he has scored one goal each and has been behind the team’s good results.

Prediction

Barcelona are the clear favourites for Thursday’s clash, though both quality and form clearly speak for the home side. However, lightning forays could cause problems for the Catalan outfit.

If Xavi’s charges keep this in mind, the Red Devils players will most likely have nothing major up their sleeve and their defeat can be expected. But so are the goals, which should be mainly taken care of by the Polish canon.

In addition, we will probably see Harry Maguire in the starting line-up with Raphael Varane, who if he again encourages the opponents with his misplaced passes, Lewandowski and co. will probably know what to do compared to the Leeds United players.

Source: UEFA, Manchester United