Barcelona vs Bayern Munich preview - Vilanova confident of comeback

Posted Wednesday, May 01, 2013 by PA

Barcelona boss Tito Vilanova has backed Lionel Messi to "have things to say" in his side's bid to make Champions League history against Bayern Munich.

Messi was thoroughly overshadowed at the Allianz Arena a week ago as Bayern romped to a 4-0 win in the semi-final first leg, leaving Barca needing to stage the greatest fightback the competition has seen to make the final at Wembley.

The Argentinian has been troubled by a hamstring injury, which appeared to affect him in Munich, but he came off the bench and scored against Athletic Bilbao at the weekend.

Vilanova said: "The more in form he is the better our chances of getting to the final but we can't heap this kind pressure on him, we have to try to help him.

"A player as good as Messi, at this point in the competition, will have things to say."

Bayern have won their last 10 games in all competitions and are now firm favourites to win the Champions League but Vilanova says his team believe they can come back.

Barca won 4-0 against AC Milan at the Nou Camp in the last-16, although that was to overturn a 2-0 first-leg deficit.

Vilanova said: "We believe we can fight back, it's our obligation and we're convinced (it's possible).

"We know it will be very difficult but we are Barca and we can never give up on a tie, especially when we have 90 minutes of play at home.

"We have to hold our heads high if we are eliminated. We cannot give up, we need to make our fans proud."

Defender Gerard Pique added: "The only team that can overcome a 4-0 to Bayern Munich is this club."

Vilanova also emphasised the need for patience, pointing out Bayern only led 1-0 at half-time in the first game.

He called on the Nou Camp faithful to play their part and create an atmosphere every bit as partisan as Bayern enjoyed last week.

"If we are going to mount a comeback we need our fans. Both Bayern and Borussia (Dortmund, who won 4-1 at home to Real Madrid in their semi-final first leg) had extraordinary atmospheres last week and that carried the teams forward.

"We will do our part so that fans find it easier to do theirs."

Barca will definitely be without defender Javier Mascherano through injury while midfielder Sergio Busquets is a doubt with a slight groin problem.

Meanwhile, the heartbreaking way in which they lost last season's Champions League final has helped Bayern Munich steel themselves for this campaign, according to manager Jupp Heynckes.

Bayern are odds-on favourites to make the Wembley showpiece next month.

Doing so would be a remarkable achievement given how last year's tournament ended up. Technically at home to Chelsea in a Munich final, Heynckes men were beaten on penalties as their dream fell apart around them.

But once the debris was swept up, Bayern were able to regroup and have marched their way back to the brink of European glory.

"When you experience a final like we did against Chelsea, then you understand all the consequences," Heynckes said.

"Some clubs give up, but everyone at Bayern reacted in a very positive way. We made changes, signed good players, modified some things, and strengthened the team spirit."

Regardless of Barcelona's prowess and standing as the best team of their generation, Bayern are not expected to be overturned.

For Heynckes, though, the challenge is to prove that last week's result was not a one-off.

"We have to take into account the rival. We have our philosophy on football and this season we have proved that Bayern is a great team playing top quality football. We have our culture and we are capable of scoring goals at the Camp Nou," he said in his pre-match media conference.

"We can't think too much about the first-leg result. After the match we can evaluate things, but I cannot say which team is the better one. Barcelona have played at such a high level for so many years. Bayern want to prove that the match in Munich wasn't a one-off."

A minor cold for defender Dante is the sum of Heynckes fitness worries heading to Catalonia.

One note of concern for Bayern is that Philipp Lahm, Javi Martinez, Dante, Luis Gustavo and Mario Gomez are a caution away from a one-match ban that would rule them out of any final.