Barcelona Favourites Against Dortmund In Champions League Quarter-Finals Clash

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Barcelona are strong contenders for this season's Champions League title. They face Borussia Dortmund in the quarter-final first leg. Barcelona advanced with a 4-1 aggregate win over Benfica, marking their 20th quarter-final appearance. They have scored the most goals across Europe's top five leagues, totalling 141. Meanwhile, Dortmund, under Niko Kovac, have revived their hopes of finishing in the Bundesliga's top four.

Barcelona and Dortmund have already clashed in this year's competition. Barcelona secured a narrow 3-2 victory during the league phase. As they prepare to meet again at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys, Barcelona are expected to take a first-leg lead back to Westfalenstadion. Pre-match simulations show Barcelona winning 65.7% of the time, while Dortmund has a 16.1% chance of leading after the first leg.

Barcelona are unbeaten in five European encounters with Dortmund (W3 D2). Only against Lyon, Napoli, and Werder Bremen have they played more without losing. Flick has also excelled against Dortmund, winning all six meetings during his tenures at Bayern Munich and Barcelona. His teams average three goals per game against them.

Flick's Barcelona boasts the highest goals per game average in Champions League history (3.2). This season, they've scored 32 goals in the competition, their best since 2011-12 when they netted 35. Their record was set in 1999-00 with 45 goals.

Dortmund reached the Champions League quarter-finals for the ninth time and consecutively for the first time since 2012-13 and 2013-14. However, Spanish teams often pose challenges for them. They've won only three of their 20 away matches against Spanish opponents (D5 L12) and just one of ten knockout stage matches.

Dortmund haven't beaten Barcelona in five attempts (D2 L3). They've gone six consecutive European matches without defeating an opponent twice before: Real Madrid (six) and Rangers (seven). Despite this, they've lost only once in their last eight knockout stage games (W5 D2), winning their last three away games.

Key Players to Watch

Raphinha is crucial for Barcelona this season with involvement in 16 Champions League goals (11 goals, five assists). He leads as top scorer in the competition. Only Lionel Messi had more contributions for Barcelona in a single edition with 19 during 2011-12.

For Dortmund, Jamie Gittens stands out with four Champions League goals this season—the most by any player under 21 in 2024-25. Erling Haaland holds the club record for players aged 21 or younger with ten goals during the 2020-21 campaign.

As both teams prepare for Wednesday's clash, Barcelona hold a significant advantage statistically and historically over Dortmund. However, Dortmund aims to defy odds and secure a favourable result away from home.