What an engrossing encounter football fans have in prospect when an inspired Juventus host the all-conquering Bayern Munich.
Never has a round 16 Champions League clash been met with such excitement in recent times.
The Italian champions against the German champions, and both playing some of the best football on the planet right now.
Although the Sports Betting Dime believe Bayern Munich are favourites to progress over the two legged tie, it would be foolish of Pep Guardiola and his men to discount a team brimming with confidence.
Here’s a close look at the key talking points ahead of the match:
Juventus are playing with no fear
What an incredible run. 15 consecutive wins, after all hope looked lost earlier in the season, to catapult themselves to the top of Serie A. It’s a staggering and almost incomprehensible run of form, especially when you consider the relative competitiveness of Serie A. Juventus are the epitome of a collective unit, working for each other in every aspect and the passion and freedom they are playing with means they have every chance of causing an upset. The side’s two young strikers Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata have led the line with aplomb and despite their tender age don’t appear overawed by any task at the moment. Throw in wizardry of Paul Pogba in midfield, leadership of Claudio Marchisio and Leonardo Bonucci and you begin to see why Bayern will be caused serious headaches. Momentum is a wonderful thing in football, Juventus has it in spades and have nothing to fear.
Bayern Munich’s record against Juventus
History is on Bayern’s side, having beaten Juventus in the second leg of their quarter-final tie in 2013 – the year they claimed the Champions League crown. Bayern won 4-0 on aggregate, with 2-0 wins at both home and away. In doing so the German powerhouse became the first foreign team to win at the new Juventus Stadium. The plot thickens considerably when you consider that the Bianconeri are on a 16-match unbeaten in UEFA competition at home (W10 D6). The last time they tasted defeat in Europe? That’s right, that aforementioned loss against Bayern. To rub further salt into the wounds for Juventus fans, they have lost just twice in 45 European home games, including qualifiers, and those defeats were suffered at the hands of their upcoming opponents. Coaches and players like to disregard history but deep down Bayern will draw upon this as inspiration and motivation when it comes to having the mental edge in this duel.
Juventus’ resolute defence against free scoring Bayern
Make no mistake, Juventus will be out to keep it compact and block off the attacking avenues of a star-studded Bayern attack. Robert Lewandowksi has been in scintillating form this season and behind Barcelona sensation Luis Suarez, he is arguably the second best recognised centre-forward in the world on current form. Bonucci and veteran Andrea Barzagli face the tall order of keeping Bayern’s clinical frontman at bay, while also trying to marshall the defence against the intelligence of Thomas Muller, Douglas Costa and Arjen Robben. Bayern have scored a whopping 53 goals in the league this term, whereas Juventus has kept eight successive clean sheets in all competitions. Defence versus attack – this is how the tie will be one and lost. Juve hitting on the counter-attack when presented with opportunities and Bayern trying to wield their dominance with possession. The contest will be a tactical man’s dream.
What are your thoughts? Let us know by dropping a comment below via our Facebook comment box. Make sure you follow us on Twitter @Outside90 and like us on Facebook
