Pep Guardiola faces an emotional
return to Barcelona after his current club, Bayern Munich, were drawn to face
them in the semi-final of the Champions
League. In a classic last four the defending champions, Real Madrid, play
Juventus in the other tie. The four clubs have between them won the competition
21 times in its 60-year history but there was little doubt about which
plot-line deserved top billing.
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Guardiola was both a playing and
managerial hero at Barcelona,
winning a host of honours, after emerging through the club’s youth system. As a
player he won six league titles and the European Cup in 1992 while he added
three more league titles and two Champions Leagues during his all-conquering
four-year spell in managerial charge, which ended in 2012.
Guardiola joined Bayern at the
beginning of last season and won the domestic league and cup double but a heavy
Champions League semi-final defeat by Real was the major blot. Bayern are once
again on course for the domestic double but Guardiola has said he must add the
Champions League if the season is to be considered a success.
It will be the first time he has
faced Barcelona in a competitive game – there was a charity friendly with
Bayern shortly after he took over. The last time the clubs met in earnest was
in the Champions League semi-final of 2013, when the German club won 7-0 on
aggregate en route to the trophy. Guardiola was on sabbatical at the time.
“Everyone understands how special
this game is for me, for Thiago [Alcântara, Bayern’s former Barcelona
midfielder] and my staff,” Guardiola said. “Barcelona was our life. When you
are in a semi-final, then you will always face a big team. What can I say?
Barcelona is my home. I knew this would happen sooner or later. I am very happy
that I can experience this. It’s a nice game but not easy. Believe me,
Barcelona are the strongest.”
Guardiola was full of praise for
Luis Enrique, his former Barcelona team-mate, who is now the club’s manager.
“Barcelona are the best team at the moment and I am not surprised,” Guardiola
said. “He [Luis Enrique] has a lot of quality. He is a great coach and a great
man. They have brought in Neymar, [Luis] Suárez and they have a new coach. But,
other than that, they still play the same, with the same mentality.”
Real are seeking to become the
first club to win back-to-back titles since the Champions League format began
in 1992. And the manager, Carlo Ancelotti, hopes to become the first man to
lead teams to Europe’s top club title for a fourth time.
“Juventus are having a very good
season and have practically won the Italian league,” said Ancelotti, who
previously managed the Turin club. “That means they can focus more on the
Champions League.” Juventus’s last semi-final was in 2003, when they beat Real
before losing to Milan.
In the Europe League, the holders Sevilla
will take on Fiorentina for a place in this season’s final.
Retaining the title would see the
Spanish club win the competition for a record fourth time, although overcoming
La Viola will be a big ask.
Florentines overcame Tottenham, Roma and Dynamo
Kyiv en route to the last four and have home advantage for the second leg.
The other tie sees Rafael
Benítez’s Napoli take on Dnipro
Dnepropetrovsk of Ukraine for a
place in the Warsaw final, which takes place on 27 May.
The Europa League semi-final ties
will be played on 7 May and 14 May.
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