Barcelona's rolling in with authority. Not so much because of the stout jersey or because of a deep past in large tournaments, but because they're playing real soccer. No one has been able to beat the Catalan team since December, and the unbeaten streak has merely bolstered their confidence. They lead LaLiga by four points over Real Madrid, they're in the Copa del Rey final, and they're flying high in the Champions League. Hansi Flick's squad is coming in with momentum, chemistry, and with a squad that worked out how to gel at the right point of the season.
Barça, the favorite? Certainly, but with reservations
It can't be denied, Barcelona enters this as the odds-on favorite. But reputation or legacy isn't what this is all about; this is about timing. The Catalan club hasn't lost a LaLiga match since December and has a four-point lead on their arch-nemesis, Real Madrid. To that, they can add a Copa del Rey final berth, effectively assured. Flick's formation has slowly found its rhythm, and the way it plays now isn't just beautiful, it's deadly.
Their Champions League group phase was nigh on impeccable, second best record of all teams. Against Benfica in the round of 16, they knocked them aside as if they weren't there, and no crisis. That gave Barça to a position that they had not occupied for years, among the serious title rivals. And even more than that, playing as a team who genuinely believes it.
Take Robert Lewandowski, for instance. The Polish striker is still as sharp in front of the goal as ever, with nine shots in Europe and 25 in the Spanish league. And then there's Raphinha, not just leading the Champions League goalscoring list with 11, but becoming the ray of hope for the attacking line in big games.
Borussia Dortmund lies somewhere between mistakes and flashes
The photograph on the other hand is vastly different. Borussia Dortmund's Bundesliga season is anything but a smooth one, unstable and maddening. They're in eighth position, and seriously at risk of not making even the Conference League. It's a universe away from where a team like this could end up. Substitutions on the coaching seat made their marks, and continuity never came. Yet somehow the team was able to have a glimmer of hope in the Champions League.
In European competition, Dortmund has shown a different face. They qualified out of the group stage with aplomb and knocked out Lille in the round of 16 with a dominant away performance. That win wasn't just about qualifying, it helped to put the team back on track when confidence had almost evaporated. Head coach Niko Kovac, who started under a cloud of uncertainty, won two consecutive Bundesliga games against Mainz and Freiburg. The offense finally came to life. Seven goals in two games, something's starting to work.
Guirassy, to take one example, is now the pivot of this new wave of life. With 10 goals in the tournament, he's one of the top scorers, and a clinical finisher who doesn't waste chances. Along with Adeyemi and Maxi Beier, he forms an attacking trio that can hurt you, especially if Barcelona continues to sit deep with a high defensive line that isn't adequately covered.
All that can change in 90 minutes
These two teams go onto the pitch with quite different hopes and expectations. Barcelona are in their best form for years, with real chances to win everything before them. They have not lost in months in the league, they are on the cusp of a record-breaking season, and they wish to regain the top of Europe. Flick has the squad, the confidence, and the results to back him.
Meanwhile, Dortmund walk the tightrope between relief and desperation. Relief that the team is finally responding, if a bit belatedly. Desperation because the domestic campaign remains disappointing, and a strong showing in the Champions League might be the last hurrah before a cycle is complete. Kovac knows full well that getting something out of Barcelona might be the difference, including the way his efforts are viewed.