It’s the final matchday of the 2021 Champions League group stage, and Bayern Munich have nothing but pride to play for. It’s weird to describe a game against FC Barcelona of all teams as a “low-stakes” fixture, but that’s simply the direction these two clubs have taken this year.
Barcelona are in the earliest stages of another rebuild, with coach Ronald Koeman having been replaced by Xavi Hernandez. Xavi hasn’t been in his job for very long, but he’s vowed to go to the Allianz Arena with a winning mentality. He will need it — Barca face the risk of being dumped out into the Europa League if they lose and Benfica pick up points against Kyiv. Julian Nagelsmann, meanwhile, has some tough decisions to make, given the state of the squad and the upcoming fixtures.
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