We all know the time when Hansi Flick's Bayern Munich thrashed Quique Setien's Barcelona 8-2 in the faithful Champions League campaign of 2019-20, Barcelona were bullied by Hansi Flick's men in what transformed to be the ultimate headline in World Football.
Barcelona hit rock bottom that season with them being out of the competition in such a brutal manner. The defeat also came in a very harsh time for Barcelona.
Their previous campaign also finished in a very similar fashion with them bottling lead against teams like AS Roma, Liverpool, they were bottling their 3rd straight Champions League knockout stages.
That Bayern defeat looked like the least they could have imagined going into the season. The club also became weak financially with Coronavirus Pandemic hitting hard around the world the games were to be played behind closed doors. This led to huge losses for FC Barcelona rendering them financially unstable for the upcoming season.
Bartomeu's board also took a hit of signing players for a very high price. The money they generated by selling Neymar to PSG was spent on signings like Phillipe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele, the former couldn't make any mark on the Catalan club, and Ousmane Dembele had horrible few spells with his injuries.
In midst of these crises, Barcelona played these games, the fragile team was no match to Bayern's superior high press.
Right after the match the team's senior players Such as Gerard Pique formally came out to quit the club of his own free will if the young blood had to get their chances.
Phillipe Coutinho's two goals in that Bayern defeat might have felt like an uptight slap to the club hierarchy for underestimating his talent and sending him out for a loan to Bayern Munich where he won the Champions League even though being a Barcelona player, scoring against his parent team.
Bayern Munich will face Barcelona again in 2023 Champions league fixtures, with their team frequently improved under Xavi and Laporte's management, This year's clash looks like something to watch.
Barcelona has signed several quality players this season, and the management has tried to strengthen the team in every aspect be it midfield, the Attack or the defence. Laporte and his team have signed players which is likely to give the headache of team selection ahead of their matches because of the quality every individual has.
Their star signing none other than Robert Lewandowski, who was a star man in that Bayern Munich team has also arrived in Barcelona, but now playing for Barcelona Lewandowski's clash with Bayern Munich will be something to watch.
Apart from Lewandowski, Baca has also strengthened their squad with players like Jules Kunde, Raphinha, and frank Kessie. These players might b hungry to prove their worth to Barca. The depth the current Barcelona team have established is quite phenomenal with Xavi having at-least two players for every position.
with the resurrection of a player like Ousmane Dembele Barcelona has a very dangerous attacking font in Europe with a combination of Pace and experience. If Ansu Fati manages to stay fit for the season Barca has a killer in front of goal.
Surely with the unsavoury thrashing, they have received from Bayern Munich for quite a few years, with an improved squad Xavi's Barcelona would be looking out for revenge.
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