Now firmly established as La Liga favourites, Barcelona refocus their sights on a European title campaign as they meet Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal matchup.
The Catalan giants went four points clear of Real Madrid atop the La Liga standings this past weekend, and will be hoping to use that cushion to let them prioritise their UCL push as they face a perennial thorn in the side of many tournament contenders.
The attacking trio of Lamine Yamal, Raphinha, and Robert Lewandowski have set the football world on fire, with Lewandowski leading the domestic goals table while the former two have both positioned themselves to contend for a Ballon d’Or.
Dortmund sit a shocking eighth in the Bundesliga table, but have been able to successfully put aside their spotty domestic form in recent years to trouble European giants in Champions League action. They knocked Atletico Madrid and PSG out of the competition last season en route to a spot in the final, but an upset of Barcelona would top both of those results.
The Sporting News runs through the latest team news and injury updates for both sides as the match draws nearer.
Barcelona vs. Borussia Dortmund lineups, predicted starting 11, team news
Barcelona boss Hansi Flick stated over the weekend that he was being careful with the minutes load for left winger Raphinha. Having started three of their four games on the bench since the international break, he should be well rested to start this enormous European match.
Barcelona are still without injured midfielders Dani Olmo and Marc Casado, while they are not expecting to bring Marc-Andre ter Stegen back in for European games despite his return to training from an early-season ACL injury.
Flick has a decision to make in the midfield, as Olmo’s continued absence means Gavi or Fermin Lopez to play as the No. 10. It remains to be seen whether Flick will turn to Inigo Martinez or Eric Garcia at the back with Ronald Araujo struggling for form.
Barcelona predicted XI (4-2-3-1, right to left): Szczesny (GK) — Kounde, I. Martinez, Cubarsi, Balde — Pedri, de Jong — Raphinha, F. Lopez, Lamine Yamal — Lewandowski.
Injured: Olmo (muscle), Casado (knee), ter Stegen (ACL), Bernal (ACL).
Suspended: None.
MORE: All the latest Barcelona news | Latest La Liga top goal scorer list | Latest Champions League top goal scorer list
Borussia Dortmund are suffering under a defensive crisis. Niklas Sule has struggled through an injury-stricken season and missed the 4-1 weekend win at Freiberg with a knock and can’t be counted on as a starter.
That leaves Dortmund thin at the back considering they are also without Nico Schlotterbeck and saw Ramy Bensebaini limp off with a thigh injury this weekend, leaving him out at least a month. It means Daniel Svensson may have to move back to defence, or boss Niko Kovac will have to change his formation to accommodate.
BVB will be without Pascal Gross, who is suspended for yellow card accumulation, while Marcel Sabitzer is sidelined with a knee injury and will miss at least most of the remaining matches this season, if not all.
Borussia Dortmund predicted XI (3-4-1-2, right to left): Kobel (GK) — Anton, Can, Svensson — Ryerson, Nmecha, Chukwuemeka, Gittens — Brandt — Guirassy, Adeyemi.
Injured: Sule (knock, double), Schlotterbeck (knee), Bensebaini (thigh), Sabitzer (knee).
Suspended: Gross (yellow accumulation).
Barcelona vs. Borussia Dortmund live stream, TV channel
Here’s how to watch this Champions League match across selected areas of the world’s major regions:
| Date | Time | TV channel | Streaming | |
| USA | Wed, Apr. 9 | 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT | TUDN, Univision | Fubo USA, Paramount+ |
| Canada | Wed, Apr. 9 | 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT | — | DAZN |
| UK | Wed, Apr. 9 | 8 p.m. BST | TNT Sports 2 | discovery+ |
| Australia | Thu, Apr. 10 | 7 a.m. AEST | — | Stan Sport |
