Champions League: Juventus must draw inspiration from Roma against Real Madrid; Bayern Munich aim to break Spanish hoodoo

Juventus will take the field against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu knowing they will have to do something unprecedented to advance to the semi-finals of the Champions League. They have only scored two goals in one go at Real’s home and would need to score a minimum of three on Wednesday night to ensure they have any chance of qualifying to the last four. That is the scale of the task at hand for Massimiliano Allegri’s men.

The Italian giants were outclassed in the first leg at the Allianz Stadium in Turin thanks to two goals from Cristiano Ronaldo, including his unbelievably executed overhead kick. A complete performance from the two-time defending champions has put them on the verge of qualification to the semi-finals for the sixth season in a row. Zinedine Zidane’s men know exactly what they need to do in order to ensure passage to the next round and would be ready to put in a professional performance at home.

The Bianconeri have recently grabbed the initiative in the Serie A again, putting four points between second-placed Napoli and themselves and are on track to win the title for the seventh season running. However, in that time, their Champions League dreams have reached the brink, with the club needing to pull off one of the greatest comebacks in the competition ever to qualify for the semi-finals. To put it in simpler terms, no team has overcome a 3-0 home defeat in the knockout stages.

The hosts will have to contend with the absence of central defenders Sergio Ramos and Nacho Fernandez. The former is suspended after picking up a booking in the last match, while the latter is out with a thigh injury. Youngster Jesus Vallejo could partner Raphael Varane at the back. The rest of the squad will be at coach Zidane’s disposal as they look to complete the job with a good performance.

The visitors would have to do without talisman Paulo Dybala, who was red-carded in the first leg and is out suspended for this encounter. They will have to be on the attack from the beginning as manager Allegri looks to find the best system to get them the result they need. Before the match, goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon had indicated that this could be his last Champions League match and Allegri’s men would be hoping to try and achieve the improbable and give him another shot at winning the coveted title.

The Old Lady can take inspiration from their rivals, AS Roma, who overcame a 4-1 loss in the first leg to win the second leg 3-0, thus eliminating La Liga heavyweights Barcelona. Unless they come out fighting and can keep Real Madrid quiet, this should be a routine Champions League tie, with Real progressing easily.

On the other hand, the encounter between Bayern Munich and Sevilla at the Allianz Arena in Munich will be an intriguingly poised one, with the hosts leading 2-1 from the first leg. The German giants will be looking to put in a solid performance at home and not give the Spaniards any chance to advance. They would do well to not underestimate the Andalusians, as Vincenzo Montella’s men showed they can defeat anyone on the night when they eliminated Manchester United from the competition with a shock win at Old Trafford.

The German giants will be missing left-back Daniel Alaba and midfielder Arturo Vidal due to injury, while goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is still not ready to make a return to the team. They have been in incredible form since Jupp Heynckes took over the team, having clinched the Bundesliga title and looked an ominous opposition for every team in the competition. Their aura of invincibility has returned and the Bavarians would be looking to use that and see the game through against the team from the city of Seville.

The away side have not won a game since their win in Manchester and are under pressure to perform as well. They will welcome back midfielder Ever Banega, a key part of their plans and an important player if they are to unlock the German side’s defence. They will rely on strikers Luis Muriel and Wissam Ben Yidder to help them score the goals that takes them to the next round in the competition. Ben Yidder’s brace against United helped Montella’s men go through and he would be hoping to get on the scoresheet again.

The numbers involved ahead of this fixture are really intriguing. Bayern have been eliminated by a Spanish opponent in the last four years since they won the Champions League in the 2012-13 season. They went down twice to Real Madrid and once each to Atletico Madrid and Barcelona. They will need to break the Spanish hoodoo if they want to make the semi-finals this season. Sevilla, have the chance of rewriting history, as they have never reached the semi-finals of the Champions League. In fact, their only win in the knockout stages so far came against the Red Devils in the previous round.

As both matches kick-off, the expectation is that Real Madrid and Bayern Munich seal their spots in the last four comfortably. However, going by the events of Tuesday night, they will be justified in expecting the unexpected and will be wary as Juventus and Sevilla throw the kitchen sink at them.