“We bout to get smoked”, “This is not good” – Barcelona fans concerned as Xavi drops 2 players to the bench for Bayern Munich game 

Barcelona fans have expressed their concern over Xavi Hernandez's decision to drop Alex Balde and Frenkie de Jong for their Champions League clash with Bayern Munich.

The Blaugrana are aiming to make it back-to-back wins in Europe's elite competition after they thrashed Viktoria Plzen 5-1 last week.

However, the Catalan giants are well aware that a trip to the Allianz Arena will pose a far stiffer test, as they have a poor record against the Bundesliga champions.

Xavi has made seven changes from the side that beat Cadiz 4-0 at the weekend. Robert Lewandowski returned to the team to face his old club for the first time.

But fans are disappointed in some of the changes that the Barca legend has made, most notably Balde dropping out for Marcos Alonso.

Balde has made a real impact since breaking into the senior team at left-back as the 18-year-old has started four of Barca's La Liga games this term.

However, Xavi clearly feels that Alonso, who has plenty of Champions League experience, is a better option to face an imposing Bayern attack.

Meanwhile, supporters are also disgruntled at the fact that De Jong has been left out of the lineup, despite impressing in recent weeks. Following the announcement of the starting XI, Barcelona fans took to Twitter to voice their concerns:

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Xavi Hernandez expecting tight contest between Bayern Munich and Barcelona

The Bavarians have dominated this fixture in recent times, with Barca arguably still recovering from their infamous 8-2 defeat in 2020.

However, the Barcelona boss is expecting a much tighter contest this time around, as he told the press (as per Bavarian Football Works):

“We’re talking about Bayern, one of the best teams in the world We never won in Munich before, it’s a difficult place to play in. But we have the feeling that we can win this game and finally change this dynamic."

He continued:

“I’m expecting a tight game. Both teams want to have the ball and we will suffer when we don’t have it. I think it will be a very intense and aggressive game. We’ll try to dominate the game and monopolize possession.”

Xavi further added:

“They have great young players with big potential that can make the difference. I would highlight their high pressure and how they can break the defensive line. They have been doing well for years.”