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Over the next week, Barcelona and Manchester United would battle it out across two legs for a spot in the semi-finals of the Champions League in what is undoubtedly the marquee fixture of this season's quarter-final.
Both clubs have been on very different trajectories this season as Barcelona's almost perfect campaign thus far sees them still in the running on three fronts, while Manchester United had to suffer under Jose Mourinho before the appointment of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer brought a revamp in their fortunes.
The Blaugrana have very much been the better of the two teams in recent seasons, winning multiple trophies, while the Red Devils have failed to match the previous standards since the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson in 2013.
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This coupled with the fact that Barca have the presence of arguably the greatest player in history within their ranks sees them being the favourites to progress in the tie. However, Manchester United are more than capable of upsetting the form book. In this piece, we shall be taking a look at five reasons why Manchester United may eliminate Barcelona from the Champions League.
#5 Lionel Messi does not have a good record at this stage
Lionel Messi is the greatest player in Barcelona's history and on a larger scale, he is arguably the greatest ever to lace a boot and grace the lush green of a football field.
It, therefore, serves as a no-brainer that the Argentine maestro is the driving force behind everything Barcelona have achieved since he made his debut as his performance levels have been so extraordinary that he has single-handedly decided the outcome of titles and finals of his own.
Messi's importance to Barcelona is best exemplified by the fact that the Catalans have scored 81 goals in La Liga this season, out of which 45 (55%) have come off the boots of Messi, with his 33 goals and 12 assists each being the league's highest as he is playing a crucial role in Barcelona surety in retaining their league title.
The five-time Balon d'Or winner also came to the fore in the Copa del Rey, starring with a hat-trick to eliminate Sevilla in the quarter-finals after a first leg deficit where he was rested, while he also played a huge role in getting Barcelona to this stage of the Champions League by assisting and scoring two each in Barcelona's 5-1 win over Lyon in the last round.
Given his extra-terrestrial abilities, it, therefore, comes as a surprise that Messi has not scored much at this stage of the Champions League, with his last goal coming way back in April 2013 in a 1-1 draw with PSG.
Incredibly, that is a run of 10 consecutive Champions League quarter-final matches without a goal for Messi, and the fact that Barcelona have progressed from the quarter-finals just once in that time (en route their treble win in 2015) further underlines just how important Messi is to the overall Barcelona cause.
While Messi might be a genuine threat who possesses the key to single-handedly decide this tie on his own, his poor recent record at this stage would give Manchester United the confidence of eliminating their Spanish opponents.
#4 Most of Barcelona's attackers are struggling
Some of the best forwards in the world currently ply their trade at Barcelona as Messi has an able supporting cast including the likes of Philippe Coutinho, Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele, who are all quality players in their own rights and are more than capable of harming Manchester United.
However, none of them is exactly in awe-inspiring form at the moment. Suarez might have scored 20 goals in the league but he is yet to get off the mark in seven games in the continental competition this season, while he has gone over three years without an away goal in the Champions League.
Dembele has shown flashes of brilliance but his persistent fitness concerns mean that the World Cup winner cannot exactly be relied upon, while summer arrival Malcom is yet to fully win the trust of manager Ernesto Valverde.
Nevertheless, Coutinho is unarguably the worst hit as the Brazilian has horribly struggled for form this season, scoring just 10 goals in 44 matches all season, while also failing to nail down a regular spot with speculations suggesting that he is discontent at the club and is seeking a transfer just a year on from his record-breaking arrival.
Goals win matches and Barcelona would need them if they are to eliminate Manchester United. However, given the struggles of their forwards, this could prove problematic, especially considering Messi's poor record at this stage.
#3 It represents Manchester United's only shot at a trophy this season
Once upon a time, Manchester United were accustomed to winning multiple trophies every season and were considered among the best clubs in the world. But those days are long gone, leaving with Sir Alex Ferguson, and the club have been struggling with its identity since then.
Having started this season in disastrous fashion under Mourinho, the club parted ways with the wily Portuguese and saw an improvement in results upon the appointment of Solskjaer. But recent results have seen the club getting eliminated from the FA Cup and lose touch in the race for a top-four finish.
This means that Manchester United's only hope of lifting a trophy this term is the Champions League. Also, winning the trophy would enable them to play in the Champions League next season if they miss out on a top-four finish and as such, Manchester United would go all out in a bid to progress.
#2 Recent history does not favour Barcelona
As already established, Barcelona have been eliminated at this stage of the Champions League in each of the last three seasons consecutively, and four times out of the last five.
This poor run started in 2014 when Atletico Madrid knocked out the five-time winners 2-1 on aggregate after drawing 1-1 at the Camp Nou and winning 1-0 at the Vicente Calderon.
Two seasons later, lightning struck twice as the Rojiblancos once again eliminated the Blaugrana, and a season later it was Juventus's turn as the perennial Italian champions knocked Barcelona out with a 3-0 aggregate victory.
The low point unarguably came last season as Barca somehow found a way to throw away a 4-1 first leg lead to lose 3-0 at the Stadio Olimpico against Roma to once again get dumped out of the quarter-finals.
Roma's heroics last season would undoubtedly give Manchester United some confidence that they could also pull off a shock and as such, Barcelona would be desperate to avoid a repeat.
#1 There have been upsets in the tournament so far
The difference in financial strengths between clubs means that there are some clubs in the upper echelons who have more money to buy the best players in the world and as such are largely expected to overcome their lesser-fancied rivals.
More often than not, this usually happens as the same set of clubs usually make it to the latter stages of the Champions League, while also winning their domestic titles. But football is a game of surprises and we had our fair share of shocking results so far this season.
Manchester United themselves pulled off a shock by eliminating PSG in the last round after staging a great 3-1 win, with the Red Devils losing the first leg 2-0 at Old Trafford. But unarguably, the biggest upset this season occurred at the Bernabeu as unfancied Ajax rallied back from a 2-1 deficit to eliminate the three-time defending champions Real Madrid 5-3 on aggregate.
While Barcelona might be heavily favoured to go through, they would do well to keep their confidence in check, seeing how fellow pre-tournament favourites such as Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid and PSG have all been knocked out.
