When Barcelona resumes their Champions League campaign at home against Swiss team Young Boys on Tuesday night, they will be looking to recover from their first La Liga loss of the year.
In the competition's inaugural match earlier this month, the Catalan powerhouse lost 2-1 to Monaco, while Young Boys was defeated 3-0 at home by Premier League team Aston Villa.
Barcelona had an incredible start to the 2024–25 La Liga season with seven straight victories, but on Saturday night they lost to Osasuna 4–2, ending their 100% record.
It was Hansi Flick's team's second loss of the year; in their Champions League opening, Monaco defeated them 2-1 as well, however in that match, Eric Garcia was sent off for the La Liga team.
Barcelona is under pressure to win on Tuesday night, but a serious injury situation means that many of its important players will be out of the lineup again. Despite his struggles, Flick deserves a lot of credit for his strong start.
The La Liga team advanced to the Champions League quarterfinals the previous season, but they were shockingly ousted in the 2022–2023 and 2021–2022 group stages.
Barcelona's absence from a European Cup semi-final dating back to 2018–19 and their lack of success in the competition dating back to 2014–15 is excessive for a team of their caliber.
The Catalan team's La Liga matchup against Alaves is possibly challenging, but they simply cannot afford to let the Champions League take a backseat.
After a tough 3-0 loss to Aston Villa in their league debut on September 17, Young Boys now face an extremely challenging trip to Barcelona.
The Swiss champions, who have only managed six points from eight games, will be going into this match fresh off a 1-0 loss to Grasshoppers on Saturday. They are currently sitting in 11th place in their home standings. It's undeniable that they have had a very difficult start to the season.
Young Boys participated in the Champions League last season as well. They placed third in their group, which qualified them for the Europa League elimination round. However, they lost 4-2 on aggregate to Sporting Lisbon, a powerful team from Portugal.
It will be a tall order to make a significant impact in this competition for the Swiss team, who have never advanced past the Champions League group stage. This is especially true given that they will be hosting the formidable Italian team Inter Milan in their third league stage encounter.
Despite Barcelona's injury issues, Patrick Rahmen's team has already achieved two significant victories this season, defeating Galatasaray both at home and away in the playoff round.
