The Illusion of Barça Against Borussia Dortmund: Favorable History Against German Teams in the Champions League

The FC Barcelona is about to face a key challenge in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League 2024-25, where they will face Borussia Dortmund. The first match of the tie will be played this Wednesday, April 9 (Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys), while the return leg will take place on April 15 (Signal Iduna Park).

The azulgrana team approaches this series with the confidence of having already defeated their rival once this season 2024-25. It is worth remembering that Catalans and Germans faced off in the sixth round of the league phase and the culés won with a tight 2-3, a result that, by the way, tipped the balance further in favor of Barça regarding the history of encounters between both teams, which is dominated by the Barcelona side with three victories and two draws in five clashes.  

Although this will be the first match between Barcelona and Dortmund in the quarter-finals in the history of the UEFA Champions League, it is not the first time that Barcelona has faced a German team in this type of stage. Throughout the history of the competition, the team from the City of Barcelona has faced German teams at this level three times, winning two of them and losing one.

First Encounter Against German Teams: Schalke 04 (2008)

The first instance of this rivalry took place in the quarter-finals of the 2007-08 Champions League, when FC Barcelona clashed with Schalke 04. The azulgrana team overcame the 'miners' with a solid performance, winning both matches. 

In the first leg, played at the Veltins Arena, the score was 1-0, with a goal from Bojan Krkić (min.11). In the return leg, at the Camp Nou, Frank Rijkaard's side repeated the winning formula, defeating Mirko Slomka's team with a tight 1-0. This time, the winning goal was courtesy of the Ivorian midfielder Yaya Touré (min.43). The tie ended 2-0 in favor of the Barcelonans.

Second Duel: Bayern Munich (2009)

The second knockout against a German team in the quarter-finals occurred in the 2008-09 Champions League, when Barcelona had to confront Bayern Munich. This time, Pep Guardiola's team 'crushed' the Bavarian club with a true 'ode' to good football, achieving an unforgettable 4-0 in the first leg, where the great protagonist was Leo Messi with a brace (min. 9 and 39), complemented by goals from Samuel Eto'o (min. 12) and Thierry Henry (min. 43).

In the return leg, Barcelona signed a 1-1 draw at the Camp Nou, with a goal from Seydou Keita (min.73) for Barça. Franck Ribéry (min.47) scored the goal for the Bavarians. The tie ended 5-1 in favor of the azulgranas.

As a curious fact, FC Barcelona ended up being crowned champion of that edition of the Champions League. The culé machine left Chelsea in the 'semis' and Manchester United in the final to lift their third 'orejona' and feed a historic sextuple for the institution.

Third Encounter: The Harsh Defeat Against Bayern Munich (2020)

However, not all memories are pleasant for FC Barcelona when facing German teams in the UEFA Champions League. In the 2019-20 season, in a tournament marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, Barcelona suffered one of its harshest defeats in recent history. In the quarter-finals, Bayern Munich under Hansi Flick crushed Barça with a resounding 2-8 in Lisbon, one of the most painful defeats for the club and its supporters.