Stuttgart v Barcelona

Stuttgart face a tall order at home as they open up the knockout phase of the Champions League against the defending champion Barcelona. The Cules are coming off of a dominant win at home on the weekend.

The home side managed by Swiss boss Christian Gross are presently in 9th place of the Bundesliga with 31 points from 23 games. They sit 2 points ahead of 10th place Hoffenheim and 1 point behind the 8th place Mainz. Much like Barsa, Stuttgart scored a big win on the weekend as they won away to Cologne by a score of 1-5. Cacau came up with a brilliant performance as he netted 4 goals. Stuttgart were able to qualify for this stage as a result of a 2nd place finish in Group G, 4 points behind Sevilla.

The visiting Barcelona are coming off of a 4-0 win at home over Racing Santander at the Camp Nou on Saturday. With that win Pep Guardiola’s side are guaranteed to sit atop the La Liga table through at least the next week. Andres Iniesta, Thierry Henry and Rafa Marquez were among the goal scorers. Barcelona were able to qualify for this stage as a result of their first place finish in Group F with 11 points, 2 ahead of Serie A’s Inter Milan.

Live Champions League
Stuttgart v Barcelona
Mercedes-Benz Arena, kick off 1945 hours