"Highest chance to finish first" - VIktoria Plzen manager predicts who will top UEFA Champions League group between Barcelona and Bayern Munich
According to Viktoria Plzen's manager Michal Bilek, Barcelona have a better chance of topping their Champions League ahead of Bayern Munich.
The Catalan club and the Bavarians are in Group C of the UEFA Champions League 2022-23 along with Viktoria Plzen and Inter Milan.
Barca haven't enjoyed the best of runs in recent versions of the tournament. They failed to make it out of the group stage of last year's edition, where they were in the same group as Bayern as well. Benfica and Dynamo Kyiv were also a part of the group.
However, Barca lost both of their games against Bayern Munich last season by an aggregate score of 6-0.
The Blaugrana dropped to the Europa league after finishing third in the group and managed to reach the semi-finals of the competition.
That said, a lot has changed since. Barcelona enjoyed a productive transfer window this summer, signing the likes of Raphinha, Jules Kounde, Andreas Christensen, and more.
Robert Lewandowski, a former Bayern player, was their most high-profile signing of their window.
Lewandowski started his career at the Camp Nou by maintaining the prolific standards he showed during his time in Germany. The Polish striker has ady scored five goals in his first four games for the Catalan club.
Xavi Hernandez's men are set to start their Champions League campaign at home against Viktoria Plzen today (September 7).
Ahead of the game, Bilek told reporters that he expects their next opponents to have a much better season in the competition this term than in recent years.
Bilek said (via Barca Blaugranes):
“Out of our group I believe Barcelona have the highest chance to finish first. We are excited to be at the Camp Nou, it is wonderful, a privilege. We have a very difficult group and Barça is at a great level.”
Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski set to face his former club Bayern Munich in the Champions League
There is great anticipation to see how Robert Lewandowski will fare against his former club Bayern Munich this season.
The Polish striker had a stellar run for the Bavarians during his stay at the club. In 375 games for the German side, Lewandowski scored 344 goals and provided 72 assists. He also helped them win one Champions League title.
However, it has to be noted that Lewandowski has previously played against Bayern Munich during his time at Borussia Dortmund. In 14 games for Dortmund against Bayern, the current Barcelona striker scored five goals.