April 24, 2015 11:57:46 UK
The holders Real Madrid will take on Juventus in the Champions League semi-finals and Barcelona have been drawn to face Bayern Munich.
Last season coach Carlo Ancelotti guided the Spanish capital giants to ‘La Decima’ – a 10th European Cup success – and this time around they will travel to Juventus Stadium in Turin for the first of a two-legged last-four clash against the Serie A leaders.
The match is a repeat of the 1998 final between the two European giants when a single goal from Predrag Mijatovic secured Los Blancos a seventh European title. Scudetto-chasers Juve have gone the longest without lifting the trophy – it is 19 years since their win over Ajax in 1996 – and the La Liga title-contenders are bidding to become the first club to successfully defend the trophy in its current format.
Former midfielder and Juventus ambassador Pavel Nedved told reporters: “I’m convinced we’ll put in two great performances, then we’ll see if that’s enough to keep our run going.”
Barcelona’s match-up against the Bundesliga table-toppers sees coach Pep Guardiola make his return to Camp Nou.
The current Bayern Munich boss played for the Catalan capital giants for over a decade, winning the European Cup in 1992, before taking over and guiding them to Champions League glory twice (in 2009 and 2011). He has since won the Bundesliga, German Cup, Uefa Super Cup and Club World Cup with the Bavarians.
Bayern Munich ambassador Paul Breitner told reporters: “It will be very tough to reach the final. We will have to be at full strength in both matches to beat Barcelona.”
First semi-final: Barcelona (Spa) v Bayern Munich (Ger)
Ties to be played 5th/6th May and 12th/13th May 2015.
Second semi-final: Juventus (Ita) v Real Madrid (Spa)
Ties to be played 5th/6th May and 12th/13th May 2015.
Barcelona are currently priced 3.00 in the Champions League outright winner betting and Real Madrid are available to back at 3.00. Bayern Munich are quoted 3.50 and Juventus are on offer at 8.50.
Meanwhile, the draw for the semi-finals of the Europa League paired holders Sevilla with Fiorentina, while Napoli will face Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk.
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