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Bayer Leverkusen v Barcelona, live on Sky Sports 2

Leverkusen

Leverkusen are 15 points behind Borussia Dortmund - who beat them on Saturday - in the Bundesliga and unlikely to match last season's second-place finish.

Michael Ballack is injured, but Robin Dutt has left him on the bench in recent weeks anyway. Pacy Swiss striker Eren Derdiyok would be the man most likely to cause problems for the European champions, but he will probably miss the first leg.

Barcelona

Pep Guardiola has won the Champions League twice and made the semi-final in his only other campaign. Opta points out that Barca have not been knocked out at this stage of the competition since Liverpool beat them five years ago.

The Spanish champions lost at Osasuna on Saturday night and have slipped ten points behind Real Madrid. The problem in La Liga has been their away form (W4-D5-L2), but they have appeared much more comfortable - and motivated - on Champions League trips.

Sergio Busquets is a major injury doubt, but, where there's Lionel Messi, there's hope. Starting with his goal in the 2009 final, the Argentinean has scored 27 goals in 28 Champions League starts, including six in three away games this season.

Match Odds

Leverkusen beat Chelsea, Genk and Valencia in group matches at the BayArena, but Barca are strong favourites to become the first away team to win more than once at the stadium in the Champions League.

The Spaniards have won their last three games with Leverkusen and five in a row on the road in the Champions League. The Germans have picked up more points (seven) from losing positions than anyone else, but their inability to avoid those situations in the first place makes it hard to see any value in opposing the visitors.

Over/Under Goals

Barcelona scored 20 times in their six group-stage games this season, equalling Manchester United's all-time record. Leverkusen's poor defensive record - they have kept only six clean sheets in their last 42 Champions League matches - suggests the visitors won't have trouble scoring.

Leverkusen have scored in all but one of their 27 previous home games in the competition. Twenty-one of those have gone Over 2.5 Goals, which easily justifies its odds-on price.

Both Teams to Score?

Both teams have scored in 19/27 at the BayArena - including seven of Leverkusen's eight previous defeats - and that offers even more value at 2.0. Saying 'yes' in that market has also paid out in 13 of Barca's 22 Champions League away games under Guardiola.

Recommended Bets: Back Both Teams to Score @ 2.0; back Lionel Messi To Score @ 1.75

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