Barcelona vs Lyon UEFA Champions League Odds & Prediction

Barcelona and Lyon will play the second leg of their Champions League Round of 16 tie on Wednesday at the Camp Nou with the aggregate scoring at 0-0 after a scoreless draw in France. The pressure shifts to Barcelona to generate some offense at home, as another scoreless draw would move the tie to penalty kicks and a draw with goals would see Lyon move on to the Champions League quarterfinals. Barcelona has put together a track record of underperforming in big games and then needing to dig themselves out of holes, as they did against Rayo and then again with Sevilla in Copa del Rey play. Lyon has a speedy counter, which could put Barcelona on their heels. Check out our soccer betting preview of this Round of 16 contest.

Barcelona vs Lyon UEFA Champions League Odds & Prediction

😱 Genius from Messi against Lyon in 2009.

Which players will star at Camp Nou tonight?#UCL pic.twitter.com/StxD5LFhqi — UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) 13 de marzo de 2019

When: Wednesday, March 13, 2019, 4:00pm ET Where: Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain TV: UniMas Radio: None Live Stream: Fox Sports Go Soccer Odds: Barcelona -450 / Lyon +1025 / Draw +575

Why should you bet on Barcelona?

Philippe Coutinho might get the start again for Barca, even though he was booed off the field when Ivan Rakitic subbed on for him during the team’s 3-1 win over Rayo Vallecano. Coutinho could still start, though, as Ousmane Dembele is questionable with a hamstring strain. Coutinho came over from Liverpool in January 2018 for a mammoth transfer fee, but his production has been inconsistent. Coutinho has eight goals in 39 matches for Barcelona, but he has not scored at all in his last nine matches. That pressure could motivate him to break through against Lyon. Barcelona and Bayern Munich, who also plays today, posted 0-0 road draws to open the Round of 16 tie. Thirty-one other teams have done that, and 21 of them have advanced to the next round. Barcelona is also 3-0 at home against Lyon historically in Champions League play, scoring 10 goals while permitting just two. However, both teams are unbeaten so far in Champions League this year, although Lyon has used the draw to keep their unbeaten streak going, drawing six consecutive games. That ties the record for most consecutive draws in one Champions League season. Barcelona has a much more impressive streak going, 11 consecutive years in which they have reached the quarterfinals of the Champions League, and a win would make that 12.

Why should you put your money on Lyon?

Attacking midfielder Nabil Fekir will return from a one-game suspension to play in the second leg of the tie. He has scored 12 goals for Lyon in Ligue 1 play this season, and he has scored in each of the team’s two road games in Champions League play this year. Lyon has not lost in any of the last eight games he has played, winning twice and drawing six times. If Fekir can get things going in the middle and the Lyon counterattack can take advantage of Barcelona mistakes with speed, things could look dire for the home team in a hurry, particularly with the way Barcelona has been starting games lately. Lyon got off to a relatively fast start against Barcelona, putting two shots on net in the first 10 minutes. However, they did not launch a shot at all, on target or otherwise, after the 52nd minute, showing that they need to capitalize on early chances. Barcelona launched 25 shots, but none were on net. Lyon’s offense has not done well away from home in Champions League knockout play, as the team has lost seven of nine games in that situation, drawing the other two — including losing the last four in a row without putting a single goal into the net.

Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction

Barcelona should come out and impose its will on Lyon, in the second half if not the first, and advance by the score of 2-0, moving on to their 12th straight Champions League quarterfinal round.