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Champions League: How will Barcelona line up against Borussia Dortmund?

The group stages kick off on Tuesday

FC Barcelona v Valencia CF - La Liga Photo by Eric Alonso/MB Media/Getty Images

The Champions League is back again and sees Barcelona take on Borussia Dortmund at the Westfalenstadion on Tuesday night in Group F.

Lionel Messi has been back in training but is expected to miss out, while Ousmane Dembele will also miss the game against his former team.

However, Barcelona head into the game after a morale-boosting 5-2 win over Valencia in La Liga which saw Luis Suarez make his return from injury and score twice.

Let’s see how Barcelona could line up on Tuesday.

Defence

FC Barcelona v Valence Club de Futbol - La Liga Photo by Joan Valls/Urbanandsport /NurPhoto via Getty Images

Barcelona’s defence has been pretty leaky this season and the team are yet to keep a clean sheet, but it’s still difficult to see Ernesto Valverde making any changes to his backline.

Samuel Umtiti is out with injury which means Gerard Pique will continue to partner Clement Lenglet at the heart of the defence in front of Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

Left-back Jordi Alba looks set for a busy evening up against Jadon Sancho, while Nelson Semedo will be expected to continue on the opposite flank.

Midfield

FC Barcelona v Valencia CF - La Liga Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images

Barcelona’s midfield simply purred against Valencia and there must be a strong temptation to continue with Sergio Busquets, Arthur and Frenkie de Jong.

Arthur and De Jong were both taken off midway through the second half of Saturday’s win which suggests they were being rested with Tuesday in mind.

Ivan Rakitic, Arturo Vidal, Carles Alena and Sergi Roberto are all options to come in to the team if needed, but they may have to settle for a place on the bench again.

Attack

FC Barcelona v Valence Club de Futbol - Liga Photo by Pressinphoto/Icon Sport via Getty Images

Luis Suarez enjoyed a fine cameo against Valencia, scoring twice on his comeback from injury after replacing Ansu Fati on the hour.

The Uruguayan looks certain to start up front with Antoine Griezmann, which just leaves one place up for grabs.

It looks as though this match may come too soon for Messi, so Carles Perez may get the nod with Ansu on the bench.

Possible XI: Ter Stegen; Semedo, Pique, Lenglet, Alba; De Jong, Busquets, Arthur; Perez, Suarez, Griezmann,

How do you think Barcelona should line up against Dortmund? Let us know your thoughts, line-ups and predictions in the comments below!

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