The stakes are high today in Frankfurt as both teams have a genuine chance of winning this league! Frankfurt's chances are slim in my opinion though.. The winner gets a ticket to the Champions League next season.. The much-improved Barcelona are of course the favorites to lift the trophy later this spring. West Ham are definitely the 3rd favorites and German RB Leipzig! Barcelona have a 37-38% chance to win this competition. Especially Frankfurt must be very motivated here as they have not won too many trophies in recent decades and even in European competitions is something they are used to.. However, I see Barcelona in their current form being a simply too strong opponent! They dominate Frankfurt in all areas of the game and are in every way the much bigger team. Both teams, especially Barcelona are capable of playing aggressive, offensive football and overall very high-level football. I definitely expect a match that offers great entertainment for football fans with several goals!

French/Gambian striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the latest great addition to Barcelona’s super talented team. He lost the manager Arteteta’s trust in Arsenal completely earlier this season and also behaved badly himself. Many questioned his transfer to Barcelona but he has scored a huge number of goals for Barcelona already and raised Barca’s offensive game to a new level! Barcelona started the season in a very disappointing manner, and I posted a few picks betting on their opponents last autumn. It is indeed rare to see this kind of turn around from any club, even a big one, during one season. Barca are almost unstoppable at the moment! The biggest reason for this reclaimed fame is surely the Barcelona legend Xavi who has created a great atmosphere and working mentality within this traditional club that was in disarray after Leo Messi’s departure to ultra-rich French club PSG for last season. Frankfurt are playing a mediocre season in The German Bundesliga and are currently in the 9th place but I rate them as the only 11th best team in my power ratings that illustrate the teams' true class... They have been very lucky in terms of expected points and are over-valued by the betting market! They have a rather shaky defense and I believe Barca will take advantage of this today. Barca are in an amazing form in LaLiga which is a better league than the Bundesliga.. Barca are now in top-4 and might climb even higher. The last time they lost was in January! The are well over 60% favorites to win this first leg.