Agence France Presse
Paris, April 24: Pep Guardiola will return to face his former club Barcelona after the draw for the Champions League semifinals Friday paired the Catalans with Bayern Munich while holders Real Madrid were drawn against Juventus. It will also be a sort of homecoming for Real coach Carlo Ancelotti also who had been a manager of Juventus early in his coaching career.
Barcelona will be at home to the Bundesliga side in the first leg, May 6 with the return at the Allianz Arena May 12. Guardiola won the European Cup as a player with Barcelona in 1992 and then won 14 trophies in four seasons as coach, including the Champions League in 2009 and 2011.
“When you play in the semifinals, you always get a big team. I have great respect for them and I am very happy to have had this experience in my life, but at the end of the day it’s a football match,” said Guardiola after the draw was announced. “Of course it is special for me and very emotional, whether it is one game or two.”
Guardiola’s old side is now coached by Luis Enrique, alongside whom he played at Barcelona in the 1990s. “It is a special game because Pep is on the other side. It will be the first time that he has faced his Barca, it will be the first time that I have faced him as a coach which will be special for me, and I am sure it will be for my players,” said Enrique.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid go to Italy for the first leg of their tie against Serie A leaders Juventus, May 5 as they look to become the first club to retain the trophy in the Champions League era.
The tie is a repeat of the 1998 final, which Real won 1-0 in Amsterdam, and the Spanish side will be fancied to come out on top on this occasion too.
Italian Ancelotti played in the last team to win the European Cup in successive seasons – AC Milan. He also coached Juventus between 1999 and 2001.
This year’s final will be played in Berlin, June 6.
