Bayern Munich tactics
Pep Guardiola named the same side that lost the first-leg but the Spanish manager ditched the 3-5-2 formation for the 4-4-2 system they completed the encounter with. The other change saw the Bavarian giants relying more on patient build-up of attacks.
That meant that central defenders Medhi Benatia and Jerome Boateng had to split to the edges of the penalty box and allow Xabi Alonso the space to drop from midfield and initiate attacks from the back.
Alonso could then either ping direct diagonal balls to the strikers or play short passes into midfield. Juan Bernat and Rafinha simultaneously pushed beyond the halfway line from full-back to supply width in attack.
Right midfielder Philipp Lahm linked up with Rafinha in looking to provide crosses into the box. Thiago Alcantara also charged forward as an offensive midfielder adding numbers to back-up attacks through the middle.
Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller started as a partnership up top, with Muller frequently pulling out to the right flank where he created overloads with Lahm and Rafinha. Bastian Schweinsteiger worked just behind the strikers in an area where he made runs into the box to add more presence when crosses came in from the flanks.
When out of possession, Bayern had to start pressing very high up the pitch as they did in the first-leg. Muller and Lewandowski led the pressing by engaging Barca’s central defenders while Schweinsteiger minded Sergio Busquets just behind the forwards. That was designed to subject the visitors under pressure in the offensive half.
Lahm and Thiago worked from the sides of Alonso as the three central midfielders protecting the back-four.
Barcelona tactics
Luis Enrique turned to a familiar starting XI, as was to be expected. The Barca boss set his men up in a 4-3-3 formation with a more defensive game plan compared to the one he used at home. Enrique was happy to concede some territory for a more compact defensive unit.
That meant that Luis Suarez led the pressing from the middle-third, where he allowed Bayern’s central defenders time on the ball while engaging Alonso to stop the midfielder from comfortably picking up forward passes.
Lionel Messi and Neymar worked from the flanks, while Busquets defended from the base of a central midfield triangle that included Ivan Rakitic and Andres Iniesta. The back-four completed that defensive formation by forming a flat compact line in the defensive-third.
When in possession Barca had the option to counter-attack during quick changeovers. Neymar made diagonal runs inside from the left flank to join Suarez in making runs in behind a relatively slow Bayern central defence. Messi and Rakitic also supported those quick transitional plays by joining in from deeper positions.
When the Spanish giants had good possession, they worked the ball through midfield but with caution in order to keep enough bodies at the back. That implied that only Messi, Neymar and Suarez could freely float about in the offensive-third as the forwards.
Full-backs Dani Alves and Jordi Alba rarely made runs all the way to the final-third. In central midfield, Iniesta and Rakitic took turns to commit forward thus ensuring that someone remained with Busquets to protect the back-four.
Key tactical changes
Bayern Munich created better chances in the first-half, they caused Enrique’s men problems with aerial balls and set-plays but the Catalan side led 1-2 thanks to ruthless finishing from counter-attacks and poor defending from the hosts.
In the second-half, both sides made a couple of adjustments that helped concentrate play in Barcelona’s half. Enrique’s men replaced Suarez with Pedro Rodriguez, which meant that Messi completed the game as the centre forward.
Messi naturally couldn’t offer the same threat in behind like Suarez, plus the Argentine forward also lacked the intensity with his defensive work that the Uruguayan striker had. That limited Barca going forward while inviting more pressure when they defended.
Bayern also deserve credit for the way they ended up dominating in the second-half. Muller dropped to a right attacking midfield role in a 4-1-4-1 formation. That added an extra body in midfield for Guardiola’s men as they improved their ball retention.
They led 3-2 after half-an-hour of the second half because of that shift in the shape of the game.
The late changes from both sides had little effect though because Barcelona ended the encounter with Xavi Hernandez and Sergio Busquets as the advanced central midfielders, offering little offensively, while the likes of Mario Gotze and Sebastian Rode had little time to influence the outcome for Bayern.
