FC Barcelona players arrive in Lisbon ahead of Bayern match

13-Aug-2020 11:48:06 | Yahoo Sports

VIDEO SHOW: FC BARCELONA PLAYERS ARRIVING AT LISBON HOTEL AHEAD OF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE MATCH AGAINST BAYERN MUNICH RESENDING WITH COMPLETE SCRIPT SHOWS: LISBON, PORTUGAL (AUGUST 13, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. POLICE WEARING MASKS / BUS CARRYING FC BARCELONA PLAYERS ARRIVING AT HOTEL 2. FC BARCELONA'S STRIKER LIONEL MESSI ARRIVING AT HOTEL 3. FC BARCELONA'S GOALKEEPER MARC-ANDRE TER STEGEN ARRIVING AT HOTEL 4. VARIOUS OF FC BARCELONA PLAYERS ARRIVING 5. FC BARCELONA STRIKER MARTIN BRAITHWAITE AND MIDFIELDER FRENKIE DE JONG ARRIVING 6. VARIOUS OF PLAYERS ARRIVING STORY: FC Barcelona players arrived in Lisbon on Thursday (August 13) ahead of the Champion's League match against Bayern Munich on Friday (August 14). A group of cheering fans welcomed Barca's players outside a Lisbon hotel among strict measures by police trying to maintain safety distance between them. Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen took on Bayern Munich's Manuel Neuer in a public spat last year over the Germany goalkeeper's jersey and the confrontation will be played out on the pitch in Friday's Champions League quarter-final. Only Lionel Messi can rival Ter Stegen, 28, for the title of Barca's most decisive player in the last few seasons, but his heroics for his club have not been enough to overhaul Neuer, 34, on the international stage. Neuer was sidelined for eight months in the build-up to the 2018 World Cup but slid right back into the team at Ter Stegen's expense in time for the tournament, where Germany had their worst display since 1938 as they crashed out in the group stage. But Neuer remained Germany's number one and captain, even as they underperformed in the UEFA Nations League and Euro 2020 qualifiers. Ter Stegen finally snapped in September after sitting on the bench against Northern Ireland and the Netherlands, saying there wasn't an easy explanation for why he wasn't playing Neuer was the first to strike his team mate down, saying Ter Stegen's comments did not help team unity. The Barca keeper curtly responded that it was not up to Neuer to dictate how he should feel. Bayern's then president Uli Hoeness waded into the debate, incredibly remarking that his club would stop sending Bayern players to internationals if Neuer was removed from the team for Ter Stegen. Former Germany defender Benedikt Howedes has said there was no separating the two keepers, declaring it's like comparing Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo who are both great players in their generation. (Production: Miguel Pereira, May Ponzo, Anna Valderrama)