Feature: Facing Barca forwards, masked Lewandowski could give Bayern hope

At first glance the Champions Leagues semifinal battle between Spanish giants FC Barcelona and Bayern Munich has been decided before the kick-off (6 and 12 May) as both teams at present seem to be cruising in different football altitudes.

While Barcelona supernatural strike force of Messi-Suarez-Neymar seem to be humiliating footballs records by breaking 100-goal barrier for the season last weekend, the 2015 German champions and their coach Pep Guardiola appear to be in the center of football's international disaster area.

Or so it seems when reading the gleeful comments that flooded the social media after the club had been knocked out of the German Cup by Borussia Dortmund after an annoying night full of nightmares like the penalty shoot-out (Bayern missed four) and the injuries to two key-figures - Arjen Robben (ruptured muscle) and Robert Lewandowski (jaw and nasal bone fracture).

What do Barcelona now have to be afraid of after Franck Ribery is sidelined and Robben and David Alaba are out until the start of the next season?

Bayern have overcome a whole series of slight and serious problems this season, and are to be feared when they have their backs to the wall. Perhaps the striving to be a determined team no matter who is on the pitch will this time be again successful. To come back after knock-outs is a part of Bayern's history.

And after all: Bayern have made it into the round of the best four European clubs despite all the trouble like Uli Hoeness' prison sentence, team-doc Hans-Wilhelm Mueller-Wohlfahrt resigning after arguments with CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and coach Guardiola, an energy-sapping post World Cup season and a multitude of injured players (Badstuber, Martinez, Thiago, Lahm, Schweinsteiger, Benatia).

Hopes are growing in Munich that Ribery will be back in time for the Barcelona challenge. And that 26-year old striker Robert Lewandowski, who will undergo further examinations, could play against the Spanish club with a special face mask protecting his head.

But whatever happens, Bayern will have to develop a special spirit and maybe change their own attitude to make their big dream come true and reach the final on June 6th in Berlin. Playing Barcelona is not a game of two equals anymore - but football seldom is. Why not accept the role of being the underdog who is ready to spring a surprise?

You might not be able to deliver finest artistic football anymore - but determination and discipline will still help. Bayern's game will have to change without Robben, if it is less powerful will have to be seen. To do that Bayern will have to neglect the pain which took hold of them after a disastrous night followed by the derisive comments after four players (Philipp Lahm, Xabi Alonso, Mario Goetze and Manuel Neuer) missed their penalties. After all a penalty shoot-out is regarded as a character test.

Some German newspapers saw "back ice" on the pitch in Munich after Lahm and Alonso slipped when taking their spot kicks. Others recommended the "non slip socks" that little kids wear when running around mum's feet on the slippery living room floor.

No doubt, six days before they travel to Camp Nou and the powerfully beating heart of Spain's football next Wednesday, Bayern are rock bottom. Worse than ever this season. They have no chance now of winning three titles this year after Guardiola said: To win all three trophies (Champions League, German title and the cup) is a must-do. Now they have to chance from a must-do to yes we (still) can because we want to.

Guardiola will have to once again show his famous special tactical skills and be a highly motivating coach with a clear mind that neglects all emotions crossing his path when returning to his "footballing home" .

Bayern - always trying to be perfect - will have to accept a more human-like status rather than one of having supernatural abilities like after the 6-1 victory against FC Porto or the 7-1 against AS Rome or the 7-0 against Schachtjor Donezk in this season's Champions League campaign and ruling the German Bundesliga (15 points ahead of the rest four matches before the season is finished).

And Bayern will have to forget about Guardiola's statement expressing that only three titles will be good enough. To reach the Champions League final by beating a at the moment better furnished team like Barcelona is a gigantic task and a big challenge - but it is a chance as well to proof Bayern (with Guardiola) is a club that will never give up. On top: To beat Barcelona in aggregate would make fans around the world forget about a dreadful German Cup night and the worst penalty shoot-out in Bayern's history. Endi