Preview: Flick meets his recent past as Barca play Bayern

MADRID, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- FC Barcelona coach Hansi Flick goes head-to-head with his past as his current side play Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday night.

Flick joined Barcelona this summer after his brief and unsuccessful spell with the German national side but is best remembered for his time at Bayern, where he led them to the Bundesliga twice, as well as the Champions League, the UEFA Supercup and the FIFA Club World Cup.

His ten league games in charge at Barcelona have yielded nine wins and a draw, with Barca's only defeat this season coming away to Monaco after Eric Garcia was shown an early red card.

Garcia will miss Wednesday's game with a muscle injury, while Andreas Christensen and Ronald Araujo are still injured, along with Marc Andre Ter Stegen, but Flick had good news on the injury front in Sunday's 5-1 win at home to Sevilla, with Spain international Gavi returning to action almost a year after needing a knee operation.

The ease of Sunday's win meant Flick was able to hook players such as Raphinha, Lamine Yamal and Robert Lewandowski (another Bayern hero) early in the second half to keep them as fresh as possible for Wednesday.

Although the game is vital for Barcelona after their Monaco setback, Flick also needs to keep half an eye on the weekend, with his side travelling to play Real Madrid in LaLiga on Saturday night.

Real Madrid have an extra 24 hours to prepare for the 'Clasico' as they look to pull back Barca's three-point lead at the top of the table.

Wednesday's second Champions League match sees Atletico Madrid at home to Lille.

Diego Simeone's side also need a win after suffering a 4-0 thrashing away to Benfica in their last game.

Atletico scored late goals in their 3-1 win at home to Leganes on Sunday, but have injuries with Pablo Barrios out for a couple of weeks with a muscle injury, while Clement Lenglet suffered a twisted knee and ankle on Sunday to join Cesar Azpilicueta and Robin le Normand in the injury list.

Lille are currently fourth in Ligue 1 and will be in high spirits after beating Real Madrid in their last Champions League game. ■