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Barca v Frankfurt – a huge Europa encounter fact file!

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Barcelona play Eintracht Frankfurt in the quarter-finals of the Europa League, and the winner could well play West Ham in the semi-finals.

Of course, we’re not counting our chickens and we have to say that the Hammers need to beat French club Lyon over two legs to progress to the last four.

We’ve put together a fact file on the game, so you know exactly what to expect when the Spanish and German sides meet.

How they got hereĀ 

Barcelona dropped out of the Champions League to come into the Europa League. They finished third in a group with Bayern Munich and Benfica, who qualified for the knockout stages, and Dynamo Kyiv.

Their only victories in the groups came over the Ukrainian team; they lost 3-0 to Benfica in Portugal and drew 0-0 in Spain, while they were beaten 3-0 home and away by Bayern.

After dropping into this competition, they beat Napoli to reach the quarter-finals.

Frankfurt, by comparison, won Group D in the Europa League, ahead of Olympiacos, Fenerbahce, and Royal Antwerp.

They were unbeaten, winning three and drawing three, while they defeated Real Betis 3-2 on aggregate in the knockout stages.

League Positions

Barcelona are currently second in La Liga but they have precious little chance of actually winning the title; they are 12 points behind leaders Real Madrid.

However, they have been in exceptional form and are 14 games unbeaten in La Liga, winning their last six, including a thumping 4-0 win over Real.

Frankfurt are ninth in the Bundesliga and are currently on a five-game unbeaten run in the German top-flight, drawing three and winning two. Their last defeat came against Bayern Munich.

Best Players

Barcelona have a number of top stars, including Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Pedri, and Ferran Torres. There is an immense amount of quality in the team.

Frankfurt, by comparison, will be pinning their hopes on winger Filip Kostic, who has contributed to five goals in the Europa League this season.

Managers

World Cup winner Xavi is the manager of Barcelona, while Frankfurt are managed by Oliver Glasner, who has previously managed Wolfsburg and LASK.

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A journalist with 10 years' experience of working on National newspapers, now chief reporter covering the club that I've loved since I was a boy. Upton Park remains the greatest football stadium ever built.