Barcelona v Bayer Leverkusen, Champions League: Where to watch live, preview, betting odds and possible XI

Barcelona star Lionel Messi has been sidelined for two months with a knee injury Reuters

Barcelona will be out to secure their first win in Europe this campaign when they host Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen at the Nou Camp on 29 September.

Where to watch live

Kick-off is set for 7.45pm BST. The game will be broadcast live on BT Sport Extra.

Overview

Barcelona climbed to second on the La Liga standings by vanquishing Las Palmas at the Nou Camp on 26 September. But the victory came at a huge cost as Lionel Messi suffered a knee ligament tear during the match, ruling him out for up to two months. The Argentine netted five goals against Bayer Leverkusen in a Champions League round of 16 clash in March 2012, and his presence will be sorely missed.

Goalkeeper Claudio Bravo has returned to training after recovering from a calf injury and could be named on the bench against Leverkusen, but Jordi Alba who has a neck injury and Thomas Vermaelen (calf) remain doubts. Brazilian midfielder Rafinha will not be seen on the pitch with a knee injuy.

Meanwhile, Leverkusen travel to the Nou Camp as Group E leaders after thrashing BATE Borisov 4-1 in Germany on matchday one. The Bundesliga outfit have lost their previous five encounters with Barcelona and last beat the Catalans in a Champions League group match at the BayArena in September 2001.

Chilean midfielder Charles Aranguiz (foot), Omer Toprak and Tin Jedvaj (both thigh) are all injured and will miss the trip to Catalonia, while Roberto Hilbert (knee) is also a doubt.

What managers say

Luis Enrique: "It is always sad when a player is injured. In the case of Messi it is not necessary for me to say what we all know that he is very important to the team. Without Messi we lose a lot of things from our style of play that we will now have to rearrange collectively but I have no doubt that we will overcome this. This team will cope fine and will deal with this."

Roger Schmidt: "We knew we were the favourites (against BATE Borisov), but such games are not easy. We started brightly in the first 15 minutes and deservedly opened the scoring. Out of the blue, we conceded from a set-piece. Even before the break we created chances, but after the interval our counter-pressing got even better. This is a really good start to the Champions League."

Form guide