FC Barcelona: Trip to La Coruña
Football Club Barcelona made a historical comeback against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday by beating the French side 6-1 to reach the Champions League quarterfinals.
Sergi Robertos 95th minute strike gave his team a 6-5 victory on aggregate, making Barcelona the first side to overturn a 4-0 first-leg defeat since the current format started in the 1992-93 season.
The match has made it to the history books, along with Manchester Uniteds comeback against Bayern Munich in 1999 and Liverpools 2005 turnaround against AC Milan in Istanbul.
PSG seemed certain to go through after Edinson Cavani scored a valuable away goal in the second half, following Barcelonas opening salvo of three goals, before Neymar turned it all around.
Here are the five key takeaways
Neymar rises to the occasion
Neymar Jr hailed the best game of his career after Barcelona scored three times in the last seven minutes of the game. The Brazilian superstar received a lot of ball on the left wing because of Coach Luis Enriques new experimental lineup and the absence of Barcas first choice left-back Jordi Alba.
Despite the three goals in the first half, Barcelonas dreams were all but shattered after PSG striker Edinson Cavani scored in the 62nd minute, giving the French side a much-needed away goal. And that was it, the deafening silence in Camp Nou felt as if the dream was snatched from those 96,000 Catalan fans.
Then, it was time for Neymars Samba, when at the 88th minute mark, he reinforced that optimism with an astounding free kick. After Luis Suarez was brought down in the box in the 90th minute by PSG centre back Marquinhos. Neymar, cool as ice, stepped up for the penalty and placed it in the bottom corner. It was still not done and dusted, but in the dying embers of injury time, Neymar provided the cross and Sergi Roberto flicked it with his outstretched boot, sending the Catalan side into the quarter finals.
3-4-3 works
It was a subtle change by Barcas outgoing coach Luis Enrique that helped them turn things around. After the humiliating first leg 4-0 defeat at Parc des Princes, Enrique switched the team from traditional 4-3-3 to 3-4-3. Before PSG, Barcelona had beaten Atletico Madrid, Sporting Gijon and Celta Vigo by using the new system.
The advantage of the 3-4-3 is that it gives us more space, more control in the midfield, it puts the defenders in a more fixed position, Luis Enrique said.
PSG still has a long way to go
After the first leg 4-0 rout of Barcelona, the concord was that Paris Saint-Germain had finally become a deadly force in the Champions League. All their hard work was undone during one unforgettable night at the Camp Nou.
The French champions conceded in the opening 120 seconds of the match and the scrappy defence deflected Andres Iniestas backheel for the second goal. Barcelona had tons of goalscoring chances throughout the game, the defence was pushed up into PSGs half and their high pressing, high risk strategy successfully choked PSG.
To top it all, the move that led to the last goal was a result of barcelonas goalkeeper Marc Andre Ter Stegan being tackled in PSGs half.
No one-hero in Barcelonas star-studded performance
All the pre-match hush-hush had been about how Leo Messi who has been in a fine scoring form since the first leg defeat would turn this match around. Undoubtedly, Messi played a significant role in the historic win. The Argentine dropped back playing as an anchor between Neymar-Suarez-Rafinha led Barcas offence and the rest of the team.
Messi scored the matchs third goal by calmly converting a penalty. His presence was enough to keep the defence distracted but we saw a powerful team performance by his side.
Ter Stegan wasnt much busy but pulled few smooth saves. The three-man defence of Pique, Umtiti and Mascherano was rigid and resilient throughout, displaying composure at the back and technical ability on the ball too. While Sergio Busquets performance might be little worrisome for the team, Andres Iniesta and Ivan Rakitic handled the midfield amazingly with their tireless up-and-down performance.
In the front, the poacher Luis Suarez set the ball rolling with his early goal and was a menace throughout the crucial tie. Rafinha worked as a key drifter on the right flank. But of course, Neymar was absolutely sensational throughout the game.
Like a horror film
The scenes at Camp Nou last night were nothing short of a blockbuster. From a cracking start at the very beginning to a major turning point when Cavani scored to the climatic finale, the match was one twist after another.
This is a night which is difficult to explain in words, it had the script of a horror film with a spectacular start with an atmosphere which I have never seen in the Camp Nou, with tension I have never seen before, Luis Enrique said.
S se puede, s se puede, Barcelona fans chanted, which can roughly be translated to Yes we can, Yes we can.
The majestic Camp Nou exploded in ecstasy in the final minute when Sergi Roberto scored. As his teammates from the pitch and bench rushed towards the unlikely saviour, one man took a different path and peeled towards the fans.
It was the usually shy Leo Messi who dramatically rampaged towards the crazy mass, climbed on top of an advertising board and merged in the crowd.
The victory sent shockwaves across the footballing circles, the pundits and of course the social media.
The scenes from the BT Sport studio were unprecedented. Former Real Madrid forward Michael Owen could not contain his excitement alongside Rio Ferdinand, Gary Lineker and Steven Gerrard after the last minute goal. Owen even did a hysterical lap of the studio.
DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author"s own.
Source: http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/everything-social/fc-barcelona-vs-psg-five-major-takeaways/
