- Spanish giants Barcelona have reached the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in four years after beating Napoli 3-1
- The Catalans last won a match in the knockout stage of Europe’s premier club competition in 2019-20, with them also knocking Napoli out of the last 16 that season 4-2 on aggregate
Spanish giants Barcelona have reached the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in four years after beating Napoli 3-1 during the Barcelona vs Napoli match played on Tuesday, March 12.
Barcelona were 2-0 up inside 17 minutes, thanks to Fermin Lopez and Joao Cancelo who set the hosts on their way at Estadi de Montjuic. Amir Rrahmani pulled one goal back for Napoli before the end of the first period and after a back-and-fourth encounter, Robert Lewandowski sealed the win for the Catalans in the 83rd minute.
Barcelona vs Napoli. Photo/ Football Italia.
“Very happy, Barcelona are in the top eight in Europe. It was a well-deserved qualification, a game dominated in attack and defence but also an excellent game by Napoli. Happy with the qualification and we’ll see how the draw goes. Proud to be back in the quarter-finals after years.” Barca manager Xavi Hernandez told Mediaset, as per Reuters.
Xavi is expected to leave at the end of the season irregardless of whether Barcelona win the Champions League or La Liga. The Catalans last won a match in the knockout stage of Europe’s premier club competition in 2019-20, with them also knocking Napoli out of the last 16 that season 4-2 on aggregate.
Barcelona Vs Napoli
In a very entertaining match at Estadi de Montjuic, the hosts pressed high early on and allowed Napoli very little space to attack.
Barca’s youngsters took the centre stage as Lamine Yamal and Fermin Lopez missed chances to give the Catalans an early lead. On the other end, Pau Cubarsi made a superb tackle to stop Napoli’s talisman Victor Osimhen from getting into a scoring position.
Cubarsi then set up Lopez but the 20-year-old missed the target again. Eventually, he put his side in front with a composed finish on the quarter-hour mark after Robert Lewandowski dummied Raphinha’s low cross. Lopez’s goal saw him become the youngest Barcelona player to score in the knockout stage since Ousmane Dembele back in 2018.
Barely two minutes after Lopez had opened the scoring, Joao Cancelo increased Barcelona’s lead to 2-0. Raphinha was once again involved in the build-up to this goal as his effort struck the post and saw the ball bounce into Cancelo’s way.
Trailing 2-0, Napoli improved their game and finally found their way though in the 30th minute, thanks to Amir Rrahmani, who latched onto Matteo Politano’s pass before beating Marc-Andre ter Stegen with a well taken strike. The goal altered the mood and Napoli almost found the equalizer before the break but ter Stegen showed his prowess on goal to stop Di Lorenzo’s header from going in.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia had a golden opportunity shortly after the break but he sent his effort wide. The Italian giants were making life difficult for Barcelona, something which forced Xavi to change his midfield, bringing on the experienced Oriol Romeu and Sergi Roberto.
Robert Lewandowski sealed the win for FC Barcelona with seven minutes of normal time left to play. The Polish striker also scored in the first leg of the tie. Photo/ France 24.
With time running out, Barca regained control of the match and Napoli keeper had to make brilliant saves to deny former Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan and Robert Lewandowski. However, there was little he could do to spot Lewandowski’s strike in the 83rd minute from going in.
Napoli had the chance to level the scores shortly before Lewandowski’s goal but Jesper Lindstrom missed the target with a header from point-blank range.
It was a frustrating evening for Victor Osimhen, who scored in the first leg of this tie, as he was stopped several times by the offside flag. His and Napoli’s disappointing campaign continues.
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