Barcelona made it through to the quarter finals of the Champions league last night thanks to a goal by Ivan Rakitic in a one nil win at the Nou Camp.The game ended up 3-1 in Barça’s favour on aggregate but could have been so much more painful for Pellegrini’s men as Lionel Messi danced around the City defense like a possessed Peter Pan.
Fans watching the game on sofas around the world had their legs shut tight as Messi was on a nutmeg rampage. The little Argentine was sublime and we are once again seeing what he is capable of.
Sergio Aguero had a penalty saved by ter Stegen late in the second half which could have turned the tables and provided a platform for City to spring back from, but it was not to be. A word in ter Stegen’s ear by Mascherano, probably telling him which way his fellow countryman was going to put the ball, was enough to deny Kun a chance to equal the scoreline and then lead a City onslaught. It was a pathetic penalty take in my opinion and even Mascherano could have saved it had he been in goal. Aguero planted the ball at a nice comfortable height to ter Stegen’s right with hardly any power at all which made it very easy for the Barça keeper to parry.
Luis Enrique said the the scoreline could have been scandalous and he was right. If it wasn’t for the supernatural talent of Joe Hart, City would have been taking the trip back to Manchester with their heads truly covered. City can thank Hart that it was just a goal Barcelona won by and not the 4 or 5 that it should have been.
Everyone thought City had learned valuable lessons, but who can take on Barcelona and expect them to lay down? Last night and today, Leo Messi has the social media sites in a frenzy with his performance at the Nou Camp.
With Barcelona playing this well, it’s hard to imagine them relinquishing the 1 point lead they have over Real Madrid.
