Qtr-Final Pairings:
- Paris Saint-Germain vs. Liverpool
- Real Madrid vs. Bayern Munich
- Barcelona vs. Atletico Madrid
- Sporting CP vs. Arsenal
By Sid Lowe, at the Spotify Camp Nou, and Andy Hunter, at Anfield
For a while, Newcastle made this fun on Wednesday evening, but they did not make it through, all that hope giving way to hurt.
By the time the final whistle went at the Spotify Camp Nou, as the Barcelona fans sang their anthem and the exhausted men in black and white made their way slowly towards their supporters positioned above a scoreboard that showed 7-2, it seemed almost absurd to say that they had played their part, but they had.
In the end, though, history was made by Hansi Flick’s side, not Eddie Howe’s; ultimately, the big night belonged to the hosts, securing an unimaginable result not seen here in three decades.
Howe had said that his side could not and would not shrink at the Camp Nou and, for much of a historic tie that he described as the biggest in their recent history, they didn’t.
Not in the first leg, when it had taken a 96th-minute penalty to deny them a victory, and not when they went behind after just six minutes of the second leg; not even when they went behind a second time after 18 minutes.
It wasn’t until the third time that it became a step too far. And then, it is true, they were taken to pieces.
At 3-2 Down, Newcastle May Have Wished Game Over; 2nd Half Collapse
The last kick of the first half put them 3-2 down and they must have wished it could have ended there.
Barcelona returned ready for business, three more goals in 15 second half minutes made it 6-2, and there was still time for a seventh.
That hadn’t seemed possible and, even with a brilliant Barcelona display in the second half, still felt a little cruel.
Being themselves meant going at Barcelona, frightening them, which Newcastle had done for as long as they were allowed.
The problem was that’s a game Hansi Flick’s Barcelona embrace too: for all the talk of Cruyff and DNA, he has provided a twist and built a team happy to get up and run, to trade blows in transition, one that shows that life can be good when lived on the edge.
That led to a frantic opening half that could have ended with either side leading instead ending with the home side 3-2 up. It also led, eventually, to a festival of goals, and all of the remaining four were blaugrana.
How First Half Went
Newcastle had come flying out from the start, Dan Burn’s shot on the turn the game’s first after two minutes.
The first of five first-half goals, though, came almost immediately after, and began with a sharp turn from Lamine Yamal in the centre circle that caused Malik Thiaw to slip.
Suddenly in space, the teenager found Raphinha who exchanged passes with Fermín López to bend into the net.
A moment later Aaron Ramsdale had to be out fast when López threatened to run free again, but Newcastle’s response was swift.
It came from a right wing that had clearly been targeted, with Lewis Hall bursting out from deep and heading straight at Barcelona. Eric García came to meet him – too far to protect the defence, not far enough to actually make the challenge – so Hall played to Harvey Barnes and kept running on to the return ball, bending behind the central defenders to Anthony Elanga, coming in from the other side, to cut a sharp finish past Joan García to equalise.
Barcelona took less than two minutes to lead again, after Lamine Yamal span and was taken down. Gerard Martín nodded down Raphinha’s free-kick for Marc Bernal to score from five yards.
When Eric García was taken off soon after, it was because of an injury, but it could just as easily have been an attempt to close space Newcastle had been running into.
If so, it didn’t work. Although Eric García’s replacement, Ronald Araújo, sent the third of three consecutive corners aimed his way into the side netting, Newcastle kept coming and the second equaliser had a familiar genesis.
Not so much because Lamine Yamal gave it away with a backheel, although the pressure applied was familiar, but because against it was Hall, and Barnes, always incisive, who set up Elanga to score.
Anthony Gordon seemed to be in soon after and Newcastle then appealed for a penalty when João Cancelo leaned on Elanga, who had ben released by another sharp ball in behind.
Yet if Barcelona were rocking, they were also rolling with this, an open game that lacked control but had plenty of space to run into, and when Lamine Yamal dashed inside superbly, they should have scored.
Raphinha’s shot was saved by Ramsdale, the ball somehow going through Robert Lewandowski’s legs. Lamine Yamal, even more unlikely, skied it from five yards.
No one could believe it wasn’t 3-2 then, but with the last kick of the half it was. A gorgeous pass with the outside of the boot from Lamine Yamal found López reaching the byline to pull back.
Coming at the far post, Raphinha was pulled back by Kieran Trippier and eventually, having been to the screen for a look, ref François Letexier gave the penalty from which Lamine Yamal scored.
Trippier was shown a yellow that might have been a red and didn’t come back out for the second half, replaced by Tino Livramento.
Second Half
It had been a great contest, but soon after the restart it was finished. Raphinha’s superb, first-time pass on the turn sent López dashing clear to score the fourth six minutes into the second half and, four minutes after that, Lewandowski headed in Raphinha’s corner to make it five.
Still they came. Five more minutes and lovely footwork from Lamine Yamal took him away from Burn to roll into Lewandowski to score.
He had barely had time to put his mask back on after the celebration from his first; now he whipped it off again, the place going wild.
Withdrawn shortly after, his work was done, but Barcelona’s wasn’t, Raphinha collecting Jacob Ramsey’s misplaced pass to make it seven. Now, it was over.
Osimhen Injured As Salah Caps Comeback To Send Liverpool Into Qtr-Finals
A warm spring evening at Anfield, with a comeback required to salvage a European tie and perhaps a season –and Liverpool delivered once more.
Arne Slot might have done many things wrong this season but losing that feature of Liverpool’s identity can not be added to the list following an emphatic victory over Galatasaray.
Liverpool will meet holders Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the quarter finals of the Champions League, in a repeat of the last 16 tie that Slot often reminisces about from last season, thanks to a performance of intensity and incisiveness against the sorry visitors from Turkey.
Dominik Szoboszlai led the charge as the Hungary captain has done throughout a season that could culminate in a final in Budapest.
His fine opening goal levelled the tie on aggregate and convinced Liverpool of their superiority over opponents who have beaten them twice in Istanbul this season, but wilt without the raucous backing of Ali Sami Yen Stadium.
“We played bad, very bad,” Galatasaray coach, Okan Buruk, said even as club talisman did not return for the second half due to an injury.
Salah Now First African Player To Score 50 UEFA CL Goals
Mohamed Salah recovered from missing a penalty to shape a rampant second-half display in which he became the first player from Africa to score 50 Champions League goals. Salah, and Liverpool, achieved their goals in style.
Collectively, this must be the benchmark for what remains of a trying campaign. Anfield was more partisan than usual with Galatasaray fans banned from the second leg following trouble away at Juventus in the playoff round.
It did not take Liverpool long to assert their authority. Galatasaray were even quicker with the theatrics and time-wasting tactics.
Some stoppages were genuine, including the early blow of Victor Osimhen suffering an arm injury that would force his withdrawal at half-time and substitute Noa Lang seriously damaging a finger on an advertising hoarding in stoppage time. Both were taken to hospital.
But the Polish referee, Szymon Marciniak, came close to losing control at times as those in white collapsed at the slightest contact.
Liverpool’s First Goal
Liverpool’s composure was tested and Slot was far more animated on the touchline as a result but they remained patient and were rewarded when Florian Wirtz’s shot deflected wide for a corner.
It produced an exemplary set-piece routine. While most players congregated around the six-yard box, Szoboszlai held back. Alexis Mac Allister found his fellow midfielder with a low delivery to the edge of the area and, with Ibrahima Konaté blocking off Roland Sallai, Szoboszlai slotted a first time shot into the bottom corner.
It was no more than Liverpool deserved and, with Galatasaray heads wobbling, a second goal could have quickly followed.
Abdulkerim Bardakci gifted Salah a glorious chance with a careless header that put the Egypt international through on goal. Ugurcan Cakir saved the striker’s attempted chip.
The Galatasaray goalkeeper was beaten following another well-worked corner routine moments later. This time Salah delivered the set-piece to the back post where Virgil van Dijk headed back across goal. Mac Allister, unmarked and only yards from goal, headed against the crossbar. It didn’t feel a costly miss at the time – the pressure from Liverpool was unrelenting and the Galatasaray performance was deteriorating – and so it proved.
Cakir, unsure with his feet but good with his hands, was the only reason the tie was not settled before the break. The keeper produced a flying save to deny Szoboszlai from 25 yards and thwarted Salah from the penalty spot after Ismail Jakobs was penalised for a lazy trip on the Liverpool midfielder.
Salah’s spot-kick was weak, down the centre and easily read. In stoppage time Cakir made a fine double save from Salah and Wirtz.
Second Half Pressure
Buruk made a double substitution at the interval in search of the urgency, threat and quality that were all missing from his team’s display but to no avail. Galatasaray’s night grew darker as they were run ragged by a resurgent Salah, an improved Wirtz and the effervescent Hugo Ekitiké.
Liverpool scored four goals in 11 minutes, although one was disallowed for offside.
Ekitiké started the collapse by converting a perfect low cross from Salah that cut out the entire Galatasaray defence and found the France international free inside the area.
The goalscorer rightly acclaimed the provider as he celebrated in front of the Kop. Salah was instrumental in the third goal just two minutes later when, from Wirtz’s pass, his snapshot was parried by Cakir into the path of Ryan Gravenberch.
Gravenberch had commenced the move and finished it by sweeping home the rebound.
Liverpool were denied a third in five minutes when Jeremie Frimpong was ruled offside when delivering the cross that Wilfried Singo sliced into his own net.
But Liverpool, and Salah, were not done yet. Having exchanged passes with Wirtz on the corner of the Galatasaray penalty area, the 33-year-old rolled back the years – or year, to be more precise – and swept a sublime, trademark finish into the top corner. A fitting way for Salah to make history and for Liverpool to march on to Paris.
*PHOTO CAPTION: Barca’s Raphinha jumps for joy after rounding off the second-half scoring.
FULL RESULTS:
*Barcelona – Newcastle 7:2 (Barcelona qualify)
*Bayern Munich – Atalanta 4:1(Bayern qualify)
*Liverpool – Galatasaray 4:0(Liverpool qualify)
*Tottenham – Atl. Madrid 3:2(Atletico qualify).
