Barcelona Beat 10 man Atletico

Suarez scores against Atleti

Luis Suárez scored two second-half goals to lead Barcelona to a 2-1 comeback victory over 10-man Atlético Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.

Fernando Torres opened the scoring in the 25th minute but quickly went from hero to villain for Atlético when two reckless tackles saw him sent off in the 35th minute.

Atlético resisted the defending champions’ push for an equaliser until Suárez scored an opportunistic goal in the 63rd minute.

Suárez put Barcelona ahead after 74 minutes when he played Dani Alves wide before directing the Brazil defender’s cross past goalkeeper Jan Oblak with an unstoppable header.

The win comes three days after Real Madrid ended Barcelona’s Spanish record 39-match unbeaten streak with a 2-1 win at Camp Nou.

The hosts' run of six straight wins against the Rojiblancos was in doubt when Fernando Torres netted his first UEFA Champions League goal for Atleti, but a red card for the striker soon after tilted the balance their way. Suárez tapped in an equaliser just after the hour before heading in the first-leg winner, but this quarter-final tie is far from over.

The first half was all about Torres: the good, the bad and the ugly. His goal was a peach, running through a gaping hole in the Barcelona back line and collecting Koke's lovely dinked pass before firing nervelessly between the onrushing Marc-André ter Stegen's legs.

A clumsy yellow card soon followed but that swinging arm looked graceful compared to the ungainly tackle on Sergio Busquets that earned a second booking. There were still ten minutes of the first half remaining yet Barcelona, seeking redemption after Saturday's home loss to Real Madrid, struggled to make inroads.

They had had their chances, with Neymar and Lionel Messi both passing up openings they might ordinarily have snapped up, but the home side were blunted. Luis Enrique must have spent the interval with a whetstone because as the second period got under way his players were razor-sharp.

With the tempo ratcheted up, Neymar curled an shot against the bar and Filipe Luís, Juanfran and Diego Godín all made desperate last-ditch challenges. Messi sent an acrobatic effort centimetres wide and finally Suárez found a way through, deflecting in Jordi Alba's volley.

A second duly followed, a header to complete a lovely move of one-touch football, yet Atlético restricted the damage and this tie is still in the balance.

The brains of the visiting team, midfielder Koke played superbly in a first half in which Ter Stegen's brilliant save from Antoine Griezmann kept the holders alive. But after Atleti went down to ten, the power and irresistibility of the home side took over, Andrés Iniesta their ever tireless and nerveless orchestrator. Meanwhile Suárez, as he did here against Bayer Leverkusen and Arsenal, proved that having a striker for whom the goalmouth is magnetic is the difference between winning and losing.

Most teams struggle to cope against Barcelona with 11 men, but for the second time in little more than two months Atlético played at the Camp Nou with numerical inferiority. That they threatened with nine men in January's Liga meeting, and with ten here, is testimony to their tactical nous, fitness and collective fortitude. And if their Herculean efforts earned little moments of fortune in keeping the score down, perhaps it is evidence of the old refrain that 'the harder I work the luckier I get'.

Part of the allure of this competition is that no club has successfully defended the UEFA Champions League title. 

This quarter-final is still open and what the first leg made clear is that the distance between the sides, even after so many Atlético defeats, is paper-thin. 

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Cristiano Fires Four Past Vigo

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Cristiano Ronaldo, fired up by his rival Lionel Messi’s midweek hat-trick for Barcelona, struck four goals in 26 second-half minutes as Real Madrid crushed Celta Vigo 7-1 at the Bernabéu.

Messi had caught up with Ronaldo on 35 hat-tricks each in all club competitions with a treble in Barcelona’s 5-1 win at Rayo Vallecano on Thursday. Ronaldo not only moved back ahead but took his La Liga tally to 27 this season to overtake Barça’s Luis Suárez, who has 25, as the league’s top scorer.

Gareth Bale, playing his first match since a calf injury in mid-January, rounded off the rout nine minutes from time as Real recovered from the 1-0 derby loss at home to Atlético Madrid last Saturday.

A return to form may be too late for Real in La Liga, nine points adrift of Barça before the leaders visit Eibar on Sunday, but it has come in good time for next week’s Champions League last-16 second leg against Roma, which they lead 2-0.

Pepe opened the scoring five minutes before half-time with a bullet header from a corner. Real took flight in the second half when Ronaldo got off the mark with a trademark shot from outside the box that dipped over Sergio Blanco who was well off his line. The Portugal forward made it three with a superb free-kick eight minutes later, whipping in a hard shot that dipped over the wall and beat Blanco for sheer speed.

The visitors pulled one back just past the hour when Iago Aspas beat Sergio Ramos and Pepe to a long clearance out of the Celta defence and lobbed Keylor Navas in the Madrid goal. But Real kept Celta pegged back in defence and Ronaldo completed his hat-trick inside 14 minutes from a pass by Isco after a good combination with Lucas Vázquez.

His fourth goal was a header from a cross by Jesé, who scored the team’s sixth a minute later after a dribble through the defence and a shot that went in at the base of the post. Bale put the icing on the cake with a thunderbolt from outside the penalty area on the left that went in off the far post.

The Real coach, Zinedine Zidane, said of Ronaldo and the way he made the ball dip for three of his goals: “Cristiano is unique with his shot, only he has it. I could hit the ball well but from closer in. I don’t know the feeling, few players have it.”

The coach was pleased by Bale’s return. “Bale looked good, he was happy to play after so long. We’ll see tomorrow and Monday for the match against Roma but I think he’s ready.”

The win put Real one point behind Atlético Madrid before they visit Valencia on Sunday and seven clear of Villarreal, who are at home to Las Palmas.

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Suarez Not First Choice - Zubizarreta

Former sporting director of FC Barcelona has dropped a bombshell regarding Luis Suarez’s high profile and highly successful transfer to the Catalan club last summer.

His arrival sparked one of the greatest single-season trophy hauls in European football history, but Andoni Zubizarreta has revealed that Suarez wasn’t even their first choice transfer target!

The Uruguayan was signed from Liverpool for $160 million in July 2014. But Andoni Zubizarreta, who had the final say on transfers at Barca at the time, has revealed that Suarez was only brought to the Nou Camp after an agreement could not be reached for the club’s number one target.

“We had some options. The first was not Suarez. He knows it. In winter we considered the signing of Aguero. That did not work out,” Zubizarreta told Marca.

“In this situation, there was no doubt: Luis Suarez was our only goal.”

Zubizarreta revealed that Aguero was willing to move to Barcelona but talks over a transfer fee with Manchester City broke down.

It’s unlikely Barcelona are too disappointed with their capture of Suarez though, who has been part of a side that has won five trophies in 18 months since his arrival, scoring 54 goals in 72 matches across all competitions.

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Henry Retires to Sky Sports

Thierry Henry has announced his retirement from football and that he will return to London to take up a role in the media.

The 37-year-old former Arsenal striker left the New York Red Bulls at the start of the month after they were knocked out of the MLS play-offs but there was speculation he might choose to play on at another club – with a return to Arsenalmooted.

However, the former France international and World Cup winner has instead called time on a trophy-laden career, which has included spells with Monaco, Juventus, Arsenal, Barcelona and the Red Bulls.

In a statement, Henry said: “After 20 years in the game I have decided to retire from professional football. It has been an incredible journey and I would like to thank all the fans, team mates and individuals involved with Monaco, Juventus, Arsenal, Barcelona, the New York Red Bulls and of course the French National team that have made my time in the game so special.

“It is now time for a different career path and I am pleased to say that I will be returning to London and joining Sky Sports. I will hopefully share some of the insights, observations and experiences I have learnt over the years with you guys. I have had some amazing memories (mostly good) and a wonderful experience. I hope you have enjoyed watching as much as I have enjoyed taking part. See you on the other side …”

When asked if he had thought about another stint in north London, Henry told Sky Sports: “You kind of never leave Arsenal. How many comebacks do you make? At one point it will turn out to be a bad movie. We all love the first Rocky but I’m not too sure about the last one.”

Henry will always be most closely associated with Arsenal, where he is the all-time leading goalscorer with 228 goals in 377 games across two different spells.

Arsène Wenger, who had known him as a young player at Monaco, signed him from Juventus for £11m in 1999 and immediately shifted him from the wing to a central striking position. His blend of pace and power made him one of the most feared forwards in English football, and Henry won the Premier League title twice with Arsenal, as well as the FA Cup three times.

Henry left Arsenal in 2007 and joined Barcelona, where he won the Champions League in 2009. He also added two La Liga titles, the Copa del Rey, Spanish Supercopa, Uefa Super Cup and Fifa Club World Cup to his honours list in three seasons at the Camp Nou.

His medal collection also includes a Ligue 1 title and the Trophée des Champions – the equivalent of the Community Shield – with Monaco, his first professional club.

He spent the final five years of his playing career with the Red Bulls, returning to Arsenal to make four appearances on loan in early 2012.

With France, Henry scored 51 goals in 123 appearances – only Lilian Thuram has more caps with Les Bleus. He was a member of the 1998 World Cup winning squad, while also being a runner-up in 2006. Henry was a European champion in 2000 and was part of the team that won the Confederations Cup in 2003.

The former player will begin his work with Sky from the start of 2015, covering live international, European and domestic football and joining the current pundits Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, Jamie Redknapp and Graeme Souness.

Gary Neville said: “We were blessed in this country to see Thierry playing at his peak, potentially one of the greatest players in the world and even if you supported another team you couldn’t help but enjoy watching him play. It’s always a shame when such a career comes to an end, but it’s very much Sky Sports’ gain and I look forward to working with him.”

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Bayern Have Pep in Their Stride

FC Barcelona could be entering a period of crisis this season, all highlighted this week when former manager Pep Guardiola guided his new club, the Champions League runners-up of last season, Bayern Munich to a 2 – 0 win at the Allianz Arena in a friendly. The defeat coming only days after the Barca manager Tito Villanova was forced to step down from the role he inherited after a few seasons as Guardiola's number 2. Sadly, the battle against his illness continues, despite a lengthy stay at a New York clinic earlier this year, and the on-going medical treatment will make day-to-day management of the first team impossible. 

In a month too when David Villa finally made his escape to join Atletico Madrid and Cesc Fabregas remains restless in view of an opportunity to re-join former Gunners team mate, Robin van Persie, at Manchester United. None of that tension eased either by Guardiola when he secured the transfer this month of Thiago Alcantara - ahead of other bidders - to Bayern Munich for a sum of 25 million euros. A good piece of business for the Munich club as the deal also included the friendly, a four-year contract with cost only reaching €20 million in net terms, as proceeds from the friendly and an agreement by Thiago to forego personal payments, minimises the full costs.

Although born in Italy to Brazilian parents, Thiago came up through Barcelona's training academy and debuted for its first team in 2008 with Guardiola who made Thiago a full time first-team player in 2011-12. He might also have known that Thiago's contract had a buyout clause of €90 million, but included the stipulation that if he played in less than 60 percent of the games in a season the buyout price would be lowered to just €18 million. Having been injured most of last year Thiago barely played and so was available at a knock down drag out price.

All in all not a good few weeks for the Catalan Club, made even worse by the war of words in the press between Guardiola and Villanova. Both publicly disputing how much support the current Bayern boss gave his former colleague during Tito's time in a New York hospital. A matter that Guardiola brought to light, surprisingly, in one of his first press conferences in Germany. Comments tat drew an immediate and curt rebuttal from FC Barcelona club president, Sandro Rosell. All reflecting an underlying turbulence that exists at the cub that also faces a number of financial pressures that make winning La Liga - and the Champions League - all the more vital this season. As well as perhaps a real need to sell Fabregas to generate added cash. 

Notwithstanding the cub have just spent up to 57 million euros it appears for Neymar, a fee reportedly to be split among Santos and three other companies that own a share of the player's rights. Perhaps close to being Barcelona's most expensive transfer which heretofore had been for Zlatan Ibrahimovic in 2009, when it gave Inter Milan 45 million euros plus forward Samuel Eto'o.

For this season the official budget has already been released by Javier Faus, Vice President of Football Club Barcelona, knowing too they are under scrutiny from UEFA Financial Fair Play rule, after spending massively on Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Alexis Sanchez, Alex Song, and Cesc Fabregas in the past two years. This year the plan is that the transfer budget will not exceed €60 million after that €105 million spent over two consecutive seasons. 

Albeit the club’s debt has been reduced from €420 million Euros to €340 million, it still leaves the club in need of trophies as sole haul last year was the La Liga title. All well below the standards set by Guardiola during his four years at the helm.

With the endless pressure continuing unabated the choice of manager for the next two seasons has surprisingly been Argentinian Gerardo Martino, a 50-year-old who led Newell's Old Boys to the Argentinian Clausura title last season. Although a host of coaches were linked to the vacant position, including Luis Enrique, Andre Villas-Boas, Marcelo Bielsa, Michael Laudrup and Guus Hiddink, the cub opted for Martino. Perhaps a past knowledge of Spanish football helped as Martino played for Spanish side Tenerife. Or the four years as coach of Paraguay, from 2007 to 2011, when he led them to the quarter-final of the 2010 World Cup - the nations’s best-ever performance in the competition. Eventually losing 1-0 to eventual champions Spain. 

The following year, Martino guided Paraguay to their first Copa America final since 1979 but were beaten 3-0 by Uruguay. 

Regardless of that CV, the appointment has drawn surprise from a number of quarters given that “Tata”, as he is commonly known, is relatively unheard of outside South America. Not least of which came from Barcelona spiritual leader Johan Cruyff - a critic of the post Guardiola regime as in 2011 he was stripped of his honorary president’s role of Barcelona by the incoming president, Rosell.

The appointment though appears to reflect the enormous influence that Lionel Messi exerts over the club, even off the field it would seem, as both Argentinians are from Rosario. The speculation rife in the media that the appointment is a deliberate move to keep the four-time Ballon d'Or winner happy at the club.

But things at Barcelona have always been like that as Diego Armando Maradona overlapped with 1978 World Cup winning manager in 1983, Cesar Luis Menotti; Johan Neeskens and Johan Cruyff worked under their Dutch coach Rinus Michels, and Louis van Gaal did similarly. As did Cruyff indeed with Ronald Koeman when he led Barcelona to the European Cup win at Wembley 

Even still the Cruyff comments perhaps reflect the thoughts of most of when he told El 9 TV this week: "El Tata? I don't know him. I know absolutely nothing about him."

The more serious question from the Dutch icon is the one that poses the biggest problem for Barcelona on the field of play. And that is how Tata will play Messi and Neymar alongside each other. The ever the pragmatic Cruyff telling Marca last month: “With Neymar on board, I would have planned for the possibility of selling Messi. Some would agree with me and others would not,” Cruyff said, “Neymar’s arrival could cause problems. Just look at free kicks for example. Neymar is very good at taking them. And Messi has already shown he is great, too. Who’s going to take them…

“Or the fact that Neymar and Barcelona are with Nike while Leo is with Adidas. These are situations that could cause problems”.

Visca El Barca? It remains to be seen.

Bayern might be a better bet for the Champions League title this season. They seem to have a real pep in their stride….

OSM - All rights reserved

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Celtic Believe in Barca Miracle

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Striker Miku insists Celtic can beat Barcelona at the Nou Camp, despite claiming the Catalans are the best side in the world.

Celtic meet Barcelona - the 2006, 2009 and 2011 Champions League winners - in Group G on Tuesday night.

Asked whether Celtic could upset the odds, on-loan Getafe striker Miku said: "Absolutely. They have injuries that might give us a chance.

"The game will be seen around the world, so that's maximum motivation."

The 27-year-old Venezuelan spent his senior career in Spain, the last two in the top flight with Getafe, before heading for Celtic Park this season.

"I have won, lost and drawn to Barcelona and this will be a difficult game," Miku said. "They are the best in the world just now.

"If we don't win in the SPL it is terrible, so we will play this game with the same mentality."

Three-time world player of the year Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick in Barcelona's thrilling 5-4 win over Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday.

"I have played against Messi many times and he is always thinking about the goal. It is possible to stop him, though," insisted Miku, who was a colleague of Barcelona's David Villa and Jordi Alba at Valencia.

"But when you think about Barcelona it is not just Messi; we have to be careful of everybody."

Celtic manager Neil Lennon headed for the Riazor stadium in Galicia immediately after his own side's 5-0 demolition of St Mirren to witness Barca at close quarters.

"It was a privilege to watch Messi play on Saturday," he said. "I don't think I could come up with any superlative to do the man justice.

Barcelona's victory over Deportivo left Lennon in no doubt about the task facing his players, but he believes they can rise to the occasion.

"I'm hoping to have 14 heroes tomorrow night," he said.

"We have pace and technical ability and came off a good result at the weekend. This is a great challenge for the players and one they should embrace."

Dundee United are the only Scottish club to beat Barcelona away from home in a competitive fixture, with the second and last of those victories coming in May 1987.

However, Celtic have come away with a draw in two of their four visits to the Nou Camp and arrive on the back of a confidence-boosting 3-2 win at Spartak Moscow in their previous group game.

"This is the ultimate test away from home," said Lennon.

"We have nothing to lose, but we're not here for a holiday or the tourist attractions. We're here for the football.

"We haven't budgeted for anything from this game, but who knows?

"Players need to show character, mental strength and play to the best of their abilities to overcome what is probably the best team in the world."

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Barcelona Close Real Gap

The Primera Liga title race continues to look set to go down to the wire after a thrashing of Getafe provisionally moved Barcelona to within a point of leaders Real Madrid.

Alexis Sanchez curled home a brilliant opener in the 13th minute at the Camp Nou and the prolific Lionel Messi's 39th goal in La Liga this term - his 61st in all competitions - had the hosts two up at the interval.

Two superb headers in the final quarter - from Sanchez and Pedro Rodriguez - sealed Barca's 10th straight win which ensured the Catalan side kept up the pressure on Real Madrid, who visit city rivals Atletico on Wednesday night.

Pep Guardiola's champions had looked virtually out of the title race when they trailed Jose Mourinho's side by 10 points in March, but they have gradually clawed back the deficit by eking out victories while the capital club dropped points against Malaga, Villarreal and Valencia.

Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Isaac Cuenca returned to Guardiola's starting line-up after missing Saturday's 4-1 win at Real Zaragoza,with Dani Alves injured, Cesc Fabregassuspended and Thiago on the bench.

Getafe, one of only two teams to have beaten Barca this season, were on the back foot from the outset, with goalkeeper Miguel Moya called into action twice before the deadlock was broken.

He was in the right place to prevent a Miku own goal after the Getafe striker misdirected a header from Messi's dangerous centre. Moya then got down to push away an Iniesta low drive which looked to have been heading wide.

Barca's patience was rewarded in the 13th minute when they opened the scoring in typically stylish fashion.

Iniesta lofted a short pass for Messi, who chested the ball into the path of Sanchez. The Chilean advanced to the edge of the area, making light of the attentions of Getafe defender Alexis, and curled a fine shot past Moya from the edge of the box.

Sanchez burst through again three minutes later and unselfishly set up Pedro Rodriguez, whose low shot was pushed around the post by the diving Moya.

Moments later Xavi thought he had doubled the hosts' advantage when he dinked a neat shot over the advancing Moya, but it was adjudged not to have crossed the line before being cleared by Cata Diaz.

Messi was for once off target in the 25th minute. He took a Sergio Busquets pass on his thigh but dragged his left-footed effort just wide.

Getafe started to find their feet as the half wore on but Barca remained the team looking the more likely to add to the scoreline.

A sliding Sanchez prodded narrowly wide from a Cuenca cross in the 32nd minute, and a minute before half-time the hosts deservedly went two up.

Messi played a slick one-two with Iniesta and then smashed a clinical left-footed shot into the top-left corner.

Getafe went close to pulling a goal back 10 minutes after the restart when Juan Rodriguez's shot skimmed the top of Victor Valdes' bar but normal service was soon resumed as Barca produced two sublime headers in three minutes to put the result beyond doubt.

First Sanchez leapt highest to meet Cuenca's cross from the right with a powerful downward header which was past Moya before he knew it in the 73rd minute, and then Pedro flicked a superb backward header looping into the Getafe net two minutes later.

The one-way traffic continued in the final quarter-hour.

Cuenca volleyed over after Carles Puyol had surged forward and set up the chance, then Messi latched onto Xavi's pass and got his right-footed shot away from the angle only to be denied by Moya.

Messi then somehow weaved his way to the touchline and chipped over a cross towards Sanchez as he searched for his hat-trick.

The Getafe defence managed to scramble away the danger, but the damage had already been done.

Voeller Unhappy with Jersey Antics

Bayer Leverkusen director of sport Rudi Voller has condemned the behaviour of Michal Kadlec and Manuel Friedrich following the pair's over-exuberant efforts to swap shirts with Barcelona's Lionel Messi in their Champions League encounter on Tuesday.

Full-back Kadlec and centre-half Friedrich have been criticised by the German media for the way in which they pursued Messi for his shirt at the half-time and full-time whistles.

The pair reportedly argued about who would keep Messi's shirt on their way to the dressing room after Friedrich beat Kadlec to the Argentina forward when the referee blew for half-time.

Kadlec made amends at the final whistle as he laid claim to that shirt that Messi had worn for the second half of Barcelona's 3-1 win.

However, the two players have since been told by an unimpressed Voller that they must put the shirts up for auction.

'I can guarantee that Kadlec and Friedrich will auction off their Messi shirts for a good cause,' Voller told the Bild newspaper.

'What the pair did was a bit over the top.' 

Voller added that similar scenes will not be tolerated when the two sides meet in the second leg at the Nou Camp.

'I have not spoken to the pair yet, but I will do,' he said.

Speaking after the game, Kadlec justified his behaviour, telling Sky television: 'When you play against such a player, then you always want his shirt.

'I would have swapped it immediately for a better result, but it is a shame that we did not do enough.'

Messi, the world footballer of the year, is having another spectacular season, scoring Barca's third goal on Tuesday to make it 25 goals in his last 24 Champions League matches for the competition holders. 

After their home defeat Leverkusen have only a slim chance of advancing to the next round when they travel to Barcelona for the return leg, on March 7.

Cesc and Xavi Goals Good for Barca

A goal in each half from Cesc Fabregas and Xavi ensured Barcelona progressed to the Copa del Rey final at the expense of ten-man Valencia this evening. 

There was all to play for with the tie finely balanced at 1-1 heading into tonight's second leg at the Nou Camp, and the hosts needed only 16 minutes to take the lead through a neat finish from Fabregas. Sofiane Feghouli was sent off for the visitors in the 76th minute for a second bookable offence and soon after Xavi eased any Barça nerves by grabbing his side's second goal.

Barça will now face Athletic Bilbao in the final after the Basque club completed an 8-3 aggregate win over Mirandes last night.

Valencia had a couple of early sights of goal this evening, but they were unable to work Jose Pinto in the Barça goal. Victor Ruiz failed to connect in the six-yard box in the third minute and then Feghouli lashed in a left-footed shot which whistled narrowly past the top-left corner.

The hosts went ahead on the quarter-hour mark, Fabregas dinking over Diego Alves with the outside of his right boot following a fine pass from Lionel Messi. Barça were beginning to gain a foothold as the game wore on, although Los Che remained a threat on the counter-attack.

Alves prevented Barça from going two up in the 18th minute, producing a brilliant save to keep out Messi after the Argentina forward had burst through on goal. Alexis Sanchez had another blast deflected wide in the 27th minute and Fabregas saw another drive stopped by Alves three minutes later as Pep Guardiola's side continued to push forward.

A last-gasp tackle from Gerard Pique denied Jonas a shooting opportunity nine minutes before the break when the Valencia forward looked to have found space. Valencia were almost back on level terms in the opening moments of the second half too, but Pinto got out well to block with his legs from Jordi Alba's angled shot.

The ever-lively Messi went within a whisker of extending his side's lead at the other end in the 54th minute after latching onto Isaac Cuenca's slick pass, the Ballon d'Or winner's effort deflected over the bar by Ruiz.

The visitors had a sniff of an equaliser soon after, when with Pinto in no-man's land, Aritz Aduriz sent over a cross. Javier Mascherano cleared the danger.

The action soon returned to the other end, where Messi capitalised on sloppy defending to go close again, but his only reward was a corner. Pinto had to be alert in the 73rd minute to tip a fierce attempt from Jonas over the bar for a corner.

Valencia's cause was not helped by the dismissal of Feghouli 14 minutes from time, the midfielder shown a second yellow card for a stray arm in the face of Carles Puyol.

Barça did not take long to capitalise on their numerical advantage. Messi's superb pass found Sanchez and he laid the ball off for Fabregas to tee up Xavi, who lashed a stunning shot into the roof of the net to put the result beyond doubt.

Messi could have added further gloss to the scoreline when he unleashed a brilliant free-kick in the 85th minute. Alves produced a magnificent right-handed save, but Barça were home and dry.