(Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)
Two Lionel Messi goals in 12 minutes help Barcelona to take big advantage in Champions League tie
It certainly wasn’t a dominating performance from Barcelona but they got the job done. Barcelona were able to grab a 2-0 win at Arsenal in the first leg of the Round of 16. It took two second half goals from Lionel Messi and the Catalans were able to snatch crucial away goals to keep the tie in their favor.
It was a nervy first half for both teams as Barcelona dominated possession but Arsenal were getting the better chances. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain had a chance right in front of goal but shot it straight at Barca keeper Marc-André ter Stegen. Barcelona’s best chance of the half came off a Luis Suarez half volley. He was played in by Neymar and struck it well, but it went just wide of the post.
The second half was more of the same as Arsenal had the better chances as the game hit the 70th minute mark. It looked like the Gunners were sure to score. But then Barcelona hit Arsenal on a counter as MSN struck again. The counter was finished off by Lionel Messi as he scored his 6th and 7th goal against Arsenal tonight. The second goal came a little later as Messi was taken down inside the box by Mathieu Flamini in what was a very poorly thought out challenge. A penalty was given and Messi slotted it past Petr Cech, who went the opposite direction. They nearly added a third as Neymar’s header was denied by Cech.
But in the end it was a great first leg for Barcelona. Here are five things we learned.
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<p>Despite the fact that he doesn’t play in La Liga and his unusual goalkeeping style, ter Stegen plays exceptionally well in Europe and in the Copa Del Rey. He helped Barcelona stay as one of the better defensive teams in the Champions League. Behind his keeping, Barcelona have only allowed four goals during the group stage and now the first leg. Some of his saves have to deal with Arsenal’s poor finishing but credit should be given to the German. He certainly saved at least three goals tonight.</p>
<div class="next-post amp-get-next-post lg slider"><a class="location" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-post-shortcode" href=https://playingfor90.com/2016/02/23/barcelona-vs-arsenal-five-things-learned/"#"><span class="next amp-next-post-teaser">Next: </span><span class="amp-get-next-post">4. Javier Mascherano</span></a></div><!—pageview_candidate—><hr id="pagebreak"><div id="attachment_406878" class="wp-caption aligncenter">
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-406878" src=https://playingfor90.com/2016/02/23/barcelona-vs-arsenal-five-things-learned/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_445,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fplayingfor90.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2016%2F02%2F511883260-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-590x900.jpg" alt="" width="590" height="445" srcset="https://playingfor90.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2016/02/511883260-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-590x900.jpg 590w, https://playingfor90.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2016/02/511883260-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-300x600.jpg 300w, https://playingfor90.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2016/02/511883260-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-768x0.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 590px) 100vw, 590px"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">(Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)</p>
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<h3>4. Javier Mascherano was fantastic in defense</h3>
<p>Javier Mascherano was once again the main cog in the Barcelona defense as he played an exceptional for the Catlans. In the first half, Mascherano saved at least two great Arsenal chances on the counterattack with great stops. He was even bigger in the second half with a key block on Oliver Giroud on a header.</p><div class="recent-posts ">
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<p>Although his height is an issue on set pieces and plays in the air, Mascherano is still an exceptional player. He is great at tracking back and is not afraid to make the tough challenges. That’s how he was able to stop Arsenal in the first half. Sitting alongside a centerback like Gerard Pique, one who likes to go forward, it’s good that Mascherano likes to stay back. Both centerbacks can’t be going forward and it will hurt them on the counterattack if they do. Luis Enrique had this defense drop deeper this past two years to accommodate not getting struck on the counter and Mascherano is a big help to his plans.</p>
<p>On a night where Arsenal looked like they were bound to score at least one goal, Mascherano and ter Stegen were a big reason why the Gunners were left with a zero on the scoreboard tonight.</p>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-406879" src=https://playingfor90.com/2016/02/23/barcelona-vs-arsenal-five-things-learned/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_393,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fplayingfor90.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2016%2F02%2F511891150-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-590x900.jpg" alt="" width="590" height="393" srcset="https://playingfor90.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2016/02/511891150-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-590x900.jpg 590w, https://playingfor90.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2016/02/511891150-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-300x600.jpg 300w, https://playingfor90.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2016/02/511891150-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-768x0.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 590px) 100vw, 590px"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">(Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)</p>
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<h3>3. Arsenal did not giving up and it costed them</h3>
<p>Coming into this game, Arsene Wenger and his men were huge underdogs. Many were predicting a scoreline of 3-0 or 4-0 in favor of Barcelona. But credit to Wenger’s men for making it a real game and making the Catalans sweat, especially in the second half. Barcelona controlled 74% possession at halftime yet you had the feeling that Arsenal were still in this game. In the second half Arsenal had a number of quality chances but were denied by Marc-Andre ter Stegen and the Barcelona defense. It looked like Arsenal were bound to score. They started to get more comfortable in attacking and kept pushing the Catalans back. Even when they were down a goal they kept pushing for the equalizer. Then disaster struck.</p>
<p>The second goal was the real killer for Arsenal. First a poor challenge by Mathieu Flamini and it happened because Barcelona were able to get the ball on the counter again. We saw with Bayern last year against Barcelona how chasing a goal can cost you against the Catalans. The counterattack is too lethal. If not for Luis Suarez hitting the post, it could have been three goals on the counter for Barca. Arsenal didn’t give up playing and that was good, but their over eagerness to score costed them.</p>
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<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">(Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)</p>
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<h3>2. Barcelona’s counterattack is lethal</h3>
<p>Credit must be given to the Barcelona counterattack. They were fantastic tonight. Especially the first goal where they split the Arsenal defense wide open. Neymar to Suarez back to the Brazilian and finally to Messi for the finish. It was Messi’s first goal against Petr Cech in-goal and it seemed to open up the game for Barcelona. It was another classic case of the deadly trio of Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Luis Suarez tearing through defenses. The connection all three have together is something else. None of the players even shouted for the ball to be passed to them. They already knew it was coming.</p><div class="widget fs_ads"> <div class="fs_ad_widget-ad" style="margin:0 auto; width: 300px;"> <div class="fs-ll-ad" data-ad-type="minutemedia_slideshow_inline_300x250__desktop__tablet" data-vendor="minutemedia">
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<p>We’ve seen this all year from Barcelona so nothing else should be expected from the deadly trio. They are the best trio in world football and could be argued as one of the best trios of all time, if not the best ever.</p>
<p>They could have had more if not for Suarez’s two misses, one off a half volley and the other hitting the post. Neymar was also denied twice by Cech, with the last chance coming as a header in the dying minutes of the game, who was great for Arsenal. It wasn’t the best performance by the Barcelona offense but they did just enough to get through this first leg.</p>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-406881" src=https://playingfor90.com/2016/02/23/barcelona-vs-arsenal-five-things-learned/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_365,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fplayingfor90.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2016%2F02%2F511889430-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-590x900.jpg" alt="" width="590" height="365" srcset="https://playingfor90.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2016/02/511889430-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-590x900.jpg 590w, https://playingfor90.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2016/02/511889430-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-300x600.jpg 300w, https://playingfor90.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2016/02/511889430-arsenal-fc-v-fc-barcelona-uefa-champions-league-round-of-16-first-leg-768x0.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 590px) 100vw, 590px"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">(Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)</p>
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<h3>1. This tie isn’t over, but certainly looks over</h3>
<p>Last year after the first leg against Manchester City, there was still a feeling of something left to be done for the Catalans. This year it is totally different. If Arsenal would have converted one of those chances, this tie would be totally different. Now Arsenal have to score at least three goals in the Camp Nou. With the way Barcelona play at home, it almost seems impossible.</p>
<p>According to Infostrada Sports, Barcelona have a 97.7% of advancing based on their 2-0 result and historical results. So basically Arsenal have a lot of work to do.</p>
<p>The Catalans will be more comfortable in the second leg with the aggregate lead and playing at home. No team scored an away goal against the Catalans last year in the knockout stages and it certainly looks that will stay the same in this tie as well. But things can all change with an away goal. Arsenal should also have some hope considering they have played well in second legs of knockout ties in the past. They nearly eliminated Bayern Munich a few years ago and could give Barcelona a scare. They certainly have the quality with players like Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil in the fray. Things could get tricky in the Camp Nou if Arsenal are able to make this a competitive tie again.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">