Lionel Messi scored his second hat-trick in as many
Champions League games to give Barcelona a 4-0 win over Manchester City as Pep
Guardiola and Claudio Bravo endured harrowing returns to the Nou Camp on
Wednesday.
A slip by Fernandinho allowed Messi to round former team
mate Bravo and open the scoring in the 17th minute and the keeper completed a
miserable night by getting sent off in the second half for handling outside the
area after losing the ball.
The magical Messi hammered in his second from the edge of
the area after turning two City defenders and pounced on a Luis Suarez lay-off
to complete his treble in the 69th minute.
Barca substitute Jeremy Mathieu was then dismissed for two bookable
offences. Neymar had a late penalty saved by substitute keeper Willy Caballero
but the Brazilian made amends by scoring the fourth goal in the 89th minute.
"It's difficult to play with Barcelona against 11 men.
With 10, it was over," said Guardiola, while adamant that he would not
blame Bravo for the error which effectively ended his side's night.
"Mistakes happen. He is sad but he will learn a lot. As
long as I'm a coach I'll keep playing out from the goalkeeper," the coach
added.
Luis Enrique's team lead the group with nine points followed
by Guardiola's City on four. Borussia Moenchengladbach have three points while
Celtic are bottom with one.
Guardiola, who surprisingly left out key marksman Sergio
Aguero to accommodate more midfield strength, watched his old side pressed back
in their own half for 15 minutes until Fernandinho's error and Messi's
determination changed the course of events.
Messi began the move and fought to win the ball back before
threading a pass to Andres Iniesta. Fernandinho tripped over just as he looked
set to clear, leaving the Argentine an easy task to score.
City did not wilt, Nolito and Ilkay Guendogan having shots
saved by Marc-Andre ter Stegen, while at the other end Suarez was denied by
Bravo and also shot wide.
The visitors collapsed after the break, though, their
downfall starting when Bravo came out of his area and lost the ball to Suarez
before using his hands to stop the Uruguayan's attempted chip.
"Perhaps the result is a bit unfair on them but if you
commit grave errors and you have three forwards like ours against you, this is
what happens," Barca coach Luis Enrique said.
Messi's second strike was reminiscent of a goal he scored
against Guardiola's Bayern Munich in the 2015 semi-finals and Suarez's
generosity allowed the Argentine to knock in the third with simplicity.
Caballero thwarted Neymar from the spot but the Brazilian
still had time for a neat fourth, heaping more pain on Barca's most decorated
coach Guardiola.
source: supersport
No comments:
Post a Comment