Arsenal and Barcelona booked their ticket to the UEFA Champions League Quarter-finals, after years of being of being absent from this stage of the competition. The last time Arsenal advanced to the quarter-finals was in 2010; for Barcelona, it was in 2020.
Arsenal started their match against Porto on the back foot. In the first leg, Brazilian winger Galeno gave Porto the win through a powerful right-footed strike in the last minute of the game.
Arsenal controlled possession (59%) but were evenly matched with shots on target, as they had 4 to Porto’s 3. Both goalkeepers had work to do in the first 25 minutes, with Arsenal’s David Raya and Porto’s Diogo Costa making good saves to keep the score 0-0.
Arsenal would eventually break through in the 41st minute through the Belgian winger Leandro Trossard. Norwegian midfielder Martin Ødegaard played an incisive through ball to Trossard, who placed his shot at the far post, bringing the aggregate score to 1-1. Arsenal would have two clear chances to win the game in the last ten minutes of regular time through Brazilian striker Gabriel Jesus and Ødegaard. Jesus ran onto a deflection and placed a shot through Costa’s legs that dribbled just wide of the goal in the 83rd minute. A minute later, Ødegaard shot first time off a save from Costa, placing his shot just wide of the goal.
Then, the game went to extra time, where both teams sputtered on to what seemed like an inevitable penalty shootout.
Arsenal’s first two takers (Kai Havertz and Ødegaard) scored when Porto’s Wendell stepped up. He placed his penalty to Raya’s left, and Raya deflected it with his fingertips before the ball deflected off the post and then his heel before dribbling out of bounds.
At this point, the score on penalties was 2-1. Then Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka scored, followed by Porto’s Marko Grujić and Arsenal’s Declan Rice. With the score at 4-2, Porto’s Galeno sent his shot to Raya’s right, and Raya made the save. This save sent the Gunners to the quarter-finals for the first time in over a decade.
Barcelona entered the second leg against Napoli under tremendous pressure. They were without crucial midfielders Frenkie de Jong and Pedri, and losing would mean missing out on millions of euros of prize money. With the club in dire financial straits, advancing in the Champions League would mean more than getting closer to a prestigious title.
Barça would get after Napoli early through 20-year-old Spanish midfielder Fermín López. In the 15th minute, Brazilian winger Raphinha broke free in the box and served a cutback to López, who finished cooly to the goalkeeper’s left. This goal gave Barça the lead on aggregate 2-1.
Two minutes later, 16-year-old Spanish winger Lamine Yamal sprung Barça on the counter-attack, dribbling from his third to midfield before passing to Raphinha. Raphinha shot quickly, with the ball coming off the inside of the post, falling at the feet of Portuguese fullback João Cancelo, who scored for the first time past a scrambling Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret. At this point, the aggregate score was 3-1.
Then, in the 30th minute, Napoli winger Matteo Politano ran onto a through ball in behind Cancelo and quickly played a cutback to Napoli defender Amir Rrahmani. Rrahmani then shot first time past Barça goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen
German goalkeeper, bringing the aggregate score to 3-2.
Napoli dominated possession in the game (52%) but did not trouble Barça heavily, only registering four shots on target. Barça, on the other hand, produced 10 shots on target.
Barça eventually ended the game in the 83rd minute after a well-worked team move finished by Polish striker Robert Lewandowski. German midfielder İlkay Gündoğan played a ball through to Sergi Roberto to pass to Lewandowski, allowing him to tap the ball into a wide-open goal.
The final score was 4-2 on aggregate, as Barça found a light in an otherwise dim season.
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