The long-awaited game between Bayern Munich and Barcelona didn’t disappoint the neutral fans of the game. Ten days ago, Lionel Messi won his seventh Ballon d’Or ahead of Robert Lewandowski. Many people saw controversy in this decision as they believed that the Polish forward deserved it more. Everybody saw a fantastic opportunity for Lewandowski to take his revenge against Messi’s former team. Bayern Munich perfectly knew that if they defeated Barcelona, this would most probably knock them out of the tournament.
The game started off well for the German giant as they were dictating the match in the first half. In the 34th minute, Robert Lewandowski sent a spectacular cross in the penalty area. Thomas Muller took advantage of the opportunity and send the ball in the net – 1:0. Right before the end of the first half, Leroy Sane shot well from long range, increasing the lead to 2 goals. In the meantime, Benfica took a demanding 2:0 lead against Dynamo Kyiv in the other game from Group E. This meant that Barcelona had to score three unanswered goals, if they wanted to stay in the tournament.
However, the Blaugrana didn’t have an answer to this well-oiled German machine. After a couple of missed opportunities, in the 62nd minute, Bayern Munich put the last nail in Barcelona’s coffin. After a fantastic dribble from Alphonso Davies, he found Jamal Musiala in the penalty area who had the easy task to tap in the ball into the net. This was the second goal in his UCL career for the 18-year-old German with Nigerian roots. The match slowly came to its end and so did Barcelona’s hopes for qualifying to the Knockout Stage.
This was Barcelona’s first Group Stage exit since 2000. Back then, their current manager, Xavi Hernandez, played his first games for the Blaugrana alongside players like Frank de Boer, Patrick Kluivert, and Rivaldo. It’s quite disappointing that this was Barcelona’s fate right after the departure of Lionel Messi. It’s obvious that the team is in a rebuilding stage as they will need to find replacements for Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba. Xavi Hernandez will have to make some decent selections in the upcoming transfer windows. One thing is certain and that is Barcelona will rise again, but until then, they might suffer a lot.
