Read Sid Lowe's match report
3 - Kylian Mbappe is only the third player to score a UEFA Champions League hat-trick against Barcelona, after Faustino Asprilla for Newcastle and Andriy Shevchenko for Dynamo Kyiv (both in 1997). Magic. pic.twitter.com/eojfMDK7Cl
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) February 16, 2021
Full time: Barcelona 1-4 Paris Saint-Germain
Peep peep! Kylian Mbappe’s spectacular hat-trick has put PSG into the quarter-finals with a game to spare. They played beautifully throughout and ignored the inconvenience of going behind to a Lionel Messi penalty in the first half. Mbappe equalised within five minutes and then PSG overwhelmed Barcelona in the second half.
It was a wonderful night for Mauricio Pochettino, whose new team are serious contenders to win the tournament. Thanks for your company, goodnight!
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90+4 min Braithwaite turns beautifully away from Marquinhos on the edge of the area before being crowded out by a couple of defenders and Navas. That was sharp forward play though.
90+2 min Barcelona famously ame back from a 4-0 defeat against PSG in 2017, winning the second leg 6-1. But the first leg was away from home, and that was 2017. They have precisely 0.00 per cent chance of turning this round.
90+1 min Five minutes of added time.
90 min For the fourth consecutive season, Barcelona have been humiliated in the Champions League. It’s pretty hard to comprehend how far they have fallen.
88 min PSG sub: Thilo Kehrer replaces Florenzi, who had a good game and created the crucial second goal.
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That was a devastating counter-attack. Barcelona lost the ball on the edge of the area and PSG were off again. After a few crisp one-touch passes to work the space, Draxler led a three-on-two break. He ran a long way to the edge of the D and eased the ball left to Mbappe, who opened his body and whipped a spectacular curling shot into the far top corner. Wonderful stuff from a quite extraordinary footballer.
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MBAPPE HAT-TRICK! Barcelona 1-4 PSG (Mbappe 85)
What a goal!
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85 min A substitution apiece. Barcelona bring on Martin Braithwaite for Antoine Griezmann; PSG introduce Danilo for the goalscorer Moise Kean.
82 min Navas receives a backpass, faffs and then tries to clip a nonchalant pass out to the right. It hits the stretching Griezmann and loops just wide of the far post. That was very nearly a shambolic goal. Say what you like about the sophistication of modern keepers, but that wouldn’t have happened at John Beck’s Cambridge.
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81 min “Dest was sold down the river there,” says Ruth Purdue. “He was struggling all half on whether to hold position or go towards the ball several times against Mbappe. He was caught in no man’s land several times. Pique has to help him out with instructions.”
He got no help from Dembele either. He had no chance.
79 min Pedri was the other player who went off.
78 min Three changes for Barcelona: Francisco Trincao, Riqui Puig and Miralem Pjanic replace Busquets, Pique and I’ll get back to you on the third player.
76 min Dembele, who has had a stinker, shoots high and wide from a tight angle.
75 min Lionel Messi is in look-what-I-have-to-work-with mode. You can’t really blame him, to be fair. He might be working with the other lot next season.
74 min Another PSG change: the excellent Marco Verratti is replaced by Julian Draxler.
72 min Even without Neymar, Paris Saint-Germain have been much the better side. They play with a lovely purpose and confidence, though it helps when you have somebody like Mbappe.
71 min Barcelona bring on Oscar Mingueza for Sergino Dest, who has had a tough night against Mbappe.
PSG had a free-kick 30 yards from goal on the left. Paredes whipped a wicked ball to the far post that found Kean totally unmarked, six yards out. His downward header bounced up through the hands of ter Stegen and into the net.
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GOAL! Barcelona 1-3 PSG (Kean 70)
Barcelona are falling apart!
69 min “Evening Rob,” says Simon McMahon. “I loved, in fact still love, Mmmbop by Hanson. There, I said it. It never gets old, even if they do. I seem to recall that it was released at almost the same time as Paranoid Android by Radiohead. I loved that too. You can like both, right? Like football and cricket. Or the Chase and Pointless. Even Man United and Liverpool?”
68 min: Mbappe denied a hat-trick! He has been unplayable tonight. He picked up the bal on the left of the area, swerved away from Dest and rifled a low left-footed shot that was kicked away by ter Stegen.
GOAL GIVEN!
VAR check for offside against Florenzi. I think he’s okay.
Paredes lifted a gorgeous pass over the defence to find Florenzi on the right. His low cross towards Icardi was blocked by Pique, running towards his own goal, but Mbappe followed up to score with appreciable glee.
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GOAL! Barcelona 1-2 PSG (Mbappe 65)
The wonderful Kylian Mbappe gets his second!
63 min Alba’s cross did hit the outstretched arm of Kean, though he was only a couple of yards away and it was clearly accident- LOOK I DON’T KNOW ANYMORE OKAY.
62 min Dembele drags a tame shot through to Navas from the right edge of the area.
62 min Barcelona appeal for a penalty when Alba’s cross hits Kean just inside the area. I’ve not idea whether it hit his hand, but the referee was having none of it.
61 min “This has to be the most ordinary Barca side since 2003,” says Phil Podolsky. “So few ideas going forward.”
They just need to sign Edgar Davids.
60 min A wicked deep corner from Messi is headed wide by the off balance Griezmann. Herrera did well to make sure Griezmann couldn’t get a clear run at the ball.
59 min Messi’s free-kick hits the top of the ball and goes behind for a corner.
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58 min Messi is fouled 22 yards from goal by Kimpembe. Replays show it was a dive, after a handoff to the face, but the referee bought it. This is a chance for Messi...
56 min Herrera’s scooped return pass just evades Mbappe, who had made another run behind the Barcelona defence. He must be utterly terrifying to play against.
52 min This game is PSG’s for the taking, although we’ve said that a few times over the years in this competition.
50 min: Good save from ter Stegen! Mbappe and Icardi combine to set up Kean, whose deflected shot is pawed away by ter Stegen. That was a good save, because he was falling and had to reach up to push it away, but it was a surprise to see Icardi flick the ball behind his standing leg to Kean rather than have a shot himself.
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49 min Mbappe zips between Dest and Dembele on the left and pushes the ball back to Verratti on the left corner of the box. He dummies to shoot and then does shoot, opening his body to whip a curler that is headed away by Pique. Verratti has produced some lovely moments of class tonight, including that dummy and the flicked pass for Mbappe’s goal.
48 min “Fantastic players on both sides, but (apart from maybe 80s vintage Millwall) I can’t think of any two clubs that are easier to dislike,” says Matt Dony. “I really would like both teams to lose. Gun to my head, I’ll go for PSG to go through. If only to potentially give Mbappe the chance to leave Paris on a high, before his unveiling at Anfield in July.”
I love that you felt the need to put a metaphorical gun to your head over a game in which you have no vested interest. I bet this doesn’t happen to badminton fans.
47 min Mbappe, who has been scary at times, curls just wide from 25 yards. ter Stegen had it covered but it was another reminder of his devastating efficiency.
46 min Peep peep! Barcelona begin the second half.
PSG have made a sensible half-time substitution: Andre Herrera is on for Idrissa Gueye, who was a red card waiting to happen.
“It’s it just me,” says Paul in Murcia, “that when reading the name Mbappe can’t help think of MMMBop by Hanson, or Sergio Busquets think of Biscuits?”
I’ll level with you: the ‘biscuits’ link is a stretch, and might be something to raise with the therapist. But I’ve also had an Mbappe/Hanson moment or two. Here’s a fun fact to make us all feel old and past it: Mbappe hadn’t even been conceived when that song came out.
Half-time reading
Half time: Barcelona 1-1 Paris Saint-Germain
Peep peep! It’s Messi 1-1 Mbappe after a very enjoyable half of football. PSG were the better side but went behind to a soft penalty, roofed emphatically by Lionel Messi. PSG responded splendidly, with Mbappe smashing an equaliser within five minutes, and both sides went close thereafter. See you soon for the second half.
45 min Maybe Icardi could have done better, I’m not sure. He really thumped the header but was unable to steer it towards goal from in front of the near post.
44 min Busquets plays the ball back to ter Stegen, who shanks a routine clearance behind for a corner. He is so nearly punished: Mbappe whips an excellent corner to the near post, where Icardi flashes a terrific header just wide.
43 min Gueye, who has already been booked, is late on Busquets. He’d be off for that in the Premier League. I prefer the referee Bjorn Kuipers’ take, which appears to be a final warning.
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41 min “Evening Rob, do you agree there is a double standard about fouls inside and outside the penalty area?” says Brian Russell. “It seems any contact in the penalty area results in the attacker smugly throwing himself to the ground and the referee cheerfully rewarding him with a penalty. Outside the penalty similar contact rarely results in a free kick. If it’s not a free kick outside the area how can it be a penalty inside it? It’s like everyone is agreed that footie ceases to be a contact sport when the ball is in the penalty area.”
Yep, it’s a complete mess. I don’t know what else to say really, except maybe EFF VAR.
39 min Mbappe had a slight touch of fortune with the goal, because he didn’t control the ball perfectly. But he reacted with dizzying speed to beat Lengelt and wallop it in at the near post.
38 min At the other end, Kean’s fierce snapshot on the turn is pushed round the post by ter Stegen. After a slow start, this is turning into a cracker.
37 min: Just wide from Griezmann! This is great stuff. Barcelona break from a PSG corner, with Griezmann on the ball near the halfway line. He runs all the way to the edge of the area, using Dembele by not using him, and rifles a low shot that beats Navas and flies just past the far post.
35 min: Fine save from ter Stegen! Mbappe, who is threatening to run riot, slides the ball back from the touchline to find Kurzawa on the edge of the area. He moves away from Dembele, whose defending has been half-arsed at best, and slides a low shot across goal. It looks set to nestle in the bottom corner, but ter Stegen somehow gets down to fingertip it round the post. That was an outstanding save.
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33 min Well this is fun.
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Marquinhos drove a crossfield pass out to Kurzawa on the left wing. He cushioned a volleyed cross back towards the edge of the area for Verratti, who flicked the ball neatly round the corner to Mbappe with the outside of his foot. Mbappe was surrounded by defenders but had the composure and awareness to shift the ball away from Lenglet and ram it past ter Stegen from close range. That was brilliant play in a tight area from Verratti and especially Mbappe.
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GOAL! Barcelona 1-1 PSG (Mbappe 32)
Kylian Mbappe equalises with a brilliant goal!
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31 min Florenzi curls a nice dipping cross to the near post, where Mbappe improvises a lovely flick behind his front leg that is crucially blocked by Lenglet.
30 min That goal is a blow to PSG, who have created the better chances and had more of the ball.
29 min: Dembele misses an excellent chance! Messi takes advantage of a slip from Kimpembe (I think) and pokes the ball through to Dembele, who shoots tamely at Navas from 15 yards.
28 min Replays confirm that de Jong’s trailing leg brushed the knee of Kurzawa, who knew nothing about it. I feel for PSG but it was a penalty.
GOAL! Barcelona 1-0 PSG (Messi 27 pen)
Messi smashes an unsaveable penalty into the top corner! Navas went the right way, to his left, but didn’t get near it.
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27 min: Penalty given!
27 min: VAR check He may have tripped himself, it’s hard to be certain. I think it will be given though.
26 min: PENALTY TO BARCELONA! de Jong’s heels are clipped, accidentally I think, by Kurzawa. He was running onto a fine long pass from Messi and went over; the referee Bjorn Kuipers had no doubt.
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21 min Griezmann plays a nice one-two with Messi, forcing Verratti to make a vital sliding tackle just inside the area. That was really well judged.
20 min Gueye is booked for fouling Pedri 30 yards from goal.
19 min: Pedri clears off the line from Icardi! He looked offside but it wasn’t given. Mbappe, who was found in a bit of space by Verratti, clipped a neat reverse pass to put Icardi through on goal in the inside-left channel. He scuffed an apologetic left-footed effort past ter Stegen, and Pedri had plenty of time to get back and hoof it behind for a corner. I think it might have been going wide anyway, though Pedri was right to take no chances.
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17 min Messi is dropping very deep, almost as if he’s part of a midfield diamond. He hasn’t seen much of the ball so far.
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16 min “Let’s hope we don’t have a boring 0-0,” says Zack Lawrence. “Me and my friends have been hyped for this all day so it better be good. Also what is your favourite pancake topping?”
Vodka?
14 min: Good save from Navas! Messi, dropping deep, shoves the ball forward to Pedri. He pokes a nice ball through the inside-left channel to release Griezmann, whose low shot from a tight angle is well blocked by Navas.
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12 min Gueye muscles Pedri off the ball and finds Kean, who surges away from Lenglet into the area. The covering de Jong pokes the ball behind for a corner, which is headed clear by Griezmann.
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10 min Jordi Alba’s overhit cross goes out of play. Great stuff.
8 min Barcelona are starting to put a few passes together. It’s been a decent start to the game.
6 min Dembele, who is playing on the right with Griezmann on the left, cuts inside and hits a long-range shot that is blocked by Marquinhos.
4 min It’s been a confident start from PSG. Icardi nutmegs de Jong and plays the ball square to Gueye, who belts wide from 25 yards.
1 min Some early danger for Barcelona. Verratti clips a pass over the top for Mbappe, who is far too quick for Dest. He can’t quite control the ball on the run, which allows ter Stegen to come out of his area and clear. He panics slightly, slicing his attempted clearance behind him, but he gets away with it. If Mbappe had controlled that he would have been in.
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1 min Peep peep! PSG, in their stylish away kit, kick off from right to left.
Here come the players, led by the captains Lionel Messi and Marquinhos. We’re used to empty stadiums now, but the Nou Camp does look a bit eerie.
“Leo has to fancy his chances,” says Ruth Purdue. “PSG’s midfield are bookings waiting to happen.”
It’s a really hard tie to call, I think, because of Barcelona’s recent improvement and Neymar’s injury.
Mauricio Pochettino has been talking about PSG’s Champions League ‘obsession’, which is as good an excuse as any to post this glorious video.
“Only one question Rob,” says Michael George. “Why the hell aren’t these games staggered? Everyone is at home, so it’s not like you will get stuck in traffic and miss the start!”
That’s a good point. Uefa don’t normally miss the opportunity to stagger games. Maybe this is the beginning of a new Integrity First era. Next season, only the champions quality, it’s an unseeded knockout from the start and there are no Gazprom adverts.
This is one of two Champions League games tonight. The other, being played in Budapest because of Covid, is a cracker.
Team news
Gerard Pique, who has been out since November, returns for Barcelona. That means Frenkie de Jong will move back into midfield.
PSG make two changes from the team that beat Nice 2-1 on Saturday: Alessadnro Florenzi and Marco Verratti replace Thilo Kehrer and Julian Draxler.
Barcelona (4-3-3) ter Stegen; Dest, Pique, Lenglet, Jordi Alba; de Jong, Busquets, Pedri; Dembele, Messi, Griezmann.
Substitutes: Neto, Pena, Pjanic, Braithwaite, Puig, Trincao, Fernandes, Umtiti, Firpo, Mingueza.
Paris Saint-Germain (4-3-3) Navas; Florenzi, Marquinhos, Kimpembe, Kurzawa; Gueye, Paredes, Verratti; Kean, Icardi, Mbappe.
Substitutes: Rico, Letellier, Kehrer, Rafinha, Danilo, Sarabia, Herrera, Diallo, Draxler, Bakker, Michut.
Referee Bjorn Kuipers (Netherlands).
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Preamble
Hello and welcome to live coverage of Barcelona v Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16 of the Champions League. It’s the most glamorous tie of the round, involving two of Europe’s superclubs, both of them desperate to make up for the pain of last season’s tournament. Barcelona were butchered 8-2 by Bayern Munich, while PSG – having finally made serious progress in the tournament – lost tamely to Bayern in the final.
Since then, both clubs have appointed former Southampton managers: Ronald Koeman at Barcelona and Mauricio Pochettino at PSG. That’s one of many subplots in this tie; the biggest are Lionel Messi’s potential move to Paris this summer, the absence of Neymar and the miracle of 2017. The surviving PSG players, including Marquinhos, Layvin Kurzawa and Julian Draxler, would love a bit of rewenge.
PSG’s form under Pochettino has been good, with eight wins in ten games in all competitions. They are a pitiful second in Ligue 1, a point behind Lille, which is a big surprise given how easily they have won the league in the last three years. But the one they really want, the one they’re openly obsessed with, is the Champions League.
This competition might be Barcelona’s only chance of a trophy this season. They have quietly recovered from a desperate start, though it’s probably too late for them to catch Atletico Madrid in La Liga. And last week’s 2-0 defeat at Sevilla in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final was a reminder that they are still very much in transition. If Messi can inspire this team to win the Champions League, it will be one helluva last dance.
Kick off 8pm.
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