The Catalans are off to a strong start in the Champions League.
Of course there will be changes for the trip to Germany. There were plenty of positives for Barcelona in their win over Viktoria Plzen but the real test will come next week against Bayern. Sevilla also had plenty of joy getting in behind at the weekend before being overpowered by Barca’s riches in attack. Xavi’s always backed Ferran and Wednesday’s showing will have offered the 22-year-old a much-needed confidence boost. Lewandowski also impresses with his work-rate, desire, link-up play and his presence also seems to raise the level of his team-mates. Dembele’s scooped pass was rather special but there was still a lot of work to do. Ousmane Dembele is also looking in fine form ahead of the trip to Germany. He’s already added so much to Barcelona in his short time at the club and it’s obvious that having such a ruthless, clinical presence in attack makes life so much easier. And you get the feeling there’s still more to come from Dembele. It will also be interesting to see what happens with Ferran Torres after a lively cameo on Wednesday night. Robert Lewandowski continued his incredible goalscoring form with a hat-trick for Barcelona in another classy performance. The coach admitted as much after the match but did warn against overconfidence.
Franck Kessie scored the opener after receiving his first official start for the club before Robert Lewandowski doubled the lead. The visitors soon pulled one ...
It would have been wise for the manager to give him a rest by taking him off early in the second half. The winger is a vital part of Xavi’s plans and will have a big role to play week in and week out. The fact that Robert Lewandowski needed just five games to score his first hat-trick for Barcelona is incredible. Plzen never had a chance on the night, and Barcelona were going for blood. The team sorely missed Pedri through injury last season, and Xavi cannot afford to lose him again through mismanagement. On the night, Xavi’s side recorded 76% possession including a whopping 81% in the first half.
Games like the one on Wednesday always throw up plenty of trivia, and we've picked out the best.
And another was new signing Pablo Torre, who is officially a Barça Atlètic player but came on for the last few minutes and looked very impressive indeed in his first experience of senior football at FC Barcelona. Following his sixth hat-trick in the Champions League the Polish striker has amassed an astonishing 36 goals in his last 27 games, and is third in the all-time list with 89. The Champions League returned to Spotify Camp Nou in style with a 5-1 defeat of Viktoria Plzen.
Robert Lewandowski struck a hat-trick in his first Champions League game for FC Barcelona to power the Catalans to an emphatic 5-1 home win over Viktoria ...
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Barcelona needed a game and an opponent like Plzen to return to the Champions League after last season's disaster. From not even being good enough to listen ...
Atletico won in the 100th minute thanks to a goal from the dejected Griezmann. In the first Champions League match against the weakest team in the group, which probably won't even make it to the Europa League. From not even being good enough to listen to the anthem, to being eliminated in the Europa League.
WHAT HAPPENED? It has been more than a year since Messi left Camp Nou, with the Argentine subsequently signing for Paris Saint-Germain, but Xavi feels that ...
THE BIGGER PICTURE: There is little doubt that Barca have struggled to replace Messi, as they went trophyless in the 2021-22 campaign. However, now there are other players who are destined to make history, but it won’t be easy," the Barcelona manager has told reporters. However, they bought seven players this summer, including Robert Lewandowski, Jules Kounde and Raphinha, in an attempt to re-establish themselves as one of the best clubs in the world.