Home win against Napoli

FC Barcelona against SSC Napoli from 9pm LIVE

Fermin Lopez scored his first goal.

(Bild: APA/AFP/Josep LAGO)

FC Barcelona beat SSC Napoli 3:1 in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 on Tuesday. The Catalans are now through to the quarter-finals. An important victory for Barca, which is struggling both financially and in sporting terms.

FC Barcelona have reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first time since 2020. The Catalans came out on top 3:1 against SSC Napoli at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys on Tuesday evening thanks to goals from Fermin Lopez (15th), Joao Cancelo (17th) and Robert Lewandowski (83rd), winning 4:2 after a 1:1 first leg. The squad of coach Xavi, who will retire in the summer, may thus be able to salvage a poor season in the "premier class".

Barca's coach gave 17-year-old Pau Cubarsi his Champions League debut in central defense, while 16-year-old super talent Lamine Yamal made his debut up front. He also put a shot over the bar right at the start (2nd). After that, 20-year-old Fermin Lopez took center stage three times within a short space of time. After two missed opportunities (9th, 13th), he was able to rely on the adage that "all good things come in threes". A Raphinha cross into the box found the unmarked Spaniard, who fired into the corner from twelve meters.

Napoli claimed a penalty
Two minutes later, Yamal initiated a picture-book counter-attack. Raphinha was unlucky with a shot off the bar, but Joao Cancelo tucked the rebound into the net. At this point, it looked like it would be a clear-cut affair before the Italians came back into the game after an hour. In a move similar to Barca's 2-0, Matteo Politano played Amir Rrahmani into the back of the net, who finished successfully near the penalty spot. Barca goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen prevented the equalizer with a Di Lorenzo header (37').

Napoli claimed a penalty

(Bild: ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Napoli set the tone from the start after the restart. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia shot narrowly wide (47') and referee Danny Makkelie failed to award a penalty when Victor Osimhen was brought down by Cubarsi in the penalty area (50'). It remained a nail-biter for the home side after that and they were also lucky when Jesper Lindström missed with a header from the best position (80'). That almost brought revenge immediately. Lewandowski, who otherwise made few appearances, only had to push the ball over the line after being played in by Sergi Roberto.

The Spaniards extended their unbeaten run to nine matches, including six wins. Napoli were put in their place in the round of 16 of the CL and the Europa League round of 16 in 2020 and 2022 respectively. The Italians conceded their first defeat in their sixth game under new coach Francesco Calzona, and a bitter one at that. In seventh place in the league after 28 rounds, the club is clearly lagging behind expectations.