Barcelona-Inter semi-final ends in a six-goal thriller in an absolute classic in the UEFA Champions League
- Anweshan Ghosh
- May 1
- 3 min read
FC Barcelona and Internazionale Milan battled it out in what as an absolute thriller at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys last night in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-finals.
The much-anticipated clash ended with a scoreline of 3-3, being a game full of world-class goals and moments of magic while an absolute treat for all the fans.
The home side, FC Barcelona, showed incredible spirit to fight back despite going down by two goals inside the first twenty minutes itself, securing two big comebacks to end the first leg on level terms.
Last night’s performance was yet another example of Barca’s improved spirit and incredible fighting mentality that the club has regained under Hansi Flick.
FC Barcelona vs Inter Milan: As it Happened
The Italian giants stunned the Blaugrana when they opened the scoring inside just thirty seconds as Marcus Thuram’s brilliant ‘ghost-like’ flick caught Inigo Martinez and Gerard Martin by surprise, becoming the fastest ever goal in the semi-finals of the Champions League.
Inter hammered another blow to Barcelona just minutes later as the hosts found themselves being down by two goals when Denzel Dumfries managed to find the back of the net with an incredible acrobatic volley following a corner sequence, which completely caught Barça out.
Despite being put in a tough situation, teenage sensation Lamine Yamal produced a moment of pure magic out of nowhere yet again as he dribbled past four defenders and curled the ball into the back of the net, scoring a goal that'll go down in the Champions League history books.
Just 14 minutes after Lamine’s worldie, Barcelona secured their first comeback of the night via Pedri’s sensational pass to Raphinha, who eventually laid it off to Ferran Torres to simply tap it in.
The second half began with Inter Milan pressing higher up the pitch and managed to win possession in advanced positions in order to successfully pass their way through Barça’s rigid midfield.
It was just moments later that the Italians exploited the Catalan giants’ weakness in set-pieces once again, with Dumfries bagging his brace following a corner-kick routine yet again, putting Barcelona behind with a scoreline of 3-2.
As Barça fans began to get flashbacks of previous UCL heartbreaks, Raphinha pulled off a "Ballon d'Or"-worthy goal from a staggering twenty yards out, which completely stunned Yan Sommer, pulling the hosts level on the night once again.
Both the teams adjusted defensively and settled for an entertaining draw in Montjuïc. The home side would've expected a win after having accumulated an xG of 1.4 compared to Inter’s 0.90 as per stats from Sofascore.
Flick's side had attempted 19 shots on goal, hitting the woodwork thrice, which could've easily resulted in three difference-making goals.
Injuries pile up for both sides ahead of the second-leg clash in Milan next week
Both sides have struggled with injuries to key players recently and came out of last night’s clash having sustained even more injuries.
For Barcelona, star striker Robert Lewandowski and versatile full-back Alejandro Balde were both ruled out for the clash this week due to hamstring injuries suffered in late April.
The situation became even worse for the Catalan giants when Jules Kounde was forced off the pitch even before the half-time mark during last night's clash. It was later confirmed that the French international has sustained an injury in his left thigh and could possibly miss the next leg in Italy.
For Inter Milan, skipper Lautaro Martinez is set to miss the second-leg due to a muscle injury, being possibly the biggest blow to manager Simone Inzaghi ahead of the second leg against Barcelona next week and their final charge for the Serie A title in the final month of the season.
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