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Lamine Yamal and Raphinha shone brightly as Barcelona defeated Benfica 3-1 on Tuesday, securing a 4-1 aggregate victory to advance to the Champions League quarter-finals.
Raphinha scored twice, sandwiching a brilliant goal from Yamal during a first half where the Catalans were in control, following their 1-0 victory in the first leg in Lisbon.
Nicolas Otamendi quickly equalised after Raphinha’s opener, but Benfica was overwhelmed at the Olympic Stadium as Barcelona moved smoothly through the tie, showcasing some outstanding attacking football.
Hansi Flick’s team will compete against Borussia Dortmund or Lille in the quarter-finals, aiming to capture the title for the first time since 2015 during the era of Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Luis Suarez.
Flick said that Barca would play in memory of late club doctor Carles Minarro, who passed away unexpectedly on Saturday before the team’s postponed match against Osasuna, observing a moment of silence in his honour before the game began.
Barcelona, champions five times, took the lead after just 11 minutes as Spain international Yamal surged into the box, manoeuvred past Florentino, and then misdirected the ball to Raphinha for an easy finish.
Benfica equalised within two minutes when Otamendi evaded Ronald Araujo to score with a header from a corner.
Barcelona goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny had performed exceptionally in the first leg, helping the team secure a notable win with 10 men following Pau Cubarsi’s red card, but he could have done more to prevent Otamendi’s goal.
Nonetheless, Barcelona and their wingers Yamal and Raphinha displayed remarkable form, quickly regaining their lead.
Yamal scored his long-awaited first goal in seven matches, showing his skill by cutting in from the right and delivering a fantastic shot that sailed past Anatoliy Trubin into the far corner from the edge of the penalty area.
Raphinha netted his second before halftime, extending Barcelona’s aggregate lead to three goals after a rapid run by Alejandro Balde.
The left-back regained possession in his half and broke through the Portuguese defence on the counter, advancing to the edge of Benfica’s area before setting up Raphinha.
This marked the winger’s 11th goal in the tournament, positioning him at the top of the scoring charts.
Bruno Lage’s side missed out on injured midfielder Angel Di Maria, but even with him, overcoming Flick’s Barcelona, given their current form, would still have been a tall order.
Fredrik Aursnes found the net for Benfica in the second half, but the goal was ruled out for offside against Vangelis Pavlidis, who had scored a hat trick when Barcelona claimed a 5-4 victory in their first league clash this season in January.
For the most part, Benfica failed to threaten Szczesny, and Barcelona nearly added a fourth when Frenkie de Jong shot wide after a swift team move.
Barcelona now looks ahead to their quarter-final matchup and can begin preparing to visit Atletico Madrid in La Liga on Sunday, a crucial fixture in the Spanish title race.
