Raphinha Stars as Barcelona Complete Dramatic Comeback at Benfica to Reach Champions League Last 16

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A dramatic nine-goal thriller between Barcelona and Benfica in the Champions League ended with Hansi Flick’s men coming away from the Estadio Da Luz with a win that sends them to the round of 16.

Barcelona were on the backfoot as early as the second minute when Greek hitman Vangelis Pavlidis capitalised on slack defending to put the hosts ahead.

Benfica should have gone 2-0 up by the fifth minute but for Fredrik Aursnes’ poor finish as he steered Alvara Fernandez’s pinpoint cross into the Barca box wide when he was odds on to score.

Robert Lewandowski made the Portuguese side pay when he equalised from the spot after VAR awarded Barcelona a penalty for a Tomas Araujo foul on Alejandro Balde in the 11th minute.

But Pavlidis soon restored Benfica’s lead, pouncing on a poor run out by goalkeeper, Wojciech Szczesny, who clattered into Balde in an attempt to clear the ball and left the Greek forward with an open goal to tap in.

The 26-year-old Benfica man then completed his hat-trick with a penalty after Szczesny had fouled Kerem Akturkoglu on the half-hour mark – the third fastest hat-trick scored from the start of a Champions League match.

If the opening period was exciting, it paled in comparison with the second half as the drama continued.

It all began when a blunder by Benfica keeper, Anatoliy Trubin, proved costly as he cleared the ball straight onto Raphinha’s head and into the net for a bizarre goal as the visitors pulled one back in the 64th minute to make it 3-2.

Benfica extended their lead again four minutes later thanks to an own goal from Ronald Araujo, before Lewandowski scored his second of the night with another clinical penalty in the 78th minute.

Substitute, Eric Garcia, then equalised with a towering header from a fine Pedri cross three minutes from time before Raphinha found the winner six minutes into stoppage time from a quick counter-attack to complete the remarkable turnaround.

The win guarantees Barcelona’s place in the UEFA Champions League last 16 as they sit second on the table with 18 points after seven games heading into next week’s final round of fixtures.

On the other hand, Benfica missed out on a win that would have taken them closer to the top eight, dropping to 18th position with 10 points instead.

Barca host Ademola Lookman’s Atalanta in their final league phase game next Wednesday while Benfica will take on Italian Serie A giants Juventus.

Lookman, a half-time substitute, was on target for Atalanta in the 5-0 win over Sturm Graz earlier on Tuesday. Mateo Retegui and Charles De Ketelaere were also on the scoresheet for Gian Piero Gasperini’s side.

Elsewhere, Aston Villa fell by a lone goal at Monaco, while Borussia Dortmund let slip a lead in Italy to lose 2-1 at Bologna, jeopardising their quest to reach the last 16 of the Champions League.

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