Lionel Messi produced a mesmerising master-class to end Arsenal's Champions League dreams and send Barcelona into the semi-finals.
Gunners undone by brilliant Barca ace
Lionel Messi produced a mesmerising master-class to end Arsenal's UEFA Champions League dreams and send Barcelona into the semi-finals with a 6-3 aggregate success.
The prodigiously talented Argentina international claimed a hat-trick of extraordinary quality in the space of 21 first-half minutes and added a fourth at the death after the Gunners had threatened to upset the odds by opening the scoring in Camp Nou.
Nicklas Bendtner's goal briefly gave Arsene Wenger's men the lead for the first time in the tie, but hopes of an improbable upset in the second leg were whisked away by the magical feet of Barcelona's diminutive genius.
Arsenal's defence were simply unable to cope with Messi as he levelled almost immediately before going on to score twice more before the interval and again in the second half to set up a semi-final showdown with Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan.
Manuel Almunia was called into action in the opening moments as he was forced to plunge to his left to tip away Messi's low shot from the edge of the box which was arrowing towards the bottom corner.
Barca, just as they had done in the first leg, dominated possession, but they were hit by a breakaway goal in the 19th minute with the pace of Theo Walcott again instrumental.
Lethal
Abou Diaby played in the England international down the right as the Barca defence stepped up, and although his pass to Bendtner allowed Victor Valdes to make an initial save, the Danish striker kept his cool to fire home the rebound.
But their lead lasted just seconds as the lethal Messi played a one-two with the unwitting Mikael Silvestre before lashing a stunning 20-yard strike into the top corner and beyond Almunia's despairing dive.
Messi embarked on another mazy run on the half-hour mark, beating several players before Denilson slid in to win the ball. Referee Wolfgang Stark was of a different opinion and booked the Brazilian, with Almunia forced to get behind Dani Alves' powerful free-kick.
Moments later, Tomas Rosicky lost possession as Gael Clichy galloped forward, allowing Messi to go one-on-one with Silvestre but to the Gunners' relief he could only find the side netting.
There was no stopping the Argentina international in the 37th minute as Arsenal were unable to cut out Eric Abidal's cross, with Pedro flicking the ball to Messi who calmly lifted it over the onrushing Almunia.
Audacious
And he completed a fabulous hat-trick in the space of 21 breathtaking first-half minutes, breaking Arsenal's woeful offside trap to draw Almunia from his line before executing a chip of audacious ability with supreme simplicity.
Pep Guardiola's men were more circumspect following the interval, perhaps mindful of the two late goals they had conceded at Emirates Stadium last week, and maybe even with one eye on their El Clasico meeting with Real Madrid on Saturday.
Gabriel Milito produced an excellent sliding challenge in his own box to deny Bendtner the chance to test Valdes, while Rosicky could only fire well over the bar when found in space on the edge of the area.
Pedro had the chance to make it four in the 71st minute but chipped wide from Messi's quick free-kick which caught the visitors napping, before Bendtner struck the post only to see the flag raised for offside, while Walcott did the same late on.
Fittingly, the final word went to Messi as he beat Emmanuel Eboue and Thomas Vermaelen only to be denied by Almunia, but he kept his cool to drill his and Barcelona's fourth goal through the legs of the bewildered goalkeeper.
| Barcelona |
Team Statistics |
Arsenal |
| 4 |
Goals |
1 |
| 3 |
1st Half Goals |
1 |
| 8 |
Shots on Target |
2 |
| 6 |
Shots off Target |
4 |
| 0 |
Blocked Shots |
0 |
| 3 |
Corners |
2 |
| 16 |
Fouls |
19 |
| 1 |
Offsides |
3 |
| 0 |
Yellow Cards |
3 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 87.9 |
Passing Success |
76.8 |
| 23 |
Tackles |
27 |
| 69.6 |
Tackles Success |
66.7 |
| 68 |
Possession |
32 |
| 50.3 |
Territorial Advantage |
49.7 |
|
