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Manchester United's Champions League journey came to an end after they were dumped out of the competition by an inspired Barcelona side. After a below-par performance at the Old Trafford in the first leg, Barcelona were back to their best at the Nou Camp. They played with their traditional swagger and blew the Red Devils out of the park.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer went with an attacking line up for the game. Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard started up front. United started the game on the front foot as Rashford hit the crossbar inside the first two minutes. But they conceded against the run of play when Ashley Young's poor clearance fell to Lionel Messi who buried the ball past David De Gea from outside the box. The Argentine doubled Barcelona's lead when his tame shot squeezed beneath David De Gea's body and rolled into the back of the net. Philip Coutinho scored a screamer to finish Manchester United off and book a place in the semi-finals of the Champions League.
#5 The Blaugrana pressed Manchester United out of the park:
Manchester United's decision to build up through the middle didn't work out very well. The Red Devils tried to move forward up the pitch by playing short passes but Barcelona pressed them with such intensity that they were unable to string more than a couple of passes. Paul Pogba was the only player who seemed to have the ability to play through the Barcelona press but he was crowded as soon as he received the ball. The intense pressing from the hosts forced the United players into mistakes.
The visitors looked much more dangerous when they were throwing balls into the channels for Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial to run onto and should have stuck to that approach.
#4 Manchester United's lack of composure in front of goal costs them again:
Manchester United started the game with high intensity and seemed determined to get the first goal. Quick movement and precise one-touch passes between the front three caused Barcelona loads of problems in the opening stages of the game. They could have taken the lead in the first couple of minutes of the game but Marcus Rashford hit the cross-bar. Scott Mctominay had another opportunity but a poor first touch let him down.
Manchester United players have lacked the composure to score in front of goal lately. They had a couple of opportunities in the first leg which they failed to take and the story was the same this time around too. If the visitors were clinical in front of the goal, the result could have different.
#3 Manchester United players engineered their own downfall:
Individual mistakes and poor decision-making from the Manchester United players cost them the game. Both goals in the first half were a result of an individual mistake. The Red Devils started the game pretty well and looked the more likely team to open the scoring in the second leg but conceded against the run of play.
Ashley Young, who was heavily criticized by the fans for his performance in the first leg at Old Trafford, was at fault for the first goal for Barcelona. The ball dropped to Lionel Messi from his poor clearance who made no mistake and buried the ball into the back of the net from outside the box. Another player with a game to forget was David De Gea. The Spaniard, who is considered among the best goalkeepers in the world, was at the end of a huge error as scrambled the ball in the back of his own net from a weak shot by Lionel Messi.
#2 The Red Devils are too far behind from competing against the elites:
Manchester United staged an incredible comeback against Paris Saint Germain in the previous round, which gave the fans great optimism going into this game. But even they realize that this Manchester United team is still not equipped to compete in Europe against the likes of Barcelona and that is exactly what happened.
The Blaugrana absolutely humiliated United in the 3-0 victory. They moved them around all over the pitch with their passes and made them chase for the ball throughout the 90 minutes.
The Manchester United players struggled to get anywhere near the ball and whenever the Red Devils did manage to get hold of the ball, they weren't allowed to string more than a couple of passes. That schooling from Barcelona shows how far behind Solskjaer's men are from competing against the elites.
#1 'Magical' Messi steals the show once again:
Manchester United did a brilliant job of keeping Lionel Messi at bay in the first leg, but the Argentine magician cannot be kept quiet for too long. The 31-year-old scored twice in the first half to steal the tie away from the English team. He was mesmerizing to watch and had numerous opportunities to complete his hat-trick but was unlucky to not get it. The Argentine made every he did on the pitch look so easy and was toying with the Manchester United defenders.
Messi vowed to bring the prestigious European trophy back to the Camp Nou at the start of the season and seems determined to keep his promise. The Argentine looks like a man on a mission and with him in such incredible form, the Barcelona fans will be full of belief that the Champions League trophy will return to Nou Camp this time around.
