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What's the story?
Manchester United fans were heard chanting Cristiano Ronaldo's name at Barcelona captain Lionel Messi during their Champions League clash against the Catalan giants on Wednesday.
In case you didn't know...
The Red Devils hosted Barcelona in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final fixture last night, in a game that saw the Spanish outfit earn a crucial away-goal advantage following what was ruled as a Luke Shaw own goal.
Considering the fact that United have never beaten the La Liga champions away from home, they have a monumental task ahead of them to get into the semi-final stages of the competition.
Having said that, it is to be kept in mind that United did overcome their two-goal deficit against Paris Saint-Germain in the previous stages, so they cannot be ruled out just yet.
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The heart of the matter
Messi suffered bruises on his face after Chris Smalling's arm hit him when the duo was up in the air for a header. A medical team promptly attended to the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's injury.
While the 31-year-old was being treated, the Manchester United brigade were heard chanting, "Viva Ronaldo", in an effort to tease him.
Speaking of the injury, Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde said (via Marca),
"Messi wasn't so comfortable after the blow. We have to examine him tomorrow to see how he is. He was strong, but he has quite a significant bruise."
Reflecting on the narrow win, he added,
"When you see the atmosphere here and the team they have and it being the Champions League, it's hard to win here. It was a difficult game and complicated at times, but we had the clearest chances."
What's next?
The two footballing giants will meet for the second leg of the fixture on April 16.
