UCL: Five Star Barcelona Plant A Firm Foot In the Semis

Barcelona 5-1 Shakhtar Donetsk

(Iniesta 2 Alves 34 Pique 53 Keita 60 Xavi 86; Rakitskiy 59)

To add more glamour to the goal fest that this set of quarter final first legs have become this season, Barcelona stamped their authority on Shakhtar Donetsk and proved to the world that they are the masters of big-goal trouncing yet again. Anyone expecting an upset of the magnitude of what Schalke 04 produced at the San Siro last night was left disappointed big time as Barcelona clinically dismantled their Ukrainian opponents 5-1 in a largely one-sided affair to plant a firm foot in the semi finals of the Champions League.

A Glorious Night for Barcelona At the Camp Nou

It turned out to a glorious night at the Camp Nou for the Catalan faithful as Andres Iniesta, Dani Alves, Gerard Pique, Seydou Keita and Xavi Hernandez got their names on the score sheet and showed no mercy on Shakhtar, to kill off the tie before the second leg, which would involve a tricky trip to Ukraine, and book a potential semi-final berth with arch rivals Real Madrid.

In a manner of proceedings that is so typical of Barcelona, the Catalans opened their account in just two minutes as a Leo Messi pass found midfield maestro Andres Iniesta, who drilled a low shot past the goal keeper. The second came when the scorer of the first goal, Iniesta, turned provider and found Dani Alves with a sumptuous ball while the right-back made a darting run forward to break the off-side trap, round the keeper and slot the ball home comfortably. By the 53^rd minute, it was game over as Gerard Pique took a shot on goal from a shortly taken free-kick from inside the box and drilled it into the net.

As the quarter final began to slip away from the grips of Shakhtar, the Ukrainians found themselves a crucial goal in the 59^th minute when Rakitskiy got a foot to a superb free-kick and guided it into the net of Victor Valdes. If anybody smelled a comeback of Schalke proportions, Barcelona made sure they killed off the tie in the very next minute as Seydou Keita sent a thumping shot flying into the net to cap off a brilliantly worked attacking move. Shakhtar pressed and continued to push for a goal but Xavi Hernandez finished them off once and for all in the 86^th minute after a square pass from Dani Alves found him.

By clinically demolishing Shakhtar Donetsk, Barcelona have planted a firm foot in the semi-finals and an almost certain date with Real Madrid, who themselves decimated Tottenham Hotspur 4-0 at the Bernabeu the previous night, looms large to set up an all Spanish ‘El Clasico’ semi-final. Shakhtar manager Mircea Lucescu, whose team came in for high praise from Pep Guardiola for their brave display conceded defeat despite his counterpart’s attempts to play it down.

“With this result, Barcelona is almost certainly through. I think no team will be capable of beating them this year”

With the tournament reaching its business end, one can’t help but wonder ominously at the efficiency of the current Barcelona squad who have clicked into high gear at the right time. Defensive worries still remain due to the absence of Carles Puyol and Eric Abidal and the Catalans were almost caught napping at the back by Shakhtar after the first goal. But with an attack that can take down teams so ruthlessly, Barcelona will stroll into the semi-finals proudly with a much improved Real Madrid team led by the wounded animal named Jose Mourinho waiting for them. As for Shakhtar, their dream run is over and the second leg should be more of a formality.