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Liverpool succumbed to a damning 3-0 loss at the Camp Nou as hosts Barcelona made sure they secured a crucial advantage from the opening leg of their Champions League semi-final fixture.
Argentine maestro Lionel Messi doubled Luis Suarez's first-half goal before scoring one of his most spectacular free-kicks to take his side's goal tally to three.
Messi's phenomenal brace takes his club goal tally to 600, a number only achieved by one other player: Cristiano Ronaldo.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was full of praise for Messi ahead of the clash saying,
"Messi would be the player at number one. Cristiano Ronaldo is in that for sure but the rest we have to see."
"I coached a few good players but they didn’t finish their careers yet. I didn’t see Pele live but there are a lot of good players. Lionel Messi is for me the best."
The 31-year-old is enjoying a scintillating individual season, now with a staggering 48 goals in all competitions so far. His goalscoring exploits have already helped the Catalan giants to a second La Liga title in as many years and could aid the club in its quest for a domestic treble as well.
Barcelona have a Copa del Rey final against Valencia this month and look set to book their place in the Champions League final with their recent win over Liverpool.
Klopp's men will have a more difficult time to overcome their three-goal deficit in the second leg of the fixture but playing in familiar ground at Anfield could prove to be advantageous for the resilient side. Meanwhile, the Reds will shift their attention to the Premier League, where they are battling Manchester City to win their first domestic title in decades.
Twitter has now exploded with reactions to Barcelona's decisive win:
