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Neymar's brace was enough to send Barcelona into their seventh UEFA Champions League semi-final in eight years. A sublime solo run from the halfway line from Andres Iniesta followed by a delicate through ball resulted in the opener for the Brazilian in the 14th minute. He doubled his tally for the night 20 minutes later, when he headed home from a Dani Alves cross. There was no way back for the French club after the second and were lucky to have not conceded more. The defeat puts immense pressure on the future of Laurent Blanc after yet another quarter-final exit in the Champions League.Here are the major talking points from the game.
#1 Blanc edges closer to exit
As painful as the Champions League exit might be, PSG are still on course for a domestic treble. However, it looks as though Laurent Blanc's time is up. Especially after their third successive quarter-final exit. Given the amount of money that the owners have pumped in, domestic success alone is not enough. And while Blanc has established the club as the top dogs in France, his inability to keep them sufficiently motivated and failure in Europe might just cost him his job. Even if their defeats in Europe have come against European heavyweights in Barcelona and Chelsea, their inadequacies have been brutally exposed and considering the wealth of talent on the pitch, that is unlikely to please the Qatari owners.
#2 Catalans pressurize PSG into submission
One of the problems that the Catalans had earlier in the season was the lack of defensive work done by the forwards. When the attacking trio don't press, the defence is exposed, but on Tuesday's evidence, that seems to be a thing of the past. When Messi, Suarez and Neymar all press high up the pitch, it creates trouble for the opposition. Not only because it leaves them no time on the ball, but also because it cuts down on their options and ensures that they either go back or hoof the ball forward. While the 95 goals between them is phenomenal, it is the defensive work they do, which makes me so dangerous. For that allows Barcelona to win the ball back quickly and puts the opposition under pressure immediately. That is precisely what the trio did against PSG from the first minute to the last.
#3 Neymar is PSG\'s nemesis again
Such is the quality of Barcelona's attacking trio that it is seldom possible for everyone to have an off day. If Lionel Messi doesn't get you, then Luis Suarez well. If the Uruguayan doesn't, there is always Neymar. On Tuesday, it was the Brazilian's turn as he continued his fantastic scoring record against the French Champions. His brace on Tuesday increased his tally to five goals in four games against Blanc's men this season. The visitors must simply be sick at the sight of him, as he once again heaped misery on Blanc with two well taken goals, that increased his tally for the season to 30. It wasn't just the goals, it was his work-rate, willing to contribute defensively and unselfishness to try to set up his teammates whenever possible, that made his performance so noteworthy.
#4 PSG play into Barca\'s hands
Barcelona had conceded more than one goal at home, just once going into the second leg against PSG. So it wasn't going to be an easy task for the Parisians. But Blanc's side made life even more difficult by trying to play their way out of trouble. While the return of Zlatan Ibrahimovic meant they couldn't break at speed, they could have used the Swede's strength and aerial prowess by playing more direct football. Instead, by trying to pass their way out of defence, they merely invited pressure. David Luiz was often caught napping and everyone barring Marco Verratti struggled to keep hold of the ball for any length of time. Although the final score was just 2-0, it certainly could have been much worse. The blame for making the game so easy for the hosts, should certainly fall on Blanc, who was once again exposed tactically in a big European encounter.
#5 Enrique deserves praise
At the start of the calendar year, there were plenty of Catalans who were calling for Luis Enrique's head. His tactics were criticised and his relationship with Messi was going nowhere. Now, he has led Barca into a Champions League semi-final, the final of the Copa del Rey and two points clear at the top of the league. The Catalans are on course for an unprecedented treble and the manager certainly deserves plenty of praise for making the turnaround possible. Not only has he managed to establish the most potent attacking trio in Europe, but has also got them to defend and given their at times brittle defence, plenty of cover and confidence. A comfortable win over a PSG side who failed to turn up isn't praiseworthy, but successfully managing to win back the support of the fans and the players is and that is precisely what Enrique has done.
