#2 Barcelona 7-1 Bayer Leverkusen (2011/12)
This win happened at the same stage as the last match, and it had Lionel Messi’s name written all over it. The Argentine genius struck five times that night in the Camp Nou as the German visitors watched in helplessness and probably, a bit of awe too.
Who wouldn’t be awed? Messi’s performance saw two sublime chips, two left-footed strikes from the edge of the box and one goal that he lashed in after goalkeeper Bernd Leno spilled. Majestic, unstoppable and clinical.
It was the first time in the Champions League that a player had scored five goals in a match after the preliminary round. And, of course, who can forget young Cristian Tello and his two goals? Substitute Karim Bellarabi managed to get a consolation for Leverkusen in injury time, but overall, there was only one team running the show and only one keeper was busy all night.
We can be sure that Bernd Leno will remember that for the rest of his lifetime.
