Barcelona - NouCamp Faithful

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Barcelona 5 - 1 Alavés : Lionel Messi, Francisco Trincao each score brace as Barcelona cruise past Alaves

Lionel Messi scored two scorching strikes as Barcelona hammered Alaves 5-1 on Saturday in La Liga to warm up for their upcoming Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain in style.

Portuguese forward Francisco Trincao put Barca in front after a cut-back from 18-year-old debutant midfielder Ilaix Moriba and Messi thought he had doubled the lead later on when knocking in on the rebound but the goal was ruled out for a marginal offside against Antoine Griezmann.

Messi then took matters into his own hands from outside the area and thumped the ball off the far post with such venom that it landed just inside the opposite post.

Alaves' Luis Rioja pounced on a mistake by Ilaix to reduce the deficit in the second half but Barca came roaring back with a second strike from Trincao, another long-range missile from Messi and then a fifth goal crafted by Messi and Griezmann and finished off by left back Junior Firpo.

A seventh consecutive league win took Barca up to second in the standings on 46 points, eight behind leaders Atletico Madrid who beat Granada 2-1 earlier on Saturday and have a game in hand.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Barcelona 1 - 4 Paris Saint-Germain : Mbappe hits hat trick as PSG pummel Barcelona in Champions League last 16

(1st Leg)

Paris Saint-Germain's Kylian Mbappe scored a stunning hat trick as his side overcame the absence of Neymar to thrash Barcelona 4-1 away in their Champions League last-16 first leg on Tuesday to move within full view of the quarterfinals.

Lionel Messi had blasted Barca ahead with a penalty in the first half but Mbappe pulled the French champions level with a classy piece of control and finishing to complete a flowing team move also involving Marco Verratti and Layvin Kurzawa.

Mbappe, who had not scored in the Champions League knockouts for two years before Tuesday, smashed PSG into the lead in the 65th minute while Moise Kean took advantage of some woeful Barca marking to head in a third goal for the visitors in the 70th.

The insatiable Mbappe looked hungry for more though and after being denied his third goal by Barca keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, he completed his treble in the 85th minute by curling the ball past the German into the top corner.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Barcelona 1 - 1 Cádiz : Barcelona's title hopes falter after late penalty earns Cadiz draw

Barcelona's La Liga title hopes faltered after they slipped to a 1-1 draw against Cadiz at Camp Nou on Sunday.

A late Alex Fernandez penalty cancelled out Lionel Messi's first-half opener from the spot.

Ronald Koeman's side now find themselves eight points behind league leaders Atletico Madrid who lost on Saturday.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Barcelona 3 - 0 Elche : Lionel Messi scores twice as Barcelona beat Elche, move to third in La Liga

Lionel Messi scored twice as Barcelona overcame an uninspiring first half to beat Elche 3-0 at home in La Liga on Wednesday and keep leaders Atletico Madrid in their sights.

The Catalans created little in one of their worst first-half displays at the Camp Nou this season but found a breakthrough early in the second when Martin Braithwaite released Messi with a classy backheel and the Argentine did the rest.

Barca, who failed to hold onto a narrow lead in Sunday's 1-1 draw at home to Cadiz, got an all-important second goal in the 69th when Frenkie de Jong received the ball after some clever play from 18-year-old Pedri.

The Dutchman burst through the middle of the pitch and laid the ball off for Messi to dribble into the net for an 18th league goal of the season, extending his lead at the top of the scoring charts.

Left back Jordi Alba struck the third goal from another Braithwaite assist to round off a victory which took Barca back above Sevilla and into third in the standings on 50 points, five behind Atletico but having played a game more.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Sevilla 0 - 2 Barcelona : Messi stars as Barcelona go second in La Liga with Sevilla win

Barcelona avenged their first leg Copa del Rey defeat to Sevilla earlier in the month with a 2-0 win on Saturday in La Liga.

The two sides will meet again on Wednesday for the Cup's second leg -- with Barcelona losing 2-0 on aggregate -- but the points were all the Catalan's side on Saturday thanks to goals from Ousmane Dembele and Lionel Messi.

The win puts Barcelona into second position but a win for Real Madrid on Monday would see them leapfrog Ronald Koeman's side.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Barcelona 3 - 0 Sevilla FC : Barcelona need dramatic late goal, extra time to reach Copa del Rey final

(After Extra Time, Barcelona wins 3-2 on agg)

Barcelona advanced to the Copa del Rey final, 3-2 on aggregate, after a dramatic 3-0 extra-time victory over Sevilla in the second leg of their semifinal on Wednesday.

Having lost the first leg at Sevilla, 2-0, Ronald Koeman's men knew they needed to score two goals without reply to force extra time at the Camp Nou, and instead did one better to win the tie on goals from Ousmane Dembele, Gerard Pique and Martin Braithwaite.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Osasuna 0 - 2 Barcelona : Barcelona move two points behind Atletico Madrid with win at Osasuna

Barcelona continued their rampant run of domestic form to beat Osasuna 2-0 away from home on Saturday and move to within two points of La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid, with Lionel Messi setting up goals scored by Jordi Alba and teenager Ilaix Moriba.

Messi helped Barca take the lead on the half-hour mark when he carved open Osasuna's defence with a superb cross-field ball to Alba, who controlled before blasting into the roof of the net.

He then laid the ball off when 18-year-old midfielder Ilaix Moriba struck in the 83rd minute, producing a confident finish inside the post from outside the area to score his first goal for the club in only his third league appearance.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Paris Saint-Germain 1 - 1 Barcelona : PSG hold off Barcelona to reach Champions League quarterfinals

(2nd Leg, PSG wins 5-2 on aggregate)

Paris Saint-Germain survived an upset-minded Barcelona to reach the Champions League quarterfinals, 5-2 on aggregate, after a 1-1 draw in their second leg in Paris on Wednesday.

Barcelona, looking to repeat their famous remontada against PSG in March of 2017, dominated play in the first half but it was the hosts who struck first through Kylian Mbappe after he was awarded a penalty for going down under minimal contact near the half-hour mark. The France international then calmly converted from eight yards.

Lionel Messi struck back with a spectacular goal seven minutes later when he picked up a pass near midfield, took a couple touches and unleashed a thunderous strike past a helpless Keylor Navas from 30 yards out.

Barcelona continued to give PSG fits in the second half, attacking in waves and constantly pulling defenders out of position. But they could not find the touches needed to convert their many chances into goals and suffered their first round-of-16 exit since the 2006-07 campaign.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Barcelona 4 - 1 Huesca : Lionel Messi and Barcelona beat Huesca to cut into Atleti's La Liga lead

Barcelona moved back to within four points of La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid in a record-setting night for Lionel Messi as his team beat Huesca at the Camp Nou on Monday.

Messi was part of Ronald Koeman's starting XI, putting him level on career appearances in all competitions for the club with Barcelona legend Xavi at 767, and he also notched his 20th La Liga goal in his 13th straight season to become the first player in Europe's top five leagues to accomplish the feat.

It didn't take long for Messi to mark the occasion with a goal, the Argentine working some of his patented magic in the 13th minute when he cut onto his left foot and curled a stellar shot into the upper left corner to give Barca the lead.

Antoine Griezmann doubled Barca's lead before 10 minutes before half-time with a near copycat goal of Messi's, picking up the ball from 30 yards out, cutting to his left and firing a shot into the same top corner as his teammate.

Rafa Mir cut Barca's advantage in half just before the break with an unstoppable strike from the penalty spot after Marc-Andre ter Stegen was whistled for a harsh foul in the area.

Messi popped back up early in the second half to help restore Barca's two-goal lead with a pinpoint cross into the box that Oscar Mingueza headed past Huesca's Alvaro Fernandez to make it 3-1.

Huesca tried in vain to find a way back into the game, but Barca held firm in defence to see out the match and pick up a crucial three points in their quest for a La Liga title that seemed unlikely earlier in the campaign.

And Messi added further gloss to the scoreline just before full-time with another stellar strike from distance that beat an outstretched Fernandez for his 21st in La Liga this season.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Real Sociedad 1 - 6 Barcelona : USMNT's Dest scores twice as Barcelona beat Real Sociedad; Messi breaks Xavi mark

Sergino Dest and Lionel Messi each scored twice while Antoine Griezmann and Ousmane Dembele also netted goals as Barcelona thrashed Real Sociedad 6-1 in La Liga action on Sunday.

Sociedad's Ander Barrenetxea hit arguably the best goal of the game to give his side a rare moment of joy.

The win keeps Barca in the chase for the league title with 62 points, four points behind Atletico Madrid and two ahead of Real Madrid. The game also marked Messi's 768th appearance for the Catalan squad, breaking Xavi's all-time mark.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Barcelona 1 - 0 Real Valladolid : Dembele strikes late as Barcelona cut Atletico's La Liga lead to one point

Ousmane Dembele scored late to hand Barcelona all three points against Real Valladolid at the Camp Nou on Monday to cut Atletico Madrid's La Liga lead to one.

Barca were given the upper hand for the last 10 minutes of the match when Vallodild's Oscar Plano was sent off with a straight red following his foul from behind on Dembele.

With time running out, Dembele pounced on a loose ball at the far post and hit a low volley past Plano to move his side up to 65 points from 29 games, one behind Atleti with nine games left to play in the season.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Real Madrid 2 - 1 Barcelona : Real Madrid beat Barcelona to take La Liga lead over Atletico

Real Madrid beat rivals Barcelona 2-1 at home in an entertaining, rain-soaked Clasico on Saturday to go top of La Liga.

Karim Benzema put the champions in charge at a soggy Alfredo Di Stefano stadium with a delightful backheel in the 14th minute while a deflected Toni Kroos free kick doubled their lead in the 28th.

Barca hit back on the hour mark through Oscar Mingueza and the defender almost found the equaliser later on, while the Catalans had a huge penalty appeal waved away when Martin Braithwaite fell following a challenge by Ferland Mendy.

The hosts survived the nail-biting finish to complete a sensational week after beating Liverpool 3-1 in a Champions League quarterfinal first leg on Tuesday.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Athletic Bilbao 0 - 4 Barcelona : Messi scores twice as Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao to win Copa del Rey

Lionel Messi scored twice as Barcelona thrashed Athletic Bilbao 4-0 in the Copa del Rey final on Saturday to win the trophy for a record-extending 31st time with all the goals coming in the last half an hour.

Antoine Griezmann put a dominant Barca side ahead on the hour when he turned in a cross from Frenkie de Jong, who doubled the Catalans' lead three minutes later.

Messi suffered some rough tackles from Athletic but got his revenge with a spectacular goal in the 68th, tearing his way through the defence down the right wing and combining with De Jong before dancing around another defender to slot home.

Barca's captain struck again four minutes later in his 10th Copa final when he met a low cross from Jordi Alba and fired the ball into the bottom corner, his shot proving too powerful for Athletic keeper Unai Simon.

Griezmann thought he had grabbed Barca's fifth goal in added time but his effort was ruled offside after a VAR review.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Barcelona 5 - 2 Getafe : Barcelona's Messi scores brace in win over Getafe

Lionel Messi scored twice as Barcelona crushed Getafe 5-2 on Thursday to stay in the hunt for the La Liga title.

Messi gave Barca an early lead with the help of a pin-point pass from Sergio Busquets but Getafe pulled level with an own goal by Clement Lenglet.

The visitors then conceded a calamitous own goal when Sofian Chakla's backpass deceived keeper David Soria and trickled over the line.

Messi extended Barca's lead before half-time to move on to 25 La Liga goals this season but the Catalans slowed down in the second half and Turkey forward Enes Unal made for an interesting finish by converting a penalty in the 69th minute following a VAR review for a foul by Ronald Araujo.

The Uruguayan defender made amends by heading in Messi's corner in the 87th minute to extend Barca's lead and Antoine Griezmann slammed in a penalty in added time after being handed the ball by Messi.

The win took Barca back up to third place on 68 points, five behind leaders Atletico Madrid but with a game in hand.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)

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Villarreal 1 - 2 Barcelona : Griezmann double hands Barcelona comeback win

Antoine Griezmann scored twice as Barcelona came from behind to beat Villarreal 2-1 in their La Liga clash at the Estadio de la Ceramica on Sunday.

Barca were behind after 26 minutes after they committed too many men forward and were caught out when Pau Torres' superb pass was latched onto by Samuel Chukwueze. The Nigeria international rounded goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen before finishing off from a tight angle.

Unai Emery's side were ahead for just two minutes as Griezmann found the back of the net after being picked out by Oscar Mingueza.

The ex-Atletico forward got his second to complete the turnaround on 35 minutes as he latched on to an awful backpass by on-loan Tottenham Hotspur defender Juan Foyth and hit a first-time effort past goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo.

Villarreal's task was made much harder on 65 minutes as Manu Trigueros was red carded for an over-the-ball foul on Lionel Messi.

Despite being down to 10 men, Villarreal continued to press but Barca hung on till the end.

(excerpt from ESPN Soccernet)