Barcelona 3-1 Benfica (4-1 agg): Raphinha's double secures hosts' qualification

Barcelona are on their way to the Champions League quarter-finals, as they have now made it 4-1 on aggregate against Benfica in their round of 16 tie.

Match Report

Raphinha scored the only goal of the game in the Portuguese capital, and on 11 minutes, he scored the opener in the second leg. It was wonderful work from Lamine Yamal, who moved away from two Benfica defenders before playing across for the Brazilian forward to volley into the back of the net. However, the visitors would find a response two minutes later courtesy of former Valencia defender Nicolas Otamendi.

Barcelona managed to get themselves back in front at the Estadi Olimpic, and also 3-1 ahead on aggregate, with the goal coming after an sensational strike from Lamine Yamal. After the picking the ball up on the right touchline after a deep corner, the 17-year-old sensation cut inside before curling the ball into the far corner, leaving Benfica goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin with no chance.

It went to 3-1 on the night just before half time as the Catalans found the back of the net again courtesy of Raphinha scoring his second of the game – it was initially ruled out for offside, but a VAR check confirmed that the Brazilian winger was behind the last Benfica defender. It was excellent play from Alejandro Balde to set up the goal, as he drove forward from the edge of his own box before laying the ball on to his teammate.

The second half played like one where there was little to play for, and in the end, there were no more goals at the Estadi Olimpic. It means that Barcelona have made it safely through to the quarter-final stage of the Champions League, where they will play either Lille or Borussia Dortmund, who conclude their last 16 tie on Wednesday.

Match Events

0' The match is about to start!

0' Highlight from Barcelona vs Benfica

6' Pedri passes, but Yamal's shot is collected by Trubin

11' Raphinha opens the scoring from Yamal's assist! Barcelona 1-0 Benfica

13' Otamendi quickly equalizes for the visitors! Barcelona 1-1 Benfica

20' Balde accelerates and crosses, but Olmo's shot goes wide

23' Yamal takes a long-range shot, but it just goes wide of the goal

27' GOAL! Yamal cuts inside and curls a stunning shot! Barcelona 2-1 Benfica

37' Yamal is fouled after a dribble, but the referee doesn't make a call

38' Pavlidis takes a shot that hits the post, and the referee signals offside

41' Lewandowski's shot inside the box is saved by Trubin

42' GOAL! Balde surges forward and sets up Raphinha to score! Barcelona 3-1 Benfica

49' Aktürkoğlu scores but Pavlidis was offside, so the goal is disallowed.

65' De Jong slides in to shoot, but misses the target

69' Gavi and Ferran Torres sub in, while Lewandowski and Olmo sub out

80' Renato Sanches pushes forward and takes a shot, but it flies over the bar

82' Yamal and De Jong sub out, while Casado and Fermín sub in

86' Highlight from Barcelona vs Benfica

87' Highlight from Barcelona vs Benfica

Line-ups

Barcelona XI: Szczesny, Lewandowski, I. Martinez, Olmo, De Jong, Raphinha, Kounde, Araujo, Pedri, Balde, Yamal

Subs: Pena, Ferran Torres, Eric Garcia, Fati, Casado, Pau Víctor, Pablo Torre, Gavi, Fermín López, Gerard Martín, Héctor Fort, Diego Kochen

Benfica XI: Otamendi, Fredrik Aursnes, Vangelis Pavlidis, Florentino, Kerem Aktürkoğlu, Orkun Kökçü, Anatoliy Trubin, Samuel Dahl, Tomás Araújo, Andreas Schjelderup, António Silva

Subs: Belotti, R.Sanches, Arthur Cabral, Leandro Barreiro, Adrian Bajrami, Zeki Amdouni, Samuel Soares, Nuno Félix, Gianluca Prestianni, João Rego, Gonçalo Oliveira, Leandro Santos