Messi the GOAT & Reds just lack a goal - Things learned from Barca 3-0 Liverpool

In a thrilling night of football, Barcelona smashed Liverpool 3-0 in the Champions League semi-final.

The win gives the Blaugrana an enormous advantage heading into next week's second-leg at Anfield. What did we learn?

1. Why does Messi already deserve the Ballon d'Or

There's so much greatness surrounding Leo Messi and he showed it so spectacularly against Liverpool that it's honestly impossible to speak about him in anything other than big, emphatic statements that point out how amazing he is.

Against Liverpool, Messi had to spend 93 of 95 minutes playing in a side that had precious little pace. In fact only the two full-backs were capable of moving at more than snail's pace. Yet he repeatedly carved chances out of almost nothing.

When Liverpool were at the height of their second half ascendancy, he slipped such a ridiculous pass in to Sergi Roberto that it was easy for him to slide the ball sideways for a Luis Suárez tap-in. Except Suárez hit the bar. But who was on-hand to walk it in? Leo Messi. 2-0.

Suddenly the game was calm. Liverpool were absolutely shattered and Barcelona began to dominate. They deserved a third, and Leo Messi delivered it in spectacular fashion, launching home a 35-yard free-kick straight into the top corner. Launching is the word because he struck the ball as though he aimed to curl the ball, yet it flew off his foot as though he had thwacked it. Alisson, one of the world's best goalkeepers, was absolutely helpless as he dove across his goal to try and stop it going in.

That was Messi's 600th career club goal in just 683 games. It was his 8th direct free-kick of the season (more than Liverpool and Manchester City combined). It was also his 26th goal against the Premier League “big six” sides. 26! And he's never even played in England! And he could, probably should, have had a hat-trick of assists on the night as well with some amazing passes to create sitters for Arturo Vidal, Luis Suárez and Ousmane Dembélé – only they all missed!

This man is ridiculous. The greatest of all-time, without a doubt.

2. Who is master of left-footed arts

For a while this even looked like it might just have been Salah's night, or at least an occasion where he seemed ready to trade blows with the best. Salah had never played at the Camp Nou before Wednesday night. He was instead an unknown quantity in the flesh, a player yet to be measured against Barcelona's own scurrying little master of the left-footed arts.

It was a mixed night for the Premier League's top scorer. The real difference between Messi and the rest? The moments never seem to pass him by. With Liverpool 3-0 down and eight minutes left on the clock Salah hit a post when he had to score.

Instead he smashed a loose ball against the post with his right foot, holding his head as the rebound skittered away. It felt like a blink at exactly the wrong moment; not to mention a betrayal of what had gone before, because Salah did play well here.

It would of course be wrong to say that in his best moments he lost nothing in the comparison with Messi. Everyone loses something there. This is a player who did for Manchester United last month with a hamstring injury and part of Phil Jones's fingernail lodged in his eyelid. But for a while in the first half this did feel like a duel at one remove, a pair of high-craft flyweights trading combinations.

With 10 minutes gone there was that first passage of point-counterpoint. First Salah hurdled inside Clément Lenglet, erasing his man with a jink, confirmation that there was another player out here with the capacity to make the game bend to his will. From the turnover Messi ran hard at Liverpool's defence, taking the shortest route to goal. Moments later there was a glorious drive back from Salah as he stamped down on the pedal and surged away on a 40-metre dribble, slipping the ball through Arturo Vidal's legs without breaking stride.

It seemed Liverpool might ride that storm. Salah kept coming, always eager to run at his man. But this was always Messi's stage. A tap-in made it 2-0. The free-kick for the third was a thing of astonishing craft, the ball howling hard and flat into the top corner in a thrilling arc.

To their credit Liverpool and Salah came here to play. But as so many have found before, the game just seemed to bend itself around the man with the shuffle and the feint; who is now just a breath away from another final.

3. Missing: everything but the goal

Liverpool came to the Camp Nou and played absolutely superbly. No caveats. Well alright one caveat. Their finishing and choice of final pass was often poor. Sure they pulled a couple of good saves out of Marc-André Ter Stegen and had a shot cleared off the line, followed up by Mohamed Salah missing the side's second sitter of the night (Sadio Mané missed their first).

It must have been frustrating for Jurgen Klopp because by and large the German got his tactics spot-on. He gambled that Barcelona weren't going to have the pace to hurt them in behind so rather than sit back his side pushed up. They pressed hard and exploited the space around the full-backs; in particular they attacked Arturo Vidal and Sergi Roberto knowing that they wouldn't be able to handle them.

Alright his substitutions could have been braver, in particular he should have brought Trent Alexander-Arnold off the bench around the hour mark, but Liverpool were genuinely brilliant at the Camp Nou. Alright they got hosed in the end because they didn't finish well and came up against the best spine in world football (Leo Messi, Sergio Busquets, Gerard Piqué and Marc-André Ter Stegen) but there are so many positives ahead of the second leg for the Reds.

4. Classic Coutinho and classic Suárez

Barcelona's two ex-Liverpool players had contrasting fortunes on a night where they also both put in displays that can be described as “classic them.” Coutinho started brighter, linking well with team-mates and making bright runs in behind. Then predictably he ran out of puff after half an hour and was then sleepwalking, ruining counter-attacks so blatantly that the Camp Nou was openly whistling him, until Ernesto Valverde put him out of his misery by subbing him on the hour.

Luis Suárez, meanwhile, played just as badly as Coutinho in many ways. But unlike the Brazilian, the Uruguayan was constantly running around in the first-half, hustling and harrying the Liverpool defenders as well as, y'know, being kind of a jerk. He ruined countless attacks because his limited athletic ability wouldn't allow him to keep up and in the second half he didn't even have the energy to press well.

But as always, he ended up coming up big for Barça. With just 26 minutes on the clock, Suárez made sizzlingly sharp run in behind Joel Matip and added a sensational guided finish past Alisson. A huge goal that defined the rest of the game, as it gave the Blaugrana a key advantage. That's why he plays, even when he looks useless, because he can do that.

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5. The best left-backs in the world

Coming into this game, there was a genuine competition between two players who don't always get appreciated as often as they should do: the left-backs. Jordi Alba and Andrew Robertson. These are undoubtedly the two best in their position in world football and they put on and absolute clinic at the Camp Nou.

Robertson was all-action. A constant outlet in attack, completing 2/4 crosses from open play and adding another from a free-kick. And in defence he was sensational, Barcelona found him an impassable wall who protected his flank with dogged determination, completing 4/7 tackles. He didn't stop all night long.

On the opposite flank, Jordi Alba was just as ceaseless. He wasn't quite as involved in the duels, but he was always there to knick the ball away from Mohamed Salah (who was quite good) and prevent him from truly getting into space. And in attack? That's where he did the business. His three key passes were the most on the field and it was his gorgeous low cross that bent around the Liverpool defence and created the opening goal for Luis Suárez. That was his 15th assist of the season.

Who is better? Does it matter? Enjoy both men because it's rare you see two left-backs playing at such an absurdly high level whilst also being key parts of their side's attacks.

6. Ter Stegen the impenetrable wall for Barca

The point itself says it all: ter Stegen is Barca's impenetrable wall. Even when his teammates are nervy, make mistakes or invite opposition pressure on his goal, the German is never fazed. It's another reason why they have such confidence in him, as one of the world's best, to pull off important saves when called upon.

On another night, against another keeper, Liverpool would be travelling back to Merseyside with at least two away goals in their favour. Instead they find themselves with none, a mountain to climb and although some of that is down to Messi's brilliance, it's also testament to ter Stegen's influence between the posts.

Salah's second-half effort was creeping in at the far post, while Milner curled one which was destined for the corner too. He defiantly denied both with acrobatic low stops, as well as the Englishman's close-range strike - he comfortably smothered that between his gloves like it was nothing.

He has kept more clean sheets at the Camp Nou in Champions League knockout games (7) than he has conceded goals (5). That is a ridiculous statistic but the 26-year-old's ability to make shots he faces seem easier than they are, coupled with the commanding presence he has at the back for Barca, is part of the reason for his success. 

This was his 23rd clean sheet of the campaign (all competitions) and with 48 matches under his belt, he continues to excel with more experience earned along the way. Although critics are quick to point out flaws and goalkeeping mistakes, Mats still doesn't get enough credit.