Barcelona *MASTER CLASS* Performance against Sevilla

Barcelona home match against Sevilla in the Copa del Rey was definitely a superb night to remember for Barca fans 🔴⚽🔵. Its nothing compared to the 6-1 comeback against PSG in the Champions League but again it shows the quality and fighting spirit of the Catalan giants.

Sevilla(home) defeated Barcelona(away) 2-0 in the first leg Copa del Rey fixture. Barcelona Coach Ernesto Valverde benched Lionel Messi and several first team players which resulted in their defeat. We all know the rhythm that happens when Messi starts on the field.

Nevertheless at Camp Nou for the return leg,Barcelona produced unending moments of magic leaving Sevilla players watch like babies.
The comeback all started with Barca awarded a penalty after Messi was fouled. People still doubt if the penalty was a right decision by the referee,but the headline was *Messi handing the penalty to struggling Coutinho*. Coutinho converted it and thanked Leo for his kind gesture.

Before the half time whistle, Ivan Rakitic a former Sevilla midfielder doubled Barca’s lead leveling the scoreline on aggregate. A magical touch by the Croatian though he refused to celebrate his goal.

Second half saw goals from Coutinho(header from Suarez cross), Sergio Roberto(assist from Messi),Luis Suarez (excellent cross from Jordi Alba,missing two Sevilla defenders before Suarez fires it in) and finally Messi( probably the best goal of that night: Pass from Vidal to Suarez,One-two between Suarez and Messi,Alba producing a dummy leaving it for Messi to convert).

2nd choice goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen also had a great performance saving a Sevilla penalty but was denied a clean sheet after Arana pulled one back for Sevilla at the 67th minute. His shot had *revenge goal* written all over it😂.
The match ended FCB 6-1 SEV (agg: 6-3). Barcelona move into the semifinals where they’ll face either Real Betis,Valencia or rivals Real Madrid.

My thoughts on that match:
* Barcelona play better with Messi on the pitch.
* Barca has more team play with Dembele on the bench(Dembele is more of a show stealer and should only be used when the starters are playing below expectation)