All eyes were set on Portugal today as two powerhouses of European football, FC Barcelona and Bayern Munich met in what was called the clash of the titans.
A Champions League Quarter Final fixture between these two footballing giants was the perfect gift for football fans across the globe after a long break away from Europe’s elite club football competition.
However expectations were not met as the match expected to be highly competitive turned out to be a one-sided affair as Bayern Munich put Barcelona to the sword in an 8 – 2 win with both halves ending 4 – 1 in Bayern’s favour.
It took just three minutes and four seconds for Bayern to break the deadlock through a fantastic team move where Robert Lewandowski combined with Thomas Muller to find the net.
Barcelona went level through an awful own goal from David Alaba minutes later before Barcelona spurned a few good chances to go ahead.
After that, however, the Germans dominated the first-half. By the 31st minute, Ivan Perisic, Serge Gnabry and Muller’s second goal had Bayern Munich leading 4-1 and Hansi Flick’s men were beginning to think about a potential semi-final with Manchester City.
Despite Luis Suarez netting after half-time, Joshua Kimmich restored the three-goal advantage following an incredible dribble from teenage full-back Alphonso Davies, which was Bayern’s 152nd goal of the season – a new club record, surpassing Jupp Heynckes’ 151 in their treble-winning season and Pep Guardiola’s 150 in his debut season in charge at the Allianz Arena.