Barcelona-Sevilla

Lore & Background

Barcelona suffered their heaviest loss in 69 years; this was the first time they had conceded more than five goals in a UEFA Champions League game, and their worst concession since the 8–0 defeat to Sevilla in the round of 16 of the 1946 Copa del Generalísimo. Bayern Munich, on the other hand, continued their run of winning all UEFA Champions League matches they played in the season, and would go on to lift the title. The eight goals Bayern scored was the most a side had scored in a European Cup knockout match since Real Madrid defeated FC Swarovski Tirol 9–1 in the last 16 tie in 1990.

In Their Own Story

The rain falls softly on the Camp Nou pitch, but there is no anger in the air between the Bavarians and the Catalans tonight. The crowd roars not out of hatred for the red-and-white shirts approaching the halfway line, but out of pure anticipation for a clash of titans. It is just another night in Europe where legends are made, not history rewritten by old grudges. As the referee blows his whistle, two great clubs meet as equals, bound only by the beautiful game, with no shadow of a past feud to darken the stadium lights.

Reader's Guide

The fixture was played on the 14th of August, 2020 at the Estádio da Luz in Lisbon, Portugal. It was part of a single-elimination tournament, following UEFA's decision to complete the 2019–20 UEFA Champions League and 2019–20 UEFA Europa League seasons, which had been halted since March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, at neutral venues. In the opening 10 minutes, Thomas Müller fired Bayern Munich ahead following a one-two with Robert Lewandowski. Shortly after, David Alaba sliced a cross from Jordi Alba into his own net – with an unsuccessful save attempt from Manuel Neuer – to level the scores. Barcelona themselves missed two opportunities: Luis Suárez was denied by Neuer and Lionel Messi hit the post with a curling cross-shot. The following minutes took the match away from Barcelona, as Ivan Perišić kicked in a deflected shot in the 21st minute for Bayern, fed by a pass from Serge Gnabry, after a passing error from Sergi Roberto. Gnabry then scored with a half volley straight shot from a chip through-ball by Leon Goretzka in the 27th minute, and Müller quickly added the fourth four minutes later from a cross by Joshua Kimmich. In the 57th minute, a neat turn and finish from the centre of the box to the bottom-right corner by Suárez gave the Spanish side a glimmer of hope, but that proved premature, as Kimmich's side-footed finish in the 63rd minute, connecting with a delivery from Alphonso Davies – who had beaten his marker, Nélson Semedo, at the edge of the box – made the scoreline 5–2 to the Germans. Bayern scored three goals in the closing 10 minutes of the match as in-form striker Lewandowski, who had been quiet for most of the second half, headed his 14th goal of the campaign from a close-range cross by Philippe Coutinho in the 82nd minute. Then Coutinho, who was on loan to Bayern from Barcelona, made the scoreline 8–2 in the final moments of the match: first by taking advantage of a pass from Müller in the 85th minute with a right-footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom-left corner, followed by a left-footed shot from very close range to the bottom-left corner from a headed pass by substitute Lucas Hernandez in the 89th minute.

Did You Know?

• Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski became the first player to score in eight or more consecutive UEFA Champions League matches since Cristiano Ronaldo in April 2018 (eleven games).
• Bayern's coach Hansi Flick became only the third manager in Champions League history to win his first six matches in charge, after Fabio Capello in 1992–93 and Luis Fernández in 1994–95.
• The match was compared to the 2014 FIFA World Cup semi-final match between Brazil and Germany as Thomas Müller opened the scoring in the 7–1 routing of Brazil, which Jérôme Boateng and Manuel Neuer also took part in. Fli