As the prospect of a place in the Champions League semi-finals loomed, Barcelona welcomed PSG at the Montjuic Stadium, with excitement pulsating through the stands.
The first half undeniably met expectations, as Barça and PSG scored a goal each. Lamine Yamal and Raphinha combined superbly to open the scoring, but the hosts lost momentum after Ronald Araujo clumsily picked up a red card in the 30th minute.
Taking advantage of Barcelona’s reduced personnel, PSG responded strongly with Ousmane Dembele’s strike in the 40th minute.
In the second half, the ghosts of Barcelona’s past came back to haunt them as Barcelona lost their lead and conceded goals in quick succession, halting their dreams of lifting the Champions League trophy.
Ter Stegen: 4/10
Pulled off some good stops in the dying embers of the game, yet shockingly conceded four goals.
He could do little about Ousmane Dembele finding the roof of the net with a great strike. Even so, the German was partially at fault for allowing Vitnha to score from such a distance.
Mbappe’s penalty was well-struck, but Ter Stegen once again could not deliver on a Champions League night.
Jules Kounde: 8/10
The Frenchman continued his excellent run of form as he maturely positioned himself well and came out on top in most 1v1 duels against Bradley Barcola. Kounde’s distribution helped the Catalans overcome PSG’s first wave of pressure, too.
He defended his flank impressively but was let down by his supporting cast in defense.
Ronald Araujo: 3/10
Started the game off strong with good blocks and interceptions. Araujo even instigated the play for Barcelona’s opener with a well-timed ball to Yamal.
However, the Uruguayan put Barcelona in a real pickle with a reckless tackle on Bradley Barcola, which saw him receive a red card around the half-hour mark of the game.
Pau Cubarsi: 6/10
Cubarsi had some unusual errors in possession, but he won a majority of his ground duels and distributed the ball to Barcelona’s wide channels constantly to relieve pressure. Made some great last-ditch tackles as well.
But as Barcelona began forcing themselves in attack more, cracks in defense grew and Cubarsi suffered concealing them.
Joao Cancelo: 3/10
The Portuguese held his own well defending against Ousmane Dembele during the opening stages of the game. But in the 40th minute, he left Dembele vacant on the far post and paid the price as the Frenchman embraced the roof of the net.
Eventually, Cancelo also ended up gifting PSG a penalty, which Mbappe effortlessly converted.
Frenkie de Jong: 5/10
Tasked with winning the ball back as the defensive midfielder, Frenkie had some good moments but lacked the concentration to track his markers, which led to PSG launching some dangerous shots and Vitinha scoring a scorcher in the second half.
Pedri Gonzalez: 6.5/10
Stationed deeper in a double pivot, his defensive work and line-breaking passes in transition were crucial for Barcelona in the first half.
Still, after Araujo’s red card, Pedri’s presence dwindled considerably as Barcelona were largely huddled in a low block. He came off for Ferran Torres around the hour mark.
Ilkay Gundogan: 7/10
Gundogan was unable to impose any influence on Barcelona’s possession as he was mainly used as an option in transition or when the Blaugranes tried to go long.
Still, he was not his usual self on the ball and infrequently won the ball back.
Lamine Yamal: 7.5/10
Yamal suddenly breathed life into Barcelona with a marauding run on the right flank to assist Raphinha’s opener.
However, his promising night was abruptly halted when he was substituted for Inigo Martinez following Araujo’s sending-off.
Robert Lewandowski: 5/10
The Polish talisman failed to replicate his stellar performance from the first leg. Lewandowski looked uneasy against PSG’s pressure and could not find the net despite having a few solid scoring opportunities.
Had a golden opportunity in the second half to find the winner if only he passed to Ferran Torres on his right, but he took the shot on himself which was blocked.
Raphinha: 7.5/10
Raphinha extended his scoring streak against PSG immediately, as the Brazilian popped up in a great position to score the opener from point-blank range.
While he struggled to take on defenders in 1v1 scenarios, Raphinha constantly attempted to eliminate PSG’s last line of defense with his runs off the ball.
Inigo Martinez: 6/10
Filling in for Ronald Araujo, Inigo Martinez was unable to offer assurance in the back-line and was poorly positioned on a number of occasions.
Ferran Torres: 6/10
The Spaniard offered some threat when Barcelona opted to go long and attack in transition but had minimal influence in the front line.
