Another nightmare in Europe

More European misery for Barcelona

Barcelona were dumped out of the Champions League by PSG on Wednesday on another really painful European night for the Catalan giants.

The game had started so well with Lamine Yamal brilliantly teeing up the opener for Raphinha to put Barcelona 4-2 up on aggregate and in great shape to progress.

Raphinha is the THIRD Barcelona player to score 3+ goals in a 2-leg #UCL knock-out, from quarter-finals and above

Messi: 4 goals vs Arsenal, 2010 (quarters)
Neymar: 3 goals vs PSG, 2015 (quarters)
Neymar: 3 goals vs Bayern, 2015 (semis)
RAPHINHA: 3 goals vs PSG, 2024 (quarters) pic.twitter.com/QSgpKs4Kv2
— MisterChip (English) (@MisterChiping) April 16, 2024

PSG were seeing plenty of the ball but Barca were defending well in numbers and had the chance to put the tie out of sight when Robert Lewandowski fired just over the bar after 20 minutes.

Yet Lewandowski missed and Barca went on to collapse in Europe once again, with a little help from a poor referee, to head out of the Champions League at the quarter-final stage.

Ronald Araujo’s red card felt harsh, and certainly handed PSG added impetus, but the sight of Barca then going on to concede three times in just 30 minutes after the sending off was simply painful to watch.

Add in the sight of Xavi being sent off yet again, goalkeeping coach Jose Ramon de la Fuente also being handed his marching orders, and Dembele beaming when he was taken off and it really was a an utterly miserable night for the Catalans.

Araujo’s red card the turning point

There’s no doubt that the turning point in the game was the red card shown to Ronald Araujo on 29 minutes for a clash with Bradley Barcola.

Araujo protested long and hard about the decision, which left Barca furious, after putting a hand on Barcola as he went through on goal.

There wasn’t too much contact, and the PSG forward needed absolutely no invitation to go down whatsoever, but Araujo really gave the referee little choice but to produce a red card.

⚠️ | QUICK STAT

Ronald Araújo has just become the first Barcelona player to receive a red card in a #UCL knockout stage match since Arturo Vidal got sent off against Napoli on 25 February 2020.

Barça now need to hold on with ten men for at least 60 minutes of play!#BarcaPSG pic.twitter.com/ui0OK0maMn
— Sofascore (@SofascoreINT) April 16, 2024

Ilkay Gundogan spoke before the match about the need to make the right decisions in the Champions League, and Araujo would surely have been better off simply letting Barcola go and staying on the pitch.

Yet Araujo wasn’t the only one to blame. Lewandowski will rue his misses and his failure to close down Vitinha for PSG’s second, while Joao Cancelo’s rash challenge on Ousmane Dembele allowed Kylian Mbappe the chance to effectively finish off Barca from the penalty spot.

What now for Barcelona?

Barcelona had been hoping for a big finish to the season but the campaign looks practically over after the hammer blow against PSG.

The defeat, and the way the team collapsed yet again on Europe’s biggest stage, will take some getting over both for the players and the management.

There have been suggestions Barcelona would try to keep hold of Xavi if things went well in Europe and La Liga but you can expect those rumors to go quiet now.

RED CARD!

Xavi has been shown a red card for this reaction... #beINUCL #UCL #BarçaPSG pic.twitter.com/J8ap9TzevT
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) April 16, 2024

Xavi’s decision to take off Lamine Yamal after Ronald Araujo was sent off will be questioned, while his latest red card for another touchdown meltdown doesn’t reflect well on the coach.

Yet Barca and Xavi have no choice but to try and bounce back quickly on the pitch. Up next is a trip to the Santiago Bernabeu to take on Real Madrid in La Liga.

The title race isn’t quite over just yet but the fact is that Barca’s season will be done, with six games left to play, if they return empty-handed from the Spanish capital on Sunday.