A monk by the name of Pedri put an end to the decibels of Ali Sami Yen. The boy from Tegeste appeared dressed as Messi to rescue Barça at a time of trouble in the Europa League. The azulgrana corrected a round that was complicated in the comfortable Camp Nou in the worst case scenario. The second leg was much more demanding than the first leg and therefore the victory increases the self-esteem of a team that walks hopefully to meet Madrid at the Bernabéu. Barça showed in the end that it is more of a team than Galatasaray, nothing that was not known and, however, questioned after the 0-0 at Camp Nou.
1
Iñaki Peña, Victor Nelsson, Marcao, Sacha Boey, van Aanholt (Omer Bayram, min. 84), Berkan Kutlu, Antalyali, Kerem Akturkoglu, Alexandru Cicaldau (Olimpiu Morutan, min. 73), Babel (Dervisoglu, min. 73) and Gomis (Mostafa Mohamed, min. 62)
two
Ter Stegen, Piqué (Clement Lenglet, min. 81), Eric Garcia, Sergiño Dest (Ronald Araújo, min. 55), Alba, Busquets, Pedri, Frenkie De Jong (Gavi, min. 67), Aubameyang (Depay, min. 81), Adama Traoré (Ousmane Dembélé, min. 45) and Ferrán Torres
goals 1-0 min. 27: Mark. 1-1 min. 36: Peter. 1-2 minutes 48: Aubameyang.
Yellow cards Busquets (min. 26), Marcao (min. 28), Eric Garcia (min. 40), van Aanholt (min. 71), Gavi (min. 78), Alba (min. 86) and Omer Bayram (min. 89 )
The pace of the game was so fast and intense from the start that it overwhelmed the midfielders and enabled strikers like Gomis. The striker had a frank shot that Alba blocked after Eric García became an invisible defender even for the frightened Ter Stegen. Galatasaray’s aggressiveness, more direct than at the Camp Nou, intimidated Barça. The azulgrana warmed up and speculated, very aware of Frenkie de Jong’s unchecking since the Dutchman failed to score after being qualified in a one-on-one with Iñaki Peña. The forwards, on the other hand, hardly intervened, reduced by the intimidation of the Turkish team, emboldened by the roar of the stadium.
Barça lacked precision in the pass and harmony in the control of the game to govern a dizzying game that was on the way to being solved in the areas to Galatasaray’s liking. In the absence of a break, the set piece was imposed when Marcao headed in from a corner to score the 1-0. The center-backs of the Turkish team not only reduced the Barça attackers but also made a difference in the vicinity of Ter Stegen. Scared, Barcelona became a spectator of the strong Galatasaray. The Barcelona fans trembled with each pass, they did not stop losing the ball, exposed to the opponent’s vertical football without a compass to face Peña. There was no way to get to the goalkeeper’s goal on loan from Barcelona.
Barça was carried away by the current when Pedri’s calm appeared. The Canarian accompanied the ball received from Ferran with his waist, letting it continue on its way with no more intervention than a couple of feints that eliminated two defenders, who defeated each other on the ground, and then finished off smoothly and accurately at Iñaki Peña’s goal. Pedri’s cadence was as overwhelming as the fall of those who stood in his way and passed by before the 1-1 shot. The photograph that left the tranquility of the player to whom the plays come without thinking buried the dynamism of Domènec Torrent’s group. Pedri’s message was clear-sighted: fineness, cutting and precision were the best antidote to Galatasaray’s nerve.
Pedri also appeared at 1-2. Iñaki Peña stopped the shot from Tenerife after he had already repelled Busquets’ shot until Aubameyang hit. The Gabonese, who already has seven goals, validated De Jong’s header after Dembélé had already appeared. The match, however, did not stop being demanding for the Barcelona fans, not even with the 1-2. Dest broke in a foreshortening and caused Xavi to have to reassemble the defense from Araujo. Galatasaray is not allowed to give up on their pitch and in each game they give themselves over to a unique collective sacrifice waiting for a strategic move or the appearance of soloists like Akturkoglu.
The azulgrana find it difficult to cool down the games, rest with the leather and have long possessions, even after the comeback of games as complicated as the one in Istanbul. Galatasaray, tense and feverish, lived very aware of a mistake by Barça. He didn’t press but waited for one of Xavi’s players to make a mistake. Gavi’s departure for De Jong helped keep the Catalans competitive, interrupted more by the referee than by Galatasaray. Barça played as if they needed a third goal against a rival that did not stop changing players in search of a revulsive in the fired-up Ali Sami Yen.
Galatasaray took a risk in the last quarter, when Barça backed down and their players began to falter until Piqué fell, just as irritated with the Turkish fans as Alba. The passion of the fans, who began to throw objects onto the field, ended up strengthening Barça, braver and better placed since Akturkoglu failed to finish the two occasions in which he turned his back on Araujo. The match ended in the area of the hitherto undefeated Galatasaray to the honor of Barça. As happened in Naples, faith prevailed over desire, silence overcame noise and, with the stadium muted, the azulgrana reached the quarterfinals of the Europa League and arrived in Madrid free.
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