Barcelona couldn’t find a way through Benfica, not while down a man following a first-half red card to Pau Cubarsi.
That’s when Raphinha summoned a moment of magic at just the right time.
The Brazilian stepped in front of a misplaced pass by Benfica’s Antonio Silva, took two dribbles and fired a rocket of a left-footed strike from 20 yards out.
The straight-on attempt took a tiny deflection and tucked into the right corner of the net, sending the Catalan side on its way to a 1-0 first-leg win in the Champions League round of 16. It was Raphinha’s ninth goal in nine Champions League matches played this season.
MORE: Full updates from Barcelona against Benfica
RAPHINHA BALON D’OR
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Things could’ve been a lot different after the 18-year old Cubarsi put in a nasty challenge to earn a straight red card after 22 minutes of play. Barcelona soon subbed off attacker Dani Olmo for Ronald Araujo to retain some defensive solidity.
Benfica earned rapid-fire corner kicks and a dangerous free kick opportunity soon after Barcelona was reduced to 10 men, but they couldn’t get any opportunity past goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny.
The run of play leading up to Raphinha’s goal was mostly controlled by Benfica. Barcelona sat a bit deeper to soak up the pressure, figuring at worst a second leg would give them an opportunity to overcome this one-match disadvantage.
But all it took was one poor pass and a beautiful finish by Raphinha to change the night’s whole narrative.
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