Barcelona’s win over Manchester United ends poor Champions League run

Barcelona’s 1-0 win at Old Trafford brought to an end a winless run away from home in the Champions League.

It certainly wasn’t a classic, but Barcelona managed to grind out a 1-0 victory over Manchester United. Neither side impressed as United lacked an attacking edge, while the Catalans were also blunt compared to their usual high standards. However, they came away with the ideal result because they have an away goal lead to defend, and this is better than the last stage when they were only able to draw 0-0 in Lyon even though they played better in that match.

This result could be crucial in boosting the confidence of the team as it is the first time they have won away from home in the knockout stages of the Champions League since 2016 when they managed to beat Arsenal 2-0.

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Home form has never been an issue because they are unbeaten at Camp Nou in Europe since 2013, including eight wins in the last nine matches, but recent seasons have seen a number of collapses away from home such as in Rome last year. They also haven’t got past the quarter-final stage since they won the tournament in 2015, so this result was an important step for the team mentally even if they didn’t play well as a collective. Winning without playing well is a hallmark of champions.

In some regards, this was a classic performance for an Ernesto Valverde team as they were largely in control of the tie and rarely looked like conceding as they restricted United to a few chances. Under Valverde, they have a defensive reliance which previous Barcelona sides have lacked. Gerard Pique marshalled the defence and nullified the Red Devils attack with the latest in a series of impressive performances that are highlighting his status as one of — if not — the best defenders in the world.

Assuming the Catalans are able to get through to the semi-finals, they are likely to face Liverpool who will provide a much sterner test. Therefore, this victory has come at the right time and can provide them with confidence for future games such as at Anfield.