Barcelona dishes out one of their worst halves of football after the opening whistle at Estadio da Luz last night.
Benfica went ahead early with the first goal early on the night, but that was the only normal goal for over the next hour.
Barcelona equalised through a penalty before Wojciech Szczesny collided with Alejandro Balde to gift Benfica an open goal. The Polish goalkeeper then gave away a penalty to hand the hosts a 3-1 lead.
Barcelona then pulled one back after the hosts’ goalkeeper erred and forced a goal off Raphinha’s head but Ronald Araujo continued a comedy of errors with an own goal to make it 4-2 in the hosts’ favour.
Lewandowski, however, pulled one back from the penalty spot once more after Yamal won a penalty. Eric Garcia scored a late equalizer and Raphinha closed the game out with a late strike on a counter-attack to gift his side the win.
Barça Universal brings you the player ratings from Benfica 4-5 Barcelona.
Wojciech Szczesny: 5
A horror show from the Polish goalkeeper in what will go down as one of the worst performances from a shot-stopper in Barcelona history. While Szczesny did not make any poor saves, his decision-making and positioning were bizarrely poor.
Came unnecessarily off his line and collided with Balde to gift Benfica their second goal before lunging into an unnecessary challenge to give away a penalty and a third goal minutes later.
Alejandro Balde: 8
The left-back was one of Barcelona’s better players in the first half as he held up well defensively and also made penetrating runs in the final third to stretch the hosts on the left.
Was not to blame much for conceding Benfica’s second goal as he was taken down by Barcelona’s goalkeeper unexpectedly. Won the penalty for Barcelona’s initial equaliser.
Pau Cubarsi: 7.5
Not much wrong Cubarsi did against the Portuguese giants, especially as two of the three goals saw him helpless in defence after Szczesny’s blunders.
Was alert in his positioning and reliable as always with his distribution but was often troubled by Benfica’s quick counters that needed him to make vital split-second decisions.
Ronald Araujo: 7
A solid display from the Uruguayan star despite the goals conceded as he was alert to Benfica’s counters and cut them off on numerous occasions.
Won 100% of his duels in the first half, played a critical role in playing out from the back and was great with his distribution both with short and long passes.
Scored an avoidable own goal to restore Benfica’s two-goal cushion.
Jules Kounde: 5.5
A rather disappointing half from Kounde who looked all over the place and haphazard with his decisions.
Was one of the primary culprits for Benfica’s early goal and let the hosts counter on his flank with ease through the game.
-His distribution was also relatively poor compared to recent games and it is safe to say it was one of his more forgettable outings in recent weeks.
Marc Casado: 5
The usually reliable Casado appeared overwhelmed by Benfica’s physical presence and pressure at Estadio da Luz as he was largely overrun by the Portuguese midfield. Struggled to keep up with them in terms of pace or physicality.
Pedro: 9
The Canary Islander controlled the game when he got the chance, but Barcelona’s game situation did not help him much or provide him any time to establish momentum in Barcelona’s favour.
Came out again in the second half as Barcelona’s best player, looking to control the tempo and break lines with his passes.
Earned a deserved assist for Barcelona’s eventual equalizer with a lovely cross.
Gavi: 6.5
Not Gavi’s best performance by any measure as he struggled to get between Benfica’s lines and create a threat as he has in previous games.
Had one massive chance to score but had his volley saved by Anatoliy Trubin.
Lamin Yamal: 7
The young protege was kept largely under check by Benfica’s Alvaro Carreras who not only managed to keep Yamal quiet but also offer attacking options for his team.
Was man-marked for most parts of the game and did not get any time to settle into the proceedings. Won the second penalty on the night.
Raphinha: 8
A very quiet first half for the Brazilian who was kept silent by the host defence. Not offered much space between the lines, Raphinha did not link up with the buildup as much as he would have liked and was kept out of the box.
Had a chance to pull one back late in the half but dragged it wide. Got his goal after the hour mark when Trubin slammed the ball against his head and it rebounded back into the Benfica goal.
Came up clutch on a late counter-attack to win the game for Barcelona in sensational style.
Robert Lewandowski: 8
Stepped up and calmly converted Barcelona’s penalty but became a target for Benfica’s press given his relatively poor press resistance and first touch. Did not drop deep as in previous games and acted like a pure target man for Barcelona.
Took it upon himself to step up again in the second half from the spot and converted once more to make it 4-3.
Eric Garcia: 6.5
Came on as an impact substitute and score the much-needed equaliser to stop the bleeding and close the game at 4-4.
