Barcelona booked their spot in the quarter-finals of the Champions League courtesy of a 5-1 win over French outfit Lyon in the second leg of their last-16 tie at Camp Nou.
The contest was delicately poised following a goalless draw in the first leg, but Ernesto Valverde's side were far too strong for Lyon in the second leg.
Barca have not won the Champions League since 2015, but will be present in Friday's draw and their performance on Wednesday night would have sent out a strong message to the rest of the competition.
You can relive Sports Mole's minute-by-minute live commentary of the action below.
Good evening and welcome to Sports Mole's live commentary of the second leg of the last-16 Champions League tie between Barcelona and Lyon from Camp Nou. The contest is delicately poised following a goalless draw in the first leg last month, with Lyon making it very difficult for the Spanish champions on the night. Stay tuned for what should be a cracking game!
TEAMS!
BARCA: Ter Stegen; Roberto, Pique, Lenglet, Alba; Rakitic, Busquets, Arthur; Coutinho, L Suarez, Messi
LYON: Lopes; Dubois, Denayer, Marcelo, Mendy; Ndombele, Tousart, Marcal; Fekir; Dembele, Memphis
It is understood that Ousmane Dembele is not fit enough to start for Barcelona, which means that Philippe Coutinho earns a spot alongside Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi in the final third. Ivan Rakitic and Sergi Roberto are back in the team having started on the bench against Rayo Vallecano at the weekend, while Clement Lenglet is back from a domestic ban and replaces Samuel Umtiti.
As for Lyon, captain Nabil Fekir missed the first leg through suspension, but the 25-year-old is available for this game, which is a huge boost for the visitors. Fekir has scored 12 times and registered seven assists in all competitions this season and will line up in the final third of the field. Bertrand Traore is left on the bench though, with Lucas Tousart beefing up the midfield while Moussa Dembele and Memphis Depay feature further forward. Should be a super game here!
Here we go then; the handshakes have been undertaken and the flags have been exchanged. Will it be Barca or Lyon in the quarter-finals of the Champions League? Stay tuned to find out!
KICKOFF: Lyon kick things off in Spain...
... looks like it could be a back three for Lyon, but I shall confirm when the game settles. Barca are in their usual 4-3-3 formation with Coutinho off the left and Messi off the right.
It is indeed 5-3-2 for Lyon, with Marcal starting at centre-back rather than in midfield. As expected, Barca have had all of the early possession as they look to force the issue here.
Coutinho slides to slide a pass into Suarez, but Lopes is on hand to collect.
SAVE! Lopes jumps across his goal to keep out a curling left-footed Messi strike!
Tonight is the eighth meeting between the two teams in all competitions. Barca lead the head-to-head four wins to Lyon's zero, with the remaining three fixtures finishing level. Lyon have visited Barca on three occasions; their last trip ended in a 5-2 defeat back in March 2009, while they have also lost 3-0 and 2-0 on the road to the Spanish giants. Not the best omens then!
SHOT! All Barca at the moment. Lyon once again have to defend their box as Coutinho strikes towards goal, while Rakitic also had an effort blocked from outside the box.
Lyon gave an extremely good account of themselves in the first leg last month. Barca would have been looking for an advantage to bring back to Spain, but the French outfit picked up a solid first-leg result in front of their own supporters. The Ligue 1 side have not really been in this football match thus far, though, with Barca firmly on top with 11 minutes on the clock.
SHOT! Decent strike from Ndombele, but his effort is wide of the Barca goal.
This is actually the first time in seven seasons that Lyon have reached the knockout round of the Champions League. The French outfit are facing their 10th last-16 tie in the competition and despite winning the first three, have lost five of their last six encounters at this stage.
Indeed, Lyon's last victory in the round of 16 came during the 2009-10 campaign, when they overcame Real Madrid 2-1 on aggregate. They were beaten by APOEL in the 2011-12 season, though, and have found it a real struggle to compete at this stage of Europe's leading competition in recent years. Still goalless in this tie, but Barca are firmly on top here.
Super goalkeeping from Lopes to palm clear ahead of Messi, who had been released inside the Lyon box. There is no let up from the home side at the moment as they continue to probe.
Lyon have actually only lost one of their last eight European away fixtures, while it is worth remembering that they reached the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2010 and are certainly capable of holding their own at this level. Indeed, they have some super footballers.
PENALTY! Barcelona have a penalty as Denayer brings Luis Suarez to the deck!
Poor challenge from Denayer, who dived in on Luis Suarez! Messi will take...
GOAL! ... BARCELONA 1-0 LYON (MESSI, PEN)
Following the VAR check, Messi steps forward and finds the back of the net. It is cool from the Argentine, who goes for the Sergio Ramos and chips it down the middle of the goal!
Lyon need to be very, very careful that this match does not get away from them.
It would be fair to say that the treble is very much on for Barca this season. Saturday's 3-1 win over Rayo Vallecano moved them seven points clear at the top of La Liga, while they will face Valencia in the Copa del Rey final at the end of May. Yet another domestic double is in the offing, but the Catalan giants will be absolutely desperate to land the European Cup this season.
CHANCE! Huge chance for Lyon to level as Memphis finds Dembele inside the Barca box, but Lenglet makes an excellent block. An away goal for Lyon would be huge here!
Another excellent piece of goalkeeping from Lopes, who takes one in the face from Coutinho. Lopes has been brilliant; Lyon have really needed their goalkeeper to be alert tonight.
Barca have not won this competition since 2015 and have lost at the quarter-final stage in each of the last three seasons, which is simply not good enough for a team of their ilk. This is the 15th straight year that the Spanish giants have made the knockout round of the Champions League, though, and they have been victorious in 12 of their previous 14 ties.
Lyon might well need to make a change here as Lopes is still down receiving treatment.
Lopes is back on his feet and should continue following a long period of treatment, which will extend the first half of this match. Lopes really has been bright and alert tonight.
Barca have picked up where they left off as they continue to dominate the ball.
SAVE! Super save from Lopes to deny Luis Suarez and Rakitic fires the rebound over!
Last season, Ernesto Valverde's side beat Chelsea 4-1 at this stage, while their famous 6-5 aggregate win over Paris Saint-Germain occurred at the same stage of the 2016-17 campaign.
GOAL! BARCELONA 2-0 LYON (COUTINHO)
Barca double their advantage in the 31st minute as Luis Suarez breaks into the Lyon box before squaring for Coutinho, who cannot pass up the chance to slide the ball home!
YELLOW CARD! Marcal (Lyon) is booked for an elbow on Messi.
CLOSE! Messi's free kick just misses the crossbar!
LYON SUB! Lyon have to make a change between the sticks as Lopes is replaced by Gorgelin. It just had to happen; no risks should be taken with head injuries.
CLOSE! Just wide from Luis Suarez following more good work from the home side. The Uruguay international looks to pick out the bottom corner, but it just misses the post!
Tonight is the first time that Barca have welcomed Lyon for a European match in more than 10 years. The Spanish outfit ran out 5-2 winners at Camp Nou during the last-16 stage of the 2008-09 competition and have been victorious in each of their three home fixtures with Lyon in UEFA competition. It does very much look like that will become four victories tonight.
SAVE! Super save from Gorgelin to keep out a low strike from Messi!
First in Group B this season, Barca have lost just one of their last 18 Champions League matches and are unbeaten this season. Domestic matters are taking care of themselves at the moment and therefore the Catalan giants can fully concentrate on putting things right in Europe.
Decent bit of pressure from Lyon in the last few minutes, but they are not harming Barca in terms of threatening a goal. There will be a healthy amount of added time at the end of the half.
We are into the first of six minutes of added time; should be more!
Barca continue to dominate the ball as they attempt to score a third before the break.
Again Lyon enjoy a decent spell of possession, but the move ends without Ter Stegen being tested. Dembele has found it difficult to get into the game tonight, and has actually just taken out Alba.
YELLOW CARD! Dembele (Lyon). Confirmation of the card for Dembele for a rash tackle on Alba.
YELLOW CARD! Lyon need to score twice as it stands, but that scenario relies on Barca not scoring again, which is hard to believe when considering what has happened in this first period.
HALF TIME: BARCELONA 2-0 LYON (BARCELONA LEAD 2-0 ON AGGREGATE)
So there we have it. The referee brings the first period to a close with Barca leading 2-0 on the night and indeed in the tie courtesy of goals from Messi and Coutinho. Lyon have had some decent moments in the final third, but the Spanish champions deserve their lead here.
STATISTICS! Barca dominated the first-half possession with 61%, hitting the target with six of their 14 attempts, which is an indication of their domination. Lyon, meanwhile, had four attempts, but none of them found the target. Two yellows to report - Marcal and Dembele.
BENCH WATCH! Lyon have already been forced into a change with their goalkeeper Lopes picking up a head injury which ultimately led him to leave the field. Gorgelin was Lopes's replacement, but the likes of Aouar, Cornet, Tete and Traore are still in reserve for Lyon. As for Barca, a very strong substitutes bench includes the likes of Ousmane Dembele, Malcom and Vidal.
KICKOFF: Barca resume the action here...
... no changes from either side at the break, which is not too much of a surprise. However, I suspect that both managers will have alterations in mind as the second period develops here.
OFF THE LINE! Brilliant defending from Marcelo to clear a Messi chip off the line!
YELLOW CARD! Lenglet (Barcelona) is booked for a foul on Fekir.
Lyon have not really been in this game thus far, but a goal for the visitors would make things very interesting indeed. Denayer has just called for a potential push inside the Barca box, but there was nothing much in it; Alba only put his hands on the central defender.
Bit of pressure from Lyon in the last couple of minutes, but they are still struggling for that final bit of quality where it really matters. Fekir has found it tough to get involved.
Traore would be the obvious change off the Lyon bench, and Genesio might not leave it too much longer. Coutinho has just broken clear once again, but the offside flag was raised.
Not too much of an atmosphere inside the stadium at the moment. Lyon continue to have possession of the ball, but Ter Stegen still has not had a save to make in this match.
Denayer brings Messi to the ground inside the Barca box, but no penalty this time.
CLOSE! Fekir strikes wide of the Barca post from distance.
Ter Stegen has to palm a Mendy cross over the crossbar as Lyon put the pressure on.
GOAL! BARCELONA 2-1 LYON (TOUSART)
Tie on! Lyon are right back in this tie as Tousart finds the bottom corner with a fine strike after Barca failed to clear a corner from the left! Poor defending from the home side!
VAR are just checking for a possible offside in that goal!
VAR are checking for offside, but Marcelo seemed to be level with Alba...
... goal stands! It is a 2-1 football match!
As it stands, one goal for Lyon takes them into the quarter-finals, which would be incredible when considering Barca's dominance. What a huge final 25 minutes of football here.
CLOSE! Fekir's strike from distance just misses the post!
Suddenly Barca are very, very nervous as Lyon continue to pass and probe here.
CHANCE! Mendy finds Memphis inside the Barca box, but he gets his strike all wrong!
CLOSE! Barca have started to play again with Messi and Coutinho getting on the ball. Coutinho has just rounded the Lyon goalkeeper and looked to finish, but he hit the side-netting.
BARCELONA SUB! Dembele replaces Coutinho for the home side.
Barca were so, so comfortable at the interval. They are anything but now, though, with Lyon really turning the screw. Surely we have not seen the last of the goals in this match.
LYON SUB! Traore replaces Memphis in Lyon's second change.
BARCELONA SUB! Vidal replaces Arthur for Barcelona.
Little over 15 minutes of normal time remaining in Catalonia.
Pass, pass, pass from Barcelona. Lyon are struggling to get out at the moment, but there is no question that the visitors will have opportunities on the counter-attack here.
LYON SUB! Cornet replaces Mendy for Lyon.
GOAL! BARCELONA 3-1 LYON (MESSI)
Huge goal! Barca have their third of the match as Messi dances into the Lyon box before squeezing one into the back of the net. Lyon's hearts are broken here.
GOAL! BARCELONA 4-1 LYON (PIQUE)
Game, set and match! Barca have their fourth of the night as Pique turns a Messi cross into the back of the net. Not sure what Pique was doing up there, but it is 4-1!
Lyon had hope for a little while, but Barca are easing into the quarter-finals now.
BARCELONA SUB! Semedo replaces Roberto for the home side.
SAVE! Decent save from Ter Stegen to keep out a strike from Fekir.
GOAL! BARCELONA 5-1 LYON (DEMBELE)
Ousmane Dembele makes it five as the Frenchman sends a low strike through the legs of the Lyon goalkeeper. Good grief, leave them alone Barca; it is done!
Lyon will feel that the result is a little bit unfair, and it does not tell the whole story. Barca have been, by some distance, the best team tonight, though, and deserve to be advancing.
We are into the first of two added minutes at the end of the second period.
FULL TIME: BARCELONA 5-1 LYON (BARCELONA WIN 5-1 ON AGGREGATE)
So there we have it. The referee brings the second period to a close with Barca winning 5-1 on the night and indeed 5-1 on aggregate to ease into the quarter-finals of the Champions League at Lyon's expense. Some second half! Thanks for joining our live coverage once again!
Written by
Matt Law
Matt Law
