Barcelona on Tuesday beat Benfica 3-1 to progress to the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals thanks to a breathaking performance from the talismanic duo of Raphinha and Lamine Yamal.
Raphinha bagged a brace and an assist, while Yamal scored one and assisted another to lift Barcelona to a well-deserved 4-1 aggregate win over Benfica.
Barça in the quarter-finals ✅#UCL pic.twitter.com/wzDOm9YjJG
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) March 11, 2025
The Catalan giants opened the scoring in the 11th minute through Raphinha. The Brazilian volleyed home his 10th goal in the competition, benefitting from a pass from Yamal after the 17-year-old had cut through the Benfica defence.
The visitors, meanwhile, responded immediately, drawing level from a powerful Nicolas Otamendi header in the 13th minute off a corner from Andreas Schjelderup.
Barca got their noses in front 14 minutes later through Yamal, who found the top-left corner with a wonderful curling effort for his third goal in the competition this season. The Spain international, who was assisted by Raphinha, became the youngest player in Champions League history to score and assist a goal in the same match.
The hosts got their third in the 42nd minute through the left foot of Raphinha. The Barca No. 11 took his season tally in the competition to 11 goals, having found the bottom corner with a powerful strike.
With most of the job done in the first half, Barcelona maintained control in the second and held on for the win, joining Real Madrid and Bayern Munich to reach at least 20 quarter-finals in the history of the Champions League.
Hansi Flick’s men have scored 32 goals in the competition this season, their most since the 2011-12 campaign, and they will face either Borussia Dortmund or Lille in the next round.
