Goals: Barcelona—Suarez 26’ - Messi 37’, 58’, 87’
Recap: Ninety minutes of Champions League football saw Barcelona defeat APOEL 4-0 on Tuesday.
A superb individual effort from Luis Suarez opened the affair in the 26th minute. It was the Uruguayan’s first-ever goal as a member of Barcelona. The day, however, would belong to Lionel Messi. The 27-year-old doubled the advantage 11 minutes later, breaking Raul’s record for the most goals in Champions League history (72).
He would extend his record with a clinical finishes in the second half (74), sealing the 4-0 victory.
Key Moment: Key moments are few and far between in dominant performances, but Messi’s record-breaking strike is worthy of analysis. A fortuitous bounce worked in the Argentine’s favor. Rafinha had every intention of shooting on target, but Messi’s acumen read the situation to perfection. A clever poke lifted him to the summit of European football.
Man of the Match: Three goals and a piece of history for none other than Lionel Messi.
Lesson Learned: The narratives following Tuesday’s result extend beyond one individual. Luis Suarez’s acclimation to life in Barcelona is entering the next phase. The controversial striker, albeit against weakened competition, proved to be more influential than usual in Cyprus. Entering the contest, Suarez averaged 1.5 attempts and 2.3 take-ons in league play. He would finish his 77 minutes of action with six attempts and five take-ons. A confident Suarez is the final piece to Barcelona’s puzzle and one that’s beginning to fit better after every match.
Up Next: Both clubs return to league play, with Barcelona visiting Valencia on Nov. 30 and APOEL hosting Omonia Nicosia.
Note: Credit all statistics to officially licensed data from Opta Sports (via WhoScored).
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