We love that you like le18. com. Help us kick out more content with a small donation from independent journalism.
LISBONE–Raphinha scored deep in the moment of the arrest to give Barcelona a dramatic 5-4 win back to Benfica and a position in the last 16 of the Champions League on Tuesday after a hat-trick from Vangelis Pavlidis.
Highlights of Barcelona-Benfica
Greek striker Pavlidis opened the scoring after two minutes with a tap-in before Robert Lewandowski equalized from the spot as VAR awarded Barca a penalty for a Tomas Araujo foul on Alejandro Balde in the 11th minute.
Pavlidis restored Benfica’s advance, taking advantage of a poor execution by goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny, who left the front with an open goal. The 26-year-old scored his third penalty after Szczesny committed Kerem Akturkoglu on the half-hour scoreboard.
A mistake by Benfica’s goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin also proved costly, as he cleared the ball directly over Raphinha’s head and into the net for a purpose as the visitors withdrew one in the 64th minute for the 3-2 mark.
However, Barcelona’s defensive misfortune continued and Benfica extended their lead 4 minutes later thanks to a Ronald Araujo own goal before Lewandowski scored his moment with a clinical penalty in the 78th minute.
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) January 21, 2025
Substitute Eric Garcia then equalized with a dominant header from Pedri’s Fine Cross with 3 minutes to go before Raphinha uncovered the winner six minutes into stoppage time following a quick counter-attack that the home crowd.
(Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios in Mexico City; Editing via Ken Ferris)
© 2025 LE18