Manchester City vs Atletico Madrid: UCL Quarter-final, First leg preview, Team News and Dream11 Predictions

Having already seen off one Manchester-based outfit this season, Atletico Madrid travel to the Etihad to face Manchester City in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday night.

Manchester City vs Atletico Madrid is the next first leg match in this year's UEFA Champions League.Guardiola's men welcome La Liga champions Atletico Madrid at the Etihad.

Image-Sportz Point

Manchester City vs Atletico Madrid: Match Preview:

Diego Simeone has already enjoyed one fruitful trip to Manchester in this edition of the Champions League and now heads to the Etihad Stadium for the first leg of a quarter-final tie.

Atletico hit four goals past Alaves on Saturday night to go into the game on a run of seven wins in their last eight, although a defence of their LaLiga title appears to be beyond them.

Last year's losing finalists City, meanwhile, maintained their Premier League advantage with a routine win over Burnley.

Billed as a clash of styles, Pep Guardiola has already hit back at the "stupid debate" over the two clubs' tactics ahead of the game.

Team News:

Manchester City:

Man City boss Pep Guardiola did not sugar-coat his words following Kyle Walker's "stupid" red card in the group stage against RB Leipzig, with the right-back serving the final game of a three-match ban on Tuesday night.


— Manchester City (@ManCity) April 4, 2022

The hosting manager's defensive dilemma is not helped by Ruben Dias's hamstring injury keeping him sidelined a little while longer, although John Stones made the bench at Burnley after withdrawing from England duty as a precaution.

Youngster Cole Palmer (ankle) is the only other injury concern for Guardiola, who named Mahrez and Silva on the bench at Burnley but could now elect to bring the attacking duo back into a rotated XI.

Atletico Madrid:

City are not the only ones working around a three-game suspension, as Atletico attacker Yannick Carrasco joins Walker in serving the final match of a lengthy European suspension this week, but Koke and Angel Correa are back from domestic bans.

The Starman for Atletico Madrid, Joao Felix (Image- Forbes)

The duo's returns leaves MLS-bound Hector Herrera as the visitors' only absentee for the first leg, with Renan Lodi and Rodrigo De Paul both fit enough for 45 minutes apiece at the weekend after returning from international duty in South America.

Luis Suarez came off the bench to bag a 15-minute brace against Alaves and has given Simeone food for thought in the final third, but Joao Felix and Antoine Griezmann could continue their partnership for the time being.

Manchester City vs Atletico Madrid: Head to Head:

This will be the first competitive meeting between Manchester City and Atletico Madrid.

Recent performances in all competitions:

Manchester City:

4-1 win over Manchester United

0-0 draw against Sporting CP

0-0 draw against Crystal Palace

4-1 win over Southampton

2-0 win over Burnley

Atletico Madrid:

3-1 win over Real Betis

2-1 win over Cadiz

1-0 win over Manchester United

1-0 win over Rayo Vallecano

4-1 win over Alaves

Manchester City vs Atletico Madrid: Predicted Line-ups:

Manchester City Predicted XI (4-3-3): Ederson Moraes; Joao Cancelo, Aymeric Laporte, John Stones, Oleksandr Zinchenko; Bernardo Silva, Rodri, Kevin De Bruyne; Riyad Mahrez, Phil Foden, Raheem Sterling

Atletico Madrid Predicted XI (3-5-2): Jan Oblak; Stefan Savic, Jose Gimenez, Reinildo Mandava; Marcos Llorente, Rodrigo De Paul, Geoffrey Kondogbia, Koke, Renan Lodi; Antoine Griezmann, Joao Felix

MCI vs ATM: Dream11 Predictions:

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Man City 2-2 Crystal Palace: Manchester City secure a crucial draw away at Crystal Palace with 10 men

Manchester City showcased their resilience with a hard-fought draw against a determined Crystal Palace side at Selhurst Park with Haaland and Rico Lewis getting on the scoresheet. Sportz Point narrates the key highlights from this match

Muojindu Francis

Dec 7, 2024, 9:00 PM

Man City 2-2 Crystal Palace: Manchester City secure a crucial draw away at Crystal Palace with 10 men - sportzpoint.com

Visiting Selhurst Park was always set to be a challenging task for Pep Guardiola's City. With every team eager to claim maximum points, the home side delivered an impressive performance that pushed the reigning champions to their limits, forcing them to dig deep late in the match to salvage a point.

First Half

Munoz scores goal against City- Sportz Point.comBoth sides began the game to score early however it was Palace that made good use of their first chance when English midfielder Will Hughes threaded a neat through pass which Munoz latched onto and dispatched in the bottom left side of the goal to give the home side an early led.

Read AlsoSaudi Arabia in talks to participate in the CONCACAF Gold Cup 2025

Haaland scores goal against Palace- Sportz Point.com City started to generate a lot of momentum by holding the ball for long periods to force Palace out but they remained resolute in defending and maintaining their shape. In the 30th minute, Mattheus Nunes played a beautiful cross which Haaland headed from the centre of the box to the left-hand corner of the post to make it 1-1. Iikay Gundogan struck the bar before halftime.

Read Also5 Foreign Stars Who Have Scored Most Goals in Premier League History

Second Half

Rico Lewis scores a goal against Palace- Sportz Point.comCity started the second half in control once more, but it was Palace who broke the deadlock through Maxence Lacroix. In the 55th minute, Hughes delivered a precise corner that found Lacroix surging forward, and the centre-back powered a close-range header past Ortega, leaving him with no chance. 

However, City once again rose to the occasion after falling behind—this time through an unexpected source in Lewis. A swift 68th-minute move began with a drop ball in Palace's half. Kevin De Bruyne played it to Bernardo Silva, who delivered a sublime pass to the onrushing Rico Lewis. 

Rico Lewis is shown a red card by referee Rob Jones. - sportzpoint.com
Rico is shown a red card by referee Rob Jones.

The England defender unleashed a spectacular shot into the top left corner, levelling the score in style. However, the England defender was later shown a red card after receiving a second booking for a foul on Trevor Chalobah. This decision will see Lewis miss next weekend's Manchester derby.

Read AlsoErik Ten Hag is reportedly shortlisted to replace Marco Rose as the next RB Leipzig manager

Final Score

Crystal Palace- 2 (Haaland 30', Lewis 68')

Manchester City- 2 (Munoz 4', Lacroix 55')

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FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Draw: Groups, Format, and Schedule

Real Madrid were drawn against Al Hilal, CF Pachuca and FC Salzburg while Lionel Messi's Inter Miami was placed in the same group with FC Porto in the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Draw on Thursday. Here are all the details.

Muojindu Francis

Dec 5, 2024, 9:12 PM

FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Draw: Groups, Format, and Schedule - sportzpoint.com

Set to take place in the United States from June 15 to July 13, 2025, the restructured global club football competition will bring together 32 teams from across the world to vie for the title of world champions.

The draw, held on Thursday, December 5, 2024, in Miami, showcased an impressive lineup of continental and domestic champions from every corner of the globe.

Among the standout contenders are Spain's Real Madrid, the UEFA Champions League winners, Brazil's Botafogo, the CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores champions, and Egypt's Al Ahly, who are consecutive CAF Champions League winners.

New Format

New FIFA Club World Cup Trophy - sportzpoint.com
New FIFA Club World Cup Trophy. Image | FIFA

Traditionally featuring six to eight teams, the FIFA Club World Cup will now adopt a new format, hosting the largest number of participants in its history. Teams earned qualification by winning their respective continental club tournaments, such as the UEFA Champions League, and based on the confederations' four-year rankings.

South America (CONMEBOL) includes six teams, whereas Europe (whose confederation is UEFA) has twelve, making up the largest representation of the 32 teams.

There are four teams from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean (CONCACAF), Africa (AFC), and Asia (AFC).

Lionel Messi's Inter Miami was given a spot, as the domestic champions of the host country, Oceania (OFC) got one spot as well. The top two from each of the 8 groups will advance to the knockout stages after a round-robin group stage.

The final will take place at the iconic MetLife Stadium in New York New Jersey on 13 July.

Read Also | Substitutions that changed the football history

FIFA Club World Cup Groups

Group Teams
Group A
  • Palmeiras
  • Porto
  • Ah-Ahly
  • Inter Miami
Group B
  • Paris St German
  • Atletico Madrid
  • Botafago
  • Seattle Sounders
Group C
  • Bayern Munich
  • Auckland City
  • Boca Juniors
  • Benfica
Group D
  • Flamengo
  • El Tunis
  • Chelsea
  • Club Leon
Group E
  • River Plate
  • Urawa Red Diamonds
  • Monterrey
  • Inter Milan
Group F
  • Fluminese
  • Borussia Dortmund
  • Ulsan HD FC
  • Mamelodi Sundowns
Group G
  • Manchester City
  • Wydad
  • Al Ain
  • Juventus
Group H
  • Real Madrid
  • Al Hilal
  • Pachuca
  • FC Salzburg

When is the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup?

The FIFA Club World Cup 2025 will take place from June 15 to July 13, 2025, in the United States of America.

How many teams will take part in the FIFA Club World Cup 2025?

A total of 32 teams from 6 continents will take part in the FIFA Club World Cup 2025.

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Substitutions that changed the football history

From Gareth Bale to Mario Gotze, there have been many instances of substitutions that changed football history. In this article, Sportzpoint explores those legendary substitutions.

Substitutions that changed the football history

Players who earn a place in the starting eleven crash into the headlines mostly, but those who come off the bench are never insignificant. Depending on the situation and for various other tactical and strategic moves, substitute players can make huge differences when things start getting tough on the pitch. 

Sportzpoint explores the greatest substitutions that changed the football history and remained folkloric.

Mario Gotze

(Germany vs Argentina, FIFA World Cup Final 2014)

Substitutions that changed the football history-sportzpoint.com
(Image Credit | Wikipedia)

Mario Gotze lived the dream of every footballer back in 2014 when he scored the only goal against Argentina in the Final to take Germany to their fourth World Cup glory

Gotze came off the bench replacing the legendary Miroslav Klose, only two minutes before the full-time whistle but the game ended goalless. However, in the 113 minute of AET, Gotze received Schurrle's pass on the left and from a close range to the goal; and his left-footed strike fooled Argentina keeper Romero to end up in the goal. 

Argentina could not bounce back from this late setback and Germany lifted the World Cup 2014. Mario Gotze's substitution remained one of the most impactful in the history of football. 

Gareth Bale

(Real Madrid vs Liverpool, UCL Final 2017-18)

Substitutions that changed the football history-sportzpoint.com

Gareth Bale admitted in an interview with FourFourTwo that he was very frustrated after not getting a start for Real Madrid in the 2017-18 UCL Final against Liverpool. However, Bale's fallout with Real Madrid's then-manager Zinedine Zidane led us to experience one of the greatest substitutions in the Champions League's history.

After a goalless first half, Karim Benzema opened the scoring in the 51st minute; but Sadio Mane only took 4 minutes to equalize for Liverpool. In the 61st minute, Bale replaced Isco but who would have thought that the Welshman was going to rewrite history and all by himself? 

Only 3 minutes after Bale came on, Marcelo's cross found him in the box and Bale produced an acrobatic overhead volley, and the ball ended up in the net. Bale sealed the victory for Madrid in the 83rd minute with a rocketed strike which made Liverpool keeper Karius fumble and the ball went inside. Coming off the bench, Gareth Bale scored this heroic brace to lead Real Madrid to win their third consecutive UCL title.

Eder

(Portugal vs France, EURO 2016 Final)

Substitutions that changed the football history-sportzpoint.com

Eder became an overnight sensation after slotting a late strike to win Portugal the EURO 2016, their first-ever major trophy in history

France and Portugal both wasted opportunities in the full-time but things became very wrong for Portugal way before. In the 25th minute, the talisman Cristiano Ronaldo faced a rough challenge from Dimitri Payet, and he was subbed off injured. However, Eder came off the bench in the 79th minute of the Final but the 90-minute of play ended in a stalemate of a 0-0 scoreline.

But it was Eder, who only played 13 minutes in the tournament, stepped up and broke the deadlock to score the only goal in the final in the 109th minute. France could not produce a comeback as Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo lifted their first-ever major international trophy.

Ilkay Gundogan

(Manchester City vs Aston Villa, 2021-22 Premier League)

Substitutions that changed the football history-sportzpoint.com

It was a neck-to-neck battle between Manchester City and Liverpool in the 2021-22 Premier League title race. Before heading into the last matchday on 22 May 2022, Manchester City was atop the table with 90 points in 37 matches and Liverpool was positioned just behind with 89 points in the same number of games.

Manchester City was set to face Aston Villa in the last match of the season and a win would ensure their fourth consecutive PL title. However, things did not go as planned for Pep Guardiola's men as Matty Cash scored for Villa in the 37th minute, and Philippe Coutinho extended the lead in the 69th minute. Coincidentally, Ilkay Gundogan replaced Bernardo Silva just one minute before Villa's second goal. Man City's title contender Liverpool was playing Wolves at the same time and they were held to a 1-1 draw after 70 minutes.

What happened afterward will always be written in golden words in the Premier League's history. It was Ilkay Gundogan who scored City's first goal in the 76th minute as his powerful header went in. Just two minutes later, Rodri placed a powerful strike to level the scoreline by 2-2 and City was back on top of the table.

It did not take much time for Gundogan to score his second and City's third as he put the ball inside with a close-range tap-in to almost win the league for City! The match eventually ended as City won the game by 3-2 and clinched their fourth consecutive PL title, all thanks to the German's magic after coming off the bench. 

Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer 

(Manchester United vs Bayern Munich, 1998-99 UCL Final)

Substitutions that changed the football history-sportzpoint.com

The world witnessed one of the greatest UCL finals ever on 27 May 1999 when Manchester United and Bayern Munich faced off for the coveted glory. Manchester United won the game by 2-1 in such an otherworldly manner that it still mesmerizes the next generation, and everything happened because of two substitute players, Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

Bayern Munich took an early by scoring in the 6th minute of the match. Manchester United could not break the deadlock and headed into the break trailing 0-1. Teddy Sheringham replaced Jesper Blomqvist in the 67th minute and Solskjaer was brought in by Sir Alex Ferguson to replace Andy Cole in the 81st minute. 

The game was in favour of Bayern even after 90 minutes but Sheringham slotted the ball home in just one minute into the injury time to equalize for the Red Devils. Solskjaer achieved the final glory with a simple tap-in only after two minutes, and thus the two substitutes led United to the Champions League victory.

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The most shocking goal misses in Football history

From legends like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to the new superstars of football, there have been many distressing goal misses that remain iconic and unforgettable. Sportzpoint explores the most shocking goal misses in Football history.

The most shocking goal misses in Football history

Football is a sport full of drama, distress, excitement, and unforgettable moments that are cherished from generation to generation. Goals are the highlighting factor that decides the fate of a team and that is why the near-misses leave the fans in agony and sometimes change the course of football's history.

These fumbles in front of the goal are surprising and unexpected at the same moment. In this article, we delve into the most shocking misses in football history.

Erling Haaland 

(Manchester City vs Liverpool, 2022 FA Community Shield Final)

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com

The Norwegian goal-machine emerged as an absolute cheat-code for Manchester City since his move to Man City in 2022. However, he came to England as and promising youngster but faced criticism from fans after his open goal miss in his very first match for Manchester City in the FA Community Shield Final on 30 July 2022 against Liverpool.

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com

Phil Foden unleashed a left-footed strike in the seventh minute of injury time and it was denied by Liverpool keeper Adrian, but Erling Haaland wasted an open chance to score from the second ball as he hit the crossbar from a close range to the goal. Liverpool won the game by 3-1.

Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting

(PSG vs Strasbourg, Ligue 1 2018-19)

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com
(Image Credit | Squawka Live)

The Cameroonian International featured for teams such as Bayern Munich and Paris-Saint Germain, and he was a part of the PSG squad who were runner-ups in the UCL 2019-20. Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting also scored the winner in injury time against Atalanta in the quarter-final of the same UCL campaign.

However, Choupo-Moting got down in history for a bizarre instance in a 2-2 draw against Strasbourg in Ligue 1 during his first season with the French side. Christopher Nkunku successfully chipped the opponent keeper with a shot that was about to go in, but Choupo-Moting somehow stopped the shot on the line in an attempt to tap it in, but his intervention led the threat to get cleared. 

Neal Maupay

(Brentford vs Cardiff City, EFL Championship 2017-18)

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com
(Image Credit | Wales Online)

Neal Maupay, the French forward who spent most of his career in England, joined Brentford in 2017 and went on to be a headline for his incredible open-goal miss against Cardiff City in the 2017-18 EFL Championship. 

The golden opportunity emerged as Ollie Watkins won the possession in front of the box by beating Sean Morrison in a duel and he fooled the keeper to pass it to Maupay, who only had an open goal in front of him.

However, Maupay took some time to slot it home as defender Sol Bamba ran onto the goal-line to stop the shot. Surprisingly, Maupay did not let Bamba do anything as he fired it inches off the post. Brentford eventually lost the game by 0-2.

Cristiano Ronaldo

(Manchester United vs Sheffield United, Premier League 2006-07)

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com
(Image Credit | Sheffield Star)

Cristiano Ronaldo, arguably the greatest footballer ever, also finds himself on this unfortunate list. The dreaded Portuguese netted the most goals in football history, although his unbelievable miss came in his early days at Old Trafford. Ronaldo wasted this open-scoring chance during a Premier League game against Sheffield United in 2006.

A sublime backheel by Wayne Rooney opened a space in front of the box for the Red Devils as Ryan Giggs intercepted the pass before cutting a grounder through Sheffield's defence. The ball comfortably found Cristiano Ronaldo but his strike flew over the crossbar from a very close distance to the goal.

Lionel Messi 

(Argentina vs Trinidad and Tobago, Friendly, 2014)

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com

Lionel Messi, the other footballer who is arguably considered the greatest footballer of all-time, has also entered this fateful list due to his unbelievable blunder for Argentina against Trinidad and Tobago on 4 June 2014, prior to the 2014 FIFA World Cup. 

Angel Di Maria fired into the opponent box and released a comfortable pass before the ball could cross the goal-line, but Messi failed to respond quickly as the defender cleared the ball from in front of an open goal before even Messi could intercept.

Randal Kolo Muani

(France vs Argentina, 2022 FIFA World Cup Final)

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com

This wasted scoring opportunity changed Argentina's football history as Argentina lifted the 2022 FIFA World Cup by beating France in penalties, following an unnerving 3-3 draw after extra time. 

The 120-minute Final showcased a brilliant display of football ending in a 3-3 draw between France and Argentina, before going down to penalties to decide the world champion. However, France could have snatched the World Cup if Randal Kolo Muani was not denied by Emiliano Martinez in the last minute of the game.

A lobbed pass was intercepted by Kolo Muani in front of Argentina's box as Nicolas Otamendi failed to intercept, but Kolo Muani's first-touch attempt was denied by Argentina keeper Emiliano Martine who stretched his leg to stop the shot. Only 47 seconds were left before the final whistle! This miss will remain iconic for the heroic save by Emi rather than the blunder by Kolo Muani.

Fernando Torres 

(Chelsea vs Manchester United, Premier League 2011-12)

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com
(Image Credit | Footy Accumulators)

Fernando Torres was arguably the top striker in the world in and around 2007 to 2010. Chelsea broke the British transfer record to acquire the Spaniard from Liverpool in January 2011. Somehow, 'El Nino' failed to replicate his Liverpool performance at Stamford Bridge, and his disappointing tenure with the Blues was highlighted by a moment during a match against Manchester United in September 2011.

Torres already scored the only goal for his team but Chelsea was behind 3-1. In the 83rd minute, Ramires played a beautiful through that cut the United defense open in half. Torres intercepted the ball and managed to ease past David de Gea with a skillful feint, having an open goal in front of him.

However, Torres surprisingly shot the ball wide of the post and missed the golden chance which went down as one of the worst misses in the Premier League history.

Yakubu Ayegbeni

(Nigeria vs South Korea, FIFA World Cup 2010)

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com
(Image Credit | Afrosport)

Nigeria faced South Korea in a do-or-die match after two consecutive defeats in the Group stage of FIFA World Cup 2010, and Yakubu Ayegbeni crashed the headlines but not quite for the right reasons.

Midfielder Yusuf Ayila delivered a ball right into the six-yard box where Ayegbeni received the pass, but he missed the absolute sitter from inches close to the goal. The match eventually ended in a 2-2 draw and Nigeria finished at the bottom of the group.

Ilija Sivonjic

(Dinamo Zagreb vs Cibalia Vinkovci, HNK 2006)

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com
(Image Credit | Vecernji)

Croatian footballer Ilija Sivonjic's open miss in 2006 for Dinamo Zagreb against Cibalia is widely considered one of the worst misses in football history. 

In the 33rd minute of the game, one of his Dinamo teammates slotted the ball on target. Although it went past the opposition keeper, it was stopped by Sivonjic who attempted a backheel to tap it in. The ball inexplicably bounced off the goal line and one of the Cibalia defenders sent it out of play. 

Ronny Rosenthal

(Liverpool vs Aston Villa, 1996)

The most shocking goal misses in Football history-sportzpoint.com
(Image credit | Birmingham Live)

Ronny Rosenthal started his Liverpool career very well, scoring 7 goals in his first 8 games. He even scored a hat-trick in his first game against Charlton. However, he couldn't keep up this great form later.

In 1992 during Pool's PL encounter against Aston Villa, Rosenthal wasted a golden opportunity to score. Rosenthal intercepted a long ball from David James and dribbled past the goalkeeper, but misfired his left-footed strike to hit the crossbar. This miss is still remembered as one of the worst misses in Premier League history.

Rosenthal later joked about this famous miss and said:

"Does it bother me? No it doesn't matter now. I'm glad it happened!

"I'm glad I missed because I'm still on the map [because of it]."

via Birmingham Live

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Pau Cubarsi Injury Update: The defender gets 10 stitches after getting injured in the Champions League match against Crvena Zvezda

FC Barcelona defender Paul Cubarsi had to go through a rigorous payment of getting 10 stitches on his face after facing a brutal injury in the Crvena Zvezda vs Barcelona UEFA Champions League 2024/25

Koushik Biswas

Nov 6, 2024, 11:19 PM

Pau Cubarsi Injury Update: The defender gets 10 stitches after getting injured in the Champions League match against Crvena Zvezda

FC Barcelona defender Paul Cubarsi had to go through a rigorous payment of getting 10 stitches on his face after facing a brutal injury in the Crvena Zvezda vs Barcelona UEFA Champions League 2024/25 match.

In the 63rd minute of the game while defending a low ball in Barcelona's box Cubarsi suffered nearly a career threatening injury. It was Crvena captain Spajić who went for the ball with a high boot and Cubarsi also went for the ball with his header. 

Unfortunately, the high boot from Spajić caught the face of Cubarsi and an immidiate medical attention was called by the Barcelona players on the field. The game was stopped for nearly 3-4 minutes as Cubarsi recieved an early attention from the doctors. 

He was soon subbed off as Sergi Dominguez replaced him on the filed. Spajić was shown a yellow card for this offence. 

Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick after the match confirmed that Pau Cubarsi is all fine and recieved 10 stitches on his face after the injury. His teammate Gavi showed respect for the 17 year old defender by calling him a fighter on his Instagram story.

Barcelona thrashed Crvena Zvezda by 2-5 in an away fixture as Robert Lewandowski scored a brace for them. Jules Kounde provided three assists in the match while Raphinha, Inigo Martinez and Fermin Lopez scored a goal apiece in the match. Barcelona now have moved to 6th position in the UEFA Champions League table with 9 points from 4 games.

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