Barcelona qualified for the Champions League 2022–23 and now leads Group C after a convincing 5–1 victory against Viktoria Plzen on Wednesday night at Spotify Camp Nou.
The Blaugrana thoroughly outplayed the Czech champions, played an excellent aggressive game from start to finish, scored some wonderful goals, and earned all three points.
Oh, and for Barcelona, Robert Lewandowski scored his first hat-trick in the Champions League. Very good night.
The first half of Barca’s performance was about as strong and in control as the supporters could have wished for. The Blaugrana controlled the ball completely, forced Plzen into his own half.
Made plenty of openings with rapid passes and superb player movement, preventing the Czechs from having a chance to attack.
The Franck Kessie headed in the game’s opening goal in the 13th minute after Ousmane Dembélé fired a corner into the penalty area, Jules Kunde earned the first header, and the home team also scored early to allay fears of a stranded bus.
After deciding that the Barça defender had struck Mosquera in the penalty area, the referee awarded a penalty and was about to dismiss Andreas Christensen, but the VAR rating caught them off guard.
Mosquera Christensen’s elbow to the face before any more contact was made was obvious as a foul, and the decision was happily overturned.