The fans of Manchester United have arrived in the hope … and then Leo Messi has come forward | Bleacher's report

The day started well for the group of fans traveling from Manchester United. About 4,600 of them traveled to Barcelona on Tuesday for the club 's first – leg quarter – final match against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League.

They sang and drank in the bars and terraces of the city, including Plaça Reial de La Rambla, before going to Camp Nou, several of them in rickshaw until Diagonal, the avenue by which General Franco took his victorious nationalist troops into the city at the end of the Spanish Civil War.

Outside the stadium, United fans banded into groups – in shorts and light replica shirts, forgetting the icy cold of the evening – singing confidently on the air of the "waterfall" of Stone Roses about their manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: "Ole at the wheel / Tell me, how are you feeling?" Some have traded for last-minute tickets, which cost around € 200, in the event. hope to fall to € 150 or € 170 closer to the coup de send.

The hardcore fans of Barca gathered in front of the apartment blocks along Travessera de les Corts, a winding street under the stadium. Pogoing and spraying cans of beer to the sky, they browsed through their repertoire of the most popular songs, including some anti-Real Madrid numbers. Blue smoke and wine color escaped flares.

Inside Camp Nou, the stadium announcer introduced fans to a version of the Italian disco's successful hit "The Estate Sta Finendo" – universally known to football fans by his singing "Go ! Come on!" – 10 minutes before the start of the match. Behind the southern goal, Barcelona fans have deployed a huge tifo "WALKING TO GLORY" insolent club colors.

On the dashboard along the centerline, a large yellow banner calling "LLIBERTAT" (freedom) – especially the exoneration of political prisoners who are on trial in Madrid – was posted. This banner has become habitual to the Camp Nou Games during the last years of political unrest in Catalonia, part of which is claiming independence.

Attendance at the match was a record for the season – 96,708, more than the 93,265 that saw Barcelona's 5-1 defeat by Real Madrid in the Liga in October, which sealed the fate of the coach. Blancos, Julen Lopetegui. In the VIP grandstand, a host of former star players, including Rivaldo and Patrick Kluivert, were sitting alongside the wife of Johan Cruyff, Danny, and Sir Alex Ferguson.

Barcelona has lined up 10 of the 11 players who started the first leg. Sergi Roberto replaced Nelson Semedo at the right back in the only change. Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard, alongside Marcus Rashford, were trying to fill a 1-0 deficit in the first leg.

Encouraged by some impressive wins this season, especially against Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea and Arsenal, as well as Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain in European competition, Manchester United, who have never beaten Barcelona at Camp Nou, has entered the hope. After all, they returned to the scene of their greatest success: the victory of the 1999 UEFA Champions League final against Bayern Munich, in which Solskjaer scored the winning goal in added time.

United started maliciously, Barcelona nervously. Before a Barca player touched the ball, United opened his defense to allow Rashford to cross the crossbar. The first 10 minutes allowed visitors to return to Barcelona on the ropes. A piece of the ball stopped at the third minute was enough to incite disaffected whistles around the ground, but Leo Messi started. In four minutes, he killed the tie.

Barca fans saw it score the first goal, scored many times in the 16th minute. He cut the right wing and mowed Fred on the way to the goal before firing a low shot in the corner of the nets. In a few seconds, deep and moaning songs of "MESSI! MESSI! MESSI!" rose from the belly of the stadium.

Messi's second goal a few minutes later will haunt David de Gea, the Manchester United goalkeeper, forever. Picking up the ball after a broken match, Messi headed straight for the goal and the last three defenders on United's cover. As they retreated, he surprised De Gea by shooting with his weaker right foot. De Gea fell on the ball, but it was inconceivable to let him squirm under him in the goal.

While his teammates were preparing to resume the match, De Gea stood bowed, his hands covering his kneecaps mental disorders. It was enough for Barca fans to put the knife inside, chanting, "De Gea, are you so bad?" It is an error that "recalls his worst nightmares in the Spanish team", writes Julian Ruiz in El Mundo, alluding to last summer performances in the final of the FIFA World Cup Russia.

Paul Pogba also experienced a torrid night during his first visit to Camp Nou. Fans booed him when he unleashed a long-range lob attempt over Marc-André ter Stegen's bar. In the press, he was castigated for his heavy performance. "He could not hide in Barcelona," wrote Mundo Deportivo in his player summaries.

One of the biggest cheers of the evening came early in the second half when it was learned that Matthijs de Ligt, considered a likely target in Barcelona this summer, scored what turned out to be AjaxThe winning goal of Juventus in the quarterfinal match of the other night.

Sergio Busquets, who has lived another driving night in the Barcelona engine room, said after the match: "I heard a racket coming out of the bleachers and I peeked out. on the bulletin board to find that Ajax had scored. "

The slaughter of Juventus about 900 kilometers to Turin means the end of the plot that is being played in Spain: a possible final between Messi's Barca and Ronaldo's Juve. "Messi, if; Cristiano, no", wrote Santi Nolla in his post-game editorial for Mundo DeportivoThe newspaper's director concluded that Ronaldo had now "said goodbye to the Golden Ball".

The praise for Messi's part in the team's 3-0 win was endless. Diario Sport gave him 10 out of 10 in his player ratings, the closest player scoring a 7. Write in El PaisRamon Besa felt that he was "an angel among the demons". He has scored 10 goals in the UEFA Champions League this season. It aims to become the top scorer of the competition for the sixth time.

The celebration of Philippe Coutinho's goals was one of the main topics of discussion of the game. The 26-year-old Brazilian has had a difficult season since his injury at the start of the campaign against Inter Milan. He struggled to regain his place in the team, suffering from a loss of self-confidence and anger from Barcelona's demanding fans, who expect more than the most signature dear to the history of the club.

Redemption arrived last night at the hour of play, when he broke a curling mark shot from outside the box in the top corner of De Gea's net. After celebrating with his teammates, he stood up and faced his own fans, making "an ugly gesture", according to Diario Sport. He put his fingers in his ears and pronounced these words: "A tomar por culo! (Yours)."

His teammate Clement Lenglet then defended him in the mixed zone, claiming that he did not care about the Coutinho celebration. All that mattered was that he had scored. "He has balls," said the French insistently.

A happier moment came closer to the final whistle, when Solskjaer replaced Alexis Sanchez. Sanchez was back in the club where he had spent three seasons, including the historic season of Tito Vilanova with 100 points winning in 2012-2013. Camp Nou has given a warm welcome to the Chileans.

Barcelona put a ghost at rest. After three consecutive quarter-final defeats, Messi, in his first season as captain, brought the club back to the semifinals for the 16th time in his history. Liverpool or Porto are waiting for you. Barca also extended undefeated UEFA Champions League home record 31 games. We must go back to 2013, the last defeat at Camp Nou, a defeat in the semifinal against Bayern Munich. Notably, Messi missed the match due to an injury.

"This year, yes," wrote Diario Sport for his title on the cover page on an image of a bounding Messi hitting the air with joy after scoring his first goal. This sentence is a play of the title of a song ("Aquest any, si!") Published by Michael Laudrup and several members of the Barcelona Dream Team in 1991.

With another inevitable championship title and a national cup final already aligned, it's starting to feel that way. Certainly, if Messi continues to decide that way.

Follow Richard on Twitter: @Richard_Fitz