Barcelona vs Manchester City: Nine great Champions League clashes involving English teams at Nou Camp
MANCHESTER CITY travel to the Nou Camp hoping to deliver another classic.
English sides rarely fail to deliver.
Of the nine Premier League sides to have qualified for the Champions League knock-out stages, seven have faced Barcelona.
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Many — like City in the past — fell before the brilliance of Lionel Messi.
But some did prosper. Here are nine classic clashes.
Barcelona 3 Manchester United 3, group stage: Nov 25, 1998
THIS game was notable for many things.
Firstly, the partnership between Andy Cole and Dwight Yorke hit an all-time high with the latter finishing off a sublime move between the pair.
And, secondly, a future superstar in Xavi, was to make his first appearance in front a watching English audience — filling in for the injured Pep Guardiola.
But the star of the show was Rivaldo, who justified his choice as that year’s Ballon d’Or winner with a sublime brace, before hitting the bar in stoppage time.
The result meant Louis van Gaal’s men exited the competition at the first hurdle.
Barcelona 5 Chelsea 1 aet (6-4 on agg), quarter-final second leg: April 18, 2000
THIS was the first instalment of what was to become a titanic series — before either were the force they are today.
Tore Andre-Flo’s away goal looked set to send Gianluca Vialli’s men to the semi-finals — only for Dani Garcia to make it 3-1 and send the game to extra time.
Things soon turned sour for Chelsea as Celestine Babayaro was sent off and Rivaldo’s penalty — his second goal of the night — put the home side in control.
Patrick Kluivert made the game safe with nine minutes remaining.
Barcelona 4 Leeds 0, group stage: Sep 13, 2000
IT WAS the Yorkshire club’s first-ever group stage clash — and it was one to forget.
Rivaldo — was the English slayer before Messi — opened the scoring.
Frank De Boer’s first half strike and two from Kluivert completed the rout.
Remarkably, Leeds finished above Barca and qualified for the next phase at the expense of the Catalans.
Barcelona 3 Newcastle 1, second group stage: Dec 11, 2002
THIS was actual the Toon’s second visit to the Nou Camp in five years.
But they still couldn’t get a result.
Shola Ameobi will never go down as a footballing great — but he can always remember the time he brought Newcastle level for nine minutes at Barcelona.
Garcia had opened the scoring, before Kluivert and Thiago Motta completed it.
Barcelona 2 Chelsea 1, last-16 first leg: Feb 23, 2005
OUT of nowhere, this had become one of the most anticipated clashes in world football.
Roman Abramovich’s investment in Chelsea and the arrival of Ronaldinho had propelled the two clubs into the elite stratosphere.
Barca came out on top at the Nou Camp — but the headlines were Didier Drogba's sent off and referee Andres Frisk being forced to retire following criticism from Jose Mourinho.
Chelsea eventually progressed after a 4-2 victory after Stamford Bridge.
Barcelona 1 Liverpool 2, last-16 first leg: Feb 21, 2007
BARCELONA were European champions and heavy favourites for this game.
Liverpool were not helped by an reported pre-match bust-up between Craig Bellamy and John Arne Riise — which allegedly involved the former hitting the latter with a golf club.
Deco opened the scoring, but there was a spanner in the works when Bellamy equalised just before half-time.
Liverpool’s shock winner came 16 minutes from time through — you guessed it — Riise.
Barcelona 4 Arsenal 1 (6-3 on agg), quarter-final second leg: April 6, 2010
AGAIN, Barcelona were European champions — and this time were the real deal.
Arsenal were given a masterclass at the Emirates in the first leg, but came back to draw 2-2.
Amazingly, Nicklas Bendtner gave the Gunners an 18th-minute lead. But then Messi took over.
The Argentine scored FOUR sublime goals to show the world he was a superstar.
Barcelona 2 Chelsea 2 (2-3 on agg), semi-final second leg: April 24, 2012
ONCE again, the Catalans were defending champions — and this looked the most straightforward of them all.
Chelsea were in disarray and would finish the Premier League season in sixth place.
Drogba’s first-leg winner was cancelled out by Sergio Busquets — and things got even harder when John Terry was dismissed two minutes later.
Andres Iniesta appeared to put the Catalans in control just before half-time, only for Ramires to pull one back and give Chelsea the lead on away goals.
The Blues soaked up waves of pressure — which included a Petr Cech save from a Messi penalty — before Fernando Torres famously sealed progression with the last kick of the game.
Barcelona 2 Manchester City 1 (4-1 on agg), last-16 first leg: March 11, 2014
THE good news was that City made it to the knock out stage for the first time.
The bad news was that they faced Barcelona.
A 2-0 defeat at home put the Catalans in control — before Messi opened the scoring.
Vincent Kompany though he’d clinched a famous draw late on, only for Dani Alves to seal victory on the night.