Borussia Dortmund vs Barcelona, ​​Champions League: Final score 2-3, Ferran Torres the hero as Barça escape with a wild away win

Barcelona took a big step towards an automatic place in the round of 16 of this year’s UEFA Champions League thanks to a wild 3-2 away win at Borussia Dortmund at Signal Iduna Park on Wednesday evening. After an uneventful first half, the game was absolutely breathtaking in the closing stages, with Ferran Torres scoring two goals off the bench to give Barça their fifth successive league stage win and move up to second place in the table with two games to play.

FIRST HALF

The story of the first half was that Barça’s possession dominance didn’t translate into real chances Blaugrana Although he came close a few times and forced Gregor Kobel to make a few stops, he never had a real golden chance to score.

Dortmund, meanwhile, chose to concede the ball, defending deep in their own half and with the speed of their wingers and the physical presence of striker Serhou Guirassy, ​​who was a threat throughout the period and would easily have had the goal Barça’s offside trap worked perfectly and denied the home team some great opportunities.

The BlaugranaSuccess with their high-risk defensive style was easily the best part of their first-half performance, while the attack was annoying to watch at times due to numerous sideways and backward passes that failed to threaten Borussia’s defensive line and led to moments of visible disappointment for the likes of Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski, who constantly ran into the background without receiving passes from his teammates that could have led to chances.

The half-time whistle ended a goalless phase in which Barça should have played more efficient football. Although Barça performed well, they did not have the aggressiveness required to create chances and goals. Would they make a change in the second half or would Dortmund make them pay and wow the home crowd even more?

SECOND HALF

The hosts almost made a dream start to the second half when Julien Duranville gave Guirassy the lead just five minutes later, but Barça’s offside trap did the rest and the goal was disallowed.

Three minutes later, the offside trap didn’t work for Dortmund and Barça took advantage when Raphinha was played on goal by Dani Olmo and fired a rocket into the bottom corner to give the visitors the lead and give them the chance to take full control take over the action.

But Pau Cubarsí made a serious mistake when he pushed Guirassy backwards in the penalty area right in front of the referee, making it an easy decision to award the home team a penalty. Guirassy scored from the penalty spot and after an hour the game was tied again.

10 minutes later, Hansi Flick made a triple substitution: Raphinha, Olmo and Lewandowski replaced Fermín López, Frenkie de Jong and Ferran Torres, meaning the coach added a few fresh players in the last 20 minutes of the game.

And the substitutions had an immediate effect: four minutes after they came on, two of the new players were involved in Barça’s second goal when Jules Kounde’s cross found Fermín, whose volley was initially blocked by Kobel, but Ferran was quickest to grab the rebound and put it away the away team back in front.

Barça’s joy was short-lived, however, as Dortmund finally overcame the offside trap with a pass from Yan Couto, which found the path of Pascal Gross, who got to the ball ahead of Iñaki Peña, giving Guirassy the opportunity to easily intervene in his second goal of the evening to create a wild conclusion.

The two teams were wide open in the last ten minutes, couldn’t hold onto the ball and played very direct football, quickly creating chances with balls over the goal. The Yellow Wall went crazy and it was impossible to predict a winner.

Then, with five minutes left, a crucial turning point in the game came: Barça counterattacked from a Dortmund corner, and Lamine Yamal found Ferran, who fired the ball into the far corner to double their tally and put Barça ahead for the third time to bring the night.

Dortmund had very little time to find a way to equalize for the third time and sent everyone forward hoping for a late chance. Barça focused on defending their lead and trying to finish things off on the counterattack, and Flick took advantage of his available substitutions to waste some time at the death.

The home team earned one last chance in the dying seconds when a free kick from Gross from point-blank range hit the head of Nico Schlotterbeck, but the centre-back somehow missed it and the final whistle gave Barça all three points.

Even though the game against Real Betis was crazy, it was somehow topped in the second half. It was as back and forth as it can be and Barça showed great heart and resilience to hit back every time Dortmund challenged them.

What a game and what a win.

Dortmund: Kobel; Ryerson (Couto 46′), Can, Schlotterbeck, Bensebaini; Nmecha, Reyna (Gross 73′); Duranville (Painting 73′), Sabitzer, Gittens; Guirassy

Goals: Guirassy (penalty 60′, 78′)

Barcelona: Pena; Kounde, Cubarsí, Iñigo, Balde; Olmo (De Jong 71′), Casadó, Pedri (Eric 90+3′); Yamal (Víctor 90′), Lewandowski (Ferran 71′), Raphinha (Fermín 71′)

Goals: Raphinha (53′), Ferran (75′, 85′)