BARCELONA, Spain — Just when the Camp Nou crowd was getting nervous, Lionel Messi turned a close game into a complete rout. Messi scored two goals before setting up two more for teammates as Barcelona beat Lyon 5-1 on Wednesday to reach the Champions League quarterfinals for a 12th straight season. Lucas Tousart gave the visitors hope with a goal in the 58th minute after Barcelona failed to clear a corner kick. That meant Lyon only needed one more goal to go through, but Messi scored again in the 78th before passing for Gerard Pique and substitute Ousmane Dembele to round off the big win. “When (Messi) is playing at this level you almost can’t stop him,” said Lyon coach Bruno Genesio.

Source: National Post March 13, 2019 22:30 UTC