adminThe Catalan giants were made to sweat on their place in the Champions League semi-finals, they went behind after 50 minutes and only secured safe passage into the next round on away goals courtesy of Pedro’s 71st-minute strike.
Many will point to the introduction of talisman Lionel Messi midway through the second-half as the key to the club’s much-improved fortunes, but it was Xavi who produced an immaculate midfield masterclass.
The Spaniard, 33, came close to opening the scoring just minutes into the match with a deft free-kick which brushed the side netting — many in the stadium believed he had scored.
He played the full 90 minutes of the match and found a team-mate with each of his passes — a feat matched by others in the last 10 years — but no one has managed it on such a scale.
Xavi’s efforts topped the 100 per cent performance from Javier Zanetti against Tottenham three years ago and Arsenal cult hero Emmanuel Eboue is third on the list.
But while the Spaniard managed nearly 100 completed passes, Zanetti and Eboue made 72 and 54 successful passes respectively in their matches.
It’s understandable a player of Cristiano Ronaldo’s ability should feature on the list, but, remarkably, so does Chelsea defender John Terry for his impeccable performance against Werder Bremen in the 2008 competition.
Substitute Lionel Messi was integral to Barcelona’s Champions League win over Paris-St Germain according to both his team-mates and opponents.
Messi came on after 62 minutes and helped set up Pedro’s goal. — Mailonline/BBC Sport.
Online Reporter