Without controlling their actions against a compact opponent, Barcelona only reacted with some danger in the 28th minute. Defender Eric García, with a lot of space, advanced to the middle and took a risk with his right leg, forcing goalkeeper Stanek to stretch and make a beautiful save.
The move unlocked the Spanish attack, and the equalizer came shortly after with Fermín López. Raphinha received a pass in the middle and, in a perfect way, played Frenkie de Jong, who gave a sweet pass to the midfielder. Result? The number 16 received the ball behind the defense and hit the home team’s goal hard: 1-1.
Fermín López appeared again and turned the score around just before half-time. The 22-year-old received a side pass from Pedri and, without any marker nearby, managed to adjust his body and make a beautiful shot that ended up in the back of Stanek’s net: 2-1.
The 1st half was heading towards a happy ending for Barcelona, but the set piece returned to torment the lives of the visitors. In another corner from the right, Chaloupek made a slight deflection and Lewandowski, in an attempt to clear it for a corner, threw the ball into Joan García’s goal: 2 to 2.
The Spanish started to pressure Slavia in the final stage and ended up winning in the 18th minute. After Frenkie de Jong saw a goal disallowed due to Lewandowski’s offside, Dani Olmo left the bench, replaced Pedri and showed calibrated aim: the attacking midfielder took advantage of the defense’s rebound, cleared the play and hit Stanek’s angle with a shot from the edge of the area: 3-2.
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