Barcelona twice battled back to draw 3-3 at home against Inter Milan in a rip-roaring first leg of their Champions League semifinal in Olympic Stadium at Montjuïc on Wednesday.
Inter Milan made an explosive start, opening the scoring within the first minute courtesy of a cheeky back-heel goal from Marcus Thuram. The visitors extended their lead in the 21st minute with Denzel Dumfries finding the net with an acrobatic volley from a corner.
However, an electrifying Lamine Yamal led Barcelona’s fightback, unleashing a superb strike from inside the box after a clever run from the right to reduce the deficit three minutes after Inter’s second goal.
Yamal went close again, hitting the post from close range before Ferran Torres leveled the score in the 38th minute with a first-time finish.
Despite Barcelona’s dominance, Inter regained the lead in the 64th minute when Dumfries headed home from a corner. The hosts responded immediately, as Raphinha‘s thunderous strike from outside the box hit the post before ricocheting off the back of Inter keeper Yann Sommer and into the net to restore parity.
The result leaves everything to play for in the return leg at the San Siro next Tuesday, as both teams seek a place in the final in Munich against either Arsenal or Paris Saint-Germain.
“When you play at home like we did, the sensation is that we should have managed to earn a better result,” Raphinha told Movistar Plus. “We can’t concede that many goals, especially at home. Sure, you have to give praise to our opponents who are strong and played well tonight but we are Barça and it’s our duty to win at home, that’s how it is.
“But the result is not that bad and it leaves it all open for the return leg in Milan, so we will try to correct the mistakes so we can go there and grab the win that will take us to the final.”
In a riveting encounter, Inter were clinical with their finishing and withstood Barcelona‘s relentless attack while capitalizing on counterattacks and set pieces. Keeper Yann Sommer was instrumental in securing the draw for Inter with a series of impressive saves.
Barcelona, fresh from their thrilling 3-2 victory over archrivals Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final last Saturday, appeared to be feeling the effects of that grueling, ill-tempered, 120-minute match.
The team, already without striker Robert Lewandowski, suffered a further blow when France fullback Jules Koundé was forced off in the first half with a suspected leg muscle injury.
Inter also had injury concerns, with star striker Lautaro Martínez unable to return for the second half due to a hamstring issue, having already lost Benjamin Pavard to an ankle injury.
Barcelona’s Yamal was seemingly unstoppable and twice hit the frame of the goal, including with a late chip following a brilliant run, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan thought he had scored Inter’s fourth on another quick counter, but the VAR replay showed he was offside by the tip of his boot.
