Barcelona 3-0 Juventus: 5 Talking Points, Lionel Messi reigns supreme
Barcelona beat Juventus 3-0 at the Camp Nou in their first Champions League encounter of the season thanks to an awe-inspiring performance from Lionel Messi. The result may not erase their memories of the 2016/17 quarter-final exit yet, but it's definitely a start.
A brace from Messi and a goal from Ivan Rakitic saw the Catalan club move to the top of Group D thanks to a comfortable victory at home. Here are the major talking points from the game.
1) Lionel Messi was unstoppable
Although Cristiano Ronaldo was the first to reach a century of goals in Europe, it's safe to say that Lionel Messi will be next as he slowly reels him in. The Argentine forward was deployed as a false nine and the system worked to bring the best out in him.
However, he did take his time to make an impact. Juventus had a decent 40 minutes in the first half and kept Barcelona at bay. Messi had not yet made a single touch in the Juve box until the stroke of half-time.
In the final minute of the half, Messi drove forward just as Juventus switched off and played a neat one-two with Luis Suarez to enter the box with the ball for the first time. As five defenders closed in, he took his shot early and scored past a stranded Gianluigi Buffon.
11 minutes into the second half, he was on hand to give the Juve defence nightmares again - this time on the flank. Cutting into the box, he drew four defenders before squaring the ball, allowing Ivan Rakitic to score unchallenged.
The third goal was again all Messi as he received the ball on the counter-attack, quickly sidestepped two challenges before firing a shot across a helpless Buffon to find the back of the net.
Seven goals in his last three games. Untouchable. Unstoppable. Unplayable..