Barcelona 5-1 Ferencvaros: 5 talking points as Blaugrana run riot at home | UEFA Champions League 2020-21
Barcelona kicked off their Champions League campaign with a comprehensive 5-1 victory over Ferencvaros at Camp Nou.
Captain and talisman Lionel Messi opened the scoring from the spot in the 27th minute while Ansu Fati doubled the lead 15 minutes later to give the Blaugrana a 2-0 half-time lead.
Philippe Coutinho made it three early in the second half before Gerard Pique was shown a red card for a foul on Tokmac Nguen inside the box.
Igor Kharatin made no mistake from the resultant penalty but any hopes of an unlikely comeback were quelled when Pedri stepped off the bench to score his first goal for Barcelona.
Ousmane Dembele added a fifth late in the game to give Barcelona a comfortable victory and put them in the driving seat in Group G of the Champions League.
The Blaugrana came into this game on the back of a shock 1-0 defeat to Getafe last weekend and they started shakily against a side that were making their first Champions League appearance in 25 years.
Ferencvaros did not seem fazed by the prospect of facing off against the Catalan giants and gave as good as they got in the early stages.
However, Messi's goal sucked the life out of them and from then on, Barcelona seized the initiative. This result puts them in good stead ahead of the blockbuster El Clasico this weekend.
Here, we shall have a rundown of five talking points from the fixture.
#5 Phenomenal Fati continues record-breaking run
Ansu Fati became the latest sensation to emerge from the famed La Masia academy, and big things have been expected of him since he made his professional debut last season.
Several records have consequently been set or broken at both club and international level, and the 17-year-old went one further with the second goal for Barcelona.
Having initially been denied by an excellent save from the Ferencvaros goalkeeper, the Spain international was not to be denied a second time as he guided a miskicked volley past Denes Dibusz.
The goal was his second in the competition and made him the first Under-18 player in history to score two goals or more in the Champions League.
Fati was not done for the night as he turned provider seven minutes into the second half with an excellent backheel for Coutinho to put Barcelona 3-0 up.
Another record was also set with Pedri's goal as the former Las Palmas man - just a month older than Fati - ensured that this was the first time that two different Under-18 players scored in the same Champions League match.
#4 Ferencvaros fail to take advantage of bright start against Barcelona
This is inarguably the weakest Barcelona team in the last 15 years, and any aura of invincibility the La Liga giants used to have has since dissipated.
Perhaps sensing that the Blaugrana were there for the taking, the Hungarian champions came all out for victory and did not mind the disparity in quality between the two sides.
The visitors were very much the better side in the opening exchanges and had a goal ruled out for offside while they also struck the post in the early minutes.
Messi's goal swung the pendulum in Barcelona's favour and Ferencvaros were left kicking themselves at their inability to make the most of their early dominance.
Also check out: Complete Champions League Schedule 2020/21