January 22, (THEWILL) — Barcelona climbed from 15th to ninth in the UEFA Champions League standings after defeating Slavia Prague 4-2 in an open contest.
The result keeps alive their hopes of automatic qualification for the last 16 ahead of next week’s final league-stage match against Copenhagen at home.
Fermin Lopez scored twice within eight minutes to overturn Vasil Kusej’s early bundled finish for the hosts.
Lopez converted from close range after Frenkie de Jong’s pass before doubling his tally with a long-range strike when the Slavia defence allowed him space outside the area.
Robert Lewandowski deflected Stepan Chaloupek’s corner flick into his own net for his first UCL own goal, levelling the match before half-time.
De Jong had a goal ruled out for offside against Lewandowski early in the second period.
Dani Olmo restored Barcelona’s advantage less than three minutes after replacing the injured Pedri, curling a fine effort into the top-right corner.
Lewandowski then made amends for his earlier misfortune by tapping in from close range after Marcus Rashford’s cross in the 70th minute.
Hansi Flick’s side now needs a positive result against Copenhagen to guarantee a top-eight finish and avoid the play-off round.
The victory ended a difficult evening on a winning note despite defensive lapses that allowed the Czech side two goals.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
