BARCELONA WERE DUMPED out of the Europa League on Thursday as Eintracht Frankfurt pulled off a shock 3-2 victory at Camp Nou to progress to the semi-finals.
After the first leg finished 1-1 in Germany last week, Barca were strong favourites to win at home against a side sitting ninth in the Bundesliga.
But Frankfurt, inspired by an incredible travelling support of around 20,000 fans, outplayed the Catalans, Filip Kostic scoring twice, the first an early penalty, either side of a stunning long-range strike by Rafael Santos Borre.
Sergio Busquets pulled one back for Barcelona in the 91st minute and then Memphis Depay scored a penalty in the 11th minute of injury time as the hosts attempted a late comeback.
But it was too little too late as Frankfurt sealed a momentous 4-3 aggregate win.
They will face West Ham in the last four after the Premier League side cruised past Lyon.
“We’ll go there and beat them,” Frankfurt’s sporting director Markus Kroesche had said on Wednesday but few believed it possible, not least because of Barcelona’s brilliant recent run of form under Xavi Hernandez.
They were undefeated since December in all competitions and have surged up to second in La Liga after thrashing Real Madrid 4-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu less than a month ago.
While that run means Barca should no longer need the Europa League to qualify for the Champions League next season, this was a great chance for Xavi to add a trophy to what has been an impressive first few months as coach.
Instead, Frankfurt go through to the last four and the German club will now be eyeing a first European triumph since they won the UEFA Cup in 1980.
Frankfurt exploded out of the blocks and Barca gave them a head start, Eric Garcia pulling down Jesper Lindstroem under a high ball in the box and Kostic driving in the penalty after three minutes played.
Barcelona went close to an equaliser as Ronald Araujo’s volley was palmed away before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang headed Ousmane Dembele’s cross just over.
But Frankfurt kept pouring forward on the counter and in the 36th minute they scored again. Dembele’s pass for Busquets fell short in midfield and Frankfurt broke fast.
Kostic scooped in-field for Borre, who advanced at the retreating Araujo and then unleashed from 40 yards, the ball thundering past Marc-Andre ter Stegen and into the net.
Frenkie de Jong replaced the injured Pedri at half-time and Barca almost grabbed the early goal they needed but Aubameyang inexplicably missed the ball from a yard out at the back post.
At the other end, Lindstroem could have put Frankurt out of sight but his finish was blocked by the right foot of Ter Stegen while Barca wanted a penalty for a handball against Borre but technical problems prevented the referee from reviewing on VAR.
Aubameyang and Garcia both went off and moments later, Frankfurt hit Barca with a third that was as ruthless as it was simple.
A throw-in was headed onto Daichi Kamada, who had time to shift left to Kostic. Sergino Dest was slow to close the space and Kostic punished him, unleashing a shot past Ter Stegen and into the far corner.
Busquets, who had already had a goal ruled out by VAR, finally lashed one in for Barcelona in the first minute of injury time.
Barca needed two more. They should have got one but Araujo’s finish was blocked and Luuk de Jong headed wide.
Then they did, De Jong barged over by Evan N’Dicka and Depay finishing from the spot. There was no time for another attack.
Sorry to hear of the family’s loss, I’m sure the systems he has setup can work well without him when it needs to
Best wishes joe, we’re all thinking about you and your family
@John: we’re not
@Pat Andrews:
If you commented you are thinking about him and his family
(Good Or Bad ??)
@Pat Andrews: d1ckhead
Ive a really mixed feeling on how will we do at the WRC. In one way i feel some of the pressure is off after a poor six nations. After NZ we needed to be brought back down to earth
@Donnacha Bhoicaire: Unpopular opinion but I think this Irish side peaked somewhere between late 2016 and late 2018. Two year cycles are about what you get in rugby these days, New Zealand being an exception. Don’t think they’ll ever drop back to the perennial ‘valiant in defeat’ team they once were, the structures in place are too good and there’s an excellent talent pool there. But it’s incredibly difficult to maintain performance levels the likes of which we’ve seen from them over the last 4-5 years. You’ve also had serious leaders retire and there are some ageing and injury prone legs in the preferred starting line-up these days. Can’t see Ireland getting past the QF’s again at this WC although I’d be happy to be proven incorrect.
@Quoka: spot on
@Quoka: I don’t think that’s unpopular at all, it’s more like consensus. Once again we’ve peaked between cycles and we’re arrived with a gameplan and a group of players a little bit past their best.
Whatever about the quarter finals I hope we’re fully awake to the threat of Scotland and the hosts since everyone seems to be talking about South Africa on presumptions of an easy group.
@Rochelle: it was nice of Joe to share the game plan for the World Cup with you.
Your not an Irish fan because it hurts that joe as an ex Leinster man is our coach. Your a bitter thing who’d rather see Ireland lose so you can blame joe sexton Healy etc
@Quoka: yea no yea, would be shocked to hit a semi.
@Donnacha Bhoicaire: It’ll be the same as it was before, we’ll come through the group really well, the media will lose the run of themselves and say how we should go all the way now that we beat the host nation and the best Scotland side in years, then we’ll lose to SA in the QF.
@Rochelle:
“the threat of Scotland”
What is different is that S A has made a great jump in standard:: When all these teams were selected (the pools set up ) S A were having a nightmare with poor coaches and the SA government sticking their noses in sport ::But they woke up and got a very good coach and the government stepped aside and SA was back up to where they always were :: So Ireland were placed in pools with teams below them at THAT TIME (we were 2 or 3 in the world) but things changed inside S A to bring us to this point ::To get passed into the SF we have to beat either now a very strong SA or NZ ( but first we have to win our pool::) So this year has become a very hard year !!
@Martin Quinn: With SA hitting form at the right time, I actually don’t think it matters whether we come 1st or 2nd in our group now
Okioki i runga i te rangimarie
@Paul: He is not Maori…
@Chris Thorne: How do you know he’s not?
@Eddie Hekenui: Just a guess which is probably right. Either way, it’s ridiculous saying it in Te Reo just because he is from New Zealand.
@Chris Thorne: He could be part Maori, have Maori family or the person who passed away might be Maori or part Maori. And regardless it’s just a nice thing to say and something that is said in New Zealand by many when there is a death. Nothing ridiculous about someone being decent and paying their respects.
@Eddie Hekenui: I’ve been to both pakeha funerals and Maori Tangi, and the only place I heard it was at the Tangi. So no, it is not said by many in New Zealand…
@Chris Thorne: And Maori’s make up what 15-20% of the population plus whatever percentage have Maori heritage or family. That’d be many people in my books. Plus I’ll say again you’ve no idea the heritage of the person who died. They might very well be Maori and regardless it’s just a nice thing to say. You’re just being needlessly obtuse.
@Quoka: I also feel we put too much stock in world rankings and November internationals. The world cup is really the best, arguably only, way to assess comparative strength between NH and SH, as the last world cup clearly shower.
@Alistair Fyffe: *clearly showed….
@Alistair Fyffe: i just hope Ireland has a November international this year .
Condolences to Joe and his family.