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Bonkers match in Benfica doesn’t paper over the cracks for Barcelona

It was a night to forget for Barcelona in the first 30 minutes but a night to remember as the clock ticked to the 96th.

What a brilliantly bonkers match in the rain against Benfica. Well, brilliant entertainment, but when the dust settles on another remontada, there are questions to be answered.

Hansi Flick had made the big call to bring in Wojciech Szczesny at the expense of Inaki Pena, and he was soon left to rue that particular decision after the Pole’s ridiculous rush of blood to the head.

In taking out Alejandro Balde and leaving the goal wide open for Vangelis Pavlidis, he provided the game’s most embarrassing moment, and even if he could be considered to be hard done by for the penalty he gave away, he still went flying in again with no real need to do so.