Barcelona went a step closer to retaining their UEFA Champions League crown, by defeating Dynamo Kiev 2-1 in Ukraine. Barcelona found themselves a goal down in just the second minute as Victor Valdes allowed a Artem Milevsky header to squirm through his grasp.
Barcelona were quick to respond, with Messi going through on goal only to see his effort saved by Kiev goalkeeper Oleksandr Shovskovski. The Catalans were not to be denied though, and on 33 minutes Xavi scored an equaliser, turning in Eric Abidal’s cross.
Barcelona were even more dominant in the second half, enjoying 75% of the possession in the match, and after firing several warning shots, they found their winner. Lionel Messi, who had been tearing through the Kiev rearguard all night long, won a free kick on the edge of the penalty area after being brought down on one of several occasions. Messi was able to dust himself down, and curl in the free kick from an area just right of centre into the top right corner of the goal.
However, the night was to turn for the worse for the Argentine as he took one foul too many, and limped out of the action in stoppage time. Barcelona physio’s were needed to take him down the tunnel for more treatment. It isn’t clear at this time what the extent of this injury may be.
