Lionel Messi kept his cool to give Barcelona the lead at the Nou Camp in their Champions League showdown with Manchester City on Wednesday night.
The Argentine international took full advantage of an unfortunate Fernandinho slip in the box, as he kept his composure to round Claudio Bravo and slot home the opening goal of the night.
It's that man Messi who haunts Pep once again with a cool, cool finish. ? #UCL #FCBCity https://t.co/9kJfUJdEI0
— BT Sport Football (@btsportfootball) October 19, 2016
City had threatened early on and the hosts did also lose Jordi Alba in the opening stages due to injury, but it was Luis Enrique’s men who started to settle and become more of an attacking threat as the first half went on.
That eventually saw them put the City backline under pressure, although Pep Guardiola will bemoan the slip which gave Messi a glorious opportunity, and the 29-year-old helped himself to his 87th Champions League goal to give his side an early boost.
Further, it was his 14th goal in his last 15 games against English clubs, as he evidently relishes the chance to play against them.
Guardiola opted to leave Sergio Aguero on the bench with Kevin De Bruyne starting furthest forward, and he’ll now hope that his side can react and get back into the game.