Barcelona captain Lionel Messi was left at Anfield after the Spanish champions were comprehensively beaten by Liverpool in Europe.
Ernesto Valverde’s men were left embarrassed after allowing a 3-0 first-leg lead to slip away on English soil, as the Reds secured a sensational 4-0 victory in front of their own fans.
Divock Origi and Georginio Wijnaldum both grabbed a brace to complete the unlikely turnaround, which will surely go down as one of the greatest Champions League comebacks of all-time.
The Barca players were visibly devasted at the final whistle, not least Messi, who had openly targeted the competition as must-win for the Blaugrana this time around, following three years of heartbreak.
WHAT A SPECIAL NIGHT!!! WE’RE GOING TO THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL!! https://t.co/p9JxS3cfZS
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) May 7, 2019
To further compound Messi’s misery, he was called in for a doping test after leaving the pitch and according to El Chiringuito via Metro Sport, Barcelona’s team bus ended up leaving for the airport without him.
Collecting the Argentine’s sample took longer than expected and he reunited with his teammates at a later hour after special travel arrangements were made.
Messi refused to speak to the media while walking through the mixed zone, emerging much later than his colleagues to be escorted out of Anfield and Wednesday’s loss will likely live long in his memory.
La cara de Leo Messi al pasar por la zona mixta de Anfield. @ellarguero pic.twitter.com/NVrz8DG8Zm
— Adrià Albets (@AdriaAlbets) May 7, 2019
Liverpool were nothing short of outstanding on the night, restricting Barca to very little going forward while looking dangerous whenever they attacked themselves.
Jurgen Klopp’s men also monopolised the ball and despite Messi’s best efforts, the away side were unable to carve out any clear cut opportunities and were ultimately second best in the tie.
The Reds move onto the final at Wanda Metropolitano on June 1, with Tottenham or Ajax set to join them, while Messi and Barca try to recover mentally from another shocking European exit.
