Barcelona survive cold Prague scare to claim vital Champions League win
Early shock for Barcelona in freezing Prague
Barcelona were forced to dig deep on a cold night in the Czech capital as they beat Slavia Prague 4–2 to boost their hopes of automatic qualification for the Champions League last 16. The defending Spanish champions were stunned early, conceded twice before the break and had to rely on their experience and quality to pull clear in the second half.
Slavia served an early warning when Tomáš Chorý smashed a half-volley narrowly over, before the hosts took a surprise lead after 10 minutes. A corner was flicked on by Tomáš Holes and bundled over the line by Vasil Kusej despite losing his footing.
Barça needed time to settle but gradually grew into the game. Eric García tested Jindřich Staněk from distance before the equaliser arrived in the 34th minute. Raphinha’s clever backheel found Frenkie de Jong, who slipped in Fermín López to drill home from a tight angle.
Chaos before the break as goals keep flowing
Barcelona took the lead just before half-time when López struck again, this time whipping a fine effort into the top corner from the edge of the box after Pedri was given space to turn. However, the advantage did not last. Slavia struck again from a corner, Holes’ glancing header rebounding in off Robert Lewandowski for an unfortunate own goal to make it 2–2 at the break.
Second-half control and decisive impact from the bench
Barça stepped up the tempo after the restart and began to dominate possession. Staněk denied Pedri and López before Dani Olmo restored the lead with a superb strike from 18 yards, firing into the corner moments after coming on.
Marcus Rashford, introduced from the bench, made an immediate impact and helped seal the win. The Manchester United loanee surged to the byline late on and pulled the ball back for Lewandowski, who reacted quickest to volley home and make it 4–2.
The result keeps Barcelona firmly on track in Europe and showed their resilience after a difficult first half away from home.
