Barcelona cruised into the last 16 of the Europa League on Thursday after comfortably seeing off Napoli 4-2 to go through 5-3 on aggregate in a serious show of force.
The Catalan giants were on top almost from the off in Naples thanks to Jordi Alba expertly finishing a lightning counter-attack from a Napoli corner, and Frenkie de Jong’s superb long-range effort effectively ended the tie with three-quarters of the match to play.
Xavi’s thrilling side could have had more before Lorenzo Insigne briefly gave the hosts hope from the penalty spot mid-way through the first half, and Gerard Pique made absolutely sure there would be no Napoli comeback on the stroke of half-time.
A sobering night for Napoli, who are chasing a first Serie A title in three decades, was capped just before the hour mark by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, impressive upfront for a dynamic Barca team that looks like it can go all the way in the competition.
“We dominated we for 90 minutes and that’s the first…
Source: Guardian Newspaper