Raphinha scores hat-trick in 100th appearance for Barca
Brazilian winger Raphinha celebrated his 100th appearance for FC Barcelona with a hat-trick goal against Bayern Munich in the Champions League encounter on Wednesday night.
Romelu Lukaku was among the few Manchester United players who could hold his head high after their disastrous exit from the UEFA Champions League at the hands of Sevilla on Tuesday night and the Belgian striker took to Instagram to convey his disappointment at the result.
Lukaku huffed and puffed all game long, eventually getting rewarded for his perseverance with a late goal but it was too little too late as Sevilla held on for a famous 2-1 win at Old Trafford.
After the first leg in Seville had ended goalless, United were favourites to make the quarters but strangely put in a timid display against their Spanish opposition and were made to pay dearly when substitute Wissam Ben Yedder netted a quick-fire brace late in the second-half.
Jose Mourinho’s team selection was panned by fans and pundits alike, as the Portuguese opted for a cautious approach by starting Marouane Fellaini and Nemanja Matic in the central midfield pivot.
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As Paul Pogba had only just recovered from an injury, the Special One’s hand was forced somewhat but even when the flashy Frenchman was brought on in the second-half, the Red Devils remained lacklustre while going forward.
With Alexis Sanchez still misfiring, United looked disjointed in attack as a result and lacked any sort of urgency in attack.
In fact, Sevilla custodian Sergio Rico was relatively untested for most parts of the 90 minutes of the second leg.
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Eric Bailly had a standout game in the United defence, as the Ivorian constantly stymied the spirited Sevilla attacks, but apart from the centre-back and Lukaku, no other United defender seemed to have brought their A-game to a tie their manager had termed “the biggest game of the season” in the buildup.
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