Barcelona seemed to have made the second leg a formality with a thumping 4-0 win at home, but Borussia Dortmund put up a brave effort in their own backyard to come close to a stunning turnaround, with Serhou Guirassy netting a fantastic hat-trick. Catch the highlights from the UEFA Champions League 2024-25 quarter-final
The second leg of the UEFA Champions League 2024-25 quarter-final between Borussia Dortmund and FC Barcelona will start at 12:30am IST. The match will be telecast on the Sony Sports Network TV channels in India. It will be live streamed on the SonyLiv app and website in the country.
Here's how Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund line up ahead of kick-off at Signal Iduna Park in Dortmund:
FC Barcelona have locked horns with Borussia Dortmund six times before, with the Catalan giants having won four of those games. BVB have never been able to forge a victory against Barca, as two matches have ended in draws.
Home support will be of the essence for BVB, if they are to spring an unlikely surprise. Dortmund have also struggled in the Bundesliga and are eighth in the standings on 42 points, while Barca are unbeaten in 24 games in all competitions.
"There are always miracles, but we also know that Barcelona haven't lost a competitive game yet this year. We have to be there from the first minute tomorrow and get the fans on our side. We'll only get the necessary wind from them, the willingness to run," BVB manager Niko Kovac said on match eve.
The game gets underway at the Signal Iduna Park after a moment of silence to remember Willi Burgsmuller, the Dortmund great who died aged 93 last week. The Blaugrana are attacking from right to left, and BVB from left to right in the first half.
An early goal was imperative for Dortmund, and they have one. Pascal Gross is brought down in the danger area and Serhou Guirassy converts the penalty gleefully, chipping a cheeky panenka past Wojciech Szczesny to put the hosts ahead on the night. Still a three-goal deficit to overcome, however.
Barcelona are now beginning to get into the game a bit more, offensively. They have withstood the early Dortmund charge and are now creating chances, earning corners. Nothing to show for it yet though. Meanwhile, Frenkie de Jong is booked for a clumsy challenge on Lopez.
The scoreline for the match stands at 1-0 in Dortmund's favour, but Barcelona still have a huge advantage in aggregate, which reads 4-1 at the end of the first half. Dortmund have done well to unsettle Barca, but it will take a lot more to turn this tie around.
Dortmund get a second! Early in the second half, the hosts make the most of a corner, with Serhou Guirassy heading it in to score his second goal of the night. The aggregate now stands at 2-4 in Barca's favour.
Well, well, well. All the good work done so far by Dortmund is undone with a single mistake from Ramy Bensebaini, who inadvertently puts Fermin Lopez's cross at the back of his own team's net. The own goal restores a three-goal cushion for Barcelona, and at this stage in the game, it is virtually a tie-winning one.
Is there yet another twist in this tale? Serhou Guirassy is single-handedly keeping Dortmund in the game with his timely strikes. The Guinean striker completes a well-deserved hat-trick with a smooth finish in the 76th minute. The aggregate deficit is now down to two, but the minutes are ticking away in this enthralling clash.
Time runs out for Dortmund, who win the second-leg 3-1 to snap Barcelona's 24-game unbeaten streak, but lose the tie by a 3-5 margin. Barca march into the semi-finals of the Champions League after a thoroughly entertaining night at Signal Iduna Park.
Barcelona will now meet the winner of the quarter-final tie between Bayern Munich and Inter Milan (second leg on April 17), in a two-legged last-four clash. The first leg will be hosted by Barca at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on April 29, while the Blaugrana will visit their opponents for the second and decisive tie on May 6.