Club Brugge v Barcelona
Barcelona rally comes up short in shock Brugge draw
Club Brugge were denied a famous victory over Barcelona after Romeo Vermant's stoppage-time effort was ruled out by Anthony Taylor to ensure a thrilling Champions League encounter finished 3-3.
Hansi Flick's Barcelona struggled throughout a pulsating contest in Belgium and were forced to level on three occasions.
Nicola Tresoldi put Brugge ahead early on before Ferran Torres levelled but Carlos Forbs' first goal made sure it was 2-1 to the hosts at the break.
Lamine Yamal levelled with a stunning effort just past the hour mark, but Forbs' second was followed by Yamal's cross being headed in to his own net by home attacker Christos Tzolis.
There was still time for Brugge substitute Vermant to slide in on Wojciech Szczesny before he rolled into the empty net, but referee Taylor ruled out the goal after VAR intervened to ensure the spoils were shared.
Barcelona endured a difficult build-up to their clash with a fan bus catching fire earlier on Wednesday before a performance that heightened speculation over the long-term future of boss Flick.
Flick struck with the same lineup which got the better of Elche by a 3-1 score on Saturday, but within six minutes the visitors were behind.
A blistering attack saw Forbs burst away down the right and square for Tresoldi to poke beyond Szczesny.
The goal was eventually awarded after a lengthy VAR check for offside but Barça got back on level terms just over two minutes later.
Barcelona this time beat the offside trap with Fermín López sent away and able to clip into the path of Torres, who steered home for his seventh goal of the campaign.
The frantic opening was not over there, as provider Forbs turned scorer in the 17th minute to send Jan Breydelstadion into pandemonium.
A lightning counter-attack concluded with a rapid one-two between Tzolis and Forbs, who kept his composure to curl into the bottom corner.
After being hit for four by Bayern Munich at the end of October, it was a remarkable turnaround by Brugge, but they required assistance from the woodwork to remain ahead at the break after Jules Koundé struck the crossbar.
Flick resisted the temptation to make changes at half-time but introduced Dani Olmo and Robert Lewandowski with 32 minutes left.
Three minutes later Barcelona were level as Yamal breezed past two Brugge players, exchanged passes with Lopez and stroked home with the outside of his boot to silence a partisan home crowd.
Forbs should have helped Brugge produce an instant reply but fired off target before wild celebrations were sparked by the ex-Wolves loanee in the 63rd minute.
Hans Vanaken caught out Barcelona's high line and Forbs showed supreme composure to scoop past Szczesny.
Forbs wanted a spot-kick afterwards, which was initially given before being overturned and Barcelona made the most of that reprieve when Yamal checked back and crossed in for Tzolis to flick into his own net in the 77th-minute.
The pendulum swung one more time in Brugge's favour as substitute Vermant slid in on Szczesny, but it was subsequently deemed a foul by referee Taylor and finished 3-3.
Game Information
UEFA Champions League Standings
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bayern Munich | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | +11 | 12 |
| Arsenal | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | +11 | 12 |
| Internazionale | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | +10 | 12 |
| Manchester City | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | +7 | 10 |
| Paris Saint-Germain | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | +9 | 9 |
| Newcastle United | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | +8 | 9 |
| Real Madrid | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | +6 | 9 |
| Liverpool | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | +5 | 9 |
| Galatasaray | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | +2 | 9 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | +5 | 8 |
| Barcelona | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | +5 | 7 |
| Chelsea | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | +3 | 7 |
| Sporting CP | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | +3 | 7 |
| Borussia Dortmund | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | +2 | 7 |
| FK Qarabag | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | +1 | 7 |
| Atalanta | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | -2 | 7 |
| Atlético Madrid | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | +1 | 6 |
| PSV Eindhoven | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | +2 | 5 |
| AS Monaco | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | -2 | 5 |
| Pafos | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | -3 | 5 |
| Bayer Leverkusen | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | -4 | 5 |
| Club Brugge | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -2 | 4 |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -4 | 4 |
| Napoli | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -5 | 4 |
| Marseille | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | +1 | 3 |
| Juventus | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | -1 | 3 |
| Athletic Club | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -5 | 3 |
| Union St.-Gilloise | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -8 | 3 |
| Bodo/Glimt | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -3 | 2 |
| Slavia Prague | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -6 | 2 |
| Olympiacos | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -7 | 2 |
| Villarreal | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | -4 | 1 |
| F.C. København | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | -8 | 1 |
| Kairat Almaty | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | -9 | 1 |
| Benfica | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -6 | 0 |
| Ajax Amsterdam | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -13 | 0 |

