hello and a warm welcome on what is a glorious night for football perfect playing conditions
i'm your match commentator derek ray and my partner ready to bring you all the analysis
and technical talk is stuart robson and we've got so much to look forward to
this is where it all begins in europe's premier club competition the uefa champions league
the group stage match day one action stuart what are your expectations
for today well thanks derek this should be a tight group so it's vital these teams get
off to a good start here this should be a very competitive game tonight
and the barcelona shake looks like this mark and traitor stegen stands between the posts
pk starts with andreas christensen in central defence antoine griezmann starts
with coutinho out wide and getting the vote of confidence in attack today robert lewandowski
the opposition starting eleven patricia begins in girl
lorenzo penegrini plays with jordan vera 2 in the center of midfield
and it's two strikers up front who'll look to provide the goal scoring threats
it's the opening match day champions league group stage match day one underway
well-timed tackle
can he make it count there it is a delightful start to this match just what they were hoping for
well here's another look and you can see what a good finish this is
he holds off the defender brilliantly and keeps his composure that's a great goal
let's see what happens next
well pass after pass maybe they can chisel an opportunity
coutinho pedry now busquets
griezmann and lewandowski in the thick of things
oh beating his opponent with ease but a good piece of tidying up
abraham and the keeper
over it comes i'm a bit short with the clearance barcelona free kick it'll be here
hey
and it's in a goal for barcelona they are the team in charge
well here's the replay and you just have to admire
the patience of the passing as they look for that defense spitting ball
and then the shot could not be hit any better struck with such winning great goal
i'm a second goal for them here
and space for him to cut in oh great defending
based on that challenge you wouldn't be at all surprised if the referee reaches for his pockets
well he's gone into the book well he was late and he deserved a booking for that
and touched onto the frame of the goal and the danger clear
well i still can't believe that didn't go in derek what an incredible save
and nothing positive comes of it unfortunately
and room now out on the wing
and let's give credit to the defending
tammy abraham well he could run onto it here
oh a vital piece of last ditch defending well no surprise there barcelona have
enjoyed most of the possession and as a result of dominated the game some of their
passing movements have been a joy to watch and i don't think anything's going to change that
nicolo can they take advantage
the end product just wasn't there
and exploiting the space on the wing
he's gonna have a go here oh well hit but couldn't keep it down
pellegrini
nicolo zaniolo
oh excellent diving stop
and he's fired over the corner simple stuff really for joe stegen
so two minutes to be added on at the end
and the right place to cut out the pass
nicolo zaniolo
pellegrini
cars dock well the first 45 minutes have come and gone here in catalonia
well there are sound reasons why we're focusing on robert lewandowski
really enjoying a terrific game up front stuart well he scored good goals but he's
all round play has been excellent he looks like scoring every time he gets on the ball
and so the second half of this champions league group stage match day one contest commences
trouble keepings
promising move from barcelona can he finish couldn't quite hang on
well it came to nothing in the end well i still can't believe that didn't go in
derek it's a fantastic stop for the keeper you have to say and he's taking us away
oh great vision well it was close but offside nonetheless well it's
a matter of inches there but he just went a fraction too early
sergio busquets well sitting deep like this might be a dangerous game
well that's wonderful attacking play and now lewandowski
well after that attempts gobbled up by the keeper error by the keeper might
give them a chance goalkeeper doing his job getting the touch it's a barcelona corner
substitution time as is
delivering it really sound goalkeeping well that had to be a goal didn't it what a stop that is
behind for another corner can they cash in
and over it comes
body on the line but they'll try to keep the pressure on in the form of another corner
trying to deliver it accurately clears it away
bad challenge and now it's up to the referee in terms of what to do next
and the yellow card for that stuart and he's gonna have to be careful now that was a silly challenge
and they will make the change now
well any goalkeeper would be disappointed if he didn't save that
mkhitaryan
a danger here as he runs at them he could pick out a teammate
it has gone over the touchline for what will be a throw-in
and a useful cross and we had a decent reading of that ball in
and the goalkeeper expertly anticipated that through ball
coutinho this is robert lewandowski paid to be jordi alba
it's an excellent looking attack from coutinho but will they be able to produce from this position
they'll pass after pass maybe they can chisel an opportunity pedry
excellent challenge
sergio oliveira
well of the dying embers of the game and barcelona all powerful in this one stuart yeah clearly the
better side obviously been fantastic up front but it's their work ethic for me
they're just not happy unless they have the ball and they're fighting to win it
back whenever they do lose it it's been a really great performance all round
lewandowski
up the middle for griezmann with that pass well fantastic reflex action from the goalkeeper
he's driven in the corner and there is the goal to make it a hat-trick
excellence and finishing there for all to see
well here it is again it's a well delivered ball into the box which
makes it a fairly simple finish in the end it's a really good goal
well the ball is moving again and barcelona really cantering to victory now
10 minutes to go then sergio oliveira now with abraham
is it going to be well they pulled one back but perhaps a bit too late in this contest
they haven't been at the races this evening
well here you can see it again good run great strength and a composed finish
under pressure that's a top class goal
so back underway at 3-1
kessier well by playing keep ball like this we're keeping the opposition at bay
and we've entered the final five minutes lewandowski
jordi alba
and a very good challenge
and very deftly cut out well we are going to have a decent amount of stoppage time three
minutes to be exact excellent ball over the top and he's found a bit of daylight
and there it is but hang on the flag has gone up and it's not going to count
well it was a close call but he is just offside good finish mind you
videos man
three points on the board to begin the european campaign
well you always want to get off to a good start and that's exactly what they've done here
now they can look forward to the next game they're in a great position
you