Barcelona Beat Napoli to Reach First Champions League Quarter-Final Since Lionel Messi Left

Barcelona beat Napoli 3-1 on Tuesday to reach the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League. This was Barca's first UCL knockout win since Lionel Messi left.

Barcelona beat Napoli 3-1 on Tuesday night to wrap up a 4-2 win on aggregate and a place in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League.

Fermin Lopez and Joao Cancelo fired Barca into a 2-0 lead inside the opening 17 minutes at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.

Amir Rrahmani pulled a goal back on the half-hour mark but Robert Lewandowski made sure of the win by finishing off a beautiful team move in the 83rd minute.

Barcelona progressed past Napoli in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday :: IMAGO/Goal Sports Images

This was Barca's first victory in the knockout phase of the Champions League since 2020.

That was also a 4-2 aggregate win over Napoli and Lionel Messi was among the scorers in the second leg.

After beating Napoli in 2020, Barca lost 8-2 to Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals.

Barca then lost 5-2 on aggregate to Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16 in the following season.

Lionel Messi scored in both legs against PSG - before leaving Barca to sign for the French club just months later.

Lionel Messi's final Champions League appearance for Barcelona came against PSG in the round of 16 in March 2021 :: IMAGO/PanoramiC/JBAutissier

Barca failed to progress beyond the UCL group stage in their first two seasons after Messi's departure.

However, the five-time European champions topped Group H this season ahead of Porto, Shakhtar Donetsk and Antwerp.

The draw for the quarter-finals will take place on Friday.