Barcelona’s chances of another remarkable comeback have grown increasingly slimmer after a goalless first half against Juventus at Camp Nou.
Juventus made the brighter start to the match, pressing Barca high up the pitch and not allowing them to settle – in the exact manner that Paris Saint-Germain failed to do in the previous round.
Leonardo Bonucci’s clipped free-kick found Gonzalo Higuain but the striker could not connect fully and the effort was easily saved by Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, and in the twelfth minute the Argentine striker blazed over from just inside the area in the first real opportunity.
Luis Enrique’s side quickly grew into the game – Ivan Rakitic blazed over moments after Gerard Pique’s excellent tracked run and challenging on Juan Cuadrado, while Lionel Messi blazed wide from twelve yards after Luis Suarez’s effort was initially blocked.
The hosts exploited Juve’s right flank with Jordi Alba continually finding space behind Dani Alves – firstly just missing a Messi lobbed ball and then cutting back to Neymar, who’s curled effort went just wide.
Referee Bjorn Kuipers let the game flow as much as possible but Andres Iniesta and Neymar were both booked late on in the half for robust challenges.
