JAKARTA - Barcelona opened the hope of entering the last eight of the Champions League and automatically qualifying for the knockout round after defeating Slavia Prague 4-2 at the Fortuna Arena Stadium, Prague, Thursday, January 22, 2026 WIB. Striker Robert Lewandowski scored two goals for both teams in the match.
Barca won an important victory in the Champions League. Even though they had to work hard and concede first and were marked by Lewandowski's blunder who scored a suicide goal, Barca finally managed to beat Slavia.
This is the 12th victory from the last 13 matches played by Barca. The only defeat was experienced by Barca in the Spanish LaLiga competition last weekend. They were forced to surrender 2-1 by Real Sociedad which made the competition for the league title with Real Madrid back on fire.
Barca's success in winning three points in the away game makes them able to improve their position. Now, Barca is in ninth place with 13 points. The team currently occupying the top of the LaLiga standings is still in the playoff zone and has not been able to enter the top eight.
However, the Blaugrana have the opportunity to reach the eight-team target to qualify for the last 16 automatically if they beat Copenhagen in the last match of the qualifying phase. The match itself will be held at Barca's home at Camp Nou Stadium, January 29, 2026.
The chance to enter the top eight remains open because the two teams ranked sixth and seventh, Paris Saint-German and Newcastle United will play each other in the last match. Both teams have 13 points but have a better goal difference than Barca.
Meanwhile, Slavia Prague, who have never won a match in European competitions, have been eliminated from the competition for a ticket to the next round because they are at the bottom of the table. They are stuck in 34th place or two strips below with three points.
In that match, Barca lost young star Lamine Yanal who was absent due to yellow card accumulation so coach Hansi Flick changed the composition of the players by putting Lewandowski as the sole spearhead. Ferran Torres who usually replaces Lewandowski could not play due to injury.
With a 4-2-3-1 formation, Flick put Raphinha, Fermin Lopez and Roony Bardghji in the midfield. This means Marcus Rashford started the match by sitting on the bench.
However, Barca was a little late in the heat and Slavia made a splash by pressing the visiting team's defense. Even Slavia managed to take the lead first after striker Vasil Kusej broke into Joan Garcia's goal when the match was only 10 minutes. The goal started from Slavia's corner kick which created a mess in front of Barca's goal and Kusej who managed to take advantage of the situation to score a goal.
However, Slavia's 1-0 advantage did not last long. In the 34th minute, Fermin Lopez managed to equalize. Receiving a brilliant pass from Frenkie de Jong, he was able to finish it despite the narrow angle.
In a 1-1 draw, Slavia again put pressure. Only Barca turned it around after Lopez scored his second goal in the 42nd minute. He managed to make a brace after completing an assist from Pedri.
Slavia refused to surrender even though they were behind by two goals from Lopez. They returned to playing offensively which made the match intense. As proven, they didn't take long to equalize the score.
The hosts managed to score for the second time after Lewandowski scored an own goal when there was a crisis in front of the goal following a corner kick from Slavia. This was Lewandowski's first own goal in the Champions League competition.
The goal in the 44th minute showed Barca's difficulty in dealing with the set piece situation from the corner kick. The score changed to 2-2 and lasted until halftime.
Entering the second half, Barca took the initiative to attack. When the match entered the middle of the second half, Pedri suffered a hamstring injury so he had to be pulled out. Flick brought in Dani Olmo to replace Pedri in the 61st minute. At the same time, Rashford replaced Bardghji.
Their entry made Barca's attack more alive. In fact, just two minutes later, Olmo was able to score a goal that made Barca back in the lead. Olmo's shot from a distance slid into the top corner of the goal without being reached by goalkeeper Jindrich Stanek. The score changed to 3-2 for Barca.
The goal also raised the adrenaline of the Barca players. They were more aggressive pressing the opponent's defense. As a result, Barca increased the lead. Lewandowski paid for his mistake by breaking into the Slavia goal in the 71st minute. The goal of the Polish national team striker was created after welcoming Rashford's cross.
The score changed 4-2. Barca also played more relaxed after the goal. There were no additional goals and the score remained until the end of the match.
Despite winning, Flick admitted that the team had difficulty when facing set pieces in the match. "We conceded twice through set pieces. We had difficulties because the opponent's players were strong with a higher posture," said Flick as quoted by the UEFA website.
"But the end of this match is what I want from this team. They stayed calm even though they were behind and remained confident. They also continued to play with courage," he said.
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