Barcelona inched closer to the Champions League semifinal after an own goal from Manchester United's Luke Shaw handed the visitors a 1-0 win in the first leg quarterfinal at Old Trafford on Wednesday.
Shaw deflected a header from Luis Suarez into United's own net in the 12th minute, giving Barcelona the upper hand in the quarterfinal. Lionel Messi delivered a lofted cross to Suarez, whose header header deflected off the shoulder of Shaw, giving Barcelona the lead. It was initially flagged for offside, but the goal was given following a review through VAR.
Barcelona's Ernesto Valverde was delighted with his team's first win at Old Trafford in the Champions League. However, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's team struggled to get a foothold in the first half, but fought hard in the second half to not give away any more chances to the La Liga champions.
United's David De Gea foiled any further chances for Barcelona as he made superb saves to keep out goals from Philippe Couitinho and a low drive from Jordi Alba.
“We played a good team,” said Solskjaer. “We know you have to defend a lot without the ball and you might be tired when you get the chance yourself. We go there with one thing in my mind, we have to score.”
Barcelona and Manchester United will clash in the second leg of the quarterfinal on April 17 at Camp Nou, where the La Liga champions are clear favourites. Barcelona have not lost at home for 30 games in the Champions League since 2013. However, the home team won't take lightly the challenge from United, who made an unexpected comeback against Paris St Germain in the last round.
(With inputs from agencies)
