Barcelona to see Champions League semi-finals for record fifth consecutive time

Click on the pictures above to see highlights from the game.

Mighty Barcelona put on another masterful display of football in front of their fans at the Nou Camp.

Their comfortable 3-1 win against Italian giants AC Milan continued their dominance at home in the Pep Guardiola era, and sent the Catalan team to a record fifth consecutive Champions League semi-final. Lionel Messi has also set a new record for most goals in a single campaign with fourteen, and with three games left (assuming Barcelona reach the final) could possibly score more and set a record that may never be broken.

Guardiola proved prophetic as well, and he was correct to say that Milan was likely to score, which meant that his side would need at least two goals.

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Lionel Messi scored the first goal with a penalty in the 11th minute. Though Milan fought valiantly, and were able to tie the game in the 32nd minute via a goal from Antonio Nocerino, it would not prove enough. A second, and extremely controversial, Messi penalty in the 41st minute put the Blaugrana ahead again. Andres Iniesta then took advantage of a fortunate bounce to slot in a third goal in the 53rd minute. In truth, the score line could have been even higher, as Barcelona came agonizingly close to scoring at least two or three more goals.

Possession proved key once again, as Barcelona had control of the ball for about two thirds of the game, much like the first leg at the San Siro.

The ill-tempered affair ended with plenty of yellow cards handed out between the two teams, with a bit of play-acting as well as protesting earning both teams bookings.

The main worry for Barcelona now will be Gerard Pique's fitness, as he was taken off in the 75th minute with an injury.

Barcelona will face either Chelsea or Benfica in the semi-finals. Chelsea goes into the second leg with a 1-0 aggregate lead after scoring a vital away goal against Benfica.

With this win, the possibility of a dream final between Barcelona and Real Madrid remains a very real possibility, should Barcelona get through to the final. Real Madrid is likely to face Bayern Munich in the semi-finals.

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