At last, Barça broke their curse with Magdeburg, their real black beast, the only team they couldn’t beat. In a splendid match in front of the fans, Carlos Ortega’s team struck on the second day of the Champions League the only team that had defeated them three times in the last three years: two finals of the Club World Cup and in the semi-finals of the final four last June, the most painful.
Magdeburg arrived at the Palace wounded in their pride by the defeat on the first day in their feud against Veszprém de Fàbregas (28-33), and with the loss of their reference, the Icelandic central Gisli Kristyánsson. Although that was not why it was more affordable. Its two brand new signings, Felix Claar and Janus Smarason, make it a more powerful team than it was in Cologne in June.
The first action of the match was prescient: Nielsen saved a penalty from Magnusson. In the first match of the Champions League at the Palau Blaugrana, Ortega handed the baton to Pol Valera, who was superb in directing and throwing, and the goal to Nielsen, who stood out in the start with 5 saves in 7 minutes Interventions that allowed Barça to go on the counter and go four (6-2).
A lead of 4 that he could maintain and extend to 5 thanks to an excellent defense and quick transitions, topped off by an inspired Dika Mem or a brave Pol Valera in a one-on-one (11-6, at 19m). And, of course, a Nielsen that continued to grow with 9 stops in 20 minutes and that would end up being a wall with 18 and a 48% success rate.
Barça liked each other and achieved a maximum income of 6 with Wanne’s penalty 12-6. The Blaugrana team was shrinking the champion with a hardened defense and made him lose morale with the two consecutive penalties saved by Gonzalo Pérez de Vargas that allowed his team to go to the break with a spectacular 14-8 to believe in the victory
In the second half, Barça started with 7, maximum income (15-8), from Dika Mem, who maintained the collective score thanks to Wanne, Valera or Aleix Gómez, who did not play in the entire first half .
Barça accelerated and reached a maximum lead of 9 (21-12) with two more goals from Mem on the counter, who had to withdraw with muscle problems at 7m20s. The captain was splendid with 7 goals in 8 shots. Carlsbogard, also on the counter, humiliated the Germans with 22-12, a 10 (m. 38) that forced the coach to ask for a timeout to stop the bleeding.
Barça did not let go of its superb triumph, which extended the income to a spectacular 12 (32-20) with a great effectiveness in the launch, despite the incessant movement of the bench with the entry of youngsters Javi Rodríguez, Petar Cikusa or Ian Smurf.
Barça: Nielsen, Janc (2), Mem (8), Petrus, Carlsbogard (1), Wanne (4p), Frade (2); Valera (4), N’Guessan (2), Rodríguez, Langaro, Richardson (3), Cikusa, Aleix Gómez (6), Ian Barrufet, Pérez de Vargas (ps).
