Barcelona 2-8 Bayern Munich: 10 talking points from the historic night

Muller rises to the occasion, again

Robert Lewandowski might be the brawn of this team, but Thomas Muller remains the brain, the cerebral assassin who took Barcelona by storm once again. He netted twice inside half an hour and also laid an assist, but these figures won’t tell you the havoc that the German wrought on the hapless Spaniards. He bullied the likes of Gerard Pique and Clement Langlet, forcing them to give away possessions in key areas, whilst also slipping into pockets of spaces to create. Muller’s revival under Flick has been meteoric and is now guiding his team towards another treble.

‘Phonzie’ weaves more magic

Alphonso Davies has been one of the most exciting young players to watch this season, and last night was another exhibition of why it is so. The young Canadian made an assist on the night, but everything he did in the build-up was just breath-taking. He wiped the floor with Nelson Semedo with his electric pace and nimble footwork before scything down the byline and laying off for Joshua Kimmich. His work-rate in the defense was minimal, but did make some good recoveries and even drew a foul out of his idol Messi.

Setien’s time is up

Within minutes after the full-time whistle, rumors started doing the rounds that Quique Setien will be sacked by the club and the announcement will be made the following day. Even though Barcelona hasn’t made anything official, it’s really hard to see him continue for another season. Setien has hardly made strides since taking over from Ernesto Valverde as the Blaugrana toiled from one disappointing result to another, but last night was the ultimate unraveling of his time. The 61-year old promised to bring back the glory days of old when he arrived in January, but he will now instead be remembered for overseeing the club’s worst result of six decades.

Coutinho should keep away from Barcelona

Bayern Munich CEO Karl Heinz Rummenigge revealed last month that the club’s option of purchasing Coutinho on a permanent basis had expired, which means the Brazilian is on his way back to Barcelona but is likely to leave on another loan spell. And that would be in his best interests. Given everything transpiring at the club, now is not the right time to return, given his own struggles in the past. He netted twice last night and also assisted Lewandowski to show he hasn’t lost his touch yet, and should continue his efforts of finding his old self away from Barcelona.