Barcelona just about held out for a goalless draw at Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday night, and Marc-Andre ter Stegen was his team’s saviour in his homeland with a series of great stops including a flying penalty save from Marco Reus’s second half penalty.
But there were a few other strong performances from the Spanish side, who were fortunate to return home with a point.
Check out how everybody fared with our full player ratings.
DORTMUND
Burki 6. Wasn’t forced into any serious saves by a toothless Barca attack, but did what he had to well.
Hakimi 7. Got forward whenever he could, showing good athleticism to cover lots of ground up and down the field.
Akanji 6. Composed and concentrated in the centre of defence, doing a no-nonsense job with calm efficiency.
Hummels 8. Outstanding in defence. Showed good anticipation, reading the game perfectly to break up several attacks.
Guerreiro 6. The left-back grew into the game as an attacking force and shadowed Messi closely in the latter stages.
Witsel 7. A calming presence in the home team’s midfield, doing a good job both with and without the ball.
Delaney 6. Was booked early on for a foul on Busquets and never truly imposed himself. Kept it simple with the ball.
Sancho 7. Caught the eye with several dangerous bursts down both flanks, but fired a decent chance well over the bar.
Reus 6. Offered a consistent threat as a support striker, but squandered several chances including a saved penalty.
Hazard 6. Created a decent chance for Reus with a powerful run. Regularly swapped flanks with Sancho before being replaced.
Alcacer 6. Linked play well against his former club. Dragged a half-chance wide and fired a free-kick into the wall.
SUBS
Brandt 7. Came on for Hazard and provided a serious spark, thumping a brilliant long-range strike against the crossbar.
Larsen 5. Replaced Alcacer up front for the final stages but had little chance to impress as the game petered out.
4 - @mterstegen1 has saved four of the six penalties he has faced in #UCL. Since the beginning of detailed data collection in 2003-04, no other keeper has saved more (Pyiatov also 4). Wall. #BVBFCB pic.twitter.com/oT8mVVgP2H
— OptaFranz (@OptaFranz) September 17, 2019
BARCELONA
Ter Stegen 9. Made a brilliant stop from Reus’ penalty and several more good saves, mostly from the same player.
Semedo 4. Given a tough time throughout, especially by Sancho, and conceded a penalty with a clumsy foul on the Englishman.
Pique 5. Had some troubled moments at the back and was booked for one late lunge just outside the box.
Lenglet 5. Never particularly convincing in the centre of defence, lacking decisiveness and a sense of authority.
Alba 6. Enterprising for the opening half hour but then had to be replaced after suffering a thigh injury,
De Jong 6. Led his team’s pressing without the ball and did a good job protecting the back four after Busquets was replaced.
Busquets 6. Used the ball well in front of the back four, but vulnerable when Dortmund countered at pace and subbed off.
Arthur 6. Pulled the strings at times in the centre of the pitch, but had other periods of play when he drifted out of the game.
Fati 5. Played an hour on his Champions League debut and saw plenty of the ball without shining. Had a volley deflected over the top.
Suarez 6. Back in the starting line-up and looked sharp, coming close with a narrow-angled effort but largely lacking service.
Griezmann 6. Had a low early shot deflected wide and worked hard up and down the left, but a minimal attacking threat
SUBS
Sergi Roberto 6. Came on when Alba got injured, taking over at right-back. Helped his team’s build-up play with astute passing.
Messi 6. Made his first appearance of the season from the bench and showed flashes of danger without quite breaking through.
Rakitic 6. Introduced into the midfield to replace Busquets and did a steady job without making a major impact.
