GIVEN that Gerard Pique has won a World Cup, the Champions League three times and is married to Columbian pop star Shakira, the question must be asked how on earth he knows when he’s dreaming.
But even for a man whose life would make George Clooney green with envy, Wednesday night at the Camp Nou was beyond the realms of reality even by the unbelievable standards of being a Barcelona footballer.
It has been said that their comeback was the best of all time. It’s hard to argue. Barcelona were 4-0 down to Paris Saint-Germain from the first leg and with 88 minutes gone in the second leg, and with the score at 3-1, PSG having grabbed a vital goal which looked to have sealed things, they still needed three to get through.
And somehow the found all three within those seven minutes.
“I hope Barcelona hospitals hire some more midwives nine months from now because there will be a lot of babies born,” said Pique. “Sometimes miracles do happen and this was the impossible. There will be a lot of love-making happening tonight.
“One thing is to score a goal in the fifth minute of stoppage time, another is to score three in seven minutes
“We’ve seen comebacks but never anything like this. They tried to bury us, and one day we’ll give up the throne, but today we proved that we’re still the best. Anyone who stopped believing should go back and try again.
“Their goal to make it 3–1 was a big blow but a miracle occurred. It's a lesson for life — there is always a way.”
Andres Iniesta thought he had done everything in football until the final few moments from a match some are calling the greatest to ever be seen in the Catalan capital.
“We have witnessed a historic act,” said the captain. “We knew we could sow doubts in our opponents if we scored early. We never stopped believing — it was virtually impossible but it happened."
And what about Luis Enrique? He announced last week that he was stepping down after three years as Barcelona manager and there were not too many who argued that this was the wrong decision.
His team have wobbled at times, at least by their level, but he could end the season with the treble of La Liga, the Spanish Cup and Champions League, just as he did two years ago.
I" was brought to my knees," said Enrique. I would like to thank everyone who kept their faith after we lost 4-0. This is dedicated to them because this isn't the Harlem Globetrotters, this is football.
“This is a sport for mad people. It’s clearly for crazy people. Those who were at the Camp Nou will remember this night for the rest of their lives.”
As for PSG, how about this for a statistic. They completed just four passes between the 85th minute and full-time. Three of those were from kick-off after conceding Barcelona goals.
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