FOOTBALL – Raphinha struck a second-half winner to give Barcelona a lion-hearted 1-0 victory at Benfica last night as they overcame a red card for Pau Cubarsi early in the game to steal an advantage in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.
Barcelona’s teenage defender Cubarsi was given a straight red card for a last-man foul on Vangelis Pavlidis in the 22nd minute, but the visitors hung on with goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny putting in a brilliant performance.
The Polish veteran pulled off a string of brilliant saves to keep Barca in the game and his effort was rewarded in the 61st minute when Raphinha pounced on a poor defensive pass across the Benfica box.
He then capitalised on the mistake, firing a low strike that deflected off a defender before going in just inside the left post.
Meanwhile, Liverpool substitute Harvey Elliott scored a last-gasp winner less than a minute after coming on to earn a fortunate 1-0 win against Paris St Germain who dominated their visitors.
Elliott slotted the ball home in the 87th minute after a layoff from fellow substitute Darwin Nunez for a scarcely-deserved victory in Paris.
Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane scored once in each half to guide his team to a 3-0 victory over 10-man Bayer Leverkusen.
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