Lionel Messi's 31st goal of the season was probably his best. Photo / AP
Just when it looked like Lionel Messi had nowhere to go, the Argentine great bamboozled half of Napoli's team before scoring from an exquisite solo effort that helped Barcelona reach the Champions League quarter-finals in Portugal.
Messi netted Barcelona's second goal in the 3-1 victory that sent the Spanish side
past Napoli 4-2 on aggregate. Messi's goal in the 23rd minute was arguably the pick of the 31 he has scored this season.
Napoli appeared to have him in check when Messi received the ball all alone outside the right corner of the area. Barcelona's all-time record scorer, however, dipped his head and took on the well-placed defence. He kept control of the ball despite being knocked over while going past three Napoli players. Three more tried to intervene but Messi found the angle to fire while losing his balance to send the ball past the keeper and inside the far post.
Clement Lenglet and Luis Suarez also scored for Barcelona, who advanced five months after they drew 1-1 in Naples before the pandemic stopped European football.
Barcelona will meet Bayern Munich on Saturday in the quarter-finals to be played in Lisbon in a "bubble" format of tight security to prevent a coronavirus outbreak from derailing the competition's finale.
