Barcelona faced a double blow on Tuesday, exiting two competitions in a single night after a defeat to Paris Saint-Germain, PSG.
Cole Palmer gives cold a response to his teammates trying to take over penalty duty.
This season has been challenging for Xavi’s squad, yet the Spanish titans positioned themselves well to advance to the Champions League semi-finals.
Just a week ago, Barcelona secured a remarkable 3-2 victory against PSG in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final clash on PSG’s turf.
Despite initially seizing the lead in the return leg via Raphina to hold a 4-2 aggregate advantage, their fortunes turned bleak when Ronald Araujo received a straight red card for a last-man foul.
Ultimately, a man-of-the-match performance by Ousmane Dembele and a brace by Kylian Mbappe, ensured Barcelona suffered a 4-1 defeat on the night, bowing out 6-4 on aggregate.
This loss not only terminated their Champions League journey but also dashed their hopes of participating in the newly expanded FIFA Club World Cup in 2025.
The upcoming tournament in the United States will feature 12 European teams, including the Champions League victors from 2021 to 2024 – Chelsea, Real Madrid, Manchester City, and the 2024 champion.
The remaining eight slots are allocated based on UEFA club coefficients. Despite ranking seventh among the remaining clubs, Barcelona won’t qualify due to the limit of two clubs per country.
Both Atletico Madrid and Barcelona were ousted from the Champions League on Tuesday. However, Atletico’s coefficient of 67.0 surpasses Barcelona’s 61.0, securing their spot alongside Real Madrid as Spain’s representatives at the FIFA Club World Cup.
Joining them will be Bayern Munich, PSG, Inter Milan, Porto, Benfica, Borussia Dortmund, Juventus, and either FC Salzburg or Arsenal.
With Manchester City and Chelsea already guaranteed spots, Arsenal’s only path to qualification is by winning this season’s Champions League.
