Barcelona cruised into the last 16 of the Europa League on Thursday, February 24, after comfortably seeing off Napoli 4-2 to go through 5-3 on aggregate in a serious show of force. The Catalan giants were on top almost from the off in Naples thanks to Jordi Alba expertly finishing a lightning counter-attack from a Napoli corner, and Frenkie de Jong’s superb long range effort effectively ended the tie with three quarters of the match to play. Xavi’s thrilling side could have had more before Lorenzo Insigne briefly gave the hosts hope from the penalty spot mid-way through the first half, and Gerard Pique made absolutely sure there would be no Napoli comeback on the stroke of half-time. A sobering night for Napoli, who are chasing a first Serie A title in three decades, was capped just before the hour mark by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, impressive up front for a dynamic Barca team which looks like it can go all the way in the competition. “We dominated we for 90 minutes and that’s the first time we’ve done that since I became coach,” Xavi told reporters. “It’s a win over a team which I repeat is a Champions League-level team, one which does not concede many goals and is fighting for the league title.”

-Source: AFP