Barcelona’s hegemony looks to have disrupted of late following a lacklustre last season, which saw them go trophyless and also suffered a humiliating defeat against Bayern Munich.
In a decade where Barca have dominated for the entire part – winning a handful of La Liga, Copa del Rey titles in addition to two European titles – defeats by big margin have seldom happened for the Catalan club. Good Homer sometimes nods and so do Barca.
Here are seven of the heaviest defeats of Barcelona from the last decade.
PSG vs Barcelona (4-0) UCL 2016-17
Barca were crushed by Unai Emery’s PSG in the first leg of the round of 16 at Parc des Princes. The trio of Messi, Neymar and Suarez was kept at bay as Les Parisiens gained an unassailable lead. While the certainty of PSG playing in the quarter-finals looked brighter, Barca performed an unprecedented comeback in the second leg, winning the game 6-1.
Juventus vs Barca (3-0) UCL 2016-17
The euphoria of the memorable comeback against PSG was only short-lived as Barca suffered a 3-0 defeat against Juventus in the first leg of the quarter-finals. Paulo Dybala appeared as a villain-like figure in the eyes of Cules as the Argentine scored a brace. Unlike the previous round, the Catalans have been held to a goalless draw in the second leg thanks to the unbreachable defence of the Old Lady.
Celta Vigo vs Barcelona (4-1) La Liga 2015
Barcelona suffered a shocking defeat in La Liga at the hands of Celta Viga during Luis Enrique’s first season in charge. Iago Aspas was the hero for Celta Vigo, and he still carries the habit of scoring goals against the Blaugrana – as he did in the last season’s 2-2 draw. The above defeats also happened during Enrique’s reign.
Bayern Munich vs Barcelona (7-0) UCL 2012-13
Barca’s win against Bayern in the semi-finals of UCL 2015-16 would be as memorable as it looks, especially with Lionel Messi flooring Jerome Boateng. However, the Catalans have some of their bitter memories with the same Bavarians. In the semi-finals of UCL 2012-13 season, Bayern decimated Barca 7-0 in the aggregate. Bayern would win the finals against their arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund.
AS Roma vs Barcelona (3-0) UCL 2017-18
Ironically, AS Roma took a leaf out of Barca’s book to secure a 3-0 comeback in the quarter-finals of UCL, winning the tie on away goal advantage. The match had a big impact on Barca in the seasons that followed.
Liverpool vs Barcelona (4-0) UCL 2018/19
Barca looked unstoppable with Lionel Messi at the helm in the 18/19 season. They also won the first leg against Liverpool, taking another assailable lead 3-0. When everyone thought history would not be repeated, Jurgen Klopp’s men had other ideas. In a blink of an eye, the Reds scored almost four goals, throwing the La Liga giants out of the competition.
Bayern Munich vs Barcelona (8-2) UCL 19/20
Finally to conclude the list, Barca’s 8-2 loss against Bayern in UCL quarter-finals last month is the worst defeat in their history. It was a sheer dominance from the eventual champions as Barca looked out of their depth.
