Champions League: Barcelona’s season goes from bad to worse, humbled by Benfica

Benfica ended a 60-year winless streak against Barcelona, after they ran rings around the Catalan club’s defence on their way to a 3-0 victory. Manager Ronald Koeman and his men have now tasted their second consecutive loss in the UEFA Champions League.

Striker Darwin Nunez scored twice — including three minutes into the match — and Rafa Silva added another goal at the Stadium of Light to give Benfica its second victory in eight matches against the Spanish powerhouse, who had opened their European campaign with a demoralising 3-0 home loss against Bayern Munich.

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Barcelona, in last place without any points, suddenly sees itself in danger of not making through to the knockout stages for the first time since 2001.

Last season Barcelona failed to reach the quarterfinals for the first time since 2006-07, losing to Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16 and ending its record run of 13 consecutive last-eight appearances.

But things are likely to go from bad to worse if the Catalan club doesn’t up the ante soon. 

Without Lionel Messi for the first time in over two decades, Barcelona have won only one of its past five games in all competitions, a dismal stretch that began with a loss to Bayern Munich at the Camp Nou Stadium. This season, the club has won only on three occasions in eight games in all competitions.

It was Barcelona’s fifth straight Champions League match without a win, with the Catalan club having conceded 14 goals during that run. It didn’t have a single shot on target from eight attempts on Wednesday.

Benfica’s only other victory against Barcelona had come in the 1961 European Cup final the first time the clubs met.

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The hosts opened the scoring in the game’s first shot on goal in the third minute, with Nunez finding the back of the net from inside the area after easily getting past Barcelona defender Eric García, who was sent off with a second yellow card in the 87th.

Nunez almost doubled the lead in the 52nd when Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen clumsily left his area and allowed the Uruguian forward to have an open shot into the net, which ended hitting the post from very long range.

Silva scored the second in the 69th from close range after a failed attempt by João Mário, and Nuñez sealed the victory by converting a 79th-minute penalty kick after a handball by Barcelona defender Sergiño Dest.

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Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman, a former Benfica manager who is under increased pressure at the Catalan club, started the match with three central defenders but switched formations just past the half-hour mark by replacing Gerard Piqué with teenage midfielder Gavi.

Koeman had the return of Pedri González to midfield after the youngster was sidelined by an injury layoff. Jordi Alba and Ousmane Dembélé remain out injured.

Benfica lost forward Valentino Lazaro because of an injury before halftime.

With inputs from the Associated Press