Barcelona Salvages a 1-1 Draw Against Napoli

After struggling in the first half and conceding a brilliant goal from Belgian Dries Mertens, Barcelona managed to equalize early in the second half thanks to Griezmann, following a great vertical pass from Sergio Busquets.

Griezmann's second goal in this Champions League campaign was the best news for Barcelona in their visit to San Paolo stadium. However, they ended the match with ten players after Chilean Arturo Vidal received a second yellow card and will also be without Busquets for the second leg on March 18th at Camp Nou.

Barcelona, with Frenchman Samuel Umtiti in defense alongside Gerard Piqué (who was substituted due to an ankle injury) and Croatian Ivan Rakitic in midfield were the main changes in Setién's starting lineup. They had possession of the ball but struggled to play vertically against a very compact Napoli side, which defended with three lines and looked to counterattack.

Mertens put constant pressure on Sergio Busquets, making things difficult for Barcelona. In the first half, Messi had the only shot on target for Barcelona (minute 8), but their indecisiveness in defense led to Napoli's goal.

After half an hour of play, Polish midfielder Piotr Zielinski beat Barcelona's left-back and provided the ball to Mertens, who scored a magnificent goal in the top corner, leaving goalkeeper Marc-André Ter Stegen with no chance. This historic goal allowed Mertens to equal Marek Hamsik as Napoli's all-time leading goalscorer (121 goals).

Barcelona needed new solutions, especially in a hostile San Paolo stadium. They were close to conceding a second goal before halftime when Greek defender Kostas Manolas, who eliminated Barcelona from the Champions League with Roma in 2018, missed a chance from a pass by Spanish winger José Callejón.

The second half did not start well for Barcelona, with Busquets receiving a yellow card out of frustration and getting suspended for the second leg. His foul ended up injuring Mertens, who was forced to be substituted.

It was precisely after Mertens' substitution that Busquets had more space, and a brilliant vertical pass freed Portuguese right-back Nelson Semedo, who provided an easy ball for Griezmann to score the equalizer (minute 57).

A game that had been very tactically blocked until that moment became more unpredictable, with Insigne and Callejón missing chances to give Napoli the lead again, and Messi narrowly failing to convert a cross from Arturo Vidal. Messi, unintentionally colliding with Colombian goalkeeper David Ospina, received a yellow card.

The coaches decided to make changes to take advantage of the momentum. Setién, who had few alternatives due to the absence of Luis Suárez, Ousmane Dembelé, Jordi Alba, and Sergi Roberto, brought on Brazilian midfielder Arthur Melo for Rakitic to add more pace. Gattuso, on the other hand, added offensive spark with the entry of Matteo Politano for Callejón.

Both teams had opportunities but lacked the finishing. Insigne for Napoli and Arthur for Barcelona tried their luck with two off-target shots. These were the last technical plays in a match that ended with nervousness and bad news for Setién's side.

Vidal was sent off after receiving two yellow cards between the 87th and 89th minute for a foul and protests against Portuguese left-back Mario Rui. Piqué also had to leave the field due to an ankle injury.

Everything is still open for the second leg at Camp Nou, where Barcelona will need to change their rhythm and replace Busquets and Vidal in order to continue their European campaign.