Barcelona fans chanted for former star Lionel Messi as they watched their side crash out of the Champions League group stage again on Wednesday night.
Xavi Hernandez's Barca were eliminated from Europe's premier club competition at the first hurdle for the second successive season, despite a full round of group stage matches remaining following Inter's four-goal victory over Viktoria Plzen earlier on Wednesday.
Messi joined Paris Saint-Germain on a two-year contract a year ago from Barcelona as a free agent. The sensational move played out after the Catalan giants were unable to register the Argentine superstar with a new contract due to strict Financial Fair Play compliance laws by La Liga. His contract at PSG will expire this summer.
The Argentine star has been on fire in front of goal this campaign for Les Parisiens and has already netted 11 goals across all competitions this season. That means he has already equalled his tally in his debut season in Paris, as he appears to have rediscovered his top form in the French capital.
His exit from the Camp Nou before the start of last season coincided with the club enduring a trophyless campaign. They tumbled out of the Champions League in the group stages, exited the Copa del Rey at the quarter-final stage and finished a distant second to Real Madrid in La Liga.
This season saw expectations at the club once again turned up several levels due to a series of high-profile signings. Robert Lewandowski, Jules Kounde, Raphinha, Marcos Alonso, Franck Kessie and Andreas Christensen were among a glut of arrivals, building on a busy January, which saw Ferran Torres added to the squad.
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Barca had budgeted for their Champions League campaign to reach the last eight stage this season but the reality has seen them fail to progress beyond the first hurdle once more. Bayern Munich have been joined by Inter in advancing from the group, with Barca having to make do with Europa League football once more.
As the Catalan club played Bayern Munich in front of 84,000 fans on Wednesday – knowing their side had already been eliminated – their supporters chanted the name of Messi, as Bayern raced into an early two-goal lead thanks to Sadio Mane and Erick Choupo-Moting finding the net.
Last season, Xavi's side eliminated Napoli in the Round of 32 stage of the Europa League before edging past Galatasaray in the Round of 16. However, they were downed by Eintracht Frankfurt – who went on to win the competition – at the quarter-final stage with Barca ultimately ending their campaign without a trophy.
