;Alexis Sanchez hit his first Champions League goals, and Lionel Messi added a third, as Barcelona won their last-16 tie first leg at Bayer Leverkusen.
Sanchez capped a dominant first half for the defending champions by slotting home from the brilliant Messi's pass.
Michal Kadlec equalised with a header from Vedran Corluka's cross but Sanchez rounded Bernd Leno to tap in and restore his side's advantage.
Messi shot against the post before sealing the victory with a volley. The sublime skills of Lionel Messi and Cesc Fábregas provided Alexis Sánchez with two goals as Barcelona stamped their authority on Bayer Leverkusen in their Champions League last-16 tie.
Barça, who are unbeaten in 13 Champions League games and have scored in 28 consecutive matches in the competition, took the lead in the 41st minute after a brilliant left-footed flick by Messi se In the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16 Barcelona produced a fine performance and will be going into the second leg with a comfortable 3-1 advantage. After a string of under par games Barcelona looked to play at a level closer to their expectations, not counting the defense, and the result of such play was evident. The game itself was basically a tale of two halves with the second one being miles better.
But this game somewhat began two hours before kickoff when Culés received a piece of bad news as it was revealed that Barca's maestro, Xavi Hernandez, won't be able to participate in the game because of calf muscle problems. The midfielder offered to play on painkillers, but Pep Guardiola decided he won't risk any further complications and left Xavi out of the 18-man squad.
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