Raphinha grabs hat-trick as clinical Barcelona punish Bayern

In an entertaining affair, Hansi Flick’s in-form FC Barcelona side showed no mercy as they crushed Bayern Munich 4-1.

Bayern Munich were hammered 4-1 by FC Barcelona in the Champions League on Wednesday as Vincent Kompany’s men were punished for their defensive lapses.

Coached by former Bayern coach Hansi Flick, Barcelona were incredibly ruthless, with Raphinha playing a key role with a hat-trick.

Bayern got off to the worst possible start, as Raphinha opened the scoring after just one minute. The Brazilian international was played in behind Bayern’s high defensive line and took the ball past Manuel Neuer before slotting home.

The goal didn’t seem to shake Bayern too much, though, and they thought they had levelled in the 10th minute when Harry Kane found the back of the net, but the goal was ruled out for offside.

In the 18th minute, Kane struck again, finishing off a wonderful move involving Michael Olise and Serge Gnabry. This time, the England international’s goal counted and the score was level.

At this point, Bayern were controlling the game and pushing to make it 2-1, but instead Barcelona reclaimed the lead when Fermin Lopez set up former Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski for the home side’s second goal in the 36th minute. Bayern complained that Fermin Lopez had pushed Kim Minjae in the back in the build-up to the goal, but the referee decided it wasn’t enough to warrant a foul.

Just before the break, Raphinha made sure Barca went into the break 3-1 up, cutting inside and unleashing an unstoppable shot.

Bayern started the second half believing they could come back, but Raphinha effectively put the game beyond them when he completed his hat-trick in the 56th minute. Lamine Yamal played a high ball in behind the Bayern backline for the Brazilian international, who again beat a helpless Manuel Neuer.

Kompany responded with a four-man substitution, sending on Leroy Sané, Jamal Musiala, Kingsleu Coman and Leon Goretzka at the expense of Michael Olise, Thomas Muller, Serge Gnabry and Joao Palhinha.

However, Bayern never rediscovered the attacking flow they had shown earlier in the game, and Barcelona had no trouble maintaining their 4-1 lead.

The win ended a six-game losing streak for Barcelona against Bayern, with Hansi Flick’s men now heading into the El Clasico against Real Madrid. Bayern, meanwhile, will look to bounce back from the defeat when they face Bochum on Sunday.