Villain to Victor: Lewandowski redeems own goal to sink Slavia Prague

The match took a surprising turn in the 10th minute when Vasil Kušej scored from a corner to give Slavia Prague an early lead. Barcelona responded with sustained pressure and found the equaliser in the 34th minute, as Fermín López finished after a precise through ball from Frenkie de Jong. Seven minutes later, Fermín completed his brace with a powerful long-range strike.

However, just before half-time, Robert Lewandowski inadvertently headed the ball into his own net from a Prague corner, bringing the score level at 2-2. In the second half, Barcelona continued to push for a winner and were rewarded in the 63rd minute, when Dani Olmo restored the lead with a strike from outside the box, just two minutes after coming on.

Lewandowski later redeemed himself by scoring Barcelona’s fourth goal, with Marcus Rashford providing the assist. The match ended 4-2 in favour of Barcelona, securing their fourth win in the Champions League this season.

The goal also saw Lewandowski become the sixth-oldest player to score in the Champions League, at the age of 37 years and 153 days. It was his 106th goal in the competition, keeping him third on the all-time scoring list behind Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Lewandowski has now scored against 39 different teams in the Champions League, moving past Cristiano Ronaldo’s total of 38.

Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick praised Lewandowski and his teammates after the match. “It wasn’t easy out there today. It was really cold and Slavia are a physical team. I said before the game that it would be physical and that they have some great players and it’s not easy to defend against them.

“I am really happy with the team’s reaction and in the end we deserved the three points, especially after our much better second-half performance. Fermín was really good and Dani Olmo came on and scored a really important goal. Lewandowski played all 90 minutes and fought all the way, fantastic to see.”