If you thought that things could not get uglier for Barcelona after their 3-0 loss against Bayern, you will be in for a surprise when you find out that not only they picked up a similar score against Benfica, but the team also failed to show an improvement after that first clash.
The team led by Ronald Koeman never found a way to keep Darwin Núñez or Joao Mario at bay, and the duo crafted this three-nil win almost without any opposition. Things could have gotten uglier for Barcelona if Nuñez had been accurate in front of goal, as he failed to score a one-on-one chance against Marc-André Ter Stegen and also hit the post on another action where the German goalkeeper left an open net.
Barcelona are ranked fourth in this group after two games, meaning that they will virtually need to win all their remaining games to have a chance to make the next round. But before that happens, the start of this UEFA Champions League has already seen Los Culés making history for all the wrong reasons.
2 - Barcelona have lost their first two matches in a UEFA European campaign for only the second time in their entire history, after their two defeats in UEFA Cup first round tie with FC Porto in 1972-73 and suffering elimination. Difficulty. pic.twitter.com/gFFZhmu8gI
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) September 29, 2021
#Barcelona is winless in 5 straight UEFA Champions League games for the first time since a streak of 8 between 1994-97
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) September 29, 2021
It has been outscored by a combined 14-2 during its 5-game #UCL streak
3-0 vs Benfica
3-0 vs Bayern
1-1 vs PSG
4-1 vs PSG
3-0 vs Juventus pic.twitter.com/ubw6o7clyq
The last time Barcelona lost back-to-back group stage games in the #UCL, Pep Guardiola was their captain.
— Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) September 29, 2021
A really poor start to the campaign. pic.twitter.com/NRdgmnR7FS
- FC Barcelona lose their opening two matches of a European campaign for the third time, after 1966/67 and 1972/73 (both two-legged ties in the UEFA Cup). #BENBAR #UCL pic.twitter.com/W4NXZQVmnn
— Gracenote Live (@GracenoteLive) September 29, 2021
Needless to say, Barcelona fans have stepped up to demand Koeman's sacking with immediate effect.
A humiliating defeat at Estádio Da Luz was the end of Quique Setien's tenure as the Barcelona coach. Koeman to go down the same route? pic.twitter.com/t8eCJC5CIl
— Barça Buzz (@Barca_Buzz) September 29, 2021
Get the official press release ready @FCBarcelona
— TalkFCB © (@talkfcb_) September 29, 2021
Koeman has just said that the result doesn't reflect what happened on pitch
— Rafael Hernández (@RafaelH117) September 29, 2021
Not firing Koeman is ultimately going to be more expensive than firing him.
— Diana Kristinne (@DianaKristinne) September 29, 2021