UCL 2024/25: FC Barcelona and Bayer Leverkusen suffer major blows ahead of their 2nd leg fixtures of UEFA Champions League 2024/25. Both sides will have to make atleast one change in their squads, as Pau Cubarsi (FC Barcelona) and Nordi Mukiele (Bayer Leverkusen) received a red card in their respective 1st leg fixtures.

The Bayer Leverkusen right-back received a second yellow card in the 62nd minute, in his side's 3-0 defeat to fierce rivals Bayern Munich, as his reckless challenge on Kingsley Coman resulted in his send-off.

On the other hand, the FC Barcelona centre-back received a straight red card for his poor challenge in the 22nd minute on SL Benfica striker Vangelis Pavlidis, as the Spanish international brought the Greek forward down just outside the box.

The red-card decision led to a desperate substitution of Dani Olmo for Ronaldo Araujo, as FC Barcelona needed another centre-back alongside Inigo Martinez.

Inspite of being a man down for 70 miniutes, FC Barcelona managed to win their crucial away fixture 1-0, thanks to a sensational goal from in-form Raphinha.

Few months ago, FC Barcelona and SL Benfica played one of the all-time classics at the same venue, as the Blaugrana raced to a sensational 5-4 win, with Raphinha scoring a last-second winner.

Hansi Flick Reflects On His Side's Crucial Win: WATCH

FC Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick praised his side in their 1-0 win over SL Benfica, and praised goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny's heroics in the game.

"It's good for the next leg and of course I hope a lot of fans are there. I know that Benfica had a lot of chances but today we had a good goalie on the pitch and of course we deserved it," said Hansi Flick.