Lamine Yamal lit up the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys with a fearless and electrifying performance as Barcelona and Inter Milan played out a thrilling 3-3 draw in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final. It was a match that swung wildly from one end to the other, filled with moments of brilliance, defensive fragility, and a relentless drive from both teams to impose themselves on a dramatic European night.
Barcelona might feel a tinge of regret after the final whistle. They had come back twice to level the game, yet never managed to seize control fully. But given they were a goal down inside the first minute and trailed 2-0 and 3-2, the result was also a testament to their resilience. Inter, for their part, left the pitch with their confidence restored and the tie finely balanced ahead of the return leg.
Inter’s revival started almost instantly. Barcelona had barely touched the ball when Denzel Dumfries broke into space behind the left flank, his second cross reaching Marcus Thuram, who flicked the ball past Wojciech Szczesny with elegant precision. That was just 30 seconds in. The second blow came 20 minutes later, when Dumfries connected acrobatically with a corner to double the Italians’ lead. Barcelona looked shaken, vulnerable again on the biggest stage.
But the game turned on the dazzling feet of 17-year-old Lamine Yamal. Undeterred by the deficit, he continued to drive at Inter’s defence, demanding more from the crowd and his teammates. His goal, which pulled one back for Barcelona, was a piece of magic slipping away from Thuram, gliding past Mkhitaryan, and bending the ball into the far corner through a sea of defenders. Moments later, he left Federico Dimarco sprawling and thundered a shot off the crossbar. The momentum was shifting.
Barcelona’s equaliser came not long after. Pedri found Raphinha with a lofted pass, and the Brazilian headed the ball into Ferran Torres’ path, who calmly finished to make it 2-2. The home crowd roared. Yet, as the second half unfolded, Inter struck again. From another corner, Dumfries rose highest, his header catching Szczesny out of position to restore the Italian lead.
Still, the response from Barcelona was instant. A corner rolled through Yamal’s legs at the edge of the box, seemingly by design, allowing Raphinha to strike a ferocious shot that clattered in off the bar and Sommer’s back for 3-3. It was chaotic and glorious, neither side content with settling.
Barcelona pushed for more, taking risks, sometimes too many. Pau Cubarsí’s vital interception stopped a certain goal, and a disallowed finish from Mkhitaryan spared them further punishment. But they never stopped believing, spurred on by Yamal’s constant threat. In the final moments, the teenager pirouetted past defenders yet again, and nearly had the last word with a curling shot that clipped the bar.
It was the kind of game that doesn’t answer questions but asks more of both teams. A night full of fire, skill, and ambition one that sets up a gripping second leg with everything still to play for.
