A enthralling 3-3 draw with Inter Milan on Matchday 4 of the group stage has left Barcelona clinging on to slim hope of progressing to the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 this season.
Xavi's side have won just one of their four games in Group C to leave them in a precarious position to advance with two matchdays remaining.
Barcelona were also knocked out in the Champions League group stage last season and will now have to rely on more than just their own results to avoid a similar fate this campaign.
The Spanish giants started off their Champions League participation with a 5-1 win against Viktoria Plzen, but picking up just one point across two matches against Inter Milan looks set to prove costly.
MORE: Which clubs are through to the Champions League knockout stage?
Barcelona Champions League group standings
Group C
| Team | PTS | GP | W | L | D | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Bayern Munich | 12 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 2 | +11 |
| 2. Inter Milan | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 5 | +1 |
| 3. Barcelona | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 7 | +1 |
| 4. Viktoria Plzen | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 16 | -13 |
After four games and with just four points to show, Barcelona already cannot catch group leaders Bayern Munich.
Inter Milan remain within touching distance but Xavi's side need to finish the group stage with more points than the Italians if they are to progress.
Current tiebreaker rules dictate that if two clubs finish with the same points, it's the points from the group matches between the teams in question that will determine who advances.
In this case, Inter would win any tiebreaker and advance having collected four points (win and draw) to Barcelona's one point (loss and draw) across their two head-to-head games.
How can Barcelona qualify for Champions League knockout stage?
Barcelona need to win their final two matches and hope Inter Milan don't win either of their final two matches to pull off a miraculous group stage qualification.
- Barcelona beat Bayern Munich on Matchday 5 AND
- Inter Milan fail to beat Viktoria Plzen on Matchday 5 AND
- Barcelona beat Viktoria Plzen on Matchday 6 AND
- Inter Milan fail to beat Bayern Munich on Matchday 6.
Goal difference is no longer important for Barcelona when it comes to either of these final two group games, with only the three points in each required.
Beat Bayern Munich (Matchday 5)
To keep any hope of progressing in the Champions League this season, Barca must first beat Bayern Munich in their next match on October 26.
Xavi's side will be playing this fixture on their home field of the Camp Nou, but have notably lost their last three matches against the German giants without scoring.
Their most recent match ended in a 2-0 Bayern win with Barcelona's star forward acquisition Robert Lewandowski, who played for Bayern as recently as last season, failing to score.
Anything other than a win for Barcelona in this next match against Bayern Munich would make it impossible for them to escape Group C and they would be mathematically eliminated.
Beat Viktoria Plzen (Matchday 6)
Should the Catalans pull off an impressive victory against Bayern, they'd then also need to beat Viktoria Plzen in their final group stage match.
Barcelona beat the Czech club 5-1 last time out and would require another win to keep their Round of 16 hopes alive.
Inter don't win any of their remaining games (Matchdays 5 & 6)
Unfortunately for Barcelona, even if they do win their final two group games, they're reliant on Inter Milan not winning any of their final two.
The Italians only need another three points to secure qualification to the knockout stages due to their superior head-to-head record against Barcelona.
Inter next face Viktoria Plzen in Matchday 5 where a victory would end Barcelona's hopes of progressing — even if Xavi's side managed to beat Bayern.
A loss or draw by Inter Milan against Plzen, coupled with a Barcelona victory, would keep Barca alive and Inter would then need to beat Bayern themselves on the final day to guarantee a spot in the Round of 16.
