Too passive in the face of overexcited Germans, Xavi's men certainly still have their destiny in hand, but they have not lived up to their role as big favorites in the competition.

"We knew what awaited us here, admitted Barcelona goalkeeper Marc Andre ter Stegen, we could and we had to do better, but 1-1 is ok."

From the outset, ter Stegen's partners suffered against opponents who entered the game at 100 an hour, with two huge chances in the first ten minutes by Ansgar Knauff and Djibril Sow, the first blocked for a corner and the second does not frame his shot.

Barcelona gradually took control of the midfield, however, to finish the first half with 66% possession.

The most prominent player was then Adama Traoré, untenable on his right wing (Ousmane Dembélé was on the bench at kick-off).

A possession however essentially sterile, since in the same 45 minutes, Frankfurt shot eight times on goal, against only twice for the Catalans.

Penalty waived

We felt this crumbly Barcelona.

And the video also saved him from giving in before the break.

In the 38th minute, the referee whistled a penalty for a foul by captain Sergio Busquets in the box, but the game director reversed his decision after consulting his touch screen.

Frankfurt midfielder Ansgar Knauff scores in the 48th minute of the Europa League quarter-final first leg against Barcelona on April 7, 2022 in Frankfurt, Germany Daniel ROLAND AFP

Barça was punished for its relative passivity after returning from the locker room, when Knauff made a highlight of Frankfurt a tense long shot under the bar (1-0, 48th).

The quality of the Barcelonians, however, allowed them to come back to score, in the 66th minute.

Frenkie De Jong, who came into play shortly before, played a one-two with Torres, who placed the ball in the left corner of the goal, out of reach of Kevin Trapp, the former goalkeeper of Paris SG (1-1) .

This goal did not cool Eintracht, pushed by a packed stadium happy to find its players at this level after two years of total or partial behind closed doors.

The Germans have long continued to put pressure and threaten ter Stegen, their compatriot in the Catalan goals.

Despite a more dynamic last quarter of an hour, Barça can consider themselves lucky to bring back a draw.

He will have to play at another level on April 14 on the return trip so as not to be trapped and validate a ticket for the semi-finals.

© 2022 AFP