Messi 67', Dani Alves 90' Kompany 89'
Brave blues conquered by Messi magic.
30 appearances, 28 goals and 8 assists - and still an unripened segment of the media believe Lionel Messi is having 'the worst season of his career'. The suggestion will have initiated a few chuckles in the Barcelona dressing room, but Manchester City were unable to join in with the laughter as they watched the Argentinian wizard confirm their demise in the last 16 of the Champions League last night.
The blues, led by their estimable captain Vincent Kompany, marched into the Nou Camp inflated with the spirit that earned them their historic Premier League title back in 2012, and although a valiant performance will earn them their plaudits this week, a place in the quarter-final of football's most acclaimed competition went amiss.
(Vincent Kompany led by example last night, but was unable to lead his side to a memorable comeback)
Salivating for the vital first goal, a predatory Manchester City side hounded their hosts and attempted to disrupt the illustrious rhythm of Barcelona's passing. But with Lionel Messi and Neymar patrolling a problematic City back line at the other end of the pitch, Martino's side were content with counter-attacking football and the barbarous pace of the duo threatened to end City's faint hopes of progression early on.
With Martin Demichelis suspended after bringing down Lionel Messi in the first leg, Joleon Lescott was summoned to fill the void - and the Englishman did his best to replicate the antics of his South American teammate after just seven minutes of play. The menace of Messi teased and tantalised the jittering legs of Lescott as he burst into the City penalty area, but an illegal block on the Argentinian was waved away by referee Stephan Lannoy.
That, however, wouldn't be the only outrageous call made by the French official as his shenanigans continued to soil a gripping game of football. Just minutes later, the hosts penetrated City's defence again, but Neymar's tap in was disallowed as his supplier Jordi Alba was wrongly flagged for offside.
(French referee Stephan Lannoy had a night to forget at the Nou Camp)
'The loner in Barcelona' Manuel Pellegrini watched on from the stands as his side emerged free from a rebarbative period of Barcelona dominance, and if the officials weren't on his side in the first leg, they certainly were tonight. But even as luck began to boost the tempo of City's play, chances still had to be taken, and Samir Nasri had his head in his hands at the end of the first half when his half volley flew straight into the hands of Víctor Valdés. Yaya Touré's elegant chip was knocked expertly into the path of Nasri by David Silva, but the Frenchman could only smash his chance down the throat of the Spanish stopper.
On a night when chances were unlikely to present themselves so readily, ruthlessness in front of goal was key, but the blues were unable to unlock their goalscoring habits that encouraged them earlier in the season. Sergio Agüero's withdrawal from play at the half way mark made a return to their old ways even more unlikely, but the introduction of Edin Džeko gave Pellegrini's men an effective target to aim for up top.
After netting twice in two minutes back on 13th May 2012, the proposition of forty-five minutes to achieve the same feat appeared an elementary task for the blues, that is until they realised the superiority of their opposition. If City had forgotten that fact, Lionel Messi certainly made them aware of it just five minutes into the second half when the four time Ballon d'Or winner weaved his way through Pellegrini's defence only to see his effort rebound off Joe Hart's right post.
(Samir Nasri was denied his third half-volley in three games just before the break)
Chances continued to present themselves for the visitors and a tremendous leap from Edin Džeko almost saw the ball fly into the top corner of Valdés' net, but the Spaniard's acrobatic save was equally as impressive. Pablo Zabaleta's skewed effort soon after summed up a hapless evening for his side and more shots from Lionel Messi continued to rain down on Joe Hart's goal.
And it wasn't long until the magician finally got his goal when Joleon Lescott failed to deal with a tame Cesc Fabregas pass. The through ball was latched onto by Messi who exquisitely chipped over Hart to put the tie beyond any doubt.
(Lionel Messi scores his second goal of the tie to effectively dump Manchester City out of the Champions League)
With 13 minutes left to play, a squadron of inflamed City players surrounded the referee as he ignored a blatant Gerard Pique pull-back on Edin Džeko inside the Barcelona penalty box. Pablo Zabaleta led his side's incensed protests, and his fury was punished with a second yellow card issued by Lannoy. The luck that the Frenchman had afforded the blues in the first half was being robbed from them in the second, and the red card capped off a horrendous evening for the official.
Džeko continued to trouble the Barcelona defence and with just a minute of normal time left to play, Vincent Kompany tapped in from the Bosnian's header to equalise. The Belgian's indomitable performance at the heart of City's defence asserted his status as possibly the world's best central defender and his conduct warranted much more than an early exit from the Champions League.
(Down and out: Vincent Kompany's heroic performance wasn't deserving of a loss)
But with the man advantage, the hosts refused to halt their surge into the Manchester City penalty area and some fine work by Andres Iniesta was rewarded when his ball was finished off by Dani Alves in stoppage time.
Another year of Champions League misfortune for Manchester City, but a valiant performance at Europe's most intimidating stage will provide encouragement in the dressing room. Lethargy has characterised the blues' recent conduct but Manuel Pellegrini's attentions must now turn to the league. With three games in hand on Chelsea, one could argue that it's City's title to lose, and those assumptions will be answered on Saturday afternoon as the blues travel to the home of a roaring Hull City side.
Player Ratings
Joe Hart 7 - Solid performance from the England goalkeeper who kept the blues in the game for long periods of time. Excellent save to deny Messi in the first half and could do nothing about the two goals.
Pablo Zabaleta 5.5 - Let the occasion get the better of him and adopted a feisty approach from the off. Early yellow card left him treading water and he was sent off for dissent late in the game. Missed an excellent chance to get City rolling.
Vincent Kompany 8 - Led his troops immaculately and put in a monstrous performance at the centre of City's defence. Unfortunately, he had to babysit Lescott and his heroics went unrewarded.
Joleon Lescott 5 - Terrorised by Messi throughout and was at fault for Barcelona's opener. The position is still definitely up for grabs.
Aleksandar Kolarov 6 - Gave the ball away too often in the first half but redeemed himself with surging runs and testing delivery in the second.
James Milner 6 - Introduced into the side for his energy and work rate, but Milner was unable to unsettle Los Cules as he did against Bayern Munich in January. 
Fernandinho 7 - Worked tirelessly to neutralise a brilliant Barcelona midfield and allowed Toure to press forward with intent. Always does the important work that often goes unnoticed.
Yaya Touré 7 - His power helped City both offensively and defensively, but the former Barca favourite was unable to terrorise his old suitors. A tough evening for the Ivorian.
Samir Nasri 6 - Failed to impact the game as he'd have liked to and missed City's best chance of the game.
David Silva 7 - Looked a threat throughout and was central to most of City's creative play. As always, finishing needs work, but he's always instrumental in City's best play.
Sergio Agüero 5 - Highlighted as the key man before the game, but the Argentine limped off with a recurring hamstring injury at half time and was anonymous in the first half.
Substitutes
Edin Džeko 7 - Troubled Barcelona's defence, draw a blatant penalty and could have scored. Promising cameo.
Alvaro Negredo 6 - Unable to trouble Barcelona's back line.
Jesus Navas 5 - Ineffective.
Shots on target: Barcelona 7 - 4 Manchester City
Shots off target: Barcelona 5 - 5 Manchester City
Corners: Barcelona 5 - 4 Manchester City
Fouls: Barcelona 8 - 23 Manchester City
Pass Completion: Barcelona 91% - 85% Manchester City
Tackle Success: Barcelona 41% - 30% Manchester City
