WATCH: Barcelona reduced to 10 men after 22 minutes as Pau Cubarsi sent off | OneFootball

Barcelona are hoping for a positive result in the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie against Benfica, but doing so will be difficult now as they have been reduced to 10 men in the opening stages at the Estadio da Luz.

Pau Cubarsi spoke pre-match of his dream to win the Champions League, but his red card will make it more difficult for Barcelona to come through this tie. After 22 minutes, he has been dismissed for a last man challenge on Benfica striker Vangelis Pavlidis.

It is a horrible moment for Cubarsi. He claimed that he touched the ball, but replays showed by he took away Pavlidis’ legs before doing so – as such, a red card was inevitable.

It is the second time that a Barcelona player has been sent off in the Champions League this season, after Eric Garcia’s dismissal against AS Monaco on MD1 of the league phase. For Hansi Flick’s side, this could now be about damage limitation in Lisbon.