Raphinha equalled Lionel Messi’s club record for goal involvements in a single UEFA Champions League campaign as Barcelona thrashed Borussia Dortmund in Spain on Wednesday night to take command of their quarter-final tie.
Also on Wednesday night, Paris St-Germain came from behind to beat Aston Villa 3-1 in their first leg clash in France.
Brazil forward Raphinha scored and assisted twice to reach 19 goal involvements in the competition this term, the same as Messi achieved in the 2011-2012 campaign.
Raphinha’s 12th European goal of the season gave Barcelona a deserved first-half lead, before Robert Lewandowski struck twice after the break and Lamine Yamal added a fourth to put the Spanish side on course for the semi-finals.
The hosts ran riot in the early stages and could have scored three times inside the opening seven minutes, with Yamal and Lewandowski forcing Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel into smart saves.
Barca’s pressure told in the 25th minute, although the goal was a touch fortuitous.
Fermin Lopez’s free-kick — awarded when Karim Adeyemi pulled the hair of Jules Kounde — found Inigo Martinez at the far post, who headed the ball across the six-yard box.
Pau Cubarsi poked the ball towards the far corner past the dive of Kobel, with Champions League top scorer Raphinha just about staying onside for a sliding finish on the line.
Dortmund grew into the game as the half progressed, with Adeyemi and Serhou Guirassy going close as the break approached.
Lewandowski, though, doubled Barca’s lead three minutes after the restart from a yard out, converting Raphinha’s header across the face of goal following Yamal’s cross to the far post.
Dortmund began to struggle as mistakes on the ball gifted the LaLiga leaders several more chances. Fermin hit the outside of the post with a fizzing low strike from 16 yards out, before blazing over a rebound a minute later.
Lewandowski put the first leg beyond doubt with his 99th goal for the club, finishing off a lightning counter-attack in the 66th minute with a ruthless first-time strike under Kobel.
Raphinha matched Messi’s record by sliding the ball across for Yamal to finish in the 77th minute following another ruthless break.
Barcelona will travel to Germany for the second leg on Tuesday.
In Paris, Aston Villa shocked PSG to open the scoring against the run of play, Morgan Rogers finishing off a fine team move in the 35th minute.
PSG were stung into a response by the goal and they pulled level four minutes later with a brilliant effort from range by Desire Doue.
The dominant hosts, who saw off Liverpool in the round of 16, went in front through a magnificent Khvicha
Kvaratskhelia strike four minutes into the second half.
Nuno Mendes struck from close range in added time to give the French champions a two-goal advantage for the reverse fixture on Tuesday.
BBC Sport, with additional report
