“Szczesny saved us many times today, he is outstanding,” Barcelona midfielder Pedri told Spanish TV station Movistar Plus.

“Szczesny saved us many times today, he is outstanding,” Barcelona midfielder Pedri told Spanish TV station Movistar Plus.

“You have to give a lot of credit for the team’s effort after going a man down so early in the game. On other days it was harder for us but today we hung on and defended really well.”

Szczesny’s brilliant night started 30 seconds after kickoff, when Pavlidis recovered the ball and fed Kerem Akturkoglu inside the box and he fired a low strike that the 34-year-old keeper kept out with a one-handed save.

The Polish keeper ended up making eight saves, five of those in the second half when Benfica piled on the pressure with over 60% of possession and 15 goal attempts.

Barca had only a couple, with Raphinha netting with their only shot on target in the second half.

Szczesny’s magic included a stunning reflex save to deny Fredrik Aursnes from close range early on after the break and an excellent stop to palm away Renato Sanches’s bullet strike.