Pick Szeged, and mostly Tobias Thulin in goal, impressed greatly for 35 minutes and looked to be on their way to victory in the first Champions League quarterfinal against Barcelona. But in the second half, Emil Nielsen and Dika Mem turned the game around, and Barca won 27–23.
The atmosphere was intense from the very start in a packed arena in Hungary. And the home fans certainly had hope that Szeged could defeat Barcelona in the first of two quarterfinals – after all, they only lost by one goal in the group stage, and the match in Hungary ended in a draw.
The first half was, more than anything else, a showcase of great goalkeeping. Emil Nielsen in the away goal performed well, saving just over a third of the shots he faced. But that was nothing compared to what Tobias Thulin achieved in the home goal: ten saves and a 52% save percentage in 30 minutes is incredible, especially considering the opposition. Two of Thulin’s saves came on penalty shots from Aleix Gomez.
Despite a strong first half from the home team, the lead was “only” 10–9 at halftime – which, if anything, might worry the home supporters a bit going into the second half, as the sense was that Barca had much more to give.
Thulin started the second half just as strong, saving a penalty from fellow Swede Hampus Wanne early on. Not long after, Szeged held their biggest lead of the evening so far, 14–11. But Barca, of course, didn’t give up, clawing their way back to 16–16 as Nielsen continued to make crucial saves in goal.
Then, almost out of nowhere, Szeged managed to rally again and pull ahead 20–17. But with 15 minutes remaining, the momentum still seemed to favor the Catalans.
Mem then equalized at 21–21, and Barca took the lead for the first time through Jonathan Carlsbogård after nearly 53 minutes. When Mem made it 25–22, the win was essentially sealed for Barca – at that point, it was more about what the scoreline would look like heading into the return leg in Barcelona in just under a week. Especially since Nielsen had completely shut the door in goal by then.
The final score was 27–23, thanks largely to Nielsen and Mem turning the game around in the second half for Barca.