When it looked like things were starting to get better for Barcelona, a painful Europa League exit has reminded them how far they are from the good old glory days. An inspired Eintracht Frankfurt shocked Xavi Hernandez's men, who despite two late goals were unable to turn things around.
It was a huge step back for Barca, who were showing signs of progress until then. Far from taking control of the game, they were outplayed by the visitors to the point of trailing 0-3 for much of the second half. But somehow, the shocking elimination at home was not the only reason why Xavi Hernandez and company felt embarrassed.
Frankfurt not only outplayed Barcelona on the pitch, but also on the stands. Nearly 30,000 away supporters have surprisingly taken the Camp Nou by storm to witness their team's qualification for the Europa League semifinals, although just 5,000 tickets were officially sold to away fans. Shocking as it may sound, this was not the first time Frankfurt followers made themselves feel at home on the road.
Eintracht Franfkurt fans have previously 'taken over' a Premier League stadium before the Camp Nou
It would be fair to say that most soccer fans were surprised to see how many away supporters gained access to Barcelona's home for the European clash. However, it may have not been that surprising for Chelsea fans.
The Blues already know what it's like to have thousands of Eintracht Frankfurt fans at the home support areas of their own stadium. In the second leg of the 2019 UEFA Europa League semifinals, supporters from the German club have also infiltrated areas of the Stamford Bridge that were supposed for Chelsea fans.
Similar to what happened in Barcelona, Frankfurt fans didn't settle with the allowed capacity at the away end and went on to make their way into the home sections. As a result, it looked like Chelsea were playing at a neutral stadium rather than at home.
Three years later, Eintracht Frankfurt fans have once again shown their unwillingness to settle with only a few thousands of seats. The Bundesliga club will now take on West Ham in the Europa League semifinals, so the Hammers may want to keep this in mind at the time of selling tickets.
