Barcelona defeat Chapecoense in emotional pre-season friendly as crash survivor returns to field
Here are some photo highlights from the pre-season friendly between Barcelona and Chapecoense at Camp Nou on Monday.
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Barcelona eased to a 5-0 win over Chapecoense at Camp Nou to win the Joan Gamper trophy, the Catalan club’s traditional curtain-raiser for the new season of La Liga. AP
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Chapecoense’s defender Alan Ruschel holds the second place trophy. Eight months after surviving the plane crash that killed most of his Chapecoense teammates, Ruschel returned to the football field. AFP
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Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde speaks prior to the match. It was Barcelona’s first match since the departure of Neymar for Paris Saint-Germain. AP
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Alan Ruschel wore the captain’s armband for Chapecoense during the 36 minutes he played before being substituted. He received a standing ovation from the crowd, which he returned by applauding with his hands held high as he slowly walked to the dugout. AP
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Along with Alan Ruschel (R), Jackson Follmann (L) and Helio Zampier Neto (centre), were the only other Chapecoense players to survive the crash. The crowd saluted the Chapecoense players as their names were called before the match. Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta welcomed the visitors, telling the stadium that “today is a very special night.” AP
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Follmann and Neto shared in a moving honorary kickoff. Follmann, who had part of his right leg amputated from injuries in the crash, was wearing a prosthetic leg when he took the kickoff along with Neto. Neto, who played in the friendly, accompanied Follmann to the bench as they both received another wave of applause. AP
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Sergio Busquets struck from long range for Barcelona’s 2nd goal after Gerard Deulofeu, taking Neymar’s vacant spot in the attack alongside Messi and Luis Suarez, got off to a good start by opening the scoring in the sixth minute. AP
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Lionel Messi scored the third goal near the half-hour mark after being set up by Gerard Deulofeu. AP
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Luis Suarez and Denis Suarez scored in the second half to make it 5-0 for Barcelona. AP
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Barcelona’s Andres Iniesta holds the Joan Gamper trophy after the match. In an emotional night at Camp Nou, the match was more about overcoming the terrible tragedy that had shaken Chapecoense than a warm-up game for the Catalan club. AP
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