Messi inspires Barca to Arsenal win

BARCELONA, Mar 9 (AFP): A Lionel Messi brace helped Barcelona to a 3-1 victory over 10-man Arsenal on Tuesday to put them into the quarter-finals of Champions League on a 4-3 aggregate. The Argentine World Player of the Year was the difference as Barcelona produced another outstanding display of attacking football which left the Arsenal defence stretched from beginning to end. The Catalan side needed just one goal after losing 2-1 at the Emirates and Messi put them ahead in first-half stoppage time. An own goal by Sergio Busquets put Arsenal back on level terms but the game turned Barca's way by the sending off of Robin van Persie two minutes later. Xavi Hernandez leveled the tie at 2-1 and then Leo Messi scored the decider with a penalty. While Van Persie labelled the sending off a joke and questioned the validity of referee Massimo Busacca's credentials for being in charge, a furious Wenger confronted the Swiss official in the tunnel afterwards. "We lost against a good team but if it had stayed at 11 players apiece then I could accept losing," said the Frenchman, who has seen his side lose in the League Cup final and exit here in the past 10 days. "Unfortunately that was not the case and we have many regrets tonight. The way we lost tonight makes it hard to accept." Barca coach Pep Guardiola accepted Arsenal were a very good side but pinpointed why they had lost. "We didn't allow them to make three or four successive passes this evening," he said. "We played a perfect game. I am so happy, indeed we all are at our performance. Over the two legs we were better than them."