When people say that Leo Messi marked a before and after in FC Barcelona’s history, it’s no coincidence. With him, the club won four of the five Champions League titles displayed at the Camp Nou… and Barcelona reached the semifinals nine times during the 17 seasons he was part of the first team. But now, Barcelona has learned to live in the Champions League without Leo Messi and has returned to a semifinal six years later.

Barcelona escapes Champions League hell

The last time Barcelona reached the Champions League semifinals was in the 2018-2019 season, when they convincingly defeated Manchester United with an aggregate score of 4-0… with Messi scoring two of Barcelona’s four goals. Since then, Barcelona went through a rough patch for five years… until they returned to the Champions League semifinals after defeating Borussia Dortmund.

There were more than a few disappointments for Barcelona along the way. Still with Messi on the team, they were humiliated by Bayern Munich under Hansi Flick in the quarterfinals of the 2019/2020 Champions League, and the following year, they couldn’t overcome PSG in the Round of 16. After Messi’s departure, Barcelona hit rock bottom, getting eliminated in the group stage of the next two Champions League campaigns and, last season, they were knocked out by PSG in the quarterfinals.

When was the last time Barcelona played a Champions League semifinal without Messi?

Now, for the first time since Leo Messi’s departure, Barcelona is seeing the light again, making it back to a Champions League semifinal six years later. But the question many fans are asking is: when was the last time Barcelona made it to a Champions League semifinal without Leo Messi in the squad? Truth is, it’s been a long time.

To remember it, you have to go back to the 2001-2002 season, when Barcelona defeated a surprising Panathinaikos in the quarterfinals after losing the first leg in Greece. Thanks to two goals from Luis Enrique and another from Saviola, Barcelona managed to turn the tie around and reach the semifinals, where they were unable to beat Real Madrid, who weeks later would go on to lift their ninth European Cup against Bayer Leverkusen.