MANCHESTER, England -- Feeling they had a point to prove, Ba

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MANCHESTER, England -- Feeling they had a point to prove, Barcelonas players delivered in style leaving Manchester City bitter and bruised. Luke Kuechly Jersey . Advancing to the Champions League quarterfinals should be a formality after Lionel Messi scored a penalty and Dani Alves added a late second to secure a commanding 2-0 advantage over City in the round of 16 on Tuesday. Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas felt confident enough to deliver a message to his teams critics: "They will have to shut up for a few days." It seems incongruous that Fabregas would have to be so defensive of Barcelona, given his team tops the Spanish standings, has reached the Copa del Rey final and is on the verge of reaching the Champions League quarterfinals for the seventh straight year. "Theres nothing else you can ask for," Fabregas said. So much for the Catalan giants being a fading force. This win, against a team that seeks to emulate Barcelona on and off the pitch, exposed the gulf between them. And City, which has spent heavily to reach the knockout phase for the first time, couldnt keep up with the elegant visitors. "Maybe we had to prove a point in a way and I think we did it," Fabregas said. "And I think we did it in a style." Waves of attacks by the Spanish champions had been repelled until the start of the second half when Martin Demichelis couldnt keep up with the speedy Messi, dragging down his fellow Argentine and conceding the penalty. Even after Messi made it 11 goals in 11 games since returning from injury, City managed to test Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes more than had it with a full complement of players. But City couldnt equalize against the run of play and Dani Alves successfully completed a one-two with substitute Neymar in the 90th minute to score the teams 113th goal of the season. It was an unsettling introduction to the knockout phase of the competition for City, with Barcelonas poise and panache enabling the four-time European champions to remain in near-complete control against Englands emerging force. Rather than acknowledging the strength of the opposition, City manager Manuel Pellegrini questioned the integrity of Swedish referee Jonas Eriksson. "From the beginning I could see the ref was not impartial to both teams," Pellegrini said. And Pellegrini felt that the referee was not up to managing a game of this magnitude despite being selected by FIFA for the World Cup. A Swede lit up the nights other game. Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored twice, between goals from Blaise Matuidi and Yohan Cabaye, as Paris Saint-Germain won 4-0 at Bayer Leverkusen. The second legs of both games are on March 12, and wiping out a 2-0 deficit would seem to be beyond City at this stage. Especially if it struggles to break up Barcelonas flowing passing moves like at the Etihad. Somehow, though, the hosts emerged unscathed from their hesitant start and even produced the first meaningful shot of the match after 25 minutes when Alvaro Negredo curled the ball at Valdes. For all Barcelonas dominance, Hart had one meaningful save to make in the first half, pushing away Xavi Hernandezs long-range strike. "I thought we maybe gave a little too much respect to them in the beginning," City captain Vincent Kompany said. "They were there for the taking." But City couldnt and, after a quiet first half by his standards, Messis key contribution came after the break, scoring his 66th Champions League goal in the 54th minute, putting him just five from levelling Raul Gonzalezs record. Aside from Xavi firing over and Dani Alves skewing an effort wide, City looked more likely to find the net at times in the second half despite chasing shadows so often. Then a lightening move down the right flank was completed by Dani Alves putting the ball through Harts legs from a tight angle, giving Barca a comfortable lead as it chases a first European title since 2011. "They are incredibly efficient," Kompany said. "When you play against them you do realize the individual quality of this team is phenomenal and it makes it so difficult to close them down." Devin Funchess Jersey . Steve has built a solid reputation throughout the years - first as a hockey player, then as an NHL general manager and now as a scout. Cameron Artis-Payne Jersey . The 23-year-old restricted free agent appeared in all 48 games last season, finishing second among all Sabres skaters with 15 goals and 34 points. http://www.footballpantherspro.com/panthers-derek-anderson-blue-jersey/ . Spieth again showed game well beyond his 20 years with a 9-under 63 on the North Course, giving him a one-shot lead over Stewart Cink going into the weekend at the Farmers Insurance Open.While the Montreal Canadiens made an incredible run to the Eastern Conference Final in his second season as general manager, Marc Bergevin isnt ready to label his team as contenders just yet. Bergevin held court with the media in his end-of-season news conference on Monday, saying theres still plenty to do to make the Habs a championship-calibre club. "I thought our young players learned a lot," he said. "What they learned over the last 17 playoff games is something you cant buy. Were a good team with a young core, but were not a mature team yet. Im happy with our season, but theres still work to do. "Next year, we go back to the same starting line with everybody else. Our first goal will be to make the playoffs and, once youre in, anythings possible. Maybe one day down the road well be a mature team but were not there yet." The No. 1 question posed to Bergevin was the contract status of star defenceman P.K. Subban, who becomes a restricted free agent with arbitration rights on July 1. Subban, who signed a two-year bridge contract after the 2012-13 lockout, captured the Norris Trophy as the NHLs top blueliner last year, was named to the Canadian mens Olympic team that won gold in Sochi in February and was among their top players in the postseason. While many speculate that Subban could pull in an eight-year contract worth $8 million to $9 million a season, Bergevin wasnt showing his hand on anything regarding negotiations. "Contract talks are strategic," he explained, reminding reporters that his policy is to never divulge contract updates in public. "I cant give you a timeline on when itll get done." Bergevin, did however, mention he would like to retain pending UFA Brian Gionta, whos been captain for the last four seasons. "Well see what we can do to bring him back," he said, adding that others have stepped up as leaders as well. "(Josh) Gorges is a really good leader. Carey, P.K., and Patch are taking that role. We have a lot of young leaders who will help moving forward. A guy like Plekanec might not be a player who talks a lot, but by his play and the way he competes, hes a leader." Bergevin also said that heaad coach Michel Therrien, who has a year left on his contract, will be back - likely with an extension. Custom Carolina Panthers Jerseys. Therrien raised plenty of eyebrows using third-string goalie Dustin Tokarski over backup Peter Budaj in the conference final after starting netminder Carey Price was injured. There will be plenty of speculation about what the team may do with both goaltenders this summer. "I know him personally," Bergevin said of Budaj. "Hes a great man, loved by his teammates. And through this whole thing he was very positive. Michel had a hunch to put (Tokarski) in for the second game and he gave us a chance to win. Internally well discuss it, but its a nice problem to have." The Canadiens GM was also satisfied this season with the development of young blueliners Nathan Beaulieu, Jarred Tinordi and Greg Pateryn, the first two playing short stints with the NHL club. "I think the day they become everyday players with the Canadiens will be sooner rather than later," he said. "Do I want them to play in NHL next season - yes. "I want some internal competition at camp (next season)." Bergevin also defended the much-criticized handling of the concussion suffered by forward Dale Weise in Game 5 of the conference final. Weise was wobbly and went to the dressing room after a blindside hit by New Yorks John Moore, but returned later in the game. Weise did not play in Game 6 due to what Therrien would only call a "body injury." It appeared the team let Weise back out on the ice even if it looked obvious he had his brain rattled by the hit. Bergevin said the team didnt find out until the next day that Weise had a concussion and was satisfied that he was properly examined according to the league rules before being allowed to return. "The NHL has a protocol that needs to be followed," he said. "If the player says hes OK and the test says hes OK, then hes OK. Players have a list of things they need to do before they can return to play and he passed with flying colours. "Its flawed, but Im not a doctor. We all worry about our players, but we can only go by what were given." - with CP files Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '