Barcelona vs M'gladbach. UEFA Champions League Group C.
Camp NouAttendance67,157.
Tuesday 6 December 2016 22:40, UK
Arda Turan scored a second-half hat-trick as Barcelona cruised to a comfortable 4-0 Champions League victory over Borussia Monchengladbach at the Nou Camp.
Barcelona were already guaranteed top spot in Group C heading into Tuesday night's game, while Monchengladbach couldn't finish anywhere but third, but that didn't stop Luis Enrique's side putting on a fine display.
Lionel Messi slotted home early on, and Turkish midfielder Turan added three more after the break as they brought an end to their run of three straight draws in all competitions.
The result will help ease the pressure on boss Luis Enrique, who has seen his side fall six points behind bitter rivals Real Madrid in La Liga.
Barcelona began the game in typically dominant fashion as they looked to improve upon their recent run of poor form, and it took just 16 minutes to get themselves into the lead as Messi played a one-two into the box with Turan, before finishing coolly past Yann Sommer.
Without Neymar and Luis Suarez, who started on the bench, Barca somewhat lacked a cutting edge up front and Enrique's side couldn't turn their possession into any more goals in the first half.
But the home side took complete charge early in the second half as Turan struck twice, first after 50 minutes when he headed home from Denis Suarez's deflected cross, then slotting smartly into the bottom corner after Aleix Vidal had pulled the ball back to him on the edge of the area.
And after 67 minutes, the Turkish midfielder completed his hat-trick, again having the simplest of finishes at the far post after Paco Alcacer had played the ball across the six-yard box into his path.
Barcelona continued to control the final quarter of the game as they eventually attempted a total of 993 passes throughout the game, the most in a single Champions League match since the 2003/04 campaign. They'll be in the hat for the last-16 draw of the Champions League next Monday, while Monchengladbach drop into the Europa League.
