It took a penalty thriller, but in the end there was a sensation: the U19s of Bundesliga club Mainz 05 celebrated a victory against Barcelona in the Youth League.
The U19s of Bundesliga club Mainz 05 surprisingly eliminated two-time title holders FC Barcelona in the UEFA Youth League. The German A-youth champions defeated the Catalans 6-5 on penalties in front of almost 8,000 fans in the sold-out Bruchwegstadion. After 90 minutes the score was 2:2 (1:1), there is no extra time.
The hero of the evening was U17 world champion Louis Babatz with two saved penalties. Maxim Dal, who also won the World Cup with Germany in Indonesia in November, had previously converted from the spot.
Barça won the Youth League in 2014 and 2018, and there has never been a German title holder. Like Mainz, RB Leipzig also reached the round of 16 with a win against FC Midtjylland on Tuesday, which will be drawn on Friday. Bayern Munich face FC Basel on Wednesday.