2-2, historically an excellent result for FC Barcelona

FC Barcelona left the Parc des Princes on Tuesday evening with a two-all result. Even though the result isn’t as good as the Blaugrana had hoped for, history shows that a 2-2 in the first of a two-leg tie is very favourable to Barça. The Blaugrana have gone through to the next round seven of the last eight times they secured an away-leg result of 2-2 far from the Camp Nou in European competitions. Here’s a detailed look at of the eight ties:

Rival: London XI. Fairs Cup. 1955/58. Final
The final of the inaugural edition of the Fairs Cup was resolved in a two-leg playoff. After drawing 2-2 in England, the Blaugrana claimed the title with a convincing 6-0 thrashing at the Camp Nou.

Rival: CDNA Sofia. European Cup. 1959/60. Round of 32
FC Barcelona managed to secure a 2-2 draw away to CDNA Sofia, it was Barça’s first match in the European Cup. The return leg, which ended in a 6 to 2 for Barça, saw Kubala and Evaristo score hat tricks.

Rival: Real Madrid. European Cup. 1960/61. Round of 16
Two goals from Suárez gave Barça a fighting chance against Real Madrid in the away leg in Madrid. The return leg, at the Camp Nou, strikes from Vergès and Evaristo secured a quarter-final berth for FC Barcelona (2-1).

Rival: Cologne. Cup Winners Cup. 1968/69. Semi finals
The final in Basel, which was won by Slovan Bratislava, was preceded by a semi-final tie in which FC Barcelona  defeated Cologne (2-2 in Germany and 4-1 in Barcelona).

Rival: Aston Villa. UEFA Cup. 1977/78. Quarter finals
The Blaugrana and the Lions finished with 2-2 draw in England; in Barcelona, Barça fought back from a goal down to make it 2-1.

Rival: Bayern Munich. UEFA CUP. 1995/96. Semi finals
Bayern Munich are the only team to defeat FC Barcelona after a 2-2 draw away from the Camp Nou. The return leg in Barcelona saw the Germans strike twice after De La Peña had given the Blaugrana the lead.
 
Rival: Arsenal. Champions League. 2009/10. Quarter finals
The last time Barça finished an away leg in a European tie was in London, against Arsenal. The Gunners fought back from two goals down to equalise before the final whistle. The return leg saw Messi fire for four goals to down the London-based team (4-1). At the time, Ibrahimovic was a Barça player while Cesc and Song featured for Arsenal.