BARCELONA'S remarkable Champions League comeback to beat Paris St Germain 6-1 at the Nou Camp and snatch a place in the quarter-finals will take some time to sink in, according to midfielder Ivan Rakitic.
Trailing and wounded from a 4-0 humiliation from the opening leg of the last-16 clash in France, Luis Enrique's men were looking to make history and also avoid their earliest exit from the competition in a decade.
An early header from Luis Suarez and an own goal from Layvin Kurzawa halved the deficit by the interval, before a penalty from Lionel Messi five minutes into the second half had the Nou Camp rocking.
However, Edinson Cavani's crucial away goal just after the hour mark looked to have put overall victory in the tie beyond the LaLiga leaders.
Neymar, though, netted a superb late free-kick with just two minutes to go before levelling the aggregate scores from the penalty spot after Luis Suarez was bundled over in the area – although the Uruguayan looked to have made the most of Marquinhos' challenge.
With goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen having joined the attack, Neymar lofted the ball into a crowded penalty area in the closing moments of stoppage-time.
Sergio Roberto timed his run to perfection as he volleyed past Kevin Trapp and his first goal of the season sparked wild celebrations on the Barcelona bench and in the stands, while PSG watched on in disbelief.
Rakitic could hardly understand what he had just been involved in after Barca sealed a 6-5 aggregate victory.
"I cannot believe it. It was really impossible, 15-20 minutes after the game, it is crazy and unbelievable," the Croatian said, quoted on www.uefa.com.
"The first game in Paris was hard for us, a lot of people spoke hard on our team but the reaction was special. It is history. We want to keep going on.
"We had to believe. Four-nil was hard, but it is football.
"We saw it in the Super Bowl, what is possible in sport. Today was crazy.
"This is Barcelona, the best team in the world and we want to continue our dream in the Uefa Champions League."
For PSG coach Unai Emery, the dream which looked set for a place in the quarter-finals was shattered in the most unexpected of outcomes.
"When we analyse it, it is true that we have missed a major opportunity," said the Spaniard, who had guided Sevilla to Europa League glory in three consecutive seasons before heading to Paris.
"The first half was our fault and we didn't manage to press or do things with the ball. We defended very deep and they had more chances to score. We made mistakes for the two first-half goals.
"We were calmer in the second half and better positioned. We improved and had a chance for 3-2. The refereeing decisions went against us and we lost everything in the closing minutes. Barcelona are capable of doing that. It was all or nothing for them in the final minutes."
Emery lamented: "It is a negative experience for me and for the club. We need to learn from it."
