In what was a comfortable win from start to finish, FC Barcelona secured a 4-0 win over Borussia Mönchengladbach.

With the hosts and visitors secured in the next round of the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, respectively, Arda Turan's hat-trick was the highlight.

Dominant Barca take deserved lead

Unsurprisingly, the first 15 minutes were entirely dominated by Barcelona. The Catalonians were happy to keep the ball and toy with the visiting side, who were reduced to hopeful counter attacks. Even when they looked to be making headway, a touch of pace from Luis Enrique's side saw them reclaim possession with ease.

It was no great shock, then, that Barca broke the deadlock in the 16th minute through Lionel Messi. The Argentine attacker started and finished the mood, beginning with a silky smooth dribble past two Gladbach defenders. He then exchanged a simple one-two with Arda Turan before curling the ball into the far corner and past Yann Sommer.

In order to combat the dominance of their opponents, Gladbach dropped back further to try and give Messi and his fellow forwards less chance to find a way through. Instead, the hosts were more than happy to take aim from range. Turan twice tested Sommer, with a deflected effort bringing a particular good save from the Swiss stopper.

Following the initial onslaught, proceedings slowed considerably. Barcelona seemed happy to try and thread players in with chipped passes over the top, which the tall and physically strong Gladbach defence were only too happy to deal with. Neither side managed to add to the scoreline in what was a drab end to the first half.

Arda Turan tops off a fantastic performance

Despite an early set-piece chance where several unmarked Foals' ran past the corner, things soon turned sour at the Camp Nou for André Schubert's side. A wonderful passing move, even though they had showcased that on 584 occasions in the first half, culminated in Denis Suarez's cross being nodded home by Turan at the back post.

In what was a similar move forward to the passing that cut Gladbach open just three minutes before, it was a fantastic move from the hosts that saw Aleix Vidal move into the right channel and drive to the by-line. Turan was on hand to apply a very cool finish that saw the ball arrow into the bottom corner. Sommer was rooted to the spot.

The pressure was irresistible and the pressure would tell again, as after more sustained play in and around the visiting penalty area would provide a fourth goal. It was the right hand side that was exploited as Vidal snuck in behind the defence before squaring to Turan, who made no mistake by hammering home from close range.

Had it not been for a stunning save from Sommer, who somehow clawed Messi's diving header off the line, Gladbach would have been staring a real rout in the face. The Foals were beginning to threaten more on the counter through André Hahn and Fabian Johnson, though the latter couldn't convert after rounding Jasper Cillessen.

Barca went through as winners and Gladbach in third will play in the Europa League after Christmas, in a game that did little but maintain the status-quo.

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About the author
Jonathan Walsh
SoccerSight IFA commentator. VAVEL deputy editor-in-chief/VAVEL Bundesliga editor-in-chief and writer. Email: [email protected]