Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi missed a penalty against Manchester City in the last 16 of the Champions League and this could prove crucial in the overall tie according to striker Luis Suarez.

The Uruguayan has been brilliant in European matches for Barcelona since his £ 75 million move. He has not been able to recreate the same form in la Liga, but there were few doubters on Tuesday night as Suarez scored two goals against City to put Barcelona on the verge of the quarter-finals. The two away goals gives a massive advantage to Barcelona, but it could have been more had it not been for the penalty miss from Messi.

City boss Manuel Pellegrini said after the match that the penalty miss could be crucial since it gives his team a lot of belief that they can still come up with the goals required for progression. The blues need to score two goals at the Camp Nou, but it could have been more if Messi had scored the penalty. There have been teams that have penetrated this weak Barcelona defence even in front of their home supporters and Pellegrini says that a repeat is not be the possibility. Suarez scored both goals in the 2-1 victory with Sergio Aguero coming up with the crucial goal for City.

“Yes we think so. If City lose 3-1 then it is really difficult for them.I try very hard every time for the team and so I am very happy [with my goals],” said Suarez. “We would have taken this result before the match. We were fantastic in the first half and superior in the middle of the park.But even if it had been 3-1, it would not have been over against teams of this quality. We suffered a little bit in the second half,” said Luis Enrique.