Barcelona 4-0 PSV: Lionel Messi nets stunning hat-trick in rampant Nou Camp display

Barca's all-time top scorer Messi broke the deadlock in the 32nd minute at the Nou Camp with an immaculately struck free kick, curling the ball over the wall and right into the top near corner.

The Spanish champions began to demonstrate the gulf in class as the second half progressed and they doubled their lead in the 75th minute through a lovely curling strike from in-form French forward Ousmane Dembele, who scored a fifth goal from sixth games in all competitions this season.

Messi got his second and Barca's third goal two minutes later, turning Ivan Rakitic's dinked pass into the near corner with one flick of his boot and then completed his treble in the 87th by receiving another chipped pass, this time from Luis Suarez, and ruthlessly smashing home.

The mood was briefly dampened when France defender Umtiti was dismissed in the 79th minute for a second yellow card, ruling him out of Barca's next Champions League game away to Tottenham Hotspur on Oct. 3.

RE-LIVE ALL THE ACTION FROM THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE BELOW

BARCELONA 4-0 PSV

FT: Done and dusted. Lionel Messi has torn through PSV to get Barcelona off to the perfect start.

I’m off to bring you LIVE coverage of Liverpool vs PSG from Anfield. Come and join me by clicking this link HERE! See you there.

BARCELONA 4-0 PSV

89: Lionel Messi has scored more hat-tricks than any other player in Champions League/European Cup history.

BARCELONA 4-0 PSV - MESSI

87: Oh behave! Lionel Messi completes his 52nd hat-trick for Barcelona with a typically clinical strike.

Luis Suarez, again the architect, pokes it through to the Argentine international to use his ‘weaker’ right peg to tuck it beyond Zoet.

BARCELONA 3-0 PSV | RED CARD

78: Anyone know what Samuel Umitit is thinking?! He’s already on a yellow card and decides to bodycheck Lozano when the Mexico international was going through on goal. That means he’s out of the Wembley clash against Tottenham.

BARCELONA 3-0 PSV | MESSI

76: What. A. Goal. It’s raining goals in Spain now as Barcelona turn on the style.

Rakitic chips the ball over the top of the PSV defence and Lionel Messi is waiting to tuck it home at the first time of asking. Magic.

BARCELONA 2-0 PSV | DEMBELE

74: Game, set and match. If there was any doubt about where the three points were going - Ousmane Dembele has resolved it.

The World Cup-winning French international prowls forward, opens his body and unleashes an inch-perfect curling effort from 20-yards.

73: Roughly 15 minutes left at the Nou Camp and surprisingly, PSV are still within touching distance of a point. Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi aren’t on the same wave-length at the moment with plenty of neat one-twos going missing.

72: That would have been outrageous. Luis Suarez has a split-second to react to a pinging ball and softly tries to chip the PSV goalkeeper from just outside the penalty area. It looks like it’s heading in but clips against the crossbar and over.

61: He can’t do it again, can he? Lionel Messi has another free-kick opportunity but this time he’s got his execution wrong and the ball flies into the stands.

58: Save! Philippe Coutinho, who I’ve bet on to score from outside the area, shifts the ball to his right and draws a terrific one-handed save from Zoet.

55: Umtiti and PSV captain De Jong both collects cautions for silly fouls.

51: Lozano tries to re-create his World Cup heroics with a solo run forward but he’s struck that wide. Probably should have done better from that position.

47: Busquets serves it up to Messi, who jinks beyond a couple of players before striking it at Zoet.

BARCELONA 1-0 PSV

45: And we’re back underway. No changes for Barcelona but worrying for PSV, 13 or Barcelona’s 17 goals this season have arrived in the second half.

BARCELONA 1-0 PSV

HT: Business as usual in Barcelona as Lionel Messi bangs in another one for the highlights reel. It’s still goalless at the San Siro with Inter Milan and Tottenham struggling to create chances.

45: Nice exchange between Suarez and Dembele down the left flank sees the ex-Borussia Dortmund star clip a looping cross into the penalty area but Schwaab heads it into orbit.

Seconds later PSV have an effort from distance fly miles over the bar. Sliceeeeee.

42: Barca are just toying with PSV as we approach the break. Plenty of passing around the middle. they will not be rushed.

39: Lionel Messi has scored eight direct free-kicks in 2018 - the most he has netted in a calendar year.

36: Confidence running through Barcelona veins now as Luis Suarez goes for an audacious chip from the halfway line. Yes, Zoet was off his line but no chance from that distance.

BARCELONA 1-0 PSV | MESSI

30: Ahh, do me a favour! Lionel Messi has scored his 61st Champions League goal and it’s an absolute stunner.

Viergever is booked when bringing Demeble down just outside the penalty area. It’s central and begging to be struck by the magical Argentine.

He obliges by stepping up and nonchalantly floating it into the top right-hand corner. Sublime.

26: Luis Suarez trying to be too cleaver when trying to usher Rosario out of play. The PSV star reads it and draws the free-kick. There’s five white shirts in the area… but Pereiro can’t find any of them.

21: PSV carved open, but Luis Suarez can’t capitalise. Lionel Messi (who else?!) plays a sublime no-look reverse pass to the Uruguayan, who loses his bearings and fires into the side-netting.

18: Luis Suarez wins a corner for his side. It’s played short with Messi looking to dink it to the overlapping Sergi Roberto but Angelino sniffs it out. Wasted really.

13: I tell you what, PSV look really dangerous! After a poor effort from Luis Suarez, the visitors break with De Jong teeing up Bergwijn, who rifles one just past the post.

6: They might have dominated possession, but it’s the visitors with the first chance of the night. Umtiti fouls De Jong and PSV have themselves a free-kick in a dangerous position but Pereiro slashes it wide.

3: Guess how Barcelona have started? Impeccably. The Spanish side are knocking it around for fun with speed and accuracy. I suspect it will be a long evening for PSV.

BARCELONA 0-0 PSV

1: And at the unorthodox time of 17:55, we’re underway at the Nou Camp! Predictions? Well, I’ve done a request-a-bet that Philippe Coutinho scores from outside the penalty area and Gerard Pique scores a header at 80/1. Banker, isn’t it?!

WHO WILL WIN?

17:50: Betfair have very generously sent me the tournament winner odds (with no hidden agenda) so that we can see who tops the market.

It’s Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City who top the pile with Barcelona and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Juventus next in the betting. Not many fancy Manchester United or Tottenham - they can be backed at 20/1+.

Champions League winner (courtesy of Betfair): Manchester City 9/2, Barcelona 6/1, Juventus 13/2, Paris St-Germain 7/1, Bayern Munich 8/1, Real Madrid 17/2, Liverpool 12/1, Atletico Madrid 12/1, Manchester United 20/1, Tottenham 25/1.

PHILIPPE…

17:45: Philippe Coutinho is desperate to make up for lost time.

The 26-year-old Brazil international made his £142million move from Liverpool to the Nou Camp in January having already played for the Premier League club in the competition and was a frustrated by-stander as they went out to Roma in the quarter-finals.

"It will be a special, important night for me. I'm looking forward to this because I couldn't play in this competition for Barca last season,” Coutinho said.

"We are Barca and we want to win every competition we play in. The Champions League is a huge competition and we want to do big things.

"It's a very demanding competition because of the quality of the teams involved, but both us players and the fans are really hungry to win it."

DIFFERENT WINNER?

17:40: It is always difficult to look beyond Real Madrid and the Spanish giants - who have won four of the past five titles and 13 European crowns overall - will again be among the leading contenders.

But this is a new era at the Bernabeu with Zinedine Zidane, the man at the helm for the successes of the past three years, and star player Cristiano Ronaldo having left.

Manchester City, Barcelona, PSG, Juventus - with Ronaldo now in their ranks - and Bayern Munich are rated as the sides most likely to relieve them of their crown.

GROUP OF DEATH…

17:20: After a lack of transfer activity during the summer, there were plenty of questions ahead for Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino.

However, after three straight Premier League wins, including turning United over 3-0 at Old Trafford, everyone was left wondering what all the fuss had been about.

Come full-time at Wembley on Saturday, though, and a jaded Spurs were staring at back-to-back defeats. The challenges ahead in Europe offer little respite, with a visit to Inter Milan first up.

Barcelona and PSV Eindhoven are also in the Group B mix, which means there are few margins for error if Pochettino is to safely guide his side through to the knockout stages.

BARCELONA vs PSV - TEAM NEWS

17:10: Right then, let’s have a look at these sides.

The headline news is that Philippe Coutinho makes his Champions League debut for Barcelona. Obviously he was ineligible having joined them from Liverpool in January.

Ernesto Valverde has made two changes from the side that beat Real Sociedad with Sergio Busquets and Coutinho replacing Nelson Semedo and Rafinha, who are among the substitutes.

Any changes for PSV? Nope. And why would you change a side that just hammered Den Haag 7-0 in the Eredivisie.

Former Newcastle loanee Luuk de Jong captains the side. The highly sought-after winger Hirving Lozano also starts.

WIN A SIGNED SHIRT...

17:00: No, not you! PSV Eindhoven coach Mark van Bommel says his players can fight it out for Barcelona star Lionel Messi's shirt if they win at the Nou Camp.

Barcelona host the Dutch league leaders and Van Bommel wants his players to stay professional as they face the player he described as the best in the world.

"If tomorrow we get a good result I don't care if they fight for Messi's shirt," Van Bommel said. "That is part of being a professional, to always be concentrating. I know they will ask him for the shirt, but they shouldn't do it at halftime."

VARDLY

16:55: And that’s what happens when you try to combine ‘Hardly’ with ‘VAR’ - looks like someone has spelled Vardy wrong.

The video assistant referee is coming to the Champions League - but not just yet.

Following the success of the system at the World Cup, it is inevitable it will be brought into UEFA's elite competition but Europe's governing body appear to be thinking in terms of next season.

This is certainly not because of any lack of confidence in the decisions being made, but more over concerns about technical logistics and the training of officials.

It has been suggested it could be brought in for this season's final, or even from the quarter-final stage but no firm decisions have been taken.

BARCELONA vs PSV

16:50: And here are the starting XI’s. No messing around from Ernesto Valverde, he’s starting Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho. Bosh.

Barcelona XI: Ter Stegen; Sergi Roberto, Pique, Umtiti, Jordi Alba; Busquets, Rakitic, Coutinho; Messi, Dembele, Suarez.

Subs: Cillessen, Semedo, Lenglet, Arthur, Rafinha, Vidal, Munir.

PSV XI: Zoet; Domfries, Schwaab, Viergever, Angelino; Hendrix, Rosario, Pereiro; Lozano, Bergwijn, De Jong.

Subs: Room, Isimat, Behich, Malen, Sainsbury, Ramselaar, Gutierrez.

CHANGES…

16:45: Think this is the SAME Champions League… think again.

OK, I’m being a touch over-dramatic but there have been a few adjustments to the format.

The qualifying process may have changed - with 26 teams now gaining direct entry - but the format of the group stages remains largely untouched.

The only noticeable difference concerns kick-off times. The previous uniform 7.45pm starts have been scrapped and replaced by a staggered system to suit broadcasters.

On each group stage evening, two games will kick-off at 5.55pm with the remaining six at 8pm - hence why I’m not enjoying my afternoon nap right now.

AFTERNOON…

16:40: Hello everyone, and welcome to our LIVE coverage of the Champions League.

Time flies, doesn’t it? It feels like only yesterday that Liverpool supporters were furious with Sergio Ramos and tweeting how much they disliked the Spanish international.

Oh, that was yesterday…

Moving swiftly on, the competition has the potential to get off to a flying start this season with some interesting match-ups in the group stages.

Liverpool's opener against PSG is certainly eye-catching, as is Roma's trip to Real Madrid and Valencia versus Juventus. Tottenham's clash with Inter Milan is another to make the mouth water.

My advice? Settle down, record The Great British Bake Off and enjoy the action. Let’s have some team news and line-ups!