Serhou Guirassy and Borussia Dortmund achieved a feat unparalleled in 2025 by defeating Barcelona, yet this triumph proved insufficient to secure their advancement to the Champions League semifinals.

Guirassy's hat-trick was ultimately insufficient as Dortmund's 3-1 victory against Barcelona – the Catalan side's initial loss across competitions since December – did not avert a comprehensive 5-3 aggregate defeat.

Having suffered a decisive 4-0 defeat in the initial leg of the quarter-final, Dortmund approached Tuesday's match with nothing to forfeit and adopted an aggressive posture from the outset, disrupting Barcelona's equilibrium.

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick, who has a lot of experience playing against and beating Dortmund from his time in the German league, said the enthusiastic home crowd meant he thought the second game would be difficult, even though his team was four goals ahead.

Flick conveyed to broadcaster Amazon Prime that he had somewhat anticipated such an outcome, adding, "One must commend Dortmund today for their excellent performance and similarly applaud my team for reaching the semi-finals."

Remarkably subdued for Barcelona's formidable attacking duo, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski, who had netted 12 and 11 Champions League goals respectively this season, the match saw neither come close to finding the net. Raphinha's feeble attempt directed at Dortmund custodian Gregor Kobel represented their nearest scoring opportunity.

"Serhou Guirassy represents Dortmund's 'life insurance'," declared coach Niko Kovac subsequent to a match that propelled his swift ascent to prominence, positioning him atop the Champions League scoring charts for the current season. "Serhou, like any forward, requires the backing of his colleagues, and he received precisely that today."

Dortmund's loss in the quarterfinal was arguably determined in the initial leg, compounded by the pre-match absence of captain Emre Can and midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka due to injuries.

For a period, Guirassy appeared to render the improbable plausible.

Guirassy, who had squandered opportunities in the initial leg and several early in Tuesday's match, converted proficiently from the penalty spot in the 11th minute following a collision between Barcelona goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny and Pascal Gross.

Guirassy's header extended the lead to 2-0 in the 49th minute, preceding a Ramy Bensebaini own goal that significantly compounded Dortmund's challenge. Fermín López's low cross deflected in off Bensebaini's ankle, representing a twofold setback for Dortmund given the defender's pivotal role in their attempted resurgence, having assisted Guirassy's second goal just moments prior.

Guirassy capitalised on a defensive mistake by Ronald Araujo to secure his hat trick with a forceful close-range strike in the 76th minute, thus establishing himself as the Champions League's leading scorer this season with 13 goals.

This result gave Dortmund new hope of making a great comeback in the Champions League, similar to Barcelona's famous comeback against Paris Saint-Germain in 2017, but Barcelona managed to hold on and go through.

Barcelona are set to encounter either Inter Milan or Bayern Munich in the semi-finals, marking their first appearance in the final four of the Champions League since the 2018-19 campaign. Meanwhile, in Tuesday's parallel fixture, PSG secured their passage to the semi-finals by virtue of a 5-4 aggregate victory against Aston Villa, notwithstanding their 3-2 defeat in the second leg.

This was Barcelona's first loss in any competition since they lost 2-1 to Atletico Madrid on December 21st. It was also their first loss in the Champions League since September and only the seventh loss in the 50 games Flick has been in charge. The German coach had won all seven of his previous games against Dortmund when he was managing Barcelona and Bayern.

Dortmund may face a prolonged wait before the Champions League anthem resounds within its stadium once more.

Last year's Champions League finalist sits eighth in the Bundesliga with five matches left, six points adrift of the four Champions League qualification spots.