Nagelsmann hopes to see Barca have "glorious" return

Bayern Munich ended their group stage of the UEFA Champions League with a 3-0 victory over Barcelona on Wednesday to make it six wins in a row for the German giants, but dropped Barcelona down in the Europa League.

The three points were scored by Thomas Muller, Leroy Sane, and Jamal Musiala. Bayern already had first place in the bag in Group E, but Barcelona needed the win after being only two points over Benfica, who won 2-0 over Dynamo Kyiv.

Barcelona's steady descent

This makes the first time since 2003/2004 that Barcelona won't be in the knockout stages of the Champions League. They have won it five times in the past.

For years now, Barcelona has been struggling. Without their star Lionel Messi this year, the flaws have been all the more obvious. Xavi Hernandez replaced head coach Ronald Koeman in November and it will take a lot for him to get Barca back on their feet again. He said the loss to Bayern Munich was a wake-up call.

"A new era starts today. We start from zero. Our objective is the Champions League, not the Europa League but that is our reality now and we have to try and win it," said Xavi.

Bayern has shown their capabilities and is currently one of the strongest contenders in the Champions League. They have scored 22 goals and conceded only three, and their goal difference of more than 19 has only been bettered once in Champions League history.

"Today, we deserved the victory," said Bayern boss Julian Nagelsmann. "In both games, we showed really good performances and our wins were well-deserved."

Nagelsmann said that he would also like to see Barcelona get back to the power house they used to be. He expressed that had his team been in a financial situation like Barcelona's, he would be struggling as well.

"I wish them all the best and hope the club will soon be the glorious Barcelona that we all know again."