WATCH: Marc Bernal begins Barcelona comeback effort against Atletico Madrid

Barcelona still have a mountain to climb, but 16-year-old Marc Bernal has given the Camp Nou belief that the impossible may be possible. Trailing Atlético Madrid by four goals from the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final, the Blaugrana halved the aggregate deficit inside the opening 45 minutes of the return match, with Bernal opening the scoring and Raphinha adding a second from the penalty spot.

From the first whistle Barcelona pressed with intent, pinning Diego Simeone’s side deep and forcing hurried clearances. Ferran Torres twice found pockets of space on the edge of the area but could not convert half-chances into genuine tests for Juan Musso. Just as the energy in the stadium began to dip, Lamine Yamal provided the spark. A short corner routine freed the teenager on the left; he twisted past Ademola Lookman and whipped a low ball across the six-yard box. Bernal, ghosting in unmarked, side-footed home the simplest of finishes to make it 1-0 on the night and 1-4 on aggregate.

The goal jolted Atlético awake. Lookman immediately forced a save at the other end and should have levelled when a cut-back found him unmarked 12 yards out. He blazed over, and within moments Barcelona punished the miss. A rapid exchange between Yamal and Torres released Pedri into the box; Marc Pubill’s sliding challenge brought the midfielder down and Raphinha stepped up to send Musso the wrong way, trimming the gap to two goals before the interval.

Barcelona will need a second-half surge of historic proportions to complete the turnaround, but Bernal’s emergence as a clinical presence in front of goal offers a glimmer of hope that the comeback is still alive.