It was a night of perfection and glamour as the Catalan giants produced an exhibition of exquisite football, a masterclass in finishing on Wednesday.

 Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick and Luis Suarez hit four to crush 10-man Valencia 7-0 in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final at Camp Nou.

Valencia were three goals down inside 29 minutes and were forced to play the entirety of the second period with 10 players when Shkodran Mustafi was given his marching orders for a challenge on Messi inside the penalty box.



The night ended in humiliation for Gary Neville, however, as his team conceded on four more occasions in the second half to make next week's second leg at the Mestalla a non-event.

Only the Brazilian Neymar among the reputable MSN was left out of the score sheet as his penalty struck the post.

 Barcelona's ninth win in a row took the team's unbeaten streak in all competitions to 27 games.