BARCELONA -- The last time Barcelona reached a Champions League quarterfinal, Lionel Messi still played for the club and the world was in lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the four years since, there has been just one appearance in the round-of-16, two group stage eliminations and a lot of dwelling on the past. Now, though, as Barça return to the last eight for the first time since 2020 after beating Napoli on Tuesday, there are reasons to look towards a brighter future -- even if this season has not gone entirely to plan after winning LaLiga last year.