A score from Paco Alcacer and a late Jeremy Mathieu own goal was all Barcelona needed to top Sporting Lisbon 2-0 in their Champions League Group D finale on Tuesday night at the Camp Nou in Barcelona.
Alcacer's 59th minute header and Mathieu's accidental push into his own net earned the hosts all three points and first-place in the group with 14 points, three points ahead of second-place Juventus. The victory also extends Barcelona's unbeaten streak in all competitions to 22 matches.
With their ticket to the next round already stamped, manager Ernesto Valderde opted to rest Lionel Messi and goalkeeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, however Luis Suarez was penciled into the starting XI up top along with Alcacer. Also earning rare starts were midfielders Andre Gomes and Denis Suarez, plus winger Aleix Vidal.
There was little football from either side in the first 20 minutes, with Barcelona controlling possession but left mostly to probe from distance. There was a chance for Luis Suarez midway through the half, but the Uruguayan shot wide.
At the other end goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen was reduced to spectator status, as Sporting ventured near the Barcelona area only a handful of times.
Play loosened up in the second-half and finally right before the hour mark with the sparse crowd chanting for Messi to come on, Alcacer flicked in a near-post header off a Denis Suarez corner kick to push Barcelona in front 1-0.
The roar moments later when Messi came on for Aleix Vidal was arguably louder than when Alcacer scored, but that was quickly replaced by a gasp when Cillessen pulled off one of the saves of the year by denying Dutch countryman Das Bost from point-blank range.
Barcelona were unsurprisingly a more threatening side with Messi on the pitch. The chances started coming with more frequency and Messi was keen to find the back of the net. The Argentine looked good for a goal late in the contest when he lashed a left-footer after a pirouette, but Sporting goalkeeper Rui Patricio got low to make the save.
Messi would then play the role as playmaker, finding the slashing Alcacer in the final minutes, but the former Valencia man's shot trickled wide. However, it would be former Barcelona defender Mathieu that would provide the home side's second goal, as he pushed Denis Suarez's cross from the left for Alcacer into his own net in the final seconds.
Barcelona will now shift their focus back to LaLiga play with a visit to Villarreal on Sunday.

Match Sheet:
2.- Barcelona: Cillessen; Semedo, Pique (Busquets, min. 64), Vermaelen, Digne; Andre Gomes, Rakitic, Denis; Aleix Vidal (Messi, min. 61), Suarez (Paulinho, min. 75), Alcacer.
0.- Sporting: Rui Patricio; Piccini, Coates, Mathieu, Bruno Cesar (Coentrao, min. 64); Battaglia, Carvalho, Ristovski (Martins, min. 46), Bruno Fernandez, Acuna, Alan Ruiz (Bas Dost, min. 46).
Goals: 1-0, min. 59: Alcacer; 2-0, min. 91: Mathieu.
Referee: Craig Thomson (Scotland).
Yellow cards: Semedo (Min. 35) for Barcelona.
Red cards: None.
Stadium: Camp Nou.
Attendance: 48.336.