Lamine Yamal said skipping the Champions League play-offs will be a major boost for Barcelona's season, after he scored to help them beat Copenhagen 4-1 and reach the last 16 on Wednesday.

The Blaugrana – who endured a slow start to their league-stage campaign – finished fifth in the 36-team standings after a blistering second-half performance at Camp Nou.

Hansi Flick's team trailed to Viktor Dadason's fourth-minute strike, but Robert Lewandowski, Yamal, Raphinha and Marcus Rashford – with a lovely free-kick – were on target in the second half.

Yamal both scored and assisted in a Champions League game for the third time in his career; the joint-most by a teenager in the competition, along with Kylian Mbappe. 

Yamal's eight Champions League assists, meanwhile, are now the outright most by any teenager in the competition's history, overtaking Mbappe (seven). 

Speaking after the game, Yamal said: "We all came here tonight thinking about getting into the top eight. We're very happy with the victory.

"When you concede a goal in the Champions League it's very difficult to come back, but the team was very strong, and we managed to come back.

"In the Champions League I'm freer, though I'm still one against two. I'm getting used to it, it is what it is. When I can give the team an advantage, I'm also happy.

"With the games we have, having two games fewer leaves you very calm."

Barcelona have now trailed at half-time in four of their last five Champions League games, more often than they did in their first 17 matches in the competition under Flick (three). 

But the Blaugrana have won more points from losing positions than any other side in the current edition, with 10 of their 16 points coming in this manner.

Lewandowski echoed Yamal's thoughts, saying: "We are very happy, we have won an important game, and we are among the top eight. 

"The most important thing is that we scored four goals and now we can look forward.

"We've had a lot of games and it will be good to have two clean weeks. We have to prepare for LaLiga.

"Sometimes you're playing away in the Champions League, and you come back very late with only two days between games. It's good to be able to rest. 

"What we did today was perfect. Sometimes you need patience in football. I wanted to start at a very high level, but I needed time to find my rhythm. I'm very happy to score. The most important thing, though, is that we won as a team."