Tag Archives: barcelona

A Catalan fairytale

Posted by Jayesh on May 28, 2009 3 comments

Ah, well, a disappointing end to the season. Manchester United went to Rome with great expectations and a chance to create history. Barcelona had a similar agenda, trying to be the first Spanish club to win the treble. With the La Liga title and Copa del Rey already in the bag, they capped off a fairytale finish to a historic fortnight by winning the Champions League final in Rome 2–0, and, in the process, thoroughly outplaying their opponents. The prospect of making history proved too much for United on the night.

It wasn’t a vintage United performance by any means. Apart from a cracking start in the opening ten minutes of the game, they conceded a soft goal against the run of play and never recovered from that initial blow. Samuel Eto’o went past Vidic far too easily and beat Edwin Van der Sar—despite getting a touch on the ball—at his near post. Panic set in, far too many passes went astray, and we never had much possession. Ronaldo was the only United player who provided a few sparks on an otherwise forgettable night.

Having said that, I don’t want to take anything away from Barcelona’s performance. They were simply spectacular on the night, making life difficult for United’s stars to flourish. Much was made of their depleted back line, and United’s stellar pair of Ferdinand and Vidic were expected to be the telling difference between the two sides. And in a way they were, only opposite to expectations. Apart from a few half chances, United never really posed a goal threat, and I don’t remember Victor Valdes—the Barcelona goalie—ever making a save throughout the game. On the other hand, Barcelona’s attacking prowess was a treat to watch. Henry, Eto’o, and Messi—the holy trinity—hovered around United’s penalty box like hungry scavengers, and Iniesta and Xavi constantly kept feeding them with an endless supply of passes. The second goal, a brilliant header from Lionel Messi, where he seemed to be airborne forever, underlined Barcelona’s overall supremacy in the game. The scoreline could’ve been 4–0 but for a couple of very good saves from VDS.

What went wrong for United? The tactic of playing Rooney on the left flank just didn’t work, as he was severely under-used and failed to make any impact. He should’ve partnered Ronaldo as the second striker, and Fergie realized this a touch too late. The crucial difference between the two teams was the midfield, in my opinion. Barcelona’s pair of Iniesta and Xavi were unstoppable and almost telepathic in their passing, while their United counterparts in Giggs and Carrick completely lacklustre. They gave too many balls away far too easily, and United never really came to the party, forced to chase the game by Barcelona.

They were well and truly outplayed on the night, and the players accepted the fact at the final whistle. Not a tear was shed, their faces shell-shocked more than anything else. Fergie had a melancholy look on his face. Personally, it was sad not to see United lift the trophy, but Barcelona were deserving winners on the night. And as Carlos Puyol lifted the most coveted trophy in European football, even Fergie couldn’t help but stand and applaud the new European Champions.

Congratulations to Barcelona! I would’ve enjoyed the game a lot more had I not been tense with nervous anticipation for the whole length of it. Pep Guardiola deserves every accolade in his favour, delivering a season that is nothing short of magical for a rookie manager. Lionel Messi was better than Ronaldo on the night, and his goal was a true masterclass. I should also mention the solid performance of Gerard Pique in defence, his was simply outstanding, and obviously thrilled for winning the trophy twice in two years with two different teams—he was a United player until last season, if any of you don’t know.

Knowing Manchester United, they’ll bounce back after this defeat. They always do. Until next season then, aye?

Mayhem at the Bridge

Posted by Jayesh on May 9, 2009 None comments

The two semifinal second-legs played in London over the past couple of days couldn’t be more contrasting. If United were clinical in their performance at The Emirates on Tuesday — maximum damage with minimum fuss, an explosive finish was in store for the cliffhanger at Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea and Barcelona squared off to decide who deserved to meet Manchester United in the final at Rome.

The game had a little bit of everything: a brilliant display from Chelsea, an out-of-sorts and depleted Barcelona’s never-say-die attitude, two outstanding goals, controversy, shock, disbelief, and unbridled joy. In the end, Barcelona went through on the away goals rule, as the match finished 1-1. Andres Iniesta sending the Catalan dugout in manic frenzy with his inury-time leveller to cancel out Essien’s early left-foot volley.

That wasn’t the end of the drama on a controversial night as Chelsea were denied four penalty claims (two of which they deserved) by the Norwegian referee. Chelsea felt robbed and unduly penalized, and Drogba, who was subbed earlier in the game, emerged in his flip-flops onto the pitch, shouting obscenities at the referee and the television cameras. The scene was shocking and totally unconceivable from a professional footballer, and the Chelsea bench had a hard time restraining him. Although Drogba threatened a lot, only Ballack came closest to smacking poor old Ovrebo. Terry, Lampard, and coach Guus Hiddink, all voiced their disappointment over the sub-standard refereeing, and I think they were right in doing so.

I like watching good football, irrespective of the teams that are involved, and Chelsea played really well and were unfortunate to not progress through to the final. And Drogba losing his cool, and doing what he did in front of the referee, sadly, took the spotlight away from the good football Chelsea produced against Barcelona.

It would’ve been a special night in Rome to see United lock horns with Chelsea again. Would Terry redeem himself? A question we’ll have to wait for another year to answer.