Champions League Final: Three Days To Go...
Part two of my build-up to Saturdays final looks back at my reaction to 2009's utterly controversial Semi-Final second leg clash between Chelsea and Barcelona at Stamford Bridge, where Barca edged the win and secured their place in the final against United...
Wasteful Chelsea, lucky Barca...'IT'S A F**KING DISGRACE!'
Posted by The Cockney Red
WEDNESDAY, 6 MAY 2009
Well there you have it: after about 75 clear-cut penalty shouts and 1 single, stinging shot on target for Barca, Chelsea are out. Am I happy that they lost? Definitely. Am I happy that we have Barca in the Final? Hmm. I celebrated like a psycho when Iniesta belted it into the top corner (an absolute beaut), but is this what I, and therefore Man United, actually wanted? At least the extra motivating agenda of 'Chelsea and John Terry getting revenge' is wiped out, but then Chelsea we know. As a result, we know that we can beat them. In terms of the way they line-up, they are almost identical to the team we annihilated at Old Trafford (minus Alex, who would have missed the final). But Barcelona can pull out all sorts of unexpected stops. They can pass, keep the ball and shoot better than anyone (2 out of 3 of those were proven over these 2 legs); but then again, so can we. It'll be interesting; probably not exciting, special or spectacular. Just interesting.
Possession will prove key, so if we can maintain it, we know we can press; creating chances and producing progressive attacking play (just look at the counter-attacking last night...any chance to mention that stunning goal again! My mate Andy - Arsenal fan - saying, 'it reminded me of the invincibles'). Also its worth noting that they're without Abidal (unfairly sent-off tonight, but I'm not commenting after Fletcher last night), Marquez and Alvez, so hopefully Ronaldo and whoever’s on the left - Rooney, Park, Giggs - can confidently attack them on the wings, pressurising the full-backs and creating play that way. The other issue that no doubt will need Tabloid sorting is the 'best player in the world competition'. In my eyes, it’s Ronaldo. Always. Not just on the basis of the Semi-Final displays, but his runs and vision to pick out his man has developed and improved (arguably through the introduction of Berba as he now has a more creative, less attacking role). Messi might be able to run rings all day around Real and, umm... struggling to find another Spanish team worthy of a mention here, but the level of La Liga doesn't even compare to the Premiership.
Those niggly teams; I'm not talking Chelsea, Liverpool or Arsenal, but Everton, Villa, Portsmouth, and this year Fulham and Wigan, can ALWAYS be a threat to the 'big four', home or away. Spain just doesn't have that extra second/third-tier threat that we do. For that reason, Barca and sometimes even Real, have managed to stroll it (Barca are now on 100 goals in the league with 4 games remaining). Don't get me wrong, Barca are obviously class, and Messi is definitely in the top 3 best in the world, but my point is: who have Messi and Etoo and Henry and Iniesta and Xavi actually played this season to really prove their greatness? I know alot of football fans agree with me on this. Take them to a frosty Tuesday evening at Villa Park and see how they fair. I'm not saying that these teams could beat Barca necessarily, but they'll not roll over and probably won't let them play in the way they've become accustomed to this year.
OK, they held their own and probably just deserved to go through against Chelsea, but the free-flowing, confident, attacking football that they're so unbelievably, incredibly, astoundingly 'famous' for? Not a chance. And lets face it, if the Referee wasn't an absolute retard tonight, Chelsea could have won it 2/3-0. We can win it if we play with the absolute class and skill of last night, but we could easily fall short (only by the odd goal, mind) if we don't retain possession and are wasteful with our chances. Chelsea were dealt a killer blow tonight and will not let it go, I've no doubt about that. But we can learn from their mistakes, and for every completely wrong decision the Ref gave (as I said, at least 75), Chelsea should have killed it off. Drogba and Anelka both had good chances but they just didn't take them, then when Barca inevitably pressed with 2 minutes remaining...well, you know how these things work out.
Yes it was a disgrace at times; not only the performance of the who-gives-a-shit-what-your-name-is-you'll-never-ref-in-this-town-again Referee, but also by the petulant bottler himself. He was frustrating, selfish and spoilt tonight. Maybe sort your football out first son before you go around blasting UEFA and the higher powers. You're employed to make that difference and, you know, SCORE, so, umm, maybe, I dunno, actually try, instead of, umm, like, diving and pretending to be injured...? Just a thought.
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