FC BARCELONA: Valdes - Dani Alves (88' Puyol), Pique, Mascherano, Abidal - Xavi, Busquets, Iniesta - Messi, Villa (86' Keita), Pedro (90' Afellay); Coach - Josep Guardiola
MANCHESTER UNITED: Van der Sar - Fabio (69' Nani), Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra - Valencia, Carrick (77' Scholes), Giggs, Park - Rooney, Hernandez; Coach - Alex Ferguson
(Vote): Barça wins by large margin (Vote): Barça wins by small margin (Vote): MU wins by small margin (Vote): MU wins by large margin (Vote): Penalty shootout decides (Vote): Al-Qaida bombings into no game
Poll: Red card incoming?
Nope, fair play all the way. (29)
41%
Yes, for MU player. (28)
40%
Yes, for Barça player. (8)
11%
Yes, both teams will get it. (5)
7%
70 total votes
Your vote: Red card incoming?
(Vote): Nope, fair play all the way. (Vote): Yes, for Barça player. (Vote): Yes, for MU player. (Vote): Yes, both teams will get it.
Barca is on an amazing run, but if I'd have to name the one team that currently has the best chance of beating them I'd say United, so I expect an awesome match. I think United has one of the best defences in the world, the only worry I have is that their central midfield looks a bit pale compared to Xavi/Iniesta.
There's something about United that makes me feel like they're going to pull it off. If Ferdi isn't injured and they can avoid getting dominated in midfield, I think they'll bring it home.
I think United won't make the same mistakes as last time. They have to play on the counter and not try to take Barca head on. I hope Sir Alex fields Fletcher, Anderson and Scholes for more muscle against the likes of Iniesta, Xavi and Busquets. Maybe even use Anderson as the guy to shut down Messi.
I think Nani would suck in a game like this. Giggs, Rooney and Hernandez up front and United will stand a chance. If not, Barca's probably gonna roll them by 3-4 goals. I wonder how Barca fans feel coming into the game. I'm pretty damn nervous as a United fan, since we got owned in Rome 2 years back.
United"s Flag is Deepest Red It shrouded all our Munich"s Dead , Before their Limbs grew stiff and cold , Their Heart Blood dyed it"s every fold
Then Raise United"s Banner High Beneath it's shade We"ll live and Die So keep the faith and never Fear We"ll keep the Red flag flying here.
We"ll never Die , We"ll never die We"ll never Die , We"ll never die We"ll keep the Red flag flying high , Cos Man United will never DIE.
I Feel we can take this , We just have to hope that the Midfield put"s it Best performance of the Entire Season..Our Defence is Easily better than theirs... Really have a good Feeling About this
Hopefully we have a ref that will hand out yellows for rushing him, protesting too much and filming. And that's not even because I'm a manu supporter, but just because that's the quickest way to ruin the match for all sides and barcelona does that shit all the time and gets away with it. I think the key is just stopping xavi OR iniesta. Otherwise they'll just pass to each other for about 80+ mins of the game.
On May 05 2011 18:36 Stimp wrote: Have some of you guys seen Uniteds away form? The best they have going for them is the fact that they know how rubbish the wembley pitch is.
Can't see anything other than a Barca win I'm afraid.
We're talking about Champion League here buddy. And if I recall correctly, MU won all their games away from Old Trafford this season, and did not even concede a single goal.
Rooting for Man.U. myself, as a fan of football, I'm getting kinda tired of the way Barca dives to the ground every time a defender does as much as looking at them. Heck, soon they'll start doing a front flip before going to the ground hoping for extra points . 2-1 for Man.U.
I just really hope to finally have a great game of football in the Champions League. The referee needs to be really on the ball in dishing out yellow cards early for simulation and aggressive tackles then hopefully we'll have a fair contest.
Both sides have their advantages and their weaknesses. Barce: Best midfield in the world and a fantastic striker that plays beautifully in the system. Hold on to the ball very well but might struggle to break down a resolute defence and fast closing down. United: Very strong defensively, quality wing play which Barce won't really be used to facing and an unpredictable line-up. However they'll struggle to fight in the midfield and get the ball to their key players on the wings or Rooney.
On May 05 2011 18:36 Stimp wrote: Have some of you guys seen Uniteds away form? The best they have going for them is the fact that they know how rubbish the wembley pitch is.
Can't see anything other than a Barca win I'm afraid.
We're talking about Champion League here buddy. And if I recall correctly, MU won all their games away from Old Trafford this season, and did not even concede a single goal.
This is Barcelona. Not Schalke or an horrendously out of form Chelsea.
a strong referee who doesnt fall for barc's diving will be great. Then again last round was spain vs spain and its common as hell in that league, looking for a well played game with no diving and I wouldlove an Enlgish team to win but I just cant see it....not unless the is a few injuries, messi is unstoppable.
On May 05 2011 18:59 Jayjay54 wrote: 100% the best teams this year. well deserved. promising final
United have been poor in the Premier League for the majority of the season. Infact nobody in the Premier League has been a stand out performer. They're kinda at the top of the league by default and despite Chelsea going on the worst run in their history under Abramovich, they can still go first this weekend if they beat them.
Barcelona however are at their peak and genuinely one of the best teams i've seen in my life time. If not the best. And I saw the Milan side of the early 90's and Ajax 95.
I very much doubt United will play 4-4-2 against Barcelona too like the OP suggests.
Tbh I can't stand Messi and all the hype around him, loads of players would be as good as him if they could get the chance to play with midfielders such as Iniesta and Xavi. Besides they dive 24/7...
On May 05 2011 21:02 Dronk wrote: Rooting for Man U!
Tbh I can't stand Messi and all the hype around him, loads of players would be as good as him if they could get the chance to play with midfielders such as Iniesta and Xavi. Besides they dive 24/7...
You really don't know what you're talking about if you think loads of people could be as good as Messi...
I hope the predicted lineup is wrong. Carrick cannot handle the amount of pressing Barca does and is prone to making costly errors.
I would play a 4-4-1-1 with: Van der Sar - Rafael, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evra - Nani, Fletcher, Giggs, Valencia - Rooney, Hernandez;
Giggs has proven he can play inside, and Barcelona's mids have more speed/skill than physicality so he'll be okay in there. Park would also be a decent choice.
I hope Webb refs this. With a fair ref this should be a great game.
Individual match ups: Nani/Valencia v Puyol/Alves should be pretty one sided, the only way Puyol can stop either of these 2 is by fouling them and Dani Alves, I don't even know what he'll have to do, as of late he hasn't really stopped anyone impressively.
Messi v Whoever is always interesting, I hope it's against Anderson because I think he's one of the Man U midfielder who can keep up and contain him. I would love to see Fabio/Rafeal play against him but I don't think he'll get a spot for this game .
Rooney/Hernandez v Pique/Abidal is gonna be awesome, pique's got the height and possibly the faster speed but Rooney can definitely out muscle him to get the ball, Hernandez is going to constantly be a thorn in their side but Pique will probably be able to cover him, Abidal on the other hand might not be ready for a game like this after just coming back but we'll see.
Please, please change United's coach name to Sir Alex Ferguson. There's a reason it is called a title, you know.
Oh, and some stats for people who like that thing.
Barcelona – 2 finals in 4 years and 4 consecutive semi-finals. Man United – 3 finals in 4 years and 4 semi-finals in 5 years. (Should’ve been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4 mind you)
Barcelona – Goals Scored – 27 —- Conceded – 8 United – Scored – 18 —- Conceded – 4 (An own goal and the one today’s game should not count because our first choice did not play). Essentially United have conceded only two proper goals in 12 games of football in Europe this season.
How are Barcelona going to murder/overrun United when we have the meanest defense in all of Europe and have done so for the past few years. We’ve not conceded a goal away from home all season. That has never been done in the history of the competition so far.
Manchester United UEFA Coefficient – 151.157 Barcelona UEFA Coefficient – 139.351
People who believe Barcelona are better should take a good look at that. Guess UEFA’s own ranking system must lie then if it ranks United so much above Barcelona.
The problem with United is that they've fooled everyone into thinking they've got the worst team for years. If that were true, then what would you call the rest of Europe when we make the UCL semi final for the 3rd time in 4 years.
The fact of the matter is this United "team" is as good as any other we've had before. What they lack in the individual brilliance of someone like Best, or any of the 99 Legends or Ronaldo, we overcome with sheer single-minded will and desire to win. There is no other team that can lack that something (like Messi or Ronaldo for example) but still surprise everyone by making the final of such a prestigious competition.
Also, for all the people giving credit to Barcelona's offense, the same amount of credit is not given to United's defense which is the meanest in all of Europe. And for all of Barcelona's beauty, they can only play one way. United can do a lot of different things on our day, but most of all, given the right mindset and tactics from SAF, we can stop Barcelona from scoring. And I am not sure whether Barcelona’s defense can stop us from scoring. And therein lies the rational thought that leads me to believe why United might just get revenge for 2009. We can stop them from scoring, but can they stop us from scoring. And ultimately that is what wins you matches, scoring more and conceding less than the opposition(Essential Watching: 2008 Champions League semi-final)
Also, people should not forget that we had the best chances for the opening 10 mins of the 2009 final and could’ve gone ahead. We outplayed Barca for those 10 mins. And their goal was completely against the run of play. We just sat back for that one move and allowed them to play their game which ultimately led to an easy goal for them.
But after that, I’ve never seen a United team capitulate or just wither down like we did on that fateful day. Once Etoo scored, the game was over. At least, that’s how it looked when I saw all the players. There was no fight and we had almost conceded defeat after that very moment. It was not a contest once that goal went in. But had we scored from one of our earlier chances, it might’ve been different.
Oh well, hindsight is an amazing thing, but people should not forget what happened during the last final before they start making comments on how this one will transpire. Another point to note is that the 2009 had someone named Ronaldo trying to prove he was the best player in the world and was about as selfish as any player could be. This United team as has been suggested is about 11 players, not one person.
All of this and I am not saying what will happen in the final. However, people should use their footballing brains before dismissing United as a force to be reckoned with. The Final, like all other football matches, will start with 50-50 odds to each team. The best team on the night will walk home with the title. In 2009 it was Barcelona, I hope in 2011 it is Manchester United.
even my man united supporting friend doesn't think they'll win this and thats very out of character for him. though i won't say it in front of him its possible they'll win. barca are probably a better team though, i just hope its a good match and i can watch somewhere with nice beer!
Rooting for a Man U win, i doubt it though, I think what the squad has achieved this season is pretty damn amazing when you actually look at the players that united have at the moment, especially taking into consideration the amount of time Vidic/Ferdinand have been out this season. I just hope Carrick doesn't play, I used to be a big fan but in the 09 final against Barca I lost my faith in him, he was beyond useless and I don't think he has been good since, he always appears super sloppy when I see him play.
On May 05 2011 21:55 Megatronn wrote: I hope Webb refs this. With a fair ref this should be a great game.
Individual match ups: Nani/Valencia v Puyol/Alves should be pretty one sided, the only way Puyol can stop either of these 2 is by fouling them and Dani Alves, I don't even know what he'll have to do, as of late he hasn't really stopped anyone impressively.
Messi v Whoever is always interesting, I hope it's against Anderson because I think he's one of the Man U midfielder who can keep up and contain him. I would love to see Fabio/Rafeal play against him but I don't think he'll get a spot for this game .
Rooney/Hernandez v Pique/Abidal is gonna be awesome, pique's got the height and possibly the faster speed but Rooney can definitely out muscle him to get the ball, Hernandez is going to constantly be a thorn in their side but Pique will probably be able to cover him, Abidal on the other hand might not be ready for a game like this after just coming back but we'll see.
GG's all around.
Webb is not allowed to ref it since he's from England = Man U. Referees can not be from the same country as the club in the CL and UEFA cup. Anyway, rooting for Barca cuz they are simply the best team in the world with the best players and best football.
Any analysis counting on Man U to stymie Barca with physical play... that is the worst strategy against these divers. Sure ticket to an 11v10 or getting a goal disallowed.
On May 05 2011 18:59 Jayjay54 wrote: 100% the best teams this year. well deserved. promising final
United have been poor in the Premier League for the majority of the season. Infact nobody in the Premier League has been a stand out performer. They're kinda at the top of the league by default and despite Chelsea going on the worst run in their history under Abramovich, they can still go first this weekend if they beat them.
Barcelona however are at their peak and genuinely one of the best teams i've seen in my life time. If not the best. And I saw the Milan side of the early 90's and Ajax 95.
I very much doubt United will play 4-4-2 against Barcelona too like the OP suggests.
It's not that ManU or Chelsea are performing bad, its just that compared to the Spanish League, Premier is way more competitive, there are 7-9 teams that are fighting for Champions League spots, meanwhile, there are 3-5 teams that can have a shot a the title meanwhile, in Spanish League the title race is between 2 teams, and Champions League is almost always the same 4 so...
Last time they met in the finals, United was hell of alot better team + Ronaldo than they are today. Barcelona are almost the exact same team with some adjustments here and there + David Villa.
That does not mean auto win for Barcelona but if they play just half way good and take their chances i dont see United winning.
Go Mancheter United! Frankly I am not sure how either team will stack up against each other. Both can have their off days. Should be a good match though.
On May 05 2011 23:18 Tyree wrote: Last time they met in the finals, United was hell of alot better team + Ronaldo than they are today. Barcelona are almost the exact same team with some adjustments here and there + David Villa.
That does not mean auto win for Barcelona but if they play just half way good and take their chances i dont see United winning.
Barca had Eto (whose goal turned the game around) and Henry, which imo are better than Villa and Pedro.
Biggest improvement for Barca is that their midfield is exactly the same, which means two additional years of playing together. Incredible unity in that group.
But I agree that United are not as strong as they were 2 years ago. Ronaldo and Tevez were a big part of that team. Hernandez and Valencia do not make up for that.
On May 05 2011 18:59 Jayjay54 wrote: 100% the best teams this year. well deserved. promising final
United have been poor in the Premier League for the majority of the season. Infact nobody in the Premier League has been a stand out performer. They're kinda at the top of the league by default and despite Chelsea going on the worst run in their history under Abramovich, they can still go first this weekend if they beat them.
Barcelona however are at their peak and genuinely one of the best teams i've seen in my life time. If not the best. And I saw the Milan side of the early 90's and Ajax 95.
I very much doubt United will play 4-4-2 against Barcelona too like the OP suggests.
It's not that ManU or Chelsea are performing bad, its just that compared to the Spanish League, Premier is way more competitive, there are 7-9 teams that are fighting for Champions League spots, meanwhile, there are 3-5 teams that can have a shot a the title meanwhile, in Spanish League the title race is between 2 teams, and Champions League is almost always the same 4 so...
The competition is a lot better than La Liga that is true, but for the top teams very high standards, they have all under performed and any one of them will be kicking themselves if they don't win the league because it was there for the taking this year in all honesty.
La Liga can be glorified Scottish Premier League sometimes. With the way their TV ad revenue currently works it's very unfair for the other teams unlike the Premier League so the other teams don't really stand a realistic chance of competing with Madrid and Barca.
On May 05 2011 23:23 soytriniman wrote: I think that you're starting lineup is missing Park, Nani will come off the bench most likely. ONE UNITED!
Nani has been United's best player this year, he will start. I'm guessing they will drop Hernandez and play someone like Park on the other wing. There's no way Fergie will play 4-4-2 against Barcelona. He always plays 4-5-1 in the big games so they don't get outnumbered in midfield.
On May 05 2011 21:39 Signet wrote: I hope the predicted lineup is wrong. Carrick cannot handle the amount of pressing Barca does and is prone to making costly errors.
I would play a 4-4-1-1 with: Van der Sar - Rafael, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evra - Nani, Fletcher, Giggs, Valencia - Rooney, Hernandez;
Giggs has proven he can play inside, and Barcelona's mids have more speed/skill than physicality so he'll be okay in there. Park would also be a decent choice.
Agreed except i'd switch Nani out for Park. Nani on a good day is prob better but what are the odds.
On May 05 2011 18:59 Jayjay54 wrote: 100% the best teams this year. well deserved. promising final
United have been poor in the Premier League for the majority of the season. Infact nobody in the Premier League has been a stand out performer. They're kinda at the top of the league by default and despite Chelsea going on the worst run in their history under Abramovich, they can still go first this weekend if they beat them.
Barcelona however are at their peak and genuinely one of the best teams i've seen in my life time. If not the best. And I saw the Milan side of the early 90's and Ajax 95.
I very much doubt United will play 4-4-2 against Barcelona too like the OP suggests.
It's not that ManU or Chelsea are performing bad, its just that compared to the Spanish League, Premier is way more competitive, there are 7-9 teams that are fighting for Champions League spots, meanwhile, there are 3-5 teams that can have a shot a the title meanwhile, in Spanish League the title race is between 2 teams, and Champions League is almost always the same 4 so...
The competition is a lot better than La Liga that is true, but for the top teams very high standards, they have all under performed and any one of them will be kicking themselves if they don't win the league because it was there for the taking this year in all honesty.
La Liga can be glorified Scottish Premier League sometimes. With the way their TV ad revenue currently works it's very unfair for the other teams unlike the Premier League so the other teams don't really stand a realistic chance of competing with Madrid and Barca.
TheHova, you mean ManU or Barça, that has underachieved? Cause both of them have an empty space in their trophy case, (FA Cup and Copa del Rey), Im kinda confused...
In this thread a bunch of pathetic non-red UK based posters desperately try to claw away at United's credibility in the face of their potential league and UCL double. Barca will probably win but make no mistakes this will be close.
We'll be seeing a beautiful game of football, which i'd give barca 70-80% chance of winning, or another terrible foul-fest with completely random goal scoring.
English team, english turf. I'm not expecting the good game.
As the commentators said yesterday: Schalkes Trainer once played for an english team. On his first appearance he scored 3 broken ribs, even hurting his lung in the process. Welcome to England.
I really don't like any of these teams, barcelona with the diving/cheating and (some of) uniteds fans and manager dont even need explanations. I still think that barcelona will win fairly easily with 2-0 or something like that.
Barca will have much of the ball posession as for how they play and United will change how the last finally was vs Barca so this can only get really really exciting ! Btw include this video in the OP as Hype stuff ^^
Van der Sar - Rafael, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evra - Nani, Fletcher, Carrick, Giggs - Rooney, Hernandez; Coach: Alex Ferguson
I would say a more probable line up is O'Shae for Rafael as Rafael isn't experienced in games like this and his hard challenges have led to problems in the past in big games ( Red card vs Bayern Munich last year). Also I would be very surprised not to see Ji Sung Park starting or subbed in as Ferguson usually plays him in big games. I would also say that Valencia will start, but over who its hard to say, Nani hasn't scored in a while but other than that he hasn't been in poor form and Giggs is still brilliant. I don't think Carrick will start though as he doesn't exactly have tons of defensive prowess and is often kind of quiet in the midfield, and against a team like barca it's not good to let them have any more control in the midfield than they already will. Depending on how Ferguson wants to play against barcelona Scholes might do good as a center mid because hes so scrappy and I don't think Xavi or Iniesta could really handle him, but its probably more likely that Park will start in the center mid instead with Fletcher as he's such a hard worker.. Also could see ferguson dropping chicharito out and playing a 4-5-1 but I honestly hope he plays a 4-4-2 because rooney has had a lot of trouble in the past being a lone striker and hernandez and rooney have become one of the best offensive pairs in the game.
Either way I hope it will be a more enjoyable match than the 2009 Champions League Final.
I am without a doubt rooting for Barcelona, but after seeing MU do so well in the semi-finals, I am not extremely confident! This is going to be a great football game, may the best team win.
I think it is unlikely he will play Fletcher, the guy has just come back from injury and has 3 games to get fully match fit again, I can't see it happening.
I would really expect a midfield of Giggs, Carrick, Rooney with Valencia and Park on the wings. Rooney playing the same roll he did vs Chelsea in the game at old trafford.
I would like to see Rafael start as opposed to O'Shea as I feel Dani Alves is not super hot defensively and it's one of very few things about Barcelona that we could exploit. I don't think he will play Nani from the start as he simply is not good enough defensively against a team that can pass it around for 80% of the game.
If we want any chance of winning when we do get the ball we will have to be incredibly productive with it and do a good job at keeping it ourselves and I'm even worried that even if Barcelona do have an off-day and we happen to play pretty decent they'll just cheat their asses off and get away with it. I hope that ugly side of them with all the play acting doesn't show itself.
im torn between my domestic hatred for mutd and my international favouritism. Ideally i wish that any other english club was in the final, but seen as thats not the case i guess ill be cheering for mutd! (maybe just a 1-0)
This is Nani's chance to finally step out of Ronaldo's shadow. He's been excellent this season. Dont know who from Barca can defend him really. Puyol is too slow, Maxwell not nifty enough. Maybe Abidal back on form?
But there isn't really an underdog. Both clubs have been playing at their top level. But i guess Barcelona are Barcelona so i'm going to be rooting for Man U.
I'm mostly just rooting for a good match with many goals :D
Rooting for United, hopefully when Sir Alex said that he's learned from that match that he knows what needs to be changed. Although except for Ronaldo and Rooney on left wing, I can't see too many squad changes. On ITV yesterday, Gordon Strachan said that Sir Alex told him the gameplan the night before the match 2 years ago, but it failed because it overestimated United's possession. Who knows, hopefully a good open match
I will watch, but I'm already disappointed in the reffing. I swear, diving should be a red card + a red card for another player on your team, and they should have instant replay to review dives.
On May 05 2011 21:02 Dronk wrote: Rooting for Man U!
Tbh I can't stand Messi and all the hype around him, loads of players would be as good as him if they could get the chance to play with midfielders such as Iniesta and Xavi. Besides they dive 24/7...
i'm not the biggest messi fanboy out there but damn saying he's not up to his hype is utterly absurd ... sure he benefits a lot from xavi and inesta but the kid is a fucking beast mate ...
On May 05 2011 21:02 Dronk wrote: Rooting for Man U!
Tbh I can't stand Messi and all the hype around him, loads of players would be as good as him if they could get the chance to play with midfielders such as Iniesta and Xavi. Besides they dive 24/7...
i'm not the biggest messi fanboy out there but damn saying he's not up to his hype is utterly absurd ... sure he benefits a lot from xavi and inesta but the kid is a fucking beast mate ...
On May 05 2011 21:02 Dronk wrote: Rooting for Man U!
Tbh I can't stand Messi and all the hype around him, loads of players would be as good as him if they could get the chance to play with midfielders such as Iniesta and Xavi. Besides they dive 24/7...
i'm not the biggest messi fanboy out there but damn saying he's not up to his hype is utterly absurd ... sure he benefits a lot from xavi and inesta but the kid is a fucking beast mate ...
The world cup says hi.
Was just about to say that... Messi can be easily tamed like Madrid showed in the 1-1 Draw and the Copa Del Ray win ( The goals in the Semi final came after the Red card so that doesn"t count) , The Real Maestros of barcelona are Xavi and Iniesta , If we can outmuscle them somehow without the Ref falling for their cheating and Diving antics , We have a very good chance to Win it .
Some of you are largely exaggerating Barcelona's diving, they did so only because it was against Real and Real was equally provocative. In terms of fair play, I find Barca competely legit when it's outside El Classico; but even in El Classico, all that stuff looks understandable, considering their match history.
By the way, I hope Feguson will not sacrifice Hernandez to field Anderson. Anderson instead of Carrick gonna be fine with me but either way I want Chikarito to play from the start.
Barca were waaayyy too good last time these two sides threw down.
If we look back we saw Ronaldo playing with fire in his belly and the rest of the United side looking decidedly second-class. United are currently (I would argue) the most consistent side in the world, but Barca are the best side in the world.
Missing the best player in your line-up when compared to your previous engagement as well as your opponent picking up the best defensive harrier around in the form of the Monster Masch...well, that makes it pretty tough for United.
That said this is certainly no easy task for either side. Just don't think United have the midfield to battle Barca's or the defence to hold out against one of the best team attacks I have ever seen.
On May 06 2011 20:41 althaz wrote: Barca were waaayyy too good last time these two sides threw down.
If we look back we saw Ronaldo playing with fire in his belly and the rest of the United side looking decidedly second-class. United are currently (I would argue) the most consistent side in the world, but Barca are the best side in the world.
Missing the best player in your line-up when compared to your previous engagement as well as your opponent picking up the best defensive harrier around in the form of the Monster Masch...well, that makes it pretty tough for United.
That said this is certainly no easy task for either side. Just don't think United have the midfield to battle Barca's or the defence to hold out against one of the best team attacks I have ever seen.
Barca 3-1.
actually ronaldo was frustating to watch as a neutral last time they played, he wasted so many chances trying to be top dog instead of being a team player which is exactly what man utd are now he has left, they are a team unit!
On May 06 2011 20:41 althaz wrote: Barca were waaayyy too good last time these two sides threw down.
If we look back we saw Ronaldo playing with fire in his belly and the rest of the United side looking decidedly second-class. United are currently (I would argue) the most consistent side in the world, but Barca are the best side in the world.
Missing the best player in your line-up when compared to your previous engagement as well as your opponent picking up the best defensive harrier around in the form of the Monster Masch...well, that makes it pretty tough for United.
That said this is certainly no easy task for either side. Just don't think United have the midfield to battle Barca's or the defence to hold out against one of the best team attacks I have ever seen.
Barca 3-1.
actually ronaldo was frustating to watch as a neutral last time they played, he wasted so many chances trying to be top dog instead of being a team player which is exactly what man utd are now he has left, they are a team unit!
No individual trying to take all the glory.
Yes I agree. Ronaldo to me actually struggles in the tight games. We saw this with Portugal in the world cup, as a lone striker he really wasn't very effective at all. This United side is better equiped this time round to attack the Barcelona back four. I'm not sure it's the best strategy but for the good of the game I hope United play 4-4-2 and attack.
Rooting for United, hopefully when Sir Alex said that he's learned from that match that he knows what needs to be changed. Although except for Ronaldo and Rooney on left wing, I can't see too many squad changes. On ITV yesterday, Gordon Strachan said that Sir Alex told him the gameplan the night before the match 2 years ago, but it failed because it overestimated United's possession. Who knows, hopefully a good open match
Keep in mind that 3 years ago MU knocked Barca out of the Champions League in the semifinals (it was Paul Scholes that scored the only goal in their tie, and it was a marvelous goal as well). So even though they lost to Barca two years ago, they certainly have experienced owning them. lol.
Not a fan of either club, especially in recent years. But I really can't stand the Barca hype and the fact that they seem to win things with ease, so I'm going to side with United on this one.
Oh and Giggs and Scholes are pretty much the only 2 footballers I like and respect in both lineups, would be so awesome to see them win another CL.
The pressure on the Man U midfield will be massive and if they get it right they have a chance, they will need to play very cautiously. Park, Fletcher, Scholes and Valencia to start!
i want barca to win but i hope its a really epic game like 120 min penalty shootout, 5-5 full time,with barca winning in penalties with like 13-12 with drama in between
On May 06 2011 23:12 sixfour wrote: lol at whoever said eto'o/Henry were better than Villa/Pedro, and I think Pedro's horribly overrated
I consider Eto'o better than Villa, Henry scored more goals in the 2008-09 season for Barca than Pedro has in any season of his career (you youself consider Pedro overrated)... lolz?
On May 06 2011 23:12 sixfour wrote: lol at whoever said eto'o/Henry were better than Villa/Pedro, and I think Pedro's horribly overrated
I consider Eto'o better than Villa, Henry scored more goals in the 2008-09 season for Barca than Pedro has in any season of his career (you youself consider Pedro overrated)... lolz?
Still can't over the fact Henry never won a Ballon d'Or the man was a beast and unplayable in his prime.
Yup. Nani's way out of form right now, and Valencia's just coming back into the side with some super strong performances. When United try to play them both, it doesn't really work. I think Hernandez will start with Rooney and Valencia's crosses would be extremely valuable. Have you watched a United game this year?
ya ... pale mid field ... i forgot that giggs, scholes and fletcher arn't absolute legends with multiple Champions Leagues trophies. If barca rolls around on the ground and pedro and sergio pretending their leg is broken in 9 places barca will win. if they play a straight up game united will win.
Barcelona will most likely crush with ease. There might be a little bit of a struggle, but that's only if Barca let Man U touch the ball... I have a feeling Barca will dance the ball around them for 90 minutes and score a couple goals in the process. They're just too good. I love Man U, but they are severely outclassed here. GL GL
I think the lineup is ganna be something like this Fabio--------Rio--------Vidic--------Evra ------------Carrick -----Fletcher----------- ---Valencia--------------------------Park----- -------------------Rooney---------------- -------------------------------------------- -------------Hernandez-----------------------
Maybe Giggs or Nani instead of Park, or a 5 Man midfield with no Hernandez and Rooney as the lone striker. I'm confident Fletcher will play because he missed out in the 09 finals.
On May 07 2011 06:17 ladytr0n wrote: ya ... pale mid field ... i forgot that giggs, scholes and fletcher arn't absolute legends with multiple Champions Leagues trophies. If barca rolls around on the ground and pedro and sergio pretending their leg is broken in 9 places barca will win. if they play a straight up game united will win.
Barcelona's entire team have either Champions league wins, Euro wins or World Cup wins. They have a far more balanced squad, a far superior midfield and attack, Manchester United have a scrappy defense, I don't care what you say Barcelona have a superior defensive record. In a straight up game it would be 3-0 Barcelona. The only chance United have is if it gets scrappy.
On May 07 2011 08:51 SEANSYE wrote: Maybe Giggs or Nani instead of Park, or a 5 Man midfield with no Hernandez and Rooney as the lone striker. I'm confident Fletcher will play because he missed out in the 09 finals.
I agree, he's the best ball-winning midfielder United have got unless he shows a great lack of form from his recent sickness, Sir Alex seems quite sentimental in the cup finals for example Scholes played in 08 as he missed out in 99 and Park played in 09 after missing out in 08.
However, I don't see Barca's defence being stronger either except for right back, especially in the last few games where Mascherano has been placed in CB
Im really a Barcelona fan... but facing the truth, right now Barcelona IS NOT the same team they had during the 5-0 5-0 5-0 winning streak during the first part of the "La Liga" spanish league. For some reason, maybe trying to keep up with the pressure in their back (an always close Real Madrid) or the fatal number of player losses, they seem to be (are in fact) WAY below their peak... This is the crucial time (half a month more or less) where Barcelona has to regain it's true self... if not MANCHESTER WILL WIN UNDOUBTEDLY... Força Barça!!!! go back to those golden times where you crushed Real Madrid 5-0!!!!
On May 07 2011 05:59 Airship wrote: Yup. Nani's way out of form right now, and Valencia's just coming back into the side with some super strong performances. When United try to play them both, it doesn't really work. I think Hernandez will start with Rooney and Valencia's crosses would be extremely valuable. Have you watched a United game this year?
I totally agree with u there, would not surprise at all watching him playing the whole 90' minutes. GOTTA LOVE his crosses, not only Ferguson but Rooney must love him as well ^^
On May 07 2011 09:21 Sgany wrote: Manchester United have a scrappy defense, I don't care what you say Barcelona have a superior defensive record.
You completely, 100% lost me at this part.
Compare how many goals have been scored vs Manchester United, and then compare how many goals scored vs Barcelona.
Ok. Barcelona have conceded 8, Manchester United have conceded 4. Owned.
Compare the teams each team has played........ Also I am also talking about in the teams respective leagues..
oh you're talking about the domestic leagues, where one is vastly more competitive than the other, and not about the competition that this thread is actually about, the one league that both teams are actually in, presumably because it's the only way you can support your terrible argument. Well, you're still wrong. United have had one of the all time great defensive records in europe this season, and in general their defensive play is probably the best in the world right now. Barcelona's defence by contrast has been reasonably shaky recently.
On May 07 2011 09:21 Sgany wrote: Manchester United have a scrappy defense, I don't care what you say Barcelona have a superior defensive record.
You completely, 100% lost me at this part.
Compare how many goals have been scored vs Manchester United, and then compare how many goals scored vs Barcelona.
Ok. Barcelona have conceded 8, Manchester United have conceded 4. Owned.
Compare the teams each team has played........ Also I am also talking about in the teams respective leagues..
oh you're talking about the domestic leagues, where one is vastly more competitive than the other, and not about the competition that this thread is actually about, the one league that both teams are actually in, presumably because it's the only way you can support your terrible argument. Well, you're still wrong. United have had one of the all time great defensive records in europe this season, and in general their defensive play is probably the best in the world right now. Barcelona's defence by contrast has been reasonably shaky recently.
EPL is just as competitive as the La Liga, the last time a team other than Chelsea or Manchester United won the EPL was the same year Valencia won the La LIga, so do not compare that. In the one league both teams are in Manchester United have had a very easy run compared to Barcelona.
On May 07 2011 11:31 Airship wrote: There are probably 7 teams in the EPL that would finish above whoever finishes third place in la liga this year. You're still just talking nonsense.
Like who? Look at Europa Atletico Madrid won it last year. They arent even in the top 4 of La Liga, yet are winning a league with all these "good" English teams in it.
You're still trying to argue this? Seriously? You were already proven wrong when you asked me to count the goals conceded. The best you can do right now is pointlessly argue which league is more competitive.
On May 07 2011 11:40 Airship wrote: You're still trying to argue this? Seriously? You were already proven wrong when you asked me to count the goals conceded. The best you can do right now is pointlessly argue which league is more competitive.
Oh how people like you give American Football fans a bad name. Barcelona this season have conceded less goals overall than Manchester United, you started the league arguement so stop being wrong.
The argument is about barcelona vs manchester united, who's defence is better as it pertains to this final. Inarguably it's United's, even without counting goals, just by looking at them. When you do look at their records, United have only conceded 4 goals in europe, including an unprecedented zero away goals conceded on their way to the final. It's at this point that, in desperation, you mention that United have conceded more goals in their domestic league, which you can (and are having to) argue is way more competitive than La Liga anyway. When you're also wrong about this point, too, you're reduced to just saying United fans are terrible and that Americans are terrible. It's hilarious that you can't just realise you were wrong and admit it.
Yeah, Man U's defense is good, but Barca has had a lot of injuries on defense over the past few months. Puyol and Abidal are getting back in shape though, Barca's first XI should be ready for Wembley later this month. As a full XI, Barca has been impeccable; I don't think they've lost with Puyol in the lineup, not to mention Abidal.
On May 07 2011 11:56 ilj.psa wrote: Just hoping for an open game both teams attacking and etc, for entertainment
Probably wont"t happen , Fergie Realized that the Last time he had a go at Barcelona they were Demolished and lost 2-0.He won"t make the same mistake again. Our play on the ounter is second to none..
Man U has one of the best defenses if not the best in the world... You have Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, and Van Der Sar. They were always known for having a solid defense... Last years problem was that they didn't have any other strikers besides Rooney. This year, they got Hernandez; their only problem seems to be is the midfield.
And EPL > La Liga by a fucking mile. Besides Barcelona and Real Madrid everyone else is pretty shit. Hotspurs, a 6th place team currently beat A.C Milan on aggregate. Arsenal was capable of beating Barcelona as well. Then you still have teams like Chelsea, Man City, and Liverpool...
On May 07 2011 12:19 SEANSYE wrote: Man U has one of the best defenses if not the best in the world... You have Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, and Van Der Sar. They were always known for having a solid defense... Last years problem was that they didn't have any other strikers besides Rooney. This year, they got Hernandez; their only problem seems to be is the midfield.
And EPL > La Liga by a fucking mile. Besides Barcelona and Real Madrid everyone else is pretty shit. Hotspurs, a 6th place team currently beat A.C Milan on aggregate. Arsenal was capable of beating Barcelona as well. Then you still have teams like Chelsea, Man City, and Liverpool...
It's hard to say whether EPL > La Liga or not. Your example is misleading since Milan made a lot of winter signings that propelled through Serie A. Before the winter break, the title was much more closely contested. However, most of the winter signings were cup-tied, e.g. Boateng, Van Bommel, meaning that Milan's UCL team was really weak and was quite unbalanced (top-heavy, no decent playmaker who wasn't cup-tied or injured, defence was short on depth). Unsurprisingly, Milan lost to spurs by counter-attacking wing play since the winter replacements who were meant to cover the DM and FB positions were cup-tied.
In fact, the stats show that there were more La Liga teams in both the UCL and UEL semis than there were EPL teams there. I don't want to get into an argument of EPL v La Liga since it's completely pointless. I find La Liga games more entertaining but there's no denying that the big 4-6 in the EPL are just about world class.
About the match itself - it's really hard to call. It's a one off match and it's practically in United's home turf, not that it matters so much. The match will probably play out like what the Clasicos were supposed to be if there wasn't any diving or thuggery involved. It'll be up to United's counter-attack + solid defence vs the Barca midfield creativity. I'd expect United to press much higher up the pitch and have quite some attacking intent, pushing more men up the pitch than Mourinho's RM ever did. United's fitness, defence and counter-attack vs Barca's possession, creativity and off-side trap.
IMO: 2-1 Barcelona. Villa and Messi to score for Barca. Chicharito to score off a counter attack.
On May 07 2011 12:19 SEANSYE wrote: Man U has one of the best defenses if not the best in the world...
As a Chelsea fan I must throw in a spanner and say Chelsea have the best defensive record in the EPL. Barcelona and AC Milan also have better league defensive records.
Man U have Vidic and Evra and VDS yes. Smalling and Evans are not the best in the world, Rio Ferdinand is constantly injured and the Da Silva brothers are also not at the top level yet.
It's obvious that if one team wants a fair game where only game play matters, this team is Barcelona.
And for those saying playing counter to Barcelona is a good idea... Well, that's what Barcelona expects, as 95% of teams plays them like this, so it's not big deal.
In my opinion the best way to beat them is taking the ball off of them, not countering.
On May 07 2011 17:41 xN.07)MaK wrote: So much hate towards Barcelona...
It's obvious that if one team wants a fair game where only game play matters, this team is Barcelona.
And for those saying playing counter to Barcelona is a good idea... Well, that's what Barcelona expects, as 95% of teams plays them like this, so it's not big deal.
In my opinion the best way to beat them is taking the ball off of them, not countering.
that is quite a self serving definition of fair play you have there
that is quite a self serving definition of fair play you have there
It's been one of the fairest teams in the last, what, 5 years? (You can check faults stats).
And don't pretend Barcelona is the only team that does that. I'm not trying to justify it, it happened and I'm sure they are not proud of it.
There is no 100% fair team in the world, not even Barcelona. You can name a team, and I'm certain it's not hard to find videos of them tackling way too hard or acting.
It's part of the game and that's why referees and UEFA exist, to punish it.
I think Barca will win 2-0, but I also dont think that united will make the same mistake as last time. I think they'll play much more defensive, and try to catch them off guard on some counters. But I still think that Barca will win. They are just on a different level than anyone else atm.
That being said I think the united will put up a good fight.
http://i.imgur.com/GJYtK.jpg (zonal marking: www.zonalmarking.net) this sytem imo. park will track alves and either di silva will try to push villa backwards. only problem i really see is united getting outplayed in the middle. with messi/pedro dropping deep. hopefully rooney will also drop deep and put in some key tackles and block, unlike what he did against arsenal.
that is quite a self serving definition of fair play you have there
PS: Btw, this has nothing to do with WC right?
Not really, since we did the same thing in our match against Brazil. I'm not going to deny it has been something that is defining modern football more and more (unfortunately), but I'll be damned to call it fair play. And the referees are the one's to blame for all this crap: even when they have the opportunity to send out a signal to the players that this kind of behaviour is not OK they just don't. Busquets v.s Inter last year is a prime example, Toivonen standing on Gudelj's foot to get a reaction out of him is another for the dutch competition. Ref's and the commisions that have the power to enforce rules retroactively only focus on reactions leaving actions unpunished even when they are blatantly obvious. If this is now 'part of the game' I think I'll switch to something less else, like rugby. World cup is in October I believe :D
that is quite a self serving definition of fair play you have there
It's been one of the fairest teams in the last, what, 5 years? (You can check faults stats).
And don't pretend Barcelona is the only team that does that. I'm not trying to justify it, it happened and I'm sure they are not proud of it.
There is no 100% fair team in the world, not even Barcelona. You can name a team, and I'm certain it's not hard to find videos of them tackling way too hard or acting.
It's part of the game and that's why referees and UEFA exist, to punish it.
PS: Btw, this has nothing to do with WC right?
Take it this way , Nobody does it as much as Barcelona. And oh did Somebody notice that Pep went Unpunished for the "He"s a fucking chief in the press room" towards Mourinho but Mourinho got a 5 game ban...Does my head in how they get away from Punishment every single time.
On May 07 2011 12:19 SEANSYE wrote: Man U has one of the best defenses if not the best in the world...
As a Chelsea fan I must throw in a spanner and say Chelsea have the best defensive record in the EPL. Barcelona and AC Milan also have better league defensive records.
Man U have Vidic and Evra and VDS yes. Smalling and Evans are not the best in the world, Rio Ferdinand is constantly injured and the Da Silva brothers are also not at the top level yet.
Yes this has been Man U's problem on defense this season. The dropoff from Vidic/Ferdinand to Smalling/Brown/Evans is huge and with the injuries we have seen these backup players having to appear in some important games. Smalling I think is getting there, the others have a ways to go.
Manchester United fan here, but I can't really see them beating Barca. I think it'll be a repeat of the 2-0 from 2009.
I'm just glad Barcelona beat Real Madrid on their way to the final and that Mourinho's antics gave them something else to be embarrassed about. Something about Real Madrid just annoys me.
At the moment Bracelona got so much better midfielders. Iniesta,Xavi and Macherano. Only a Giggs in really good shape can match those players, but if Manchester United find some way to stop them. I gotta say they got a really big chance of winning. But right now i dont see how United is gonna stop the "Creative" players in Barcelona.
On May 06 2011 09:35 Airship wrote: I'm actually not sure Nani will start over Valencia.
loooool this made my day haha. Are you for real or trollin' hardcore? Have you watched a United game this year?
Just to come back to this because I resent the implication that I don't know what I'm talking about when it comes to United, today in the EPL it's United vs Chelsea, one of the biggest games of the season which will almost certainly decide the league title. Both teams are fielding their strongest 11 (accounting for injuries), and United have fielded Valencia over Nani.
On May 07 2011 06:45 Airship wrote: Schalke had most of the possession in their 4-1 trouncing at Old Trafford. Just saying.
Do you not find it a bit worrying Schalke had most of the possession at Trafford? Schalke were horrendous, and still had most of the ball. Schalke must of been the worst team ever in a champs league semi final in terms of quality. Schalke had about 60% of the ball? What do you think Barca will have when even against RM they had 65% plus? Messi and co have a special performance lined up for Man Utd I suspect And yes possession is not everything, but if you only have 30%, you give yourself a much smaller window to do any damage, and by definition, you give them more chance.
That being said, two excellent teams who do things the right way, 8 local boys likely to start for Barca, is that not amazing to anyone else? Man Utd too, still just about defying the EPL 'buy your way to the top' mentality, fielding plenty of British talent too. Please not too defensive Fergie, fight fire with fire and take Barca on in a game of football
I expect 3-0, Barcelona beating Manchester United. No offense but only premier league team who can play football is Arsenal, with Liverpool coming back. Man U and Chelsea were always overrated.
On May 07 2011 06:45 Airship wrote: Schalke had most of the possession in their 4-1 trouncing at Old Trafford. Just saying.
What do you think Barca will have when even against RM they had 65% plus?
Since when has RM been a possension-centric side? Even taking the final game, which Madrid had to score two goals, we didn't play with a focus on holding the ball at all. Watch Kaka and Ozil in that game. Both of them took up good positions to receive the ball, but long-balls/individual plays were almost always favoured. Hell, aside from Ozil, none of our mid-field is really great at ball retention.
RM certainly wasn't possession-centric side this season (even in most games outside of Barca), and while we have had plenty of players capable of playing possession-centric football, our style and MU's have been rather similar - i.e. very direct football - in recent memory.
On May 09 2011 13:19 LesPhoques wrote: I expect 3-0, Barcelona beating Manchester United. No offense but only premier league team who can play football is Arsenal, with Liverpool coming back. Man U and Chelsea were always overrated.
Hahahahaha , You mean the biggest bunch of bottlers in the history of the Premier league?
On May 09 2011 13:19 LesPhoques wrote: I expect 3-0, Barcelona beating Manchester United. No offense but only premier league team who can play football is Arsenal, with Liverpool coming back. Man U and Chelsea were always overrated.
Hahahahaha , You mean the biggest bunch of bottlers in the history of the Premier league?
i totally read this as "botters" and i laughed cuz i thought you were being clever about them being robotic and mindless and preprogrammed, etc.
On May 07 2011 06:45 Airship wrote: Schalke had most of the possession in their 4-1 trouncing at Old Trafford. Just saying.
What do you think Barca will have when even against RM they had 65% plus?
Since when has RM been a possension-centric side? Even taking the final game, which Madrid had to score two goals, we didn't play with a focus on holding the ball at all. Watch Kaka and Ozil in that game. Both of them took up good positions to receive the ball, but long-balls/individual plays were almost always favoured. Hell, aside from Ozil, none of our mid-field is really great at ball retention.
RM certainly wasn't possession-centric side this season (even in most games outside of Barca), and while we have had plenty of players capable of playing possession-centric football, our style and MU's have been rather similar - i.e. very direct football - in recent memory.
Well I remember a far superior RM side with Zidane at the helm and they were possession centric and it worked brilliantly. However, in saying that possession stat vs Barca, I was complimenting RM's talent in terms of breaking up possession. Players like Diarra, Khedira, Pepe make their living in breaking up the play of the opposition and are a lot better at it than anyone for Man Utd, so what I meant was if those RM guys couldn't do it, what chance do Carrick and co have in the midfield?
And Airship, possession means nothing? You mustn't have played football at any kind of decent standard then, because trust me, when all you do is chase shadows, you get very tired quickly. It's a much easier game with the ball. Aside from that, purely in terms of probabilities, ball in play time in the average game is only about 50-60 mins or so? So if Barca have 70% of that vs Man Utd, it leaves Man Utd only 15-25 mins in possession and less time to score a goal. This is why Barca's defensive record is so good, you don't defend when you have the ball. It's not everything, but it certainly means a lot more than nothing dude.
On May 07 2011 06:45 Airship wrote: Schalke had most of the possession in their 4-1 trouncing at Old Trafford. Just saying.
What do you think Barca will have when even against RM they had 65% plus?
Since when has RM been a possension-centric side? Even taking the final game, which Madrid had to score two goals, we didn't play with a focus on holding the ball at all. Watch Kaka and Ozil in that game. Both of them took up good positions to receive the ball, but long-balls/individual plays were almost always favoured. Hell, aside from Ozil, none of our mid-field is really great at ball retention.
RM certainly wasn't possession-centric side this season (even in most games outside of Barca), and while we have had plenty of players capable of playing possession-centric football, our style and MU's have been rather similar - i.e. very direct football - in recent memory.
Well I remember a far superior RM side with Zidane at the helm and they were possession centric and it worked brilliantly. However, in saying that possession stat vs Barca, I was complimenting RM's talent in terms of breaking up possession. Players like Diarra, Khedira, Pepe make their living in breaking up the play of the opposition and are a lot better at it than anyone for Man Utd, so what I meant was if those RM guys couldn't do it, what chance do Carrick and co have in the midfield?
While they were definitely capable of playing tiki-taka, Galacticos MK. 1 were not possession-centric. Take a look, for example, at when RM 2-0'd Barca away in the CL in 2002 (I hope this is the right match). They didn't give away 70% possession like this classico, but they still were not the possession-centric side the Barca is (and was then).
Also, I'm not sure how the point about RM's ability to break up play supports your point. In the games where RM sat back, RM were very happy to let Barca play around with possession (hence why the ball spent alot of time in Barca's half) outside of dangerous areas. While I don't really think much of Carrick, Fletcher and Park (both big game players) I think may be very useful and effective against Barca.
Some people in this thread really don't seem to know much about football.
You can't really compare Barca and Man Utd's defensive records. La Liga is essentially a joke league, doesn't come close to the PL in terms of competition or quality. Barca > Real > everyone else. Premier League will have as many as 6 teams vying for the top spot next season, and as many as 8 vying for 4th place.
On May 10 2011 08:01 iLuminar wrote: And Airship, possession means nothing? You mustn't have played football at any kind of decent standard then, because trust me, when all you do is chase shadows, you get very tired quickly. It's a much easier game with the ball. Aside from that, purely in terms of probabilities, ball in play time in the average game is only about 50-60 mins or so? So if Barca have 70% of that vs Man Utd, it leaves Man Utd only 15-25 mins in possession and less time to score a goal. This is why Barca's defensive record is so good, you don't defend when you have the ball. It's not everything, but it certainly means a lot more than nothing dude.
I think you'll find that games are won or lost based on the final score actually. This tends to be influenced mostly by attacking and defensive ability. Possession is certainly something that happens in a game, but as I illustrated perfectly with my Shalke example, it doesn't give you an accurate reading of how a game went. There's usually correlation because of the reasons you mention, which is why lazy pundits believe it's a good shorthand for dominance in a game. This completely fails to appreciate that some teams are confident off the ball. Let me teach you a little lesson about football, I'll even make it about Manchester United vs Barcelona just to make this as simple as I possibly can. In 2008 in the champions league semi final, Manchester United faced Barcelona. The teams played 180+ minutes of football over two legs, during which Barcelona had the lionshare of possession. The final score? 1-0 to United, due to a Barcelona player accidentally shinning a loose ball directly into the path of Paul Scholes who let rip a screamer into the top corner. One single kick defeated Barcelona over two legs. And truth be told, Manchester United looked as comfortable as Barca throughout. In practice, possession is de facto meaningless. Goals win games.
On May 07 2011 06:45 Airship wrote: Schalke had most of the possession in their 4-1 trouncing at Old Trafford. Just saying.
Do you not find it a bit worrying Schalke had most of the possession at Trafford? Schalke were horrendous, and still had most of the ball. Schalke must of been the worst team ever in a champs league semi final in terms of quality. Schalke had about 60% of the ball? What do you think Barca will have when even against RM they had 65% plus? Messi and co have a special performance lined up for Man Utd I suspect And yes possession is not everything, but if you only have 30%, you give yourself a much smaller window to do any damage, and by definition, you give them more chance.
That being said, two excellent teams who do things the right way, 8 local boys likely to start for Barca, is that not amazing to anyone else? Man Utd too, still just about defying the EPL 'buy your way to the top' mentality, fielding plenty of British talent too. Please not too defensive Fergie, fight fire with fire and take Barca on in a game of football
No I don't find that worrying, Manchester had just beaten Shalke 2-0 away, they were just going to play defensively. I would think Barcelona is nervous knowing Manchester beat Shalke 4-1 with 40% possession trying to defend a lead.
I'm a Man Utd fan and to be frank, its probably 70/30 in favour of Barca. But who knows, the final will be played in Wembley and who know, results can go either way.
On May 10 2011 08:21 Waund wrote: Some people in this thread really don't seem to know much about football.
You can't really compare Barca and Man Utd's defensive records. La Liga is essentially a joke league, doesn't come close to the PL in terms of competition or quality. Barca > Real > everyone else. Premier League will have as many as 6 teams vying for the top spot next season, and as many as 8 vying for 4th place.
Never gonna give you up? never gonna let you down?
I expect 3-0, Barcelona beating Manchester United. No offense but only premier league team who can play football is Arsenal, with Liverpool coming back. Man U and Chelsea were always overrated.
Honestly I hope people tell the Man U players their underdogs. The underdog team always seems to fight to the end no matter what happens, even if it's not true, adopting that mentality will assure an amazing game.
On May 11 2011 19:15 Sated wrote: Hernandez is a poacher and Messi isn't even a striker. How can you compare them? Stupid Pele.
We shouldn't focus too much on Messi anyway. Xavi and Iniesta make Messi look a lot better than he is. Messi is an amazing player, obviously, but you only have to compare performances for Argentina and Barcelona to see that it is his team-mates who should get the real plaudits.
The Barca system is centered around Messi, and he's been playing in it since he was 12? Thats why hes so amazing in it. Argentina don't know how to use him properly, because international football is essentially stars thrown in together with very little experience together, except in cases like Spain. So isn't it obvious Messi will excel alongside guys he grew up with rather than strangers to him like Pablo Mouche in the Argentina squad? Xavi and Iniesta obv make anyone better, but do you know Alves assists Messi more than those two do? Xavi has also said a few times in interviews that Messi revitalised his career because now Xavi always has an escape pass, he can always rely on Messi to create extra space because of how much attention he commands, and he knows Messi will always take a pass no matter how well marked. Messi es increible y dios del futbol.
Fergie is really showing his skill in the build up to this though, once again he has Man Utd looking their freshest at the right time. He shows even with one of the poorest Utd teams hes ever had in EPL era he can still win. Barca are certainly the more jaded squad after 4 games vs RM, but now with La Liga wrapped up, they can just rest until 28th May. If Man Utd manage to pull off a win vs Barca, then this will be Fergie's masterpiece season without question for me.
I hope that Manchester United wins, but I think Barcelona will win. Manchester United don't have a particularly unique squad this season but they show good chemistry and consistency while Barcelona look untouchable in most of their games. My prediction: Manchester United 3 (Hernandez 4', Rooney 33', Vidic 78') Barcelona 2 (Messi 17', 24')
On May 11 2011 19:15 Sated wrote: Hernandez is a poacher and Messi isn't even a striker. How can you compare them? Stupid Pele.
We shouldn't focus too much on Messi anyway. Xavi and Iniesta make Messi look a lot better than he is. Messi is an amazing player, obviously, but you only have to compare performances for Argentina and Barcelona to see that it is his team-mates who should get the real plaudits.
The Barca system is centered around Messi, and he's been playing in it since he was 12? Thats why hes so amazing in it. Argentina don't know how to use him properly, because international football is essentially stars thrown in together with very little experience together, except in cases like Spain. So isn't it obvious Messi will excel alongside guys he grew up with rather than strangers to him like Pablo Mouche in the Argentina squad? Xavi and Iniesta obv make anyone better, but do you know Alves assists Messi more than those two do? Xavi has also said a few times in interviews that Messi revitalised his career because now Xavi always has an escape pass, he can always rely on Messi to create extra space because of how much attention he commands, and he knows Messi will always take a pass no matter how well marked. Messi es increible y dios del futbol.
Fergie is really showing his skill in the build up to this though, once again he has Man Utd looking their freshest at the right time. He shows even with one of the poorest Utd teams hes ever had in EPL era he can still win. Barca are certainly the more jaded squad after 4 games vs RM, but now with La Liga wrapped up, they can just rest until 28th May. If Man Utd manage to pull off a win vs Barca, then this will be Fergie's masterpiece season without question for me.
That"s where your Argument falls apart .Xavi and iniesta are AMAZING players , they carried there 60-70% possesion from their barca game into their Spanish national team.You could put those guys into Argentina and they would have atleast made the Finals even without Messi..Spain had absolutely horrible Striker , Fernando Torres who was expected to perform.
Plus , it"s not that Messi is bad , he"s undoubtedly the best in the World , but the real Reason he"s so Dominating is because Xavi and Iniesta are always there to control the game.. He"s a very very prolific goal scorer though..
On May 14 2011 18:32 imperator-xy wrote: gogo barcelona do it for football
Barca is by far the most unfair team at the top-level, if they win football is going to lose. Aside from their skills Barca stands for everything that is wrong with the game at the moment.
I don't know who I want to win...I don't want Barca to win because of the reason mentioned above, and I just can't cheer for ManUnited because they are responsible for the most depressing event I witnessed in sports history.
Can't they both lose?
@ Pyro Villa scored 5 goals at the WC, imo that does not qualify as horrible. Only his bitchslap does :p
On May 11 2011 19:15 Sated wrote: Hernandez is a poacher and Messi isn't even a striker. How can you compare them? Stupid Pele.
We shouldn't focus too much on Messi anyway. Xavi and Iniesta make Messi look a lot better than he is. Messi is an amazing player, obviously, but you only have to compare performances for Argentina and Barcelona to see that it is his team-mates who should get the real plaudits.
The Barca system is centered around Messi, and he's been playing in it since he was 12? Thats why hes so amazing in it. Argentina don't know how to use him properly, because international football is essentially stars thrown in together with very little experience together, except in cases like Spain. So isn't it obvious Messi will excel alongside guys he grew up with rather than strangers to him like Pablo Mouche in the Argentina squad? Xavi and Iniesta obv make anyone better, but do you know Alves assists Messi more than those two do? Xavi has also said a few times in interviews that Messi revitalised his career because now Xavi always has an escape pass, he can always rely on Messi to create extra space because of how much attention he commands, and he knows Messi will always take a pass no matter how well marked. Messi es increible y dios del futbol.
Fergie is really showing his skill in the build up to this though, once again he has Man Utd looking their freshest at the right time. He shows even with one of the poorest Utd teams hes ever had in EPL era he can still win. Barca are certainly the more jaded squad after 4 games vs RM, but now with La Liga wrapped up, they can just rest until 28th May. If Man Utd manage to pull off a win vs Barca, then this will be Fergie's masterpiece season without question for me.
That"s where your Argument falls apart .Xavi and iniesta are AMAZING players , they carried there 60-70% possesion from their barca game into their Spanish national team.You could put those guys into Argentina and they would have atleast made the Finals even without Messi..Spain had absolutely horrible Striker , Fernando Torres who was expected to perform.
Plus , it"s not that Messi is bad , he"s undoubtedly the best in the World , but the real Reason he"s so Dominating is because Xavi and Iniesta are always there to control the game.. He"s a very very prolific goal scorer though..
Well obviously the whole team are amazing players. It's kinda stupid to take out a few if you talk about barcelona. Messi is THAT good, that's why a team like barca centered their play around him, it's still stupid to deny the influence of Iniesta or Xavi, but nobody is really doing that even when they say how amazing Messi is. The post of iLuminare was just saying that Messi is not overrated, he never took away from Xavi or Iniesta. Besides it's not only these two + Messi that makes Barcas play so strong but the whole team. It starts with puyol and pique in the defense and goes throw the whole team. That's also why Spain is so good. Not only because they have Xavi and Iniesta but the whole team backs them up and make their absolute amazing play possible.
On May 11 2011 19:15 Sated wrote: Hernandez is a poacher and Messi isn't even a striker. How can you compare them? Stupid Pele.
We shouldn't focus too much on Messi anyway. Xavi and Iniesta make Messi look a lot better than he is. Messi is an amazing player, obviously, but you only have to compare performances for Argentina and Barcelona to see that it is his team-mates who should get the real plaudits.
Next time he passes through half the opposite team,I'll be sure to think "oh tnk god iniesta was there watching him,or else..". Come on don't be mean. Messi has scored dozens of goals all alone,just passing through 4-5 defenders like a storm. In Argentina btw,he plays a different position. He plays more like Xavi does in Barcelona. Having 3 centers like Aguero,Tevez and Higuain,his coaches can not and won't put him up front,they rather have him making the game,cause lets face it,in this generation Argentina's midfielders suck compared to legendary players like Veron,Riquelme,Simeone etc.
On May 16 2011 21:40 Megatronn wrote: Uefa ruled today on the case of sergio busquets calling Marcelo a monkey. They dropped the charges due to lack of evidence.
On May 16 2011 23:41 kemoryan wrote: According to Busquets himself, he said "mucho morro", meaning he was telling Marcelo that whatever happened was not fair.
You're Spanish, you can read lips and tell what he's saying...
1. Dive and make racist remarks to players after. 2. Have Unicef logo. 3. Uefa open case against you. 4. ??? 5. Profit.
This thread is really missing a poll on whether Utd. will get a red card. Hopefully we'll avenge our performance from 09. Capitulated so early on that year -.-. Pity too when we were the only one with hte balls to attack barca and we had some dancing to our tune for the first 10 minutes.
This year even though utd are the underdogs it would be truly impressive for Barca to win. Despite their diving and theatrics, the sheer level of fitness necessary to play constantly for 2 years and win is impressive.
On May 16 2011 23:49 Sgany wrote: Barcelona haters gona hate, something like that from Marcelo does not surprise me, he is the most foul player in that respect since C.Ronaldo........
What did Marcelo do? He is the one getting remarked at.
I used to get really excited for european football, but now I find it's better anywhere else. I hate all the cheating. It makes the game unwatchable. I'm looking at you, Italy, Portual, and Spain. This is NOT the proper way to play the game. FIFA keeps saying it's getting more strict (every 2 years or so they say something to that effect) but it's just not true. I wish I could get excited for this match .
Coaches: stop encouraging this play.
Good luck to Man U; if I do end up watching I'll be cheering for them.
On May 05 2011 18:32 sc4k wrote: My guitarist and friend is a die hard Man U fan born and bred, but I got to say Barca will take this, nothing is as good as Messi+Villa.
On May 16 2011 21:40 Megatronn wrote: Uefa ruled today on the case of sergio busquets calling Marcelo a monkey. They dropped the charges due to lack of evidence.
i certainly would like to know what uefa thinks he said to marcelo then.
The problem here is, it is impossible to prove it. You can say there's nothing else he could say but in fact there are, and simply because of that you cannot prove it.
We all might think that's what he said, but it's not enough.
On May 16 2011 23:54 yosisoy wrote: UEFA & Unicef, hand in hand. What a joke.
This is just a poor argument... You can agree or disagree with Busquets not being sanctioned but pretending that the sponsorship has an influence on that decision is unfair at least.
On May 16 2011 23:41 kemoryan wrote: According to Busquets himself, he said "mucho morro", meaning he was telling Marcelo that whatever happened was not fair.
You're Spanish, you can read lips and tell what he's saying...
1. Dive and make racist remarks to players after. 2. Have Unicef logo. 3. Uefa open case against you. 4. ??? 5. Profit.
Honestly I don't know what he's saying. It could perfectly be "mono mono" though, I don't know since I'm not good at reading lips. Either way I don't think it's enough proof to call it a racist remark.
On May 17 2011 00:04 Sabu113 wrote: This year even though utd are the underdogs it would be truly impressive for Barca to win. Despite their diving and theatrics, the sheer level of fitness necessary to play constantly for 2 years and win is impressive.
Damn I just saw Man U's game again vs Chelsea (Champions League) and Barcelona's game vs Madrid (also Champions League), and all I have to say is, I'm more than happy that both teams made it to the finals... I can't wait!!!
This is truely going to be a final of Champions!!!
On May 16 2011 23:49 Sgany wrote: Barcelona haters gona hate, something like that from Marcelo does not surprise me, he is the most foul player in that respect since C.Ronaldo........
What did Marcelo do? He is the one getting remarked at.
Marcelo cries about everything, and i mean everything, he dives to no end and complains about everything.
To everyone complaining about Barcelona "diving" look at Madrid in those matches, if Barcelona players took the tackles from some of Madrid's players they could have career ending injuries. Madrid played like thugs and got punished for it.
Only way Man U can win this is with really good tactics IMO. Ferguson needs a solid gameplan that the players can execute well.
No way they can simply set out to outplay Barca as this Barca team is definitively the best team in the world and will most likely go down as one of the greatest of all time. Madrid had the best chance of beating them because of the style of Mourinho teams, they're good at closing a game down, whereas Man U prefer to play open attacking football. Thats fine for England where most teams arent at their level but Barca will just rip you to shreds if you try to play that way against them.
I'll be rooting for Barca, their diving/cheating for all the criticism it gets is really no more or less then any other team but their football is certainly the greatest I've seen from any team in my lifetime.
Lol barcelona hate by the same people once again. To be honest i laughed when Mourinho said the UNICEF consipracy, knowing Mourinho humor and personality I took it as a joke. But some people actually build up in that funny but terrible argument, rofl.
The case was righly dismissed, this is much like a judicial case. If there's lack of evidence it will be ruled out, and that video alone doesn't provide CLEAR and UNDENIABLE evidence that he indeed call him a "mono". The video can be interpreted in many ways by different people. I'm not gonna lie I also think he tends more to call him a "mono" than a "morro" but THAT evidence is arguable and not fully clear for UEFA to take action and suspend Busquets in the final.
Real Madrid attempt to hurt Barcelona off the pitch fails again, i never seen a Madrid team do this before. I guess this is the 'Mourinho Effect'
On May 19 2011 04:28 archonOOid wrote: I think Barcelona will win pretty convincing, my reason and ranking of the their respective components:
Barcelona / Manchester United 5 teamwork 5 4 defence 5 5 midfield 4 5 strikers 4 5 coach 5 5 star quality 4 5 experience 5 4 bench 4 38 Summary 36
how pep guardiola on the same level with sir ferguson is beyond me ...
Pep has always won the league as a coach, he won all tournaments during his first year (the sextuple), he has taken the club to three straight semi finals in the CL, he has not been afraid of playing youngsters and he is classy. His only downside is experience but as a player he had a long, great carrier and played in many clubs all over the world. Sir Alex has a lot of experience and has managed United successfully but he has never tried any other club. If I were to grade Pep and Alex on a scale from 1-10 I would give Pep 9 and Alex 10.
On May 19 2011 04:28 archonOOid wrote: I think Barcelona will win pretty convincing, my reason and ranking of the their respective components:
Barcelona / Manchester United 5 teamwork 5 4 defence 5 5 midfield 4 5 strikers 4 5 coach 5 5 star quality 4 5 experience 5 4 bench 4 38 Summary 36
how pep guardiola on the same level with sir ferguson is beyond me ...
Pep has always won the league as a coach, he won all tournaments during his first year (the sextuple), he has taken the club to three straight semi finals in the CL, he has not been afraid of playing youngsters and he is classy. His only downside is experience but as a player he had a long, great carrier and played in many clubs all over the world. Sir Alex has a lot of experience and has managed United successfully but he has never tried any other club. If I were to grade Pep and Alex on a scale from 1-10 I would give Pep 9 and Alex 10.
Get your facts straight sit. Ferguson managed Aberdeen in Scotland before MU. His accomplishments? Well everyone who knows something bout european football knows that in Scotland only 2 teams are gaining titles,Rangers and Celtics. He managed to win cup and championship with Aberdeen,something that has not been done for 15 years. But more importantly he won a UEFA cup with them,beating Real Madrid in the final. I'm a Barca fan boy but...
Dude, you cant even compare Pep and Sir alex. Sir Alex han won everything and rebuilded his squad multiple times meanwhile pep inherited an awesome squad and just added some dives/surround the referee, dani alves and villa.
Valdes 8 Dani Alves 8 Puyol 8.25 Pique 7.25 Adriano 6 Xavi 10 Iniesta 10 Busquets 7.75 Messi 10 Villa 8.5 Pedro 8.25
Overall: 92
- Hide Spoiler [Manchester United] - Van der Sar 9 Rafael 6 Vidic 9 Ferdinand 7.75 Evra 7.5 Nani 8.5 Fletcher 6.5 Carrick 6 Giggs 8.75 Rooney 10 Hernandez 8
On May 05 2011 22:04 BlazingInferno wrote: Please, please change United's coach name to Sir Alex Ferguson. There's a reason it is called a title, you know.
Oh, and some stats for people who like that thing.
Barcelona – 2 finals in 4 years and 4 consecutive semi-finals. Man United – 3 finals in 4 years and 4 semi-finals in 5 years. (Should’ve been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4 mind you)
On May 21 2011 06:10 jinorazi wrote: i wonder who will take the left, nani or park? (i'm hoping for park, he was phenomenal vs chelsea)
I think it'll be Park as well. I'm gutted for Nani as he has had an amazing season, however Park is just phenomenal in big games, and we'll need his work rate to contain Barca's midfield.
On May 05 2011 22:04 BlazingInferno wrote: Please, please change United's coach name to Sir Alex Ferguson. There's a reason it is called a title, you know.
Oh, and some stats for people who like that thing.
Barcelona – 2 finals in 4 years and 4 consecutive semi-finals. Man United – 3 finals in 4 years and 4 semi-finals in 5 years. (Should’ve been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4 mind you)
Mind explaining why?
He was given a knighthood which is the most prestigious award/title a British person can receive so he should be addressed as "Sir"
On May 05 2011 22:04 BlazingInferno wrote: Please, please change United's coach name to Sir Alex Ferguson. There's a reason it is called a title, you know.
Oh, and some stats for people who like that thing.
Barcelona – 2 finals in 4 years and 4 consecutive semi-finals. Man United – 3 finals in 4 years and 4 semi-finals in 5 years. (Should’ve been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4 mind you)
Mind explaining why?
He was given a knighthood which is the most prestigious award/title a British person can receive so he should be addressed as "Sir"
I think he meant why shout it have been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4
On May 05 2011 22:04 BlazingInferno wrote: Please, please change United's coach name to Sir Alex Ferguson. There's a reason it is called a title, you know.
Oh, and some stats for people who like that thing.
Barcelona – 2 finals in 4 years and 4 consecutive semi-finals. Man United – 3 finals in 4 years and 4 semi-finals in 5 years. (Should’ve been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4 mind you)
Mind explaining why?
He was given a knighthood which is the most prestigious award/title a British person can receive so he should be addressed as "Sir"
I think he meant why shout it have been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4
United lost the first leg in Germany 2-1, then outscored Bayern 3-1 in a pretty one-sided first half at OT. In the second half Rafael picked up a second yellow very early and was sent off, which completely changed the match and allowed Bayern to control possession. They picked up the tying (4-4 agg) goal and won on the away goals rule.
Personally I don't think the better team won, SAF made a rare error by keeping Rafael in the game for the second half when the team had taken the lead and were controlling play. That decision probably cost United victory, but decisions are a part of the game. So while it's not like there was a bad referee decision or something that was "unjust," I can see where BlazingInferno is coming from.
On May 05 2011 22:04 BlazingInferno wrote: Please, please change United's coach name to Sir Alex Ferguson. There's a reason it is called a title, you know.
Oh, and some stats for people who like that thing.
Barcelona – 2 finals in 4 years and 4 consecutive semi-finals. Man United – 3 finals in 4 years and 4 semi-finals in 5 years. (Should’ve been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4 mind you)
Mind explaining why?
He was given a knighthood which is the most prestigious award/title a British person can receive so he should be addressed as "Sir"
A little out of discussion, but wtf is this? People still get knighted?? And people actually respect that by calling you 'sir?' wow.. i just thought that was his name Lol
On May 05 2011 22:04 BlazingInferno wrote: Please, please change United's coach name to Sir Alex Ferguson. There's a reason it is called a title, you know.
Oh, and some stats for people who like that thing.
Barcelona – 2 finals in 4 years and 4 consecutive semi-finals. Man United – 3 finals in 4 years and 4 semi-finals in 5 years. (Should’ve been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4 mind you)
Mind explaining why?
He was given a knighthood which is the most prestigious award/title a British person can receive so he should be addressed as "Sir"
I think he meant why shout it have been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4
United lost the first leg in Germany 2-1, then outscored Bayern 3-1 in a pretty one-sided first half at OT. In the second half Rafael picked up a second yellow very early and was sent off, which completely changed the match and allowed Bayern to control possession. They picked up the tying (4-4 agg) goal and won on the away goals rule.
Personally I don't think the better team won, SAF made a rare error by keeping Rafael in the game for the second half when the team had taken the lead and were controlling play. That decision probably cost United victory, but decisions are a part of the game. So while it's not like there was a bad referee decision or something that was "unjust," I can see where BlazingInferno is coming from.
Yup, pretty much what he said. Bayern got revenge for the 1999 Final. United had the tie in the bag at 3-0 but Carrick made an uncharacteristic mistake right on the half time whistle which made it 3-1. Rafael got sent off for a petulant foul and the rest as they say is history.
Sir Alex was given knighthood for services to football and he is a man commanding of respect. I would give him the title even if I weren't a die-hard United fan. That title should get the respect it deserves. Glad the first post got changed.
On May 05 2011 22:04 BlazingInferno wrote: Please, please change United's coach name to Sir Alex Ferguson. There's a reason it is called a title, you know.
Oh, and some stats for people who like that thing.
Barcelona – 2 finals in 4 years and 4 consecutive semi-finals. Man United – 3 finals in 4 years and 4 semi-finals in 5 years. (Should’ve been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4 mind you)
Mind explaining why?
He was given a knighthood which is the most prestigious award/title a British person can receive so he should be addressed as "Sir"
I think he meant why shout it have been 5 in 5 and 4 in 4
United lost the first leg in Germany 2-1, then outscored Bayern 3-1 in a pretty one-sided first half at OT. In the second half Rafael picked up a second yellow very early and was sent off, which completely changed the match and allowed Bayern to control possession. They picked up the tying (4-4 agg) goal and won on the away goals rule.
Personally I don't think the better team won, SAF made a rare error by keeping Rafael in the game for the second half when the team had taken the lead and were controlling play. That decision probably cost United victory, but decisions are a part of the game. So while it's not like there was a bad referee decision or something that was "unjust," I can see where BlazingInferno is coming from.
Yup, pretty much what he said. Bayern got revenge for the 1999 Final. United had the tie in the bag at 3-0 but Carrick made an uncharacteristic mistake right on the half time whistle which made it 3-1. Rafael got sent off for a petulant foul and the rest as they say is history.
Sir Alex was given knighthood for services to football and he is a man commanding of respect. I would give him the title even if I weren't a die-hard United fan. That title should get the respect it deserves. Glad the first post got changed.
Yea well I watched both games but I thought you were thinking the referee made mistakes or something because saying "They should have won if Bayern hadn't scored" is kind of a weird statement.
Lol, unbelievable the amount of glory supporters rooting for manchester... personally I hope barcelona wins only because I hate United so much.. But am I the only one who found it very very appaling how much the " best team in the world " dived against Real. Seriously when Pepe got sent off for something worthy of a yellow card I just laughed my ass of at how pathetic Dani Alves is, along with the rest of barca's squad =/
[B]On May 26 2011 03:29 Thezzphai wrote:Yea well I watched both games but I thought you were thinking the referee made mistakes or something because saying "They should have won if Bayern hadn't scored" is kind of a weird statement.
No disrespect meant to Bayern of course. I was just surprised at how much United capitulated after we went down to 10-men. Robben scored a fantastic strike too. Still, I feel United threw that game away from a comfortable position where we should've gotten through really.
In all honesty I can see Barca running away with this one if they play how they've been playing for most of the season. Man U got lucky with the premiership with nobody really playing well, their home form being the thing that clinched it for them.
Barca just outclass them on both paper and in performances which is why I can easily see Barca rolling over this final, as Lineker said, Barca will have to be completely off their game for Man U to stand a chance.
Hey guys, im trying to watch the game in new york city with other soccer fanatics. You guys know a great bar to go in new york city? Messi and Barca Fighting!!!!!! :D
United could pull it. I think it's time to make up for that foulup in 09. We had a better team then and we looked more than capable of shutting up the barca ______ then. Now this time doesn't quite have the same attacking potential. The center mid is still weak as hell and it's going up against the best midfield pair in ages. United's Defense though might be the best in Europe. Only weakness is our rightback and they'll get better with age. Hernandez's natural ability as a striker gives me hope that a 4-5-1 could be very successful. Honestly, Messi won't be the difference maker in this game. It'll be hernandez's ability to put away a few rare chances and the ability of that center midfield to control XIB.
Hope the Ref is up to it. Guardian had some interesting talk about Barca's fouls per minute when defending...
Barca is what my mind says, my heart and soul says United.
Although i will be watching this game i couldn't care less who wins. I dislike both these teams with a passion. The EPL and fans are obnoxious with their constant smack about how their league is the best and Barca is a supposed role model for the beautiful game but their actions and sportsmanship have been downright disgraceful.
If possible i would appreciate both teams removed from planet earth. Terrorists... Now is your time to do something worthwhile.
I actually think Man Utd will win this time around, but obviously this is going to be a tie that really has no favorites. I dont see Utd winning though if they play with 2 only in the centre midfield, 442 is shit vs a team like Barcelona built around dominating midfield possession with Xavi, Iniesta and Busquet.
On May 28 2011 11:44 bubblegumbo wrote: I actually think Man Utd will win this time around, but obviously this is going to be a tie that really has no favorites. I dont see Utd winning though if they play with 2 only in the centre midfield, 442 is shit vs a team like Barcelona built around dominating midfield possession with Xavi, Iniesta and Busquet.
If Rooney and Hernandez both start, it will be 4-4-1-1 with Rooney dropping into the midfield to help as needed.
I could actually see them doing a 4-5-1 with Rooney alone up top. Guess we'll see.
On May 28 2011 11:44 bubblegumbo wrote: I actually think Man Utd will win this time around, but obviously this is going to be a tie that really has no favorites. I dont see Utd winning though if they play with 2 only in the centre midfield, 442 is shit vs a team like Barcelona built around dominating midfield possession with Xavi, Iniesta and Busquet.
If Rooney and Hernandez both start, it will be 4-4-1-1 with Rooney dropping into the midfield to help as needed.
I could actually see them doing a 4-5-1 with Rooney alone up top. Guess we'll see.
You mean Rooney dropping as left back. Like back in Rome.
I'm so excited for this but my cable operator lost the rights to broadcast this so I can't watch this on TV. But maybe it's a good thing because the 2 finals I missed in '99 and '08, Man Utd won.
On May 28 2011 11:44 bubblegumbo wrote: I actually think Man Utd will win this time around, but obviously this is going to be a tie that really has no favorites. I dont see Utd winning though if they play with 2 only in the centre midfield, 442 is shit vs a team like Barcelona built around dominating midfield possession with Xavi, Iniesta and Busquet.
If Rooney and Hernandez both start, it will be 4-4-1-1 with Rooney dropping into the midfield to help as needed.
I could actually see them doing a 4-5-1 with Rooney alone up top. Guess we'll see.
You mean Rooney dropping as left back. Like back in Rome.
No, if Rooney doesn't track Busquets this game, then United may as well just forfeit the match.
If United plays 4-4-2, they will get destroyed. The possession will be something like 80% to Barca, and mostly in United's half. Barca has not lost a single match to opposition playing 4-4-2 this year. United will most likely play in a 4-4-1-1 with Rooney dropping into midfield in defence to congest the space and stifle Barca's major passing channel from defence.
I wonder how Ferdinand and Vidic will cope with Messi this year. They got destroyed in 2009, and with Messi playing a false nine role again but with much more influence than before, I think Messi and his combination with Xavi, Iniesta and Alves will be key to this match.
My prediction is a 2-1 for Barca. Barca to go 2-0 up and Chicharito to conjure brilliance out of nothing to get a consolation.
On May 28 2011 10:46 Akamu wrote: Although i will be watching this game i couldn't care less who wins. I dislike both these teams with a passion. The EPL and fans are obnoxious with their constant smack about how their league is the best and Barca is a supposed role model for the beautiful game but their actions and sportsmanship have been downright disgraceful.
If possible i would appreciate both teams removed from planet earth. Terrorists... Now is your time to do something worthwhile.
User was warned for this post
You go for Real Madrid don't you? Loljk Anyway I hope Barca wins! If they lose it will solidify my theory that anyone I go for in sports/e-sports just lose and hence will result it me 'rooting' for Flash in the MSL.....
On May 28 2011 10:46 Akamu wrote: Although i will be watching this game i couldn't care less who wins. I dislike both these teams with a passion. The EPL and fans are obnoxious with their constant smack about how their league is the best and Barca is a supposed role model for the beautiful game but their actions and sportsmanship have been downright disgraceful.
If possible i would appreciate both teams removed from planet earth. Terrorists... Now is your time to do something worthwhile.
User was warned for this post
You go for Real Madrid don't you? Loljk Anyway I hope Barca wins! If they lose it will solidify my theory that anyone I go for in sports/e-sports just lose and hence will result it me 'rooting' for Flash in the MSL.....
On May 28 2011 10:46 Akamu wrote: Although i will be watching this game i couldn't care less who wins. I dislike both these teams with a passion. The EPL and fans are obnoxious with their constant smack about how their league is the best and Barca is a supposed role model for the beautiful game but their actions and sportsmanship have been downright disgraceful.
If possible i would appreciate both teams removed from planet earth. Terrorists... Now is your time to do something worthwhile.
On May 29 2011 00:51 Fruscainte wrote: I don't watch soccer, but I like to watch it occasionally.
Who is the underdog here?
Man Utd are slight underdogs, but really, either team could win it. The general consensus, which I totally agree with, is that if there is any team in the world that can beat Barcelona, its Manchester United. This season they have proven again and again, even when they haven't played well, they can scrape out a result. Tonight they will have to play well, but they are solid defensively and have the ability to score goals. Barcelona are favourites because they are perhaps the greatest club team of all time. It should be a very interesting watch.
On May 29 2011 00:51 Fruscainte wrote: I don't watch soccer, but I like to watch it occasionally.
Who is the underdog here?
Man Utd are slight underdogs, but really, either team could win it. The general consensus, which I totally agree with, is that if there is any team in the world that can beat Barcelona, its Manchester United. This season they have proven again and again, even when they haven't played well, they can scrape out a result. Tonight they will have to play well, but they are solid defensively and have the ability to score goals. Barcelona are favourites because they are perhaps the greatest club team of all time. It should be a very interesting watch.
Guess I'm rooting for my UKbros then.
Got a couple things downloading for the day, so I might as well.
The anti Barcelona media hype that Morinho created is really affecting you guys, huh?
Well, I don't really mind. I suppose half of the posters in here are just /sp/ regulars trying to behave best they can, but you guys flip your opinions on a team over the course of 2-3 games. I mean, if that were a reliable way of judging skill, Wayne Rooney would have been the worst striker at the world cup because he stunk it up for 4 games in a row.
Barcelona plays great football, but the diving in the past few games is simply in response to the brutality displayed by Madrid. Generally speaking, with the exception of bousquets and maybe Pedro, most of their team plays a very honest game, with few dives. Don't be so easily swayed, please.
On May 29 2011 01:45 HoldenR wrote: The anti Barcelona media hype that Morinho created is really affecting you guys, huh?
Well, I don't really mind. I suppose half of the posters in here are just /sp/ regulars trying to behave best they can, but you guys flip your opinions on a team over the course of 2-3 games. I mean, if that were a reliable way of judging skill, Wayne Rooney would have been the worst striker at the world cup because he stunk it up for 4 games in a row.
Barcelona plays great football, but the diving in the past few games is simply in response to the brutality displayed by Madrid. Generally speaking, with the exception of bousquets and maybe Pedro, most of their team plays a very honest game, with few dives. Don't be so easily swayed, please.
It's not just the dives that are annoying, but all of their whining and their constant demands for yellow/red cards for opposing players. Furthermore all Barca players may be brilliant on the ball, but from a spectator point of view it's getting really boring to watch. At least that's how I feel about their "let's pass the ball 10000 times"-tactic.
On May 29 2011 01:45 HoldenR wrote: The anti Barcelona media hype that Morinho created is really affecting you guys, huh?
Well, I don't really mind. I suppose half of the posters in here are just /sp/ regulars trying to behave best they can, but you guys flip your opinions on a team over the course of 2-3 games. I mean, if that were a reliable way of judging skill, Wayne Rooney would have been the worst striker at the world cup because he stunk it up for 4 games in a row.
Barcelona plays great football, but the diving in the past few games is simply in response to the brutality displayed by Madrid. Generally speaking, with the exception of bousquets and maybe Pedro, most of their team plays a very honest game, with few dives. Don't be so easily swayed, please.
It's not just the dives that are annoying, but all of their whining and their constant demands for yellow/red cards for opposing players. Furthermore all Barca players may be brilliant on the ball, but from a spectator point of view it's getting really boring to watch. At least that's how I feel about their "let's pass the ball 10000 times"-tactic.
Go ManU!
All teams demand for cards to opposing players, its not like Barça invented that. They might have done it more in the matches against Madrid but then again it was as a reaction to the extremely physical play by them.
About their football being boring, I could understand it might seem boring to some, but that's because their opponents usually end up not even trying to fight for it resulting in having long ball possession. It's like watching an S class vs an A class starcraft player, the games might end up being boring due to the domination of one. Some people might prefer seeing two A players face eachother since mistakes in game tend to favour back and forth "exciting" games.. to each his own!
On May 29 2011 01:45 HoldenR wrote: The anti Barcelona media hype that Morinho created is really affecting you guys, huh?
Well, I don't really mind. I suppose half of the posters in here are just /sp/ regulars trying to behave best they can, but you guys flip your opinions on a team over the course of 2-3 games. I mean, if that were a reliable way of judging skill, Wayne Rooney would have been the worst striker at the world cup because he stunk it up for 4 games in a row.
Barcelona plays great football, but the diving in the past few games is simply in response to the brutality displayed by Madrid. Generally speaking, with the exception of bousquets and maybe Pedro, most of their team plays a very honest game, with few dives. Don't be so easily swayed, please.
It's not just the dives that are annoying, but all of their whining and their constant demands for yellow/red cards for opposing players. Furthermore all Barca players may be brilliant on the ball, but from a spectator point of view it's getting really boring to watch. At least that's how I feel about their "let's pass the ball 10000 times"-tactic.
Go ManU!
Did you watched the game? Madrid whined and shouted to the ref every single decision against them.
But ill stop, this is about the CL final Go Barca~
Man Utd start with Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez up front, with no place for Darren Fletcher. Dimitar Berbatov is not even on the bench - Michael Owen is.
On May 29 2011 02:32 CalmQ wrote: Man Utd start with Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez up front, with no place for Darren Fletcher. Dimitar Berbatov is not even on the bench - Michael Owen is.
I'm retarded with time zones, how long 'till it starts?
On May 29 2011 02:32 CalmQ wrote: Man Utd start with Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez up front, with no place for Darren Fletcher. Dimitar Berbatov is not even on the bench - Michael Owen is.
I'm retarded with time zones, how long 'till it starts?
On May 29 2011 02:37 Ayush_SCtoss wrote: Man U! I hate barca more than I hate man u but I want man u to win. I won't mind if man u lose as long as it is a great exciting game.
Its the other way around for me, hope man utd dont win. They beat Blackpool ending one of the premiership's nicest stories so no they don't deserve to beat Barca.
On May 29 2011 02:37 Ayush_SCtoss wrote: Man U! I hate barca more than I hate man u but I want man u to win. I won't mind if man u lose as long as it is a great exciting game.
Its the other way around for me, hope man utd dont win. They beat Blackpool ending one of the premiership's nicest stories so no they don't deserve to beat Barca.
I actually don't like barcelona because in the past 6 years the've gotten away with almost murder in the champions league and this is mostly because of the reffing.
The same can be said about Manchester united in the EPL.
So... I don't know what to say besides this game will be good because it's the final and hopefully the ref doesn't decide the game. I still would like Barcelona to win because well they are better than Manchester United but the Media is overdoing it with the best team of the century and all that bs. The're a great talent to watch, but the're a bunch of divers =\
Ya their possession is great (60%++ every game) but that doesn't win you games. If Manchester United can have 1 person on messi most of the game, which has been done before, they CAN win.
Two Major points will be: 1) Are Manchester united able to hold messi well 2) will manchester united be able to counter as well as they have been in the EPL
If these 2 points arn't the focal points of the game, I will be pleasantly surprised
Can't even play more ladder games today too exited about the final, Go Barça! Already ordered big tasty pizza . Its only happens once a year , so definitely a must see match.
Since its the final, you cant really predict who's gonna come on top, i think Barça is slightly favored , but man Manchester is too strong . Also im exited about Giggs playing with , what is, 38 years old ? Got so much respect for him, hes a really an example of what dedication to football is.
Not a huge Man U fan - but it's truly the two best teams of the tournament clashing together and I think its gonna be a great match. Looking forward to it.
Obvious news here is United will (I assume) be in 4-4-1-1 rather than 4-5-1 Berbatov left out entirely (ruins my dream ending of Berba scoring the winning goal) Puyol starts off on the bench. Perhaps a nod to Mascherano's prowess at negating breakaway goals
Such a beautiful team, too bad the clip doesn't include all the dives
Wow that is an awesome clip :D And that was from the first game i believe 5-0. There were no dives in that game... that game was surprisingly open because at the time RM was on a hot streak and they really thought they could beat Barca so they played attacking and got pwned.
Obvious news here is United will (I assume) be in 4-4-1-1 rather than 4-5-1 Berbatov left out entirely (ruins my dream ending of Berba scoring the winning goal) Puyol starts off on the bench. Perhaps a nod to Mascherano's prowess at negating breakaway goals
Pretty pumped about this, I don't like how the USA coverage though is sorta "American's know nothing about soccer". They just had Michael Stratham describe a few random things about soccer, lol.
Real surprised at the united lineup. Giggs makes no sense unless Fletcher isn't fully fit, Rooney will have to drop deep so much and/or Park/Valencia cut in a ton or they'll just get overrun in midfield
On May 29 2011 03:21 sixfour wrote: Real surprised at the united lineup. Giggs makes no sense unless Fletcher isn't fully fit, Rooney will have to drop deep so much and/or Park/Valencia cut in a ton or they'll just get overrun in midfield
Giggs has been arguably our best midfielder this season.
Rooney will probably drop back into the midfield to track Busquets. They need Park to track Alves.
I would have preferred Fletcher over Carrick, or even Park over Carrick with Nani on the left wing (if Park can play inside). But Fergie has more faith in Carrick than most ManU fans do...
This should be a real delight to watch. The opening 20 minutes will be hugely important, if Barca can manage to get their dominating style going, without conceding in the first 20, I believe they will be in an extremely strong position to go on and win the game. If Man Utd can get at Barcelona, pressure them and stop them playing in the first 20 minutes, it is important they get a goal and capitalize as they will not be able to do it all game long. Tactically this is going to be really intriguing and the inclusion of Hernandez in Man Utd's starting lineup means they will always have the threat of scoring on the counter-attack. I feel that Giggs and Carrick will be dominated in the centre of the park, even with Rooney tracking back to help out, Fletcher is a big miss. I can't wait!
United had a good start but Barca are going strong into the middle of the half. Pedro really should have scored there. I think it will be 2:2 at full time.
On May 29 2011 04:19 Fyzar wrote: What the fuck . Meh, nice goal tho it was offsidr fosure
this was so fucking close, no way "fosure"
They replayed it on my channel (dunno if it's all the same) and from there it was quite obvious. I don't blame the linesman because it was close yeah, but just talking from the replay.
Very entertaining first half. I think Barça could've scored at least 1 more goal. But the result imply that both teams will play the same way in the second half!
1) Goal by Manchester United was offside 2) Valencia should get a yellow for his relentless fouling 3) Messi is being tracked everytime he touches the ball
I think they should bring Nani in and try to change the pace in their favor, Valencia is not playing well at all. Might as well just stick him on Messi because he's the only one not afraid to play physically with him.
Nice open game. Both teams trying to attack, no diving and the ref letting them play.
United a little lucky to have given up just 1 goal. Barca are just so fluid with their movement worked out so finely. Park has been a beastly player, though, especially in defense!
On May 29 2011 04:33 Freaky[x] wrote: A few notes:
1) Goal by Manchester United was offside 2) Valencia should get a yellow for his relentless fouling 3) Messi is being tracked everytime he touches the ball
1. It was close and refs are not perfect. 2. ~3 fouls in 45 mins is not 'relentless'. 3. He's actually had more room than you think.
more game sense is good enough. painful to see like 4-5 united players looking at a barca player in possession and not being aware of the off the ball movements by other players.
On May 29 2011 04:33 Freaky[x] wrote: A few notes:
1) Goal by Manchester United was offside 2) Valencia should get a yellow for his relentless fouling 3) Messi is being tracked everytime he touches the ball
Should add some things not hating MU because you'll get flamed =]. - Rooney is playing like a beast as always. - Vidic had some nice interceptions Now my barca bias, or not even that much; Maaad respect for Abidal, playing like a monster after that liver tumour, really inspiring.
On May 29 2011 04:33 Freaky[x] wrote: A few notes:
1) Goal by Manchester United was offside 2) Valencia should get a yellow for his relentless fouling 3) Messi is being tracked everytime he touches the ball
That kind of offside is 50/50 called by referee The ref probably got warned by how Barca players like to dive so they won't give out cards that easy No one on MU is assigned to shadow Messi, they use the zone-def tactics.
MU has no strong defensive midfielder, so they can't keep on closing down on Xavi or Messi. MU will have a hell of a 2nd half if they want to beat Barca
On May 29 2011 04:33 Freaky[x] wrote: A few notes:
1) Goal by Manchester United was offside 2) Valencia should get a yellow for his relentless fouling 3) Messi is being tracked everytime he touches the ball
1. It was close and refs are not perfect. 2. ~3 fouls in 45 mins is not 'relentless'. 3. He's actually had more room than you think.
3 fouls? No way ;>. I kinda like his play but there were definitely more than 3 fouls, and they weren't the lightest charges either.
On May 29 2011 04:33 Freaky[x] wrote: A few notes:
1) Goal by Manchester United was offside 2) Valencia should get a yellow for his relentless fouling 3) Messi is being tracked everytime he touches the ball
That kind of offside is 50/50 called by referee The ref probably got warned by how Barca players like to dive so they won't give out cards that easy No one on MU is assigned to shadow Messi, they use the zone-def tactics.
MU has no strong defensive midfielder, so they can't keep on closing down on Xavi or Messi. MU will have a hell of a 2nd half if they want to beat Barca
Warned by who Mourinho? Im tired of hearing this crap.
I hope for a good second half, its already the best game in the CL in my opinion so far. Rooney and Messi are everywhere
On May 29 2011 04:33 Freaky[x] wrote: A few notes:
1) Goal by Manchester United was offside 2) Valencia should get a yellow for his relentless fouling 3) Messi is being tracked everytime he touches the ball
1. Hard for the linesman to call that when only one of the Barca players appealed. 2. He has fouled barca players twice 3. No shit sherlock, its what needs to be done.
On May 29 2011 04:33 Freaky[x] wrote: A few notes:
1) Goal by Manchester United was offside 2) Valencia should get a yellow for his relentless fouling 3) Messi is being tracked everytime he touches the ball
Should add some things not hating MU because you'll get flamed =]. - Rooney is playing like a beast as always. - Vidic had some nice interceptions Now my barca bias, or not even that much; Maaad respect for Abidal, playing like a monster after that liver tumour, really inspiring.
Yep Abidal palyed flawlessly this season,i'd say the best defense in Europe. And recuperating so quick after a tumor add even more respect to him.
4 defenders before the box and just one tries to stop him when no other barca players are nearby. Yes Messi is brilliant but in this scene he didnt need to show it.
Manchester should react now, they should preassure more with some fresh blood like nani for example, Barça will score any moment to 3:1 and that gonna be RIP for MU. I feel like they gave up or something.
On May 29 2011 05:11 Ko1tz wrote: Manchester has lost this, they can dedicate themselves to break some legs now.
Lol, I actually wouldnt be suprised to see them get really aggressive to this point. But right now Barca is playing a very calculated and collected game, whereas Man U is depending on some great bursts by the star players.
On May 29 2011 05:14 Tyree wrote: United only look threatening when they pressure alot, problem is that you cannot play a 90 min football match that way.
They have created only a few chances, not had the ball much and been forced to run. Barcelona has created plenty
And there we go Rooney has started swearing at the ref
Exactly. To those wondering why Man U isn't providing, look at how well Barca paces themselves when building up.
Don't watch much soccer at all but turned on TV today and saw this so I decided to watch some. Barca seems to just be stopping any offensive pushes corner them and destroying them while Man U seems to let them be chilling near their side of the field not really stopping barca.
On May 29 2011 05:11 thoradycus wrote: Wtf man ManU needs to fight for the ball better.
Haha, so naive... I guess every team in the world needs to as well then! gl with that vs barca
lol im a barca fan.. Manu is just not challenging barca at all at this half
And you're right. First half United pressed and were able to nick it 1-1. Sure it was lucky, but you've got to try for it.
25 minutes of not even trying to press in the second half, and they give up 2 goals. United aren't a defend deep and counter type of team, they needed to try to play aggressively and use subs wisely when players get tired.
On May 29 2011 05:15 Manimal_pro wrote: Ref has to be a Barca fan as well.... as always
you gotta love romania.
All I want now is for messi to get another goal or two and finish ahead of C.Ron on total goals.
It's so difficult. I agree with you because I prefer Messi over CR, but I don't want VDS to lose too hard in his last game. The man doesn't deserve that for his brilliant career.
On May 29 2011 05:11 thoradycus wrote: Wtf man ManU needs to fight for the ball better.
Haha, so naive... I guess every team in the world needs to as well then! gl with that vs barca
lol im a barca fan.. Manu is just not challenging barca at all at this half
THey've had a pretty poor half in general I agree, not as simple as just fighting for the ball though, I'm not a utd fan or anything but they clearly have some drive in them just getting outclassed in every manner of the word..
On May 29 2011 05:22 Manimal_pro wrote: come one this can't be real, wtf obvious hand ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 refs for nothing, football needs video replays
Live with it, Evra got same foul in the first half.
On May 29 2011 05:22 Manimal_pro wrote: come one this can't be real, wtf obvious hand ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 refs for nothing, football needs video replays
How can this be a penalty, if the hand ball in the first half from MU wasnt a penalty? (Imo neither of them was)
On May 29 2011 05:22 Manimal_pro wrote: come one this can't be real, wtf obvious hand ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 refs for nothing, football needs video replays
You're like the most biased person ever. Part of me thinks you're actually Alex Ferguson trolling us and forgetting to coach =p!
On May 29 2011 05:22 Manimal_pro wrote: come one this can't be real, wtf obvious hand ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 refs for nothing, football needs video replays
You're like the most biased person ever. Part of me thinks you're actually Alex Ferguson trolling us and forgetting to coach =p!
On May 29 2011 05:22 Manimal_pro wrote: come one this can't be real, wtf obvious hand ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 refs for nothing, football needs video replays
You're like the most biased person ever. Part of me thinks you're actually Alex Ferguson trolling us and forgetting to coach =p!
On May 29 2011 05:22 Manimal_pro wrote: come one this can't be real, wtf obvious hand ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 refs for nothing, football needs video replays
You're like the most biased person ever. Part of me thinks you're actually Alex Ferguson trolling us and forgetting to coach =p!
Wouldnt be impossible, ferguson likes to whine. If he would play SC2 he would most definately be zerg
On May 29 2011 05:22 Manimal_pro wrote: come one this can't be real, wtf obvious hand ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 refs for nothing, football needs video replays
You're like the most biased person ever. Part of me thinks you're actually Alex Ferguson trolling us and forgetting to coach =p!
Ferguson plays starcraft?! But yeah, I can name some people here who are biased like Manimal too I hate barca but they are playing superbly. No acting which is good too lol
On May 29 2011 05:22 Manimal_pro wrote: come one this can't be real, wtf obvious hand ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 refs for nothing, football needs video replays
You're like the most biased person ever. Part of me thinks you're actually Alex Ferguson trolling us and forgetting to coach =p!
Haha, or it's Mourinho
I think i prefer to think its Mourinho lol, i got respect for Sir A.Ferguson
On May 29 2011 05:22 Manimal_pro wrote: come one this can't be real, wtf obvious hand ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 refs for nothing, football needs video replays
You're like the most biased person ever. Part of me thinks you're actually Alex Ferguson trolling us and forgetting to coach =p!
Ferguson plays starcraft?! But yeah, I can name some people here who are biased like Manimal too I hate barca but they are playing superbly. No acting which is good too lol
That's where he gets his strategies I guess! he now has to harass barca somehow to pull the comeback
On May 29 2011 05:22 Manimal_pro wrote: come one this can't be real, wtf obvious hand ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 refs for nothing, football needs video replays
You're like the most biased person ever. Part of me thinks you're actually Alex Ferguson trolling us and forgetting to coach =p!
Haha, or it's Mourinho
Haha nah, he's not whining about the "diving" . *yet hehe*
Anyone agree that Villa has looked alot better today than against Real? Where he blew countless chances and just looked like a guy with zero confidence overall?
Meanwhile Fergie looks like he is ready to punch someone, i get the feeling it is Rooney
I feel bad for MU, they are great team, wathcing now the image of shaking A.Ferguson tells the full story. Anyway this Barcelona is just too good and legendary. 4th European Cup for them .
Add fabregas to fill in for xavi/inniesta and this team will be so imba. As much as it would pain me to see him leave Arsenal, I think he should be allowed to seek trophies elsewhere since we're clearly not good enough to win any ourselves.
On May 29 2011 05:34 Telcontar wrote: Add fabregas to fill in for xavi/inniesta and this team will be so imba. As much as it would pain me to see him leave Arsenal, I think he should be allowed to seek trophies elsewhere since we're clearly not good enough to win any ourselves.
haha could he even be watching in wembley? hes probably very envious
As a Man u fan, I graciously admit defeat, we got outplayed in every way. I would be more happy if giggs wasnt the only player passing the ball properly.
Man U getting totally outplayed that game. Giggs, Valencia and Carrick were barely in the game. And then Evra and Hernandez played shit tooo to top it off.
On May 29 2011 05:34 Telcontar wrote: Add fabregas to fill in for xavi/inniesta and this team will be so imba. As much as it would pain me to see him leave Arsenal, I think he should be allowed to seek trophies elsewhere since we're clearly not good enough to win any ourselves.
haha could he even be watching in wembley? hes probably very envious
No doubt he's there. The guy has barca blood in his veins. He'll probably join in the party tonight.
On May 29 2011 05:34 Telcontar wrote: Add fabregas to fill in for xavi/inniesta and this team will be so imba. As much as it would pain me to see him leave Arsenal, I think he should be allowed to seek trophies elsewhere since we're clearly not good enough to win any ourselves.
haha could he even be watching in wembley? hes probably very envious
I hope a lot of the hate for Barca for the "cheating" that was brought up so much in the start for this game will cool down now, especially from England.
This was a fantastic game though. I'm happy it was Man. U. in the finals, I don't think there's a better team in the world to play against Barcelona. Great game, glad to have watched. Shame Messi didn't make that third goal with his heel, but we can't have it all.
On May 29 2011 05:34 Telcontar wrote: Add fabregas to fill in for xavi/inniesta and this team will be so imba. As much as it would pain me to see him leave Arsenal, I think he should be allowed to seek trophies elsewhere since we're clearly not good enough to win any ourselves.
haha could he even be watching in wembley? hes probably very envious
On May 29 2011 05:34 Telcontar wrote: Add fabregas to fill in for xavi/inniesta and this team will be so imba. As much as it would pain me to see him leave Arsenal, I think he should be allowed to seek trophies elsewhere since we're clearly not good enough to win any ourselves.
haha could he even be watching in wembley? hes probably very envious
On May 29 2011 05:34 Telcontar wrote: Add fabregas to fill in for xavi/inniesta and this team will be so imba. As much as it would pain me to see him leave Arsenal, I think he should be allowed to seek trophies elsewhere since we're clearly not good enough to win any ourselves.
haha could he even be watching in wembley? hes probably very envious
Barcaaaa with the win!!!!! Totally outclassed man u. I like man u but wow barca made them look like shit. And what a goal by villa holyy shitt tooooo sick! I'm glad they played man u though, definitely my next fav team after barca.
And I hope all the crap they get for supposedly diving dies down, because honestly barca is one of the least dirty teams to play the game. Unlike real Madrid that play dirty as fuck. They had to play them on the same level and they did.
On May 29 2011 05:45 EchoZ wrote: Man U needs to spend more money *hint*glazers*hint*
I'd like to see Park converted to a central mid and 1 or 2 other players brought in to give a solid 3 man midfield. With the strikers and wingers already there, United could play a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 (keep in mind Rooney started out as a winger, or for that matter he might be able to switch to CAM).
In any case, Giggs and Scholes are getting old, and Carrick and Anderson are unreliable. It's the part of the squad most obviously in need of new signings. The back 4 is fine and they've already found a decent replacement GK.
Manu only rly attacked properly at the end of the match but that was because barca was on the defensive anyways. ManU barely got into barca's deep half the whole 45 mins
On May 29 2011 06:02 Sabu113 wrote: Outclassed. The lack of a DCM was killer. THe weakness in center mid was exposed. Looked good forward in spurts, did not have enough possession.
Every midfield looks weak when u have to play barca, they even put an extra man on the mid.
Early game pressure very good from United, but once the game went on longer the macro oriented Barca controlled the match while harrassing their opponents who could barely attack on their own, they kept defending but Barca was too spread around the map and starved United for the win
Fantastic play by Barce they really deserved the win. One of the better Champions league finals for a long time too. I was a bit dissapointed by ManU. Hernandez was poor all game long and really I feel that Fergy got the strategy wrong again.
Went to see the game at a pub, had to wait for 2 hrs so that I got a prime seat. Imbibed quite a lot of Guiness but still was able to enjoy the game. Some amazing goals, you have to admit Rooney's strike was class. A really exciting final. Too bad the Man U fans in the pub were very drunk and aggressive and starting fights left right and centre.
I am a MU fan, but the result is as expected. Barca is a better team and totally deserve the trophy. Hope that Ferguson can have some more money to buy in some big names for the challenge next season. 2 defeat in 3 years is bitter though T_T
That was one of the most impressive performances I've ever seen. Kudos to ManU for at least trying to play their game (and kudos to both teams for making this a pretty clean game overall), but damn, Barca was just on a different level.
Xavi, Iniesta and Messi have to be the coolest trio to watch in Football ever.
On May 29 2011 06:29 Orome wrote: That was one of the most impressive performances I've ever seen. Kudos to ManU for at least trying to play their game (and kudos to both teams for making this a pretty clean game overall), but damn, Barca was just on a different level.
Xavi, Iniesta and Messi have to be the coolest trio to watch in Football ever.
Did this game remind anyone else of Heat v. Bulls? I felt so bad for Rooney who was working so hard and was brilliant. Barca just had more talent and he was all alone.
manchester was in 3 of the last 4 finals and barcelona won 2 of the last 3 champions league, clearly the 2 best teams in europe on the field and it was still a nomatch for barça...they push the limits so far.
On May 29 2011 06:39 Toxi78 wrote: manchester was in 3 of the last 4 finals and barcelona won 2 of the last 3 champions league, clearly the 2 best teams in europe on the field and it was still a nomatch for barça...they push the limits so far.
I think that atm the 2 best teams in europe (and in the world) are FC Barcelona & Real Madrid.
Probably Bulgarian Bias but why did the old alcoholic not even put Berba on the bench. And have Owen sit there ?! And Leave Nani a substitution, then put him in play 30 minutes before the end !?
Kind of underwhelming! I just said to my friends, Barca better not score another goal right now, else the game is dead. 1 minute later, goal, and inevitably the game ended.
On May 29 2011 06:29 Orome wrote: That was one of the most impressive performances I've ever seen. Kudos to ManU for at least trying to play their game (and kudos to both teams for making this a pretty clean game overall), but damn, Barca was just on a different level.
Xavi, Iniesta and Messi have to be the coolest trio to watch in Football ever.
Did this game remind anyone else of Heat v. Bulls? I felt so bad for Rooney who was working so hard and was brilliant. Barca just had more talent and he was all alone.
I felt Vidic and Ferdinand also did a great job on defense, but Man U's midfield got pretty outclassed so it was only a matter of time before Barca scored. Also Valencia had a rough game >_<.
On May 29 2011 06:30 Phalanx wrote: where can i watch a full replay of the final? i missed due to work
Check your TV program. Most channels will replay the game once at some later time.
On May 29 2011 06:23 Sgany wrote: Champions again and deserved Champions.
Messi = best player ever.
That's a bit of a stretch. Nowhere near Maradona as of yet. Has the potential though
i got to say, its not really that much of a stretch if he keeps on playing like he does now. He is only 23 years old...... and already such a legend. Pele, Maradona, Cruijff, Platini to be honest something must go terrible wrong or Messi is bound to end up in that list (maybe even argue that he's already amongst those already )
I felt Vidic and Ferdinand also did a great job on defense, but Man U's midfield got pretty outclassed so it was only a matter of time before Barca scored. Also Valencia had a rough game >_<.
Both Valencia and Park spent way to much energy on defensive work, because both Giggs and especially Carrick through having lost all ability to mark their players, forced to them to fall back and in.
Same thing that happened two years ago when Anderson fell out of the game after 5 mins.
Leaving constant and massive passing opportunities on the midfield.
You can't afford that kind of thing against Xavi and Iniesta.
On May 29 2011 06:23 Sgany wrote: Champions again and deserved Champions.
Messi = best player ever.
That's a bit of a stretch. Nowhere near Maradona as of yet. Has the potential though
i got to say, its not really that much of a stretch if he keeps on playing like he does now. He is only 23 years old...... and already such a legend. Pele, Maradona, Cruijff, Platini to be honest something must go terrible wrong or Messi is bound to end up in that list (maybe even argue that he's already amongst those already )
I love football, i've been see football since i borned, i saw a lot of videos of maradona, etc... and i have to say that Messi is the greatest player i ever seen.
On May 29 2011 06:23 Sgany wrote: Champions again and deserved Champions.
Messi = best player ever.
That's a bit of a stretch. Nowhere near Maradona as of yet. Has the potential though
i got to say, its not really that much of a stretch if he keeps on playing like he does now. He is only 23 years old...... and already such a legend. Pele, Maradona, Cruijff, Platini to be honest something must go terrible wrong or Messi is bound to end up in that list (maybe even argue that he's already amongst those already )
I love football, i've been see football since i borned, i saw a lot of videos of maradona, etc... and i have to say that Messi is the greatest player i ever seen.
hey man, im with you! I absolutely love and admire Messi. He's just a boy who loves football, thats the most adorable thing and thats why i think he's already the greatest! I was just defending him against some who thought he wasnt supposed to be in that list already
On May 29 2011 07:09 ilj.psa wrote: I think most people who had seen Maradona play would agree that Messi is better, but the thing is he needs to prove it winning a WC with Argentina
Not in my eyes! Maradona was amazing dont get me wrong, but a lot of it was "hype" too. Thats the most amazing thing about Messi. He seems so "down to earth". He is just another kid who enjoys football. When you see him running around the pitch with his hands tugged in his sleaves........ He just breaths football, thats why i admire him so much. In my eyes he's strongly on his way to become the best ever (despite never winning a WC, i dont see argentina in the upcoming future field 10 other people who help Messi win a WC)
On May 29 2011 07:09 ilj.psa wrote: I think most people who had seen Maradona play would agree that Messi is better, but the thing is he needs to prove it winning a WC with Argentina
Not in my eyes! Maradona was amazing dont get me wrong, but a lot of it was "hype" too. Thats the most amazing thing about Messi. He seems so "down to earth". He is just another kid who enjoys football. When you see him running around the pitch with his hands tugged in his sleaves........ He just breaths football, thats why i admire him so much. In my eyes he's strongly on his way to become the best ever (despite never winning a WC, i dont see argentina in the upcoming future field 10 other people who help Messi win a WC)
Hahaha, I guessed 3-1 right before the game started. I should've bet some money on it. Happy for Barca and Messi!
Regarding Messi being best of all time, I still think it's vital that he delivers in a WC. He doesn't neccesarily have to win it, but he has to show that he can dominate on that stage, and we've seen nothing from him there yet.
On May 29 2011 07:20 Holgerius wrote: Hahaha, I guessed 3-1 right before the game started. I should've bet some money on it. Happy for Barca and Messi!
Regarding Messi being best of all time, I still think it's vital that he delivers in a WC. He doesn't neccesarily have to win it, but he has to show that he can dominate on that stage, and we've seen nothing from him there yet.
I somewhat agree, but well a lot of it depends on the team you got to a WC with. I'll add a short reference to Ryan Giggs. Noone will doubt he's an absolute amazing footballer. However, unfortunately he was born in Wales so he never had the chance to rise and shine on any world or European championship. Does that make him a lesser player? In my opinion: it does not.
World Championships are important, however even Messi can not win a WC single handedly. He needs at least somewhat of a decent team so he can carry them. What the argentina team showed last year was far from decent.
On May 29 2011 07:20 Holgerius wrote: Hahaha, I guessed 3-1 right before the game started. I should've bet some money on it. Happy for Barca and Messi!
Regarding Messi being best of all time, I still think it's vital that he delivers in a WC. He doesn't neccesarily have to win it, but he has to show that he can dominate on that stage, and we've seen nothing from him there yet.
I somewhat agree, but well a lot of it depends on the team you got to a WC with. I'll add a short reference to Ryan Giggs. Noone will doubt he's an absolute amazing footballer. However, unfortunately he was born in Wales so he never had the chance to rise and shine on any world or European championship. Does that make him a lesser player? In my opinion: it does not.
World Championships are important, however even Messi can not win a WC single handedly. He needs at least somewhat of a decent team so he can carry them. What the argentina team showed last year was far from decent.
As I said, I don't think it's absolutely neccesary for him to win, he just has to be really fucking good in one. In the last WC he didn't stand out at all whatsoever. Players like Forlan outshone him by faaaaaar in terms of individual performance. And don't try to compare Argentina to Wales. Argentina is a country full of amazing world-class players.
But Messi is ridiculous. Definitly the best player I've seen since Ronaldo's prime, and there is little doubt that he will go down as one of the greatest of all time.
Messi cannot be treated as one of the best of all times when he hasnt proven himself in a world championship imo. He needs to dominate atleast one if not two.
My favorite in my lifetime is Zinedine Zidane, absolutely enormous when he was at the top.
On May 29 2011 07:20 Holgerius wrote: Hahaha, I guessed 3-1 right before the game started. I should've bet some money on it. Happy for Barca and Messi!
Regarding Messi being best of all time, I still think it's vital that he delivers in a WC. He doesn't neccesarily have to win it, but he has to show that he can dominate on that stage, and we've seen nothing from him there yet.
I somewhat agree, but well a lot of it depends on the team you got to a WC with. I'll add a short reference to Ryan Giggs. Noone will doubt he's an absolute amazing footballer. However, unfortunately he was born in Wales so he never had the chance to rise and shine on any world or European championship. Does that make him a lesser player? In my opinion: it does not.
World Championships are important, however even Messi can not win a WC single handedly. He needs at least somewhat of a decent team so he can carry them. What the argentina team showed last year was far from decent.
The ability to play your best despite having a poor team shows the hallmark of a legend. Maradona didn't have that luxury in 86, took a very unfancied Argentina to victory pretty much single handled (literally as well as figuratively). He also Napoli to two Serie A championships, quite extraordinary.
You can't really Argentina didn't have a decent team last World Cup, it's that everybody performed below par. Messi performed below par but that was expected as he has yet to shine for the national team.
Well, that's that. Congratulations Barcelona! As a Barça fan myself, I think Messi's a bit over rated. He's also gotten a lot more selfish this season and often doesn't end up getting the job done.
On May 29 2011 07:09 ilj.psa wrote: I think most people who had seen Maradona play would agree that Messi is better, but the thing is he needs to prove it winning a WC with Argentina
So someone that plays for a country with a shitty national team could never be better than Maradona? Player by player, Argentina was a way better team compared to their contemporary counterparts, than they are today.
I agree with that, he still needs to win a World cup with his national before he is completely on par with Maradona, everybody is saying this, else you're pretty shallow not to know.
That's a bit of a stretch. Nowhere near Maradona as of yet. Has the potential though
Quite easily top 10 already
No. Just no. Not even top 3 of the last decade.
Messi is easily the best player since Maradona.....He has shattered Ronaldo's club record. He has a weaker international team than most other top players, give him a decent side and he can win the WC.
He is garbage on set plays and contributes nothing on the defensive end. While usually brilliant he often goes into funks, and the WC showed that he is basically the Steve Nash of soccer. You have to have a very special sort of team to show off his talents, he is not a guy who can be plugged into any team and instantly raise it to another level.
Ronaldo was more than a "club record" and Zidane makes Messi look like a schoolgirl. That doesn't even account for some of the incredibly brilliant goalkeepers and defensive player we have had over the past few years.
On May 29 2011 10:48 cLutZ wrote: He is garbage on set plays and contributes nothing on the defensive end. While usually brilliant he often goes into funks, and the WC showed that he is basically the Steve Nash of soccer. You have to have a very special sort of team to show off his talents, he is not a guy who can be plugged into any team and instantly raise it to another level.
Ronaldo was more than a "club record" and Zidane makes Messi look like a schoolgirl. That doesn't even account for some of the incredibly brilliant goalkeepers and defensive player we have had over the past few years.
Messi contributes immensely to the defence. It was the first thing Pep did when he took over Barca in 2008 to drill all his players with the right mindset in defence. You can probably go to youtube and search: Messi defence; and see how much he tracks back - often it is to the goal box, but you're probably not going to do that anyway because you're a blind hater. Messi isn't a tall person and so obviously, he is not much of an aerial threat, but he deals with his natural disadvantage by being a good set piece taker - he has scored plenty of freekick goals, and he takes corners when Xavi is not on the field. In defensive set plays, Messi offers the scariest threat of a counter attack - just see some of Barca's counter attacks against Arsenal at the Camp Nou last year - oh, but you won't because you're a blind hater.
I'm not sure if you actually know nothing about football or you're just a blind hater, but Messi will improve any team in the world. You have to be an idiot to think that any team, if given the chance to have Messi play for their team, will not take that opportunity. It is clear that he is only a level above any player of his generation because he offers so much versatility and excellence at the same time. It is a scary if not impossible task to defend Messi considering that he can dribble like Maradona, pass like Xavi and shoot like Ronaldo (who, if you are really a fan of, would agree was all about precision and technique, not about blind power).
I didn't come to this thread to talk about Messi but seeing stupid posts like this one just makes me need to reply back. Nobody is saying Ronaldo was merely a club record of goals, and nobody is thinking that Messi is simply a club record of goals either. The point Barca fans (or at least the rational ones) make when saying Messi is better (though I prefer "influential") than Ronaldo is that not only has Messi scored more goals than Ronaldo (which is Ronaldo's strength), but he is actually a complete attacking player with the most assists in the league as well, something that Ronaldo is not credited with doing. Likewise, many fans would agree that Messi is a better player than Zidane, who is a creative focal point for his teams, but doesn't have Messi's dribbling technique and instinctive shooting. You can't really compare the players since Messi has always played inside forward or false nine, two attacking+creative roles, while Ronaldo played as a complete striker and Zidane played as a trequartista, but in the elements where comparison can be made, it seems that Messi has done the equal or better of his peers.
Anyway, I thought it was a very, very entertaining match, if not a classic. United was very strong in the first ten minutes and Mascherano looked extremely shaky at CB for the beginning, but Barca got into rhythm after United voluntarily chose to slow the intensity after the first 10 minutes (since pressing that high for 90 is suicidal). The goal came from a brilliant assist from Xavi: his dribbling patience, fake look, outside boot slide pass through 4 players, and the way he made 5 defenders guess what he was going to do (was like time just stopped for 1-2 seconds), was just incredible. United came back with spirit and Rooney finished marvelously after a intricate exchange outside the box, but I thought the goal was a hint of offside (Giggs' arm was very offside, but it's not counted in the offside rule). Then Barca just destroyed United in the second half until their third goal, after which they just played possession.
United fans must have a lot of misgivings - everyone played poorly in the second half except Van Der Sar, Vidic and Rooney, but what a match! Grats to both teams.
I admittedly don't watch much soccer at all (just WCs and UEFA champ) and even I recognized and could name like every player on Barcelona. I guess that shows how much money they must spend on that payroll...
GG.. Messi is good.. I still am pretty upset about the end result.. I would of rather seen Berba then Parks on the field any day of the week. Parks just doesnt do it for me.
That's a bit of a stretch. Nowhere near Maradona as of yet. Has the potential though
Quite easily top 10 already
No. Just no. Not even top 3 of the last decade.
Messi is easily the best player since Maradona.....He has shattered Ronaldo's club record. He has a weaker international team than most other top players, give him a decent side and he can win the WC.
I agree. Messi has to play with trash like Cambiasso, Aguero, Pastore, Higuain, Tevez, Milito, Samuel, Zanetti, Di Maria, Mascherano and Banega. It's a miracle Argentina's NT has won a single game the past 3 years.
Compare that to the beastly team of Uruguay that carried Diego Forlan to the semis of the WC.
Manchester United were definitely the team that deserved to be in the finals: they didn't even play bad; Barca didn't let them play at all.
That Barcelona team are the best footballing team I have ever seen in my life (I'm 33).
The only way to beat them is for them to play shit or to do what Mourhinho did and get some advantage and then hold it by playing with 11 men behind the ball and defend the rest of the game. And get lucky.
What passing! That one touch football - fuck me - pleasure to watch.
I dont understand people who say that Argentina had a weak team last year. Did you guys even watch the World Cup?? They had probably the best team in the competition, but lost to Germany because they couldn`t control the midfield. If you replace Messi with Zidane of 10 years ago on that team, Argentina would have rolled everybody.
I like Messi as much as anyone, but he was a major letdown last WC, just like Rooney
Barcelona played tbe best match in this season. Guardiola prepared them very well. I was a bit scared after first 10 mins, cuz Manchester was very agressive and Barcelona had no idea how to play with them. But after, WOW, Messi, Iniesta, Xavi, they just aproved that they are the best.
On May 29 2011 14:52 zYwi3c wrote: Barcelona played tbe best match in this season. Guardiola prepared them very well. I was a bit scared after first 10 mins, cuz Manchester was very agressive and Barcelona had no idea how to play with them. But after, WOW, Messi, Iniesta, Xavi, they just aproved that they are the best.
5-0 Madrid was better IMO. That was a game where everything was absolutely perfect for Barca.
That's a bit of a stretch. Nowhere near Maradona as of yet. Has the potential though
Quite easily top 10 already
No. Just no. Not even top 3 of the last decade.
Messi is easily the best player since Maradona.....He has shattered Ronaldo's club record. He has a weaker international team than most other top players, give him a decent side and he can win the WC.
That's a bit of a stretch. Nowhere near Maradona as of yet. Has the potential though
Quite easily top 10 already
No. Just no. Not even top 3 of the last decade.
Messi is easily the best player since Maradona.....He has shattered Ronaldo's club record. He has a weaker international team than most other top players, give him a decent side and he can win the WC.
On May 29 2011 14:24 Noxie wrote: GG.. Messi is good.. I still am pretty upset about the end result.. I would of rather seen Berba then Parks on the field any day of the week. Parks just doesnt do it for me.
Park gave lots of pressure in the midfield. He got some steals and intercepts in the first 10 minutes, then after that decided to disappear completely from the scene. -_- And I think Berbatov just isn't feeling well right now after all his disappointing plays in their last games. Normally, he would be starter and Chicharito bench.
On May 29 2011 14:24 Noxie wrote: GG.. Messi is good.. I still am pretty upset about the end result.. I would of rather seen Berba then Parks on the field any day of the week. Parks just doesnt do it for me.
Sir Alex always plays Park in every big game, I think Sir Alex sees something in him behind the scenes in training etc that we maybe sometimes don't see when he's playing. But I don't think Berbatov should've have started, Hernandez is a better player for Rooney to play with and you need someone like Park who will pressure the other team's midfield, but Barca are just too good and there midfield is just ridiculous.
Every player and SAF admitted that Barcelona are the best team right now. One thing that Ferguson brought up is that if Barca will be able to still dominate with a new cycle of players.( When Xavi, iniesta, puyol) are gone. I know they still have a couple of good years left, but i actually think its impossible to replace Xavi iniesta combo.
On May 29 2011 14:52 oooo27 wrote: I dont understand people who say that Argentina had a weak team last year. Did you guys even watch the World Cup?? They had probably the best team in the competition, but lost to Germany because they couldn`t control the midfield. If you replace Messi with Zidane of 10 years ago on that team, Argentina would have rolled everybody.
I like Messi as much as anyone, but he was a major letdown last WC, just like Rooney
It is true that Argentina had a good team, but i dont think that the bad midfield control was Messi fault.
I think that Maradona was one of the worst coaches that i have never seen.
On May 29 2011 19:28 GTLdaily wrote: Every player and SAF admitted that Barcelona are the best team right now. One thing that Ferguson brought up is that if Barca will be able to still dominate with a new cycle of players.( When Xavi, iniesta, puyol) are gone. I know they still have a couple of good years left, but i actually think its impossible to replace Xavi iniesta combo.
fabregas and iniesta? I would like barca to get fabregas soon so that he can start learning from xavi so he can slot straight in when xavi leaves
On May 29 2011 19:28 GTLdaily wrote: Every player and SAF admitted that Barcelona are the best team right now. One thing that Ferguson brought up is that if Barca will be able to still dominate with a new cycle of players.( When Xavi, iniesta, puyol) are gone. I know they still have a couple of good years left, but i actually think its impossible to replace Xavi iniesta combo.
fabregas and iniesta? I would like barca to get fabregas soon so that he can start learning from xavi so he can slot straight in when xavi leaves
Its funny to see people talking about retirement of Xavi , i mean he's kind of MF that relying on 1 touch and control, hes very intelligent and tactical, so i doubt he'll retire in next 2 years or so , however, thats his decision to make, he may leave for other reasons, but no because of his physical form. Look at Sir Giggs, that man got 37 , and if i remember correctly, in his early age he was ulra quick and now hes kinda support role, but he runs like youngster still, well at least for some part of the game. Giggs is really an example of how long a good player who like to play can play.
On May 29 2011 20:39 taldarimAltar wrote: Ferguson should have gone 4-5-1, with a 5 man midfield it'd be much harder for barca to hold the ball, that's how we beat barca in '08
On May 29 2011 19:28 GTLdaily wrote: Every player and SAF admitted that Barcelona are the best team right now. One thing that Ferguson brought up is that if Barca will be able to still dominate with a new cycle of players.( When Xavi, iniesta, puyol) are gone. I know they still have a couple of good years left, but i actually think its impossible to replace Xavi iniesta combo.
fabregas and iniesta? I would like barca to get fabregas soon so that he can start learning from xavi so he can slot straight in when xavi leaves
Its funny to see people talking about retirement of Xavi , i mean he's kind of MF that relying on 1 touch and control, hes very intelligent and tactical, so i doubt he'll retire in next 2 years or so , however, thats his decision to make, he may leave for other reasons, but no because of his physical form. Look at Sir Giggs, that man got 37 , and if i remember correctly, in his early age he was ulra quick and now hes kinda support role, but he runs like youngster still, well at least for some part of the game. Giggs is really an example of how long a good player who like to play can play.
On May 29 2011 14:24 Noxie wrote: GG.. Messi is good.. I still am pretty upset about the end result.. I would of rather seen Berba then Parks on the field any day of the week. Parks just doesnt do it for me.
I hope you realize Park and Berbatov are compeletely different type of players and play compeletely different roles too. Park is a combined winger, CMF & DMF who with Evra killed nearly 100% of attacks from the right side. I think Alves got exactly one pass into the box. e. He also was man marking both Xavi and Messi at some parts of the game, probably because ManU defence didn't know what to do with them, letting them go as they pleased.
Now Evra had a few fuckups in the defence but still they played pretty great match creating a lot of attacks with Rooney and Giggs.
Berbatov is a genius Forward when he is having a good day. But he has quite often those bad days when he doesn't even try.
The real underperformers were Hernandez, Valencia and Callagher along with the defensive line. And I'm not sure if you can say they underperformed since they played against Barcelona, rather they didn't overperform.
Argentina had a weak squad. So did Brasil. Both much weaker than what they usually field.
Heinze, Demichelis, Gutiérrez and with the aged Veron, it was just bad. And Tevez and Messi have no synergy at all. And when you struggle when you have possession, Samuel won't make your team any better either.
You tell me what is so good about the Argentina squad when they often have so many good players that dominate for the big clubs. They only had Messi.
Spain and the Netherlands had like 4 to 5 comparable players each. Germany had a lot of up and coming playing very suitable to modern football. Brasil had no dominating players.
On May 29 2011 23:14 Sated wrote: The upsetting thing is that the two goals we lost to were goals that no one could've done anything about. The second and third goals were attempts that 9 times out of 10 do not go in, especially the one that Villa scored. They were the kind of goal you elect for goal of the month or whatever. Even though Barcelona dominated the game in terms of possession, I never truly felt that they had many clear-cut chances, so to lose to two wonder-goals is pretty heart-breaking.
Still, I can't really complain. We didn't do enough on the counter-attack to warrant winning the game. We were always going to have less possession, which is the kind of game we always have when we play against Arsenal so don't put this down to Barcelona being too amazing, but we didn't make our time on the ball count.
Oh well. Considering how "bad" a season we've had and how "bad" we've played, winning the PL and being the second best team in Europe (the world?) isn't too bad.
do you think that man u after this thrashing deserve even to play with barca ? no
On May 29 2011 14:24 Noxie wrote: GG.. Messi is good.. I still am pretty upset about the end result.. I would of rather seen Berba then Parks on the field any day of the week. Parks just doesnt do it for me.
I hope you realize Park and Berbatov are compeletely different type of players and play compeletely different roles too. Park is a combined winger, CMF & DMF who with Evra killed nearly 100% of attacks from the right side. I think Alves got exactly one pass into the box. e. He also was man marking both Xavi and Messi at some parts of the game, probably because ManU defence didn't know what to do with them, letting them go as they pleased.
Now Evra had a few fuckups in the defence but still they played pretty great match creating a lot of attacks with Rooney and Giggs.
Berbatov is a genius Forward when he is having a good day. But he has quite often those bad days when he doesn't even try.
The real underperformers were Hernandez, Valencia and Callagher along with the defensive line. And I'm not sure if you can say they underperformed since they played against Barcelona, rather they didn't overperform.
I think a lot of the problem was that Ferguson went out with the wrong shape and prepared his team in the wrong way to take the match. The most obvious problem is that he played a 4-4-1-1, which, if they had a proper destroyer in CM, such as Fletcher, might be okay. However, he played Giggs and Carrick in midfield, both of whom are good passers, but are not great ball-winners. This shows that Ferguson, despite his experience, was quite naive and was a bit of a romantic coming into this match, hoping that his team could play possession and attacking football against Barca.
Essentially, Ferguson relied on essentially a three man midfield in defence (Carrick, Giggs and Rooney tracking back to press Busquets without the ball), to contest what is essentially a four man midfield in attack from Barca (Busquets, the best in his role and probably most underrated player in the world, and Xavi, Iniesta and Messi playing as a false nine, that's Mr 1st, 2nd, 3rd Ballon d'Or podium winners from 2010).
Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but I'm sure even he appreciates now that his plan of using Park to blunt Alves, Giggs and Carrick to start plays and distribute to the wings, Valencia and Rooney to combine, and Chicharito to finish, completely and utterly failed. Giggs was left showing his age - he never got close to Xavi or Iniesta. Carrick did well with what possession he did manage to get, but it wasn't enough. Park blunted Alves for the first 30 minutes until he was told to narrow up and congest the middle and eventually switched with Giggs, letting Alves run rampant in defence and attack for the rest of the match. Valencia failed to pin Abidal back and never got the hoped-for 1-on-1 scenario on the wing. Rooney got completely confused when Xavi suddenly switched roles with Busquets, meaning that Rooney would have to either track Busquets (who he was told to man-mark) back to his own half and isolate Chicharito, or he would have to track Xavi, who is an even better holder of possession. What's worse is that even when United did win possession, Rooney was busy tracking Busquets/Xavi and was therefore out of position to counter-attack quickly. The only good passage of play from United other than the first 10 minute press was the exchange leading to the goal, after they won possession from Abidal's throw-in in Barca's half. That is to say, United didn't create a single chance that began from possession recovered in their own half!
So in hindsight, Ferguson probably should have played a 4-2-3-1, dropping Chicharito for Fletcher or Anderson, but news was that Fletcher was unfit to play anyway. Further, Ferguson should definitely have left Park to deal with Alves because pairing Giggs with Alves was sending lamb to the slaughter. Park doesn't offer anything creatively anyway, and it definitely a better use for him to pin Alves back rather than run himself ragged against the possession Carousel of Busquets-Xavi-Iniesta-Messi. That was a costly change actually, and was a big factor in leading to Barca's two second half goals IMO. But anyway, I think United was doomed to lose this match from a tactical standpoint, and the game was already completely over after 70 minutes.
do you think that man u after this trashing deserve even to play with barca ? no
I don't think you understand how a tournament works. If we got all the way through the tournament and ended up drawn against Barcelona in the final, then of course we deserve to play them. Who else in Europe would you argue "deserved" to play Barcelona in the final instead? Aside from that, we won the most competitive league in Europe this season, how can we not deserve to play in the Champion's League? Winning the PL is a greater achievement than winning La Liga.
Just because you made to a final in a tourney doesn't mean you deserve to be there. Look at Man U's road to the final. It was with no doubts the easiest they could have gotten. Playing a poor form Chelsea and Schlanke, or however you spell it, a middle of the table german club who had 1 surprise round win? C'mon.
You can't call ManU deserving because they won the EPL either. They kindly pronounced this season as the most unexpected/crazy/unpredictable season ever but thats only because so many teams underperformed and straight up flopped. Arsenal fell apart. Liverpool started straight awful. Man City didn't quite live up to the hype and thanks to a nice home record Man U won it. In no way did winning this years EPL make them a better team. Just more consistant at home than all the others.
So no. This time around its a much better achievement to win La Liga over Real Madrid than it is to win the EPL over a bunch of inconsistant underperforming powerhouses. Had Real and Barca not meet in the semi's everyone would of had them as favorites to be in the final. They are the best two teams in the world.
ManU got worked. No way around it. They were outclassed. 10 games out of 10 they will not win against Barca. I would have much rather have seen another Classico. Because no matter how you look at it. Barca NEVER beat Real Madrid this year when Real didn't receive a red card. And i would be willing to bet a red would not have been given out in the final.
Horrible selection. Horrible line up. Horrible tactic. Horrible football. That was the Reds last night.
The fault lies in one man and one man only - Sir Alex. Your stupidity comes out in every single European final weve played and last night was no exception. Yes you have made the club what it is today and you will go down in history as one of the greats. YET I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR MESSING UP EVERY EUROPEAN FINAL WEVE HAD.
do you think that man u after this trashing deserve even to play with barca ? no
I don't think you understand how a tournament works. If we got all the way through the tournament and ended up drawn against Barcelona in the final, then of course we deserve to play them. Who else in Europe would you argue "deserved" to play Barcelona in the final instead? Aside from that, we won the most competitive league in Europe this season, how can we not deserve to play in the Champion's League? Winning the PL is a greater achievement than winning La Liga.
I don't think you understand how a tournament works. Getting to the final just means you were better than the teams you played on route to the final on the days you played them. Manchester United's path was undoubtedly easier with Chelsea as the only difficult team. Barcelona played a strong Arsenal team (this was before they fell apart) and Real Madrid. Both teams put up a better fight than Manchester United did, although I don't think they would have managed to beat Barcelona on that day either.
Also its irrelevant if the PL or LL is easier. Neither team can enter the other teams league, also there are probably more good teams in the Premiership, but Barcelona are better than all the teams in the PL, which I guess makes LL more difficult to win, because it has the best team in the world in it.
On May 29 2011 14:24 Noxie wrote: GG.. Messi is good.. I still am pretty upset about the end result.. I would of rather seen Berba then Parks on the field any day of the week. Parks just doesnt do it for me.
I've always liked Park. He's not the most flashy player, so sometimes you can forget he's on the pitch. But he's one of the hardest working players on the Man U team and against most teams he does a good job pressuring the midfield. Berbatov on the other hand. When had he ever actually been good at United? Once every 2 months he scores a hat-trick against some terrible team that you know will be in a relegation battle towards the end of the season and suddenly everyone thinks he's the greatest player they've ever seen.
I don't think anyone could have beaten Barcelona today, but if anyone could've beat them they weren't going to do it the way Man U were playing. You need to accept that you won't have possession for long periods of time and continue to pressure them and not switch off, because one mistake and they'll be in with a shot on goal. You also have to make use of all the possession that you do get, Man U were giving the ball away so cheaply so they were never able to pressure Barca once they'd settled in. The last thing I've noticed is that Barcelona always seem to start slowly. Their opponents always look like their dominating the game for the first 20 minutes of so, but they rarely get anything for the pressure and once Barcelona do concede they look better and better. (To Man U's credit they didn't fall apart after they conceded the first goal).
All this game made me think is about how different the final (and the whole season) might have been if it wasn't for some questionable refereeing and Bendtner being shit at scoring goals, in the 2nd leg at Arsenal.
The big mistake by Fegurson was letting Messi play in the space between the midfielders and the defence (sry I can't say the exact positions in english). He drawed defense attention, but he was in the back of the midfield.
He should've told park to get to middlefield to have that extra man to pressure Iniesta, Xavi and Messi, and Rooney should've been all game long marking Daniel Alves. The way MU played Park and Carrick were confused, Daniel Alves was always alone and Messi caused mayhem.
Park is a very good player, but he can`t be in two places at the same time.
Just because you made to a final in a tourney doesn't mean you deserve to be there.
That's just flat out wrong in so many ways. First of all, you can only beat what is put in front of you. Second of all, poor-form Chelsea? Is this the same Chelsea beat us in the league? The same Chelsea that finished second overall? As for Schalke, even though they were a bit of a joke against us, you conveniently miss out the part were they knocked-out Inter Milan. You know, Inter Milan, the holders of the Champion's League going into that game? The team who knocked out Barcelona last year? Don't be silly. You have no argument.
You can't call ManU deserving because they won the EPL either. They kindly pronounced this season as the most unexpected/crazy/unpredictable season ever but thats only because so many teams underperformed and straight up flopped.
Actually, it's because so many of the "lesser" teams played so well this term, not just because the "better" teams underperformed. The number of points needed to survive this season ended up being 40, 10 points more than the season before. That means that the lower teams needed 3 more wins this season than they did last season. Why? Because they were all playing so much better. You can't always put the "better" teams losing down to them playing badly, sometimes the "lesser" teams just happen to be playing really well.
I guess someone who watches La Liga wouldn't understand this, though, since in La Liga it is a disaster for Barcelona or Real Madrid to even draw a game, yet alone lose one. La Liga is a massive joke, just like the Scottish league. That is a fact.
This time around its a much better achievement to win La Liga over Real Madrid
You don't win a league over a single team, you win a league over all the teams. If your only realistic competitor every season is a single team, then the league is broken. It's useless. La Liga is a joke, barely deserves a single CL place, yet alone the several it gets.
I think you're quite wrong in what you are saying about La Liga.
La Liga is quite competitive in fact. Just a single and simple comparison. Here, the number of points needed to survive this season ended up being 44, 7 more that the previous season. So, at least, "lesser" teams performed really well this season and lower positions were disputed until the very end.
Yeah, sometimes it seems that there are like two leagues (Barça - RM and the rest) but it is not as easy as you think. The key is that Barça has some of the best players in the world and RM has unlimited economical resources to get the best players, so yeah they are expected to win all their matches and try to win La Liga. However, there are other good teams that can make Barça and RM lose a game and it wouldn't be a surprise if that happened (Villareal or Valencia).
La Liga is a joke, barely deserves a single CL place, yet alone the several it gets. So, you think that a league with teams like Barça or RM does not deserve even a single place in CL? With Barça being the best team in Europe? Or RM with players like Casillas, CR or Kaka? You must be joking, aren't you?
I would remind you that ManU had quite tough matches against Valencia in the CL (0-1 in Valencia (Valencia deserved to win this) / 1-1 in Manchester). Maybe, ManU didn't play as well as it usually does or didn't have luck but saying that La Liga is a joke and it does not deserve its CL places is not true and quite ignorant IMO. I know that Valencia is not as good as ManU but even teams like this deserve to have a chance in the CL (see Schalke '04 or Oporto in 2004 winning the CL).
Just because you made to a final in a tourney doesn't mean you deserve to be there.
That's just flat out wrong in so many ways. First of all, you can only beat what is put in front of you. Second of all, poor-form Chelsea? Is this the same Chelsea beat us in the league? The same Chelsea that finished second overall? As for Schalke, even though they were a bit of a joke against us, you conveniently miss out the part were they knocked-out Inter Milan. You know, Inter Milan, the holders of the Champion's League going into that game? The team who knocked out Barcelona last year? Don't be silly. You have no argument.
You can't call ManU deserving because they won the EPL either. They kindly pronounced this season as the most unexpected/crazy/unpredictable season ever but thats only because so many teams underperformed and straight up flopped.
Actually, it's because so many of the "lesser" teams played so well this term, not just because the "better" teams underperformed. The number of points needed to survive this season ended up being 40, 10 points more than the season before. That means that the lower teams needed 3 more wins this season than they did last season. Why? Because they were all playing so much better. You can't always put the "better" teams losing down to them playing badly, sometimes the "lesser" teams just happen to be playing really well.
I guess someone who watches La Liga wouldn't understand this, though, since in La Liga it is a disaster for Barcelona or Real Madrid to even draw a game, yet alone lose one. La Liga is a massive joke, just like the Scottish league. That is a fact.
This time around its a much better achievement to win La Liga over Real Madrid
You don't win a league over a single team, you win a league over all the teams. If your only realistic competitor every season is a single team, then the league is broken. It's useless. La Liga is a joke, barely deserves a single CL place, yet alone the several it gets.
We get it, you are upset. But saying La Liga does not deserve even a spot in CL when current Premier League champion was outclassed by La Liga champion, it's just not even funny.
Just because you made to a final in a tourney doesn't mean you deserve to be there.
That's just flat out wrong in so many ways. First of all, you can only beat what is put in front of you. Second of all, poor-form Chelsea? Is this the same Chelsea beat us in the league? The same Chelsea that finished second overall? As for Schalke, even though they were a bit of a joke against us, you conveniently miss out the part were they knocked-out Inter Milan. You know, Inter Milan, the holders of the Champion's League going into that game? The team who knocked out Barcelona last year? Don't be silly. You have no argument.
You can't call ManU deserving because they won the EPL either. They kindly pronounced this season as the most unexpected/crazy/unpredictable season ever but thats only because so many teams underperformed and straight up flopped.
Actually, it's because so many of the "lesser" teams played so well this term, not just because the "better" teams underperformed. The number of points needed to survive this season ended up being 40, 10 points more than the season before. That means that the lower teams needed 3 more wins this season than they did last season. Why? Because they were all playing so much better. You can't always put the "better" teams losing down to them playing badly, sometimes the "lesser" teams just happen to be playing really well.
I guess someone who watches La Liga wouldn't understand this, though, since in La Liga it is a disaster for Barcelona or Real Madrid to even draw a game, yet alone lose one. La Liga is a massive joke, just like the Scottish league. That is a fact.
EDIT:
This time around its a much better achievement to win La Liga over Real Madrid
You don't win a league over a single team, you win a league over all the teams. If your only realistic competitor every season is a single team, then the league is broken. It's useless. La Liga is a joke, barely deserves a single CL place, yet alone the several it gets.
We get it, you are upset. But saying La Liga does not deserve even a spot in CL when current Premier League champion was outclassed by La Liga champion, it's just not even funny.
Barca is the better team, the EPL is still the better league. Only the top 2 teams in La Liga would end in the top 10 in the EPL.
Uhhh I'm English and I don't agree with cLutZ at all. Barcelona just trashed the top premier league team and Madrid made Tottenham look very poor.
Yes La Liga doesn't have quite the same strength in depth but Barce and Real are just so much better it's hard to say. If Barce and Real were in the Premier League they'd finish 1st and 2nd in my opinion, they would make our league look poor. Maybe that's just what's happening in Spain.
Hey, HEY. Madrid didn't make Tottenham look poor, we went down to 10 men in the first 15 minutes. You can't do that against RM and expect to stay in the game.
EDIT: This is a silly argument anyway, watch whatever league you like. In my humble opinion the Premier League is more exciting generally, there are more storylines, better depth. And yes Barca on their current form would tear it up, RM maybe less so - they'd be a top 4 side though.
On May 30 2011 05:58 Klive5ive wrote: Uhhh I'm English and I don't agree with cLutZ at all. Barcelona just trashed the top premier league team and Madrid made Tottenham look very poor.
Yes La Liga doesn't have quite the same strength in depth but Barce and Real are just so much better it's hard to say. If Barce and Real were in the Premier League they'd finish 1st and 2nd in my opinion, they would make our league look poor. Maybe that's just what's happening in Spain.
I said 2 teams, then you cited 2 teams.
No one can deny that La Liga is incredibly top heavy, its like College Football. Very few teas have an actual shot at the title or even getting the La Liga champions league bids.
Just because you made to a final in a tourney doesn't mean you deserve to be there.
That's just flat out wrong in so many ways. First of all, you can only beat what is put in front of you. Second of all, poor-form Chelsea? Is this the same Chelsea beat us in the league? The same Chelsea that finished second overall? As for Schalke, even though they were a bit of a joke against us, you conveniently miss out the part were they knocked-out Inter Milan. You know, Inter Milan, the holders of the Champion's League going into that game? The team who knocked out Barcelona last year? Don't be silly. You have no argument.
You can't call ManU deserving because they won the EPL either. They kindly pronounced this season as the most unexpected/crazy/unpredictable season ever but thats only because so many teams underperformed and straight up flopped.
Actually, it's because so many of the "lesser" teams played so well this term, not just because the "better" teams underperformed. The number of points needed to survive this season ended up being 40, 10 points more than the season before. That means that the lower teams needed 3 more wins this season than they did last season. Why? Because they were all playing so much better. You can't always put the "better" teams losing down to them playing badly, sometimes the "lesser" teams just happen to be playing really well.
I guess someone who watches La Liga wouldn't understand this, though, since in La Liga it is a disaster for Barcelona or Real Madrid to even draw a game, yet alone lose one. La Liga is a massive joke, just like the Scottish league. That is a fact.
EDIT:
This time around its a much better achievement to win La Liga over Real Madrid
You don't win a league over a single team, you win a league over all the teams. If your only realistic competitor every season is a single team, then the league is broken. It's useless. La Liga is a joke, barely deserves a single CL place, yet alone the several it gets.
We get it, you are upset. But saying La Liga does not deserve even a spot in CL when current Premier League champion was outclassed by La Liga champion, it's just not even funny.
Barca is the better team, the EPL is still the better league. Only the top 2 teams in La Liga would end in the top 10 in the EPL.
Just because you made to a final in a tourney doesn't mean you deserve to be there.
That's just flat out wrong in so many ways. First of all, you can only beat what is put in front of you. Second of all, poor-form Chelsea? Is this the same Chelsea beat us in the league? The same Chelsea that finished second overall? As for Schalke, even though they were a bit of a joke against us, you conveniently miss out the part were they knocked-out Inter Milan. You know, Inter Milan, the holders of the Champion's League going into that game? The team who knocked out Barcelona last year? Don't be silly. You have no argument.
You can't call ManU deserving because they won the EPL either. They kindly pronounced this season as the most unexpected/crazy/unpredictable season ever but thats only because so many teams underperformed and straight up flopped.
Actually, it's because so many of the "lesser" teams played so well this term, not just because the "better" teams underperformed. The number of points needed to survive this season ended up being 40, 10 points more than the season before. That means that the lower teams needed 3 more wins this season than they did last season. Why? Because they were all playing so much better. You can't always put the "better" teams losing down to them playing badly, sometimes the "lesser" teams just happen to be playing really well.
I guess someone who watches La Liga wouldn't understand this, though, since in La Liga it is a disaster for Barcelona or Real Madrid to even draw a game, yet alone lose one. La Liga is a massive joke, just like the Scottish league. That is a fact.
EDIT:
This time around its a much better achievement to win La Liga over Real Madrid
You don't win a league over a single team, you win a league over all the teams. If your only realistic competitor every season is a single team, then the league is broken. It's useless. La Liga is a joke, barely deserves a single CL place, yet alone the several it gets.
We get it, you are upset. But saying La Liga does not deserve even a spot in CL when current Premier League champion was outclassed by La Liga champion, it's just not even funny.
Barca is the better team, the EPL is still the better league. Only the top 2 teams in La Liga would end in the top 10 in the EPL.
Is he serious or just a dissapointed Man.U troll?
Nah, a Madrid fan actually. Zidane and Ozil are my favorite players of the last decade.
I guess someone who watches La Liga wouldn't understand this, though, since in La Liga it is a disaster for Barcelona or Real Madrid to even draw a game, yet alone lose one. La Liga is a massive joke, just like the Scottish league. That is a fact.
Just because you made to a final in a tourney doesn't mean you deserve to be there.
That's just flat out wrong in so many ways. First of all, you can only beat what is put in front of you. Second of all, poor-form Chelsea? Is this the same Chelsea beat us in the league? The same Chelsea that finished second overall? As for Schalke, even though they were a bit of a joke against us, you conveniently miss out the part were they knocked-out Inter Milan. You know, Inter Milan, the holders of the Champion's League going into that game? The team who knocked out Barcelona last year? Don't be silly. You have no argument.
You can't call ManU deserving because they won the EPL either. They kindly pronounced this season as the most unexpected/crazy/unpredictable season ever but thats only because so many teams underperformed and straight up flopped.
Actually, it's because so many of the "lesser" teams played so well this term, not just because the "better" teams underperformed. The number of points needed to survive this season ended up being 40, 10 points more than the season before. That means that the lower teams needed 3 more wins this season than they did last season. Why? Because they were all playing so much better. You can't always put the "better" teams losing down to them playing badly, sometimes the "lesser" teams just happen to be playing really well.
I guess someone who watches La Liga wouldn't understand this, though, since in La Liga it is a disaster for Barcelona or Real Madrid to even draw a game, yet alone lose one. La Liga is a massive joke, just like the Scottish league. That is a fact.
EDIT:
This time around its a much better achievement to win La Liga over Real Madrid
You don't win a league over a single team, you win a league over all the teams. If your only realistic competitor every season is a single team, then the league is broken. It's useless. La Liga is a joke, barely deserves a single CL place, yet alone the several it gets.
We get it, you are upset. But saying La Liga does not deserve even a spot in CL when current Premier League champion was outclassed by La Liga champion, it's just not even funny.
Barca is the better team, the EPL is still the better league. Only the top 2 teams in La Liga would end in the top 10 in the EPL.
I really doubt that. I reckon the top 4-5 teams would finish in the top 10. Valencia and Villareal would trump teams like Fulham, Sunderland and Villa.
If i wanted to dig deep enough I could make a 10 minute video about every single play in American football detailing every reason every player does what he does, which in turn has a direct effect on the outcome of the play. They are two VERY different games, not sure why you are trying to cast them in the same light.
What is this nonsensical bias towards the EPL? The EPL is the best in the world, why? Is it because of well structured youth systems producing top level football for the best teams in England? Is it fuck, its foreign money and foreign players that make the EPL the best in the world. Do none of you feel more inspired by watching local boys (either born or grew up in catalonia) plus Abi, Alves and Villa torch Man Utd..the best in the 'amazing' EPL? Wouldn't you rather see English teams take the time to change the way we approach the game, abandon the 'smash it up to the big lad' styles and home grow our way to stylish success like Barca have achieved? Then I would be proud of our 'English' Prem League.
On May 31 2011 09:48 iLuminar wrote: What is this nonsensical bias towards the EPL? The EPL is the best in the world, why? Is it because of well structured youth systems producing top level football for the best teams in England? Is it fuck, its foreign money and foreign players that make the EPL the best in the world. Do none of you feel more inspired by watching local boys (either born or grew up in catalonia) plus Abi, Alves and Villa torch Man Utd..the best in the 'amazing' EPL? Wouldn't you rather see English teams take the time to change the way we approach the game, abandon the 'smash it up to the big lad' styles and home grow our way to stylish success like Barca have achieved? Then I would be proud of our 'English' Prem League.
I dont get why some people say Man Utd doesnt deserve to be in the finals. Man Utd reached 3 of the last 4 champions league finals, won 4 of the last 5 epls, they ARE the best team in Europe 2nd only to barca and maybe Madrid. It's no shame really losing to a quality squad like barca, even real Madrid got thumped 5-0. So like it or not, Man Utd can only get stronger from now, and I look forward to new signings from Alex ferguson in the near future.
On May 31 2011 09:48 iLuminar wrote: What is this nonsensical bias towards the EPL? The EPL is the best in the world, why? Is it because of well structured youth systems producing top level football for the best teams in England? Is it fuck, its foreign money and foreign players that make the EPL the best in the world. Do none of you feel more inspired by watching local boys (either born or grew up in catalonia) plus Abi, Alves and Villa torch Man Utd..the best in the 'amazing' EPL? Wouldn't you rather see English teams take the time to change the way we approach the game, abandon the 'smash it up to the big lad' styles and home grow our way to stylish success like Barca have achieved? Then I would be proud of our 'English' Prem League.
Because there is more than one way to play football. It's not Barca's way or the highway.
What the hell is wrong with long ball? It's fucking epic. None of this pansy wansy daego widdly widdly twinkle toes rubbish. Centre Half to Striker, Striker to goal. Pint of Guinness/ Ale. This is England.
On May 31 2011 09:48 iLuminar wrote: What is this nonsensical bias towards the EPL? The EPL is the best in the world, why? Is it because of well structured youth systems producing top level football for the best teams in England? Is it fuck, its foreign money and foreign players that make the EPL the best in the world. Do none of you feel more inspired by watching local boys (either born or grew up in catalonia) plus Abi, Alves and Villa torch Man Utd..the best in the 'amazing' EPL? Wouldn't you rather see English teams take the time to change the way we approach the game, abandon the 'smash it up to the big lad' styles and home grow our way to stylish success like Barca have achieved? Then I would be proud of our 'English' Prem League.
Because there is more than one way to play football. It's not Barca's way or the highway.
There are also many ways to play attractive, entertaining, attacking football. Barca are just one of the teams with the bravery to do this in every game. On a smaller scale, look at the way Blackpool punched above their weight with attacking play to get promotion. Swansea have now done the same. I prefer this to 'kick and run'.
sc4k, I'm sure you're just joking, but if we continue to think that way on international levels, we'll continue to be humiliated at international competitions. Dated, boring, skilless styles
On June 01 2011 05:45 sc4k wrote: What the hell is wrong with long ball? It's fucking epic. None of this pansy wansy daego widdly widdly twinkle toes rubbish. Centre Half to Striker, Striker to goal. Pint of Guinness/ Ale. This is England.
rofl, Carling Cup... really, that's where we're going here? I thought we were talking about high level play...
Barcelona's system relies heavily on their teamwork and movement to create space and requires better players (than the opposing team) to pull off. However, when you have a great team playing a lesser team, I'd be willing to bet this style wins more than any other because it more effectively exploits your team's advantages and creates more opportunities for the lesser team to make mistakes that can be punished.
You can't just say "England should play a possession-oriented style like Spain" because then you're playing the same strategy against a team with better players to play it.
On June 01 2011 05:45 sc4k wrote: What the hell is wrong with long ball? It's fucking epic. None of this pansy wansy daego widdly widdly twinkle toes rubbish. Centre Half to Striker, Striker to goal. Pint of Guinness/ Ale. This is England.
Yeah it works so well for us doesn't it.
66 was a long time ago.
If we adopted a stoke style of play we would win all the trophies. We need Rory Delap and 10 other random players who are at least 250 lbs and 6 4. Play in a large unit, a 'push' if you will. Plus a keeper who can kick the ball into the 6 yard box. Screw all those fancy pants zidanes and maradonas.
Pro tip: have everyone playing in the opponent's half and play offside off the midfield line.
On June 01 2011 05:45 sc4k wrote: What the hell is wrong with long ball? It's fucking epic. None of this pansy wansy daego widdly widdly twinkle toes rubbish. Centre Half to Striker, Striker to goal. Pint of Guinness/ Ale. This is England.
Yeah it works so well for us doesn't it.
66 was a long time ago.
If we adopted a stoke style of play we would win all the trophies. We need Rory Delap and 10 other random players who are at least 250 lbs and 6 4. Play in a large unit, a 'push' if you will. Plus a keeper who can kick the ball into the 6 yard box. Screw all those fancy pants zidanes and maradonas.
Pro tip: have everyone playing in the opponent's half and play offside off the midfield line.
On June 01 2011 05:45 sc4k wrote: What the hell is wrong with long ball? It's fucking epic. None of this pansy wansy daego widdly widdly twinkle toes rubbish. Centre Half to Striker, Striker to goal. Pint of Guinness/ Ale. This is England.
Yeah it works so well for us doesn't it.
66 was a long time ago.
If we adopted a stoke style of play we would win all the trophies. We need Rory Delap and 10 other random players who are at least 250 lbs and 6 4. Play in a large unit, a 'push' if you will. Plus a keeper who can kick the ball into the 6 yard box. Screw all those fancy pants zidanes and maradonas.
Pro tip: have everyone playing in the opponent's half and play offside off the midfield line.
Problem, twinkle toes?
Wow, trying to play football with as little actual use of the foot as possible. I like it. I have no respect for a player if he can't score a goal with his head. I'm looking at you Messi.
On June 01 2011 05:45 sc4k wrote: What the hell is wrong with long ball? It's fucking epic. None of this pansy wansy daego widdly widdly twinkle toes rubbish. Centre Half to Striker, Striker to goal. Pint of Guinness/ Ale. This is England.
Yeah it works so well for us doesn't it.
66 was a long time ago.
If we adopted a stoke style of play we would win all the trophies. We need Rory Delap and 10 other random players who are at least 250 lbs and 6 4. Play in a large unit, a 'push' if you will. Plus a keeper who can kick the ball into the 6 yard box. Screw all those fancy pants zidanes and maradonas.
Pro tip: have everyone playing in the opponent's half and play offside off the midfield line.
Problem, twinkle toes?
Wow, trying to play football with as little actual use of the foot as possible. I like it. I have no respect for a player if he can't score a goal with his head. I'm looking at you Messi.
Lol? He has actually scored quite a few headers despite his size,one of em was the second goal in 2009 Champions League final,jumping over ferdinand.
Edit: Unless you're being sarcastic,I can't tell tbh,xP.
There are other ways to play this game and thats what makes it great, true, but to me and many others the possession-based style of Barca is both the most effective and most visually appealing way. Their skill, movement and decision-making is a joy to watch. Made the supposed best team in England look like a bunch of school kids.
And IMO Sc4ks sarcasm in this thread is sailing over more heads then Van Der Sars rugby kicks to Rooney.
On June 01 2011 05:45 sc4k wrote: What the hell is wrong with long ball? It's fucking epic. None of this pansy wansy daego widdly widdly twinkle toes rubbish. Centre Half to Striker, Striker to goal. Pint of Guinness/ Ale. This is England.
Yeah it works so well for us doesn't it.
66 was a long time ago.
If we adopted a stoke style of play we would win all the trophies. We need Rory Delap and 10 other random players who are at least 250 lbs and 6 4. Play in a large unit, a 'push' if you will. Plus a keeper who can kick the ball into the 6 yard box. Screw all those fancy pants zidanes and maradonas.
Pro tip: have everyone playing in the opponent's half and play offside off the midfield line.
Problem, twinkle toes?
Wow, trying to play football with as little actual use of the foot as possible. I like it. I have no respect for a player if he can't score a goal with his head. I'm looking at you Messi.
Lol? He has actually scored quite a few headers despite his size,one of em was the second goal in 2009 Champions League final,jumping over ferdinand.
Edit: Unless you're being sarcastic,I can't tell tbh,xP.
I was being sarcastic but the fails on me because I forgot about that goal xD
rofl, Carling Cup... really, that's where we're going here? I thought we were talking about high level play...
Because Arsenal aren't a high level team trying to emulate Barcelona's passing style?
I've never seen Arsenal play starters in the Carling Cup. I guess I couldn't say that they don't because the first 5 or 6 matches of CC I saw had all the backups playing to rest their starters for real competition, so I decided to never again watch a CC match. My friend says Wenger doesn't even play their starters if they reach the final, although some other teams do.
Either way, Arsenal don't have the players to play that style and win against top teams. Their central defending has always been weak and prone to misplaying the ball and in that style your wings and fullbacks present further forward and there is a lot of passing required of your defenders, so mistakes in your central defense are magnified. Fabregas is one of the best central midfielders in the world (I think he's the best, but I can see why others are rated so highly), but you need several players of his caliber to play the style because you rely so heavily on precise passing and a misplay of a few inches on any of the passes can lead to a devastating counterattack.
EPT![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/FwL4P.png)
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FC BARCELONA WINS 3:1!![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/aw3Xt.png)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/c8RCn.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/I2XBc.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/ngHY1.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/aRJ3u.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/B7Egu.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/bthym.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/OAXJT.png)
![[image loading]](http://26.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ll6vaoyHP61qjcc3bo1_500.jpg)
. 2-1 for Man.U.
. ![[image loading]](http://www.epltalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/howard-webb.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/Barcelona_vs_Man_Utd_2009-05-27.svg/300px-Barcelona_vs_Man_Utd_2009-05-27.svg.png)
![[image loading]](http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/71097_117919061563796_5449328_n.jpg)
![[image loading]](http://a.yfrog.com/img619/97/bc6mr.jpg)
