United v Barca

[StanSP]

I don't like how that always goes to forwards (with the exception of Cannavaro and Lothar Matthäus). I'd say Iniesta and Xavi have been more important than Messi for Barcelona this season. Anyway, we've still got over 7 months until they pick a winner!

I see where you're coming from. But forwards naturally get more attention as they're relied on to get the goals. But I agree in that there should be more emphasis placed on other positions too.

I don't know how they decide it, but maybe they should have 8 players up for the award, 2 from each position. Or something like that.

[shen]

I don't like how that always goes to forwards (with the exception of Cannavaro and Lothar Matthäus). I'd say Iniesta and Xavi have been more important than Messi for Barcelona this season. Anyway, we've still got over 7 months until they pick a winner!

It's always difficult to say who's more important than who in such a team of stars. I'd say that the reason Messi is hailed this much and plays his best stuff, is without a shadow of a doubt because of the team he plays in and the way Barca play. All credit to Iniesta and Xavi - there's a reason Barca and Spain are Champions of Europe - but how many times this season have Barcelona won because of a moment of brilliance from Messi? I'll just be neutral here and say that Barca wouldn't be the same without the one or the other.

[C-man]

Uhh, yes they have..

They won the Copa del Rey over two weeks ago, and the league a few days later when Madrid lost to Villareal

Uh, my bad

I heard the commentator say there was one game left, I just assumed that was the Copa del Rey final, not Deportivo in the league.

[C-man]

From Facebook.

One of the worst performances I've seen this season..oh how badly did we miss Owen Hargreaves on these big Champions league nights?! Need a revamp for next season, Giggs has to go..awful performance...and bring back Pique, what a Player! Well done Barcelona, and got to hand to Pep Guardiola what a season for him!

What a tool.

[Darkzzz_]

I would have to agree with Alex on the points raised. Even if you asked around the Barca camp and even Messi has said this himself, Iniesta comes top on all the lists. He has been key for Barca, him and Xavi compliment each other well and that in turn helps the likes of Messi, Eto'o and Henry.

I remember the first time I watched Messi and Iniesta when I went to the Betis game back in 2005, Iniesta you could clearly see was the future playmaker of the side, Messi was a bench player then and came off the bench to score that night. I wouldn't have said he was outstanding but he certainly looked like he could become a star.

Messi did have a good game last night, but I don't think he has single handly won the treble for Barca as some in the media have suggested, it has been a team effort with the strings being pulled in the middle.

I wouldn't be surprised to see many players vote for Iniesta when the WPOTY is decided, I wouldn't be surprised to see 3 Barcelona players in the top 3 either.

[StanSP]

Must say though, and I'm sure it's been mentioned in this thread already, full congratulations to Pep Guardiola.

Became only the third man to win the Champions League as a Player and Coach. Excellent effort by him. And it makes it even sweeter that it was done in his debut season.

[Alexikokopops]

It's always difficult to say who's more important than who in such a team of stars. I'd say that the reason Messi is hailed this much and plays his best stuff, is without a shadow of a doubt because of the team he plays in and the way Barca play. All credit to Iniesta and Xavi - there's a reason Barca and Spain are Champions of Europe - but how many times this season have Barcelona won because of a moment of brilliance from Messi? I'll just be neutral here and say that Barca wouldn't be the same without the one or the other.

But I'd argue that the whole reason Barcelona play like they do is because they have Xavi and Iniesta pulling the strings in midfield. Without those two Barcelona wouldn't be playing the exquisite football they are. It was the brilliance in midfield that did over Man Utd last night.

[Darkzzz_]

Must say though, and I'm sure it's been mentioned in this thread already, full congratulations to Pep Guardiola.

Became only the third man to win the Champions League as a Player and Coach. Excellent effort by him. And it makes it even sweeter that it was done in his debut season.

Goes without saying.

They will go down as one of the greatest Spanish sides in history, the first Spanish team to win the treble. Excellent.

[shen]

I would have to agree with Alex on the points raised. Even if you asked around the Barca camp and even Messi has said this himself, Iniesta comes top on all the lists. He has been key for Barca, him and Xavi compliment each other well and that in turn helps the likes of Messi, Eto'o and Henry.

I remember the first time I watched Messi and Iniesta when I went to the Betis game back in 2005, Iniesta you could clearly see was the future playmaker of the side, Messi was a bench player then and came off the bench to score that night. I wouldn't have said he was outstanding but he certainly looked like he could become a star.

Messi did have a good game last night, but I don't think he has single handly won the treble for Barca as some in the media have suggested, it has been a team effort with the strings being pulled in the middle.

I wouldn't be surprised to see many players vote for Iniesta when the WPOTY is decided, I wouldn't be surprised to see 3 Barcelona players in the top 3 either.

This.

Messi hasn't won it on his own. The way Chelsea marked him out of their games shows that you can deal with him. But the same game showed that Iniesta and Xavi are struggling to create chances when Messi doesn't produce openings with his runs with/without the ball. And the winning goal epitomised that they rely very heavily on eachother. Of course, it's not all about Messi, Xavi and Iniesta. Busquets, Piqué, Marquez, Henry, Touré, Keita and Eto'o are all contributing to this team, but the previous three have really shone bright this year.

[shen]

But I'd argue that the whole reason Barcelona play like they do is because they have Xavi and Iniesta pulling the strings in midfield. Without those two Barcelona wouldn't be playing the exquisite football they are. It was the brilliance in midfield that did over Man Utd last night.

And I completely agree with this. But as I mentioned in the post above, Messi adds another dimension to their game. He can take on defenses on his own, as Henry pretty much did in his prime at Arsenal, and you so often see Messi creating the space with his runs that Henry and Eto'o can exploit. You could always argue that they would never play the way they do without that midfield, but you could equally argue that it wouldn't be anywhere near as effective as it is if it weren't for that triumvirate up front. And I will still stand by my point that without Messi, they would've struggled to win quite a few of their games this season.

[Sparky]

Barcelonas pressing tactics were spot on last night , their front 3 worked thier bollocks off to stop Rio coming out with the ball and when Carrick came deep Iniesta came with him resulting in Carrick knocking aimless balls in to Barcas full backs and Barca would then start playing their flowing football. Playing pretty football is one thing but you must close down well when you do not have the ball , Barca played both to perfection

[welck12]

Barcelonas pressing tactics were spot on last night , their front 3 worked thier bollocks off to stop Rio coming out with the ball and when Carrick came deep Iniesta came with him resulting in Carrick knocking aimless balls in to Barcas full backs and Barca would then start playing their flowing football. Playing pretty football is one thing but you must close down well when you do not have the ball , Barca played both to perfection

Its amazing how barca have been doing this all season (from what i've seen) yet none of the pundits/journo's ever really give them any credit for it. Thats just as big a reason (if not more so than the attacking flair) of why they have been so successful this year

[Guest Bilo]

Must say though, and I'm sure it's been mentioned in this thread already, full congratulations to Pep Guardiola.

Became only the third man to win the Champions League as a Player and Coach. Excellent effort by him. And it makes it even sweeter that it was done in his debut season.

Also the first Catalan manager of Barca to win the competition. Fantastic achievement all round, I can see him becoming a legend at the Camp Nou.

[Sparky]

Its amazing how barca have been doing this all season (from what i've seen) yet none of the pundits/journo's ever really give them any credit for it. Thats just as big a reason (if not more so than the attacking flair) of why they have been so successful this year

Yeah its true, people bang on about pretty football but need to open their eyes and see where it all starts . Barcelona without the ball were spot on and Iniesta , Xavi and co wont get the credit for that. How many teams have stopped United playing like that so effectivly . Pep must take a lot of credit for his tactics this season

[Red Leicester]

From Facebook.

One of the worst performances I've seen this season..oh how badly did we miss Owen Hargreaves on these big Champions league nights?! Need a revamp for next season, Giggs has to go..awful performance...and bring back Pique, what a Player! Well done Barcelona, and got to hand to Pep Guardiola what a season for him!

[Alexikokopops]

And I completely agree with this. But as I mentioned in the post above, Messi adds another dimension to their game. He can take on defenses on his own, as Henry pretty much did in his prime at Arsenal, and you so often see Messi creating the space with his runs that Henry and Eto'o can exploit. You could always argue that they would never play the way they do without that midfield, but you could equally argue that it wouldn't be anywhere near as effective as it is if it weren't for that triumvirate up front. And I will still stand by my point that without Messi, they would've struggled to win quite a few of their games this season.

Ah, but you're forgetting about my huge man crush on Iniesta That instantly makes him better than Messi.

[Koke]

Tbh, I think Tim Cahill pisses all over Iniesta and Xavi.

[Alexikokopops]

Tbh, I think Tim Cahill pisses all over Iniesta and Xavi.

Tim Cahill is shit

[Koke]

Tim Cahill is shit

Watch it, young'un.

[Koke]

I thought that lad who played DM played quite well. Unsung hero as such. And I also thought Toure played very well at a CB role which isn't his rightful position, but he still adapted easily and minimized Man Utd's attack.

[StanSP]

I thought that lad who played DM played quite well. Unsung hero as such. And I also thought Toure played very well at a CB role which isn't his rightful position, but he still adapted easily and minimized Man Utd's attack.

Sergio Busquets is your man.

The whole Barca defence played well. It was a completely makeshift. They did superbly well to restrict Man Utd to no goals. Pique in particular, especially that first block after Ronaldo's free-kick. If that went in, it would have been a whole different game.

[lcfc_jme]

Tim Cahill is shit

Outrageous remark.

Barca should sign Fellaini, y'know, just to complete the midfield..

But yeah, what else can you say? Barca are a magnificent team, absolutely superb with the ball and so beautiful to watch at times. Though it must be said that the way they stifle the opposition when they haven't got the ball - the way they work from the forwards back through midfield to pressure the opposition into losing the ball (which under previous regimes they've either failed to do properly or not been arsed with), it's brilliant to see.

Their ball retention is just so, so good and for the most part they make things look so easy it almost seems as though they're running training drills. I thought there was a genuine chance last night that Man Utd would steamroller Barca seeing as their defence was heavily weakened but first 10 minutes aside, they didn't even come close. May not have been the spectacle that everyone wanted to see, but take nothing away from Barca, they were very stylish and ultimately deserved the win to cap a quality season.

Messi outshone Ronaldo last night, I think anyone would agree with that. Although in saying that, it wouldn't have been hard seeing as Ronaldo went missing for large parts again and stropped when things didn't go for him. Again.

Man of the match for me though, Iniesta. In a word, sensational. Composure, awareness, vision, creativity, exquisite passing and not afraid to put in the graft in the rare moments Barca were not on the ball. Complimented perfectly by Xavi again, who also gets special mentions for his performance last night. As does Yaya Toure - monumental shift.

Who was the ref? Don't think I've seen him before, which makes a MASSIVE change!

Oh, and after the rambling, the look on the Man Utd fans' faces at full-time? Priceless.

[lcfc_jme]

Oh, and quote of the night:

Me: "I thought you were here supporting United?"

Manc: "Nah, not anymore. Barcelona have just scored."

Seriously.

[Alexikokopops]

Watch it, young'un.

Outrageous remark.

If I'm being honest

=

[Fox92]

How good were Barcelona, sensational!

We all talk about Manchester United dominating the Prem but Barcelona were out of this world.

I think Ferguson got it wrong from the start, trying to block off Xavi/Iniesta by playing a 5 man midfield really although the team lined up with 3 attackers.

Personally, Barcelona are the best footballing team I have seen in a long time.

Their passing and control is out of this world.

Carrick and Anderson were what £20,000,000 each? Xavi and Iniesta came through the ranks and it really showed - Carrick, Anderson, Giggs, Park, even Rooney wernt in the game.

Thought Iniesta was the best player on the pitch along with little Messi although E'to was better than what I expected.

Pique played very, very well making crucial tackles escpecially the one on Park after the goalkeeper saved Ronaldo's free kick.

Ronaldo does outshine the Premiership but Messi is just, well, awesome.

If I were Real Madrid I wouldn't go for him as they have a great midfield already. Or did Ronaldo just have a bad game like every football player?

Working out, approximetly, how much each team are worth, there is a real big difference.

Manchester United's about £115,000,000 to Barcelona being around £40,000,000 I think.

The best team in the world and the best footballing side I have seen in a long time.

Well won, well deserved.

2 great goals to match as well, escpecially Messi's header...