It’s a special team that can win a treble of trophies. Sir Alex Ferguson knows what it takes to stay the course on three fronts, and last night Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona demonstrated, in winning the Champions League Final, why they are currently the most special team on the planet (and Andres Iniesta possibly the best player, even at less than 100% fitness).
It has to be said that the United team that was put out last night was soundly beaten, both physically and tactically. Too many players looked out of sorts and floated on the periphery of the game. Ferdinand and Vidic flailed around as if they’d never played together. Anderson looked nervous and never seemed to recover his composure after his awful early air-shot. Wayne Rooney barely had a kick in the Barca half, he spent so much time galloping back after Carles Puyol (surely this should have been roles reversed). Even the seemingly indefatigable Ji-Sung Park seemed off the pace. The game just passed Ryan Giggs by completely.
After his tactical masterclass against Arsenal, Ferguson looked to get the same high tempo start that would rip into his opponents. For 10 minutes it looked like it might work. Then Barca settled into their rhythm and started to pick their way through the United midfield at will.
Guardiola’s tactics were spot on, he knew his team would be better going forward, and also realised what United’s fairly predictable personnel, formation and tactics were going to be, so adopted a simple ruse to use their strength against them.
During the first half, Barca keeper Victor Valdes often had the ball as United attacks floundered on a final poor pass. But instead of a long throw out or a kick, he rolled it out to a defender standing inside his own area. Guardiola had obviously realised that with Rooney, Ronaldo, Park, Anderson and Giggs being encouraged to press the ball at a high tempo, they would immediately push up, leaving a gap occupied solely by Michael Carrick. It was into this gap that Iniesta and Xavi constantly drifted, completely unmarked, and free to angle pass after pass into the heart of the United defence. The much vaunted contest between Messi and Evra never materialised, purely because Messi and Henry just came inside to thrive on the huge amount of possession that the two midfielders had.
It seems strange that having seen Chelsea play almost the perfect game against Barca at Stamford Bridge, where they had one shot on target in 95 minutes, Ferguson didn’t realise he needed to fill his midfield with the types of players who would deny Iniesta, Messi and Xavi time and space on the ball. Ryan Giggs, Anderson and Michael Carrick are certainly not the personnel for this task, and instead they gave Barca the freedom of the Stadio Olimpico.
The head to head between the dynamic forwards never materialised, Barca’s triumvirate of Henry, Messi and Eto’o added their 98th and 99th goals of the season, whilst United’s Fab Four barely managed a shot on target after the first ten minutes. Certainly Victor Valdes would have anticipated a much busier evening.
A victory for the Barcelona is a victory for the style in which they play. Sticking to their attacking principles and relying on the fact that they will always score (apart from against Chelsea in the Camp Nou) is a fine philosophy, and is now backed up by a fairly solid defence (even missing 3 first choice players).
Allowed to play their own game, the difference between the sides was the midfield dominance of Iniesta and Xavi. If ever Ferguson has been taught a lesson, it is that the finest teams in Europe need forward thinking creative midfielders who can pick a pass. Paul Scholes was pretty much the epitome of this role, but it’s now obvious (even to him from recent interviews) that his time has passed. Carrick is not this type of player, Giggs is also too old, and Anderson lacks finesse (strangely for a Brazilian). I would imagine Ferguson will go shopping for a new midfielder or two in the summer (Franck Ribery would cheer up most United fans). He will also be acutely aware he never replaced Roy Keane's battling prowess or leadership - not one United player seemed capable of rousing them from the trance Barca had them in. A fit Owen Hargreaves would be a massive benefit (as good as a new signing) if he can turn up on time.
Ferguson was magnanimous in defeat last night, and conceded that the best team had won. It must be seen as a victory for Guardiola, who has rebuilt the Catalan side, stripping out the superstars who had fell into a comfort zone (Deco and Ronaldinho), and relying on an influential spine of players who have come up through the famous Barcelona youth system. Namely Valdes, Puyol, Pique, Busquets, Iniesta, Xavi, and Messi. Of the starting 11 last night, Barca had paid fees for only Henry, Eto’o Sylvinho and Toure (and Pique when he returned from United). Sir Alex would have been similarly proud in 1999 with his “kids”.
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A fair review. However whilst Ferguson must shoulder much of the blame for his tactics (namely playing a predictable formation, not adapting to the game as things went wrong and throwing on Tevez at half time as 'the solution'), individual players must also hold their hands up. Ronaldo is good enough to adapt his game on the night and with world class dribbling, passing pace and shooting in his arsenal, he should of made more of an impact. Wayne Rooney was played in an ineffectual position so Fergie has tied his hands to a certain degree but again he should have offered more. I do not condone deliberate fouls or unprofessional tackling but in a game of that magnitude I would have liked to have seen every United player pick up a yellow card from sheer doggedness and effort - it seems a strange and possibly unfair comment to make but those players guilty of not being sanctioned by the referee were in my opinion not trying hard enough. Roy Keane would have picked up a yellow card trying to tackle Messi and if needed by the greater cause, would have taken a second yellow if it meant either preventing a goal or a breakaway attack. I think United played within themselves as a team because too many individual players were playing within themselves.
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