Champions League Final: Barça 2 Manchester United 0
Wednesday, 27 May 09, 01:17 PM · Comments (94)
This was quite simply the best. This was better than beating Sampdoria 1-0 at Wembley in 1992. This was better than beating Arsenal three years ago in Paris. This was beating the current champions, the team that have won the English Premier League for the last three seasons. This was beating the great Manchester United, not with a late winner like against Sampdoria and Arsenal, but by two clear goals, a fantastic display that left the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo so frustrated that he had to content himself with fouling Carles Puyol. This was Leo Messi showing the world who is the better player, though Andres Iniesta has to be considered for the throne too. This was Pep Guardiola, in his first season as coach, outwitting Sir Alex Ferguson who has won more trophies than any other manager in the game. This was the treble. This was history.
Barça started nervously and from the kick off sent the ball back to Valdés who kicked the ball straight into touch. It was not the start we wanted and for the first nine minutes there was only one team in it. In the second minute Ronaldo tried a free kick from 30 yards out and Valdés failed to hold the ball and Piqué had to be quick to get in front of Park who was storming in for the rebound. United were playing football with passes to feet, Ronaldo had two more attempts on goal that both went wide while Barça were failing to get any hold on the game.
Then on nine minutes Iniesta had his first chance to make a vertical run towards the United area, as the defence came to meet him Iniesta played the ball to Samuel Eto'o on the right of the area, Eto'o cut inside Vidic before toe-poking a shot that Van Der Sar touched but couldn't stop at his near post. Eto'o has been dreadful with his finishing in recent games but tonight, when it mattered, he took his first chance decisively.
United were shaken by the set-back, but continued to try to play football. However, Barça with confidence restored also began to knock the ball around in typical fashion. The danger from United continued to be from Ronaldo and in the 16th minute Piqué was booked for obstructing the Portuguese but Giggs hit the free kick over the bar from 25 yards. Three minutes later Eto'o who continued to play on the right played the ball inside to Messi who had his first shot on goal but the ball flew over Van Der Sar's crossbar. Ronaldo had another shot wide and then a header over from Gigg's corner, but Barça were beginning to take control of the game.
United's attempt to push up on our defence meant that Xavi and Iniesta were finding room to dictate things in midfield, with Messi combining well with the pair in the same central role he had played at the Bernabeu. Iniesta won a foul on the left and Xavi hit the free kick just wide. Messi was also only stopped by a foul after a good run. Ferguson switched Giggs to the left with Rooney coming more central but now it was United who could not find a way through. On the stroke of half time Messi made another good run down the left and Van Der Sar fumbled the cross but was rescued by his defence. Then there was still time for Iniesta to chip in a cross which was just too high for Henry.
At half time Ferguson brought on Tevez for Anderson as United switched to 4-4-2 but the result was to make things easier for our midfield. In the 48th minute Iniesta passed to Xavi who played the ball onto Henry on the left, he skipped outside Ferdinand but his shot was saved by Van Der Sar. Sylvinho who had an excellent game at left back in what could be his last game for Barça, sent in a dangerous cross but Van Der Sar got there first in front of Eto'o, but before United could get out of their half Eto'o robbed the ball, crossed towards Messi who near the penalty spot, could not quite reach the ball. It was all Barça now, in the 51st minute Iniesta made a great run to the edge of the area and was only stopped by a foul inside the dee of the penalty area. From the free kick Xavi curled one and was unlucky to see the ball bounce out off the bottom of Van Der Sar's left hand post.
United had their first chance of the second half in the 56th minute when Rooney crossed from the right, Toure missed the clearance and we were fortunate to see the ball bounce over Park's head at the far post. United had a few minutes pinning us back but our defence were splendid, proving once and for all that this is not a weakness. Piqué especially against his ex-team mates was superb. Ferguson brought on Berbatov for Park, and Ronaldo switched to the left side where he remained in Carles Puyol's pocket until the end of the game.
Then on 70 minutes Puyol anticipated a clearance from Van Der Sar and charged forward, the attack broke down but the ball came to Xavi who looked up and spotting Messi unmarked, sent in a beautiful cross which the little Argentinian met with a great jump and a looping header over Van Der Sar into the net. Guardiola brought on Keita for Henry who had done all he could but did not look 100% after his injury. Then United almost hit us straight back in our only moment of losing concentration at the back, Berbatov crossed from the right, the ball arrived to Ronaldo at the far post but Valdés did brilliantly to close the angle and make his only important save of the match.
From then on Barça did what we do best, frustrating United with our possession football. Ronaldo showed his frustration with a couple of fouls on Puyol, and Scholes was lucky to stay on the pitch after a horrendous foul on Busquets. Puyol had a great chance to make it three in the 84th minute, storming in, Alves style, but his attempted clip over Van Der Sar hit the United keeper. Berbatov had a header over from a corner as United desperately tried to get forward but until the end of the game they hardly had the ball again as Barça demonstrated the difference in class.
It was particularly satisfying to see how well our defence played tonight, and United may wonder how they let us have Piqué back so cheaply. The whole team played well but if I have to pick a man of the match it would be Iniesta who gave yet another masterclass of keeping possession
I started this blog two years ago and had to write about the disappointments at the end of the 2006/7 season and last season. It is so nice to at last get the chance to write about our victories. What a season! And what a last four weeks we have experienced. First the 2-6 win at the Bernabeu, then the amazing last gasp winner from Iniesta at Chelsea, then we won the Copa del Rey followed by La Liga and now this. Absolutely unbelievable!Congratulations people, Copa, Liga and Champions! Keep this memory with you forever. This evening we have just witnessed the culmination of the greatest season ever. Muchas gracias Pep, muchas gracias Barça!
Barça: Valdés 7.5; Puyol 8.5, Toure 7.5, Piqué 9, Sylvinho 8.5; Xavi 8.5, Busquets 8, Iniesta 9.5 (Pedro m92); Messi 9, Eto'o 8.5, Henry 7.5 (Keita m71, 7.5).
Man United: Van Der Sar; O'Shea, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra; Anderson (Tevez m45), Carrick, Giggs (Scholes m74); Park (Berbatov m65), Ronaldo, Rooney.
Goals: m10 Eto'o 1-0, m70 Messi 2-0
Yellow cards: m16 Piqué,m78 Ronaldo, m80 Scholes, m93 Vidic.
Attendance: 82,700
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94 Comments · Add yours
Boom Baby, FC Barcelona!
Congratulations every Culé on our planet!
Oh, how would I like to be in Barcelona right now.
i cant express enough the love, happiness, and pride i feel for these players and the club that i feel in my soul. FCB are my only real true passion in life.
VV was so good, so sharp, came out for the ball, made the saves! PIQUE PIQUE PIQUE, stopped everythig, his head was everywhere, i just wanna kiss it, worldclass wordclass. and the old man SLYVINHO, seeing him cry was so beautiful, he was amazing, im so glad he started (pep brilliant). YAYA is soooooooooo epic, i love him, never want him to leave. XAVI XAVI XAVI, my favorite player for years, he is just incredible, he just saw messi and said, there u go boy, its on ur head. INIESTA, now showed the world what we have all known for years, he is unbelievable, his touch on the ball is unrivaled. ETOO ETOO ETOO, some ppl doubted him these weeks, even wanted to sel him, and it made me sick. he is one of the best strikers ever, clinical, a predator. he just cut in and FUCKED up vidic. MESSI that header was like art, it was so beautiful, he just held in the air and watched it go in. and PUYOL PUYOL PUYOL, our captain, the legend, amazing, didnt put one foot wrong, i wanted him to score that chance!!! HENRY gets his credit for a great 2nd yr, but today his fitness showed, small detail.
AND GUARDIOLA, an angel, he is amazing. who am i to doubt him in the prematch, he knows what he is doing, he knows his tactics. PEP, once my favorite player, now my favorite manager.
and lastly, but far from last, who wont get much attention. LAPORTA. all the morons that doubted him before, wanted him to be impeached, so yeah, ill say it again, MORONS. he took the brave decision to put an no experience manager in the big time, he saw the genius. ppl, dont forget laporta, his influence is vital.
MES QUE UN CLUB.
but this is also a victory for football. we always play OUR game, the attacking game, the beautfiul game, we bring through our YOUTH, our own, the blaugrana boys taught from 8 yrs old to "LOVE THE BALL".
FCB
it's 3.30 am in India nd am fukin awake I love barca v kicked man u asss
congrats Nic, and all Barca fans. I feel like I'm spoiled, witnessing a treble and being a relatively new fan to football. Nothing more thrilling or gratifying than what I witnessed today (tonight), simply awesome. Viva Barca !!!
I'm Just really Lucky to Be a Barca Fan !
wow!!!! ur solid defense Man U.....4 Solid back....Best in the world...Eto let u down on right ....Henry on the left...two dribble..vidic and ferdinand out....really!!!!....and oshea and carrick cant stop little mouse Iniesta...wow!!! and what exactly van der sar and rio doing when best rat messi fly in sky like "HanMan"...both of them were gladly looking at star....
And see our old guy sylvinho,...solid in age of 35...Pique...ohhh...made rooney and park dumb.....
Toure who is Back at all make CR7 cry.....and Valdez.....who is so criticised by some(including me) throuout season....showed u guys art of keeping....
Come on man ...praise...us...why still so shy to tell best......
Two Soft Goals Cost Manchester United - Rio Ferdinand.....those two are soft..then why u din score two hard goal...he added"No excuses, I think on today’s performance they were the better team"...todays performance.....????still u guyz arrogant....i think u need some more lesson.....
Congrats alll......
I don want to see CR in this Years Ballon D Or and Fifa player Of The Year final ceremony hope there will be only..barca and spanish guyz....no arrogant EPL players too....
Congrats All.......
We are the chamaps and ManU got what they deserv.
fanaly we won and no body will say we got lucky. Enoutgh with the English teams. We are the best and I can't stop smiling.Congrads team mates.Fanaly we proved we are the best of the best!!! WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS OF THE WORLDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!
mESSI MESSI MESSI
The most inspirational team ever. From losing our first game of La Liga to this. Let it be said....THE GREATEST TEAM EVER!....
never forget this boys....
Nic..well done all year
For those in the DC METRO (DC/Maryland/ VA) ...the Party is at Aroma cafe on Connecticut Avenue in Cleveland Park washington DC....Blaugrana nation come on out I am buying!!!!
Congratulations to your side, Nic! Bar the first ten minutes, it was a complete footballing performance from your side. Well done to the Blaugrana, and a terrible United performance.
Guys i should include some great quote i liked
"There might be ways to beat Barcelona, but they have so many more ways to beat you. It doesn't matter who you are."---Sulmaan Ahmad, Goal.com
"when they were 10 men against chelsea they never looked like that, again today they were missing 3 key defender still u cant feel that much...they have so much possesion and controls on balls that they refill these sort of lackings"---itv1 specialist
wish i could see y'all now....all our doubts(toure in midfield, eto poor form, pep's selection etc has bn quenched, i trust pep now with my life....
gats to go, wish me safety in d dangerous celebrations i'm abt to embark upon......
Oh so sweet!
Puyol and Guardiola, you led the team to victory! A year to remember. The perfect chemistry.
I wish I was on the Rambla right now, drinking an Estrella or a glass of Cordoniu!
Visca la Barca!
Moltes gracies a tots.
Congratulations to everyone!! What a season!! Absolutely unforgettable!! Xavi was man of the match for me, no question about it! This is the greatest Barcelona side ever! Time for pep to get his very own statue!! BARCAAAAAAAA!!!
etoo's emotion when he scored was beatiful. he was overwhelmed. i love seeing players like that.
and to those etoo haters, i give u permission to feel utterly embarrassed
woooooooooooon woooooooooooooooooooooon
woooooooooooooon woooooooooooooooooooon
woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooon
wooooooooooon woooooooooooooooooooooooooon.
realy it's amazing what can i say to you barca fans?
congratulation all barca fans in the world.
i have missed one things :
kkkkkkkk
congratulation NIC_fcbnews.
BARCAAAAAAAAAA!! Congratulations to everyone! This is too good to be true!! Seeing the team bounce back from the last season has been incredible. I would never ever dream of a treble before this season started... Incredible.
There were so many highlights today. Messi, the best in the world, if anyone actually doubted that, showed how it's done in the biggest games. The defense was truly great, Toure impressed once again. Our beloved captain Puyol, hats off. Pique was simply brilliant. Sylvinho did a great job. Busquets, who'd guess he would play an important part in the CL-final before this season. I'm not even gonna try to say anything about Xavi and Iniesta, I wouldn't do them justice. Henry had a few good momemts, but he suffered from the absence, but we were lucky he made it. After Eto'o's incredible season, and his terrible off-form recently, really steppped up this game and deserved it. I'm really happy for him!
And last but certainly not least, Victor Valdes. Made some crucial saves and he really shines in the big and most important games. We have a lot to thank him for. I hope the next time he makes a mistake, which every single goalkeeper does, we show him more respect.
Congrats, thank you, and visca el barça!!!
Oh and Nic, thank you for the amazing coverage!
Congratulations, you guys were the better team tonight. Even though Barca are my #2 team, this hurt more than Milan in 06/07 or Valencia in 00/01.
The better team won, Fergie got his tactics wrong.
Congrats once again.
What a great, brilliant night.
And yes, thanks for all the great coverage this season, Nic. Cheers!
i agree max...i wonder...he is the best midfielder and game maker in the world...
have not stopped crying...amazing...
Hahhha, I loved Ronaldo's face on the end. ManU has finally been outclassed completely. Bravo Barca
Full replay of this beauty :
LINK
Damn, Diatus, I got your message too late. Was just in the area. Have a great time celebrating! Lucky Bar in Dupont was rockin' today.
CAMPEOOOOOONNNNNNEESSSSSSSSSSS! BARCA BARCA BARCA!
Short and sweet. Thanks Pep,for great season i can hold my head up high here in London.To all barca fans enjoy your night.Nic thanks for everything this season you have been excellent.p.s thanks Victor in all our celebrations lets not forget the two great saves he made against Drogba in the semi's.Boy oh boy this is the best barca team ever.They will go down in history.Visca el Barca!!!
LOL. been reading the united blog. loving their misery. i just cant stand them. any other team i feel for them as sport can be cruel, but never them.
such silly comments. they thought pique should have been sent off for that early foul? though no comments about scholes butcher tackle or CR two footed lunge on puyol?
they said we were fortune to score our goals. LOL. fortune? coming from the luckiest team of recent times.
one person said xavi and iniesta remind them of a young giggs and scholes. just maddness.
and they kept saying messi was a diver, for some unknown reason.
so now i have bathed in thsi enough for tonight, calling it quits, tomorrow brings on a whole new day i can just soak it up
What can you say, best of the best, there is no arguement now. Futebol Club de Barcelona is the champions of the world!!
MESSI, best player in the world, two Champions League title and three La Liga and hes only 21, wow. His performace was great, his header was something Toni or Raul would score, he was awesome.
After calming, lets talk about the game :
Defence: Perfect. YAYA is stunning player. Cant ever fault him in anything. PIQUE, probably my MOTM, his clearance in minute 2 to stop Park was incredible, masterclass defending today. Full backs were great defensively.
Midfeild: One of THE best performances from a duo EVER. XAVI and INESTA were a class above all today, every pass, every run, all the movement, it was like poetry in motion. Messi is no 1 player in the world, but Iniesta runs him class, and he better then any Man United player on the pitch.
Attack: HENRY was not fully fit, but he worked his ass off to stop United attacks and nearly crowned his work with a stunning run. ETO was a donkey of late, but he had ONE CHANCE and took it today. O Sammy, you did good
BARCA ARE CHAMPIONS!!
Thank you all for a great season of discussion and celebrating together, lets all be happy as fellow Cules
Titi186
All you arrogant english fans who know nothing about football can take your fantastic four,your best league in the world,your fucking best player in my arse ,your dirty tactics,your Russian mafia and American business companies,your overrated players and your stupid blind media and shove it all up your arses..... coz your best team,your league winner,your historic coach all looked like a female soccer team from a fucking high school in London tonight.....outplayed,outclassed and totally destroyed so all of you just heal the beautiful football , heal the champions............
Congratulations to every single one of you Barça fans,and thank you NIC for the great work......what a day to be a cule........for the first time in 110 years of FC Barcelona history,we are lucky enough to witness this day,the day when Barça won the treble.
25 June 08:
"This lunchtime Barça officially presented the team's uniform for next season. The first strip is reminiscent of the one used in the centenary year 1999. So, what do you people think of it? Are you going to rush straight out to spend your hard earned cash on an overpriced shirt that will be out of date in a year? Which players name will you want? Can you picture what Carles Puyol will look like lifting the Champions League trophy in May?"
It was shit. Hated the kit.
No, Im not going to spend my money, My jersey from last year is good.
No one... ok maybe Yaya because he is badass, but that is if I were to buy one, but I am not going to.
"Can you picture what Carles Puyol will look like lifting the Champions League trophy in May?"
No need to BECAUSE THERE IS THE PICTURE RIGHT THERE~!!! Good job Barca! Maybe a bad kit is what we need to get us motivated? (not pep, Puyol, or fans or anything like that)
Next year, lets hope for an even shittier one then this year, so we can win the Club World Cup, and everything else again, too! Is there some loophole that we can sneak into the FA Cup? Just to punk some bitches around? lol jk
2009 World player of the year :
1.Messi .
2.Xavi .
3.Iniesta .
that is my opinion and I dont give a damn what journalists,coaches or captains think ....... those three deserve it 100% and I know that all of you agree or dont you ?
My man of the match is Carles Puyol, along with Pique they led the defense and the team in a magnificent way ......all the lads were great this year so we all (including me )can stop bashing players and moaning about VV mistakes,Etoo drop of form, Sylvinho's age,Busquets lack of experience and above all Pep's choices and tactics........obviously he is the best at the moment in every single aspect of the game .
I just love everyone in the squad right now even Hleb,Caseras and Jorquera ...... the way they came all togethar to collect the medals and celebrate victory makes you wonder what a great team spirit and outstanding coach we have .
Anyone for Morhinio next season
f yeah!!!!!!!
Hey CaseyKacs, thanks for that
If anyone doesn't know what that is all about here is the LINK
I have been reading your blog forever, and posted once way back when.
But I can't nearly contain myself with joy and excitement, and felt the need to post.
YAY BARCA
Also, I got to work today with nothing to do (because the game for me was way early in the morning). Today is a good day!
i was at the game, just amazing!!! first couple of minutes, manchester was attacking barca, but the barca fans never stopped cheering...the manchester fans were quiet during the game and even before the game started. perfect season.
Great congratulations to one of futbol's greatest teams! I'm honored that the team I got to see in Giants Stadium last summer is now the tri-campeon! I knew, after being a fan for the last 15 yrs, that I was really hooked on this club when I shed a tear after Inesta's goal at Chelsea! Visca Barca!
For those of you who just can't get enough of it here's a report of the game from the BBC site - LINK
And for those who laughed when I said Guardiola was better than Ferguson - LINK
Just one more from the English press, now I'm off to bed. - LINK
Congratulations on the win. We didn't play as well. Iniesta was your man of the match for me not Messi. Without Iniesta runs and passes I don't think Messi would have played as well. We will come back stronger again next year for UEFA Champions League final
MISSA85...i fully agree....no doubt in the line up of this year's award...who cares what journalist vote for...
@Evo87...there is no word "WITHOUT" in barca game....we only believe with the word "WITH".as u can see we defended only the available players we had WITH us.
From Puyol....to Eto all are self talented and good team men and no one is depended on others. Its not man u who depends on CR. So u better not say this "Without Iniesta runs and passes I don't think Messi would have played as well."
......i invite to watch barca game in la liga....i guraantee....u will enjoy it...
Wow !!! that was treble that was history .
congrats every Cule wherever in the world .
wow...it's a surreal experience...I doubt we will get to witness moments like this again..so let's enjoy this moment...This game proved 2 important things...Barcelona is by far the best team in the world right now...and there's no comparison between our hero Messi and Crynaldo...Plus, kudos to our defense...They were solid...I was very impressed with Sylvinho, Puyol and Pique...Xavi ran the show in the midfield...Iniesta had some magic moments as well...Etoo finally answered back to his detractors...Messi was very good especially in the second half where he was runnin thru Man Utd defense..Henry was okay, but it's understandable cuz he just got back from injury...But despite havin an average game, he skinned Ferdinand and almost had the goal...And finally, I would like to thank our savior Pep Guardiola for everythin he has done this season..I hope he stays here for a long long time..and Viva Barcaaa..I love our club...
To all my boys on here, Nic, BBoy, Diatus, Aussie_Barca, Itri83, Titi86, anyone else I missed, Cules around there world...
I'm SO FUCKING HAPPY!
Boys this is like all my Christmas' come at once. We did it...GUYS WE DID IT!
THE TREBLE!!
I'll be having drinks tonight to salute us all. Amazing. Purely Amazing.
Nic - Thankyou for bringing this great blog, you do such great work.
I'm 26, supported this club since I was a wee kid with the likes of Stoichkov, Maradonna, Enrique and Hagi inspiring me. Today is the finest day that I've ever had as a Cule.
Trivia: Nic, has a rookie coach, ever, anywhere, done the treble in the history of football?!!!!
BTW Guys, I thought Xavi was MOM tonight.
Messi also proved who is the best player in the planet. Doesn't rock up at big games...BAH, what a laugh!!
It's only noon here guys so I've got more hours of work ahead, but today is one of those beautiful moments. Such a rare thing to achieve, and we witnessed it.
Thankyou all.
It's just turning 3am here and I'm heading to bed, I'm after being online since the match ended reading every article and watching every clip and I've also watched the game again on another channel just so could get other pundits views on it.
It was unbelievable I was like a lunatic, I was jumping out of my seat with the two goals shouting at the top of my voice. Barca could have won by more goals.
Puyol was immense on the right and Sylvinho did very well on the left and Pique was class so was Yaya although he missed one clearence but luckily it bounced over Parks head.
I'm been watching sky sports where they had a programme where fans could ring in after the match and everybody said the same thing... that Utd did'nt show up even the pundits on the match were saying this. I don't think it was really a point of Utd not turning up it was a point that Barca did'nt let them turn up and outclassed them all over the place. This was their excuse but credit to them they also admitted that the best team won and they were outplayed.
Xavi and Iniestas passing was out of this world as usual, Utd could not get near them. Busquets did what he had to do and did an excellent job without doing anything extravagent. And the 3 boys up front worked their asses off.
I'm so HAPPY
Barca Barca BARCAAAA!!!
I just wanted to say, in my 1st post after the victory, to all of us who love this team, this club, either if that has been for 10 or more years (my case) or it is for just a couple of season. Everyone is welcome to celebrate this. Everyone is part of this. The new guys, please don't think this happen every year..i'm (like most of the cules) so used to suffer that i think i did that by tradition today. This team doesn't know to suffer. They just play and have fun, making it so easily (for us watching, not for the rivals chasing the ball). And like ronaldinho did a few seasons ago, they are giving us something priceless.
I am specially happy for two things today: first, seeing two huge professionals such as titi and sylvinho being so emotional after winning this, it was something special. And second, watching boys like bojan, muniesa and pedro being part of this party, it will make them want to live this again.
I also remember, as i watched Frank Rijkaard in the stadium, the huge impact players like gio van bronckhorst, larsson, dinho and deco in our young stars that are shining today. Those players help them to grow up and believe in themselves. That is something we should always be grateful for: generation after generation, season after season, the best players in the world play in our team.
Finally, a word for all of you who have formed this great community, and thanks to Nic for having a great blog. I have no doubt that we will be here, game after game, discussing more victories.
Visca el Barça!!
I loved when the camera was going back and forth from our fans to ManU's after Messi's bodacious header:
, 
, 
, 
, 
, 
, 
, 
, Crazy, sad, HAPPY, upset, ECSTATIC, pensive, OFF THE WALL LUNACY, gonna go cry in my fish 'n chips.
GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED !
This team made my entire year for me, tom morning I am going to take my MCAT test for medical school and Im wearing my Barca jersey to bring me luck. It smells like beer and food, but nothing can go wrong when you wear that badge. Forca Barca! Visca Barca!
Guardiola - you are the best!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
BAAAAAARCELOOOOOOOOONA is the CHAAAAAAAAAAAMPION!!
Messi's header is an astonishing goal - now he should definetely get the best player award!
Great job Barca, really showed United how it's really done. You guys have got a good team, and I can tell more good things are coming for you. The goals were fantastic. Barca really knows how to play football.
Henry, you can now retire in peace. You have that CL 1st place medal with you.
supeeeeeerrrrrbbb.... Everybody were a masterclass, tonight. I'd have to retrack my statement about Eto. Here's my public appology. What a finish. And for a note, i'm not sure if this is just one game.....i have always prefered Sylvinho at left back and i tought he did a job Abidal could never do. I'm so delighted with this victory. Cheers to all Barsa fans
This has got to be the BIGGEST moment for all Barca fans. I don’t recall the 1992 triumph against a Sampdoria side but without any disrespect everyone knows that the benchmark for all teams in that era was AC Milan so perhaps it wasn’t as big as last night’s win. I do remember the 2006 CL final and even though we won it there was always the controversy of Lehmann being sent off and R10’s ineffectiveness for most of the match.
Last night however we did IT. We beat the EPL winners, the World Club champions, the best defensive side in the world, the team with last season’s Player of the Year, one of Sir Alex Ferguson’s finest sides. We didn’t have any sending offs – 11 against 11 ,
To all those critics who recall our 2006 win and please remember our HEROIC adhoc backline- it was a CDM playing as a CB , an ageing but superb Sylvinho who gave it all against the current Best Player in the World, a pillar called Pique who thankfully for us took everything that Man U could throw at him and last but not least the workhorse called Puyol who rendered Wayne Rooney ineffective on the left flank and even managed a few runs towards Man U’S goal. I was so engrossed in the match that I didn’t realize that it was Puyol trying to do a Belleti number on Man U but I’m not complaining that he didn’t succeed as he was spectacular as a defender. A special mention for Valdes who aside from an early mistake was pretty good and even proved many doubters that he has BIG MATCH ability and can keep a clean sheet against the No. 2 side in the world.
To all those miserable doubters who said Messi couldn’t perform against English sides and in BIG matches and that heading wasn’t part of his game unlike CR7, this ONE header in the final of the CL by the new (along with Iniesta) Player of the Year is for all of you. I can’t hear anyone saying lets get rid off Eto’o and bring Villa,Ibrahimovic,etc anymore. Eto’o has proved that ‘Form is temporary but CLASS is permanent’. And Henry even with his injury finally won his first CL. A true professional who through all the personal difficulties and criticism of supposedly not making the mark at Barca worked tirelessly to exploit O Shea’s weakness as a RB. Henry I hope u retire at Barca and can play a part in grooming our future forwards/strikers.
And finally the jewel in Barca’s crown – its midfield maestros. I’ll come to Xavi and Iniesta but I’m amazed at the 20 something called Busquets who looked like a CL veteran out there and was completely at ease with the enormity of his task. When I saw him picked ahead of Keita I thought Pep had lost it but he just went about his job quietly almost like Makelele and he deserves a CL winners medal for outperforming Carrick and Co. This guy was awesome and Paul Scholes should be ashamed of that horrible tackle. I know English commentators harp on about Scholes (after all those years of playing international and top level club football) about not being a dirty player but how can he justify that sort of challenge.
Xavi and Iniesta – Can I just say ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. Xavi again after Euro 2008 showed the so-called football experts who is the BEST MIDFIELDER in the world. I don’t mean to downplay Stevie G or anybody else but hasn’t Xavi just ended the debate for now?
Incredible Iniesta (no I’m not an ex-Man U fan but I did watch a lot of the football played by Giggs, Scholes, Nevilles Bros. Becks and Co. in the 90s and early 2000s ) just keeps reminding me of a young Ryan Giggs and some of my friends who are die-hard Man U fans agree. This guy is spectacular, all the world’s going ga-ga over our attacking trident and he just keeps delivering knockout performances every match. The Chelsea goal was like a rocket and last night he just unlocked Man U’s midfield and defence as if he was playing against a lower league side.
On an end note but , a BIG THANKS to Pep, his staff and the entire Barca set-up (Ok even Laporta….lol) for working hard to forge a brilliant Barca side.
I’m off to blast ‘STAND UP FOR THE CHAMPIONS’ from my music machine.
CONGRATULATIONS to all of us Barca fans all over the world and on this blog (Nic, ,Aussie, Neuro, Darren, Layibiyi, Titi, Maria, Blaugranaboy etc. sorry for those I forgot) especially Nic for putting up this blog where we can share our opinions about the club we love .
wwwwooooooooowwwwww!!!
this is an amazing game for barcelona!!
..C.Ronaldo... i think this is the time
for you to SHUT UP!!!!!
Wooooow! That was amazing game but I'm not freak out like I usually do and I don't know why.
I think that if Barca were playing with the regular XI (with Alves and all the other injury player) the match could be much more interesting.
But still....Great game!
well done barca. we were totally outclassed, u cant go 1 goal down against em, the ball control of the whole team is world class. iniesta player of the year goin off his performance's this season. barca best team in the world... easily
FUCK
i was yelling my lungs out.
just woke up. here's my night:
20:45 in Copenhagen, Denmark. big ass screen combined with 3000 Barca- and ManU-fans and lots of pints.
the amount of fans from both clubs are pretty even, but the red devils are louder. i didnt feel to good before the game - i admit it.
they get even louder (or el culés just got quiter) the first ten minutes. but then ETO'O came
you all know the story from here.
cheering "campeones, campeones, ole ole ole" in the streets with my fellow blaugranas, getting pissed and off to bed.
greatest night of my life. period.
congrats to barcelona they deserved the title this season afterall they had the best performance in all competitions
BARCA 4 LYF!!!
THE GREATEST TEAM ON THE PLANET!!! 
I was so satisfied to see the smug look on Ronaldo's face so rudely erased and replaced with a look of deep sadness and hurt . I loved every moment that creep was made to suffer .
I'm also relieved that I don't have to deal with the English media singing the praises of the mighty Manchester United all year long .
There are new kings of football . The old kings are dead . long live the new kings .
Long live Barça .
What a fitting ending to a great year !!
I don't know about you guys but I had a tune stuck in my head all day . People at work thought I lost it with all that whistling and humming .
And it goes like this:
CAMPIONES..CAMPIONES..OLÉ..OLÉ..OLÉ !!
Here is a better link for the FULL MATCH .
LINK
im dressed in as much barca gear as i can muster. scarf, beanie, jacket, but sadly i cannot weat all my 14 jerseys at once.
im savoring this next day.
read just about every damn article i can. will post a couple of the great comments from the now ever SO HUMBLE english press.
championes
championes
ole ole
champions
C'MON BARCA
BARCELONA 2-0 MICKEY MOUSE MEN
We are the champions my friendsssssssssssss
We are the champions my friendsssssssssssssssssss
Oleole ola ola Barça barça barça !!!!!!!!!!!!!
congrats dear culés for the treble !!!!
Xavi xavi xavi xavi xavi xavi !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Iniesta Iniesta iniesta !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Messi the best player in the world !!!!!!!!!!
.............................................
Visca Barça
this win was amazing .. tremendously satisifying .. i could not ask for anything better ..
thank you pep and barca players!
we showed the world what we were doing all season ..
Congrats Barcelona! You were the better team. Manchester United were unfortunately having their off-night. Iniesta were the better player than Messi. Enjoy the treble because it would be interesting to see whether you all can defend them or not next season. I bet Platini and Benitez are enjoying United defeat too. Glory glory Man United!
how were the people of barcelona this morning, nic? did they sleep at all? i know i barely did... i wish i could have been there to experience the atmosphere!
Nic, I hope you weren't one of the 153 arrested during the celebrations!!
I'm off to bed now guys...looking forwards to reading more about us all tomorrow!!
AMAZING!!
BTW Guys...just had a thought. The regular users of us here should get together now and then for an I.M chat session or something. If you are interested, let me know, and maybe we can arrange something. I'll create and gmail account tomorrow and will go from there, but I'd think it would add another dimension to all of us who share the same passion.
@ Andrew P - it was a bit strange this morning when I was going to catch the train to work. There was a kind of lazy/sleepy, almost dazed happiness around. I thought about it and realized there was only one comparison: it was like you feel after really great sex! And this was the whole city
@ fcb_darren
I think that would be a great idea I thought the exact same thing last night before the match when I realised most of the posters on here probable had their pc out and posting comments during the match. I thought that it would of been cool to set up a conference call on skype so that any Barca fan who was watching it on their ownn could get together and celebrate with others. Although I think an I.M chat would be more feasible for everybody.
@Nic,
Damn right about that...many champions' league babies were conceived last night in Blaugranaland!!!
No work for me today or tomorrow...I have taken the rest of the week off. I just can't focus...I can't because I AM TOO FUCKING HAPPY...I tried singing all night with my crew but that just seems not enough...I don't know how to celebrate this one!!!! Incredible!!!
i dedicate these trebles to my lovely coach and my president pep guardiola and joan laporta.and all my players starting from 1(valdes) to muninesa(45) and all my barca fans.
NOW WE RULE EUROPE.
I just have to add that I'm so happy that Henry eventually got his hands on a winners medal he has been such a great player over the years and it was the one title that has eluded him, I'm glad he could fulfill his dream with Barca.
In all these celebrations I keep thinking back to the last time we won and how great of a player Ronaldinho was during those few years, it really makes me sad to see one of the best players in Barcas history had such a fall from grace and the fact he was still relatively young to have such a slump. How did he go from one of the best players ever to being such a dud in such a short period of time. Imagine if he had still been at the top in this team but I'm sure the dynamic of the team is so much better now with him gone.
Thank you Ronaldinho for the happiness and Rijkaard who layed the foundations for this success but the biggest thanks goes to Pep and the team including all the back room staff all the way up to Laporta.
Thank you very much for such a historic season Pep.
Barca Barca BARCAAAA!!!!
I'm late to post b/c my girlfriend and I had to tape the match and watch it when we got home from work yesterday. It was really difficult to black out the results all day. No internet, no phone calls... and then after the match... well we polished off a bunch of Spanish wine and got a little rowdy... thus no post.
What an amazing match! After hearing all week how United were too strong and too deep to be beat, it was fantastic to see Barça handle them with style. What better ending than to have 5'6'' Messi score with a header after hearing how Ronaldo is such a more dangerous player in the air than him. So satisfying to see that smirk wiped off of C.Ronaldo's face.
The backline deserves a ton of credit. We were hoping that Sylvinho would get the start and he didn't disappoint. Experience counts for a lot, and he and Puyol did a great job filling in for Alves and Abidol. Maybe they were better than the starters would've been?
Also a ton of credit to Laporta for hanging in there against a ridiculous no confidence vote and choosing Guardiola to lead the side. Just an unbelievable turnaround from the last two seasons.
We're very fortunate to have witnessed this season. Football as art and philosophy taken to the sublime pinnacle!
Thanks Nic for your amazing work and all the culés on FCBNews for providing us distant blaugrana a community with which to celebrate the spectacle and the joy.
¡¡Força Barça!!
ps - @ CaseyKacz - hilarious! I remember your post on the new kit from last year and completely agreed with you at the time. I'm happy to know that jeering came back to bite us in the ass. This kit will now go down famously as worn by maybe the best Barça ever. To answer your original question, Puyol looked great holding the trophy in it
lol...crynaldo cryin yet again.
LINK
Now we know why the EPL clubs that have faced Barça in the past have elected to " park the bus " .
Manchester United realised that Barça will have a few starters missing on defence and both Iniesta and Henry were not 100% and have not played in some time decided NOT to park the bus . And why not ?
Barça with a makeshift defence and a pair of key players limping into the game surely can NOT handle the mighty Manchester United .
So MU decided to play their usual game that won them the last three cosecutive titles in what is hyped up by the English media as the best league in the world .
They were wrong .
Full streghth MU had enough quality to last for about 10 minutes then they ran out of ideas .
After the goal Barça did what they do best ; control the game . No club had more possesion than Barça this year . Nobody .
When MU were naively led to believe that they can outplay a weakened Barça side they were sadly mistaken .
Let it be known to all the so called top four EPL clubs that if they choose to play Barça straight up ( without parking the bus) they will be given a football lesson .
MU were humiliated , embarrased and outclassed . The final score could have easily been 4-0 or 5-0 .
Arsenal tried to play Barça in 2006 CL final and they paid the price .
As a Barça fan let's hope the club tries to add some new players to stregthen the squad and come up with a counter strategy to those EPL boys who have no chice but park the bus against us .
We need strong defenders who are not afraid to mix it up with the big horses from the EPL .
We need to add more wrinkles to our game like shooting from outside and improving our set-piece defence !!
just to clarify my poor writing... i remember Nic's post on the new kits from last year, but i think it's hilarious that CaseyKacz thought to bring it up. i'm useless at work today... just want to read about Barça all day. hope everyone else is enjoying the afterglow
boyssss!!
holy shit...ive been drunk for the last 24 hours i reckon!
thank god my mates finished exams today cause i was in celebration mode and considering they all support liverpool and chelsea it was great to get out on the town on a thursday night in Sydney in fluro barcelona gear!! hahaha
still amazing lads...think about what we've done!
it happened so fast?! it still ahsnt quite hit me...but this hangover has...fuck
WOW...Pep is the legend of the game
I know this is the millionth time, but please let me reiterate............PUYOL is my idol! What a brilliant performance from the captain! He shut down Rooney in the 1st and Ronaldo in the second. Even went up to attack and had to tries.
Pique has matured to be an outstanding player. I cant wait to see him over the years. All aerial threats were useless against this man!
Xavi was the boss of midfield as usual. Iniesta was the perfect blend of xavi, messi and a horrid headache for Manchester United.
Messi vs Cronaldo debates should be laid to rest after this game. Messi showed better talent, smarts and class. Both played the exact same role for their teams so it should make for an easy comparison. Entering the game, Cronaldo never scored against a Spanish opposition and Messi never scored against an English one. After the game, Messi had broken the duck and Cronaldo is still stuck.
Cronaldo just went on wild dribbles and lost the ball, Messi just made smart one-touch passes to keep the attack rolling (yes its intended)
I have been so lucky to witness this season. I dont think any team has played better football.
THIS IS THE SECOND COMING OF THE DREAM TEAM!!!
WOW. I needed at least 24 hours to compose myself enough after that game to sit down a write something. Ecstatic doesnt begin to describe the feeling. All your comments almost sum it up, but not quite, its too good a feeling to put into words so I am not going to try. You are all feeling it too.
It has been an unreal season, since the very first day, since losing and then drawing then going on a rampage that has yet to end. Pep is my GOD. I honestly thought he made a mistake when i saw the lineup before kick off and I have never felt so good to be wrong. Nor have i ever felt like such a tit for doubting him. All those months of lambasting Rijkaards' decisions never really wore off i guess, but I will never question Pep again. He knows what is best. Whether it works or not doesnt matter, he has proved he knows what is best. Best for the team, best for the players and best for the club. I pray he stays for many many many years and that the stories of him moving on after 2 years are false.
We have made history this season guys, quite literally. This side will go down as one of the best ever.
One quick point i HAVE to make about the game last night....I loved ALL the performances, every single one, they were all exceptional. However, Iniesta.....OH MY GOD....i have always loved him, i have always thought he was one of our best players, definitely the most consistent. To walk into a CL final, on the back of an injury and make Man Utd look like a bunch of fools is almost unspeakable. In my eyes he is our best player. I love Messi to bits but Iniesta is more mature and he quite literally ran the show last night.
Quick jab at the EPL.....EAT IT BITCHES. We took ur all mighty champions down with ease. Utd fans must be in so much shock cos they thought they were gona eat us alive. LOL. Wake up call to epl fans
One last thing....thank you Nic. Thank you for providing a forum like this where fans from anywhere in the world can come and share their thoughts. It was a godsend last year when we were awful and it has been an absolute pleasure reading your previews, reviews and thoughts over the course of this unique season. You really have provided a haven for all Barca fans. I hope u know how much we appreciate the time and effort it must take you to keep it going. Well done.
Oh and thanks to all you guys as well. Those i agree with and those I disagree with. A quick shout out to Blaugranaboy and Titti86 who I have really enjoyed debating with. You have made my experience as a Barca fan over the last 2 years so much more than it was before. Living in London its hard to find ppl to sit and talk to about Barca. I love this club, i love football the way it should be played and i love talking about it. Hearing other ppl's point of views and listening to different opinions. It has taught me a lot. All my friends here support EPL clubs and they all just love to see us fail so trying to talk to them about Barca is a waste of time really....im gona have a lot of fun with them now....
Gentlemen,
I've created the gmail account.
You can reach it at darren.fcb@gmail.com
Following up on my previous suggestion of a "game day" live chat/opinion. I propose the following:
- Need to decide on what software to use (MSN Messenger, Skype, Trillion, etc)
- Need to register interest to keep things in order. By this I mean contact details sent to my email address, so I can keep tabs of who is interested, who to add to the contact list, secure the chat, and distribute the list to all to be involved so we can add each other.
- Need to agree on a global time zone to use as the time for the "chat meets" and etc.
-Anything else I havn't thought of yet.
This is obviously in it's infamacy, so I'm just trying to gauge interest and thoughts. If we can get it running, I think we can make matchdays even more exciting.
Nic - I hope you don't mind this idea, or me suggestion this on the blog?? perhaps you can lend us some ideas or even assist?
Ultimately, the aim would be, matchday, to have majority of the regulars here in a secure chat environment where we can discuss the game while watching it in real time - then afterwards get on the fcb blog and follow it up!!
Dear mates.
Still can't stop celebrating,drinking singing all day and night.I wish we could all get together and celebrate a great win and an increadable season.We witnessed history.We will remmember this season till rest of our lifes.I live in NY and hate the fact there are few people follow the greatest game(footbal)in the world.
I personaly critisized Eto'o for his poor performance for past several weeks but not becouse I hate him BlaugranaBoy but becouse I know what he is capable of.
FIFA best player of the year should defenatly be XAVI.What a season he had:Best player EURO 2008,won EURO 2008,won COPA , LA LIGA , CL , best player in CL final.
Messi Baloon D'or.
1.Havi
2.Messi
3.Inesta
I'd also like to see some great CL final gallery pictures!!
If you have any, let me know...I want some cracking wallpaper images!
@ Barca fan in the house ,
I agree with you about choosing Xavi , Iniesta and Messi for the awards BUT I think Messi will probably win both awards .
I think Xavi and Iniesta are the best of the best midfielders in the world but I have a sneaky suspecion that Ronaldo will be undeservedly nominated !!
Eto'o what a chance to break your scoring drought...
MESSI, you legend his goal was amazing he just hung in the are and directed the ball in the net.
Puyol was a beast (3 lung Puyol) it would have been fitting if he scored but it doesn't matter as we won!!!
Visca El Barca!!! Visca El Messi, Visca El Eto'o... Campeones, the treble is ours!!!! Olé Olé Olé Olé Olé
The whole team was brilliant.
And whats best is we beat a full strength man u team with an under strength Barca squad
Man U fans everywhere were quiet, are they all dead.
Barcelona shut them all up.
@ MikeM ,
" Man U fans everywhere were quiet, are they all dead. "
They are probably shell-shocked and looking for a place to hide .
Manchester United , the three-time EPL champions were outclassed and embarrased . Which league is superior now ?
Talk is cheap . Barça football shut them all up !!
hey all; OZONE in the building!!!!!!!!blog!!!anyone;
damn, i am filled with joy. i have celebrated to the point where i have lost my voice. its official the new dream team. best in europe. one title is left: FIFA Club World Cup to seal the football planet status. i have to say it has been a crazy ride this season. i have to buy the 08/09 jersey so that i will never forget the orgasmic football played by Guardiola's men. bravo a million times.
these are the key moments of the season:
- trashing real madrid 8-2 on agg.
- Pinto's penalty save
- Valdes and Drogba one-on-one (both legs)
- Henry's equalizer against Lyon (1st leg)
- Yaya Toure VS Drogba (2nd leg)
- Iniesta equalizer against Chelsea. which Barca fan will ever forget this one. surely the most important goal of the season: "Heartbreak at Stamford Bridge", " Barca church boy finally gets his voice" ,etc
- Eto'o goal against Man Utd in final. this goal came at the right time. Eto'o silences critics. it boosted the team's morale after the shaky start. it restored focus and order and of course possesion.
- Messi goal in final. after all the Messi VS CR7 talk, Messi's good performance and goal means he will no doubt be the 1st choice for all individual football awards.
these are my key moments. what do you guys think?
peace out.
@ Maverick977,
Nobody should be surprised or shocked with anything this idiot says or does . I guess his character reflects his low class upbringing .
Class is something the Diving One never had and never will !!
only one team was in it after the tenth minute, and only one team could have won it after etoo's break.
btw, anyone in india will attest, the commentators here could have been wearing ronaldo jerseys and sitting in the stands, biased whores!! but fantastic job by the whole team. messi, iniesta, xavi, PIQUE, puyol et al. all these guys were superb. and pep did the right thing by trusting sylvinho because grandpa was perfect there.
It looks like the LINK that I have posted here for the FULL MATCH is NOT working .
If somebody has another link for a NON ENGLISH source I would appreciate it .
The reason I don't like to watch English video sources is their EPL-BIASED commentators !!