Henry And Iniesta On The Recovery Road To Rome

that is great news .. having both players is vital ..

I am not sure what config pep will use in the back .. yaya's height is definately a positive in the back line but his ability of breaking up play and winning back the ball in the midfield is also a huge presence.

rooney and ronaldo counterattacks will be better stopped in the midfield .. rather than yaya sitting back deep.

i just hope yaya stays in the midfield
though with iniesta's presence, there is more probability pep might use him at d back

great news since etoo and messi cant do nothing against english sides as can see against chelsea when we struggled his experience against EPL clubs is vital.

Valdés

Puyol - Touré - Piqué - Keita

Xavi - Busquets - Iniesta

Messi - Eto'o - Henry


thats the line-up Sport has predicted pep will play, claiming its what he is set on, but i doubt very much they have got any sort of indication from him.

saddly i think it will be similar to that. thought if keita is at LB, it would just be such a disaster, CR will absolutely destroy him. but i think yaya will be CB and again i think that will be so tactically wrong. its pretty much impossible to second guess guardiola after his season thus far, but yaya in CB (which i see the tactics to it) is the wrong choice, we will totally lose the midfield. and keita at LB will be the nail in the coffin.

not trying to be pessmastic, but everyday i get people asking me if im excited for the final blah blah and the truth is these tactic issues are worrying me. if we had a full squad i wouldnt doubt us at all. i really feel these tactics will be our down fall.

we will punish manu.
BARCABARCA HAIL BARCA

RONALDO VS MESSI
MESSI WILL SHOW RONALDO THAT HE IS THE BEST OF THE WORLD.

Great news Nic.Hopefully they will fuly recover before the game and perform at the best level.Messi and Eto'o definatly will
show up and will do what they do the best.Eventhough I had critisesed Eto'o for past several weeks,in most important game of the season they will do good.I'm sure.
Yellow cards role should not applay for the final it's stupid.
All the concern over the back 4 drives me crazy.I am trying to come up with the opptimume line but there are more and more holes that players like puyol pique and the forwards will have to fill up.
I hope it will not effect our game.
I dont like to talk about it but if we lose atleast we played our atractive ,attacking style.
Mates also whanted to ask you a question.What would you prefer beat ManU and rewrite the history with the perfect trible or win CL next year in Madrid.(Final in Bernabeu)

BBoy - I don't think Busquets will get a start in Rome. Granted he gives us height etc, but I can't see him starting (even though he will get minutes).

Pep does have headaches though with the two wingbacks being suspended. I'm thinking the lineup will be something like this: (I believe Caceres will start - Sylvinho will be unlucky not to start at LB too.

Valdes

Puyol - Pique - Caceres - Keita

Toure

Iniesta - Xavi

Messi - Eto'o - Henry

Valdes

Caceres Puyol Pique Keita

Toure

Xavi Iniesta

Messi Eto'o Henry

This is how I believe the team should play in case Henry and Iniesta are both fit .
I think playing Caceres in the heart of the defense will be so risky, he hardly played this year and it would be much safer to stick with Puyol and Pique who showed great potential when played together......Puyol has also been a bit slow which is normal regarding he is 30 now ,and a fast dribbler may pass him, he is not so good in attack ,dont cross much and he is going to mark their best player ,so either ways he is not going to add much to the front line if he play as a RB.
Martin on the other hand could be given the chance of his life to mark Ronaldo,he is young,fast and strong and if anything goes wrong there is our captain to cover,playing him next to Pique as I said could cost us a lot , the man is a blunder .
Toure will be best played in his normal position(but I m 99% sure Pep will use him as a CB )better kill off all United build play in their own half (as we usually do ), and dont underestimate Keita he is a smart player and he hardly makes a mistake, I m sure he would do better than Abidal .
Barça all the way .

u guys really worry a lot, jst watch your health....lol

i leave all my worries till a day before d match and even then i transfer it to pep...lol
but i cant deny i dnt think about the line up sometimes, what consoles me is that i hav absolute belief pep would do what he thinks is best...

I am with you Layi...I am still enjoying our 2 trophies and I think that we will find a way to win this game.I cannot help but push all logic to the side and plainly state tbat this Barcelona team is a team of destiny and that as Marley said "who jah bless, no one curse". There is only one thing that keeps running through my head:that Iniesta "cout de pate" or golazo in London. Wow, how cruel it would be of the football Gods to give us such joy and then let us lose this fial!!!

Remember Man U just like US drew against Villareal in their own camp and we drew them because we gave up 2 goals in the last 12 minutes. It sounds simplistic but this is my reference point and I like it. I do not think that it is going to be a high scoring game. I see a 1-0 score or a 1-1 score and a penalty shoot out but not a "chorreo".

We will be fine whoever Pep plays on the left. I would prefer to see Sylvinho since that is his natural position, not Keita. And we can find some great success out of Caceres if we play him as a right back (his natural position, again I argued for this a few months back and we keep trying to turn a donkey into a horse...the guy is NOT a centerback).

I knew it, I posted after the Chelsea game saying Pep might play Keita at left back.

Keita does provide height and muscle which should be good when defending set plays but to be honest he has not impressed me this season I did enjoy his goal against Bayern Munich.

My main issue is Toure position we need him in the middle!

The midfield is the most important and with him playing in defense we wont be able to control the midfield like we do.

Why not play Cacferas he can't be that bad can he?
After all Barca did spend a lot of money on him.

I'm 90% sure this will be the formation Pep will play:

Puyol Toure Pique Keita

Busquets

Xavi Iniesta

Messi Eto'o Henry


Winning a "treble" is rare once in a lifetime opportunity I hope the players/team deservedly pull through.

darren/missa, nice to see we are pretty much on the same page. everyone can see that not playing yaya in the midfield will be a disaster. but saddly too i strongly suspect he will be CB.

but guys, keita CANNOT play left back. my heart would drop if i saw that on the starting line up, CR wil murder him. he isnt that good of a midfielder so how is he gonna be good as a makeshift left back. people mention his strength and height, but he isnt that tall at all (only 6 ft) and isnt strong at all either and has no speed.

missa, u totally right about not putting caceres CB, thats far too risky, if u make a mistake there its goal time. but u got it perfect in ur next paragraph, putting caceres as a wing back allows for him to make an error or two and have one of pique or puyol bail him out. they should def command that heart of the defence. caceres on the right gives natural speed and strength, i think ultimatley id go with him there, speed and strength are irreplaceable and he can def make a tackle. but i would have been playing him there and preparing him since the chelsea match.

i think id go with caceres, pique, puyol, slyvinho

with our midfield and forwards at their best, we can dominate the game and keep ball and minimize man u's chances, we can play our game and have our defense at minimum activity. id just tell slyviho to stay back, let the attackers do that attacking, because if he doesnt get caught too far forward he can still defend decently and yaya can go and help double cover CR to neutralize his speed. but if yaya is at CB, they are gonna attack far more, like chelsea managed in england.

i just dont want yaya at CB. or keita at left back.

this game is so nerveracking. being where i am there are so many fucking man united fans around it makes me sick. losing to them would hurt more than anything else. it would kill me

hopefully we would do well in the final. if the possible line up of the following
Valdés

Puyol - Touré - Piqué - Keita

Xavi - Busquets - Iniesta

Messi - Eto'o - Henry

but in the end i would say again the we and most of the barca fans thank Guardiola. for what he has achieved as a coach of Barcelona. La Liga, and Copa Del Rey were great acheivements. i personally say that what ever happens in the Final of Champions League. i will not blame any one. thanks Barca and Thanks Pep.
Forza El Barca forever
you deserve more than this.

either sylvinho or pinto at left back.

if we're super concerned about cronaldo then would could put two men on him (he'd probs like it)...but he barely ever shows up in big games. just have the defense be mindful.

i'd also like caceres on the right so toure can be in the middle, but if both xavi and iniesta play i don't think busquets will be a bad choice (not as good as toure, but not bad). when it's busquets and kieta both there at the same time we suffer from the creativity drain...

anyway, i'm really happy with our season. maybe some pressure will be off the team since half of them are ruled out of the final...and then they'll open up and really play their game.

whatever happens happens, but we'll make a game of it.

I wouldnt put too much into this predicted lineup by Sport or El Mundo.....they are both just guessing. No way Pep has decided yet and even if he had you think he would let anybody know?!?!? The players probably dont even know yet.

I have faith in Pep so whatever he does I will be happy with, considering the circumstances and the players that are missing nobody knows what is best except for him. He is the one watching them in training everyday so if he thinks Keita should play LB and Yaya should play CB then so be it. Remember we didnt have Iniesta in the middle agaisnt Chelsea which meant we couldnt keep possession as well. The only player I dont want to see start in Rome is Busquets, he is not strong enough mentally or physically to battle Utd's midfield. You have to put either Yaya or Keita there. What about Keita as a CB alongside Pique and then Yaya as the DM? I dont envy Pep because no matter what he tries it will not be ideal so if we lose it will be seen as a mistake....we got the two worst suspensions possible because of our cover in these areas. I have been saying this all year we need cover for both LB and RB, it is bad enough if we lose one, but now we have lost two

The way I see it we have to play to our strengths. That means keeping possession, which for us anyways, is the best way to defend. I think the best way to keep possession is to have the midfield trio of Yaya, Iniesta and Xavi. With those 3 in the middle of the park we can dominate any midfield. If we can control the middle then we can control the game, we can keep possession and build attacks without the need to expose ourselves too much. For me Henry will be the difference in this game, Messi is going to be very very tightly marked, probably by at least 2 players. Henry and Eto'o will end up with more space but considering Eto'o form of late I think it is Henry who will end up taking full advantage of the space. Iniesta will also be key.

Lets see what Pep does.....one week left

Blaugranaboy, just our of curiosity, where are you from that has so many Man Utd fans?

I completely agree Bboy I rather lose to any team other then Manchester their fans and backed by the English media are so arrogant it really does make me sick.

I also agree with you're selection, I highly doubt C Ronaldo will be played in his preferred role, I think he will play as a center forward similar to last year.

I'd be the happiest man in the world if Barca beat them in the final.

I hope to God they do.

Henry and Iniesta's presence will be critical. I agree with the viewpoint that our best defensive tactic is a strong midfield that keeps possession and restricts Man U from putting pressure on our makeshift defence. With Messi probably being marked by 1-2 Man U players on the right, the left flank (Henry/Iniesta territory) is where we may have a chance to hit Man U. CR7 will also not be tracking back all the time to help out the right-sided midfielder (Fletcher's suspended) so who knows maybe a fit Iniesta/Henry can do the needful and upset Man U's hopes of retaining the title.

If we are thinking along those lines and want to dominate the midfield why not play 5 in the middle and go for a 4-2-3-1 (Puyol-Pique-Toure-Sylvinho-Keita-Xavi-Henry-Iniesta-Messi-Eto'o) or maybe even a 3-5-2 with Toure moving in front of the back 3 because neither Puyol (not a natural wingback) nor Sylvinho (because of his age) are going to pose much of a threat going forward.

For us I think the best form of defence is attack in the final. I just hope that Iniesta and Henry are fully fit for it, if Messi is marked by 2 players which probably will be Evra and Ferdinand ( he might not make the final due to injury) or else one of the midfield players might drop back with Evra and my suspicion is that it might be Rooney because he will get up and down the field all night, he has plenty of energy. If this is the case when I think Henry and Iniesta could pull Uniteds defence apart on the other side since Alex Ferguson is after saying that John O'Shea will play right back, Henry will take him to the cleaners leaving Vidic to try and help him out. This will leave space in the center for Iniesta, Xavi and Etoo to work.

Man Utds midfield is not great, Carrick, Anderson, Park??? they are no way close to our midfield and Scholes and Giggs are good but they don't have the legs to chase the ball all night.

I would not like to see Busquets starting because its too big of a game for him at this stage of his career although pep might think he would be good in midfield because he seems to have this uncanny ability to get fouls committed against him the whole time so he might create a few free kicks close to Utds box. Does anybody notice the amount of fouls he seems to get made aginst him? I don't know how he does it.

I was a small bit nervous about the final at first due to our defence but now I'm confident we can do the business on such a large pitch and bring home the trophy.

Barca Barca BARCAAAAAAAA

B!!!!!!!!!!!!
BA!!!!!!!!!!!!
BAR!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARC!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARCE!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARCEL!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARCELO!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARCELON!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARCELONA!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARCELON!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARCELO!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARCEL!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARCE!!!!!!!!!!!!
BARC!!!!!!!!!!!!
BAR!!!!!!!!!!!!
BA!!!!!!!!!!!!
B!!!!!!!!!!!!

Caceres Puyol Pique Sylvinho

I think this is the best back line. Toure still in the midfield, and no makeshift defenders. Abidal has been not so surefooted as of late, and although Alves has been great for us this season, he would be a huge liability against the counter attack. Against ManU, I actually believe Caceres will be an upgrade. The only thing is that Iniesta will probably have to move further to the right instead of his normal spot on the left (since Abidal normally doesnt fill as much attacking space and Alves usually does. With Caceres/Sylvinho the roles will be reversed).

I also do not want to see Busqets in the first XI. Love him, but not ready for a CL final. And i dont think Keita would be awful as a leftback. He can play on the side of midfield. Still, it would be a wasted position, so to equalize he would need to completely neutralize either Ronaldo or Tevez or who ever plays on the right for ManU.

i don think of line up ..... but to be honest i followed caceres from the beginning/....if he make a place in team.....that position will be a big Hole ....no doubt about that...first of all this guy loose confidence in tight situations...secondly he is good at keep pacing with wing...but when wing stops and dribble...he seems helpless and loose the winger...no way we can include him,....sylvinho i think is far better,,,

and i don know why some of u guyz put keita on LB/RB..he may be good in midfield...but he does not have any single quality that a LB/RB need. And if ur LB/RB is weak...no way puyol or pique can do any thing good....CR is very very good in header....its difficult to stop him in center ...its rather easy to stop both wings making their cross to center....
Manu will use their wing attack ...thats their great power...

i hope we will not cry for absense of Alves at the end of the match....

Barca!!!Barca!!!Barca!!!

DON'T WORRY ABOUT A THING.
CAUSE EVERY THING GONNA BE ALRIGHT.
BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA
THE MIGHTY BARCA

This is NOT the time for experimentation . This is the CL final . We have to field the best possible line up . Unfortunately, we can not do that due to the absence of both Alves and Abidal . Both players knew well enough that they should have not done anything dumb that will result in them missing the final but there is no excuse for stupidity .
I like "gregvb" lineup with Caceres-Pique-Puyol-Sylvinho in defence and our usual midfield and front line . Let's remember one thing ; MU will have four or five players in midfield and only one or two attackers,probably either Rooney or Ronaldo or both . Let's just play Barça football and try to concentrate the entire match and NOT commit any dumb mistakes defensively . It is critical that we take advantage of most of our scoring opportunities . Eto'o has to get out of his slump and bring his A+ game for us to have any chance of winning the title !!

Barca!!!

This is the best news so far, hope they are fit and raring to go..

All the best my fellow Cules...

HA BARCA BARCA
I KNOW WE ARE NOT GOING TO LOSE THIS MATCH.
WE ARE GOING TO PLAY AS WE DEEED TO CHELSEE IT WIIL BE SURBRISE FOR MAN U,WITHIN 1 SECONDS.I HOPE GUARDIOLA IS DOING HIS BEST.SO FAR WE LOSE OUR BEST PLAYER WHO I HV MORE CONFIDENT WITH HIM IN ANY MATCH, MOTTO RAISE [DANI ALVES).ANY WAY DOWN FAWL OF MAN IS NOT THE END OF IS LIFE.WE STEEL HAVE MORE WONDERFULL MIDFILDER WHO IS TOURE YAYA.AND I KNOW MESSI IS BETTER GOOD THAN C RONALDO AND HENRY SHOULD ALWAYS SUPLY MESSI.THE MOST IMPORTANT IS WE ARE NOT BEST IN TRIYING SHOOT A TALL,


WHAT I WANT TO ADD IS WE SHOULD TRY FOR BETTER SHOOT FOR THE KEEPER AT ANY MOMENT WE CAN WEEEK MAN U,ALREADY THE KEEPER IS NOT MUCH STRONG.NOT TO CLOSE WITH THE KEEPER BEFORE SHOOTING,IF YOU WATCH OUR MATCH WITH CHELSEE THE ONE SHOOT FOR M ESSIEN AS BECAME A WONDERFULL GOAL CAN YOU IMAGINE?IHOPE WE WILL WIN THIS MATCH BCAUSE WE ARE STRONG THAN M UNITED.ALREADY OUR BEST PLAYER (MESSI) AS SAID THIS MATCH IS A BIGGEST MATCH IN IS LIFE. SO I KNOW HE WILL NO GOING TO JOKE. HE WILL PLAY AS HE KNOW.I HOPE WILL BRING THE (CUP) IN CATALUNYA.AND ANYTHING HAPPEND BAD, I WILL NOT BLAIM ANYBODY.SO FAR GUARDIOLA AS TRY AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.BIG THANK FOR GUARDIOLA
BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARCA BARC

Hail Barca!!! King of all futbol clubs