Farcelona: Messi United fail to retain European Crown as Ronaldo shows his Petulance

Barcelona showed their class in Rome tonight, as did Lionel Messi, whilst a sloppy and wasteful United were summed up by the petulance and inconsistency of their star man, Ronaldo. The Catalonians ran out deserved winners, outclassing United in all departments to ensure the Champions League trophy takes it’s place back at the Camp Nou.

Surprisingly, it was United who started on the front foot, whereas Barcelona could not seem to keep the ball; a criticism you would never lay at the feet of the La Liga Champions. They seemed to be weathering an early United storm, as the Mancunians, and Ronaldo in particular, craved an early goal.

The World Player of the Year wasted no time in testing Valdes out in the Barca goal, with his ferocious free kick in the second minute, which moved mysteriously through the air, dipping and diving towards goal. Valdes just about got something on the ball, yet the rebound was nearly put in by Ji Sung Park, who was waiting to pounce. He would have his piece of history had it not been for some valiant defending from the ex-United man, Pique.

Five minutes later, Ronaldo saw his place in the headlines again, when he felt the urge to let fly from all of thirty yards, or as he calls it, Porto range. Unlike his sublime effort in Porto, however, the ball glided past Valdes, and the post. He was epitomising the spirit of United, who like him, seemed to be on a mission.

The man from Portugal had many fooled a few moments later, when he attempted a left-foot volley from the corner of the box. The effort bounced past a helpless Valdes but also whistled narrowly wide of the post. His frustration, displayed on the television replay, summed it up, and these feelings would worsen within a few seconds.

It was the first time Iniesta was able to get on the ball, and the first time United looked vulnerable; he cruised into second gear and out of Carrick and Anderson’s sight, before sliding Eto’o in on the left hand side. Suddenly, Vidic was left one-on-one against Eto’o and was turned far too easily to allow the Cameroonian an effort at goal. His instinctive toe-poke was too quick for Van Der Sar to react in time, treacling into the net after the Dutchman had got a hand to it.

For all of United’s endeavour in the first ten minutes, and for all of the importance Sir Alex Ferguson must have put on the early goal, it was the Catalonians who had the lead. For the rest of the half, Iniesta, Messi and Xavi were allowed too much time and space on the ball, and it was comfortable. United, on the other hand, went to pieces after going a goal behind, and rarely have they been so wasteful in possession. Ferdinand and Vidic were harassed and hence they had no solid base upon which to build; long ball galore.

Ronaldo tried to summon his team’s response soon after conceding, bursting through the Barcelona defence only to be brought down cynically by Pique on the edge of the box. A booking was all it was worth, according to the referee, on the reasoning Yaya Toure would have been able to challenge Ronaldo i.e. Pique was not the last man. Giggs took the resulting free kick, which did not trouble Valdes, gliding a good yard over the bar.

Messi started to respond in his personal battle with Ronaldo, but in a different manner. Ronaldo’s strive for glory was peppered with individual endeavour but bordered on greed at times, whereas Messi just played his football and strutted his stuff, for his team. His twenty-five yard attempt, which flew past the crossbar, was the first we saw of the little Argentinean, but certainly not the last.

Xavi tried his luck with a free kick in the 27th minute, from the corner of the Barcelona penalty area, but Van Der Sar had it covered as it went high and wide of the target. United just could not keep the ball, were getting frustrated and giving cheap fouls away, as Barcelona’s midfield dominated Carrick and the relatively inexperienced Anderson. It was because of this Sir Alex Ferguson decided to change it, bringing Tevez on for Anderson, putting Park back into midfield and shifting Giggs into the middle for more experience.

Giggs ageing legs did little to affect the second half, and it was Barcelona who could have grabbed the next goal after the interval. Just before the fifty-minute mark, O’Shea was caught in possession high up the field, and Xavi duly exposed the resulting gaps, sliding Henry in on the wing. He ran at the Mancunian defence, striking fear into Vidic and Ferdinand from his beloved left flank. He wriggled his way into a one-on-one with Van Der Sar, but the latter won the war, making himself big to foil the Frenchman.

A minute later, Sylvinho’s vicious cross from the same flank seeked Eto’o in the middle, but he could not make contact with the goal gaping. United were rocking. A few seconds later, Barcelona were in controlled possession when Xavi played a through ball in Messi’s direction. Running onto it, through on goal, the maestro fell to the floor appealing for a penalty, a la Gerrard and Gattuso in Istanbul. The referee did not deem the challenge a foul, leaving Messi and Eto’o livid in protest.

Xavi’s free kick deceived Van Der Sar in the United goal, but smashed off the post, as the Spaniard looked to put the game beyond doubt. In a frantic opening ten minutes of the second half, Barcelona could have sealed the match as Manchester United were rocked to their innermost core. Despite the half-time change, Tevez failed to find his way into the match as Xavi and co. did not allow United much ball-time.

Big players come to the fore at big times, and Ronaldo was certainly prevalent, but for the wrong reasons. His moaning, elbows, greed and general attitude failed to impress, whereas the man in the other strip, with whom he was supposed to be battling, was earning some merited credibility. Messi’s general composure and attitude was brilliant to watch.

It was Ronaldo, however, who would be involved in the next opportunity. Rooney’s whipped cross cut out Ronaldo and Pique at the near post, but bounced towards Park, unmarked at the back post. The Korean could have used a step ladder at the time, as the ball frustratingly bounced beyond him.

Twenty minutes from the end, Xavi got on the ball and was given all the space of the ancient city to find his pass. Seeing Messi peeling away at the back post, Xavi played an inch-perfect cross to his team-mate, and the brilliance of the assist was only matched by Messi’s agility and leap to head the ball beyond Van Der Sar. The European Cup was going back to the Camp Nou; signed, sealed, delivered.

The rest was academic. Berbatov, a substitute for Ji Sung Park, crossed the ball dangerously across the United area. Giggs met the ball but his effort was blocked, and the ball fell to Ronaldo at the back post. Valdes rushed out to hurry him, and Ronaldo could not find the net. It just was not his night.
Messi won a free kick with fifteen minutes left on the clock, and Xavi took it. Carles Puyol rose unmarked, criminally, from eight yards out and powered his header into the ground. Either side of Van Der Sar, and he was in trouble. As it was, the ball fell straight into the arms of the grateful goalkeeper.

The whole affair seemed to change with Eto’o’s clinical early goal; Barcelona were comfortable for all of eighty minutes and United fans will struggle to recall such a poor showing from their team. On tonight’s evidence, Barca are the deserved Champions of Europe, whereas Ronaldo does not deserve the gong he has received, for his attitude alone.