Left field

Barca end a terrible week on a high as Pep tutors Tito

By Phil O’Connor

Barcelona rounded off a rollercoaster week with a 7-0 drubbing of Rayo Vallecano – out of Europe and with the league already conceded by Pep Guardiola, the pressure lifted and Barcelona were able to enjoy themselves once again.

Inspirational Guardiola leaves powerful legacy

The inspiration for a team widely considered one of the best to grace the game, a thorn in the side of bitter rivals Real Madrid and a symbol of Catalan nationalism, Pep Guardiola has been all these things and more as a player and coach for Barcelona.

The spectacularly successful 41-year-old, who announced on Friday he was quitting at the end of the season, led Barca to a club-record 13 trophies in his four seasons in charge including two Champions League crowns and three straight La Liga titles.

He took over from Dutchman Frank Rijkaard in 2008 with the team in disarray after a second-straight trophyless campaign, ditching high-profile players including an underperforming Ronaldinho and making some astute signings that helped set Barca on their way to an unprecedented haul of silverware.

Imbued from an early age with Barca’s unique brand of football based on relentless possession and rapid passing, he has taken it to new heights and won plaudits from such heavyweights of the game as Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson and Arsenal’s Arsene Wenger.

However, his attritional battle with combative Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho, who was an assistant coach at Barca when Guardiola was a player, appeared to take away some of the joy he felt for his work and may have contributed to his decision to quit and take a rest.

His sudden departure after months of speculation is a fresh blow for a club still reeling from Tuesday’s Champions League last-four elimination at the hands of Chelsea. They are also poised to lose their La Liga title to Real.

However, the board’s decision to promote his long-term assistant and close friend Tito Vilanova to replace him suggests his legacy will be in safe hands.

Barcelona and Real’s poetry lacked motion

By Phil O’Connor

On two nights when every football cliché went out the window, one remained true – in the end the only statistic that matters is the scoreline.

On Tuesday It didn’t matter that Barcelona owned the ball, or that they completed hundreds of passes over the two legs. When Chelsea got hold of it, they used it effectively – if we are to look at one stat other than the score, Chelsea’s four shots on goal and three goals in the tie tell their own story.

If defending champions Barcelona were undone by remarkably poor finishing in the first leg, the second was marred by a failure to penetrate the box.

Many on my Twitter feed compared it to an Olympic handball game, where the ball is passed around an arc in front of goal as an opening is sought for a shot.

Barca’s lack of cutting edge was primarily the result of their static attack; despite regularly having every player in Chelsea’s half, they offered few alternatives when the likes of Lionel Messi and Xavi were in possession – no runs were made, no-one showed for their normally devastating one-twos.

Playing three at the back also meant Pep Guardiola had no fullbacks to overlap.

Real Madrid v Bayern Munich – Champions League semi-final live blog

So Chelsea pulled off an amazing coup to dethrone Barcelona and reach the final. Real Madrid meet Bayern Munich on Wednesday for the right to meet Jose Mourinho’s former club on May 19.

Click on the link below and join all the fun. Leave as many comments as you like without registering

http://live.reuters.com/Event/Real_v_Bayern_-_Champions_League_semi-final

There may not be a Superclasico in Munich after all

A mouth-watering clash between Real Madrid and Barcelona in this season’s Champions League final in Munich appeared to be on the cards when the two Spanish giants were kept apart in the draw, but the prospect of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi watching the showpiece on television instead of taking centre stage on May 19 now looks just as likely.

While Barcelona missed a hatful of chances in their 1-0 defeat by Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in a pulsating first leg of their semi, Real were maybe fortunate to escape with only a 2-1 defeat at Bayern after they were undone by a stoppage-time winner from Mario Gomez.

Second-best for long spells with Ronaldo also subdued for much of the game, Real were lucky to be on level terms before Gomez struck to give Bayern a slender lead ahead of the return leg at the Santiago Bernabeu.

One could argue the away goal still puts Real in the driving seat to reach the final, but the nine-time winners of Europe’s elite club competition face a stern test of their credentials against a fit, cultured and determined Bayern outfit who showed the ability to match them in every department.

Although Barcelona seemingly have more to do than Real after failing to score against Chelsea, the holders should in fact have a slightly easier task than their traditional rivals, whom they entertain in an eagerly awaited Spanish league clasico on Saturday.

The woodwork, a string of superb saves by Petr Cech and some poor finishing by Barcelona, along with the outstanding job  John Terry and Gary Cahill did to keep Messi at bay, secured a memorable night for Chelsea fans which they will cherish at least until the return leg.

It is hard to imagine that Chelsea could escape with another cagey and defensive performance as the length and width of the Nou Camp will give Barcelona’s quick and crafty outfit that much more room to operate and find gaps where last-gasp tackles denied them at Stamford Bridge.

Barca tired? Not on this evidence

Men tuning in for lots of action in Tuesday’s Champions League last 16 first leg ties would have rued the decision to stay in front of the TV on Valentines’ Night when Barcelona v Bayer Leverkusen and Olympique Lyon against APOEL Nicosia reached the 40-minute mark.

Both were 0-0. APOEL had not registered a shot on goal. Barcelona had dominated their German opposition with 78 per cent of possession, yet no opening score.

There have been reports of a tired Barcelona recently, justifiably. The La Liga and Champions League holders have slipped to 10 points behind arch rivals Real Madrid, who are about the strongest outfit left in Europe’s premier competition on current form.

Perhaps this woke Barcelona up as Alexis Sanchez netted a 41st-minute opener.  Coach Pep Guardiola said afterwards: “I think for the spectators the second half was more fun to watch than the first.”

Barcelona scored two more goals, Lionel Messi came alive, and the Catalans conceded just one in a hugely improved second-half display, that led Leverkusen defender Vedran Corluka to say the tie was over. Few would argue with him.

More in the balance is Lyon’s tie with unheralded APOEL, who will head back to Cyprus with just a one-goal deficit. Can the Nicosia side make more history and reach the quarters?

In action on Wednesday will be Arsenal’s record goalscorer Thierry Henry when the London-club travel to the San Siro for their AC Milan clash, while Zenit St Petersburg host Benfica. Valentine’s Day will be over so let’s hope for romance on the pitch in the first halves.

Soccer team of the year?…APOEL Nicosia

Alright, alright I know most of you will be screaming “what about Barcelona?” right now but they get so many plaudits that I thought I could argue a contrarion position.

Yes World, European and Spanish champions Barca have been brilliant and in time we may say they were the greatest ever club side to play the game.

But given they have Lionel Messi — who also in time may be viewed as the world’s greatest ever player — the biggest stadium in Europe, vast finances, the bedrock of the team of world champions Spain and an organisation which calls itself “more than a club”, Barca should be one of the world’s top teams.

They ought to have won more than their four European Cups, three of which have come in the last five years. Barca are also not actually top of La Liga at the mid-season break with Real Madrid three points ahead.

APOEL Nicosia meanwhile have no high expectations.

APOEL weren’t even Cypriot champions in 2010 and had to battle past three other Nicosia sides — that is a lot of derbies — to win the national championship in May.

They were then thrilled just to make the Champions League group stages after three rounds of qualifiers.

And Porto will play…..Europa League draw provides some stardust

There was the usual hushed silence and then sudden intake of breath heard in Nyon on Friday, though not for the Champions League Round of 16 draw but the first two ties of the Europa League Round of 32.

Holders Porto will play mega-rich Manchester City, they were the first two names out of the little plastic balls when UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino was finally able to open the second after Davor Suker had tried and failed, and Ajax Amsterdam will take on Manchester United.

So what about the Champions League draw? Well, here it is in full:

Olympique Lyon v APOEL Nicosia

Napoli v Chelsea

AC Milan v Arsenal

Basel v Bayern Munich

from Mark Meadows:

Real’s psychological barrier key to Barca’s 3-1 win

By Drazen Jorgic

Annoyingly for Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho, the supposed plot line of  El Clasico on Saturday did not follow the script. The much-anticipated power shift from Catalunya to Madrid did not take place and his team are back to the drawing board as far as playing against Barcelona is concerned.

Mourinho blamed bad luck for the loss, as you would expect, but a lot of the press have zoomed in on Real's psychological barrier when it comes to facing Barca.

These things are always difficult to quantify but the awe-inspiring Real team that crushed everyone so far in 2011 simply crumbled when Barcelona reversed a one goal-deficit and went 2-1 up.

Even Mourinho conceded the third Barca goal was a 'psychological blow', though I would argue it was the second goal that mentally defeated them.

Perhaps the players -- a bit like many of the Madrid fans -- had that feeling of 'here we go again'. The doubts crept in, slowly but surely, and Barca took what is now their customary control of latter parts of El Clasico clashes.

Real Madrid began to play like a team that was facing an opponent who had whipped them in six of the previous seven encounters under their current coach, including a 5-0 drubbing.

from Reuters Soccer Blog:

Champions League kicks off but is there only one winner?

Can any team steal Barcelona's Champions League crown this term?

The easy answer is no.

They were so strong last season that even the final against a good Manchester United side was a stroll.

This term Pep Guardiola's men have strengthened, if that was possible, with the additions of Cesc Fabregas and Alexis Sanchez so it is hard to look past them and their silky skills.

But, no team has successfully defended a Champions League title so there is hope for the rest.

United have added youth to their mix and look Barca's only proper rivals again unless Jose Mourinho can work his European Cup magic at Real Madrid.

After all, it only took him two seasons to win the Champions League with an overachieving Inter Milan side.