Barcelona were fully deserved of their Champions League victory last night, with the 3-1 score line far from flattering. United had a bright first ten minutes, pressuring from the front and putting their opponents on the back foot, but the Spanish side soon found their stride and opened the scoring on 27 minutes with Pedro slotting home a Xavi through ball.
They held the lead for just seven minutes, when Wayne Rooney levelled with a Barca-like equaliser, following a couple of one-twos, but, ultimately, United were worn down by the Spanish side‘s quick possession game. Lionel Messi’s 54th minute effort from outside the box regained the lead for Pep Guardiola’s side and David Villa made sure of the result in the 69th minute, as all three of Barcelona’s front line found the net to clinch the cup.
The game’s vital stats- Barcelona had 68% Possession to United’s 32% and had 16 Shots to their opponents 3- are indicative of exactly the type of match that unfolded; it was a magnificent performance, worthy of the Champions League trophy.
Line Up News
Despite being passed fit the previous day, Charles Puyol only made the bench for Barcelona, with Javier Mascherano partnering Gerard Pique in central defence. Eric Abidal capped his return from illness with a place at left-back but otherwise, the line-up was as expected.
Sir Alex Ferguson chose the same XI that beat Schalke away from home in the Semi Final first leg. Fabio started at right-back, with Giggs and Carrick in central midfield, Park on the left wing and Valencia chosen ahead of Nani on the right. The one real surprise was perhaps on the bench, with Dimitar Berbatov omitted completely.
Player Positions
Barcelona’s average player position when in possession shows just how far up the pitch both Xavi and Iniesta (6 and 8) saw the ball, playing more as attacking midfield pair for the victors. Villa and Pedro stayed narrow in possession, with the only width coming from Alves and Ebidal in the full-back areas.
Antonio Valencia’s average position (25) illustrates just how much he was on the retreat all game; his position identical to right-back Fabio. Giggs and Park swapped positions at half-time, with the Korean moving into central midfield and Giggs out left. There’s a huge difference between both sides’ offensive options; whereas Barca had 5 players in attacking areas, United had two, Rooney and Hernandez. The latter made little impact, though, with just 21 Touches all game.
Shot Directions
Despite United’s right side being their weakest last night- with an ill-disciplined performance from Antonio Valencia (the winger made 7 Fouls and was unlucky to only get away with just a yellow)- Barcelona didn’t have any shots from the left. 67% of their 15 attempts came through the middle, with Messi (4), Iniesta (3) and Villa (3) mainly responsible. 33% came from the right, with efforts from the likes of Pedro and Alves,
United had just 3 Shots and all came through the middle, with Rooney (2) and Nani (1) managing all their goal attempts.
Pass Types
With 68% Possession, Barcelona were in complete control of the game. They made 800 Passes to United’s 380, with 740 Short Passes to 320. Xavi and Iniesta made the most passes of the game, with 148 and 115 respectively. Of Barca’s starting XI, only Pedro and Villa made less Passes than United’s top passer, Rio Ferdinand, who made 47. United made the most Long Passes, 56 to 48, as they made a point of trying to catch Barca on quick breaks.
Star Player Comparison
Lionel Messi lit up the proceedings with an outstanding Man of the Match performance; he had 127 Touches all game and made 100 Passes -including 4 Key Passes, 1 less than Xavi and Iniesta- with a 92% Accuracy.
Messi tormented United all game with an incredible 10 Successful Dribbles and he resultantly suffered the most fouls (6) on the night. He had more Shots (4) than anyone else on the pitch, scoring 1 Goal on his way to a perfect rating of 10.
Wayne Rooney not only grabbed United’s goal, he was their best player on the night. Rooney had more Touches (68), Shots (2) and Successful Dribbles (2) than any of his team mates and there’s little surprise he was the one United player to break the Barcelona resistance.
He made 40 Passes with an 83% Accuracy, 3 Crosses and 1 Key Pass. Rooney was impressive in winning the ball, too; he won more Aerial Duels (4) than anyone on the pitch and made 2 Interceptions for United on his way to a match rating of 7.49.
