The World Is Full Of Crashing Bores

Ronaldo makes an appearance in the papers today, surprisingly. There's a piece in The Independent claiming the whole thing has become boring:

For roughly the 730th time in the last two years, one – or probably all – of the British national newspapers yesterday had a headline speculating on Cristiano Ronaldo moving to Real Madrid. Boring? Just an incey, wincey, weeny bit...

Something I'm sure we can all agree on. He goes on, however, to blame Ronaldo. Surely the blame lies elsewhere - with the journalists who constantly regurgitate the same non-stories. Ronaldo may well be an attention seeker, but it's not as if he has to try too hard to get the attention he seeks.
Look at The Sunday Mirror, I'll quote this entire story:

You might have thought Cristiano Ronaldo would be desperate to escape from Italy after Manchester United's Champions League defeat in Rome.

But the striker, 24, topped up his tan in posh Italian resort Porto Cervo yesterday wearing a tiny pair of white shorts - the colours of Real Madrid - amid rumours he'll quit United for the Spanish club.

And that's it, apart from the photo of Ronaldo in a pair of shorts.

The Ronaldo stories in today's papers concentrate on new comments by Perez:

"Madrid should have brought Cristiano Ronaldo as Beckham’s replacement two years ago,”

“There are specific footballers who can turn out to be very profitable, because of the commercial benefits they bring the club,” said Perez. “For instance, we once brought in €15m for playing two matches in Japan. That would not happen in the current climate but they did it then because we had Figo, Zidane, Ronaldo and Beckham.”

“When Beckham arrived,” said Perez, “our sponsors significantly raised their payments to us and we rescued the finances of the club. What happened in the last few years is that the club did not reinvest in the type of players to continue with that model. I want to put that right.”

He cited the appeal of Ronaldo to sponsors: “If Cristiano Ronaldo comes in, we would have a Nike-endorsed player putting on an adidas shirt every week. In the previous time, we established a model which allowed us to pay off our debts and raise our income, and we did it by investing in great players. They brought money in, the model worked.”

So there you have it, if Ronaldo would like to become a cash cow, he should go to Real, if he would like to be a great footballer he should stay with us.
There's a few articles praising Barcelona again today.
Jonathan Norcroft has this to say about us:

The result in Rome did not fit into any pattern. It is not as if United are a footballing Asafa Powell, always tying up on the big occasions. Every one of Ferguson’s men has previously excelled in the most intense situations — whether it be Park for South Korea in the World Cup or Anderson converting a penalty after coming on as a substitute against Chelsea in Moscow last year.

No jerking, then, of knees...

He ruins it all by then going on at great length about what we need to do...
The worst article is this by Paul Wilson, I'll quote one paragraph near the end as an example of its stupidity:

Only Liverpool, who famously cannot win the Premier League and are half‑Spanish anyway, could possibly attempt to play Barcelona at their own game. Whether they would have fared any better than United in Rome is an argument for another day.

A day when Liverpool actually manage to get to the final, or semi-final, perhaps...
Jonathan Norcroft, no knee-jerk reactions remember, has a second article urging us to sell Tevez and Berbatov:

It is time for Ferguson to hold his hands up, Benitez-style, and concede his Berbatov experiment has failed. There would be no shame in it. Berbatov’s supreme technical qualities made him a punt worth taking when Ferguson recruited him for a club record £30.75m, but like Juan Sebastian Veron, he looks a serious talent who simply does not suit United. One thing the Bulgarian and Argentinian have in common is their laconic playing styles. Fast, percussive attacking is the United way and though Berbatov’s ability to hold the ball and use it unhurriedly is what made him attractive to Ferguson, it has also posed a problem.
Against Barcelona, as against Arsenal in the Champions League semi-finals, the Bulgarian was left on the bench as Ferguson went for quicker, more mobile forwards able to adhere to United’s ‘A’ plan of speedy ensemble counters. While in an ideal world it might be nice to retain the different option Berbatov provides, realistically he is one of the assets Ferguson could sell (at a loss) to fund squad-building that could help achieve what is now United’s compelling target, regaining the European crown.

As we didn't win the final I find it interesting that, instead of criticising the tactics and suggesting that Berbatov should have started, he accepts the tactics and says Berbatov shouldn't even be in the squad. It's an interesting logic.

The only other story worth mentioning (barely) is this in The Mail on Sunday, speculating on Owen Hargreaves' injury:

Hargreaves, who has not played since September, is undergoing rehabilitation following an operation to cure tendinitis in both his knees and world-famous surgeon Dr Richard Steadman will not know until July if he will be available for the start of the campaign.

If his comeback is put off until the New Year, Ferguson may be forced to splash out on a replacement.

Rumours And Revolutions

First off, further to yesterday's James Lawton post, I noticed this. After the first leg of the semi-final, after we completely outplayed Arsenal, James Lawton still thought Arsenal would win the Champions League. Strange, not only because we absolutely dominated them in the first leg but, because his recent and ridiculous adulation of the greatness of Barcelona ("champions of football") might suggest he fancied them to win it all the way through...
Onto today's papers and it's all about Ronaldo. I'm tempted to boycott all talk of the Ronaldo saga in these pages, but I guess I can't ignore it, much as I might like to. The latest round of stories is based on this quote from Perez:

"He's also a player that would be very good if he came to Real Madrid," said Pérez. "What I know is what I've read, that there is an agreement by means of which he would come for £80m..." Asked if he would pay that amount, Pérez said: "Next week we will look at the numbers and nobody should doubt that we are going to design with our sporting advisors a spectacular project."

Their seems to be a lot of caution around though, at least in the broadsheets, with The Guardian continuing:

There are, however, complications because it was the former Madrid president, Ramón Calderón, who brokered a deal with Ronaldo's representatives and he was ousted last month. The agreement will not be legally binding and in any case Pérez is understood to be eager to ensure he is not seen as effectively rubber-stamping a transfer negotiated by his predecessor. He will prioritise the signings of Kaka and Ribéry and look to revisit the Ronaldo deal later in the summer while also seeking to bring down United's asking price.

And The Times agreeing:

The likelihood is that Pérez will at least make an inquiry to United, but sources have indicated that he would have no intention of going anywhere near the figure that Calderón had floated last summer.

United, for their part, would have little cause to drop their valuation of a player who has three years remaining on his contract. Ferguson would consider bidding for Ribéry if they were forced to sell Ronaldo, which has raised conspiracy theories that Real have lined up a deal for the France forward with a view to using him as a bargaining chip to sign Ronaldo, but such theories have been dismissed out of hand by officials at Old Trafford.

His comments on Ronaldo also seem pretty insignificant when compared to what he had to say about Kaka:

"Until the competitions finish we are not going to talk with the clubs. But I've always spoken of my great relationship with [the Milan vice-president Adriano] Galliani and this relationship maybe makes it easier that Kaka comes to Madrid."

So there we have it.
Des Kelly is guilty of the biggest overreaction of the day - about Rooney - he has one bad game and apparently this is some sort of crisis. I say some sort of crisis simply because I gave up reading his rubbish after the first 2 paragraphs:

What has happened to Wayne Rooney? Where is the player that struck fear into opposing players the world over?

When he erupted on the scene as part man-child, part boulder, he was a thrilling combination of Maradona, Rocky Marciano and something that had escaped from The Flintstones. No English lad was blessed with the ability to win a game almost single-handedly since Paul Gascoigne in his all-to-brief heyday.

Try it, see how far you get...
Another load of rubbish in The Mirror, Berbatov wants out, allegedly:

the Bulgarian's advisers are making discreet enquiries to other clubs to see whether there is interest if United do not make guarantees about his long-term future.

Whatever.
The Sun report that, after yesterday's Stoke rumour, Scholes is wanted by Bolton:

Scholes is ready to leave Manchester United in search of one last campaign after spending much of this term on the sidelines.

The midfield maestro has grown sick of being a bit-part player at Old Trafford this season and feels it is affecting his form.

Now neighbours Bolton want him to be the central figure in their side by making him the highest-paid player at the club.

Scholes, 34, signed a one-year extension to his contract this season.

But it is unlikely United would demand any sort of transfer fee if the player asked to leave.

The Trotters would be prepared to match his wages of around £70,000 a week. It is understood Scholes would not drive a hard bargain as he is just looking to play one last season of regular football.

I'm still finding it difficult to imagine Scholes anywhere else... I'm thinking this story is probably based on The Sun thinking of a club closer to Manchester than Stoke who could be interested and running with it.

Aftermath

More on Barcelona today.
Paul Hayward singles out Rooney's positioning on the left, arguing that he would have been better served in a traditional forwards role, and while I agree that as the game wore on moving him inside could well have been the best option, in the middle of the piece he pretty much nails the actual problem - no one had a good game, it wasn't so much a tactical thing, as the number of players who didn't show:

Andrés Iniesta, Xavi Hernández and Sergio Busquets eclipsed the Manchester United trio of Anderson, who was a passenger for the 45 minutes he stayed on the field, Michael Carrick, who had an off day, and the 35-year-old Ryan Giggs, who was asked to perform a task beyond his defensive abilities and ageing legs.

In this dispiriting scenario Rooney was a remote presence on the left, while Park Ji-sung scuttled fruitlessly up and down the right and Cristiano Ronaldo filled a centre-forward's role which, he grumbled in the mixed zone, is not his real vocation. At the end, United were chasing the game in a 4-2-4 formation, with Rooney, Ronaldo, Carlos Tevez and Dimitar Berbatov all failing to pose much of a threat.

Even from a traditional attacking role could we really expect Rooney to make up for all that?
Ian Herbert does a very good job at rebutting this Rooney argument:

To extrapolate that conclusion is to overlook United's more fundamental flaw in the Eternal City. When Ferguson's side are ticking along and commanding their customary levels of possession, then Rooney is invaluable out there on the left. He certainly does not favour the wide role but it works. Holding midfielders find him easier to pick up when he is playing in the hole behind a striker but post him out wide, cutting inside on his far superior right foot, and he is far more difficult to stop.

Kevin McCarra is pretty sensible on The Guardian blog, no wholesale changes need come from a one-off bad performance:

There is no purge to be planned. United have had a splendid season by the ­standards of anyone other than irresistible Barcelona. Several members of the ­line-up were groggy in Rome, but this is a club with a habit of emerging from its own confusion just in time to snatch a trophy. Pep Guardiola's side, however, would not allow their opponents enough possession to mount a recovery. ...
United, in any case, ought not to have been so confused and accident-prone in the final. At the opener, the brilliant Andrés Iniesta strode through an ­inviting gap between Carrick and Anderson. Samuel Eto'o went on to make Nemanja Vidic look ponderous and Edwin van der Sar fallible as he broke through to finish at the near post. So shaken were United that gambles were taken prematurely. It might have been a 1990s tribute night in the second half when United seemed to blow the dust off a 4-2-4 system. This served to remind us why that kind of ­boldness was abandoned in the first place. The number of forwards is irrelevant if they have to wait and watch as their ­short-staffed midfield is overrun. ...
Ferguson and his men will get over it.

Oliver Kay isn't quite so sensible, but I'll just quote the start of his piece, because he was apparently in the dressing room after the game:

In their dressing room in the depths of the Stadio Olimpico, the Manchester United players sat in silence as Sir Alex Ferguson, crimson-faced, entered the room. Nobody knew what was coming, but the message was benign. “I could stand here and shout but I’m not going to do that,” he told them before instructing them to dwell on the disappointment long enough to ensure that it leaves them desperate to make amends when they return for pre-season training.

The tone was measured, but the message reflected Ferguson’s long-held belief that defeats must be dwelt on longer than successes. This had been a chastening experience for him and his players, humbled as they lost 2-0 to Barcelona in the Champions League final, and it is one that he expects them to learn from, just as he will strive to take his own lessons from a defeat that might have led him to wonder whether this United team is quite as “special” as he had thought.

Tevez thinks it would have all been so different had he, with his astonishing goalscoring record..., started the game:

“I wanted to play in the starting line-up in Rome but that decision was down to the coach.

“But with a strategy more attacking in the first minute then perhaps the result would have been different."

Did he arrive on the bench later than everyone else? If he watched the first ten minutes he'd have probably noticed how we spent 90% of it attacking Barcelona...
Mark Ogden has a very hypothetical article on Ronaldo - if Ronaldo does this, if Sir Alex does that, if Real Madrid do the other. One word - pointless.
Henry Winter has an interesting article on next season. Not a sensational overreaction to our defeat but a considered piece about how everyone fits in, and some speculation about Benzema joining us:

It is in attack that most significant action is required by Ferguson, being guided by the principle of conjuring most dazzle out of his two leading lights, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney. Ronaldo is at his most lethal raiding down the right while Rooney, currently utilised on the left, prefers playing in the hole. One of the myriad attractions of using Rooney centrally is that, being such a selfless soul, he will instinctively drop into midfield to help out, a quality United could have done with against Xavi and Andres Iniesta.

Rooney could prosper off Benzema. The French international would certainly give United a sharper spearhead; when the Lyons front man troubled United in the Champions League last season, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic voiced their respect for another talent to emerge from Stade Gerland. Ferguson has spoken of his admiration for Benzema before, and was linked with the striker last summer. ...

Berbatov lacks the pace to run behind defences but certainly has the technique to play the target-man. Everyone talks about Ferguson sorting out Tevez's future but he must address the Berbatov situation. His club-record £30.75million buy spent two-thirds of United's most crucial game of the year on the bench. Ferguson has two alternatives: cut his losses or start Berbatov week in, week out.

For all the fans' scepticism, selling makes little sense. Berbatov's expert first touch and ability to shield the ball means that he should be an important cog in the Big Red Machine. He rarely gives the ball away, even under intense pressure, and United's frequent profligacy in possession against Barcelona cost them dear.

Ferguson must now trust in Berbatov. The Bulgarian should be granted the chance to win over the fans, to live up to his price tag. If Ferguson continues to insist that left is best for Rooney (allowing him to move into dangerous central areas when shaking off his right-back marker) then Berbatov should be given a run in the hole.

The Stretford End would love to see Tevez staying and starting. Leaving aside United's concerns about paying money to an owner rather than a club, the £25 million it would cost to turn the Argentinian's rental into a permanent deal is excessive for a player viewed by Ferguson as an impact substitute. Ferguson must think about shaping his first team, not his bench, and the Tevez money could go into a Benzema fund.

He even gives us a starting XI for next season:

(4-2-3-1) Foster; Rafael, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra; Carrick, Hargreaves; Ronaldo, Rooney, Valencia; Benzema.

Which looks OK to me.

Matt Lawton comes to the exact conclusion, first off by saying it's midfield where we need strengthening and then by saying this:

On the evidence of recent weeks, it might still be worth trying to get Tevez at a knockdown price and then sell Berbatov. A courageous call, perhaps, but worth it if the right kind of players can then be acquired.

How does Tevez escape criticism, yet again - on the evidence of the season, Berbatov is better.

Alan Hansen tell us why we lost. To be honest, I didn't read it.

Sam Wallace tells us why we lost, and includes some actual praise of Ronaldo:

On the occasion of one of his greatest disappointments, the behaviour of Ronaldo was encouragingly gracious. On more than one occasion he glanced up at the stadium's big screen for a glimpse of that face he loves more than any other. He swerved a handshake with Carles Puyol as the Barcelona team applauded United up the steps but that was understandable. He never gave up on a pretty wretched night.

A logical mind would say that joining Real Madrid now is an even greater folly, so lost in Barcelona's shadow are they. But if Ronaldo's reasons for staying at United were that they were Europe's premiere team, then Wednesday night has weakened that premise. Yet for all his histrionics, Ronaldo has never been less than professional. If he turns up at United next season there's no reason to doubt he will probably end up top scorer again.

The Sun has an odd quote from Ronaldo which I haven't seen elsewhere:

Ronaldo said: “Ferguson did not tell me anything. Nothing.

“I didn’t realise I was to play as a striker. Against Arsenal in the semi second leg I played and played well but that is all.”

And as for the Ronaldo saga, the papers are split with some having Ronaldo gone, others having Real not wanting him anymore, so I'm ignoring them stories. The Sun has another piece full of speculation on Ronaldo being unhappy at United which I won't quote, its the usual stuff.

In bizarre news of the day, Stoke apparently want Paul Scholes as player coach. Paul Scholes? Leaving Man United? Surely not...

High On Insanity

I'm actually getting a bit bored of slagging of James Lawton. If only one day he would write something that wasn't so badly written and badly argued to be laughable I could stop. Today he continues his masturbation over Barcelona, although he does manage stop that briefly to match his Barcelona as "Champions of Football" of yesterday with Ryan Giggs as "Footballer of the Years". Like any masturbation it is of course best done in privacy rather than in a national newspaper. I'll not quote much from it, imagine it, James Lawton masturbating, if you must. I'll just point out a couple of his errors of logic. First off he says this:

Among other things, it tells us quite how much can happen in a single year of football; how a landscape can be changed so radically the old one is almost beyond recall.

And later he says this:

Certainly, there is no sense here that the wrong team finished up with the greatest trophy offered by club football. Barcelona, let's not forget, were claiming the prize for the second time in four years – and on precisely the same terms negotiated by the brilliant Josep Guardiola's predecessor, Frank Rijkaard.

If he'd simply said "this years final was better than last years final", fair enough (although you could probably argue that last years was closer, tenser, more dramatic and more interesting throughout its 120+ minutes if you so wished). What James Lawton does is, on the one hand, claim that this final represents a sea change, a totally new way of football, then, on the other hand, he tells us that Barcelona did exactly what they have been doing for the last 4 years, so where's the change? To argue a case for a sea change based on two games of football seems a stupidly small sample, even for James Lawton. I could demonstrate something entirely different based on 4 games of football - our semi-final games against Arsenal and Barcelona's semi-final games against Chelsea - that we are the side that play beautiful attacking football, whereas Barcelona are a bunch of cloggers. It would be wrong, but it wouldn't be quite as wrong as James Lawton is.
And James Lawton even mentions the Chelsea games. If I want to make an argument, an over the top, stupid argument, and something that disproves my argument exists, what do I do? I either ignore it, or I make a point of challenging it. What does James Lawton do:

Certainly, as the fans of Barça threw themselves joyously into the Fontana de Trevi here in the small hours of yesterday morning, it was not so easy to remember the mood in Moscow last year after the slugfest between Manchester United and Chelsea. But then if you tried hard enough it did percolate through the prism of Barcelona's beautiful display of exquisite and inventive ball control. It centred on the awed reaction of a Spanish observer in the Luzhniki Stadium to the pace and the pummelling pressure produced by both teams before United's shoot-out victory. "My God," said the Spaniard, "only English football could produce such football at this level." ...

Some no doubt will claim that the status quo would very likely have been maintained if Uefa had appointed a passably competent referee for the second leg of the semi-final at Stamford Bridge, and there is no question Chelsea all but obliterated Barcelona's magic until the moment Iniesta rescued his team with that late strike.

He doesn't do either, he just mentions it. If Barcelona are so "magical", so great at football, why couldn't they play anything remotely like the beautiful game against Chelsea? If this is such a great victory for football that, he writes later, "lights up the world," are we just meant to ignore the semi-final? If you want to glory in Barcelona's beautiful play as epoch-changing tell us why they couldn't produce it in the semi-final, how their great play produced one shot on target - that's some attacking football isn't it (And I should point out that I'm not slagging of Barcelona here, they do play great football, I'm slagging off James Lawton's hyperbole, hyperbole that can't even be bothered with plain old logic). And the even more obvious contradiction in the argument is that he tells us this anecdote about, "only English football could produce such football at this level," and proceeds to tell us how Chelsea managed to completely stifle the game against Barcelona. If the final had been between Chelsea and Barcelona would he have used that anecdote and then said, "but they were wrong, because a combination of English and Spanish football produced something very similar this year," or would he have simply bemoaned how those nasty men from Chelsea ruined the dreams of the magic people from Barcelona and stamped on the dreams of little children everywhere?
If Barcelona were truly changing the landscape of football wouldn't this year's semi-final have been impossible? Which is to say, if Chelsea are still going out to stifle their opponents, rather than trying to beat them at "the beautiful game" then nothing has changed has it? There's been no radical shift in anything. Even James Lawton says that 4 years ago Barcelona won with the same principles that they won it with this time, so in 4 years the landscape has changed not a jot.

Blackness

Let's get this over with. Today's papers.
Matt Dickinson in The Times sums up the most disappointing aspect:

The final parp of the whistle put Manchester United out of their misery last night, and how often do we write that of the side led by the most insanely driven pensioner in sport — a man still biting off a journalist’s head for asking a perfectly fair question about his future plans?

Not in European Cup finals, where United’s is a glorious history of extra-time heroics, incredible climaxes and late-night dramas playing havoc with television schedules.

As the red ribbons of United were untied from the European Cup last night, the lack of fuss, the lack of fight, made this a shocking performance in the Stadio Olimpico, if not a surprising result. ...

As he searched for an explanation, Sir Alex Ferguson could not manage any better than to bemoan a terrible first goal to concede (no argument there) and Barcelona’s unwillingness to give the ball back thereafter. The inquest will not stop there after a night when United lacked the tenaciousness and the defiant spirit we normally associate with Ferguson’s teams. ...

United will feel bad enough without us blaming them for failing to make this the spectacle it might have been — but Barcelona won without needing to be near their best.

Tony Cascarino makes a decent point for the first time ever:

Cristiano Ronaldo was frustrated and no wonder. United cannot expect Ronaldo to win games for them single-handedly all the time. He needed others to chip in.

A point echoed by Kevin Garside:

Cristiano Ronaldo cannot win European Cups on his own, as hard as he tried on Wednesday night.

Henry Winter points to our midfield problems:
As the inquests begin, as the carcass of United’s embarrassing defeat is picked over, the tactics employed by Ferguson will inevitably come under the severest of scrutiny.

His decision to start Ryan Giggs in the hole behind Cristiano Ronaldo in a 4-2-3-1 formation backfired badly, managing the remarkable double of somehow leaving Ronaldo isolated and Michael Carrick and Anderson badly exposed. In a long season, this was a game too far for Giggs, who was constantly bypassed. A 4-3-3 approach, which most observers had expected, would have brought more security to midfield. ...

United were virtually playing the Polo formation – nothing in the middle – and Barcelona soon added a second, this time headed in by Messi. It is on chastening occasions like this that the loss to tendinitis of Owen Hargreaves is felt most acutely. A natural defensive midfielder, Hargreaves would have got among Xavi and Iniesta.

Kevin McCarra manages to inject a bit of hope:

The modern-day United are too adept at this style of football. Alterations are ­guaranteed and Ben Foster, for instance, must come to the moment of truth next season as he is forced to show that he really ought to supersede Edwin van der Sar. By and large, though, Ferguson does not have a group of jaded or old players.

Some, like Wayne Rooney, are of an age and temperament to be crazed by a desire to set matters right next season. That is United's consolation. The European Cup is no longer theirs, but the footballers are vigorous enough to be galvanised by a mission to recover it.

James Lawton gets the chance to write the report he must have been waiting for weeks, and which he probably wrote weeks ago, I'll just quote the first and last paragraphs, they give the idea:

To call Barcelona the champions of Europe this morning is to give them their lesser title. The one they demand, unquestionably, is champions of football. ...
It would be comfortable to say the champions of England were beaten. Unfortunately, though, it ran a little deeper than that. They had been undressed and outclassed by the most beautiful team in all of football.

Simon Barnes, in an article on Sir Alex, points to a few things, and a referee's decision which everyone else seems to have forgotten about:

Greatness can also be removed by a decision of a referee, and whether the decision is correct or not hardly matters. The power these men have over Ferguson and his destiny is dizzying, almost incomprehensible. How could anyone live with it? One blast of the whistle and Fergie’s rightful place is snatched from him. No wonder Ferguson, like most managers, is principally remarkable for impotent rage.

One player can lose everything in a moment of distraction. Anderson’s slip-up for the first goal, the referee’s refusal to send off Gerard Piqué for body-checking Ronaldo. These matters are beyond planning, beyond computation, beyond the scope of management. And yet it was these things that left United chasing the game after ten minutes in which they had looked unbeatable.

Comments from Sir Alex:

"The simple reason [we lost] was possession," Ferguson volunteered. "We didn't do anything with it. We recognised beforehand that the strength of Barcelona was their three central midfield players and that's why I used Giggs, who could play towards the front but also drop into midfield, but their possession of the ball hurt us. It wasn't really Messi who was the problem. It was Iniesta and Xavi. They can keep the ball all night long."

Ferguson's magnanimity did not end there. "You have to give credit to a very good Barcelona team," he said. "If they get in front of you they are very difficult to beat. They kept possession of the ball and made it very difficult to get back. When we did get possession we didn't do well with it. Credit to them, the better team won."

Slightly less flattering to Barcelona comments from Sir Alex:

"Our whole season has been built on our defensive strength but they were very shoddy goals," said the United manager. "It has to be said that it was shoddy defending, particularly the first goal, which gave them a great boost.

"That goal was a killer for us. It was their first attack and it was a bad start for us. We had been confident and bright at the start but we got nervous after the goal. We had plenty of time to recover and had some half-chances in the second half but the crosses were disappointing. We weren't at our best. We didn't plan to concede that early but it's a fact and we didn't deal with it well enough. That's the story."

Player Comments, Ferdinand:

"It's just a shame we didn't play well," said Ferdinand. "We still created five or six chances but they were the better team. You have to give credit to Barcelona. They played well. On a night like this you need to play your best football and we didn't produce it – all over the park, individually and collectively."

Rooney:

"I think Iniesta is the best player in the world right now. They pass the ball so well. If you don't take your chances against them, they will punish you. We're hurting right now but we just have to make sure we get back to another final and play better.

"It is a big disappointment but Barcelona were the better team. Barcelona scored two good goals and unfortunately for us, they came at good times. That made it very difficult for us. It is very disappointing and the feeling at the moment is not a good one."

Giggs:

"We maybe chased it and didn't keep our shape as well as we should have. We still created chances. But we said whoever turned up on the night would win and that has proved to be the case. They turned up and played some great football — we didn't. I think if we had gone a goal ahead, we're capable of keeping the ball like they did. But credit to them, they deserved it tonight."

And finally to Ronaldo, whose comments about his future don't look so bad when placed in the context they were given, of going off with the international team:

'My future now is the national squad, so that we can win, so that we can be in a good position in our qualifying group,' he said.

'About clubs, I do not want to talk about that, I want to rest, go on holiday, I am very tired, I have played a lot of games, a lot of pressure. The future, we will see.'

As to the game:

'This is one of the biggest disappointments of my career,' he added. ' I cannot explain it. We, the players, were not well, the tactics were not good. Everything went wrong.

'We have to give credit to Barcelona, but they were a bit lucky to be here because Chelsea did not deserve to lose and no-one has mentioned that.

'It was very bad in the dressing room afterwards but that is normal after you lose a game. I have to congratulate Barcelona, they were better, but football is just like this. Only the winners get talked about.'

The Trouble With You

Humorous clip of Ronaldo interviewing himself:
"Is Messi a better player than you?"
"Maybe ... I'm a better reporter than him"
Genius.

Overload

OVERLOAD - Jesus, today's a tough one, I've got upward of 40 tabs open in Firefox right now, and they're all related to the Champions League Final, so today's paper round up may lack much coherence, and may miss out the odd thing, and the grammar and spelling may not quite be there... But anyway, let's get straight down to it.
Let's start with the infamous James Lawton, who seems to want Barcelona to win tonight. Here he is, after starting by mentioning Sophia Loren, talking about Messi:

Messi's kind may never be transferred to celluloid but it was real enough when his name swept down the pavement cafes. The resulting crowd spilt into the sunlit street and put the police and security guards under considerable pressure.

What kind of glamour precisely? It is that which comes with astonishing accomplishment and the promise of unforgettable deeds, and if you don't happen to be utterly committed to the cause of Manchester United it is impossible not to grasp the sense that the great anticipation of the Eternal City is for a performance from the little man to transcend the normal expectations placed on a single player in a single game.

A little bit of every football fan, whatever his allegiance, wants it be so. He or she wants to see the ransacking brilliance of the little man on a flood tide in the Stadio Olimpico, however underwhelmed he might have been by the statement from Messi that he and his Barça team-mates have already established their right to put their hands on the greatest trophy in the club game.

But then who will store up indignation if Messi proves as good as his word, if he outstrips the Adonis, Cristiano Ronaldo, if he does with wit and mesmerising acuity what his Portuguese rival to the title of the world's greatest footballer does with an imperious surge and ball-striking which can render feeble so much of happens around him?

Not many, you can be sure, because there is nothing quite like the sight of an ultimate player to blur the old boundaries of partisanship.

Manchester United, who so many times have been carried on tides of romance and affection which had as their origins emotions which were as much about an idea as a reality, can hardly complain if Barcelona are guaranteed the most passionate support in the big and beautifully set stadium beside the Tiber. It is odd yet indisputable that it is not United but Barça who represent the romance tonight, who promise the greater capacity to make beauty on the football field.

You wonder if Lawton watched us destroy Arsenal in the semi-final, or watched Barcelona struggle against a workmanlike Chelsea at the same stage with Messi anonymous (although remember how Lawton bizarrely spent much of his match report of that game on Messi's brilliance). You don't have to wonder long though, because he mentions it as evidence of the romance of Barcelona:

The suspicion here is that United will sooner or later rejoice in their new casting as the hard and practical men. To reach this conclusion you do not have to draw out some elaborate form line. You just have to recall how perilously Barça lived at Stamford Bridge in the semi-final a few weeks ago, how seriously they were arrested by the power and the application organised by Guus Hiddink, a work of stifling so close to complete that not only was Messi reduced to the rag ends of his brilliance, Iniesta was directing the team's first shot at goal in stoppage time when he conjured the goal that carried him here.

And then you think of United's dismantling of Arsenal in the same round, admittedly with a little help from fate early on, but in the end with a certainty that so cruelly laid bare Arsène Wenger's belief that his young, and defensively inadequate, team had indeed found some of the unity and the innate brilliance of the greater sides he had before. After seeing that, and then the way Chelsea hounded Barça in a way that could have brought only one result but for the hapless work of the referee, the magic of Messi and his team-mates could never be quite so persuasive this side of tonight's kick-off.

Of course the magic lingers.

So he spends the first half arguing about how romantic and magical Barcelona and Messi are and how we're not, and then cites games in which the opposite was proven. So great was Barcelona's "magic" that Lawton admits that they had a mere one shot, yet the magic lingers? We're cast in the role of ruiners of the dream? It may very well be an easy option to portray a final as a game between two different types of football, the beautiful and the ugly, and yet is it really necessary to do it so cackhandedly? (and here's Johann Cruyff, a man who knows something about good football on us:"United play good, daring football and it will be a great spectacle.")
I think James Lawton should have consulted with Martin Samuel before submitting his rubbish. Samuel is not quite so taken in by Barca:

You think you are the best team in the world? You think you play the most beautiful football? OK, now show us. Here, where it matters, against the reigning champions.

Here, against Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney. Here, with the world looking on. This is the night on which Barcelona must step up if their pre-match tub-thumping is not to be exposed as hollow noise. ...

So questions remain; not that one would know this from Barcelona's recent pronouncements.

The process of revisionism began almost immediately after the second leg with Chelsea, when Catalan cheerleaders such as Johan Cruyff began making immodest claims. It was total football, according to defender Daniel Alves, total hyperbole, to many who saw the two games, in which Barcelona were first out-muscled and then outwitted.

Chelsea executed a negative game-plan perfectly at the Nou Camp and should have won at Stamford Bridge. The referee got the major decisions wrong for both sides, but did more harm to Chelsea's cause. Barcelona's crowing since then, as if they were at any stage in charge of the match rather than washed towards Rome by the vagaries of official incompetence, greatly overplays their influence on the outcome. ...

Barcelona's dedication to victory in a certain manner makes them, like Arsenal, the friend of the purist. Yet, talk of deserving to win a competition as hard-fought as the Champions League, particularly when a team as cultured, expansive and consistent as United are the opposition, cries out for rebuttal.

And one sentence that could well have been written with James Lawton in mind:

The trophy should be handed over by Don King, rather than Michel Platini. Barcelona's preening could be mistaken for the confidence of Muhammad Ali, except it does not always come with the smile attached.

If anything, it smacks of a dangerous sense of privilege. Barcelona's most fervent defenders tend to paint their opponents as one-dimensional, and this includes United.

Henry Winter is not taken in either:

For all the paeans to Barcelona, for all the trumpeting of Lionel Messi’s fabulous talent, and admiring glances at the tempo-setting skills of Andres Iniesta and Xavi, Manchester United look ready to assume their place among the greats of the game. “When you have a team that is talented and doesn’t want to lose, you are talking about a special team,’’ said Sir Alex Ferguson.

Special? Yes. Cristiano Ronaldo is back to his match-winning best, Rio Ferdinand is fit, Wayne Rooney is the 'Total Footballer’ for the 21st century, all touch and energy, while Nemanja Vidic will storm into Barcelona’s defence at United’s first corner with a venom not since in Rome since the Visigoths.

A final that looks great on paper should end with Ferguson and his History Boys in the record books, becoming the first side to claim back-to-back Champions Leagues while the Scot equals Bob Paisley’s mark of three trophies. The powerful conviction that Ferguson’s team will prevail stems from one unanswerable reality: United have a better balance between defence and attack.

Oliver Kay also makes a lot of us defending well:

Last season Sir Alex Ferguson unashamedly placed the emphasis on defence in both legs of the semi-final against Barcelona. It was an approach that was more than justified as they won 1-0 on aggregate, but it led Frank Rijkaard, the Catalan club’s coach at the time, to wonder what happened to English football’s spirit of adventure. “It is not the most beautiful way to play football,” the Dutchman said.

Ferguson was far from apologetic that night. “What he is saying is that we didn’t go whoosh,” the United manager said, making a theatrical gesture with his hand. “We didn’t go hell for leather all the time and attack too early. I think he would have liked us to.”

Spool forward 12 months to yesterday in Rome and Ferguson, while guarded about his plans, was not encouraging the belief that United will go “whoosh” this evening. Whereas Pep Guardiola, the Barcelona coach, was urging his team “to feel good, to feel beautiful, to be daring”, Ferguson was saying that “defending is a part of the game”, even if he added, quite pointedly, that “we are a different team to Chelsea, a different style.”

Different to Chelsea they may be, but United will play with ten men behind the ball when Barcelona are in possession this evening, with Rooney and Park required to double up at times to support their full backs. Park, in particular, has an important job, helping Evra to combat the threat of the mercurial Lionel Messi, but United’s defensive strategy will be two-layered, with Anderson, the Brazil midfield player, detailed to break up Barcelona’s passing game in the role vacated by the suspended Darren Fletcher.

Farther forward there will be the flair of Ronaldo, supported in numbers when the opportunity arises, as Park, Rooney and others did in the semi-final, second leg away to Arsenal, but entertaining will not be top of United’s list of priorities

Where his argument breaks down is that we were very entertaining against Arsenal (how much more entertaining than that third goal could we have got?), we defended well when necessary and played brilliant attacking football when necessary.
Shaun Custis in The Sun has a look at the Messi vs Ronaldo debate and says their's only one winner:

There is a reason why Barcelona's Argie star Messi finished runner-up to United ace Ronaldo in both the World and European Player of the year awards - he is not as good a player.

A team of 11 Ronaldos against 11 Messis would win easily because Ronaldo can do it all.

Give the king of Portugal a free-kick from 40 yards and in and you would never back against him scoring.

Put the ball at his feet and defenders turn to jelly.

Stick him in the middle when a cross comes over and centre-backs panic because they know he can beat them in the air.

Need to hold onto a lead and defend a corner, get Ronaldo in there. He is as likely to win the header as Rio Ferdinand or Nemanja Vidic.

He's probably a great goalkeeper as well.

Ian Herbert in The Independent trots out the usual boring and disproved Ronaldo argument:

The suspicion that Ronaldo bullies only weak opponents, especially within the safety of Old Trafford, and struggles against his peers still lingers. But it is one which fades with time. Sulks and complaints might have remained a part of his make-up all season but United's journey to the banks of the Tiber has been filled with reminders of Ronaldo's ability to almost defy the laws of physics.

There was the 40-yard, 64mph strike which stunned and defeated Porto in the Estadio do Drgao in the quarter-finals, the 41-yarder which stunned Arsenal in the semis, and the goal of the tournament – the seven-pass, box-to-box move at the Emirates which he ended by sweeping home the goal which confirmed United's passage to the Stadio Olimpico.

So in what sense does it still linger, in the same way that the Barca "magic" still lingers I guess... Oliver Holt approaches the same argument, with a more sensible approach:

The days when his occasional critics could accuse him of being a flat-track bully, dominant against weaker teams but quiet against better opponents, have long gone. He scored in last year's final against Chelsea. He scored the stunning goal that rescued United when they were in danger of being eliminated earlier in this year's competition against Porto. And then he destroyed Arsenal.

I also like this brief vignette from the press conference:

"Who," he said, "is better: Ronaldo or Messi?" Ferguson smiled and looked past Rio Ferdinand to where Ronaldo was sitting, one place further along the row.

Ronaldo did not smile. He looked back at Ferguson and then, with just a hint of the arrogance he showed towards his boss when he was substituted against Manchester City recently, he made a dismissive gesture with his hand.

The message could not have been clearer had he shouted it out. "Go on," he was saying, "tell him."

Even Mark bloody Lawrenson thinks that Ronaldo is better:

Cristiano Ronaldo will prove he is the best player in the world by helping Manchester United write another piece of history in Rome.

There has been endless comparison and debate as to whether Ronaldo or Barcelona’s superstar Lionel Messi is top dog in European football.

But if Ronaldo plays anywhere near like he did at the Emirates in the Champions League semi final then the Portugese winger will settle the argument once and for all.

Ronaldo was simply unstoppable that night and, when both players are at the top of their game, then United’s kingpin comes out on top every time.

The difference is that Ronaldo can get behind defences in a way that Messi cannot to anywhere near the same effect.

Ronaldo is strong, good in the air and has a better all round game than Messi in each and every department.

Steven Howard in The Sun looks beyond the obvious battle to give praise to Rooney:

The build-up to the Champions League final has been dominated by the meeting of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Wayne Rooney appears to have been overlooked. Which is probably just how he likes it.

For much of his career he has been the man in the spotlight and sometimes to his detriment.

Tonight he can come in under the wire and produce what many of us hope will be the performance of a lifetime.

Rooney is the only player on either side to have played in all 12 Champions League matches.

Much of United's resilience and ability to hold off Liverpool's title challenge was due to his continued presence in the side and a growing understanding of his responsibility.

Most admirable of all has been his acceptance to play out of position for the good of the team.

There's a good article of praise for Sir Alex by Oliver Holt, I'll only quote this section (the rest is worth reading though), a little demonstration of the pettiness of a certain Rafa Benitez:

It was at the Britannia Stadium, straight after Stoke City had held Liverpool to a draw at the beginning of January, when I noticed it first.

As Rafa Benitez spoke again and again about Sir Alex Ferguson, he refused to refer to him by his proper title.

It was ‘Mister Ferguson this’ and ‘Mister Ferguson that’. Never Sir Alex, even though the United boss was knighted long before Benitez arrived in England.

Benitez knew what he was doing when he spat out the words and tried to justify his recent rant about the things Ferguson had been doing to undermine Liverpool.

‘Mister Ferguson’ was his way of withholding respect, just like he did when he refused to congratulate him on winning the title a couple of weeks ago.

There's no point attaching too much blame to Benitez. It’s a little petty, maybe, but gestures of defiance are all any of Fergie’s rivals have got left.

It’s their only sanctuary, their only weapon against a man who has defied the football norm by getting better as he gets older. There’s nothing else left but the empty gesture. All other resistance is futile. Sir Alex’s legend is secure. He is untouchable now.

David Pleat has an analysis of the two sides' plans here.
(now suffering from cut and paste fatigue) Kevin McCarra in the Guardian basically says anything could happen..
Paul Hayward contrasts Ronaldo and Messi:

Ronaldo's game is built around the ­dramatic moment, the sudden impact. His whole bearing is constructed to convey the star quality of an immaculate prancing horse. Messi, on the other hand, appears to view fame as an unfortunate offshoot of his astounding ability to carry the ball into tight spaces and bamboozle defenders with his scuttling. He could never say, as Ronaldo did this week: "I'm really a winner and therefore I'm going to want more [European titles]." From Messi comes the deep mistrust of language and talking of one who disdains engagement with his audience. "Anyone who likes football admires a player like Ronaldo," he says. "But I think it's about two great teams and it won't just depend on one player."

Onto comments from the participants. Sir Alex:

"When you have a bunch of talented players who don’t want to lose, then you’re talking about a special team,’’ said Fergie in Rome.

"I’ve said many times that this club should have won more European Cups and this is an opportunity for us to win it again and put ourselves up there with the great clubs in Europe. This team has that kind of future. It’s a young team with the right kind of experience that could very well go on to win it more in future years.

"We’ve won it three times. Matching Real Madrid’s nine triumphs is the long-term goal. Possibly not in my time, but it’s something to aim for.

"It’s unusual that no club has ever successfully defended the Champions League. But at United we’re good at doing things for the first time.

"During the 1960s and 1970s, when it was the old European Cup format, it was done regularly with great teams like Bayern, Ajax and Real Madrid.

"I can’t give you a reason why it hasn’t been done since the change to the Champions League, but we have an opportunity to change that and I hope we take it."

Rio Ferdinand:

"I just want to win," he said. "I don't care how the game goes. It would be nice if it was a great game with loads of skill and loads of goals for us.

"But people don't remember it for being a great final. People only remember the winners, that's all."

John O'Shea:

“Obviously you’re thinking who you might be up against, whether they start on your side or on the opposite side,” the Ireland defender said. “To be fair, the Barcelona team are like us. They pop up all over the place. You’ve got to be prepared for every eventuality. If Henry plays on the left, it could be him, but equally it could be Messi. Even easier, then . . .”
“I would never just stay at a club for the sake of winning a medal,” O’Shea said. “I would have to play a part. There was a case where the manager brought in a few new additions and it was probably the hindrance of me playing in so many positions that came into play. But luckily I’ve stuck at it and I’ve played a part in every season so far when we’ve been successful. Hopefully that will continue.”

Ryan Giggs:

"this season we have won the league for a third successive time and I think if we win the Champions League as well you will not get very many people arguing against it being rated as the best-ever United side.

"Nobody has ever defended the Champions League. To accept that challenge and succeed would, on it's own, be brilliant.

"But to have won a hat-trick of leagues as well, you have to talk in terms of this being the best team the club have had."

"It has been my most enjoyable season. You appreciate things a lot more as you get older and obviously beating Barcelona would be the ideal way to finish it off."

And Giggs on Ronaldo's future:

"He is at the best club.

"Cristiano has proved he is the best player in the world over the last couple of years and he has done that at United, so why leave? He's still a young player, still learning the game and can still improve. He can do that at United."

Thank god that's over...

All the footprints you've ever left and fear expecting ahead (Barcelona - Champions League Final)

So this is the big one. The Champions League. Not only the chance to win it, but the chance to become the first team to defend the Champions League. Not only that, but back to back domestic and European doubles. Does it get better than this?
Sir Alex looks towards greatness:

"This is an opportunity for us to be put alongside a lot of the great teams of Europe," said Ferguson.

"If you look back, sides like Ajax, AC Milan and Bayern Munich regularly won it on consecutive seasons."

"There have been a lot of unlucky teams in world football but when you look at the pantheon of great teams you need to have won the European Cup to have that tag," said Ferguson.

"There is no question about that. It has always been that way. Teams like Manchester United and Barcelona have to win the trophy to be regarded in that respect.

"It is unusual that no one has done it (defended the trophy) since the Champions League started, but we are good at doing things first and this is our opportunity.

"Great teams used to do it but not now. We have an opportunity and hopefully it is something we can tick off."

And yet it says a lot that he goes on:

"This particular team has that type of future and the experience to do well over the next few years and hopefully on Wednesday we can endorse that."

This is just the beginning...

And, lest we get carried away, we face a team that are themselves looking to make history. Barcelona have the chance to be the first Spanish team to do the treble of domestic league, cup and European cup.

So we have two teams looking to make history, two clubs with great history, two teams who play great football, and, in Ronaldo and Messi, probably the best two players in the world facing each other. Could it be set up any better?

The consensus opinion on our team for the final is that it will match the team that started the 2nd leg of the Arsenal game, with the obvious exception of Fletcher:

Van der Sar, O'Shea, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Fletcher, Carrick, Anderson, Park, Ronaldo, Rooney.

The player put in the place of Fletcher is Giggs. How long Giggs could last matching Fletcher's work rate is certainly a question to be asked, meaning one sub would have to be used to replace him at some time during the second half. Could Giggs and Park swap positions with Giggs providing the industry down the wing (as he did in the 2nd leg against Porto) and Park breaking up the play in midfield, again how long would he last (having just refreshed my memory, Giggs managed 90 minutes in this role against Porto)? Another, more attacking option could be to play Berbatov instead of Fletcher, partnered by Ronaldo, with Rooney and Park on the wings and Anderson and Carrick in central midfield. This would of course provide more freedom for Barcelona's central midfielders. The other option would be to ask Ronaldo to provide the industry going back and forward on the wing that Park provides, moving Park inside. with Berbatov up front by himself. This would of course stifle Ronaldo where he is most dangerous, up front. So I think we'll probably start as we did against Arsenal. The great thing about our Champions League campaign this season is the way that Sir Alex has shuffled his pack for each different challenge (with things only going awry in the first leg against Porto), so I expect Sir Alex to choose a team that is more than capable of controlling the game. Whether it'll be a predictable team, we'll have to wait and see.

And now, after all the words, it's almost time to get it on...

But first, the prediction: Evra to have Messi in his pocket, Vidic and Ferdinand to eat up everything that comes near them, Ronaldo and Rooney to have the games of their lives, Man Utd to win 2-0.

Flashback Memories part 2

Now let's relive some of those magic moments through video.
First off 1999, at University at the time, watched this in a pub with quite a few Leeds fans, who were all having a very good time, for 90 minutes or so...



Then 2008
First video, 50 second highlights of the match

Second video, the penalty shoot out, watched this with my head mainly in my hands until the final moment...


And now some highlights from this season, was looking for a video with all our goals for the season on it, but failed, so here's some highlights from individual matches.
Inter 1st leg


Inter 2nd leg (this was the best I could find...)


For Porto let's just cut to the chase...


Arsenal 2nd leg


And the lesson of all that... Our league form this season may have gone up and down but in the Champions League this season we've just been getting better and better...

Flashback Memories

Let's relive how we got the Champions League final through all the rubbish (and some good stuff) the papers have written about us throughout the year.
Our first game was home to Villerreal and ended 0-0, leading to these wise words:

It was quite a party in Moscow 119 days ago and the suspicion lingers that Manchester United are still struggling to get over the hangover.

The previous five teams to defend the Champions League trophy have not fared well in the attempt and last night Manchester United discovered why. The monumental effort of winning the thing, coupled with defending it and maintaining an assault on the domestic title, is gruelling beyond belief, even for a collective of the world’s finest players.

Jumping ahead (out of necessity, I seem to have managed to miss posting on every other group game...) this is what Martin Samuel had to say on January 15:

For if Manchester United are heading for the scrap of their lives on the home front, overtaking Liverpool and winning two cups, then adding a consecutive European triumph to it could prove mission impossible.
Indeed, a betting man with any respect for the formbook would attempt to buck the recession by placing a large wager on Inter Milan, champions of Italy, to dispatch United in the first knockout round next month. ...
records are records for a reason, and the fact is since the European Cup changed to its Champions League format, no winner has retained the title.
Less widely realised, however, is the exhausting impact an appearance in a Champions League final has on the subsequent form of the winning club.

(on a side note, while looking through posts I came across this quote from Tevez:

Tevez said.”It would be very difficult to have to leave one of the biggest clubs in the world. I spoke with the [chief executive] of the club [David Gill], but nothing is signed yet. We are now waiting until June and we will see what happens.”

So much for his recent claims that no one at the club has ever spoke to him about staying...)
Let's remind ourselves of Mourhino before the first leg against Inter:

“It doesn’t matter how many of my team can get into theirs, because my team is more than the sum of the parts,” he said. “Players don’t play individually, and United is not better than us.”

And how he changes his tune before the second leg:

"In attack they have a group of incredible strikers. He can choose the combinations he wants. If he prefers a targetman he goes for Dimitar Berbatov. If he prefers speed and movement he goes for Carlos Tevez. He has this ammunition in his hands and he is clever in the way he does it.
“We will be trying to do it against what I have to say is a very good team,” he said. “We know what we have to do. We know our qualities and how we can create problems for them. They know it is going to be difficult for them.”

Here's the ever rubbish James Lawton after the Inter game:

In Milan Manchester United oozed the quality of masters of Europe. Here they looked nothing like that. Indeed, at times it seemed they could do with a few lessons in conviction from, yes, Liverpool.

Martin Samuel, perhaps mindful of what he'd said previously, said we'd overcome the main hurdle:

This victory may not win the prize for the performance of the week by an English club in Europe, but do not underestimate it. There were flaws, yes, and a 20-minute period when the champions of Europe were far from comfortable but Inter Milan are the finest team in Italy, and this is a notoriously difficult time in the season for European Cup holders.

The last 16 has been the graveyard of champions for those lifting the European crown in the previous four seasons and, having run through it without fear, Ferguson's players can now let their imaginations go wild.

And Sir Alex had something funny to say:

'I didn't know if I was watching a game of football or suicide!"

And onto Porto, where everything seemed to be going wrong after the first leg, leading Vidic to talk of tiredness:

"I don't think it's a problem with confidence," said Vidic. "We have had many games this year – Wednesday then Saturday then Wednesday, that type of thing – and we've had a lot of players injured, and then players coming back from injury. It's difficult. We definitely need Rio back. Rio and all the injured players – Anderson, [Dimitar] Berbatov and all the rest.

"We need fresh bodies because a lot of the players are playing so much at the moment. We've had players away on international duty last week, then playing ­Sunday and Tuesday so it's hard." ...

"We've definitely had a bad period, we haven't done well and we've conceded too many goals. I don't think we're short of confidence. We've scored goals, made chances but we are having a bad time."
"After we lost 4-1 to Liverpool, that first bad game, we needed to fix it. But we didn't," said Vidic. "To be honest, maybe we have been guilty of easing off. Against Liverpool, maybe you could say we took it easier than we normally would have done because we had a game in hand and there was a big gap in points. We didn't think we were too relaxed at the time but maybe we were."

And Sir Alex to say things about Ronaldo which could have been taken as criticism:

"I don’t accept that [giving the ball away] from anyone.

"I speak to Cristiano about it. He’s not immune from that."

"He always feels he’s not getting the proper protection from referees and I think that in a few cases it is right," said the United boss.

"But there are also a lot cases where it’s not right.

"It’s hard when a player who wants to entertain all the time doesn’t get everything his own way.

"But you can’t get everything your own way – that’s just the way football is."

And the most ridiculous words ever to be appear in The Mail on Sunday:

With Ronaldo relegated to the bench yesterday, it is unclear whether he will play a part in Wednesday’s second leg in Porto.

And onto that Porto game, he scored a not bad goal remember:

Some words used to describe Ronaldo's strike which set us on the road to the Champions League Semi-Final, "exquisite improbability," "truly preposterous," "sublime," "an absolute peach, a stupendous strike," "one of the grandest goals in the annals of the Champions League," "a bolt of fork lightning."

And I'll quote this, lest we forget how good Berbatov can be:

The key figure was Berbatov, who had perhaps the best game of his fledgling Old Trafford career. As well as adding an obvious class to the build-up, he added a certainty and, crucially, a calmness that United have missed in recent weeks. Berbatov's heart would not skip a beat if you dropped a marmot in the bath, so a European Cup quarter-final was never going to faze him.

Then we utterly dominated Arsenal in the semi-final first leg:

Manchester United overwhelmed ­Arsenal, yet neglected to leave the full evidence in the result. That could be termed ­carelessness, but it is the habit of this side, with its emphasis on control, to show circumspection. In consequence the visitors will have left Old Trafford in good heart, but that is simply because they avoided devastation in the first leg

It was all about experience against innocence, achievement against potential, serial trophy accumulators against a work in progress. They had a point. After all, of the total of 13 major medals won by members of this Arsenal starting 11, eight had been earned by Mikael Silvestre. And he had won them all in his time at United.

Before destroying them in the second, with Evra giving the best verdict:

Evra delivered a damning assessment of Arsène Wenger’s team. “It was 11 men against 11 boys,” the defender said. “They’re just too young to compete. Chelsea and Barcelona are on another level compared to Arsenal. The difference wasn’t just experience, it was quality, too. It’s not just about playing pretty. We’re pretty too, but we also score goals and we also defend well.”

Although the manner of our victory did lead several journalists to wax lyrical, Henry Winter:

In reaching the Champions League final in the Eternal City, the European champions did to Arsenal what Manny Pacquaio had done to Ricky Hatton, devastating combinations smashing through naïve defending, bringing an early knock-down. Arsenal were out cold, out of the competition that so obsesses Arsene Wenger.

This was not men against boys, this was skilled professors against callow pupils, a mismatch that the referee, the appalling Roberto Rosetti, must have been tempted to step in to spare Wenger’s young charges further punishment. Arsenal’s suffering was that bad. United were that good.

Oliver Holt:

It was the night they shot Bambi down.

Arsene Wenger's wide-eyed young team, full of hope and potential, never even saw it coming. But their demise at the hands of Manchester United was fast and, oh, was it brutal.

Skipping around on skittish legs, Arsenal were defenceless and naive prey hunted down by big beasts.

United were so merciless with them that it was the kind of stuff that made you want to hide behind your hands.

It wasn't just a beating. It was a humiliation. The heaviest defeat Arsenal have suffered here on the biggest night in the Emirates' short history. And it may also have marked the death of a dream.

And so here we are, in the Final.

The Best Out

Advert for some football boots featuring Ryan Giggs and Thierry Henry having a bit of telephone/postal/computer banter ahead of the Final

Countdown To Armageddon

Champions League Final countdown begins in earnest today.
There's comments from many of our players around. The most interesting ones coming from Berbatov:

Berbatov is asked whether he feels that his low-key style - the usual adjective is languid - leads people to mistake it for lethargy or even laziness. “You know when someone has great qualities sometimes they don't have to put much effort into things,” he says. “Sometimes the things I do look effortless but it's not like that. It's very difficult, but because of my style of play I make it look easy. I don't know. When I get the ball, like you say, people are charging around the field. But that is my role in the team. When I get the ball, the players need to start running and then I just feed them with the ball.”

His comments on the FA Cup semi penalty miss:

what about that dreadful penalty against Everton in the FA Cup semi-final shoot-out last month, the one that made it look like he did not care? "I'm not angry because I am my biggest critic," he says. "I know what I did wrong. I go home and try to get over things. Obviously, it's very difficult when you make a mistake and everyone is trying to attack you. You try to be strong.

"It hurt a lot. I am not sure I would take a penalty [in Rome]. Let's hope it's not going to get to that because it's difficult. I am the new guy in the team. When you make a mistake people sometimes go straight for the new guy. I am not sure there are going to be penalties anyway."

In his defence, Berbatov pointed out that his penalty for Spurs against Chelsea in the Carling Cup final last year was identical but that one went in.

And on not smiling:

"Of course I am enjoying it. It would be stupid if I was laughing all the time. I really enjoy myself. When we won the title I was in the locker room and so happy. I don't smile all the time but I smile inside. I am the happiest guy around, trust me. I don't like to show my emotions too much." ...
When talk turns to the great Bulgaria team of the 1994 World Cup finals, he is asked what it did for the Bulgarian people. "At last people knew we existed," he replies, glumly. Cheer up, Berba, you might even score the winner tomorrow, but if he does don't expect him to put the cup on his head or take part in any daft celebrations. It is just not his style.

A typically understated interview with Paul Scholes:

"I'd have thought that next season will probably be my last year. I have one year left on my contract, but this year hasn't been great and whether it will get any better next year, I don't know. I've had a knee injury again this season. I seem to get a three-month knee injury every season now.

"It sets you back and I haven't contributed as much as I would have liked to have done. I get pain in my knees most days and I definitely feel my age. The eye problem is still there, but I have probably become totally used to it now and that's not an issue.

"But I've dipped in and out of the team this season and really struggled, to be honest, playing one game every 10 days.

"Some people adapt to that and some enjoy it, but I don't think it has worked for me. It's hard to keep yourself fit when you don't play every week."...

"When I finish, I might look back and think, â Yeah, I did alright, I played a lot of games and w on a lot of trophies.' I've been lucky to do that, but I'll never, ever think that I'm at the same level as the likes of Mark Hughes and Bryan Robson.

"Sparky and Bryan were my heroes, more so Robbo, and I still feel that when I see him around the club now. I loved him playing for United and England. ...

"I've played for a great club that I always wanted to play for and won a lot of medals. I don't count 1999, so it'd be great to win a second Champions League medal on Wednesday. Barcelona are a great team, though, so it won't be easy."

Anderson tells us how he'll celebrate should he score against Barcelona:

Brazilian midfielder Anderson is preparing an eye-catching celebration should he break his two-year goal scoring deadlock in the Champions League final in Rome this week.

As he approaches the end of his second season at Old Trafford the 21-year-old is hunting his first 'official goal' despite having twice scored from the penalty spot.

"Let's get it right," he said, "I have scored two goals – two penalties.

"But I do have a celebration planned – I'm going to strip naked and run around the stadium."

I'm really beginning to love Anderson, take this, from The Mirror:

Most of the team could barely raise a smile before flying out for their Champions League showdown with Barcelona.

All apart from Anderson that is, who - with a big grin and thumbs up - looked like he was going on a Roman holiday.

He got a funny look from Cristiano Ronaldo for wearing trainers with his club suit unlike his team-mates in smart shoes.

Words from Vidic:

"Rio is the best partner I have ever had. He is a great player with great ability and we just understand each other and what we will both do.

"We can think the same way on the pitch, but I can't explain it. It's just happens with some players.

"I feel good when he plays and I enjoy it. I don't want to think that he will not play. He is an important player for us and I think he will make it."...

"Every football player dreams to be in a Champions League final and I remember everything that happened around the game last season - I still have good memories of the fans, my family coming to the game, the media build-up, everything.

"You feel the pressure, but you need to learn to deal with it. We have great players, players with experience.

"As soon as the season finished in Moscow, though, we started to think about this one and what would happen this year because we want to win it again.

"This is what this club is about. We try to focus on bringing success to the club and you do that by focusing only on the next game."

Rooney:

“Since we won the Premier League, I have been thinking about the final every day.

“You think about scoring in it and winning it and that helps you prepare.

“Before every game I can picture myself scoring and doing good things in the game.

“I ask the kitman the day before a match what kit we are wearing, so I can think about myself in the proper strip.

“I can see myself picking up the trophy now!”...

“I dream as much as I ever did.

“There’s a lot of money in football. But if I wasn’t playing for United I’m sure that I would be playing Sunday League with my mates, because I love football.

“I will watch whatever match is on TV and, if I’ve missed one, I will watch a recording.”

There's a piece on Park in The Times which says nothing new so I won't quote from.
Onto Barcelona players, Messi has a few words to say about us:

‘Manchester United have quality everywhere,’ says Messi.

‘So many good players. But if I had to pick one out it would be Ronaldo.

'He is a player I would pay to watch.

‘He and I are very different players but he is unbelievable, very special, and it will not be easy to stop him.

'But we must not pay all attention to him and forget about Berbatov, Rooney and Carlos Tevez.

‘Manchester United have players all over the pitch who can punish you in the same way we have.’

And both Pique and Iniesta single out Rooney:

'When he is really focused he is simply unstoppable,' said defender Gerard Pique of his former United team-mate. 'I have never seen a player as powerful as Rooney - the way he goes past people, the intensity of his play, the runs he makes from the first minute to the last and the shot that he has. World class.
'Perhaps he does not get the credit he deserves because he should score more goals but he offers so much.'
Iniesta said: 'What I value most about the way United play is how hard players like Rooney work. He was filling in at left back against us last year in the semi-final. We cannot commit any mistakes because they have so much firepower up front.'

Rio seems to be looking good for the Final:

coming through his most arduous training session since suffering the calf injury that jeopardised his appearance in Rome.Ferdinand flew out with the rest of Sir Alex Ferguson's players today after taking a full part in morning training. There was no apparent reaction to the problem that forced him to miss Manchester United's past four matches.

Onto a former player, Teddy Sheringham remembers the '99 Final:

I did not realise it was so near the end until I saw Peter Schmeichel coming up for the corner, then I knew there could not be long left to play. The ball came in from Becks [David Beckham], it went to the far post and Dwight Yorke headed it back before a defender half-cleared it and it went to Giggsy [Ryan Giggs] on the edge of the box. He scuffed his right foot shot and it came my way.

I knew I was onside because they had a fella on the line. Before I hit it he ran out, so when the ball came to me it looked like I was offside but I knew that I wasn't. After I'd scored I went off celebrating but I checked with the linesman to make sure he'd seen it right.

A few seconds later we had another corner and Becks took it again. I went to the near post and got in front of my man but I got up a little bit early and realised I wouldn't be able to score, so I flicked it on to the far post into an area where I knew one of our players would be and Ole [Gunnar Solskjær] stuck out a leg and put it in the top of the net.

It was a complete shock how we turned it around and to this day people come up to me and tell me that by the time they had finished celebrating the first goal we were celebrating the second one. People watching it in pubs were still celebrating reruns of the first goal and then were celebrating even more – some didn't know there had been a second goal, it happened that quickly.

And on the subject of former players, there's an interesting piece on Veron by Kevin McCarra on The Guardian Blog:

Juan Sebastián Verón suffered from bad timing. He should have been born half a dozen years later. The Argentinian had thrived on the Italian scene but lost his bearings in the Premier League. In 2001, when switching from Lazio to Manchester United for £28.1m, Verón went to the right place at the wrong moment.

Caricatures, by definition, have truth at their core and it is roughly correct to say that European fixtures suited him better in that spell. There may have been as much frustration as anger in 2002 when Sir Alex Ferguson rejected journalists' doubts over Verón with the words, "Youse are all ... idiots". The following summer the player was sold to Chelsea at half-price. Suppose, however, he had been a 26-year-old in 2007, arriving at Old Trafford as the perfect signing to complete United's new approach. A Verón in his prime could have shaped the more studied play that Ferguson had been seeking. He would have flourished in deep midfield, showing off his technique and occasionally supplying a spectacular moment.

In this week of all weeks there is no reason to sigh over the failure of the Verón initiative. Over the course of these past two seasons United have turned into Champions League holders who seem quite well-placed to retain the trophy tomorrow. The way in which United currently operate must have been the one Ferguson had in mind when buying Verón.

In those days English football had a vestigial pride in its roughness and exciting disorganisation. Foreigners were supposed to get used to it. Some did but others never got over their bafflement. Nowadays the leading sides have the same philosophy as clubs on the continent and tend to outdo them.

Martin Samuel argues the (admittedly obvious) case that if we win tomorrow it'll beat anything Liverpool ever did:

Make no mistake, if Manchester United beat Barcelona tomorrow, it will be the most significant victory by an English club in European competition.

There are two English teams who have retained their title as champions of Europe: Liverpool in 1977 and 1978 and Nottingham Forest in 1979 and 1980.

These were fabulous achievements, too; but they do not compare to Manchester United keeping the prize in the 21st century.

Those who espouse the difficulty of the old format, with the presence of instant knockout rounds from the start, often make the argument that a modern Champions League team can afford to lose the odd game, while the European Cup competitor could not.

History does not bear this out, either.

Manchester United have not lost a single match across these two years, winning 15 and drawing 10 of 25.

Compare that to Liverpool, who lost four of their 16, or Nottingham Forest, who lost two in 18, and drew four.

Any game played across two legs carries the potential for defeat and then retrieval and Liverpool exercised it in the unlikeliest places, not least Trabzonspor in Turkey, where they lost 1-0.

It is a myth that just one slip spelt disaster in the old European Cup.

Liverpool lost twice on the way to the final in 1978, and played only seven matches.

That year, they received a bye in the first round, meaning that a solitary win against Dynamo Dresden of East Germany at Anfield — they lost the away leg 2-1 — was enough to put the team in the quarter-finals.

The Kop may join Michel Platini, the UEFA president, in romanticising the old days, but in victory, the case for United as the greatest of all champions would be a compelling one.

Finally, The Mail says that Sir Alex will get to lead the team up for the trophy should we win:

Sir Alex Ferguson will be invited to lead his Manchester United team on to the victory podium here in Rome tomorrow night if he becomes the greatest manager in history.

Officials from United and Barcelona met UEFA last week and agreed to ditch the use of ambassadors that left Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon looking so embarrassed at the Champions League final in Moscow last year.

Instead, European football's governing body have agreed to let the managers lead their teams up for what could prove a poignant moment for Ferguson at the Stadio Olimpico.

Ferguson is among 14 managers to have lifted the European Cup twice but victory against the Catalan giants would rank him alongside Liverpool's Bob Paisley as the only manager to have won the competition three times.
He would also become the first manager to defend the trophy successfully in the modern format and end any argument - having won 43 trophies at Aberdeen and United already - that he is the greatest manager of all time.