Rabu, 28 Maret 2012
Xavi: “We were superior, we dominated but we didn't finish the match off"
The tie will be decided at the Camp Nou, where Puyol believes that the fans “will be with the team from the first minute”
The goalless draw at the San Siro means that the Champions League quarter-final tie will be decided at the Camp Nou this Tuesday. “We had many chances to score. We tried with long possessions but we weren’t able to capitalise on the chances we created. It’s a shame,” said Víctor Valdés. Carles Puyol added that Milan is a team with “dangerous players” and that the game “was very difficult.” According to Xavi, his team was “superior, we dominated the game but we didn't finish off the match.”
“We shouldn’t look for excuses”
The referee decisions throughout the match were controversial for the players on the pitch. Puyol added that during a corner kick he was held back by his mark: “I broke free but I noticed that someone was grabbing my shirt. I pointed it out to the referee and he told me that it wasn’t a penalty. However, we cannot look for excuses. We have to play well, refereeing is very difficult.” Along the same lines, Víctor Váldes considers that “the referee is the man the makes the decisions” and that everything will become “more clear in the replays.”
Puyol also said the San Siro pitch is another factor to consider: “The pitch appeared to be in good condition but it was slippery during training and during the game. These things happen.”
“It will be one of the best matches”
“It’s always important to score away from home but now it’s time to work hard and, especially, defend well. Like the boss says, if we have to play with nine defenders we will, but we have to win,” said Valdés. Puyol called upon the Camp Nou faithful to attend next Tuesday’s match: “It will be one of the best games. They are aware of what is at stake and I’m sure they’ll be with us from the first minute.”
Here are some of the statements made by Barça players after the match:
Mascherano: “The pitch was a problem in the stadium and it affects other teams.
“It’s the result that we finished with, I believe that we deserved more. If we play next week’s match like today, I’m sure we’ll go through.”
Messi: “It was a difficult match be we have to win.
“We played our game but it was difficult because of the pitch and because they are very strong.
“It’s a dangerous situation. Either team could go through, we hope we can score so it will be us. We deserved to win.”
AC Milan - FC Barcelona: Goals have to wait till the Camp Nou (0-0)
Barça took a 0-0 draw from Milan at the San Siro tonight - leaving the return game at the Camp Nou to decide who gets through to the Champions League semi-final
Milan were hemmed into their own half, especially before the break and at the end of the game
It’s all square after the first leg in Milan, with Barça undoubtedly the winners on points – having dominated, particularly in the first half and making the chances – with three good penalty shouts ignored. However, in football it’s goals that count and Barça weren’t quite able to get on the scoresheet tonight, leaving the Camp Nou to decide who gets through to the last four.
Guardiola: “Our fans cannot let us down on Tuesday”
Guardiola is clear that to be Champions League winners against that the team must “overcome thousands of things, and do an even better job [than last year]”
The fact that Milan is satisfied with a goalless draw is the “highest form of praise” for Guardiola
Josep Guardiola urged FC Barcelona fans and members to attend next week’s Champions League showdown with AC Milan: “Our fans cannot let us down on Tuesday. They need to come to the stadium and carry us to the semi-finals. These players have done too much to be abandoned. This Tuesday we have a final in our stadium with our people. We need the Camp Nou to be full. We have a chance to go through and between us all I believe it’s possible.”
The Barça manager considers that Milan’s satisfaction with a goalless draw at the Giuseppe Meazza is “the biggest of compliments,” although he warned that the return match at the Camp Nou “will be terrible” and that “there’s no room to speculate.” Guardiola continued: “A tie is never finished off in the away leg. However, keeping the condition of the pitch in mind, shooting 17 times is meritorious. Milan have seven European Cups, and we went toe to toe with them.”
“It will be a terrible match”
Referring to the last match between the two sides in the Group Stage, which ended in a two-all draw, Guardiola is clear that “in the world of football, whatever happened before doesn’t matter.” He added: “We know that it will be a terrible match. Milan have very talented players and they they defend well. This is why our fans need to cheer us on more than ever. We only have one option, and that’s to win - between all of us we won’t fail.”
On the condition of the pitch at the Giuseppe Meazza, Guardiola said that his players deserve a lot of credit “playing football or, at the very least, trying.” The manager said “something needs to be done. In the end we adapt to everything, we come and we play. But it’s clearly a problem for the show. It’s also true that to be champions you have to overcome every challenge. We’ve done it in the past and we’ll keep on doing it.”
Guardiola, who refused to talk about the referee, said that “everything is difficult. We’ve won a lot of things, we’ve drawn and we’ve lost. In the latter two we’ve never talked about the referees. To be Champions of Europe again we must do an even better job.”
Sabtu, 24 Maret 2012
2011: Year in review
January 2011
The year began with a global tribute to the Masia. Leo Messi, Andrés Iniesta and Xavi Hernández, three players brought up in the Barcelona youth system, were on the podium for the FIFA Balon d'Or. The Argentinian became the first player to win the title two years in a row. Josep Guardiola, meanwhile, was third in the ranking of the best managers of 2010. On the day Barça beat Betis in the cup (5-0), three award winners presented their trophies to the fans.February 2011
On 20 February 2011 Josep Guardiola was on the first team bench for his 100th league match, with an amazing 79 wins, 14 draws and just 7 defeats behind him, the best record ever for an FC Barcelona manager. In the games, Guardiola used a total of 40 different players, of which 56% were locally produced, and he had spent 68 weeks on top of the table. Incredible stats.March 2011
The team received some dreadful news midway through the season. Éric Abidal had a liver tumour. The Frenchman, who eventually recovered in record time, was able to rejoin the team before the season was out, and proved a huge inspiration to his colleagues. The fans showed all their support through social networks and numerous banners all around the Camp Nou. Abidal's illness only served to strengthen the squad, who were in search of yet more titles.
April 2011
April brought a marathon of clásicos. The team was running away with the league, and a draw at the Bernabéu (1-1) as good as sealed the championship. But Madrid won the cup final in Valencia (0-1). However, there were two more meetings to come in the Champions League, with FC Barcelona winning the semi final 3-1 on aggregate. The 2-0 win in Madrid was especially memorable, with two cracking goals from Leo Messi. Wembley awaited, and a potential fourth European crown.May 2011
The fifth month of the year was unforgettable. On the 11th, FCB drew 1-1 at Levante to mathematically clinch their third league title in a row. 17 days later it was off to London, where FC Barcelona taught Manchester United a lesson in football, with goals from Pedro, Messi and Villa (3-1). That was the fourth Champions League title for Barça, the second in three years and the third in six. Captain Puyol, in a memorable gesture, let Abidal collect the trophy at Wembley.June 2011
In the first month without competition, Puyol underwent knee surgery. It was time to take in the successes. Josep Guardiola had won 10 out of a possible 13 titles, playing football that was enchanting the world. In three years, Barcelona goals had been scored by as many as 29 different players. Four products of the Masia (Montoya, Thiago, Jeffren and Bojan) helped Spain to the European U21 Championship. The rest of the players were already thinking about the next season.July 2011
Three days after Chile went out of the Copa America, Alexis Sánchez was presented as the first signing of the 2011/12 season. He was still on holiday when Barça played Hajduk Split, Internacional de Porto Alegre and Bayern Munich, and also the American tour, having arrived from Udinese for a fixed 26 million euros plus 11.5 in variables. "It has been my dream since a child to play for Barça" said the first ever Chilean to don the famous FCB jersey.August 2011
September 2011
Now recovered from his knee injury, Carles Puyol returned to action in September. This was a month in which the team posted some extraordinary wins: Osasuna (8-0), Atlético Madrid (5-0) and BATE Borisov (0-5) but was also held to draws by Real Sociedad, AC Milan and Valencia, all 2-2. The month also saw Andrés Iniesta fall foul to a hamstring injury against AC Milan, which saw him sidelined for a month.
October 2011
One person who'll never forget this month is Isaac Cuenca. He made his first team debut against Viktoria Pilsen (2-0) and was in the starting line-up a few days later to face Granada (0-1), and played the 90 minutes. The Barça B player made the most of injuries to Alexis and Pedro to show his worth as another option for the team going forward. He also scored his first goal for FC Barcelona this month in the win against Mallorca (5-0).November 2011
The team assured top spot in its Champions League group with a win at the San Siro, where Guardiola risked playing just three men at the back, the kind of thing rarely seen at such a high level these days. FC Barcelona won 3-2 with goals from Van Bommel (og), Messi and Xavi, thus meaning they'll play the second leg at home against Bayer Leverkusen in the next round. But the team also suffered its first defeat of the season, 1-0 at Getafe.December 2011
2011 ended in incredible fashion with yet another convincing win at the Santiago Bernabéu (3-1), where Guardiola has yet to lose as a manager. Then the club won the Clubs World Cup in Japan, winning both games 4-0 against Al-Sadd of Qatar and Santos of Brazil. But the joy was confounded by the dreadful news that David Villa had fractured his tibia in the semi final, and would be out for 4 to 5 months.
R.Madrid-FC Barcelona: Universal Declaration of beautiful football
The team switched to a three man defence after 15 minutes and are now back on top of the league, though Madrid do have a game in hand
For the fourth season on the run, Barça have made a clear statement at the Bernabeu - that they still are the supreme reference point in the world of football. In a high voltage game, the team fought back from a first minute setback with ambition and majestic football. Three goals stamped their authority and ensured another historic win at the home of their great rivals achieved with their trademark style to retake top spot, though Madrid do have a game in hand.
It was the worst possible start for Guardiola's team when a defensive mix up handed Madrid a goal after just 24 seconds as Benzama fired past Valdes. From that moment, Madrid sat back in defence and conceded possession to the much bolder Barça, whilst attempting to maintain a high line. Casillas made a great stop from Messi on six minutes and then on the quarter hour, Guardiola switched to a three man defence - taking maximum risk, but ensuring total domination.
Alexis goal reward for domination
Barça now began to strangle the life out of their hosts, who only threatened sporadically on the counter and although Ronaldo had the chance to make it 2-0 on 24 minutes, Busquets and Puyol were defending like giants at times. Then Messi slipped through the Madrid defence and released Alexis who unleashed a great shot past Casillas to draw Barça level. Tension began to rise now and by half time Barça had seen two cards – Alexis and Messi, both for dissent, though the team had committed just four fouls against Madrid's nine, with just a single yellow card for the hosts.
Cesc heads home lovely Alves cross
If Barça had been unlucky at the start of the first half, they made up for that at the beginning of the second, when on 53 minutes a Xavi shot ricocheted off Marcelo to wrong foot Casillas and put Barça in the lead. Madrid desperately tried to pressure Barça as they tried to play the ball out, which in turn gave the increasingly dangerous looking Barça more space to counter. Ronaldo again blew a chance which would have drawn the teams level just past the hour mark and almost immediately after, Cesc headed in at the far post after a great cross from Alves.
Footballing recital
With the scores at 1-3, Madrid got even rougher and the cards began to flow. The hosts were now playing with more heart than head, as they desperately played catch up behind a Barça team who were revelling in their exquisite one touch possession football, exemplified by a brilliant Iniesta action on 80 minutes. There were even chances to stretch the lead, but in the end, Barça's superiority was such as to leave no room for doubt: their beautiful football, the style that defines this team came out top for all the millions of viewers who watched as the Barça philosophy continues to stamp its mark, season after season on the footballing world.
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