Rabu, 18 April 2012
Guardiola: "This is a great challenge, one worthy of a Champions League semi-final”
The manager is hopeful that his team will be able to create the same amount of goalscoring chances next week at the Camp Nou
Guardiola is convinced that the Camp Nou faithful won’t abandon their team and that his players are up to the task of overturning today’s adverse result. “I know that they will give it their all to get to the final,” he said
The manager believes that, given the level of play his team have played at for so long, “getting to this point in the season is a success.” He added: “We’ve already won this year”
Josep Guardiola is convinced that if his team are to make it to the Champions League final in Munich, Barça will have to play a perfect game at the Camp Nou next Tuesday. The manager views the upcoming match as “a great challenge, one worthy of a Champions League semi-final.” Guardiola said that he’s proud of the performance his players put in at Stamford Bridge and that his team went into the match “to play the best way possible, where they never lost the desire to score.” Whatever happens from now on out, the manager said that his team “have already won this year” after playing at such a high level for so long. “Getting to this point is a success within itself,” he said.
Guardiola went on to say that he's convinced that Barça fans won’t forsake their team next week. He also warned that his players are up to the task of fighting back in the tie: “it doesn’t matter how the players feel right now. I know that they will give it their all to get to the final and that the people will come and support us on Saturday and Tuesday. We’ll try to succeed.”
“Chelsea will come and wait for their moment”
When asked what type of game he expects from the English side in the return leg, Guardiola said, “I don’t think Chelsea will come out to attack or pressure us high up the pitch, I do anticipate 10 players in the area waiting to counterattack. They’ll probably bide their time and wait for their moment. We cannot forget that Chelsea, with very little, create a lot of danger, and they do it very well. We’ll have to find the way to score goals.”
Waiting for the ball to go in
Ahead of the match at the Camp Nou, Guardiola highlighted the importance of scoring, something that didn’t happen this Wednesday despite Barça’s 24 attempts. “We’ll try to find alternatives to complete a comeback. It won’t be easy, especially with 10 players in the area. We’ll need inspiration and patience to find the way to turn this around,” he said. He added: “the challenge is to shoot 24 times next Tuesday and score a goal. We need to be patient and ambitious. I don’t know if there are many other teams that have shot 24 times away from home.”
Chelsea - FC Barcelona: Tuesday set for fightback (1-0)
A goal from Drogba on the stroke of half time sentenced Barça to defeat in a game where they were the the better team and leaves them needing to pull back from 1-0 in next week’s second leg at the Camp Nou
Nobody ever said it would be easy to get to the Munich final. Barça went down to a single goal at Stamford Bridge, despite hitting the post twice and restricting the hosts to a single shot on target – Drogba’s goal on the stroke of half time. Guardiola’s team dictated the pace and the rhythm of the game, dominating possession and creating plenty of chances, but the packed Chelsea defence, the posts and an inspired Cech somehow kept them out.
The result means Barça will have to come from behind at the Camp Nou next Tuesday night if they want to reach the Munich final and it should be a perfect night to put right the injustice of a result that this evening in London failed to reflect their superiority.
No prize despite domination
Barça took control from the kick off and soon had Chelsea pinned back in their own half, with the Londoners defending with four at the back, a line of five across the middle and only Drogba up front. On 10 minutes, Alexis set the tone of the night, when after a great pass from Iniesta, his clever chip came back off the bar with Cech well beaten.
Drogba makes his mark
It was one way traffic for most of the first half, as Barça patiently probed the Chelsea ramparts, keeping hold of possession and looking to pounce on any opportunity. The chances were coming, with Cesc missing a couple of great opportunities with his left peg. Chelsea were always looking to attack on the break though and in injury time they got their reward as Ramires broke down the left and crossed for Drogba who bundled the ball past Valdes. It was a cruel blow for Barça who had been by far the better team throughout the first 45 minutes.
Goals just wouldn’t come
Little changed after the break, as Barça laid siege to the hosts’ area, whilst Chelsea were prepared to sit back and defend en masse. Alexis came close and Puyol forced a brilliant save from Cech, before in injury time Pedro hit the post and Busquets smashed the rebound high over the Chelsea bar and into the celebrating home fans in the stand. Tuesday will be another game and Barça must hope that their luck will surely turn.
Sabtu, 14 April 2012
Messi: "It was a very difficult ground to play in, but we managed to get a fantastic result"
Lionel Messi refused to be drawn into a debate about his goal-scoring contest with Cristiano Ronaldo as he appealed to his teammates to maintain their good form in La Liga
Vital victory at the Ciutat de València (1-2) which allows Barça to maintain the four-point gap with Real Madrid at the top of the table. After the match, Lionel Messi, with two goals, said he was very happy to win the three points against this season’s surprise team. “We knew it was a difficult ground, Levante are having a fantastic season and we managed to get a great result,” said Messi while walking off the pitch.
However, the Argentine highlighted the difficulty of taking on Juan Ignacio Martínez’s side: “at this point in the season every team is playing for something important. These matches are very complicated.”
On form and headed to London
After securing Barça’s 11th consecutive victory in La Liga, Messi congratulated his teammates for keeping the winning streak alive. “We have to continue like this,” said the Argentine, “now it’s time to think about Chelsea, this is the most important match. It will be more difficult than the match against Levante.”
La Liga goal-scoring rivalry
Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have made history in La Liga as they are both level on top of the goal scoring chart. Both players, with 41 goals apiece, have shattered the previous record in their struggle to win the Pichichi award. Despite the ongoing duel, Messi highlighted the importance of the team’s success ahead of his own: “things are going well for us, but what’s really important is that we’re both fighting for La Liga title.
“I’m happy that I scored because the team won,” concluded Messi as he walked down the tunnel that leads to the dressing rooms.
Here are the statements made by FC Barcelona players after tonight’s match against Levante:
Víctor Valdés:
“Very hard-fought victory. I’m proud of the work that we did. I congratulate Levante for how they played, they are a very good team.”
Pedro Rodríguez:
“It was a very difficult match, we knew that it was a complicated ground to play in. They had the early advantage but we managed to fight back.
“We dominated the whole match. After the penalty against us it was more difficult because they closed themselves off and their defence is very strong. For this reason it was so difficult to mount a comeback, but our insistence to play on the wings allowed the team to fight back. We’re very pleased.
“We’re facing a very difficult week. We’ll work hard and prepare for our upcoming matches.
“It was hard to reduce the gap with Real Madrid. We’ll try to prepare for next Saturday's match well to keep our title hopes alive in La Liga. The Clásico is important to both us and them.”
Cesc Fàbregas:
“It’s clear that we can improve. It was a very difficult match but we managed it well.
“We’ve gained a lot of ground on Madrid. We went to the Vicente Calderón with a 13-point disadvantage and now were only 4 away. Despite it all, now it’s time to focus on Chelsea and forget about La Liga for a couple of days.
“This was one of our most difficult away matches, but we still have a few tough matches away from home. La Liga is still out of our hands. We won’t depend on ourselves even if we beat Real Madrid. There are a few matches left but the end of La Liga is still a long way off.
“Barça have a great fighting spirit, we’re very competitive.”
Thiago Alcántara:
“We stopped thinking about the Liga in the second half. We gave it our all and we can now enjoy one of our most difficult victories.
“This is a very complicated stadium to play in, Levante are a fantastic team.
“I’m willing to play in any position. The objective is to always look for the win.
“The Club’s philosophy is incredible. It’s a joy for us youngsters, we have to be thankful to the Club for giving us confidence.
“Chelsea is a very complicated rival, they’re a historic European club. It will be a beautiful playoff.”
Isaac Cuenca:
“It was fairly difficult, but we knew that what we were facing when we went up against Levante. It was complicated because they let us have the wings but it was hard to get good crosses in. In the end everything worked out and we won the three points.
“I believe it was a penalty, I was pushed and the linesman saw it and the referee called it.
“We’re going to give it our all in London to get a good result for the return leg at the Camp Nou.”
Messi, 201 goals with Guardiola
Leo Messi’s name tends to be on people’s lips before and after FC Barcelona play a match. Today is no exception. The Argentine genius has scored 201 goals with Josep Guardiola on the Barça bench. It took Messi only 4 seasons to accomplish this feat (210 official matches). Since Guardiola decided to position Messi closer to the opposition’s goal, the Argentine has turned into a veritable goal-scoring machine, averaging 0.96 goals per game. With Rijkaard, under whom Messi made his debut on October 16 2004 against Espanyol, the striker scored 42 goals in 110 official matches (0.38 goals per game).
Constant progress
The best player in the world has consistently improved year after year. In his first season with Guardiola, 2008/09, he scored 38 goals in 51 official matches. In 2009/10, he scored 47 in 53 matches. Last season he scored 53 goals in 55 official matches. This year he already has 63 goals in 51 matches, averaging 1.2 goals per game. So far this season, he’s scored 41 goals in the Liga, 14 in the Champions League, 2 in the Cup, 3 in the Spanish Super Cup, 1 in the European Super Cup and 2 in the Club World Cup.
With 63 goals already scored this season, Messi is a strong contender for a slew of new records: he is in the running to claim his second Pichichi title in the Liga, he could finish the season as the highest goal scorer in the Champions League for the fourth consecutive season, he is close to winning his second European Golden Shoe (formerly known as Golden Boot) award and he’s only 5 goals back from Gerd Müller’s historic record of 67 scored goals in one season.
His 201 goals
Season 2008/09
38 goals in 51 matches
Season 2009/10
47 goals in 53 matches
Season 2010/11
53 goals in 55 matches
Season 2011/12
63 goals in 51 matches
Iniesta closing in on 400
Already amongst the top ten players with most appearances for the Club
Andrés Iniesta will pretty soon play his 400th official game for Barça - most probably away to Levante on Saturday or at Stamford Bridge next week – as he now stands at 399 appearances for the Club. What a way to mark 400 it would be if he did it the Chelsea ground – where he scored perhaps the most famous of his 40 goals for the team.
His 399 appearances have come in the following competitions: 266 in La Lliga, 77 in the Champions League, 40 in the Spanish Cup, 3 in the UEFA Cup, 2 in the European Super Cup, 6 in the Spanish Super Cup and 5 in the World Club Cup.
Catching up on Alexanco
The 27 year-old has just broken into the Club’s all time top ten and should become the eighth player with most appearances for the Club this season, as he is just one short of José Ramón Alexanco and three behind Joan Segarra, who lie ninth and eight respectively.
Iniesta is one of four current first team players in the Club’s top ten, alongside Xavi (who has played more than anybody with 621), Puyol (second on 552) and Valdés (fourth on 452).
World class talent
Andrés Iniesta came to La Masia in 1996 when he was still only 12 years old. He made a quick rise through the various youth teams and made his first team debut under Louis van Gaal in October 2002. He came to greater prominence under Frank Rijkaard, where he showed his versatility in helping the team to two Leagues and a Champions League title.
With the arrival of Pep Guardiola Iniesta confirmed his place as a leader of the team and a first choice in one of the Club’s best ever sides. In the 2010 World Cup Final he also showed his worth to Spain, scoring the goal that gave them the trophy in the final against Holland. He’s recognised for his talent, class, reading of the game and ability to beat a man as one of the very best players in the world and it is only some unfortunate injuries that have ever dented his consistently high performances.
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