After 182 minutes of precise defending and intense focus, Guus Hiddink's Chelsea side were denied passage to the CL final in Rome by an exquisite and frankly unexpected equalizer by the player of the match Andres Iniesta. Iniesta's equalizer was stunning and brilliant for more than just the perfect technique he used to execute the strike. Goals, and maybe more importantly shots, like the one he took in second half stoppage time have not been taken by Barcelona all year. This is because down the wings they have been able to penetrate with such ease that they seldom score from outside the box because why try shooting from outside the box when you can get closer with a few clever passes and runs? And when they do score from outside the box the goal practically always comes from a free kick. Why I think Iniesta got the tiny bit of room that he did is because Chelsea were likely lectured on the fact that Barcelona like to pass from the top of the box in order to get a give and go and march to a point blank position in front of the goal before shooting. But leave it to the versatile and ever improving Andres Iniesta to throw out the game plan that had been stifled for 180+ against Chelsea and blast in a magnificent equalizer. I will be anxiously waiting for the final for the next three weeks and cannot wait for the epic showdown.
I think you are missing the point a little here—there is just so much more to talk about. Chelsea could easily have had a couple of penalties that would have killed off the game and it shows how much a game can depend on the referee. I think over the two legs though Barca were perhaps slightly the better side and might have deserved the win in that regard. Then there was the behavior of the Chelsea players at the end of the game, most notably of Ballack and Drogba. Hiddink has rightly defended them by pointing out how much adrenaline they must have had, and in truth I think their behavior just shows how much this meant to them and how heartbreaking it really is.
ReplyDeleteLooking ahead to the final I can't help but notice that Barca will be without Dani Alves and Abidal through suspension, and Marquez through injury. That alone might tip the scales slightly in Utd's favor, but I have no doubts that it's gonna be a stunning match nonetheless.
I still can't get over what I just saw and that's why I love football. It was a finish perhaps only outdone by the United - Bayern final in '99, which was ironically in Barcelona. I'm sure this one will be just as epic.
I like the fact that you did not talk about the penalties denied and focused on the way the game was played. It should always be like that. The referee can affect the game but not more than the players. If Chelsea players had converted the other chances they had whatever the referee did or did not do would have not mattered!
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