Barcelona’s imminent acquisition of the La Liga trophy will surely be one of the most bittersweet triumphs of recent memory.
Despite their success domestically, it has been a disappointing season by the Catalan club’s recent high standards.
They have consistently been beaten by Real Madrid and failed to dominate Europe in their usual flawless manner, instead unconvincingly stuttering to the semi-finals of the Champions League.
Is it just a freak result or the end of an era, as many people are saying? While Barca were particularly poor last night, they still have enough potential to thrive, given the talent at their disposal.
Yet one or two reinforcements at least, and perhaps a change of manager, are undoubtedly paramount in the summer.
2. Arjen Robben makes his case to Guardiola
(Bayern’s Arjen Robben celebrates scoring the opening goal during yesterday’s Champions League semi-final – Manu Fernandez/AP/Press Association Images)
Talk of Pep Guardiola considering Arjen Robben surplus to requirements next year at Bayern will surely have reached the Dutch international.
Advertisement
And last night, Robben played as if his future was on the line.
There were countless times when the winger showcased his natural talent, not least for the beautiful curling finish he produced to give Bayern the lead on the night.
But what was somewhat unusual about the Dutchman’s display was the level of commitment he demonstrated off the ball as well, playing with a degree of conviction and purpose that hasn’t always been evident in his game.
If Robben can maintain this positive attitude, while retaining his more obvious talents, Guardiola may need to think twice about offloading him.
3. Dortmund flirt with danger again
Dortmund’s progression to this year’s Champions League final hasn’t always looked convincing. The style and panache of their intricate passing game has been offset by a lack of ruthlessness and tendency to go off the boil at times during matches. Earlier in the season, they dominated Manchester City and yet still only came away with a 1-1 draw, and in the last round against Malaga, they scraped through, despite continually looking the far superior outfit.
They were fortunate to go in 0-0 at half-time, after giving up several chances, and could have even been knocked out late on – weaker referees than Howard Webb may have acceded to the home crowd’s wishes and granted Real a last-minute penalty, as Ronaldo went down spectacularly in the area amid the dying seconds of the game.
Dortmund will undoubtedly need to be mentally tougher if they are to pull off an unlikely victory against Bayern in the final.
4. Jose Mourinho’s persistent moaning makes it easy to see why himself and the Spanish press don’t get along
As great a manager as Jose Mourinho is, his irritating penchant for inexplicable complaints has long wore thin.
After the match on Tuesday night, rather than focusing solely on his own team’s conspicuous failings, such as their persistently inept finishing, he took the easy option and blamed referee Howard Webb for their misfortune.
The ‘Special One’ criticised Webb owing to the supposed “human” frailties displayed in the latter’s performance, while explaining, in a thoroughly condescending manner, that he is normally a good referee.
Not for the first time though, the majority of neutral observers would have disagreed with Mourinho’s stance, as the general consensus seemed to be that Webb had a near-flawless game.
Word is that the Portuguese coach will head back to his spiritual home at Chelsea following another disappointing campaign at Real. The Premier League will at least be a more interesting if less hospitable place, provided the rumours are true.
5. ITV fail to apply common sense
(ITV’s Gabriel Clarke interviews Jose Mourinho – YouTube screengrab)
Is it really the end of the world if the ‘News At Ten’ is two or three minutes late?
That is the question ITV bosses should have asked themselves the other night, and one which most right-minded individuals would have answered in the negative.
Let’s hope Keano has a quiet word with the powers that be at the station, in order to ensure that this failure to apply common sense does not recur in the future.
6. Best players in the world made to look very ordinary indeed
It had always been doubtful that Lionel Messi was fully fit for his side’s first-leg tie against Bayern Munich, looking a shadow of his usual self as he invariably struggled to make an impact on proceedings.
And Barcelona’s unwillingness to start or even bring on the Argentinian during last night’s game seemed to confirm the conviction that he is nowhere near his peak in terms of fitness.
While his main rival for the status of the world’s greatest player, Cristiano Ronaldo, played in both legs of Real’s encounter, he was similarly ineffectual for the most part against Dortmund.
Granted, Ronaldo scored a tap in in the first leg, but his influence on the tie was mostly peripheral. He appeared as nervy and anxious as the majority of his teammates on Tuesday, uncharacteristically missing some good opportunities and giving the ball away cheaply more than once.
Consequently, it’s a timely reminder that despite their incessant attempts to convince us otherwise, Ronaldo and Messi are ultimately mere mortals like everyone else.
6 talking points from this week's Champions League action
1. Barcelona’s flaws dramatically exposed
Barcelona’s imminent acquisition of the La Liga trophy will surely be one of the most bittersweet triumphs of recent memory.
Despite their success domestically, it has been a disappointing season by the Catalan club’s recent high standards.
They have consistently been beaten by Real Madrid and failed to dominate Europe in their usual flawless manner, instead unconvincingly stuttering to the semi-finals of the Champions League.
However, few commentators could have been prepared for the dramatic manner of their collapse, as they were ultimately humbled 7-0 on aggregate by Bayern Munich.
Is it just a freak result or the end of an era, as many people are saying? While Barca were particularly poor last night, they still have enough potential to thrive, given the talent at their disposal.
Yet one or two reinforcements at least, and perhaps a change of manager, are undoubtedly paramount in the summer.
2. Arjen Robben makes his case to Guardiola
Talk of Pep Guardiola considering Arjen Robben surplus to requirements next year at Bayern will surely have reached the Dutch international.
And last night, Robben played as if his future was on the line.
There were countless times when the winger showcased his natural talent, not least for the beautiful curling finish he produced to give Bayern the lead on the night.
But what was somewhat unusual about the Dutchman’s display was the level of commitment he demonstrated off the ball as well, playing with a degree of conviction and purpose that hasn’t always been evident in his game.
If Robben can maintain this positive attitude, while retaining his more obvious talents, Guardiola may need to think twice about offloading him.
3. Dortmund flirt with danger again
4. Jose Mourinho’s persistent moaning makes it easy to see why himself and the Spanish press don’t get along
As great a manager as Jose Mourinho is, his irritating penchant for inexplicable complaints has long wore thin.
After the match on Tuesday night, rather than focusing solely on his own team’s conspicuous failings, such as their persistently inept finishing, he took the easy option and blamed referee Howard Webb for their misfortune.
The ‘Special One’ criticised Webb owing to the supposed “human” frailties displayed in the latter’s performance, while explaining, in a thoroughly condescending manner, that he is normally a good referee.
Not for the first time though, the majority of neutral observers would have disagreed with Mourinho’s stance, as the general consensus seemed to be that Webb had a near-flawless game.
Word is that the Portuguese coach will head back to his spiritual home at Chelsea following another disappointing campaign at Real. The Premier League will at least be a more interesting if less hospitable place, provided the rumours are true.
5. ITV fail to apply common sense
Is it really the end of the world if the ‘News At Ten’ is two or three minutes late?
That is the question ITV bosses should have asked themselves the other night, and one which most right-minded individuals would have answered in the negative.
However, instead, they made an embarrassing gaffe in which they cut off Jose Mourinho during a potentially revelatory moment, much to the majority of viewers’ chagrin.
Let’s hope Keano has a quiet word with the powers that be at the station, in order to ensure that this failure to apply common sense does not recur in the future.
6. Best players in the world made to look very ordinary indeed
It had always been doubtful that Lionel Messi was fully fit for his side’s first-leg tie against Bayern Munich, looking a shadow of his usual self as he invariably struggled to make an impact on proceedings.
And Barcelona’s unwillingness to start or even bring on the Argentinian during last night’s game seemed to confirm the conviction that he is nowhere near his peak in terms of fitness.
While his main rival for the status of the world’s greatest player, Cristiano Ronaldo, played in both legs of Real’s encounter, he was similarly ineffectual for the most part against Dortmund.
Granted, Ronaldo scored a tap in in the first leg, but his influence on the tie was mostly peripheral. He appeared as nervy and anxious as the majority of his teammates on Tuesday, uncharacteristically missing some good opportunities and giving the ball away cheaply more than once.
Consequently, it’s a timely reminder that despite their incessant attempts to convince us otherwise, Ronaldo and Messi are ultimately mere mortals like everyone else.
VIDEO: Bayern destroy Barca again, cruise to final>
Poll: Does tonight’s humbling defeat mark the end of an era for Barcelona?>
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
UEFA Champions League Review Barcelona Bayern Munich Borussia Dortmund Real Madrid