The world of football has been shaken and stirred over the last few days like never before. Not by dint of performances on the pitch, of course, but by a spate of corruption charges, emotionally cranked up elections for the old soldier Sepp Blatter and his stunning resignation within a couple of days as the long arm of the law kept inching closer and closer. With new skeletons tumbling out of FIFA’s closet every day, this particular story is still a long way from being put to bed.
Against this backdrop, the UEFA Champions League final, to be held in Berlin at the magnificent Olympicstadion on Saturday evening, comes in as a much needed breath of fresh air. While the world watches FIFA as it staggers like an old bull elephant, 22 extraordinary men will attempt to get the spotlight back firmly on the beautiful game itself – rightfully.
The match has been built up very nicely over the past month as a true classic in the making – a clash between talent, sophistication and other-worldly wizardry on the one side and stoic defence, workmanlike midfield ethics and dogged determination on the other.
It will be one hell of a game
Barcelona come in with the Spanish League and Copa Del Rey already in their pockets and the world’s most formidable frontline talent ready to celebrate the pitch for their fans with their beautiful moves. Neymar, Messi and Suarez have scored about 120 goals between them by running rings around defenders, and the expectation from the final is exactly the same.
Michael Ballack has called them “The Divas”, their team mate Xavi, who will be playing his last match in a Barca shirt, calls them “Beasts”, and the football media has finally run out of all descriptions for these three geniuses. Neymar will stalk the left, Suarez will definitely play in the centre and Messi – well, Messi will roam like a Wild West free range horse. Their midfield will be supportive as always and the only question based on past performance could be the quality of the defence as a minor irritant.
Juventus, in their own quiet way, are by no means unprepared for the big night. After winning the Scudetto, they picked up the Coppa Italia, making it two out of two like Barca. And, bet on this, they will come out with a plan.
Allegri has displayed plenty of nous and guts right through the competition, and the way he has managed his boys will not make it too easy for Barca. The vastly experienced Chiellini has to sit out, unfortunately, owing to a calf muscle injury, but in Barzagli, Bonucci, Lichtsteiner and the rest, Juve has a strong defence which will need to work extra shifts to face the NMS onslaught.
In Evra, they have a canny left back who knows what it takes to win big matches and in Pirlo, Pogba, Marchisio and Vidal, they have a midfield which is definitely not to be trifled with. Up front, it will be Tevez and Morata once again to the breach – and these two can be very dangerous on the counter if the Barca defence leaves gaping holes.
There will be strategy, but there will also be passion
The night will also have its emotional moments. Pirlo and Xavi both play their last games for their respective teams – it will be years before we will see the likes of such talent again. Berlin will rise to its feet to give them a rousing send-off. Suarez had two clear soap opera moments lined up, but with Chiellini – famous for being bitten by the Uruguayan – out, it will be interesting for soccer controversy buffs to see how he reacts on facing his old nemesis Evra.
But at the end of the day, it’s about the match itself. Both teams will dream of winning it not just to be the Champions League champions, but also to cap off their season with the magical treble. Expect the initial few minutes to be tactical and tentative, with both teams crowding the midfield to close off any space and NMS facing some serious defensive action when they try to penetrate.
Most Italian teams have a habit of focusing more on victory than on the margin, and Juve might take a similar approach. There will almost certainly be one or more goals from Barca, as it is well-nigh impossible to stop MNS for 90 minutes or more. Whether Juventus has the gumption to weather this storm and strike back will be the key.
For a couple of hours the world will not worry about the FIFA scandal. It will be busy watching what really matters. The best clubs in the world right now, locked in a fight to the finish.
Rathindra Basu lives, breathes, sleeps sports and is forever waiting for the next Indian sporting triumph. Since this usually takes much time and infinite patience he also listens to music, reads voraciously and eats almost anything that moves.
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Against this backdrop, the UEFA Champions League final, to be held in Berlin at the magnificent Olympicstadion on Saturday evening, comes in as a much needed breath of fresh air. While the world watches FIFA as it staggers like an old bull elephant, 22 extraordinary men will attempt to get the spotlight back firmly on the beautiful game itself – rightfully.
The match has been built up very nicely over the past month as a true classic in the making – a clash between talent, sophistication and other-worldly wizardry on the one side and stoic defence, workmanlike midfield ethics and dogged determination on the other.
It will be one hell of a game
Barcelona come in with the Spanish League and Copa Del Rey already in their pockets and the world’s most formidable frontline talent ready to celebrate the pitch for their fans with their beautiful moves. Neymar, Messi and Suarez have scored about 120 goals between them by running rings around defenders, and the expectation from the final is exactly the same.
Michael Ballack has called them “The Divas”, their team mate Xavi, who will be playing his last match in a Barca shirt, calls them “Beasts”, and the football media has finally run out of all descriptions for these three geniuses. Neymar will stalk the left, Suarez will definitely play in the centre and Messi – well, Messi will roam like a Wild West free range horse. Their midfield will be supportive as always and the only question based on past performance could be the quality of the defence as a minor irritant.
Juventus, in their own quiet way, are by no means unprepared for the big night. After winning the Scudetto, they picked up the Coppa Italia, making it two out of two like Barca. And, bet on this, they will come out with a plan.
Allegri has displayed plenty of nous and guts right through the competition, and the way he has managed his boys will not make it too easy for Barca. The vastly experienced Chiellini has to sit out, unfortunately, owing to a calf muscle injury, but in Barzagli, Bonucci, Lichtsteiner and the rest, Juve has a strong defence which will need to work extra shifts to face the NMS onslaught.
In Evra, they have a canny left back who knows what it takes to win big matches and in Pirlo, Pogba, Marchisio and Vidal, they have a midfield which is definitely not to be trifled with. Up front, it will be Tevez and Morata once again to the breach – and these two can be very dangerous on the counter if the Barca defence leaves gaping holes.
There will be strategy, but there will also be passion
The night will also have its emotional moments. Pirlo and Xavi both play their last games for their respective teams – it will be years before we will see the likes of such talent again. Berlin will rise to its feet to give them a rousing send-off. Suarez had two clear soap opera moments lined up, but with Chiellini – famous for being bitten by the Uruguayan – out, it will be interesting for soccer controversy buffs to see how he reacts on facing his old nemesis Evra.
But at the end of the day, it’s about the match itself. Both teams will dream of winning it not just to be the Champions League champions, but also to cap off their season with the magical treble. Expect the initial few minutes to be tactical and tentative, with both teams crowding the midfield to close off any space and NMS facing some serious defensive action when they try to penetrate.
Most Italian teams have a habit of focusing more on victory than on the margin, and Juve might take a similar approach. There will almost certainly be one or more goals from Barca, as it is well-nigh impossible to stop MNS for 90 minutes or more. Whether Juventus has the gumption to weather this storm and strike back will be the key.
For a couple of hours the world will not worry about the FIFA scandal. It will be busy watching what really matters. The best clubs in the world right now, locked in a fight to the finish.
Rathindra Basu lives, breathes, sleeps sports and is forever waiting for the next Indian sporting triumph. Since this usually takes much time and infinite patience he also listens to music, reads voraciously and eats almost anything that moves.