Finally, I'm done with this blockbuster pre-match analysis of the 2009 UEFA Champions League final. It is Manchester United vs Barcelona although it is more like Manchester United vs the rest of the world. Just as what Barca's star player, Lionel Messi said, "we are the team that the world wants to see winning". Everyone around us seems to be supporting the Spanish champions except for Man U fans of course, how about you?
Both sides do have players who will be unavailable for this big match. Manchester United will be missing Darren Fletcher while Barcelona have to do without full backs, Eric Abidal and Daniel Alves and centre-back, Rafael Marquez. Fletcher is a hardworking player but the red devils have other good players to look at in midfield so he will not be sorely missed
Abidal's absence will not make much of a difference for the Catalan giants but Alves will be a big miss for them. He is a wonderful attacking right-back who provides width for the team and is competent at free kicks. I still feel sad that Rafael Benitez did not manage to buy him over from Sevilla a year or two back. Marquez is a decent defender who can play in various positions. His trademark long pass across the field is a useful tactic for his team but that does not really matter since Barca have many quality creative players
I predict that both sides will play the offensive 4-3-3 formation. Alex Ferguson will deploy Cristiano Ronaldo as the lone striker and juxtaposing him with Wayne Rooney on his left and J.S.Park on his right. Anderson, Michael Carrick and Ryan Giggs make up the midfield three. Over at Barcelona, if nothing goes wrong, it should be Samuel Eto'o playing as the centre forward with Theirry Henry and Lionel Messi flanking him. The midfielders should be Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernández and Yaya Toure
As we analyse this, it is not hard to discover that two well-known names from Manchester United are missing. Yes, they are Dimitar Berbatov and the ninety-nine percent confirm leaving Carlos Tevez. This should be the final humiliation of Tevez by Ferguson by being left on the bench before he leaves for another club this summer. J.S.Park shockingly missed last season's final so I believe he will be picked to start this time. The double Rs, Rooney and Ronaldo, are world class players so choosing them in the starting line-up is of no doubt
Barcelona's attacking trio of Eto'o, Henry and Messi is one of Europe's most lethal forces. All three of them are two-footed especially ex-Arsenal captain Henry. The former gunner will surely want to help his previous club take revenge against Man U. Messi and Eto'o need not be elaborated since they are on par with the double Rs
Now here come the midfield part where I think Barcelona have an edge over their opponents. Man U's midfielders are, like what the the Chinese always say, either "lao niao"(old bird/veteran) or "cai niao"(young bird/rookie). Lao niaos are liek Giggs and Paul Scholes while cai niaos include Nani and Anderson
Carrick looks to be the best midfielder currently in Man U but his natural position which is the deep-lying playmaker doesn't really fit into the 4-3-3 system properly. He has to be supported by a more defensive-minded player like Owen Hargreaves who is unfortunately still injured. Anderson is an attacking player, Giggs is an attacking player so it's still all down to Carrick for the defensive duties at the end of the day
Although Carrick has been in outstanding form this season where he passes like a dream, I think there are other better players who play in a similar position as him. Like AC Milan's Andrea Pirlo, Liverpool's Xabi Alonso and last but not least, Xavi of Barcelona. Xavi's ability of dictating tempo is wonderful, add together Iniesta's strong offensive approach to the game and the defensive power of Toure and you get a top quality midfield
Defenders are quite boring to talk about so I shall skip them but I think if Man U put the young Johnny Evans at the start, they will be self-destructing themselves. John O'Shea looks like a better replacement to partner Nemanja Vidic at the centre in case Rio Ferdinand cannot recover in time
Goalkeepers? Of course Holland's Edwin Van der Sar is better than Spain's Victor Valdes. The Dutch keeper is a safe pair of hands for the red devils and Eto'o will have a tough time trying to put the ball into the net. Valdes still has yet to build up a reliable goalie reputation for himself despite playing for quite a number of years
This match is also a showdown of the talented young players of both teams, namely Rooney and Messi. Ronaldo excluded here since he is phenomenal. Both Rooney and Messi have the world footballing fraternity at their feet when they are nineteen while I am still trying to figure out how to do two stepovers at a time. Bojan Krkic of Barcelona will be another player to look out for if he gets to play
In a whole, I will be supporting Barcelona for this match because of many obvious reasons that many people should know. Barcelona all the way!
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