Champions League
2011-05-28 - Barcelona vs Manchester United
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football : European Champions League Final, Wembley Stadium
Saturday 28 May 2011 - Kickoff 7:45pm
This game is live on TV
Barcelona
Barcelona come to England this year with the chance to really cement themselves in the conversation for 'greatest club side in history' if they can win the Champions League for the 4th time in their history. Wembley Stadium also holds a special place in the heart of the Catalans as this was where they won their first European Cup back in 1992.
The team have already won the Spanish La Liga this season and look to reclaim the European Cup after falling at the Semi Final hurdle last season. Barcelona have been dominant at home and away in Spain, finishing the season with a 14-4-1 away record.
Barcelona qualified through their Champions League with little problem as they disposed of Panathinaikos, Copenhagen and Rubin Kazan. In the last 16 they beat Arsenal in controversial fashion before beating Shakhtar Donetsk in the Quarter Finals. The Semi Final win over Real Madrid was also full of controversy.
Away from the Nou Camp has been a little problem for Barcelona in recent seasons in the Champions League, but they have won their last 2 away from home in the the competition. They also beat Panathinaikos but were held to draws at Copenhagen and Rubin and lost to Arsenal.
Barcelona may have won just 2 of their last 6 games in all competitions, but much of that is down to resting the first team with this game in mind.
Pep Guardiola will not surprise too many people with the line up he picks for the game. The only question seems to be whether Eric Abidal or Maxwell line up at left back, while there are some rumours that Javier Mascherano will start at centre back rather than Carlos Puyol.
Valdes, Alves, Abidal, Puyol, Pique, Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta, Pedro, Villa and Messi (4-3-3).
Manchester United
All season, Manchester United have been written off by the press, opposition fans and the experts, but here they are in the Final of the biggest competition in Europe having secured the Premier League by 9 points. Wembley also marks a special occasion for United as they too won their first European Cup at this famous stadium back in 1968.
Much of the reason United were being written off as the real deal was because of their awful away form in the Premier League this season. United finished their domestic campaign with a 5-10-4 away record and lost games at Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea in the League this season.
However, the team have quietly gone about their business in European competition this season. They negotiated a group containing Valencia, Rangers and Bursaspor with little problem, and then beat Marseille in the last 16. It was the impressive nature of their Quarter Final win over Chelsea and the Semi Final win over Schalke that has really caught the eye in the Champions League campaign this season.
United were also impressive away from home, winning 5 of their 6 away games, while drawing the other in Marseille. They did not concede a goal in any of those away games, winning 3 of the games 0-1. It is without question that United are the best defensive side Barcelona will have played this season.
The team lost just 1 of their last 8 games in all competitions as they secured the Premier League title and qualified for this Final at Wembley. They have won 3 of their last 4 games, the other being drawn at Blackburn when a point was going to win the title.
Sir Alex Ferguson is much harder to read than Pep Guardiola as he always seems to catch people off guard with his team selection. The biggest question mark surrounding United is whether they play a 4-5-1 with Wayne Rooney as the focal point, or whether they start with the modified 4-4-2 they have been playing in recent weeks. My guess is below:
Van der Sar, Fabio, Evra, Vidic, Ferdinand, Carrick, Park, Giggs, Valencia, Rooney and Hernandez (4-4-2)
Head to Head
Barcelona and Manchester United have met each other 11 times in European competition and I would hazard a guess that almost every game has been fairly memorable for one reason or another.
Both teams have won 3 of the games, while the remaining 4 have ended all square after 90 minutes. Neither team has ever won consecutive games against one another.
Barcelona did beat Manchester United in the Final in Rome in 2009 in their last meeting. The year before, United had knocked Barcelona out in the Semi Final 1-0 on aggregate.
Sir Alex Ferguson also won his first European trophy as manager of Manchester United against Barcelona in the 1991 Cup Winners' Cup in Rotterdam.
The teams are also linked in other ways. Both won their first European Cup at Wembley Stadium.
United also won the 1999 trophy at the home of Barcelona.
Prediction
The intrigue is building ahead of this Final and I have to say it is almost a role reversal from two years ago.
Heading to Rome that year, every United fan I met was supremely confident that we were going to win the trophy, especially after keeping Barcelona scoreless in 2 Legs the season before. Even the Barcelona fans out in Rome were a little concerned about playing United, believing they were defensively sound and going to make it very hard for Barcelona to play their football.
The experts and media also had solidly got behind United and believed they were set to become the first team in 19 years to retain the Champions League... We all saw what happened though, and it was Barcelona who took the trophy home.
This time we are hearing all the same talk. One set of fans are supremely confident, the others a little more concerned. The media have also effectively crowned one team Kings of Europe before a ball has been kicked while some, like Gary Linekar, has almost suggested that that team needs only turn up and perform to normal standards to win the game.
However, this time its all about Barcelona.
It is hard to tell how they will cope with the expectation that is on the team. We may have seen a glimpse of what this game could become when watching the Barcelona-Real Madrid Copa Del Rey Final recently...
On that occasion, everyone expected Barcelona to win. However, Real Madrid set themselves up in a strong, disciplined, defensive shape and frustrated Barcelona by not allowing them to play their expansive brand of football.
I expect United to want to do the same here and the key will be to not concede an early goal. The Red Devils have played successfully against Arsenal sides in the past that play a similar brand of football as Barcelona, even if it is less effective in the most part, and so the players should have the experience of knowing what it will take.
Concentration, as Sir Alex has mentioned a few times, is the key to the game. If United can concentrate defensively, I really feel they can spring a surprise as the team do have goals in them against a less than stellar Barcelona defence.
The odds makers have been disrespectful to United's chances of winning this game and I am going to put minimum stakes on United causing a surprise, just as Barca did in 2009 against the 'expert' opinion, and keep the trophy in England.
The Pick :
Barcelona 0-1 Manchester United
FIXED ODDS BETTING TIP :
I'll back Manchester United to WIN @ 4.00 (1 UNIT)Follow me on Twitter- the direct link is below
