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*Official* English Football Season 2014-15

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Yeah so good. I don't think there were any tactics Pep could've used to get a result here, the difference in quality between the two forward lines is just too big.

They completely panicked at 1-0 though. Even at 2-0, overturning that deficit at home isn't unusual at all. They're behind, but still completely in the game, there's no need to commit everyone forward.

Winds me up when teams treat first legs as if they're a whole game. Like when they're winning 1-0 away and decline a counter at the end to take the ball into the corner, it's as stupid as doing that just before half-time in a league match.
 

Furball

Evil Scotsman
2-0's one of those interesting deficits where if you score early in the 2nd leg and get the crowd and momentum behind you the away team can hust crumble.

Utterly dreadful punditry from Redknapp and Henry. Questioning Lahm in midfield was ****ing laughable and I don't agree with the criticism of 3 at the back either.
 

Furball

Evil Scotsman
Hard to understate how much of a difference Suarez has made IMO. I rate Guardiola's first side the highest and a lot of that was dow to Eto'o IMO; Suarez is probably the closest thing in world football to Eto'o from 6 years ago.
 

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2-0's one of those interesting deficits where if you score early in the 2nd leg and get the crowd and momentum behind you the away team can hust crumble.
Yeah not like they have to think too hard for an example, it happened in the previous round. Playing away from home in Europe can be really difficult. How was it Neville described it? "You think you're in control then the roof falls in".

Always a long shot though, given their injuries and Barca's form.
 

Cabinet96

Global Moderator
Bernat and Thiago were surprisingly poor. Lewandowski was isolated.

In the end it's all Messi though. Bloke completed 10 take ons and 3 through balls to Bayern's 3 and 0 respectively. Got the two goals, created the other with a perfectly weighted pass. Against what was still an impressive defensive unit, on the biggest stage. GOAT.
 

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They just desperately lacked pace. My rant yesterday comparing fast-dribbler front threes with other high-quality attacks could have been written about tonight's game. It was so frustrating how often they brilliantly worked triangles to work space for Alonso in the middle of the park, and he'd look up to see nobody running in behind. Barcelona always had those runs happening, Busquets even played Alba in behind at one point.
 

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Is that supposed to be surprising? Does no one remember the types of people who were in charge at the FA at that time? I mean, come on. As if some deeply conservative 80-year-olds during the 1990s might have been a bit racist.
 
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Cabinet96

Global Moderator
They just desperately lacked pace. My rant yesterday comparing fast-dribbler front threes with other high-quality attacks could have been written about tonight's game. It was so frustrating how often they brilliantly worked triangles to work space for Alonso in the middle of the park, and he'd look up to see nobody running in behind. Barcelona always had those runs happening, Busquets even played Alba in behind at one point.
I think I do actually agree with you btw (even if I think Arsenal don't need that player as their main striker). I've argued this a few times with people about Thomas Müller. He's very intelligent with his movement, positioning and combination play, and is a decent finisher. But he's not really capable of making something out of nothing. He's someone you put in as the last pice of a jigsaw, but he's not someone you'll ever build a side around if you're an average team looking to reach the next level. He's a great player but he's also lucky he's always played for good sides, perhaps more so than most players.

I think you only really need one or two of those players though. Just sucks for Bayern that their two best players of that ilk were injured.
 

harsh.ag

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Went off to sleep after 60 minutes :(

As good as Messi was (how cool is he in big game situations!), the first goal was more of a Bayern let up than anything else. As for the second, precious skills but Boateng really didn't help himself the way he was ambling backwards with Messi. Hard to fault him that much though, it's gonna happen once in 90 minutes. The third was just punishment for Bayern losing their heads. Hope they can crawl something back at home, but looks impossible at the moment. It's awful when the best players aren't playing the latter stages of CL.

Messi, Neymar, and Suarez have scored 111 goals between them this season :eek: Oh and -

 

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Boateng is getting a lot of flak because he was skinned so hilariously but there's not a lot he can do there. Has to commit to stop Messi shooting with his left.

The finish was so, so beautiful. Incredible how easy he makes the wrong-foot chip look.
 

OverratedSanity

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Boateng is getting a lot of flak because he was skinned so hilariously but there's not a lot he can do there. Has to commit to stop Messi shooting with his left.

The finish was so, so beautiful. Incredible how easy he makes the wrong-foot chip look.
Yeah and Neuer didn't even go down that much. .. He stood pretty tall and Messi still managed to chip it over him as though it was easiest thing ever.

Have to feel for Neuer though. Spent 80 minutes bring beastly but in the last 10, despite not doing much wrong, he got beaten at his near post, had one dunked over him and then got nutmegged for the third. :laugh:
 

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