The reason why I did not buy that was simply the untruthfulness of that perceived fact. Barcelona were faded and of course, Munich had good talent and Dortmund had a once off class of young players who have since succumbed to the life in the fast lane of the game. Klopp is a good coach who needed to be tried and tested. Barcelona are not the tear-away team of La Liga or Europe anymore. The reason why you did not see it when we suggested that, was that there was Lionel Messi. The little magician was in terrific form and extremely rampant in front of goal.
Credit must go to the system at the Camp Nou. Someone either read this blog or he really earns his money. They realised this fact and went shopping for Neymar in Brazil for gazillions. Unfortunately, even with the magic of Messi and the talent of the young prodigy, Barca are a shadow of their former self. Out of respect, I have always avoided expressing my thoughts about Pep Guardiola.
Pep inherited that Frank Rikaard side that was devastating in attack and efficient in both ball-passing and ball-retrieval rate. There was nothing more anybody could do to that side. In any case, Guardiola had always done a good job at the academy in perpetuating the Spanish tradition of the game that bordered around the Johan Cryuff philosophy of the Dutch sexy football, total football. Cryuff had Barcelona set the trend of the Spanish game for a long time.
The former Barca skipper has since left that sinking ship, maybe fair to say a sunken ship. He entered a different environment of solid and disciplined football in Germany, where his predecessor had done a remarkable job in sweeping all silverware last season. He transplanted the Dutch philosophy to Germans and it's biting him now. He is being found wanting big time. That encounter against Real Madrid exposed him in many ways. German teams do not easily concede, especially from dead balls. They are known for their high concentration levels and solid defensive behaviour. They man-mark and do not go zonal.
Against Madrid, their play was disintegrated and the flow was questionable. The passing never came to anything and worse, the transitions were mediocre for what they wanted to achieve. At Barcelona, the industry of Xavi, the intelligence of Iniesta and artistry of Messi would take one from a frying pan to ice. It is easy to think of the Rob-bery combination to rescue the Bavarians. Both Robben and Ribery did their best in that regard but a little tactical bail-out from the coach was necessary,but never came.
I really wish to say Pep is a good coach but so far, the facts fail me. Now that the all-German final of last season has been replaced by an all-Spanish final, it is proof that the previous state of affairs where people thought that German football rules was a fluke, but for sure Barcelona has reached its 'sell-by' date. If anything, the Real - Atletico final is proof of Spain's level playing ground that has always been dominated by Barca shifted and that change did not start yesterday.
The Diego Simeon side have come of age and deserve their place above Real Madrid and Barcelona in Spain and their slot in the UEFA final. As for Chelsea, they punched above their weight as I have not even rated them domestically. While they were criticised for their tactics in the semi-final, I am not of the opinion that team selection and playing were defensive as many suggest. If Jose parked the bus, then Chelsea would have won hands down. And I really think he should have arrogantly parked the blue bus. He only didn't because he (and Wenger) always criticise other teams for anti-football tactics because their teams have talents compared to others, but that was ever going to be his only way out.
As for the German football rising, forget about that. Maybe it is yet come. Last season was just an event. The best football is played is England because of the organisation and the money. The rest of the world's teams and players emulate and wish to be at that level. Atletico players themselves give all they have for that chance because they know they cannot all play at Real or Barca. The two Spanish giants only have cash to lure the cream of the English Premier League and Serie A but all the league is mediocre, save for the hunger of the hungry potentials. As for the Bundesliga and the French Ligue 1, they pick up crumbs from La Liga. Most rejects and failures from Barcelona and Madrid flock there.
Given the high profile Real Madrid players and the passionate fighting spirit of Atletico Madrid team, we await to see the derby of a life-time in Lisbon. Statisticians have told us that Fernando Torres alone, cost almost twice as the Atletico starting line-up and that with Willian and Hazard, they cost almost six-fold of the entire Atletico squad. Money is not everything but if you believe that, please deposit all your savings into my account. Call for bank details.
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