Champions of Europe: Barcelona and the Messiverse

Photo credit: Reuters

It's Messi's world. In European club soccer there is no better player. FC Barcelona prevailed over Manchester United FC at the 2011 UEFA Champions League Final thanks to its number 10. The Catalan team proved to be too much for Manchester United, robbing them of the ball and playing their futbol dance throughout the match.

This was a rematch of the 2009 final when Cristiano Ronaldo faced off against Messi for world dominance. That match would end 2-0. Today's 3-1 is the same general score. Dominance and distance. The game started much like the 2009 final: possession, aggression and a resolve to keep the ball away from Messi, Xavi and Iniesta. Vidic, Evra, Valencia and Park constantly broke up plays by the spaniards well inside the Iberian half of the field. And just like in 2009, as the 10th minute came around, Barcelona stole the ball. They would never give it back except for Rooney's goal.

The victory was complete because the three attacking aces scored for Barca: Pedro, Messi and Villa. Pedro's strike was magic on the pitch after subtle passes gave way to a final touch worthy of replays. Rooney would strike back seven minutes later. But that would be all from United. The second half started with a more balanced and composed Manchester United. Until Messi found a goal through a rare Van der Saar error. Villa's strike with a curling ball to the upper 90 was further prove of his completeness as a striker.

There was distance between the two teams because Barcelona found channels through the English defense with short passes and midfield incursions. The Catalan team opened up the usually-stout group that Ferguson developed from some of the best defenders in the world: Ferdinand, Evra, Vidic, Fabio. There was distance also in the score: two goals. No way for United to return fire when Villa was subbed off at the 85th minute. The game stats said it all: 24 shots, 70% possession.

And even though this is the Messiverse, no one player is complete without his team. And this supporting cast happens to be the best in the world--quite literally. Indeed, if Villa, Pedro, Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta, Pique and Puyol sound familiar it's because they form the spine of the World Cup Champion: Spain. Not to mention that 7 of these players came up through the Barca ranks. This is the difference: a team built from the ground up, growing together and adding the best player in the world.

Congratulations, Barcelona. And thank you for making us believe in fantasy again.

Paint it yellow, paint it red: Spain wins the World Cup

Yellow and red because those are the colors of the Spanish flag and the flag of Catalunia. Yellow and red because Webb, the referee, decided to give out a myriad of punishment cards (12). Most notable was the red card for Heitinga deep into extra time. Spain was victorious today because of the whole of the team. . . and they taught us how to play soccer once again.

There would be no Fernando Torres starting today. Most of us knew that. But was Pedro the right call? He had shown a bit of trepidation in his play. Maybe he wasn't ready for the big screen. Llorente and Navas were the other options. Navas would come in to add some spark to the game.

No winning goal from Torres, not this time. No sixth goal for David Villa, he would settle for five in this World Cup. No heroics from Sergio Ramos, Carles Puyol or Gerard Pique. No magic from Xavi or Xabi Alonso. It was Iniesta this time, and just in time. The man that sent Barcelona to the Champions League final in 2009 was the man that would give his country the one tournament they always knew they could get but had not been able to acquire. Gooooooooal! We screamed and cried and laughed as the net opened its petals when the ball hit the polyester strands. Spain would win it without penalties. Spain would redeem soccer once more and bring the beautiful game back to the glory it deserves.

Another chapter in world football closes today. Another four-year cycle comes to a close. We return to our everyday lives and begin to train our hearts and minds to dream once more. Maybe your country can go far in 2014. Maybe your country can win. Now we watch our players grow and fall and score and cry so that they can share the dream. This is why we love this game.

Que viva Espana.

Last Minute Man: Iniesta and his Barcelona magic

Improbable. Unrealistic. Not to be. Those were Tommy Smyth's words as time wound down for Barcelona in their crucial semifinal match with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. But champions should never be underestimated. Yes, there was no Puyol, Marquez and Henry and yes, they were down a man when they should not have been. Barca still played like they had eleven men on the pitch. Chelsea wasted their chances and when they thought it was all set and done, Iniesta throws a cold bucket of water on their dreams of reaching Rome in two weeks' time.

Last Saturday's 6-2 victory over bitter rivals Real Madrid was no fluke. Even though Essien, Alex and Terry gobbled up Messi's inventiveness and Xavi's incursions into the area, the true colors of this loaded team would show brighter than ever. The referee made 3 or 4 serious errors (hilariously enough, the man happens to be a psychologist too). These errors were quite costly for Chelsea since they could have been penalties. On the other hand, his dismissal of Abidal was completely unfounded since the Frenchman did not touch Drogba (Anelka?) and the Chelsea man took an impressive dive.

What's next? A depleted but resilient Barcelona against the all-around best team in the world--Manchester United. A tall order? Perhaps. Keep in mind that 3/4 of their starting defense will be missing due to suspension/injury: Marquez, Puyol and Abidal. For Man U, Fletcher will miss the match. Pep Guardiola is set to have a tough match against United but Sir Alex Ferguson's team tends to leave open spaces in the back. Messi and Henry thrive in those situations. In the end, this was the best possible final we could have asked for except maybe for the weakened Barca defense. Can't wait for the 27th!