Barcelona v Chelsea: Chelsea disrupt the Catalan carousel

With the echoes of Gary Neville's goal-gasm, still ringing in our ears, it is worth taking the time to pick over the bones of what was an extraordinary night at the Nou Camp.

Chelsea's victory over Barcelona, in the Champions League semi-final, was improbable to say the least.

Not from the outset: any team leading 1-0 on aggregate, going into the second leg of a European tie, would have a great chance of getting a result. No, it was improbable, unthinkable, impossible even, 44 minutes in, when Chelsea - shorn of their only front line centre backs and down to ten men - conceded their second goal.

Game over. Or so we thought.

A thrilling breakaway goal from the indefatigable Ramires - surely the London club's player of the season - fed by a delicious pass from Frank Lampard, made it 2-1 moments later and, suddenly, inexplicably, it was back on. Chelsea were going through on away goals.

Barca had to score again. The second half began, and, almost immediately, Didier Drogba - who would spent most of the half playing at left back - conceded a penalty to a Fabregas dive. Messi stepped up. And we knew what would happen. We knew he would score. We pictured him calmly stroking the ball home. Bottom left hand corner. Chelsea would be demoralised. The flood gates would open. It could be four, five, six...

Then Messi, human after all, hit the bar.

It was the turning point. Doubt crept in to Barcelona's play. Messi, of all people, had missed. They got ragged, they made poor decisions.

Wave after wave of Barcelona attacks, broke on the rocks at the heart of Chelsea's defence. Ivanovic had shifted to centre back when Cahill had tweaked his hamstring, Bosingwa - not noted for his defensive prowess - moved inside when Terry was deservedly sent off. Both performed miracles.

Cech was outstanding too, making a string of crucial saves. The midfield worked tirelessly. They were dogged in defence, all ten men behind the ball, heroes to a man. The tide never turned and yet, somehow, Chelsea survived.

Once again, it was a performance reminiscent of those determined defensive displays by Wigan over the last few weeks, thwarting technically superior sides. The "carousel" was interrupted, Barca's rhythm was disturbed, and the best team in the world began to lose faith.

Then: the knockout blow.

When Drogba was withdrawn for Torres on 80 minutes I felt it was the wrong decision. Drogba was exhausted, yes, but he was extremely effective playing as an auxiliary left back. He was tackling well, using his strength. Surely Torres could not fulfil the same role?

Immediately Barca attacked down the right and Torres let his man go. It seemed Roberto Di Matteo had made a mistake.

But Di Matteo had a plan.

Every time Torres took possession of the ball he attacked, running at pace into the Barcelona half, engaging their skittish defenders. Repeatedly he lost possession, enabling Barcelona to launch yet another assault on the Petr Cech's goal. "Keep the ball," screamed Chelsea fans on Twitter, "Give the defence a break."

But what RDM had noted, that the rest of us had not, was that Barcelona had lost their discipline, perhaps understandably. And when, in the 91st minute, the exhausted Chelsea defence lumped a clearance up field, Torres found himself with the freedom of the Barcelona half. It took the camera man a few moments to catch on, perhaps disbelieving, like so many of the home fans. But there it was. Torres was one on one with Valdes, almost from the halfway line. West London held it's breath.

Torres rounded the keeper to score the "£50 million goal" and Chelsea were through.


Aftermath

John Terry will miss the final; a fitting punishment. There will be no chance at redemption for his penalty miss in Moscow. Only he knows why he chose to knee Alexis Sanchez, off the ball. His initial denials of wrongdoing were laughable and he only admitted the offence once he had seen how damning the video evidence was. Few will be convinced by the red-eyed contrition he displayed in his interview with Sky Sports.

His reputation has been eroded over the years, as a result of various on and off field misdemeanours; both proven and unproven. Throughout all this, many have continued to argue that - whatever you think about him as a man - he is a brilliant captain and leader. That must surely be called into question now, by even the most ardent of his supporters.

The ungracious Spanish media called Barcelona's defeat "Unjust, cruel, horrible, unmerited," and yes it could be argued that the "best team" did not win. But if the "best team" always won, football would be a very boring game. We all want to see teams playing a beautiful, intricate passing game win matches, but hard work, determination and defensive resilience must also be rewarded.

Many have bemoaned Barcelona's lack of a "Plan B." But the truth is they've never really needed one. They have a footballing philosophy and they stick to it. This is total football. Having said that, if they had a more traditional centre forward on their books - taller, more physically imposing - that would enable them to vary their attacks more. Come the summer, Pep Guardiola should be looking at Fernando Llorente.

Sky viewers who had not already meandered away to other channels were treated to another classic Geoff Shreeves moment, as he broke the news to Branislav Ivanovic that he would not play in the final.

And that leads us to the big question looming for Roberto Di Matteo. What will his line up be on May 19th? Terry, Ramires, Ivanovic and Meireles are all suspended. Cahill is now an injury doubt, as is David Luiz. Michael Essien may come into the Italian's thinking for a defensive roll.

Di Matteo must be pinching himself. When he was sacked by West Brom, in February last year, he could never have dreamt that, less than 18 months on, he would be managing a side in the Champions League final.

Now, if only he could win it, he might - just might - be given the job full time.

Roll on May 19th.

Arsenal 1-2 Wigan and The Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain conundrum

It is hard to be too critical of Arsene Wenger and Arsenal after their resurgence over the last few weeks, and indeed this loss owed far more to a determined and accomplished defensive display from Wigan Athletic, than a particularly abject performance from the Gunners. True Wenger's men were not at their best, but credit must be given to Roberto Martinez, who has instilled belief in a Wigan side most thought were all but relegated after they lost eight matches on the spin, earlier in the season.

Pre-match, Sky's Gary Neville - pound for pound the best pundit in the business right now - predicted Arsenal, at home and in good form, would be extremely positive from the outset, and this seemed to be how Wigan saw things as well. They lined up with ten - often eleven - men behind the ball, worked hard to win possession and then counter attacked with gusto, dispensing with the pretty passing that has been Martinez's managerial trademark. It was a gutsy performance by Wigan; they played effective, direct football, battled to a man, and left Arsenal struggling to create clear cut chances.

After the game Wenger bemoaned the referee's failure to curb Wigan's time wasting - and he had a point - but the truth is, Arsenal looked as though they could have played for another half hour and still not got their equaliser.

Indeed for much of the second half, Wenger's men looked devoid of inspiration. Benayoun was ineffective and Walcott well marshalled; Van Persie was repeatedly forced to drop deep to get a touch of the ball, and you felt the crowd willing the Frenchman to make a change. When it came, the sight of half-man half-forehead, Gervinho, on the touchline received a lukewarm response from the crowd.

The player they really wanted to see, was Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

The Arsenal manager has shown a marked reluctance to give game time to Oxlade-Chamberlain over the last few weeks, and given the player's form earlier in campaign, Arsenal fans have been left scratching their heads.

Arsene Wenger's reputation as a manager who is highly adept at developing young players, is well earned, and it is no surprise that many young talents have, in recent years, chosen Arsenal over other top Premier League clubs, as the place to continue their football eduction. Is Wenger simply protecting his player, his years of experience telling him that the young midfielder has been elevated to the position of "fan favourite" before his time? It could be that he simply does not want to expose Oxlade-Chamberlain to those kind of pressures just yet.

Another school of thought is that it is Wenger's legendary stubbornness that prevents him from playing the teenager. It seems that whenever the fans demand something, the Frenchman digs his heels in and for several games earlier in the year there was a real battle of wills between manager and fans, most notably when Oxlade-Chamberlain - Arsenal's best player on the day - was withdrawn for Andrei Arshavin, in the game against Manchester United. Arshavin's poor defending would then play a part in United's winner.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eedFlvSaSXM

That, in particular, was a decision that baffled, and it came at a point in the season when many supporters had begun openly questioning whether Wenger should continue at the club next season.

With the team now back to winning ways, is this Wenger's way of showing the fans that he was right all along, that they can win without Oxlade-Chamberlain? Is this Wenger reminding the fans that Arsene knows best?

Quite possibly but, ever the conspiracy theorist, I'd like to put forward another suggestion...

After his performances in the Champions League and against United, the clamour for Oxlade-Chamberlain to start for Arsenal was deafening. But in addition, and perhaps crucially, there was talk of an England call up. Most worrying for Wenger, there was the prospect of his young talent being taken to Euro 2012.

Arsene Wenger is often described as a control freak. He is certainly meticulous and, many would say, dogmatic in his approach to management. He does things his way and he will not be swayed, by the capriciousness of the fans or bandwagon journalism; in many ways, admirable qualities.

It would be fair to say that he has never been a fan of international football and he is constantly complaining about his younger players being called up. For a manager so much in control at his club, a manager who prides himself on knowing how to nurture young players, to lose sight of them for weeks on end for under-21 or full international duty, must be, you would imagine, almost impossible to cope with. The wrangle over Theo Walcott's inclusion in the squad for the European under-21 championship in 2009 is evidence of this...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/england/5395815/Theo-Walcott-inclusion-in-England-Under-21-squad-leaves-Arsene-Wenger-simmering.html

In fairness to Wenger, his concerns about Walcott's fitness proved to be well founded. But the point is that the Frenchman has previous. The fact that Walcott - a young man passionate about playing for his country - had to "defy" his manager, to accept his call up speaks volumes.

I believe this is the reason behind Oxlade-Chamberlain not receiving the time on the pitch that many seasoned Arsenal supporters believe he deserves. By holding Oxlade-Chamberlain back, Wenger is ensuring that the England manager - whoever that may be come June - will simply not be able to justify calling up his teen prodigy. Wenger will have him all to himself for a summer of tedious, fitness building - and in no way commercially motivated - pre-season tours of Asia and the Far East.

Wayne Rooney forced himself into the England side in the run up to Euro 2004, through the unimpeachable quality of his football that year, and took the tournament by storm, before his unfortunate injury. Oxlade-Chamberlain's performances earlier this season were similarly eye-catching, and if his form had continued he would surely have been in Poland and the Ukraine this summer.

Of course Arsene Wenger's first concern must be Arsenal but, in holding back the talented midfielder, he could be robbing the nation - and the wider footballing world - of the potential breakout star of Euro 2012.