As poor as some individual performances were last night, I think
there is a very good reason for this – every time a United player
got the ball there were usually at least two opposition players
chasing him down and pressurising him into making a mistake. Yes,
the Reds should have done better and dealt with this but credit to
Barcelona’s off-the-ball play.
In contrast, I noticed there was simply too much space and time
for Barcelona’s players between the 18-yard line and the halfway
line in our half. The killer second goal came as a result of them
being able to controll the ball, run with it and pick out the cross
with no pressure. It happened all night – we allowed them to play
and pass easily.
I don’t think that Rooney should play on the left wing, he just
wasn’t effective, but we didn’t have anyone else to do the job
there last night and maybe that needs looking at.
I agree with Sir Alex’s decision to play Ronaldo up front,
largely because I don’t think he would have tracked back if he
played on the wing, but it’s another area that requires
consideration. We have Tevez (or maybe not next season?), Berbatov
and Rooney, all of them strikers but two started on the bench and
one on the left wing. For me, the team didn’t look balanced.
As much as I like Park and the energy he puts in, the class of
Barcelona’s players really showed against him on the night; same
goes for Anderson.
Overall I think Barcelona were just the better side. It wasn’t a
case of our players not being able to play – Barcelona just stopped
us and made us look like the lesser side.
Off the ball they chased and pressured us. On the ball they were
composed and had too much time. Iniesta and Xavi, in particular,
were excellent.
The difference between the teams last night was a bit worrying
for me. But we will learn from this and come back better and
stronger.
