The Argentinian had a hand in the one goal at Stamford
Bridge but it was not for his own side
When the half-time whistle went, Leo Messi turned and
looked to the sky, a pained expression etched across his face. The
players headed for the tunnel; Messi bit his lip and silently
ambled after them, lost in thought, still mulling over his role in
the opening goal perhaps. It was not his normal role.
There was no clever finish here, no dashing run, no assist.
Instead he had given the ball away. It was Chelsea's
goal, not Barcelona's.
There were still 45 minutes to remedy the mistake and Messi
certainly tried to do just that but the expression would be much
the same at the final whistle too.
Messi had been caught in possession by Frank Lampard. Suddenly
space opened up before Chelsea in a way it never would before
Barcelona. The swift attack was on. Out it went to Ramires, across
to Didier Drogba and Chelsea had the lead. It was the last action
of the first half. A moment before Messi had stood stretching
uneasily after being left on the floor by Raul Meireles. This,
though, hurt more. Roberto Di Matteo had sought counsel over how to
approach Barcelona. Play deep, deny space, spring forward quickly –
"like motorbikes" in Cesc Fábregas's prophetic words. It had
worked.
There had been no home comforts for Barcelona, even though one
director described this city as like a second home. London holds a
special place in the Catalan collective conscience. It was here
that they won their hugely symbolic first European Cup in 1992 – a
success that the club's vice-president celebrated by stripping down
to his boxer shorts and taking a late-night dip in the freezing,
filthy waters of the Thames – and where they won the tournament
against Manchester United last year. Then there was 2009, a stage
for the Norwegian referee Tom Henning Ovrebo, sure, but stage for
Andrés Iniesta too.
And, though it has gone unnoticed in Britain, it was also here
in 2006 that the Spanish press said a 19-year-old Messi had
graduated against Chelsea: "Messi se doctoró," ran the headlines.
Asier del Horno almost sent him to the doctor's. In England Messi
was accused of diving. In Spain his display was considered
confirmation of an emerging and very special talent.
Messi became the best. And yet he had not scored against Chelsea
even though, as Frank Lampard put it, every time you put on the
telly he scores two as standard. In fact Chelsea were unbeaten
against Spanish opponents in 13 games, going back to that 2-1 Barça
win here in 2006. Messi had scored 243 goals for Barça, none in six
games against Chelsea. That is seven now. Barcelona may have had
72% of the ball but Chelsea were rewarded for their organisation
and commitment.
Space denied, in the first half Messi was often found dropping
deep and occasionally flickered into life as Barça built their
attacks and Chelsea lay in wait. He had a shot charged down just
after the quarter hour, immediately reaching the loose ball to find
Iniesta, who drew a save from Petr Cech.
He leapt high to force Cech into another save from his header 10
minutes later and there was a real Messi moment two minutes before
half-time, when he robbed Mikel John Obi and dashed through, the
ball not so much tied to his foot as seeming to follow him
faithfully. He slipped it through to Fábregas. The shot was dinked
over the keeper but cleared off the line. A moment later Messi
scuffed a shot wide. "Who are ya?" chanted Chelsea's fans. Soon
they had an answer they never expected: the man who helped them
take the lead.
Messi disappeared down the tunnel chewing on that moment. He
reappeared determined to put it right. There was more dynamism now,
more intent, more directness. What there was not was a way through.
A shot in the opening minute, blocked, and one of those
hold-your-breath moments as he surged away from one challenge and
took aim. Gary Cahill, though, came flying across to block. It was
not the first time and it would not be the last: as Chelsea
constructed a barrier on the edge of their box, Cahill was often
the quickest out. John Terry, too, dived in to block him. His
reward: Messi's shirt.
Messi did not desist. He drew free-kicks on the edge of the box
– the first from Mikel's hand, the second from Ramires' foul. He
was then felled further out as he tried to weave through. The
opportunities came to nought: Messi and Daniel Alves hit the wall,
Xavi floated over. Another free-kick came, won by Messi once more.
This time he clipped it in for Carles Puyol's header. Cech
saved.
There was even time for him to find Pedro in the last minute,
only for the ball to come back off the post and Sergio Busquets to
put the rebound over the bar.
This was a strange night at Stamford Bridge for Messi, departing
at full-time wearing an expression much like the one he wore at
half-time. Look at the list of this game's key moments: with the
exception of Alexis Sánchez's shot off the bar Messi was at the
heart of all of them. Unfortunately for Barça, that included the
only goal of this game, Chelsea's goal.
