‘There was a way to play against Barcelona, as we proved the year before. There was a way to stop them, even Messi.’
When Manchester United arrived in Rome for the 2009 European Cup final, many expected them to return to England with the trophy. United were arguably a stronger team than the one which won the club’s third European crown against Chelsea the previous year and on course to become the first side of the Champions League era to win the tournament in consecutive seasons.
Barcelona stood in their way, a team they had beaten in the semis en route to the 2008 final in Moscow. Despite their improvement under Pep Guardiola in the 12 months that had passed, it was widely believed that United – particularly with the experiences of the previous year – would retain their status as European champions.
By full-time, however, United had been well beaten. Despite starting brightly in the Stadio Olimpico, they were stunned by a Samuel Eto’o goal after 10 minutes and unable to recover as Barcelona dominated possession from thereon, swiftly winning the ball back on the rare occasions a pass went astray. With 20 minutes remaining, Lionel Messi’s header all but ended any hopes of a United comeback, Barca claiming a 2-0 victory.
This was the first of two finals in three seasons in which United were beaten by Barca, with Guardiola’s side even more dominant in 2011 at Wembley. Reflecting on the two games in his autobiography, Sir Alex Ferguson conceded the outcome may have been different – particularly in Rome – had he adopted a more defensive approach.
Explaining that he wished the game in the Eternal City could have been played the very next day, Ferguson cited the nerve-shredding tension of the 2008 semi-finals – from which United progressed thanks to a solitary Paul Scholes goal – as his reason for adopting a more adventurous approach in the finals:
‘In each of those two European Cup finals, we might have been closer to Spain’s finest by playing more defensively, but by then I had reached a stage with Manchester United where it was no good us trying to play that way. I used those tactics to beat Barcelona in the 2008 semi-final: defended really deep, put myself through torture, put the fans through hell. I wanted a more positive outlook against them subsequently, and we were beaten partly because of that change in emphasis. If we had retreated to our own box and kept defending tight, we might have achieved the results we craved. I’m not blaming myself; I just wish our positive approach could have produced better outcomes.’
The game in Rome, Ferguson added, accelerated Barca’s development, helping them evolve into a team many regard as the finest club side ever to play the game. Despite this, they were beatable, he adds, as his experiences in 2008 had shown.
‘We shouldn’t have lost the game in the Eternal City. There was a way to play against Barcelona, as we proved the year before. There was a way to stop them, even Messi. What we did, 12 months previously in the away leg, was to deploy [Carlos] Tevez off the front and [Cristiano] Ronaldo at centre-forward, so we could have two areas of attack. We had the penetration of Ronaldo and Tevez to get hold of the ball.
We still found it hard, of course, because Barcelona monopolised possession for such long periods and in those circumstances your own players tend to lose interest. They start watching the game: they are drawn into watching the ball weave its patterns. Our idea was that when we had any semblance of possession, Ronaldo would go looking for space and Tevez would come short to get on the ball. But they were busy spectating. I made that point to them at half-time.’
Ferguson points out that another key factor in Barca’s victory that night came shortly before their opening goal. Messi had started the game on the right with Eto’o playing through the middle. Concerned that Evra was getting forward down the United left too easily, Guardiola moved Eto’o to the wing and Messi into a more central berth. The Argentine remained in the middle throughout the rest of the game, creating uncertainty in United’s back four who were unsure whether to push up towards him or drop off.
‘With Messi central, Barcelona had an extra man in midfield. Iniesta and Xavi just went boomp-boomp-boomp, kept possession all night. They were superior to us at ball-circulation. I won’t waste any time contesting that fact.’
