Champions League 2011/12

The complain was said to be before the match, even if its communicated after it. It has nothing to do with the result a d its something that other teams have done.

The fact you all are trying to ignore at all costs is that milan agreed to water it and to do other things and later on they didnt because it was in their interest. But het, lets ignore that and criticize barcelona for everything imaginable. Beachryan, one of the greatest barcelona haters around is delighted with it.

So it isnt classles at all to promise things and dont do them but you are an spoiled idiot if you politedly complain.
 
It was surely ACM fault, for sure FC Barcelona knows how to water the pitch.

Barcelona-turn-on-water-sprinklers.jpg


;)
 
It really doesn`t matter soon enough the result at Camp Nou will hold the most water :LOL: I wished Arsenal held a draw at SanSiro ;)
 
beachryan said:
If you enjoyed that performance, I'm still shocked how good United were at defending over the 2 legs against Barca in 2008/09 - particularly in the second leg at Old Trafford. Barca weren't quite at the height of their powers then, but were the best team in the world and United managed to stop them scoring when they had to. If I chewed my nails I'd of been down to my knuckles!

But a bank of 4 and a bank of 5 were regimented and stood to their tasks superbly. Wes Brown in particular was excellent. Barca didn't actually create many chances at all, despite an obscene amount of possession.
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Firstly it was 07/08 and Barcelona definitely weren't the best in the world, they finished 3rd in La Liga that year we were considered by most the best side at the time with at the time Ronaldo considered the best in the world and a lot of people were expecting us to crush them going in.
 
YoungGun_UK said:
Firstly it was 07/08 and Barcelona definitely weren't the best in the world, they finished 3rd in La Liga that year we were considered by most the best side at the time with at the time Ronaldo considered the best in the world and a lot of people were expecting us to crush them going in.
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Were they really third that year? Apologies - clearly getting old if I'm mixing them up.

I remember being utterly terrified when they came to OT - that was the first year with the huge BELIEVE thing right? I also recall us seriously struggling to get the ball off them and defending deep for the whole game after Scholesy's screamer, and just marvelling that they didn't score despite us basically giving up on attack for the second half.

Anyway, apologies for the inaccuracies.
 
Alex, knowing that the complaint came before the match i have to change my opinion a litle bit, but only a litle bit. And yes it may not have been the most fair thing Milan could have done.

BUT.

Barcelona should understand those things. You got this absolutely fantastic team, maybe the best club team ever, with possibly the greatest player of all time in it. Every other team is an underdog against this team, even a huge team like Milan. This Barcelona team has been irresistible for years now (because when they got eliminated by Inter, that was a one off, a freak elimination) and that takes it's toll. Football is about winning and not about having an honourable defeat. Barcelona is that good that i can in a way understand what Milan did...is it fair? Certainly not. But is football at this level remotely fair? No Alex...in a fair football world other Spanish clubs would get more television money (to give only one stupid example). I understand that as a fan you are not happy...but huge clubs like Barcelona (and Milan and Madrid and Chelsea,...) are the last ones that can complain about unfairness, because the system if current day football advantages them in a huge way.

And like other people pointed out: both clubs had to play on that pitch. I think Barcelona can be reasonably happy with the result because they could have easily lost that match and IMO they weren't particularly good wednesday evening.

But you don't need to be afraid my Catalan friend, Barcelona will easily win the second leg...in a way Milan's result wednesday was also a freak result. Milan defended very good but it is rare that this Barcelona team is that "weak"...or maybe this has come to the end of it's cycle and we just don't see it at the moment...but i don't think so.

I just hope Bayern Munchen eliminate Madrid, because i don't want a classico in the CL...
 
whatever milan did to the pitch, they certainly didn't do it to make things more complicated for barça. that's just not possible. i could imagine inter doing something like this... i could see moratti allowing something like this, but galliani, allegri and berlusconi would never allow such a behaviour, they're just too proud to even consider the possibility.

the truth is that san siro's pitch situation has gone out of control. it's not really a new problem. the pitch at san siro has always been terrible.... in the early 2000s milan and inter used to returf (change the entire pitch) once a month!!! because after 3 weeks it was just impossible to play football on that pitch.

i remember they even had a commitee of experts analyzing the situation. they said that the reasons for san siro's grass problems were 2:
1- the stadium coverage (that trasparent roof over the stands and the ends) doesn't allow the grass to receive enough sunlight.
2- the chemical properties of the ground beneath the pitch are far from idea for the growth of the grass (apparently the whole san siro block isn't the best place to grow grass on).
also keep in mind that, unlike most stadia in europe, san siro is used every week (2 teams play in there, so there are no "away matches weeks" for the pitch and that means the pitch is much more stressed than any other pitch).

then suddenly a few years ago the situation changed. i don't know what they did (and it was odd because from what those experts said it seemed like the only solution would have been to build a new stadium in a different place), but whatever they did, it solved san siro's problems. for the last few years the pitch has been perfect and milan and inter didn't have to returf it so often as they did in the past. it seemed the problem was solved for good.... but this season the situation got back to what it was years ago.
i don't know what happened to change the situation, but one thing is for sure: it's almost impossible to play 4 consecituve games in a month over that pitch right now.
yesterday they said on tv milan and inter are considering the possibility to convert san siro's pitch into a synthetic turf.
so, long story short, the problems with san siro's pitch are not something related to the game against barça. unfortunately it's something much more serious than a cheesy expedient to make the blaugrana "feel unconfortable".
beachryan said:
Were they really third that year? Apologies - clearly getting old if I'm mixing them up.
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yeah that was rijkaard's last season in catalunya and barça were absolutely horrible that season.... even my mighty palermo would have spanked them :P
however if u're looking through your memories in search of a great red devils defensive display, u shouldn't go too far from that period.
april 2008, roma-man utd (0-2)....one of the greatests defensive displays in the entire 2000s decade :WORSHIP:
PLF said:
I agree with what Edmundo was saying about it taking great discipline and defensive organization and how they should be praised for that. Also his point about away goal and it being so different from group stages is spot on.

Now I see what Ben is saying about how good defending is done with 6 men and not 8 and that's a very valid point.

BUT, facts and results speak for themselves. Tell me, when was the last time and how OFTEN have Barcelona been held from scoring in the last 3 years? I'm curious. How many matches has Barcelona (The world's greatest team) and their super players who basically look like they're in training and create chances for fun even against elite competition, have been kept at bay and off the score sheet?!
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yep, not many teams and keep a clean sheet against barça, i certainly won't argue with that.
and i also won't argue that this was probably the best strategy. infact i absolutely agree with u and edmundo on this one (although the mere thought that a competition might be conceived in a way to incentivate this sort of strategies makes me sick!).

i'm only saying one thing: do not call that "good defending" or "quality defending".... because good defending is a completely different thing, and the fact that milan kept a clean sheet is not necessarily a sign of good defending. infact during the group stage match between milan and bnarçelona (when barça scored twice) the rossoneri defended MUCH better than yesterday.

we often see small epl clubs going up against the top 4 and "parking the bus in front of the goal"..... and sometimes it works... but that doesn't mean this is good defending of course
covering the gaps at midfield with 5-6 men takes some serious skills: good readings, huge focus, good understanding of your teammates movements and tendencies (good sync), great timing, and positional awareness.
if you are asked to do the same job with 3 more men, that changes everything. it ceases to be a matter of positioning, timing and good readings, and it becomes just a matter of "filling up space".

also, good defending and "inside the box defending" are 2 opposites. if you're giving up too much pitch to your opponent and retreating to your box, then "by definition" that is poor defending (stefano infact mentioned this yesterday).

again, i'm not saying milan did bad. it was a great effort and a good result (keeping a clean sheet in the home game is so important in CL). i'm just saying "let's not get carried away guys and let's not mix quantity with quality..... quality defending is a completely different thing!"
Gerd said:
But you don't need to be afraid my Catalan friend, Barcelona will easily win the second leg...in a way Milan's result wednesday was also a freak result. Milan defended very good but it is rare that this Barcelona team is that "weak"...or maybe this has come to the end of it's cycle and we just don't see it at the moment...but i don't think so.
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Barçelona weren't weak Gerd, they just didn't find any openings. and i don't think their cycle is over yet. however i do believe you're seriously underestimating milan (wich is understandable after their last 2 performances against barça and at emirates stadium).
barça is obviously the favourite to win the match, no doubt about it, but when this milan is at full strenght (and when they actually bother playing football), they are very VERY good.
i also believe barça has more chance to win.... not many more chances than milan though. and trust me, it's gonna be everything but easy for the blaugranas to overtop milan next week, as they'll probably be facing a different milan.

speaking about that, what's the situation concerning milan's injuries? is anybody gonna make it in time to play at the nou camp next week? stef, zeem, do u have any news? :))
Drekkard said:
Well, I'm fed up of certain aspects of it as well, but there's a clash of interests between low-level teams, mid-level teams and top clubs. I don't see the way to serve all purposes right at the same time without affecting the domestic leagues a bit.

How do you see it, Ben? What would you do?
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i'd change pretty much everything mate. no premilinary qualifying stages, no 2nd or 3rd or 4th clubs (this used to be the "champions" competition for a reason), no group stages, no away goal rule.
infact it would proably be easier for me to tell u what i would not change in this boring, stupid competition. a ridiculous mix of "league" and "cup", wich manages to take all the worse aspects of both kind of competitions and none of the good ones.
 
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Thiago Silva is most definitely out, Van Bommel should be back and possibly Abate.... other than that it won't change too much. I think a key thing for us to operate well is to always have either Thiago or Nesta playing lead our back four... but if they're both out we're fucked..

Getting 0-0 is a good thing for us because it means we can't be lazy like against Arsenal. Also, with Thiago Silva out, it also means Bonera has something to prove. His performance against Roma was also outstanding, and a spot with Prandelli's Italy is still a possibility.

This time though, I'd think twice about starting Robinho - I'd see how he performs against Catania.

Anyway Ben, I'm going to Milan-Fiorentina in Easter... to see your beloved Delio and Mattia (and Gianni?) :D
 
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Milanista said:
Anyway Ben, I'm going to Milan-Fiorentina in Easter... to see your beloved Delio and Mattia (and Gianni?) :D
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gianni? who's that? :SS

anyway if abate can play next week, that's already a great news. it would have been a different game if he were playing this week, as nocerino never really forced any 1 on 1 vs puyol (as Sina mentioned) wich is the weak spot in barça's defensive line.
plus boateng should be in better shape than this week.
too bad thiago won't make it in time. and yeah, i would definitely line up el sharawi instead of robinho upfront :))
 
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has been handed a three-match UEFA touchline ban and fined £33,000.

Wenger was found guilty of improper conduct for his behaviour after Arsenal's Champions League last 16 second leg tie against AC Milan at the Emirates Stadium earlier this month.


Arsene Wenger seem to be such a calm gent...he get fine and banned a lot. He possibly the most gaffe to get ban in the CL comp.
 
wtf!! 3 matches? and what for? a 3 matches ban is what mazzarri got for going berserk on a villareal player! what did wenger do to get such a punishment? :CONFUSE:
 
Milanista said:
Not sure what to feel for tonight - I think we might get thumped within the first 20 minutes....
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Ha stef, this is typical fan behaviour. Fans are always very pessimistic (including me of course).
To be honest with you, i think Barcelona will go through, but Milan has a bigger chance than you think.
If Milan defends like in the first leg, everything is possible.
 
Raining a lot in barcelona right now, lets hope the pitch can hold well. It would be a pitty to have to play again on a difficult surface! Anyway, i dont think barcelona will beat easily milan. At all. Knowing barça at the nou camp, first 30 minutes are key, and if milan plays more offensive you can make us suffer a lot.

It is always a pleasure to play Milan, I always enjoy our matches! I remember talking with lots of milan fans who were gathering around my house to watch the europen cup against steaua here at barcelona. The atmosphere was great and i had a great time.
 
The rain does look really bad - and the French air-space strikes means a lot of Milan fans can't make it, which is a total shame.

Barca have always been a close rival in the CL, so I have a lot of respect for them. I also think Pep is quite an honourable guy and am a fan of his.

I think Milan are a bit nervous these few days, especially after what happened at Catania... so I don't know what to expect.
 
Bit of trivia... dunno if it's already been mentioned here, I don't remember it to have been. Btw, this is one of the best football threads/forums I've seen. Plenty of sportsmanship, little dissent and a few people who really have insight and from which I learn a lot. Cheers to all of you.

As others, probably, I've wondered why Milan chose the white kit for the first game. My initial guess was that it was a marketing gimmick for the promotion of away kits and Barcelona would reciprocate in the away leg. Odd place and time but...
The net seemed full of ignorance and sort of convinced the reason was that Barcelona's home and away kits clashed with Milan's. Sure, but... what's that got to do? If you're host you're allowed to play in your kit. That's the away team's problem, and as seen in the group game, there's always the rare third kit to see action. Weak explanation.

And then I heard about the "white is Milan's lucky kit"-story, about how they've won most finals in white etc. This was probably no surprise to all of you from Italy, but it's news (worth remembering) for the rest of us. And a great story.

Just thought it's worth mentioning in this thread.
 
:D yeah, adriano galliani (milan ceo and the pretty much the real guidance of the club since berlusconi got into politics) is a very superstitious fellow. he always wears the same (horrible) yellow tie at the stadium and has milan playing all their important cup matches in the white shirt.
milan won 7 out of 9 finals with the white shirt (they only lost to liverpool and maybe ajax?) whereas the classic "rossonera" home shirt has a much worse record :P

looking forward to tonight's match.. it might be a good one! :))
 
Galliani is crazy! He re-bought Ibrahim Ba cause he thinks of him as a good luck charm and his emotional goal celebrations are the best in the business. Such an emotional guy and we're lucky to have him. :)

Yeah really looking forward to the match. No doubt Barcelona are heavy favorites but who know. There's so much at stake.
 
:LOL: this man cracks me up. seriously though u guys are indeed lucky to have him, as he's really great at his job.

have u ever seen teo teocoli's impression of galliani? priceless :D
 
Milanista said:
Galliani is the biggest Milan fan there is :LOL:

After going down 3-0, we came back and won 3-4. He tries so hard not to celebrate as he's surrounded by Lecce officials.

YouTube - ESULTANZA DI GALLIANI - LECCE 3-4 MILAN
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he also did one phone call after 1st half , hmmm guess what ? he call Lecce director and give some money to buy the match :P haha

Galliani its really class love his passion for football(Milan)

I hope Milan goes on tonight , damn cant belive yet im doing fan for Milan :A

about white lucky shirt i remember this from Istanbull 2005 final vs Liverpool , I remember comenatory told this fact :D

oh whats about black shirt ? I think Galliani "loves" them :LMAO:
 
Barca 3-0 Milan

I'm putting a small speculative $10 bet on that. Gives $77 if it wins.
 
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