Defiance rules despair

It’s not often that we United fans have to take our medicine, but there is little option after our defeat to the magnificent Barcelona.

Expectations have grown through the last three silver-laden seasons. The 2006/07 league title was retained in 2007/08, with the most wonderful night in Moscow thrown into the bargain. Last night, with the league, Carling Cup and Club World Cup already bagged, the chance to become only football’s second Quadruple winners loomed tantalisingly on the banks of the Tiber.

That history ultimately beckoned for another was tough enough to take, with Barcelona becoming Europe’s fifth Treble winners, but the way United were led a merry dance by Pep Guardiola’s side was a cruel end to a season which had briefly hinted at a trophy monopoly.

Despite this denouement, United supporters could leave the Stadio Olimpico with heads held high. It stuck with me that so many Arsenal fans had stayed at Old Trafford to applaud the league champions earlier this month, and United's travelling support were on similarly fine form in Rome.

Before, during and after the match, including at half-time, the Red Army’s strains boomed around the stadium as supporters sought to haul United back into a game being conducted almost entirely at Barcelona's chosen tempo.

When it became clear that no amount of cajoling could take the trophy away from a Barcelona side marching unflinchingly towards their destiny, the mood in the United section changed. It’s never easy retaining an air of dignity when you're being outclassed, but the long, heartfelt applause which greeted he substitution of Andres Iniesta – quite imperious throughout - said much for our collective recognition of quality and, painful as it is to say, justice.

The air of acceptance continued past full-time with lasting applause for Barcelona and a rousing salute to a United side who achieved so much before clattering into the final hurdle, but there was still an undertone of defiance which strode to the fore just ahead of the Catalans’ trophy lift.

While Barcelona’s supporters emitted little more than an expectant hum as the new champions of Europe prepared to lift their prize, boisterous cries of ‘United, United’ provided the unlikely soundtrack.

A sour ending, then, but no bitterness. Just boldness, and the promise that, as Sir Alex and his charges look to re-scale the highest mountains next season, the Red Army will be backing United all the way.

Sir Alex: We missed Fletch

Darren Fletcher was perhaps the perfect player to disrupt Barcelona's possession football, and Sir Alex Ferguson's fears before the game that the suspended midfielder would be a great loss sadly proved prophetic.

The Reds boss recognises that Barcelona also had players missing through suspension, but from a United point of view Fletcher would have been key in disrupting the flow of passes from Andres Iniesta and Xavi to the front three of Eto'o, Henry and Messi.

"I thought before the game it may have been a problem," said Sir Alex.

"I knew it might count against us because he is a big-game player and he was a big loss. It's difficult to say how big, and they had players missing too, but it showed for us tonight."

Fletcher's ability to cover every blade of grass in the middle of the park would have been an asset as United tried to regain possession - but keeping the ball was also a problem.

"The simple reason we lost was possession," Sir Alex added. "You have to wait minutes to get it back off Barcelona but when we did get it, we didn't do anything with it.

"That was the disappointment, our use of the ball when we had it.

"We recognised beforehand their strength was their central midfielders. It wasn't really Messi who was the problem. It was Iniesta and Xavi. They can keep the ball all night long.

"You have to give credit to a very good Barcelona team. If they get in front of you they are very difficult to beat."

Wayne: We're in Roo-ins Wayne Rooney surveyed the ruins of Manchester United's Champions League dream and admitted: We lost to the best team in the wo

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.
The views expressed in this blog are personal to the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Manchester United FC.

Papers: Rooney hails Iniesta

Wayne: We're in Roo-ins
Wayne Rooney surveyed the ruins of Manchester United's Champions League dream and admitted: We lost to the best team in the world. But the heartbroken Old Trafford star refused to hail Barca's Lionel Messi and instead dubbed Andres Iniesta the world's best player. Rooney said: "It's disappointing, but I thought Barcelona were the better team tonight and deserved to win. They scored a good goal early on and Messi's was a great goal at a difficult time for us. They deserved to win. I've never played against a better team than this Barcelona. They're a brilliant team." A Samuel Eto'o toe-poke on 10 minutes and Messi's soaring header after 70 underlined Barca's superiority here in Rome. But Rooney added: "Iniesta for me is the best player in the world, he's incredible."
Neil Custis & Antony Kastrinakis, The Sun

The papers, like our message board, are packed full of post-mortems on United's failure to retain the Champions League and little of it makes happy reading (or repeating here!)

Credit where credit's due, though, and there are plenty of pundits and press-men raving about the victors Barcelona, including their former manager Terry Venables. Writing in The Sun, 'El Tel' says Lionel Messi "finally showed us what he can do... Guardiola pulled off a surprise by playing his most prized asset in the hole - and in the process probably changed the destination of the European Cup."