Messi "Braced" Through Arsenal's Bus

Messi scored twice against Arsenal who play the boring "park the bus" instead of attacking football. You cant blame them when the opponent is Barcelona.


Final score: Barcelona 3 Arsenal 1; though Gunners had ZERO shot on goal. Busquest accidentally scored an own goal from Nasri's corner, helping Arsenal to tie the score after a welltaken goal by Messi.

The first goal was the result of a backflick gone wrong by Fabregas. Maybe he was thinking of Iniesta as his teammate. Iniesta got the ball, found a small space between Arsenal's defenders and chipped the ball to Messi who was on the run. Messi showed why he is the best footballer in the world - by thousand miles - by a perfect chip past Almunia before slotting the ball into the net!

The second goal came after quick delightful passes by Iniesta to Villa and then to Xavi who scored with slight deflection off Arsenal's defender. After the goal, Barcelona wasted no time in search of the third and winning goal! Pedro was brought down inside the penalty box by Kolcshieny as he chased after a through pass by Xavi. As a result, the referee awarded a penalty to Barcelona. All eyes were on Messi as he placed the ball on the penalty spot! Messi stylistly converted the penalty and was mobbed by his teammates in front of Arsenal's goalmouth!

Arsenal nearly scored in the 87th minute but Mascherano did a great job to deny Bendtner from scoring the decisive goal. At the end, it was a great night for Barcelona and the fans. Arsenal was totally OUTCLASSED, OUTPLAYED and OUT-KICKED by Barcelona. Even Guardiola forgets his backpain as he celebrates ecstatically! Great job Barcelona! Hats off to Guardiola!!

Can Messi score 5 goals against Arsenal?

Nothing is impossible for the little Messiah from Argentina. If indeed Messi score 5 goals against Arsenal, one better than last year, the world will take note! And Barcelona will gain more supporters since EPL has the most viewers all around the world except Spain.

Barcelona will be without their top two central defenders, Puyol and Pique, similar to the second leg match at Nou Camp last year. As long as Barcelona midfielders control the game from the start, I see no big trouble at the back. Iniesta, well-rested against Zaragoza, will play a key part in this match together with Xavi. Maybe Xavi will score the first goal, just like the match against Real Madrid.

Again, Messi should take the center stage and all eyes will be on him to score five goals past Szczesny, the new goalie for Arsenal. Villa, fresher from little playing time against Zaragoza, will have the support of Messi, Xavi and Iniesta.

Fulltime score:
Barcelona 5 Arsenal 1

My prediction is Messi will score at least ONE hattrick in this match. :)

What's your take?


Enjoy beautiful football, one more time!!!

Barcelona vs Arsenal (9 March 2011, 3.45am Malaysia/Singapore time)

Barcelona 3 Deportivo 0

The Phenomenal Barcelona Dream Team!

Barcelona extends its lead to six points over Real Madrid after crashing Deportivo La Coruna by three goals to nil. Barcelona is going to claim its second consecutive La Liga title! Cheers!

After Real Madrid beats Almeria 2-1 yesterday, Barcelona now leads the Spanish League by three points. Barcelona will meet Espanyol tomorrow at Cornella, the first time the two teams play there. It would be a crucial away game for Barcelona, and we have a very strong and hard working team. :)



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Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Barcelona shows Real who's The Boss!

Next match - Barcelona vs Deportivo La C0runa

My prediction:

Barcelona 3 Deportivo 0

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Barcelona beats Deportivo La Coruna 3-0
MADRID (AP) - Barcelona edged closer to the Spanish title with a 3-0 victory over Deportivo La Coruna at the league leader's Camp Nou Stadium on Wednesday.

Barcelona now has 83 points, while second-place Real Madrid is on 77 before its match against Almeria on Thursday. Valencia is third on 56 with Mallorca fourth, four points behind.

Barcelona's 19-year-old striker Bojan Krkic opened the scoring in the 15th minute when he collected a precise Xavi Hernandez pass in the penalty area and fired home.

The Catalan team pushed forward with several fast-paced attacks as the second half began, with Lionel Messi shooting just over the bar and Pedro Rodriguez sending a shot just wide minutes later.

Barcelona's second goal arrived in the 68th minute when goalkeeper Victor Valdes made a clearance which Rodriguez controlled in midfield before firing a long-range shot over Deportivo's defence and past stranded goalkeeper Daniel Aranzubia.

Midfielder Yaya Toure completed the scoring when he chested the ball down and spun to smash a right-footed shot with such force that Aranzubia could only deflect it into the top of the net in the 72nd minute.

Barcelona Shows Real Who's the Boss

Barcelona took over the lead of the Spanish League by kicking out Real Madrid from the top of La Liga. Wooohooo!

Messi scored the first goal for Barcelona after a delicate one-two with Xavi. He could have scored hattrick if not for the poor finishing on 2nd and 3rd strike (just like the repeat of 1st goal). Nevertheless, to score against Real, when Ronaldo failed to beat Victor Valdes, was a satisfying result for Barcelona fans.

The second goal was also created by Xavi with a neat pass to Pedro, who perfectly controlled the ball and curled to the far left with his left foot, leaving Casillas in agony.

Man of the match - Xavi.

Again, Barcelona shows that team play is the way to play beautiful football.

Next match - Barcelona vs Deportivo La C0runa

My prediction:

Barcelona 3 Deportivo 0



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Barca vs Real Madrid - A Tactical Review

"Ronaldo looked like he is looking to show the world who is the better player, in the end showed the world that he is a seriously one dimensional player."

"Yesterday's match shows that Real Madrid has a long way to go to match this Barca side in terms of skill and grit."

"On a final analysis it was Real Madrid's inablility to work as a team that hurt them the most. There were individual performances but those weren't good enough. FC Barcelona worked really hard as a team, their defense is not considered as the best but they showed that they have the most resolute defense. Pedro and Alves failed to impose in first half, but there work-rate was exceptional. Real Madrid was shocked by the skill of Xavi and Messi creating the first goal and never recovered from it."

Read more: http://www.allaboutfcbarcelona.com/2010/04/barca-vs-real-madrid-tactical-review.html#ixzz0l2f0uk2V

The God's Given Lionel Messi

"It shouldn't have taken last night to realise it."

That's right!

Contemplating a move to Barcelona, Spain. :)

"Messi is the best player in the world, by a distance!" Arsene Wenger

And I have one for Messi too:

"The God's Given Lionel Messi"

We will never had enough of you!

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'Mythical, universal, the Lord's anointed one' - Spain hails Leo MessiAfter Lionel Messi's performance against Arsenal everyone agrees he's the best in the world - but what took them so long?

Leo Messi did something impossible last night. He got even better (and still he can play better!). He had scored in the Champions League final (what a header!), the Copa del Rey final and the World Club Cup final (with his chest! i think he's the first to score, purposely, with this technique!), emulated that goal from Diego Maradona, hit three in the clasico against Real Madrid at the Camp Nou, two at the Santiago Bernabéu, and scored two hat-tricks in a row. But he'd never scored four before. Until last night. Last night, even Marca and AS, the myopic leaders of the Madrid media dropped to their knees; last night, so did the English. They could ignore him no more. Last night, as El PaÌs, put it, "Messi ate Arsenal". (Messi Shrunk Arsenal) :D

AS has long been proud of its cagumetro - literally, crapping-yourself-o-meter - the tool used to 'measure' the fear they claim grips Barcelona fans every time Real Madrid rear into view, its needle furiously twitching before shooting up towards a million cagahertz. This morning, three days from the clasico, they're applying it to themselves. "Messi," declares the cover of AS, "is frightening". Inside, their headline chanted: "Messi! Messi! Messi! Messi!", while the inventor of this delightful device, Barça-baiter-in-chief Tomas Guasch, was busy saying a prayer: "Ay Manuel Pellegrini, may God guide you!" As for Marca, their cover asks: "And how do we stop this guy?"


It is a pertinent question. Booting him about doesn't seem to work; he just gets even more determined. And besides, it is easier said than done. A few weeks ago, the Mallorca manager Gregorio Manzano insisted that the only way was with a rifle.Last night, Arsene Wenger described him as "a PlayStation footballer". The Catalan daily Sport calls him "football's Picasso", insisting: "We're going to have to expand the dictionary to find new adjectives for him, because majestic, lethal, magic, incomparable and divine have all been used up." Its website implored fans: "Don't say football, say Messi." El Mundo Deportivo went for "mythical, universal, the Lord's anointed one." But most cut out the middle man. "There is," said El Mundo, "only one God: Messi".

Arsenal players, from left: 1"Is that going in??" 2 Its going innn!! 3 OMFM thats unbelievable!!!


But all that's not entirely new. It's less than two weeks since Spain's severe superlatives shortage was reported on these pages. Uncovering new adjectives is an impossible task. Victor Valdés was only the latest person to admit defeat, shrugging: "I can't find the words to define him - I'm just very proud that he's on my team." What was new was seeing Marca and AS lead with him on the cover, and Marca's cartoonist depicting Messi as a little green man with antenna on his head and long, horn-shaped ears under the caption: "From another planet".


So was the reaction from England, the unanimous acclaim. "Messi," said Wenger, "is the best player in the world - by a distance." At last everyone seemed to agree; 90 minutes against Arsenal had done the trick. Even Phil Thompson must have given in, despite recently declaring: "Wayne Rooney is streets ahead of Messi." (Which streets, Phil, which bloody streets?!) Yes, which blooody hell streets???

Watching the game on Sky, browsing blogs, reading reports, it's tempting to conclude that England discovered Leo Messi last night. What took you? A match against an English club, that's what. As if that's the only measure of greatness. It shouldn't have done. They shouldn't have discovered him against Arsenal; he has hardly been hidden away.

The winning "Phenomenal" team minus top two defenders

"I really don't want to compare Leo with any other player in the world because that other player would come off so badly - he's just so far ahead." That's what Xavi Hernandez said. A year ago. Yesterday he added: "A player like this only comes along every 30 years or so." (i dont agree with you Xavi, its once in a century!) Rafa Marquez said: "Messi has proven once again that he is the best in the world." The key words were 'once' and 'again'. They would say that of course. But does anyone doubt that they are right?


This is not the place to go over Messi's extraordinary qualities again, that's been done before. It is the place, though, to point something out...


What Messi did last night was brilliant. In fact, it was more brilliant that the goals alone suggest. Just look at the two he didn't score - the curler that clipped the top of the goal, the scamper through that ended with him hitting it into the side-netting. Look at the fact that he didn't just score the first two; it was his passes that made them as well. But, ridiculous though this sounds, last night's performance was not unusual. In fact, it is precisely the consistency of his brilliance that has seen it become almost mundane; he makes the ridiculous routine.


When he scored a hat-trick against Zaragoza a fortnight ago, one fan started shouting something about how brilliant he is. Pep Guardiola approached the fan and replied: "If it wasn't for him, I'd be a third division coach." Last night he became their all-time top scorer in the Champions League. He is top scorer in this season's La Liga. He has provided more assists than anyone else, too. Yesterday was his fourth hat-trick of the season. He has scored 119 goals for Barcelona and he's still only 22.


It is not just about the spectacular. Earlier this season, asked about the pressure on Messi after a 'poor' game, Guardiola insisted: "Messi can play badly as often as he likes." Thing is, Messi never plays badly, even when he plays 'badly'. Sometimes he is not spectacular, sure, but he is never poor. Take the first leg against Arsenal: most people will tell you that Messi did little, but he had more than twice as many shots on target than anyone else and played more passes than any Arsenal player. He even answers the cliché about tracking back and work-rate: Messi has committed more fouls than any Barcelona defender.


One former Barcelona and Real Madrid player makes the point that when Ronaldo plays a pass, the first thing he does is demand it back. Messi is happy just to play, to keep it simple, to keep it moving (Thats the key - attitude). At the Camp Nou only one Arsenal player completed as many passes. Increasingly, Messi is not just scoring but - with Xavi, surely the finest midfielder Spain has ever produced - running games too. Sir Alex Ferguson admitted he was "surprised" to see Messi play centrally in Rome last season but he shouldn't have been. As one opponent puts it: "Messi is the best striker for his goals, the best winger for his dribbling, the best midfielder for his passes." That night in Rome Messi did what Messi always does: answered the questions asked of him. There is just one question left - the Argentina one. And on the evidence so far, he will end up answering that too.

Simply Genius!!!

They said he didn't do it in big games - although goodness knows how they had the cheek to say that; did the clasico and the cup final not count? - so he did it in the Champions League final. They said he had never scored against an English team, and after a game in Santander it had been noted that he could not head a ball. Guardiola replied: "I advise you not to question Leo. One day, he's going to score a great header and shut you all up." Everyone laughed. He scored with a towering header, outjumping Rio Ferdinand.


But still they wanted more, and more, and more. There seemed to be a strange, bloody-minded determination not to recognise him. So Messi provided it. He started racking up goal after goal but they said that anyone could score goals in Spain. So last night he became top scorer in the Champions League. For the second successive season. And, for those who had forgotten Rome, he obliterated Arsenal into the bargain. Now they're saying Messi is the best player in the world. It shouldn't have taken last night to realise it.

Messi 5; Planning to move to Barcelona soon

Barcelona whips Racing Santander 4-1 at Racing to top the La Liga with a maximum of 12 points. Barca has now scored 14 goals in 4 matches while conceded only 3! If Barcelona continues this great form, I think I will move to Barcelona soon! :) vs Racing, Messi show-off his great skill again. After a one-two with Xavi, Messi dribbled past 2 defenders at once before curling in with his left foot.

"On top of the World" - Messi leads top scorer list with 5 goals in last 3 league games

Ibrahimovic has earlier scored a goal through a good left footie cross by Messi, which received a ball directly from Xavi from a freekick. I guess this strategy is the result of workout in training i.e. they practice in training. Its a guesstimate. :)

Pique is the third on the score list with a simple tap in, after collecting an unusual back-heel pass from Ibrahimovic.

The fourth goal by Messi is coming soon. I am still looking for it. Be patient.




Here's Messi second goal of the game. Simply world class - period!:)




p/s: This post is my own commentary of the game. I may be bias :)

Messi's Double Leads Barcelona in thrashing over Athletico

Barcelona scored four goals in the first 40 minutes before Alguero slogged in the consolation goal in the last minute of first half. Ibrahimovic finished off the first goal in the 2nd minute!!(no comment since I started to watch in the 7th minute lol). Messi scored the 2nd goal resulted from a superb cross from Xavi! Using his chest to perfectly control the ball, Messi coolly slogged in the ball after fooling Athletico goalkeeper. And Alves' nicely taken free kick hits the post before went in for the third goal of the match. The fourth goal was scored by Keita following a simple and good cross by Messi.

Time for second half! Enjoy Barcelona!!



Barca's defense was poor after the substitution of Pique somewhere in the 60th minute of the game. As a result, Forlan managed to add another goal for Athletico though he had two great chances to add pressure on Barca. The scoreline was 4-2 then. Messi had a couple of great opportunities to perform but was harshly tackled by the defense of Athletico. There was one moment where Messi looked set to dribble the ball all the way to the goal from center of the field. His great effort met with a stiff challenge which resulted in a freekick for Barcelona. That tackle should have been a red card!

Second half was not good until the very last minute of extra time. Due to good team effort, Barcelona scored another goal. Alves backpassed to Iniesta, Iniesta returned the ball to Alves, Alves cleverly placed the ball for Messi to stamp his mark with his second goal in the match. Final result Barcelona 5 Atheltico Madrid 2.

Messiah is in great form. Watch out guys!


p/s: This is my own piece of commentary for the match. I may be bias :)