Lionel Messi Fan

The result of the Champions League semifinals match between Chelsea and Barcelona was definitely based on controversy.

Certainly, as some of the Blues’ fans will feel that their side were worthy of a place in the final, others will think that the referee had already chosen Guardiola’s side over theirs.

Well, such fans should be able to see the facts and realize that they were not that despised by the referee! In fact, if the match had gone their way in both terms of the score line the referring, the first leg controversy would have been a dead story for them…

Unfortunately, it was not the case; and the Catalans are now set to meet Manchester United in the finals of Roma. Certainly, they don’t have too much guilt to feel, as both the past and the present were unfair to them; and below are four reasons for Pep’s boys to forget tonight, and focus on their next Champions League game against the Red Devils.

The controversy in previous meetings

Barcelona and Chelsea have undoubtedly met several times in recent years. 2005 witnessed a strong controversy in the match presenting these two sides, when Chelsea profited of the referee’s favor to eliminate Barcelona – then coached by Frank Rikjaard – by five goals to four on aggregate.

2006 was not too dissimilar from the previous year. The two giants met again, in a match were the winner would have reached the last 8. Once again, Jose Mourinho – who was, at that time, the coach of Chelsea – was too desperate for a win. Nevertheless, even the elimination of Lionel Messi from the game, followed by controversial decisions from the referee were not enough to guaranty the Londoners a place in the next stage of the competition.

2007 was another interesting year for both England and Spain as Jose Mourinho was given another chance to overcome Rikjaard’s team in the Group Stage. Sadly, for Barcelona, the fixture seemed to come at bad moment – their mysterious negative form was just too uncontrollable for such a dangerous encounter. This time, it was not surprising to see Chelsea play with hatred and indiscipline; this imperfect attitude against the Catalans had become a common thing. Therefore, a draw in the second leg overturned the whole standings of the table. Barcelona then finished second, but unluckily, they went on to meet Liverpool who knocked them out in the last 16, whereas Chelsea cruised into the quarterfinals with good results over Porto FC.

Therefore, with three meetings which were all polluted with controversy, it is certain that Barcelona fans will want revenge.

The controversy in the first leg match

This season, most soccer lovers were expecting a different story all together. Having earned the respect of Europe’s most prestigious figures of football, Barcelona had many good reasons to think that this time around, they could get a real chance to prove their boldness over their English enemies. Considering the fact that the first leg match was taking place at the Camp Nou, it was the first leg that was supposed to be the most positive game between the two legs for Guardiola’s men.

Astonishingly, Chelsea managed to escape once again several sanctions from the referee, and really, it was no fun to watch. Alex’s dreadful tackle on Thierry Henry was supposed to attract a red card; however, the referee did not pay any attention to the foul. Then it was Drogba’s turn to get into the referee’s book for his numerous dives and challenges, but still, the referee was unconvinced by the home team’s complaints.
Finally, a glorious chance for Barcelona wrongly stooped for offside, could have been the source of a goal, but the arbitrary seemed to see nothing wrong with a 0-0 draw.

In the end, the goalless draw could have been the start of a nightmare for the Catalans, thus, it was the second leg which was regarded as the decider. All this because of controversy…

Mistakes from both sides

Yesterday night’s match was without doubt a controversial match. Surely, the public will describe the game as one where Barcelona denied Chelsea two or three penalties, yet, this is not the perfect description.

It is true that Barcelona’s defense was too brutal. Malouda and Drogba both complained that Alves and Abidal fouled them inside the box, however, their protest didn’t result in anything positive for them. Iniesta was also brought down on numerous occasions by Bosingwa, yet the referee kept giving the Chelsea defender chances to behave.

In the second half, Anelka’s visible dive got the official’s attention, and Abidal was in great trouble. The French defender was then wrongly sent off; and his side was forced to play with ten men for almost thirty minutes.

This decision could have brought a total mess for Barcelona, but however, the score remained the same until additional time.

With four minutes added, Barcelona tried to get the equalizer as quick as they could. In the 94 minutes, Messi created a chance for Iniesta who placed his shot at the top of the net; Peter Cech was beaten…

Normally, this was supposed to the final kick of the game, but the referee chose to add some time because of Pep Guardiola’s substitutions. The Blues’ attack resulted in a corner that was taken around the 96th minute. Ballack’s strike hit the arm of Samuel Eto’o inside the box, and there was no doubt that it should have been a third penalty for Guus Hiddink side. It wasn’t given, and finally, the referee’s last decision contributed to Chelsea’s elimination from the competition.

Indeed, with three penalties denied for the Londoners, and a wrong red card plus a missing yellow card and the first leg controversy for the Catalans, the second leg match now seems quite balanced, however, it is a shame that Barcelona goes into the Champions League final with a dirty memory.

Certainly, a clean qualification would have been the best thing of all, nevertheless, as usual, referees seem to be on top of things, and there is no way players can change that. Of course, this changes the whole nature of the game, but then, the best thing to do is to always be fair and disciplined no matter what the referee’s decision is.

In any case, it’s Barcelona’s turn to meet Manchester United in the final of the Champions League, and fans from both sides can only hope that controversy will not spoil the game this time around.

Written by Isaac Asante

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