I thought it was a balanced game, with Real Madrid's attack proving too much for Barcelona. I was surprised at how easy it was for Ronaldo, I definitely wasn't expecting him to inflict as much damage. The three-man defence system didn't exactly help to neutralise this threat, it felt as though the Barcelona players had to stretch, and looked inferior several times.

Pepe and Ramos were fantastic, this is exactly what I am talking about, when they get rid of the antics and dirty tactics, they are untouchable. I was focused on the two for the majority of the game, and they played the Carvalho role pretty effectively. Essentially, in the second leg of the Supercopa, Carvalho was instructed to come out and follow Messi, but it failed because Messi managed to set up Iniesta's goal, because of the space that was left. However, Pepe and Ramos were smarter today, they took turns to come quickly out of defence and limit the space Messi had, it was great to watch. Aerially, both were equally as dominant.

It's very hard to pick out a stand-out performer, every player, even di Maria, worked tirelessly. Casillas made a crucial save, to deny Xavi. Arbeloa used experience rather than pace to deal with Tello. Coentrao had his best game for Real Madrid etc. However, Xabi Alonso and Khedira need to be applauded for the tremendous work they did. Positionally aware, knew when to press and even made great interceptions and tackles. Khedira did the same, too.

Barcelona weren't outclassed, but they underperformed. Apart from a couple of great balls he played through, Messi was poor. He had his poorest game against Real Madrid. He never looked hungry, and it was evident that the support was lacking, hence he tried to force the issue. When Sanchez came on, Messi looked more comfortable, but the Argentinian maybe could have achieved more in this game. Barcelona lacks a couple of prolific finishers, apart from Messi, Pedro and Villa, they struggle for goals. The game was effectively over when Xavi was taken off, it should have been Tello, who was second best against Arbeloa, which was a major shock to me. He doesn't seem to fit the Barcelona system at all, always looks to take on players and makes poor decisions. It's a good learning experience for him, however.

The 3-4-3 formation doesn't work well in terms of the defensive aspect. Busquets looks lost to me... Guardiola's future does come into question. Can he possibly achieve more with this squad? Of course, there is still the Champions League and Copa del Rey to contest for. What he has done has been exceptional, but signs of a lack of motivation and hunger have become more and more apparent, not too long before we find out.

It was a heroic display from a dwarf team against a Goliath. The dwarf might have won this round but the Goliath is still mightier.

The result is not fair; the only difference is Madrid were better and more prepared than the last 6 encounters, but all this doesnt matter, barca are still barca; a team not from this world.

As I see it: Barca plays the more "eye catching" style and has had the mental edge against RM, however, Madird is every bit as good, using their more direct style, and is, collectively, more athletic, as in faster, to be specific.

I only caught the last 8 mins

Thanks for the summary Capitano.

huntsman wrote:It was a heroic display from a dwarf team against a Goliath. The dwarf might have won this round but the Goliath is still mightier.

The result is not fair; the only difference is Madrid were better and more prepared than the last 6 encounters, but all this doesnt matter, barca are still barca; a team not from this world.

You are so full of sh*t

First Ronaldo wasnt dominant,All he did was have a 10 second cameo which 80% of the work was done by Ozil.And People are overrating Ramos's and Pepe's performance.Also You dont watch Barca on a regular basis to judge Tello.It's one of his few bad performances for us and he is Only 20 years old.Also I dont think I can take you seriously as all you did in your review was say how dominant Madrid were when it was more of a matter of us Underperforming and not taking our chances then Madrid being Brilliant.

huntsman wrote:It was a heroic display from a dwarf team against a Goliath. The dwarf might have won this round but the Goliath is still mightier.

The result is not fair; the only difference is Madrid were better and more prepared than the last 6 encounters, but all this doesnt matter, barca are still barca; a team not from this world.

I totally disagree

huntsman wrote:It was a heroic display from a dwarf team against a Goliath. The dwarf might have won this round but the Goliath is still mightier.

You need a slap in the face. You just called your own team a "dwarf team", and your team is Real Madrid.

vivabarca38 wrote:First Ronaldo wasnt dominant,All he did was have a 10 second cameo which 80% of the work was done by Ozil.And People are overrating Ramos's and Pepe's performance.Also You dont watch Barca on a regular basis to judge Tello.It's one of his few bad performances for us and he is Only 20 years old.Also I dont think I can take you seriously as all you did in your review was say how dominant Madrid were when it was more of a matter of us Underperforming and not taking our chances then Madrid being Brilliant.

Definitely disagree. I felt Madrid were playing very defensive football, so I wouldn't say they dominated by any means, but they did an excellent job disrupting Barca and stopping their attacks. I also felt that Ronaldo had a fantastic game, and then he did much more than the one goal - which was quite impressive on his part as well, not just Ozil's. While I think we're all in agreement that Barca underperformed, I disagree that it had anything to do with not taking chances. Granted, there were a few missed opportunities, but no sitters, and Barca struggled all game long to create meaningful chances on goal. Madrid's defense dominated today, and you must consider that combined with a poor effort from Barca, not just look at the latter. One team played well, the other did not play at their usual standards; the result was understandable. Don't take away from RM's effort though, they earned it.