Chelsea v Barcelona

**magic moments** · 23/02/2006, 12:18 PM

It's more than likely we( chelsea) are going out now but if it can stay eleven versus eleven who knows?

Remember they can only beat us with ten men!!

**razor** · 23/02/2006, 12:23 PM

Originally Posted by Clifford

Pre-meditated? Stop it now.

It was clumsy at best and as tv3 showed later on, both players bottled an impending tackle by jumping into the like girls (or gaa players in Oz), both players rolled around like girls. Both players should have been booked and sent on their merry way - end of.

Call me cynical but Del Horno could have made contact with the ball decided instead to go right through Messi something he had failed to do 10 seconds previous. Book Messi for what ?

see here

**magic moments** · 23/02/2006, 12:33 PM

Silly challenge by del horno but to me a yellow card was what it was worth.

**Hulsey** · 23/02/2006, 12:49 PM

Originally Posted by Dodge

There's no real outcry about the tackle, it was a standard yellow/red card tackle. The outcry is at the British media and their total bias in reporting the issue (excpet BBC 5 live apparently) It may have been a harsh red (I think he should have gone) but its not the worst decision ever. Sky made out that it was and that the ref was totally biased which is patently untrue. For Mourinho to then criticise MEssi for over reacting whikle failing to mentio Del Horno to od the same (leaving aside Robben of 2 weeks ago) just further adds to the hypocrisy

Outcry may have been to strong a word

, but you get what I mean though. Sky did make prats of themselves though.

**Hulsey** · 23/02/2006, 12:52 PM

Originally Posted by NeilMcD

But Messi was the guy who was fouled not Del Horno. Why did Del Horno go down he was the guy fouling Messi not the other way round. It was a reckless tackle and he took messi out of the game, he already had a terrible tackle in on Messi and he was trying to kick him out of the game. I am glad those tactics did not work and the footballing team one despite the failed attempts by Chelsea to make the game the battle of the Somme. The pitch was a disgrace and I would not be suprised if you see a new pitch layed this week or the next once Barcelona are out of town.

Sure he was the guy fouled, but either way there is no need for play acting. Ungentlemanly conduct such as diving is a punishable offence so why not play acting too? Know it might be a bit difficult to tell sometimes, but it defo wasn't last night.

**Clifford** · 23/02/2006, 12:55 PM

Originally Posted by razor

Call me cynical but Del Horno could have made contact with the ball decided instead to go right through Messi something he had failed to do 10 seconds previous. Book Messi for what ?

see here

I saw it enough last night, Cynical, to know it was miscued plain and simple. In other words I think Del Horny is too fairy soft to commit something malicious as your making it out to be.

Have a look at Messi look at the ref first, then he goes over like a swiss roll. Robben should have been booked for it recently as should Messi or anyone else who does it. It's the worst thing in the game right now.

**Hulsey** · 23/02/2006, 1:02 PM

Originally Posted by Clifford

I saw it enough last night, Cynical, to know it was miscued plain and simple. In other words I think Del Horny is too fairy soft to commit something malicious as your making it out to be.

Have a look at Messi look at the ref first, then he goes over like a swiss roll. Robben should have been booked for it recently as should Messi or anyone else who does it. It's the worst thing in the game right now.

Exactly!!!!!!!

**Risteard** · 23/02/2006, 1:07 PM

Well seen as we're debating this match, Messi and Del Horno both deserve blame for their theatrics.
Think everyone is agreed on that, but it doesn't mean we subscribe to Skys notion of the vendetta against Chelsea seen as they got away with two very strong penalty claims which have received no great hullabaloo.
IT was definately a foul of some sort.
In my opinion, it was between yellow and red, closer to a booking.

**lofty9** · 23/02/2006, 1:11 PM

I honestly thought the chelsea left back went for the ball and took his eyes off it when Messi jumped up. Thought it was a harsh red. But you can't blame a ref for giving these decisions without the evidence of a replay.

On Ray Houghton, that guy's ego is massive. Lost total respect for him when I heard him on Talk Sport (another Sky Sports load of spoof) one night when a caller cut an argument of his to pieces for Houghton to reply

"how would you know mate, sure you never even played the game, I've seen, I've done it, your talking rubbish, you need to have played the game to comment on it"

**razor** · 23/02/2006, 1:16 PM

Originally Posted by Clifford

I saw it enough last night, Cynical, to know it was miscued plain and simple. In other words I think Del Horny is too fairy soft to commit something malicious as your making it out to be.

Maybe he was trying to do a man & ball tackle and missed the ball ? I think the way the game has gone in recent times, one can only be cynical.
So thats a yellow for Del Horno for the "tackle" , and one each for him & Messi for play acting.
So all we were short was a yellow for Messi then ?

**Aldini98** · 23/02/2006, 1:25 PM

Barca TOTALLY deserved to win last night, Mourinho can f**k off !!! Playing 1 up front against Barca is a joke. TWO stone wall pens, and Barca hitting the bar.

The coverage on Sky was an absolute disgrace. Andy Gray is a tosser of the highest order. Chelsea have a devine right to win the Champions League because they are the best team in the Premiership, as long as we hype up the Premiership so we keep selling Sky packages more like. Complete cack.

**Risteard** · 23/02/2006, 1:27 PM

Originally Posted by Aldini98

Barca TOTALLY deserved to win last night, Mourinho can f**k off !!! Playing 1 up front against Barca is a joke. TWO stone wall pens, and Barca hitting the bar.

The coverage on Sky was an absolute disgrace. Andy Gray is a tosser of the highest order. Chelsea have a devine right to win the Champions League because they are the best team in the Premiership, as long as we hype up the Premiership so we keep selling Sky packages more like. Complete cack.

I totally support the above outrage.

**Dodge** · 23/02/2006, 1:31 PM

Del Horno is certainly not soft. It was 3rd/4th kick at Messi, it was obviously a Chelsea tactic.

**Clifford** · 23/02/2006, 2:17 PM

Originally Posted by Aldini98

Barca TOTALLY deserved to win last night, Mourinho can f**k off !!! Playing 1 up front against Barca is a joke. TWO stone wall pens, and Barca hitting the bar.

The coverage on Sky was an absolute disgrace. Andy Gray is a tosser of the highest order. Chelsea have a devine right to win the Champions League because they are the best team in the Premiership, as long as we hype up the Premiership so we keep selling Sky packages more like. Complete cack.

So the same stuff that has been spouted about Man u for 10 years, but now it's about Chelski so people are upset? Agreed.

**Clifford** · 23/02/2006, 2:24 PM

Originally Posted by razor

Maybe he was trying to do a man & ball tackle and missed the ball ? I think the way the game has gone in recent times, one can only be cynical.
So thats a yellow for Del Horno for the "tackle" , and one each for him & Messi for play acting.
So all we were short was a yellow for Messi then ?

He is short though, really short, but good.

**razor** · 23/02/2006, 2:32 PM

Havin a bit of banter with Chelsea fans in work.

A tight game played on a mud flat
A 0-0 draw would not be crap
It all changed after 35 minutes
A team untouchable?, there are limits
Asier kicked Lionel up in the air
The ball was yards away over there
Left back rolling around like Robben
The card was red, he started sobbin'
An og each and an Etoo header
cheeks were getting redder and redder
Terry is leaving, no European Cup
The WWF gonna sign him up.
The Nou Camp beckons ye'll have no fear
But the message of last night is quite clear
If you roll around & act like a jessie
Things are only going to get Messi

**Clifford** · 23/02/2006, 2:43 PM

So ref admits it was wrong also....

Referee Terje Hauge has admitted it was tough refereeing Chelsea's UEFA Champions League defeat to Barcelona.

The Norwegian official showed a straight red card to Asier Del Horno in the first half to attract criticism from a number of quarters.

The Spanish full back was guilty of a badly mistimed tackle on Barca's exciting starlet Lionel Messi, and Hauge thinks the incident looks less clear-cut when displayed in slow-motion replays on TV.

"I feel it is important to see the situation live," he told TV3.

"When you see it in slow motion, you can be fooled by how he got into the situation.

"I have got a good feeling [that I made the right decision] myself, but the red card was a key moment for how the match would develop.

"The incident will probably get discussed in the coming few days. It was expected that it would be a tough match [to referee] and it was."

Hauge could also have awarded two penalties to Barcelona while Chelsea will feel Carles Puyol was lucky to escape a second yellow card after a bad tackle on Arjen Robben.

**NeilMcD** · 23/02/2006, 3:10 PM

Where does the ref admit it was wrong.

**Dillo** · 23/02/2006, 3:29 PM

Del Horno's challenge on Messi did not warrant a red card. Mourinho has every reason to be angry.

There's no doubt but the sending off changed the course of the game from there on. But, what goes around comes around, we all saw how Robben playacted a few weeks ago to get Reina sent off.

Take nothing away from Barca though- they played some fantastic stuff and deserved to win the game. They're the greatest footballing team on the planet and I hope they can go on to win the Champions League.