No doubt
ManU
ManU
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Comment -
These are last year's games at semifinals with similar squads as this year.
Game 1 0-0 in Barcelona: 2 yellow cards and 11 corner kicks (8-3 Barca) 4 offsides Man U - 1 Barca
Game 2 1-0 in Manchester: 5 yellow cards and 9 corner kicks (5-4 Man U) 0 offsides Barcelona - 3 Man U
I think this prop has value:
Man U # of offsides -0.5 -115 (Pinnacle)
Barcelona had only 1 offside in both games whereas Man U. had 7 offsides.
Under 5.5 offsides -108 (Pinnacle) has value too. 5 & 3 at last year's matches and also last year's final between Chelsea & Man U had 3 offsides in 120 min.
I don't find any value in corner kicks or yellow cards.Last edited by pavyracer; 05-26-09, 03:36 PM.Comment -
If Man U is going to sit back and play defensive then there is value in this bet, Manchesters defensive line will be too far back for Barcelona to get into many offside positions. Only problem is Manchester trying to counter attack, however, they have good offensive players who time runs well.Pavyracer
Man U # of offsides -0.5 -115 (Pinnacle)
Barcelona had only 1 offside in both games whereas Man U. had 7 offsides.
Under 5.5 offsides -108 (Pinnacle) has value too. 5 & 3 at last year's matches and also last year's final between Chelsea & Man U had 3 offsides in 120 min.
I don't find any value in corner kicks or yellow cards.
Cards wise the referee is Massimo Busacca, here are his last 6 games, 9 yellow cards, 0 red cards
European Cup Zenit 1 - 2 Real Madrid 30-09-2008 0 0 European Cup CFR Cluj 1 - 2 Bordeaux 04-11-2008 5 0 International Germany 1 - 2 England 19-11-2008 1 0 European Cup Atl Madrid 2 - 1 PSV Eindhoven 26-11-2008 0 0 European Cup Panathinaikos 1 - 2 Villarreal 10-03-2009 1 0 European Cup Porto 0 - 1 Man Utd 15-04-2009 2 0
He's a lenient ref and I expect not many cards unless Man U let in a goal, they have a few players like Roony and Ronaldo who loose discipline when things are going against them.Last edited by Karayilan9; 05-26-09, 03:42 PM.Comment -
So is the consensus here that Barcelona is the side play?Comment -
If Barcelona scores first they will win it. Me however thinks the defenses will be too tight and we may see a 0-0 game or if Man U scores a goal then Barcelona will tie it. I have already placed a bet on draw at a generous +251 and Man U lifting the cup at -101.
P.S. Man U has the coaching advantage in Ferguson with his 67 years of experience been at the final already two times and winning it. Barca has a new inexperienced coach in Guardiola who's almost half the age of Ferguson and never been in a final before.Comment -
Man U vs Barcelona defense - Advantage Man U
Man U vs Barcelona midfield - Advantage Barcelona
Man U vs Barcelona attack - Advantage Barcelona
Man U vs Barcelona strikers/finishing - Advantage Man U
Man U vs Barcelona managers - Advantage Man U
I give Barcelona the edge.
im not sure if this makes sense u have 3-2 man u but ur saying barcelona got the edge last time i checked 3 out weighs 2Comment -
Barcelona pkComment -
overComment -
I'd have to go with Barca this time. Iniesta and Henry will be playing that final. Mancs had some decent results lately, winning couple of games in a row and retaining title, but if you look at performance- it sucked. Barca will be hungry as never before, aiming for a treble. Draw looks likely to happen, with Barca taking it either in OT or SO.Comment -
I'll explain my perspective in more detail, I didn't have time to explain myself earlier.Karayilan
Man U vs Barcelona defense - Advantage Man U
Man U vs Barcelona midfield - Advantage Barcelona
Man U vs Barcelona attack - Advantage Barcelona
Man U vs Barcelona strikers/finishing - Advantage Man U
Man U vs Barcelona managers - Advantage Man U
I give Barcelona the edge.
Ebbears
im not sure if this makes sense u have 3-2 man u but ur saying barcelona got the edge last time i checked 3 out weighs 2
The teams are closely matched in most departments and Man U may have advantages in some BUT for me Barcelona are the better team, there teamwork and efficiency cannot be matched by Man U, they work so hard for the ball when they loose it, everybody closes down and when they get the ball they don't loose it. They will try to launch wave after wave of attack and it just takes one mistake or act of brilliance for the goal.
It all depends on who scores first, if Man U scores they will go ultra defensive, if Barca scores first there will be many goals as Man U will try to open up and anybody that has been watching Barcelona knows what they can do in those situations.Comment -
Alrite fellas, my take on this game.
First off my pick: Man U Regulation +150
Just a few observations: The hype over barcelona is certainly warranted, but considering how Chelsea played Barcelona I still give the edge to Man U. Karayilan's point about bad Man U defense is also warranted, but now they have Rio Ferdinand back for this one. Vidic and Ferdinand will hold Messi and Eto'o.
As for the missing players on Barcelona... Alves, Abidal, and Marquez... Alves is one of their key midfielders and a spectacular passer, hes also good for whining and killing time haha. Abidal and Marquez are big back markers for them. If Barcelona is throwing in 2nd string defenders they have to defend against Berbitov, Ronaldo, and Wayne Rooney. This presents a big problem.
Also.. Iniesta and Henry are not 100% and this is really misleading, just because they have action doesnt mean they will have a huge outcome in the game.
The last point is what Ferguson will be doing... and thats going at the spots on the field that are playing weakened.
I like the red devils here. =)Comment -
I know this questions been asked but I don't recall the answer. What if I just want to bet Man. to win. No draw, no totals just to win in either regulation or extra period. What's the number?Comment -
Draw seems to represent the best value as long as your book ends those bets at the end of 90 minutes+ injury time. Both teams away from home in the Champions League have had more draws that anything else.Comment -
Can you just play a side and is it like the NHl with the option of overtime or injury time included?Comment -
I think United win it.
Barcelona have played only one legitimately good team all season (Chelsea) and only for some outrageous desicions from the ref in the 2nd leg they'd have lost. United are stronger than Chelsea both defensively and going forward IMO. I think United will absorb Barca's attacking play and hit them on the counter. No way Barca will stop Rooney and Ronaldo coming at them.
My prediction: United: 2-1Comment -
BArcelona on penalties.Comment -
12 Hours till game time
Manchester U +155
Barcelona +170
Draw +220
Ov 2½ +105
Un 2½ -145Comment -
well i would rather see barca win personally, and it could go either way, man u are the favorites for me but luck is what you need and barca had that in the semis and also no one has won consecutive european cups/cl since 1989,90. and it will be a warm night by english standards, so barcelona will be more comfortable. to be honest though finals are usually very tense and the teams just try not to lose, i say 1-1 regulation and barca on penalties, w/ronaldo missing againComment -
May 27 2:45 pm Est. Graded after regulation time (90 minutes) + injury time
Barcelona ML +165
pk -106
Ov 2½ +109
Manchester United ML +165
pk -111
Un 2½ -137
Draw +220Comment -
1st Half
Barcelona +240
Manchester United +240
- Draw -110Comment -
According to my voodoo master in Africa FC Barcelona are the 2008/2009 UEFA Champions League winners, and yes - you all heard it here first!Comment -
I like betting Man U win or draw at end of regular time (Roi of 51%). What happens after that i don't really care, but imo Man U have got too much for the Barca defence to handle, and should nick itComment -
Hiddink era Chelsea have a stronger defense than Chelsea, they are much more physical and close down alot more. Manchesters defense second half of the season has been nothing special, the way they have let weaker sides come onto to them and build up play time over time is a serious concern. Also Chelsea's attack has been just as if not better, they have the EPL top goal scorer Anelka, and Drogba wrecks havock against weaker defenses, Barcelona couldn't contain his physical strength.IrishJet
Barcelona have played only one legitimately good team all season (Chelsea) and only for some outrageous desicions from the ref in the 2nd leg they'd have lost. United are stronger than Chelsea both defensively and going forward IMO. I think United will absorb Barca's attacking play and hit them on the counter. No way Barca will stop Rooney and Ronaldo coming at them.
Also, Barcelona have played some of the top teams in Europe, they had Shakhtar the Uefa cup chams in their group stage, embarrased Bayern Munich, Lyon and just managed to get past Chelsea. If your talking about the quality of leagues, don't listen to the Brittish medias ridiculous claims that La liga is some third rate league compared to the EPL. The likes of Seville, Valencia, Athletico Madrid, Villareal, Real Madrid are no mugs. Now I know alot of people are thinking but Liverpool beat Real Madrid 5-0 but Liverpool humiliated Manchester United aswel.
Man U have had a bad record against the top EPL teams this season, they have had too many games 2nd half of the season were they have been average. Look at the Aston Villa game were they were loosing until Villa choked, or the Tottenham game they were loosing 2-0 untill the ref saved them. If you play like that against the top teams you'll loose and that's exactly what happened against the top teams this season. Barca has beaten everyone convincingly, in Europe, the league and the cup.
Another interesting stat.
The same referee was in charge of Man U - Barca semi-final last year, there was only 2 yellow cards shown. In his last 6 games he's shown only 9 yellows and 0 red cards.Last edited by Karayilan9; 05-27-09, 11:22 AM.Comment -
Tommy picks Man U!!!!!!!Comment -
Looking for one of these outcomes, GL
Draw 1-1 +550 1u
MU 1-0 +700 1u
MU 2-1 +900 1u
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You really do underestimate how superior the EPL is to the Spanish League among others. Madrid, Munich, Valencia etc. They're simply not that good this season.
United defense has been strong when they have had Nemanja and Rio starting. The team went through some bad form but are you seriously trying to tell me United haven't weathered the storm? They destroyed Arsenal in the CL Semi Final when they were in great form and picked it up in the PL.
Funny how you say the "Ref saved them" in the Tottenham game. The ultimate irony especially when you consider what happened with Barca in the semi's. The ref didn't change that game, Carlos Tevez did. Even the 4-1 game against Liverpool, which was a disaster, wasn't nearly as one-sided a game as the scoreline indicates.
Barca are overrated IMO, they're not worth the hype. I can't see United losing to them. They won't be able to deal with United counter attack IMO.Comment -
BTW in 10 games Lionel Messi have never score against an English team.
United's defense is back in form. They had a bad spell, especially when Rio was injured and Nemanja (Best defender in the world) was suspended.Comment -
Sorry Karaliyan the EPL is the best league in the world. Sevilla, Villareal, and Los Che couldnt crack the top 3. What about the mess of Real Madrid this year? Real Madrid might manage a 5th place in the EPL. Some of us watch Gol TV too religiously hahaha.
Barca won't be able to stop Ronaldo and Rooney... NO ANSWER.
La Liga is not some 3rd rate soccer league, its the SECOND best in the world.Comment -
At the end of the day, (FC Bareclona will win the 2008/2009 UEFA Champions League trophy quite comfortable- that's all that counts!)
Comment -
I'll give you a few examples, the recent Wigan game, Rio and Vidic started, Man U let in the first goal and were run off the park in the first half. Against, Liverpool both were playing and they let in 4 goals , against Newcastle both were playing and again they let in the first goal and were outplayed for a while. Now they came back from the Wigan and Newcastle games and beat them but these are teams with much less quality than Man U and Barca. Man U get punished for such play against the big teams, which is why they have had a poor record against the top 4.Irishlad
United defense has been strong when they have had Nemanja and Rio starting. The team went through some bad form but are you seriously trying to tell me United haven't weathered the storm? They destroyed Arsenal in the CL Semi Final when they were in great form and picked it up in the PL.
That Arsenal team was a depleted one and without the mastermind who was responsible for their great run Arshavin.
We can't compare Tottenham to Barcelona or Chelsea, the Ref saved Man U in the Tottenham game, Tevez came on at half time, nothing changed until the penalty.Irishlad
Funny how you say the "Ref saved them" in the Tottenham game. The ultimate irony especially when you consider what happened with Barca in the semi's. The ref didn't change that game, Carlos Tevez did. Even the 4-1 game against Liverpool, which was a disaster, wasn't nearly as one-sided a game as the scoreline indicates.
There have been a few games were Man U have looked second best on the pitch this season, the Liverpool game was just one of many, only difference being Liverpool is a quality side and killed off the team while teams like Aston Villa, Tottenham, Wigan, Newcastle crumbled.
If anything Barca are being underestimated, nobody is giving them a chance in this game, everyone is on Man U thinking its going to be easy against Barca's defense.Barca are overrated IMO, they're not worth the hype. I can't see United losing to them. They won't be able to deal with United counter attack IMO.
Not saying Man U can't do this, all it takes is a spark of genius by Ronaldo or a fast paced counter attack, one goal and its over. Man u have the better manager and know how to scrap games like no other but I'll take Barca as underdogs.Comment -
United starting team:
Van Der Sar
O' Shea
Ferdinand
Vidic
Evra
Carrick
Anderson
Giggs
Park
Ronaldo
Rooney
Very strong bench to call upon. The plan is IMO to get after Barca, absorb their pressure and hit them on the break with Ronaldo, Park and Rooney. Fletcher will be missed.Last edited by Irish Jet; 05-27-09, 12:50 PM.Comment -
United were never out played against Newcastle. They conceded an early goal and took over from there. They've lost to Liverpool twice but they crushed Chelsea at home and beat Arsenal twice convincingly in the CL, Arshavin's a great player but C'mon, he doesn't play 11 positions. They've played well enough against the Big four.
The Liverpool game was a disaster but it was a one off and like I said even that game wasn't as one sided as the score indicated.Comment
