Barca 0 – Chelsea 0; Or, Guus 1 – Barca 0.

By: chris | April 28th, 2009

Depending on how you look at matters – or what self-serving country you hail from -either Barcelona failed in their chances to take a result back to Stamford Bridge or Chelsea put in a hero’s defensive outfit at the home of the world’s best team.

And largely it’s a bit of both. Guus Hiddink back should be sore from the praise as he smartly decided against attacking Barcelona, the only option he really had to be fair, but rather to allow the Catalana attack into the final third where his Blues would limit space and pray the back held tight. It did to a degree, but Chelsea should feel very fortunate Barca weren’t as clinical as they’re known to be.

First thing’s first: many were worried about who would stop Lionel Messi. Forget Messi. The Unibrowed One, Bosingwa, who may have gotten away with one in the box late on, should be knighted for his efforts in clamping down on Dani Alves’ right foot. In the dying moments Barcelona had three clear chances – and one seemingly sure goal – and two of those came after whipping Dani Alves crosses. The man’s ability to curl into the box is unparalleled from the right back position and may be entering the pantheon of that pretty boy from Essex. Not enough can be said about their ability to eliminate that threat.

On the other side of the ball, the order of merit goes to a man who’s adorned many a blaugrana dartboard in the recent past. Victor Valdes, for the second time in a massive fixture this year, ducked into a phone booth and emerged a caped hero, stopping Didier Drogba’s breakaway late in the first half to preserve a barren scoreline. The first instance came in La Liga’s opening Clasico, stopping Royston Drenthe clear on goal to, again, keep the score level. Two moments which can’t be praised enough not only for the saves, but the added bonus of halting potential momentum. Flawed he is, but a saviour today.

And he may very well need to don a cape again next week, as Barcelona not only lost a potential result but also two centerbacks. Carles Puyol, who was surprisingly benched at the start, will be suspended for the return leg while Rafa Marquez suddenly crumbled on the pitch in a heap with nary a Blue in sight, typically a sign of a major injury, and can only be considered a major doubt for the return match. Thus it’s likely either Martin Caceras, who’s looked out of depth against mediocre Spanish competition, much less in London on the back end of a Champions League semi-final, or Eric Abidal, a leftback fresh off injury, partnering Gerard Pique. Hardly ideal.

In the end both teams were far from perfect and it wasn’t the barnstorming semi-final for which we’d all hoped. Something Chelsea will gladly tuck away in their luggage for the return leg, as we can say they certainly walk away more pleased with the result and the advantage going into the the game at Stamford Bridge.

But only until the opening whistle, at which point the arrows shifts back to Barcelona’s favor. Without the invaluable away goal, Chelsea will either have to chase a result or pray to keep the world’s most fluid attack at bay for another 120 minutes. Can Chelsea hold Barca scoreless for 210 minutes? Probably not – regardless of Guus’ brilliance. Which means Chelsea will have to push forward at time in the quest for at least one goal. Afford Barcelona space? You’d be smarter to play Russian roulette with a revolver and five bullets.