The moment of the tie clearly was the penalty call against Brown. It was a soft call, but a penalty it was. De Rossi wasn’t up for it and from then on there was going to be just one winner. They saw more of the ball in the second half, but we dealt with it. Rio on one leg was phenomenal. Special shout out to Silvestre for doing well on his return from a long layoff.
What a moment it was to see Gaza come on! The crowd at Old Trafford extended him an amazing reception which was befitting of the occasion.
Boss revealed Rio had 3 stitches on his foot during the half time. I hope he makes it for Sunday. Carrick had a knock on his calf but should be OK. Barcelona next and to use a cliché it is the biggest test for the maturity of the squad. We’ve come through some tough games already and that will be no different. In his post match conference Boss talked about the need to be positive at Nou Camp. We’ll see if his team selection will walk his talk. I do think we have a fair chance if we have a full strength squad. The tie will have all the neutrals drooling – two quality sides that represent all that is good with the game. Both sets of fans though will be reasonably nervous. However, contrast this to the other semi finalists – Chelski and the Scousers – two teams who can pretty much bore an audience to death on their best days!
On to Arse on Sunday, we should be favorites on form but that tag has often proved tricky. We need to be ruthless in front of the goal and make all our chances count. Arsenal will play like they have nothing to lose, so it should be an interesting game. Today’s performances will make the team selection a headache for Fergie, but it’s a good position to be in. More thoughts on Arse coming up.
