United thrown to the Lionels

IT BEGAN with a massed tribute to Matt Busby but ended up as a homage to Catalonia. And while the man who was Mr Manchester United could only ever be pained by defeat – especially one as comprehensive as this – you have to suspect that even he would have secretly swooned at some of Barcelona’s fearless and at times flawless football in Rome last night.

This was the game played with flair, imagination and exquisite skill, the kind of dizzying carousel of passing which Alex Ferguson had warned his charges. But it was also underpinned by team spirit, hard work and, when United threatened, a more impressive defensive performance than anyone dared to expect of the Catalans’ patched up back four.

The Anglocentric view of football in our neck of the woods means that probably most attention will be paid to United’s manifest failings on the night, with the post-mortem sure to cast the futures at Old Trafford of Carlos Tevez and Ronaldo in an even more uncertain light.