CATALAN KINGS WERE RUTHLESS ... AND LIVERPOOL WERE TOOTHLESS
WHEN it mattered most, Barcelona were ruthless while Liverpool were toothless. All the statistics favoured the Reds apart from the goals category. You could tell how much the hosts wanted to win this. With such a big prize at stake, they pulled out all the antics in the first half. There was Lionel Messi milking a challenge — albeit a heavy one — from James Milner by rolling over and over. He then lifted his hand up to referee Bjorn Kuipers to suggest Milner should be carded. There was Luis Suarez sniping away against his former club and getting into a scuffle with Alisson. There were tackles flying in from Sergio Busquets. Then there was Messi again, chipping away in the referee’s ear all evening, especially when he thought they deserved a penalty after a handball by Joel Matip. That is not necessarily something you’d associate with beautiful Barcelona. Perhaps that is because there is a great deal of pressure on them to win this competition this season. Their great rivals Real Madrid have won four of the last five Champions League finals. Now it is their turn, and Liverpool stood in their way last night. Their opening goal saw Suarez latch on to an inviting ball from Jordi Alba. He celebrated against his former side, just as you should if you score in a Champions League semi-final. Liverpool then went on to miss chances while Barca took theirs. That was the difference.