Champions League knockout stage draw

[ezln1]

Originally Posted by xblaze23

theres already criticism going around regarding the Abidil/Ibra sub.

I understand the need to sure up the defense, but it seems like you're throwing the white flag for a team that is more than capable of scoring regardless of how the game is going.
vamonos barca!

 

[xtapolapacetl]

The third Inter goal was most definitely offside. I don't know if Italians control the camera angles on replays, but they refuse to show the goal from the side. Despite this, it still looked like a clear offside even from the non-offside call friendly camera angles.

But one thing about this game. There are many soccer haters who are constantly hating on soccer and saying how everyone is constantly falling or hurt. This game definitely wouldn't be the best example of disproving that.. Seems like everyone was constantly hurt or lying on the grass.

On a sidenote, this guy Lucio has been topping my list for the most annoying soccer players for a while and he did nothing to change that today.

 

[xblaze23]

white flag? I'm simply stating the Spanish media is questioning the substitution before the game is even over. This fixture isn't over by a long shot.

 

[carlos tevez]

I think the last 10 minutes of this match is foreshadowing what'll happen in the 2nd leg.

Inter defending well in numbers while Barca resort to hopeless crosses inside the box.

 

[marionthebarberian]

i would of loved to see another angle on that 3rd goal.

how was that not a penalty?

 

[jjgrt5]

That was a terrible defensive performance by Barca overall... what gets me heated is how stupid we are, Sergio should get smacked in the dome with a frying pan for such a stupid yellow... I like alves as a player, but his cocky attitude and constant flopping is just

edit: that was a penalty on alves... but he failed the acting part

 

[jada2001retro]

Great game to watch today...Inter played very well, I hope Maicon recovers from whatever happened to him, I think he bit the hell out of his tounge. Barca looked very unorganized, I haven't seen them play that poor in a very long while. I was suprised at that Abidal for Ibra swap...no idea why Pep didn't bring in Henry or Yaya. Alves needs to stop being a moron and trying to win crap. What also shocked me is when Messi basically jumped, he should have been booked for that as well.

Look forward to see the 2nd leg...

 

[erascism]

G*ddamn, I almost had a heart attack in the final 10 minutes watching Balotelli... this kid has no desire. And then Eto'o made me shed a tear watching him sprint 40 yards up the pitch to defend.

 

[jada2001retro]

Balotelli will be gone in the summer...that kid will be great though. Strong, tall, fast, and only 19. Definitely has a long future ahead of him, wonder who will dish the dough out for him...

 

[jada2001retro]

Ibrahimovic said that he saw what happened after Balotelli had thrown off his jersey in anger and given a middle finger salute to the Inter fans after the final whistle.

"I saw that Materazzi was attacking him in the players' tunnel and I've never seen anything like it," Ibrahimovic told RAI. "If I were him, I'd have left Mario alone, but Materazzi was attacking him and I was stunned. If Materazzi had attacked me like that, I would've decked him in a second!

"Materazzi was causing all sorts of trouble and in the Barcelona locker room we were amazed, all talking about it. A player should be proud after a win, not chase down a 20-year-old to berate him."

Captain Javier Zanetti told Sky Sport Italia: ''Balotelli needs to understand certain things. I am sorry because it kind of ruined this festival with such a gesture. However, we are close to him and we will always support him."

Manager Jose Mourinho also had words for substitute Balotelli after the whistle.

"I have been at Inter since July 2008," he said. "If I try to remember all the times I've tried to educate a great talent, there are thousands and thousands. This is a Champions League semi-final, the second most important tie in club football, and something ugly happened."

Inter CEO Ernesto Paolillo says the club will definitely be taking action against the player over the gesture.

"Balotelli's gesture was terrible. Just terrible," he said. "It is something we are going to have to discuss. Will he be punished? Absolutely, yes."

Materazzi beating the hell out of Balotelli. This kid doesn't learn, he always acts so stupid, but he's such a good player. He's sort of like the dude in Mr. 3000

. He needs a reality check, he had very poor touches today too, I'm sure Mourinho will leave him out 2nd leg and have Quaresma in his place.

 

[blaxoid]

Isn't this the first time Balotelli has been given a chance in ages and he goes and does this stuff again?

I know the kid's talented, but what coach could possibly turn him around? I mean his attitude is so terrible it interferes with his game

 

[ezln1]

at materazzi putting hands on him...that's one dude I wouldnt want to go against
He might be playing against grown men, but Balotelli is far from that. He's a child. At least he wont be available come Wednesday.
A 2 goal win is more than capable at camp nou by barca. They will not play that flat, passive, or uncreative come Wed.

 

[o fenomeno]

Balotelli to AC Milan. You heard it here first.

Balotelli and Pato coming on either side of Boreillo and Ronaldinho would be something.

 

[persiafly]

I know one thing: this scoreline makes for an amazingly entertaining return leg. Barcelona, at home, with the best offensive talent on the earth, will be going all out to score against a talented defense and a great goalie. As a soccer fan who isn't particularly tied to either one of these teams, this is so

.
And I have a question for you guys, coming from someone that is admittedly not too familiar with Balotelli's situation at Inter. Do you think he'd receive the same treatment from the San Siro fans if he was just another Italian player? Seems to me that he's done enough good things to not have to hear it for shanking a pass where Milito (I think it was) was offside anyway, and then attempting a shot that could have iced the entire encounter from a place he's capable of scoring from. Why the hate from the fans? Especially when they know he's a volatile kid going through a tough patch with Jose. 

 

[gucci mane]

Its because he's black. Italian fans in particular can be pretty racist and as soon as a non-white player messes up, they go off with the racist mess. HOWEVER, Mario played like #$@%. You can tell Mourinho recognizes the kid got talent and wants to turn him into something special. But son wasn't even trying. He wouldn't even drop back to help the defense. I mean, if you were on the bench for however many games, you would think son would try to prove ppl that criticize him wrong. He doesn't have to score but just showing effort. I think after today, he's pretty much done at Inter.

 

[oskar kokoshka]

It's not because he's a black italian, it is because he is a @*!@#$$ idiot. That is all there is to it, the kid has all the talent in the world, but has the worst attitude and the fans are just about fed up with his antics. He is only 19 but he himself believes that he is the best player on the planet and chooses when he wants to do anything on the pitch. For every good game he has, he will have a bunch of terrible, lazy, no determination games in between. For things he has done this year such as his diving, the Milan fiasco, and this incident, it looks like he won't be wearing black and blue much longer.

 

[prurientsole]

Props to Mourinho for continuing to give Balotelli chances, but this has got to be his last.

Speed and strength will only get you so far when you're selfish, lazy, and stubborn.

I don't buy the racist bit either. I know that European football does have a problem with racism, but you don't see Inter fans getting on Maicon or Eto'o when they mess up. Those two play hard, they play for the team, and, for every mistake they make, there's five or six other moments of quality. It's hard to get behind someone who's the polar opposite of that, and who doesn't seem to give a %%@+ to boot.

Great win for Inter. Can't wait for the return leg next week.

As for today, I'll say 3-2 in favor of Bayern. Robben's been on an absolute tear as of late, but their defense has been garbage in the CL.

 

[carlos tevez]

It definitely isn't because he's black. Why the he.ll do people try to pull the race card every #*$$*% time?

The same Inter fans that LOVE Samuel Eto'o? The same fans that love Maicon?

You perform well for the team, they'll cheer you. You perform poorly and they'll jeer you. It's as simple as that and it's the way it should be.

Balotelli is a #*$$*% idiot. The kid is an arrogant prick who has all the talent in the world but doesnt have the brain to go with it. He reminds me a lot of a young Cristiano Ronaldo except that Ronaldo wasnt that abrasive. Balotelli made a couple of mistakes, the fans got on him and so he decided to quit playing...Eto'o had to track back because Balotelli was lounging around and not doing his job. The kid can kiss his 2010 WC hopes goodbye. What an idiot.

P.S....check out Inter's racist fans...

 

[persiafly]

Yeah, cuz it's a crazy question to ask given the track-record of Italian football fans right? And it's especially wild to to ask whether Inter's fans are racist?

The racial abuse of black players continues and Italian based Ivorian, Marc Zoro endured another bout of it when his Italian team Messina played Inter Milan at the weekend.

Marc Zoro’s every touch was met with a chorus of monkey chants from a large section of Inter fans during a Serie A match at the San Siro.

This new incident comes just three weeks after Fifa outlined a new framework of sanctions for clubs with racist fans.

You already forgot about that?

I think it's a fair question to ask whether or not the fans treat Balotelli worse because of his race. If they're not racist, they're idiots. The kid plays for their team, is talented as all hell, and is known to be emotionally volatile. So let's boo him anytime he takes a bad touch. 

 

[gucci mane]

OK so you posted pics of Etoo with some inter fans. How does that prove me wrong? How does that prove that some inter fans are not racist? My point is Mario is already a target due to the fact that he's black but for those who could care less about his skin color his #@$% attitude is disappointing. If he doesn't change his attitude, he's going to end up on some obscure team where he won't play either because he thinks he's too good for them.

 

[carlos tevez]

The Marc Zoro incident was different because he did not play for the team.

Inter fans support their players, regardless of race. If they perform poorly then they get booed. Yesterday's poor showing by Balotelli was not the first and it wasnt the first time he gave up on the team either. Him getting booed had nothing to do with his race and had everything to do with his performance and poor attitude in the past.

Gucci Mane, you are changing your tone now...in your first reply you said Balotelli got booed because he's black. In your second reply you said "Some Inter fans are racist". The point of issue here is why Balotelli was booed. My initial response to you was that Balotelli was booed because of how he played not because of how he looked. Ofcourse there are racist Inter fans...there are racist fans everywhere...but lets not act like Balotelli's race is the reason the fans dont like him. I posted those Eto'o pics to point out that Inter fans have/will/do support black players if they play well for the team.

 

[carlos tevez]

Anyways, Lyon @ Bayern coming up...Bayern not only have homefield advantage but Lyon had to bus it over to Munich.

 

[persiafly]

Fair enough. And for the record, I was only implying that he could be getting worse treatment because of his race, I never doubted that his immaturity was the root of the problem.

Looking forward to seeing if Lloris can live up to expectations today. Should face a good amount of shots.

 

[jada2001retro]

Originally Posted by o fenomeno

Balotelli to AC Milan. You heard it here first.

Balotelli and Pato coming on either side of Boreillo and Ronaldinho would be something.

Umm no...it's been known he is a Milan follower, heard it way before you said it...the kid grew up watching Milan and has already expressed his desire to play for them. That is why the fans hate him from Inter, Italian fans like said above hate him because he is a black italian. They say he is not truely italian and he should never wear the Italy shirt. 

 

[jada2001retro]

And Carlos Tevez...Balotelli was verbally abused by the Juventus fans when they were playing them away by people yelling at him calling him N and saying things to him that he'll never be a true italian, so yes, there is definitely a race factor.

Inter fans hate him because he's a @*#%%@+ and acts like Stankovic said, like a child.

All other italian fans hate him because he's black it seems.