European champions

English Premiership champions Manchester United were given a lesson in football excellence by Spanish champions Barcelona in Saturday's Champions League final at Wembley Stadium in London.

Inspired by the near-magical abilities of Lionel Messi, Barcelona beat Man United 3-1 to lift the European Cup for a fourth time.

Although United got off to a good start, which saw them dominate the first 10 minutes of the game, Barcelona quickly found their feet. However, they failed to score until the 27th minute, when Pedro Rodriguez converted a pass from Xavi into a 1-0 lead.

Seven minutes later, Wayne Rooney equalized for United, despite a pass to Ryan Giggs looking perilously offside.

'Given a hiding'

United started the second half in a confident move, but were quickly outplayed again by Barcelona.

After a few near-misses, Lionel Messi made it 2-1 for the Spanish side in the 54th minute. It was Messi's 12th goal in this year's Champions League campaign, putting him on a par with Ruud van Nistelrooy's record from the 2002/3 season.

Messi set up the third goal, too, passing to Sergio Busquets, who passed to David Villa. Villa's 18-meter shot found the back of the net in the 69th minute.

"It's the way we played I'm most proud of," Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola said after the game. "The people watching could see that we not only won but we played a brilliant match."

He picked out Messi for special praise, calling him "the best player I've seen and probably the best I ever will see."

Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson also used plenty of superlatives when talking about the Spanish side in a news conference after the match, calling Barcelona the best team in Europe and "the best team I've faced."

"I think everyone acknowledges that and I accept that...No one's given us a hiding like that," he added.

Words of wonder

Praise for Barcelona and Messi by the press and the pundits was stratospheric.

In Spain, the daily El Pais has the headline: "Barcelona touched the heavens."

"They floated like butterflies and stung like bees. Led by the unstoppable Messi, Barcelona left Manchester United battered. Bruised. Broken," said the British tabloid The Sun.

"When Barcelona plays like that, no other team has a chance," said German football legend Franz Beckenbauer, who commented on the game for German television. "With all due respect, not even Borussia Dortmund."

Manchester United had hoped to avoid a repeat of the 2009 Champions League final against Barcelona in Rome, which they also lost, 2-0.

But Messi and company had other plans for them.

Author: Nicole Goebel (Reuters, AFP, SID)
Editor: Andreas Illmer