Champions League Final Preview — UPDATE

Today marks the pinnacle of professional club soccer - the Champions League Final. This year, for the first time, the Final will feature two English clubs - Chelsea (from London) against Manchester United. United is coming off their second-consecutive championship season in the English Premier League. Chelsea has finished second in back-to-back EPL seasons after winning the two previous titles.

Here to preview the match are the Shockey Brigade’s two resident football/futbol/soccer experts, David and Derek:

Derek’s Preview
Rain is forecast throughout the day and night in Moscow, and factored in with rumors of a poor playing surface, control in the midfield will be crucial. Normally under these circumstances in an all-English affair, my prediction would be 0-0 or 1-0 (essentially something really boring), but these teams know each other well. United will try to open up the game on the wings, which should give Chelsea a chance to control the game through the middle of the pitch. Both teams will take chances, so despite conventional wisdom I don’t expect a conservative match.

Chelsea has the stronger defense while United have the better strike force in Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez. The most intriguing matchup to me lies in the midfield, where the Blues have an edge. In terms of controlling the pace and flow of the game, I’ll take Makelele, Lampard and Ballack over Ronaldo, Carrick, Scholes and Park, though Ronaldo will be interesting to watch down the wings on counter attacks.

Ultimately, Chelsea’s defense will be too difficult to beat more than once or twice, their midfield will be able to manage an otherwise sloppy game, and Petr Cech will make us all remember the goaltender he was before he fractured his skull in 2006. For the Reds, Ronaldo might look effective but the Chelsea defense will keep him contained or isolated. On the other side, Didier Drogba’s size, speed and presence will lead to several clear-cut opportunities. If Chelsea can finish them, United will be left chasing the game - something they are unaccustomed to.

Prediction:
Chelsea 2, Manchester United 1

David’s Preview
I’ve got to agree with Derek on this one. I think it is as close to a tossup as one could imagine, and the odds of extra-time must be quite high. One would have to give United the edge in attacking options, but Chelsea’s midfield and defense have a noticeable edge. On top of the weather, one development that could change this is a reported training ground injury to Ashley Cole. He has a solid history of locking down Christiano Ronaldo and if he cannot play today I think the advantage will tilt slightly in ManU’s favor.

The wildcards in this game are the tactics and chemistry of Chelsea. Roman Abramonovich’s experiment of throwing money at the world’s best players has resulted in the evolution of an exciting young team built for the present and future to a disjointed European version of 25 guys-25 cabs. It is an indictment of the team’s current standing that Avram Grant is rumored to be on the hot seat. He inherited a team that was floundering in both the Premiership and Champions League and almost all he has done is win. There have been some notable exceptions, including tactical mistakes in the Carling Cup final and the embarrassing loss to Barnsley in the FA Cup. But in general Grant has created unprecedented success, including the teams win over Liverpool in the Champions League Semi-Final. Prior to that game, Liverpool in Semi-Finals was the white whale for Chelsea under former boss Jose Mourinho. In addition, Grant brought the team back to within two goals from the Premiership title. Yet he has a team where many of the established stars have expressed a desire to play elsewhere next year, and who have publicly feuded on both the training ground and on the field. The team appeared to rally around the death of Frank Lampard’s mother and if this sentiment can be maintained, a historic victory could be in the cards before this wannabe dynasty is blown up.

Manchester United deserved to win the Premiership title as it is a measure of who was the best team from the start of the season until the end, but the Champions League will be decided by Chelsea’s performance. At this point ManU is a relatively known quantity; they can play free flowing soccer, but will likely try and close down the midfield and slow down the game against an opponent such as Chelsea. They have talented enough players to unlock almost any defense, but Chelsea will likely have to make a mistake at this level for it to happen.

Prediction
By locking down the midfield and playing defense to their potential, Chelsea win this one 1-0.

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