After Barcelona teaching Manchester United a big lesson in how football is, or supposed to be played, a couple of questions were answered in just 90 minutes on May 28 at Wembley stadium.

Everyone keeps yapping about how poor La Liga is compared to the English Premier League, and yes, it could be true depending on where your interest lay, but one fact is, the top two sides in La Liga are better than the top two sides in the EPL.

I watch both leagues regularly, and while the bottom sides in the Premier League do cause more problems for the top sides [mainly because of the defensive tactics employed]. In La Liga every team plays open, attacking football. That’s the culture there.

But without going into that argument as it’s as hopeless as pretending to argue against the fact that Lionel Messi is not the best in the world—boy, we are extremely lucky to be around and see him playing. 

Barca’s emphatic win at Wembley did not only confirm the Catalan club as the best in the world by a mile but it confirmed that United have not been as good as their league position and Champions League final appearance suggest.

United strolled to the EPL title thanks mainly not to their superiority but much to their main rivals’ uselessness for most part of the season.

Chelsea and Arsenal were poor for most of the season, and Sir Alex Ferguson took full advantage as he led his team to a record breaking 19th English title.

Going into the Final, United were second favorites and nothing changed after 90 minutes of football, no wonder Fergie had nothing to blame and nowhere to hide.

Ground cameras picked on the 70-year-old’s trembling arms as Barca poured raid after another—it could have been worse!

"I expected us to do better but at the end of the day we have to acknowledge that we were beaten by a better team. The best team we have ever faced.

"But there is no shame in losing to Barcelona. We have proved that we are a good European side but every now and again you come up against a team that are better than you, and this is that night,” Fergie noted after the game. 

For a man, regarded as one of the greatest football managers, if not the greatest to come and say, this Barcelona is the best team he has ever faced, says something.

We must not forget the Scot has been involved football management for over 30 years, 25 of those at Old Trafford.

And when he says that there is no shame in losing to Barca, he meant it, so all United fans, including my good friend Ivan should take heart and hope for the better in the coming seasons.

Messi, who had not yet scored on English soil, chose the right moment and occasion to show the world that he’s the king of football and whoever still doubts that, should look for another sport to enjoy.

This little Argentinean forward makes playing football look so simple—53 goals in 57 matches this season, La Liga and Champions League titles = Ballon d’or, his third on the trot. Phenomenon

Essentially, the same Barca team beat United twice [2009, 2011]. You don’t lose to the same opposition twice and argue that both times it was because United played poorly, as some fans want to argue. 

In a one-off match anything can happen however, last Saturday we saw just why the EPL’s best isn’t nearly as good as La Liga’s best. Once can be a fluke, but not twice???

Some might call Ferguson the best manager in the world, yet he’s been beaten twice by the same manager [Pep Guardiola]. In the EPL, he’s the best. The best manager in the world doesn’t get his tactics wrong twice against the same opposition?

Right now I would say that Guardiola is the best manager in the world. He’s won the Champions League twice in four years, not to mention his domestic success. Ferguson has won it twice in 20+ years! What’s your say?

nku78@yahoo.com