Putting Barca/PSG In perspective

The superlatives will certainly fly after Barcelona’s comeback in a sport dominated by hype and little feel for its history but for me – for a match to acquire the greatest tag – you need more of a contest. I think of the three greatest games I was privileged to witness when only one goal decided it and arguably the loser was in every case the better team. These would be Italy 4 West Germany 3 (World Cup 1970), Italy 3 Brazil 2 (World Cup 1982) and France 3 Portugal 2 (Euro semi final 1984). To these three I would be tempted to add Argentina 3 England 2 in World Cup of 1998, but I can never really forgive Simoeone for feigning injury to get David Beckham red-carded and the horrible Klu Klux Klan style vendetta in the tabloid press against Beckham afterwards which forever marred the drama of the match for me.

One cannot of course denigrate a side like Barcelona,who in the 87th minute were facing elimination, and their resolve in then scoring 3 goals. Yet you have to wonder if both their penalties would have be awarded outside the Nou Camp and at the flaccid nature of PSG’s resistance. Neymar did have an exceptional game but a cannier coach would have had a tactic to close him down.

All three games I have mentioned – and this one – had a dramatic finale but the last night did not have the ebb and flow that characterise the greatest of games.

In the France v Portugal semi-final it was heading for extra time when Jean Tigana made one more lung-surging run for the line and pulled the ball back for Platini to convert. I still recall as I write this the screech of John Motson “Platineee …!”.

He would say afterwards this was the greatest game he commentated. Italy in 1982 in Spain was a slow burner, winning only 3 points with 3 draws to qualify. It illustrates how you grow in stature in a tournament as England did in 1990 with the press denigrating Bobby Robson after England stalled amid stuttered their way through the early rounds. Italy never gave up against West Germany but the game went to extra time and they could not find the gas to hold Brazil in the final who had played their semi one day earlier.

Pargie texted pre-match that he was putting his famous tenner on a 3-1 score to Barcelona. I followed him. At 87 minutes I was thinking more of £100 win than an improbable Barca win.