Mourinho 0 : Guardiola 0

It was the clash of the Super-Coaches: Mourinho’s Inter squared off at home against Guardiola’s European champs Barcelona last night in what was the most anticipated Match-day 1 fixture of the UEFA Champions League 2009 – 10. It was mouthwatering stuff for many reasons:

Mourinho vs. Guardiola
This was the highlight for me. The promise of how these two contrasting individuals and managers would pit their wits against one another was truly exciting.

Mourinho is outspoken, flamboyant; a charismatic leader who loves to take people on. The teams he puts out and their playing philosophy, however, is calmer with stress not on flair but efficiency; on primarily achieving results. We have all seen his tremendous record in Portugal, England and now Italy. He’s not afraid to make bold changes and does have a number of tricks up those sleeves.

Guardiola is much quieter in comparison; an astute analyzer of the game with people management skills that seem to match Jose’s in that both of them know the art of bringing out the best in their players and instilling in them that drive and desire to win matches. His team, however, is all attack; flamboyant, creative and fast. Although Barcelona achieved practically everything under Guardiola last season, it does appear that they do not have a plan B; they know one way – one very successful way so far – of playing football.

The question: “Who is better: Pep or Jose?” This match would surely go a long way in answering that.

The Squads
The sheer big names and world class talent on display was incredible. Barca’s potent midfield spearheaded by Xavi, and probably the best attack in the world: Henry, Messi, Ibrahimovic. Inter with their stars in Maicon, Sneijder and Eto’o; not to mention their home advantage.

Ibrahimovic vs. Eto’o
Both forwards who swapped clubs during the transfer window had a point to prove, most notably against their former fans and managers. Surely, that would bring out the best in them!

The Unraveling
To be honest, the game did not live up to its expectations; or maybe I expected too much of it. Granted, there were fits of beautiful passing football from Barcelona and some good counters and impressive defending from Inter, but the lack of goals (the final score-line being 0 – 0) basically meant that neither side had to get out of their comfort zone. That rendered the match lacking in that something extra; that bite and intensity.

Mourinho’s tactics worked extremely well I thought; more so in the first half where Inter kept Barcelona at bay by closing them down in the midfield, the forwards making unorthodox runs; midfielders cutting space and angles and as a result, any positive supply to Henry or Messi. Maybe the Portuguese had taken a leaf out of Guus Hiddink’s masterful strategy in last season’s semi-final where Chelsea kept Barcelona at bay for nearly two legs! But Inter did have their chances; they were definitely on the lookout to make that odd chance count. It just didn't happen.

The second half, Barcelona found their feet a lot more; Henry got into the game, so did Messi. Their attacking play also provided Inter’s Milito in particular and Eto’o with some good counter-attacking chances.

Inter’s defense was astute and tough on the night; Samuel being easily my man of the match. Both him and Lucio never allowed Ibrahimovic to get meaningful possession of the ball and when he did get it, he was extremely poor at making anything out of it. Ibra was definitely a flop on the night but Eto’o actually did pretty well. So, is the Cameroon international better than the Swede? I’m still not decided but am slightly inclined towards a ‘yes’.

At the end of the game, it’s Jose 0, Pepe 0. The debate is still open; we now wait till Match-day 5 (November 24) when Inter square off against Barca at Camp Nou to see if any answers can be found.