Champions of the Audi Cup

Barcelona (FCB).- There will be no friendlies for Barça. This Tuesday, in the final against Bayern Munich, Barça once again captivated the Allianz Arena, showing that their style, despite missing several key players, remains intact. Possession and control of the game were Guardiola’s players best weapons, and 2 goals from Thiago, sealed the victory.

Barça created more chances, and the first to shoot at the goal, defended by Jens Butt, was David Villa. The Barça number 7 had 2 free-kicks from central positions that failed to find the back of the net. The first was pushed out by Butt and the second went just wide of the mark. Another chance, taken in the 32nd minute was again saved by Butt. In the 38th min, Valdes was called on to save from David Alaba, who was unable to beat the Barça keeper in a 1 on 1 situation.

Thiago opens the scoring….

The first goal-scorer was not one of the strikers. Part of Barca’s greatness is that the midfield players get into many attacking positions, and the player who took most advantage of this was Thiago Alcantara. In the 41st minute Thiago headed in a cross from the left by Jonathan Soriano (who later had to be replaced due to injury) putting Barça 1-0 ahead, the score remaining the same until half-time.

... and also decides the outcome

In the second half the game’s dynamics were no different from the first. The Barça performance and work-rate was just the same, and although Bayern enjoyed slightly more possession, Barça were in total control of the game. There were fewer chances, but Thiago managed to convert one of them. In the 74th minute he played a 1-2 with Afellay, and scored with a fantastic shot, well placed, into the top corner of Butt’s goal to make it 2-0. From then until the end Barça didn’t suffer too much and reached their objective of becoming Champions of the second edition of the Audi Cup.