- The Guardian,
- Thursday May 11, 2000
The romantics will not like it, and the thousands of Barcelona fans who called for Luis van Gaal's resignation certainly did not, but it will be Valencia who take on Real Madrid in the all-Spanish Champions League final after a surprisingly comfortable passage last night.
Steely in defence and impressive on the counter-attack, the one-time 40-1 shots to win the competition deserved their draw. By the time Frank de Boer headed in from a corner and Philip Cocu scored from close range to salvage some pride for Barcelona the contest was over, Mendieta's goal having given Valencia a 5-1 aggregate lead.
Barcelona had sounded confident beforehand, spurred by memories of their stirring comeback against Chelsea in the previous round. That night Luis van Gaal's team had overturned a 3-1 deficit; this time it was a 4-1 away defeat they had to overcome. "We have done it once," the Dutch coach said, "and we can do it again."
Van Gaal had implored his players "to be prepared to die out there on the field", a roundabout way of warning Valencia that they would progress over his dead bodies. The last thing Valencia can have expected was an easy ride.
A 3-0 league defeat here a little over a month ago stood as a warning to Valencia to be strong in defence and incisive in attack.
It was a sign of local hopes that this huge, vertigo-inducing stadium was only a little short of its 98,000 capacity. But the worrying news for those who had come was that, unlike Chelsea, Valencia were clearly not content to sit back and wait for waves of Barcelona attacks to drown them.
Closing down quickly from the front and forcing Barcelona back whenever possible, Valencia's gameplan was clear: smother when they did not have the ball and, when they did, look to hold it or strike on the counter-attack. The discipline and team ethic which is at the root of their unexpected Champions League surge was evident.
Near the touchline Valencia's Argentine coach Hector Cuper was constantly at the edge of his technical area, urging his players to harry and hustle and waving them back. For the most part his experienced defence (average age almost 33) and young, energetic midfield (average age under 24) frustrated Barcelona but Van Gaal's team are impossible to contain permanently.
They were far from their fluent, surging best - Valencia did not allow them to be - but hopes were raised when Patrick Kluivert headed over from Luis Figo's cross. Then Rivaldo forced Canizares to tip round the post, and Michael Reiziger twice found Kluivert in promising positions early on.
But Barcelona struggled after that to carve out anything of note despite the promptings of Figo and as Valencia came more into the match, Claudio Lopez and Kily Gonzalez had chances on the counter-attack. With the score 0-0 at half-time Cuper could start dreaming of Paris and the final.
Angulo should have settled matters shortly after the restart from Lopez's cross but allowed Ruud Hesp to save. Valencia continued to dominate, with their captain Gaizka Mendieta particularly impressive. He, though, wasted a glorious chance on the hour, shooting wide from a Lopez pass.
It said much for Valencia's security in defence that they could afford that. They are not a team of stars but Cuper, who worked miracles in taking Real Mallorca from the Second Division to last season's European Cup Winners Cup final, has moulded a hard-working, organised side who strike with skill and pace given the chance.
After a poor start to the season there were widespread calls for Cuper to be sacked and Valencia hardly looked Champions League finalists when they lost 3-0 at Old Trafford in December. They have, though, peaked at the right time, destroying Lazio 5-2 at home in the quarter-final and now seeing off the favourites with much to spare.
Barcelona's mounting frustration heightened when penalty appeals for fouls on Figo and Rivaldo were turned down. For Valencia there are new heights of rejoicing after Mendieta made sure of victory with a fine curling shot from Lopez's cross. The Copa del Rey they won last season was their first trophy for 19 years. Now they are on the verge of landing the biggest prize of all.
Barcelona (3-3-1-3): Hesp; Reiziger, F de Boer, Abelardo (Litmanen, 77); Xavi, Guardiola (Sergi, 69min), Cocu; Rivaldo; Figo, Kluivert, Zenden (Simao Sabrosa, 63).
Valencia (4-4-2): Canizares; Angloma (Gerardo, 86), Djukic, Pellegrino, Carboni; Mendieta, Farinos (Sanchez, 90), Gerard, Kily Gonzalez (Albelda, 74); Angulo, Lopez.
Referee : V Pereira (Portugal)
