6 December 2006, by Sean Gillen

Barcelona through thanks to Ronaldinho magic

Barcelona 2-0 Werder Bremen

Barcelona qualified for the knockout phase of the Champions League after resisting a strong second-half fight back from Werder Bremen to claim the win they needed at the Nou Camp.

Two early goals from Ronaldinho and Eidur Gudjohnsen gave the hosts a dream start, but Bremen produced an impressive second forty-five minutes to leave the holders anxious for the final whistle.

The first twenty minutes could not have gone better for Barca, and they gave an early indication of their attacking intent when Ronaldinho found Giuly in a wide right position and the Frenchman beat Wome before cutting the ball across the box, but Gudjohnsen failed to make contact.

Deco’s toe-poked effort from inside the box was comfortable for Bremen keeper Tim Weise as Barca’s pressure built, although they needed a fantastic challenge from captain Carles Puyol to block Diego’s attempted finish from a Hugo Almeida knockdown.

Ronaldinho trickery

The lively Giuly had drawn another good save from Weise before Ronaldinho broke the deadlock with a typically memorable goal. After winning his side a free-kick, the Brazilian anticipated the wall’s jump, and passes the ball under the Bremen defenders into the bottom corner.

The goal settled some early nerves in the Catalan crowd, and a second six minutes later appeared to put the game beyond Bremen. Ronaldinho was again at the centre of the move, spraying a superb ball out wide to Giuly for the winger to pull it back for Gudjohnsen, who swept it past Weise.

Giuly dragged a shot wide for Barca, before Jensen was off target after a good Bremen move. The Germans struggled to get a foothold in the game, with Barca showing expert passing to keep the ball throughout the opening 45 minutes.

The home side almost made it three before half time, and it would have been a goal of the season contender. Gudjohnsen dribbled past three Bremen defenders before finding himself in a good goalscoring position, but the Icelandic forward struck the post and, more incredibly, Giuly missed the rebound with an open goal gaping.

Inspirational Diego

If the first half went perfectly for Barca, the Germans, inspired by a marvellous display from former Porto midfielder Diego, made the second period much less comfortable. Within seconds of the restart, Borowski nodded a long ball down to top scorer Miroslav Klose, and the forward drew a save from Victor Valdes at his near post.

Shortly afterwards, Klose wriggled past Marquez and Oleguer before stabbing the ball wide as Bremen continued to build on an excellent start to the second period.

Barca, now playing on the counter attack, almost took advantage of Bremen committing men forward when Ronaldinho’s exquisite cross-field pass put Gudjohnsen in on goal, but the forward’s finish was saved by Weise after a deflection from the recovering defender Naldo. Giuly was then denied by Weise from the edge of the area.

Portuguese Hugo Almeida had two good chances in quick succession, although he did not have any time to think with either. Diego drove ball into the box and Almeida stuck out a foot, deflecting the ball into the arms of Victor Valdes. Jensen’s over-hit cross then clipped the bar, and a surprised Almeida put the rebound wide.

Barca were reduced to making several substitutions and slowing the game down at times to kill Bremen’s momentum, but ultimately held out for a crucial victory. They finish second behind Chelsea in the group, while Bremen head into the UEFA Cup as strong contenders after their impressive Champions League showing.

Frank Rijkaard, Barcelona coach:

“I’m happy because we had to make a difference tonight and we saw a great first-half performance. The effort the team made was immense so I congratulate my players for their work.

“This result, and qualification, brings a calmness to the squad. Bremen are a very strong team and have good quality players, which meant we had to keep a hold on the match after the two goals. That’s normal in the Champions League - there are never any easy games. We took our chances and that proved to be very important in the second half.”

Thomas Schaaf, Werder Bremen coach:

“We didn't find the rhythm in the first half and things didn’t go to plan. They found their rhythm quickly but we improved after the break, found our rhythm and it showed.”

“The first Barcelona goal was our mistake and made the difference. We then made another and from then on the match became very tough for us. In the second half we had several chances and played like we know how to but didn’t make the most of the chances.”

Barcelona:
Victor Valdes, Zambrotta, van Bronkhorst, Puyol, Marquez, Motta (Thuram, 62), Iniesta (Xavi, 73), Deco, Giuly (Ezquerro, 85), Ronaldinho, Gudjohnsen
Yellow Cards: Puyol (48), Motta (53)

Werder Bremen:
Weise, Fritz, Wome (Hunt, 80), Naldo, Mertesacker, Borowski, Frings, Jensen, Diego, Almeida (Klasnic, 71), Klose
Yellow Cards: Wome (74), Frings (77), Diego (72)

Goals:
[1-0] Ronaldinho, 13
[2-0] Gudjohnsen, 17