From the very beginning of the match Wisła played completely differently than in Barcelona. The team played more boldly, attacking with a greater number of players. It wasn’t long before the effects of this could be seen – in the 13th minute Boguski first daringly got the ball out from the flank, after which Paweł Brożek got a hold of it and passed it back to Diaz. Junior kicked the ball powerfully from 16 meters, and Valdes had some difficulty in defending the shot. This was the White Star’s first accurate shot during the two-match rivalry against Barcelona, as well as the first on-target shot in the match played at Reymonta Street.

A few minutes later Wisła proved that this play had not just been a pure accident. Paweł Brożek decisively attacked Valdes, who failed to properly rebound the ball, but Łobodziński didn’t take advantage of the opportunity, with his shot passing to the outside of the goal post. And Barcelona? It wasn’t until the 25th minute of the match that Barcelona took their first shot on goal. However, Eto’o was unable to threaten his Wisła’s goal. The guests didn’t have many good goal-scoring situations as Wisła’s defenders played excellently. Marcin Baszczyński, who worried before the match that he might not be able to deal with such a demanding opponent, played perhaps one of the best matches of his life. With the calm of a stoic, Piotr Brożek kicked the ball out from under the legs of opposing players who attempted to get past him, while Peter Singlar handled himself almost as well as his teammate on the other side of the pitch.

The guests seriously threatened the White Star for the first time half an hour into the match. Henry got away on the left flank, and just as it seemed as though Iniesta would reach his fast flat pass, Piotr Brożek kicked the ball out from under his legs. It should have been 1:0 for Barcelona ten minutes later. This time Iniesta passed the ball to Henry, who found himself one-on-one in front of Pawełek. The Frenchman’s shot, however, missed the goal.

The guests should have added a goal to their name after this play, but so too Wisła should have taken the lead a few moments earlier – as in the 36th minute Zieńczuk nicely crossed the ball into the penalty area where Paweł Brożek jumped out from behind Piquet’s back and took a powerful headshot on goal. Unfortunately, Valdes executed a perfect save. What Wisła was unable to do at the end of the first half, they were able to do not long after halftime. This time the headshot found its way into Barcelona’s net. Cleber scored the goal, with the ball being passed to him by Jirsak from a corner kick. A corner kick that Wisła had won following an excellent volley shot from Zieńczuk.

Barcelona, whose attacks became more decisive at the beginning of the second half, threw themselves to the offensive even more after losing a goal. The Spaniards created a string of good plays, coach Guardiola substituted in more offensive players, but the score on the stadium clock remained zero for Barca. All of this due to an extraordinary lack of effectiveness on the part of the guest’s players that Tuesday evening. Eto’o, Piquet, and Krkić’s shots from a few meters missed the goal, while Yaya Toure wasn’t able to kick the ball into an empty goal after Pawełek missed the ball following a free kick executed by Alves. The self-sacrifice exhibited by Wisła’s players also paid off. On two occasions the White Star’s players were able to emerge victorious from seemingly hopeless situations. First Baszczyński was able to steal the ball out from beneath Eto’o’s legs, while a few moments later Diaz did the same thing by beating Gudjohnsen to the ball.

Wisła did not have very many other chances to chase after the outcome from the previous match, but the fact that they were able to defeat the Catalonian team is most definitely a big achievement. After the match, both players and fans could proudly sing together – “Even the famous Barcelona cannot defeat our Wisła.”


Wisła Kraków – FC Barcelona 1:0 (0:0)
1:0 Cleber 52’

Wisła: Pawełek – Singlar, Baszczyński, Ceber, Piotr Brożek – Łobodziński, Jirsak, Diaz, Boguski (68’ Niedzielan), Zieńczuk – Paweł Brożek

Barcelona: Valdes – Aloes, Pique, Puyol, Abidal – Yaya Toure, Keita, Xavi (57’ Gudjohnsen) – Iniesta (66’ Hleb), Eto’o (74’ Kroić), Henry

Referee: Lubos Michel
Yellow cards: Piotr Brożek (Wisła), Henry (Barcelona)

Spectators: 13 500

M. Górski
Photo. Maks Michalczak
Wisła Kraków SA Press Office