Showdown at the Bernabeu

The moment we've been waiting for since the group stages commenced in in mid-September is now upon us. Tomorrow two teams will fight for their own trebles. In Germany, Bayern Munich has already captured the Bundesliga and the DFB Pokal, while their Italian opponents Internazionale Milan have seized their Serie A scudetto and the Copa Italia.

Saturday's premier European final has more plot lines than The Lord of Rings. The Bavarian's coach, Louis Van Gaal, was mentor to the Italian's self-proclaimed Special One--Jose Mourinho. (Mourinho has yet to claim his crown yet.)

Both finalists knocked out one of last year's finalists. Bayern came from behind at Old Trafford to knock out Manchester United in the quarterfinals; Inter parked the bus at Camp Nou and staved off attack after attack from holders Barcelona in the semifinals.

Both teams are extremely disciplined when it comes to getting men behind the ball on defense. Between them they boast experienced defenders, loads of talent in the midfield, and tricky, pacey strikers, all to be expected for finalists of the world's most elite club tournament.

Many people expect Bayern to be unable to break down Inter's stalwart defending, the reasoning being that if Barca couldn't with their delectable passing, no one could. However, Bayern posses a threat that Barcelona's front line of Pedro, Bojan, and Messi doesn't have: aerial ability. So if Inter is willing to give up the flanks in order to protect the middle, Lahm, Altintop, and Robben will be ready and willing to whip balls into the middle for Olic, Schweinsteiger or Mueller to head on to goal. If Inter tries to take away the wings, they expose themselves and the Bavarian midfield trio is more than capable of creating chances.

Ribery may be out with red card suspension and busy looking for underage hookers, but Inter always must be wary of Robben doing this or this.

At the other end of the pitch, Baryern will need to limit the defensive mistakes such as against Man United, and will need Van Bommel to keep tabs on his Dutch counterpart Sneijder and limit his influence on the game.

All said and done, this should be a close one, and I say Bayern wins 2-1.

And if they go to penalties, we know who will win that. Those typical Germans.

Kickoff is at 11.45 PST on FOX. That's right, mainstream FOX is showing the Champions League. And who said soccer would never become popular in the states.

"The Hell that awaits Inter"

Such is the title for an article from the Madrid based paper El Marca. Barcelona players and fans have been doing all they can to rally all of Catalonia up into arms. Getting to the stadium hours early, wearing blue and red, following the Barca team bus for support, and receiving Inter's bus in strong numbers. Even Pique wishes for the Nerazzurri to "hate their profession for 90 minutes." His partner in the back said....oh wait, Puyol is ruled out due to suspension. Nou Camp might be packed with 90,000 inspiring Catalonians, but no matter how loud they yell, all that matters is what happens on the pitch.

First things first, Barca are down 3-1. The easiest way to overturn this is, of course, a 2-0 victory, but all the pressure they pile on will make them susceptible to Inter's counter attacks which worked so well in the first leg. With Pandev injured, Mourinho will probably employ a 4-3-1-2 and drop the defense deeper to absorb pressure. This leave only Eto'o and Milito to pressure the back pass, which may give Barca as much time as they desire to move the ball laterally.

Contrary to early reports, Sneijder is match fit and will once again provide the link from defense to offense. Inter will most likely not field any changes from last leg, with the exception of Pandev's injury. Barca are without Iniesta and Abidal due to injury, which means the inclusion of Pedro and Maxwell. Puyol will watch from the stands as Gabi Milito attempts to shackle up his brother Diego.

When it comes to the tactics, I expect something very similar to last game. Inter did a good job of patiently herding Barcelona to the sidelines and into the corners before they collapsed the pocket around the ball-handler (usually with 3 players). The key was to not let Barca move the ball laterally through Xavi once they corralled one of the wide players.

Barcelona had trouble unlocking Inter's defense; the first goal was thanks to a complete lapse by Maicon when he allowed Maxwell to run down the left to the byline. The key will, once again, be little Messi. The young maestro seems to thrive at home, absorbing the energy of the fans and springing about the turf, delivering goals and smiles. Can Zanetti keep up and mark Messi well again? I don't think so. Messi has been quiet the last four games. This is exactly the type of game to make another statement.

The prediction for this game is a little trickier. As the blaugrana correspondent at Soccernet said, Barca may have had to take a bus to Milan, but Inter will park the bus at Nou Camp. I can see Inter being able to charge forward for a goal, but Barca will lay siege to Julio Cesar's goal. If they are wearing their shooting boots, they may just bust open the flood gates. I say 4-1 Barca, possibly with one of those in extra time.