Let's see if I can get a rationable post together.
From the camera angles I saw of the challenge on Alves inside the box, it didn't look like a penalty, just a vintage dive by Dani to top off his horrendous match. I could obviously be convinced otherwise. Dani just couldn't get anything right, he was late on two of Inter's goals, I think, and his crosses were horrible. He just couldn't produce. It's a shame for him personally too, as Maicon was so much better in this match, that he will most likely be the starter in the World Cup - although I think Alves has been the better throughout the season.
Valdes, not much to say, there was nothing he could do in the 3 goals, but no amazing saves either. Good game.
Pique was one of the few who delivered. He came with his normal play, calm and collected. Wasn't enough.
Puyol is out of the second leg, but he had to take the foul. It's a good thing Gabi is fit again, and showing he still has what it takes. This was one of those spots were you could see that the referee was not on top of the situation. His calls were just random - sometimes calling unexistant fouls, sometimes ignoring clear yellow card challenges. Motta was a dirty bastard as usual, but not even a vocal warning was given. Obviously, both of Inter's 2nd half goals could be argued over, as in the first one it seemed like Leo was fouled, but it wasn't called, and Inter were released on a quick counter, and the second one, as already pointed out, seemed to be a clear offside.
Nonetheless, Inter was definitely the better team, but I still feel the result is a bit undeserved, a 1-goal-win seems more fair considering everything that took place on the pitch. This means we'll have a hard time in advancing, 2-0 is definitely not impossible, it's been done before, but the thing is, Inter is take the same bus we took to Giuseppe Meazza and park it in front of their goal. 2 goals will be hard to score, especially with Jose organizing his defense as only he could, and on top of that, we can't let them score from their dangerous counters, which are bound to happen, as we saw yesterday.
Iniesta was desperately needed. Xavi just seemed so lonely in the midfield, there really was nobody to give a quick one-two with, and he ended up just keeping the ball, occasionally lending it to Busquets, and it all led to nothing. And I still can't believe Pep prefers Busquets over Yaya, especially in this kind of match. Toure can stop those quick counters, whereas Busquets is nowhere near as big of a help to the defense, and is usually the one laying on the ground after any challenge.
Messi was invisible, he was marked well, and it seemed to frustrate him, and he couldn't get anything going. He kept trying the same simple things, but all the defenders had to do was put their foot in front of his left foot and the ball was theirs. Zlatan didn't get any chances, and as he wasn't fully fit for the 90 minutes yet, I can obviously understand Pep's subsitution, but not for a defender! Atleast, he should've brought Bojan in for someone a bit later.
Overall, the thing I believe lost us the match, was individual lack of concentration. There were far too many sloppy giveaways in the midfield, which almost always led to a quick, dangerous counter attack. First half was average on our standards, not much to praise, but not much to sulk over either. The second half though, was horrible. The players' heads weren't in it, and Inter capitalized on that.
Now, the team is put to a test, and these are the mountains we have to climb, to be considered one of the great teams of all times. It's not enough to win the titles - it's about overcoming the obstacles thrown at you, no matter how hard it seems. The team has a long way back home in the bus, and I bet and hope Pep will make the most of it.
