Classy Spaniards complete the treble in style

Barcelona 2/ Manchester Utd 0
Manchester Utd’s dream season came to a disappointing end last night, but no one in the Red Devils camp can really complain: save for the first ten minutes, Barcelona and their re-hashed backline were utterly dominant. Perhaps if Utd had parked the bus and refused to let the Spaniards play football (like a certain West London side did) it would have been a different story, but they were simply stretched too far by outstanding performances from Andres Iniesta, Gerard Pique and Captain Caveman Puyol.

If anything, last night proved that Manchester Utd are not invulnerable when faced with attacking football - perhaps Barca’s display will inspire more Premier League teams to have a crack at them next season.

Barcelona/Manchester Utd, 7.45pm, ITV1, £25 no loss Bet

In celebration of tonight’s clash between the winners of the two best leagues in Europe, we’ve teamed up with Betfair to produce a Big Match Interactive Wizard. Check it out and you will discover no fewer than 68 vital statistics about the game, all of which can help you make an informed decision before betting.

The 22 men who will contest the biggest prize in club football

Last Wednesday, our friends in the Spanish press kindly revealed the starting line-ups for tonight’s Champions League final.

We may have chuckled at their startling clairvoyance, but they probably weren’t far off naming the 22 players who will be on the pitch for kick-off. The only change comes in the Barcelona left-back position: the Spanish favoured Seydou Keita over Sylvinho, probably on the basis that he has played more games. The Malian, however, has reacted to the propsect of playing out of position in the fashion of a big girl’s blouse, so we now believe ex-Arsenal star Sylvinho will start ahead of him.

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A plea to readers: If you get a chance, please help keep The Spoiler alive by clicking the sponsored video below the first post. Not only does it feature Melinda Messenger and Lisa Snowdon miming to ‘Rapper’s Delight’, but it also promotes our biggest passion behind football - spicy Portuguese chicken…

How on Earth can the Champions League final continue?

As The Spoiler surveyed the front page of the nation’s favourite daily newspaper this morning, we almost dropped our monocle into our corn flakes, such was the astonishment created by the news that Wayne Rooney’s boots have been stolen ahead of tonight’s Champions League final:

“Rooney’s sponsors Nike had flown in a specially-made pair of T90 laser boots for the striker to wear. But the England star, 23, was stunned when told a thief had intercepted the delivery.

“Roo had planned to wear the boots in training yesterday, but instead was forced to use an old pair.”

Using an old pair of boots during training? What a disgusting abuse of Rooney’s right to wear boxfresh footwear on a daily basis; he must have been absolutely fuming.

The Sun believe Rooney’s shiny brand new and highly desirable Nike T90 laser boots may have been taken by an opportunist thief or a Barca-based saboteur, but they fail to entertain the notion that this is a completely made up story designed to give publicity for Rooney’s shiny brand new and highly desirable Nike T90 laser boots…

The Spoiler is always amused by numerous tabloids’ attempts to pass off the same news as their own “EXCLUSIVE!”. The Sun have taken false exclusivity to new levels though with the lead story on their website this morning.

They exclusively claim that Carlos Tevez and Dimitar Berbatov will start the Champions League final on the bench, before naming an identical starting line-up to the one we discovered two days ago on Spanish website Sport.

Of course this isn’t the first time that the nation’s favourite red top have tried taking credit for other people’s work.

Commemorate Tevez for a game that he might spend on the bench

Not content with ripping off their fans with yet another season-ticket price hike, Manchester United have found a new way to bleed money from them.

For the bargain price of £69.99, you can buy a special edition Champions League Final Shirt with “Tevez 32″ on the back, even though it’s far from assured that the Argentine will even figure in the clash with Barcelona.

The shirt, which costs £30 more than your average white away top, has the barely-visible words “Final Roma 2009 27th May Stadio Olimpico” stamped on and a Champions League badge on the arm.

As our screengrab shows, the club are quick to point out that there are no refunds so if you end up with a shirt commemorating someone who doesn’t even play in the match, your just left to rue your own hard luck.

Spanish press claim teams have already been decided

If you thought you were going to have to wait until next Wednesday to find out the starting line-ups for the Champions League final, you were quite wrong: our amigos in the Spanish press have peered into the future, and brought the teams back to the present for your consideration.

AS claim Pep Guardiola has already settled upon his formation, with the only debate being the left-back position. They believe Seydou Keita will be played out of position over Sylvinho and Martín Cáceres, but fail to give a reason (we suspect it is because he has played more this season). Crucially, none of the players in the starting line-up will face Osasuna at the weekend, and no one in la Liga will threaten to sue them.

Meanwhile, the folks at Sport have published an article entitled ‘Ferguson already has the eleven that will face the Barça in Rome’, and in it they reveal that Nani and Paul Scholes will be joined on the bench by Carlitos Tevez and Dimitar Berbatov. Apparently, they will play with Cristiano Ronaldo up front on his own, much like he did in the semi-final at The Emirates.

Do you believe the Spanish press’ assertions, or should they leave the predictions to Mark Lawrenson and Nostradamus? Let us know your thoughts below…