I was pretty impressed with the Liverpool fans hanging around until very late in the AC Milan celebration and I am glad that Milan honored them with cheers and thumbs enough. I was also impressed that Milan greeted Liverpool in a guard of honor while they received their medals; it is good to see sportsmanship is still alive and well. In terms of fans and spectacle it was a great match, on the field was a different story.
The game was not very rhythmic nor did it rival the Milan vs Man U games. In all honesty was just as I had expected, an extremely cautious game that was played most in the midfield. Both teams were very well aware that the game would be won by closing out the midfielders and I have to say that both teams succeeded with the exception of Jankulovski letting Pennant run all over him. Seedorf was absolutely non-existent and Mascherano pestered Kaka all over the place.
Liverpool clearly dominated the midfield but it was the Milan defense that proved to be the key factor. Nesta, who is the top form since returning, turned out to be the key for Milan last night. Many people were waiting for gold from Kaka when it was Nesta who turned one of the best performances of his career, in fact many of his tackles reminded me of his defensive mate Maldini in his heyday.
It was not the greatest of games, and it certainly could not be considered revenge for 2005 (that would only happen if Jerzy Dudek mysteriously disappeared) it was just a cautiously smart final that Milan wanted more. Hats off to Liverpool and FORZA MILAN.