كونتكست - الحلقة الأولى: مسار البايرن وتشيلسي الطويل نحو نهائي دوري الأبطال عام ٢٠١٢

[0:19]Every historical moment needs context. Previous events that add meaning and another narrative to the event.

[0:30]The match between Bayern and Chelsea in the Champions League final in 2012 is a small part of the complete story. The story of how the two teams reached a save or a shot away from winning the Champions League title.

[0:59]If we want to talk about Chelsea's rise at the beginning of the millennium, we must talk about the Russian businessman Roman Abramovich. The Russian's desire to buy a club in England after being impressed by the sport after attending a United vs. Real Madrid match in April 2003. It is said that the two nominated clubs are Liverpool and Chelsea. A decisive match came at the end of the 2003 season, which will determine who will qualify for the Champions League. Gronkjaer scored the winning goal for Chelsea, a goal that secured the Blues' qualification over Liverpool to the Champions League. And the goal that decided the Russian's decision to buy Chelsea. The Blues' path to success in the early years was largely due to pumping money to buy the best players in the most important positions. And Chelsea was not bad, but despite that, the Russian strengthened Claudio Ranieri's team with 170 million euros in the first transfer window to bring in additional stars. And after an excellent season, where they finished second in the league, which is considered Chelsea's best finish since winning their only league title in 1955. And after exiting with a controversial decision against Monaco in the Champions League semi-finals, and after rumors throughout the season, Abramovich fired the Italian coach. Which would be a recurring habit for the Russian in the coming years. So, Jose Mourinho came with great confidence after winning the Champions League with Porto. And he gave one of the most famous press conferences upon his arrival at Chelsea. The Russian strengthened the team again with 166 million euros to meet the Portuguese coach's demands. And Chelsea went through the best periods in its history during the following years. Two consecutive league titles, an FA Cup, and a League Cup. But despite this domestic success, the European title was always out of reach. In Mourinho's first season, Chelsea exited the Champions League semi-finals against Liverpool with a controversial goal, after the referee first awarded a penalty, but the linesman decided to award a goal. And in the following season, Chelsea exited in the Round of 16 against the world's best player Ronaldinho and an Argentine youngster who showed glimpses of his talent. A new season and more reinforcements, but Chelsea exited against Liverpool in the semi-finals again through penalties. And Abramovich's patience was wearing thin, and his relationship with Mourinho was getting worse every year for many reasons, including Mourinho's refusal to start Abramovich's friend Shevchenko, and the Portuguese's refusal to include Avram Grant as one of his coaching staff. But he accepted his appointment as sporting director. And after drawing against Rosenborg in the Champions League in September 2007, the Portuguese left by mutual consent. And the sporting director, Avram Grant, took over temporarily. And after Arjen Robben left for Real Madrid, Chelsea strengthened the team with 59 million euros. And surprisingly, Chelsea achieved what they had not achieved in previous years and qualified for the final after overcoming Liverpool in the semi-finals. And they faced United in the Moscow final, the home of the club's president. And after Ronaldo and Lampard scored a goal for each team, the two teams went into extra time. And after a clash between Vidic and Drogba, the Ivorian was sent off before the penalty shootout. And in the fifth penalty shootout, Ronaldo failed to score. And after successful shots from both teams, Chelsea was one penalty shootout away from the title, but Terry missed the decisive shot. Then Anelka missed afterwards, for United to lift the European title. For the first time in four years, Chelsea did not win any title in the season. And three days after the final, Abramovich fired Avram Grant. And Chelsea signed the Brazilian Luiz Scolari, the World Cup winner, to take over coaching duties with minor reinforcements in the transfer market. But despite the Brazilian's experience, he had not coached a European club before. And Drogba wrote in his autobiography about Scolari's time at Chelsea, and said that the Brazilian coach had difficulty communicating with the players because he did not speak English at first. And he clashed with Drogba when he refused to start the Ivorian after his return from injury in December. And he wanted to replace him with Adriano from Inter, but the club refused to sell Drogba outright. And after negative results and loss of player confidence, the Brazilian coach was fired in February. And the Dutchman Guus Hiddink, who won the Champions League with PSV Eindhoven in 1988, took over temporarily until the end of the season, because he was coaching the Russian national team at the same time. And after defeating Liverpool in an exciting match, they faced Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals. And it was the beginning of tiki-taka and Guardiola's coaching era. And after a goalless draw at the Camp Nou, the two teams returned to Stamford Bridge to begin an epic that was written in history for the wrong reasons. Michael Essien opened the scoring with a fantastic shot from outside the box. And despite Barcelona's possession of the ball throughout the two matches, Chelsea had dangerous chances to kill the game. But the epic's fame did not come from the players' level, but from the Norwegian referee Tom Henning Ovrebo, after not awarding several controversial decisions. And after Abidal was sent off in the 66th minute, Barcelona played with 10 men for 24 minutes. And Chelsea's dangerous chances continued, but after Essien failed to clear the ball, Barcelona managed to score the decisive equalizer through Iniesta in the 90th minute. And the Blues had one last chance from a corner kick, which rebounded to Ballack's feet. And the German shot at Eto'o's hand, which seemed raised, in front of the Norwegian referee's eyes, but no decision was made. The referee blew the final whistle amidst the anger of Chelsea's players and fans. And the Blues exited for the fourth time in the semi-finals in the last six years.

[7:43]Hiddink managed to finish the season and his time with the team with the FA Cup title after a decisive goal from Lampard. And another coach came, who won the Champions League, Carlo Ancelotti. A somewhat quiet transfer market, but the problem was the potential departure of the team's icon, John Terry, to City. But Ancelotti confirmed in his first press conference the importance of the captain staying with the Blues forever. And Ancelotti managed to bring joy back to the players and fans, as it was one of the most entertaining and attacking teams in league history. And the team managed to set a record for goals on the way to their first title since 2006. And they achieved their first double in the club's history after winning the FA Cup as well. But Mourinho returned with his new team, Inter Milan, to take revenge in the Round of 16 of the Champions League.

[8:43]And he knew Chelsea's players' abilities well, as he won with the Nerazzurri both home and away to qualify and achieve Abramovich's dream of winning the Champions League, but with another team. Ferguson stated before a match against Chelsea in the Champions League quarter-finals, about Roman Abramovich's obsession with winning the European title, after paying a record English fee of 58 million euros in the winter transfer window to bring Fernando Torres. And after he intervened again in administrative decisions without consulting the Italian coach, and after exiting the Champions League and not winning any title in the season, the club's president fired Carlo Ancelotti after the last match of the season. And the obsession may be real, after he got rid of his sixth coach in the last eight years. To start the search again for the person who will bring the European title.

[9:45]After winning the Champions League in 2001 against Valencia, the Bavarian team had to fail before climbing to the European summit again. And Ottmar Hitzfeld's team at the beginning of the millennium was in a transitional phase. And the German league is different from the English, as clubs were subject to a law called 50+1, which was introduced in 1998, where fans own at least 50+1% of the club's shares, and that prevents any external investor from owning a controlling stake exceeding 49%.

[10:20]And the German Football Association set strict financial criteria to limit bankruptcy, and any club with a financial deficit must participate in the transfer market equally. But with a management full of more footballing and commercial experience, such as Franz Beckenbauer, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, and general manager Uli Hoeness, Bayern maintained its European status in previous years. But the differences are growing over the years between the German league and the major European leagues in terms of television revenues and foreign investments. So, Bayern had to return to the European summit naturally. And that required smart transfers and commercial practices. And the Bavarian team has financial strength that surpasses other German clubs, supported by a large fan base under the slogan "Mia san mia." So, they had a philosophy of buying the best local players. And one of the first examples of that came in the summer of 2002, after Bayer Leverkusen was close to achieving the treble. And despite that, Bayern signed Ze Roberto and Ballack after Leverkusen's exceptional season. But these deals did not translate into European success, as Bayern exited the group stage in 2002 with two points from six matches, despite the Bavarian team winning the domestic double. And the only good thing came when the coach introduced Schweinsteiger and Philipp Lahm to make their first appearances with the first team against Lens in the Champions League. And after Roy Makaay's hat-trick against Bayern, the Dutchman signed with the Bavarian team in a record deal for the club. And despite the Dutch striker's brilliance, Ottmar Hitzfeld's team did not achieve anything in the season after exiting against Real Madrid in the Round of 16 of the Champions League, and after Werder Bremen achieved a historic double. So, the German coach Felix Magath came after the management of Bayern was impressed after transforming Stuttgart from a team close to relegation to a team competing for the league. And the coach who gave a chance to Philipp Lahm when he was on loan from Bayern Munich. And his focus was on physical fitness, and he managed to transform Bayern into a machine that managed to win the double in two consecutive seasons. An achievement that the Bavarian team had only achieved three times since the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963 until 2000. But when Bayern participates in the Champions League, the differences are revealed, as they exited against Chelsea in the quarter-finals in 2005, and AC Milan twice in 2006 and 2007. Two clubs that pumped a lot of money to bring the best players in recent years. And Ballack hinted at other differences when he commented on the refereeing in the German league, and how the referees were quick to blow the whistle for any foul. And that may be one of the factors that made the German star refuse to renew his contract and leave for Chelsea in the summer of 2006 on a free transfer. And Magath's dictatorial personality created problems with the players, especially when the team went to a training camp in Dubai in January 2006. And strangely, Magath did not speak to any player for 10 days during the camp. And he was fired after poor results in February 2007. And Ottmar Hitzfeld returned again, but Bayern finished the season without a title, and in fourth place, which did not qualify for the Champions League. But Bayern's failure was not only due to Magath, but the management must also share the blame due to the modest transfer market in recent years. And also the club's bad luck with the promising talent Sebastian Deisler, who retired in his youth at the age of 27, after a struggle with injuries and psychological problems. And despite the opening of the new Allianz Arena in 2005, the management decided to pay a record fee for the club, 90 million euros, in one transfer window to bring the best players.

[14:32]Franck Ribery came to Bayern as the most expensive transfer in the club's history at that time. And he quickly dominated the team and the league. And with other signings like the team's top scorers Luca Toni and Miroslav Klose, Bayern managed to win the double again. But Oliver Kahn retired after the season. And Ottmar Hitzfeld left to coach the Swiss national team. So, the management made a bold decision when they brought Jurgen Klinsmann, who had been unemployed for two years, after coaching the German national team successfully. And Klinsmann brought big changes from his time in England, such as sports psychologists and nutritionists. But the huge amount of changes he brought and his modest ability to solve problems on the field led to a disastrous season for the Bavarian team. Philipp Lahm said in his autobiography that Klinsmann was only training the team for physical fitness, with very little focus on tactics, which made the players discuss tactics themselves. And the team lost with humiliating results, such as conceding four goals in one half against Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-finals. And also losing against the former Bayern coach Felix Magath and his new team Wolfsburg by five goals from the dangerous duo Dzeko and Grafite. And the bad experiment with Klinsmann was ended in April, after a loss at the Allianz Arena against Schalke. And the former Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes took over until the end of the season. And the question for the management was how to build a version of Barcelona's philosophy at Bayern, after the Catalan club gave a lesson in football, as Beckenbauer said after the match. And all the rumors pointed to Louis van Gaal, the former Barcelona coach and then coach of AZ Alkmaar, who had just won the league title, the second in the club's history. And the Dutch coach came with his arrogance and high confidence to a club that was built on traditional concepts and foundations. And the Bavarian club strengthened the team in a vital transfer market. But the club decided not to renew Lucio's contract in the summer. And after Bayern's worst start in the league in the last 43 years, van Gaal was determined to bring his compatriot Arjen Robben before the transfer window closed. And Bayern managed to bring the Dutchman after two seasons full of injuries in Madrid. And despite scoring two goals in his first league match, Bayern was suffering the damage of a bad start, especially with Ribery's absence for most of the first half's matches. And van Gaal came under heavy scrutiny and clashed with some of the team's stars. And an important match came in Turin against Juve in the first group stage of the Champions League, where the winner in the match will qualify for the next round. And Bayern managed to win after scoring four goals after conceding the first goal. And this win became a turning point for the Bavarian team's season, as they returned to the top of the league in March and reached the Champions League final after defeating Fiorentina with controversial decisions from the Norwegian referee Tom Henning Ovrebo and his assistants. And then winning against United and Lyon. And the factors that led to this were van Gaal's decisions to field Thomas Muller, Badstuber, and David Alaba from the youth team, which was led by the legendary academy coach Hermann Gerland. And also Schweinsteiger's deployment in midfield with van Bommel, after years of fielding the German by previous coaches in the wings. And after achieving the double, the team went to the Santiago Bernabeu for a chance to win the treble. And it is similar to the other team in the final, as Bayern faced Inter Milan, who managed to defeat Barcelona and their philosophy of possession, which the Bavarian team had applied. And despite Ribery's absence due to suspension, Bayern managed to possess the ball with a percentage that reached 68%. But they faced a team accustomed to absorbing pressure. And the Bavarian team lost after Milito scored two goals. And the student managed to defeat the master.

[18:42]Ribery decided to renew his contract in the summer after rumors throughout the season that wrote about his potential departure. But the Frenchman was convinced by the Bavarian team after reaching the European final, despite the tense relationship between Franck and his coach van Gaal, which continued throughout the next season. And van Gaal's contract was also renewed, despite the Dutchman's tense relationship with the club's president Uli Hoeness. And despite Bayern's modest start in the league, after the Bavarian team lost Robben for the first half of the season. And after the departure of the team's captain van Bommel to AC Milan in the winter transfer window, van Gaal fielded the returned loanee Toni Kroos in midfield with Schweinsteiger. But the Bavarian team failed in Europe against Inter again in the Round of 16. And they also exited in the cup against Schalke. And there was a real competition in the league this time. Borussia Dortmund, led by Jurgen Klopp, who topped the league until the end of the season and won the title with a team whose average age did not exceed 23 years. And van Gaal was fired in April after the danger of not qualifying for the Champions League next season. The season in which the Allianz Arena will host the European final.

[27:06]A week before the final, the two teams participated in another final when Chelsea faced Liverpool in the FA Cup final, and Bayern faced Dortmund in the German Cup final. And Chelsea managed to defeat Liverpool after Drogba scored the fourth goal in the final match at Wembley Stadium. And after Cech made one of the saves of the season. And on the other side, after winning the league, Dortmund managed to win the domestic double after a convincing victory by five goals to two against Bayern. And Bayern went from a chance to win the treble to a danger of not winning any title in the season. But they will be the first team to host the European final on their home ground since Roma in 1984.

[27:54]And this time, Ribery will participate in the European final. And despite saving Chelsea's season and reaching the final, Di Matteo's job as coach for next season was still uncertain.

[28:07]And it is true that tickets were distributed similarly to both teams, but the stadium was full of Bayern fans. And they raised a message before the match began to confirm and say, this is our city, this is our stadium, and this is our cup. And the lineup of the two teams gives us an idea of the desire of both teams to win this title. Bayern had 12 players who lost the final in 2010, and Chelsea had nine players who lost the final in 2008. And due to the yellow card rule in the past, both teams had many absences due to suspension. And it will be a special task for Drogba, who did not renew his contract and did not announce his decision for the next season. And therefore, this may be the last match for the Ivorian in a Chelsea shirt, and the last chance to win the lost title. The two teams entered the match with a similar formation, but with different tactics. Chelsea knew its capabilities and the capabilities of Bayern, and played the match like the Barcelona match at the Camp Nou, as they conceded many chances inside their penalty area and even inside the penalty area. And the surprise of the day was Di Matteo's decision to start the young Ryan Bertrand as a left-back, replacing the injured Malouda, and to support Ashley Cole, who was playing behind him to face Robben. And the Bavarian team reached the 83rd minute to score the first goal through Muller. And seven minutes before the end of the match, Chelsea had to do what they had not done many times throughout the match, which was to attack and create chances. And after he came on as a substitute, Torres managed to win a corner kick, which Juan Mata placed on the head of the specialist in finals, Didier Drogba. The Bavarians did not know how the Blues equalized, and how the two teams entered extra time. But they continued to press during the added half an hour.

[30:06]And Bayern's second chance to win came after Drogba caused another penalty, as he did at the Camp Nou. And Arjen Robben stepped forward again to take the decisive penalty, as he did throughout the season, but with different results. And this time, he will shoot against his former teammate Cech.