Man Utd legend: How 2009 Champions League final vs Barcelona 'changed football'

Is the 2009 Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United one of the most important games in football history?

Gary Neville, United’s captain at the time, watched the match from the stands due to concerns over his fitness.

Speaking nine years later on The Gary Neville Podcast, the former England international explained why this particular game ‘changed football in terms of how we think of it’.

First of all, let’s cast our minds back to the final.

Barcelona were at the end of their first season under Pep Guardiola and had already won La Liga and the Copa del Rey.

But they were facing a strong Man Utd side who, let’s not forget, were the reigning European champions at the time. The Red Devils even defeated Barça en route to lifting the Champions League trophy one year earlier.

However, Guardiola’s impact on the Catalan club was both immediate and seismic. Sir Alex Ferguson was under no illusions that his team faced a difficult task in Rome.

United started the match well, with Cristiano Ronaldo threatening to score on two occasions.

But by the 10th minute, Ferguson’s men found themselves a goal down as Samuel Eto’o steered the ball past Edwin van der Sar.

Barcelona then dominated large part of the match and effectively killed the game off with 20 minutes left on the clock when Lionel Messi rose high to score a rare header.

It was a masterful performance from Guardiola’s Barcelona, who would eventually cement their status as arguably the best club side we’ve ever seen.

Neville was shocked by Guardiola’s tactics early in the match and was convinced Man Utd would win the game.

But it soon became patently clear that Guardiola’s tactics were destroying United.

“It’s a big statement this, I was going to say