In the 35th minute, Busquets brought down Kaka in a midfield tussle, and referee Stark's whistle shrieked through the air.
Alonso stood over the ball, took a deep breath, and whipped in a brilliant curling delivery straight into the box.
Chen Zhong outmuscled Pique to flick on a header, and just as Ramos arrived at the back post to attack it, Valdes pounced on the ball like a tiger on its prey, clasping it firmly under him. This three-phase attacking and defending sequence drew gasps from both sets of fans in the stands.
Guardiola looked over at Chen Zhong with a grave expression; Chen Zhong was still the biggest problem Barcelona had to solve.
Mourinho, meanwhile, was waving his arms, signalling his team to crank up the intensity.
In the 36th minute, Messi cut in through the middle, dribbling past two players in succession, then slid a surgical through pass to Villa.
