Over the last two days I watched Barca tie Werder Bremen 1-1 through UEFA.com online. I wish the picture quality were better, and sometimes the stream stalled, but I'm a true fan of soccer on demand online (for a small monthly fee). There's no beating the convenience.

Barca tied the game in the last minute with a terrific play by Messi, who's an obvious talent. He's lightning quick and has great close control. On the other end of the age spectrum, Thuram played quite well. I'm impressed with him. He's a steady, powerful defender who takes the ball from people. He makes it look easy.

Ronaldinho didn't do much, and that seems to be the case in many of the games I've seen him in. Not sure why that is -- are opponents completely keying on him (Werder swarmed him when he got the ball) or is it something else?

FF

Liverpool lost 2-nil to Bolton this weekend. Criminy. I'm surprised because Liverpool looked lively against Galatasaray in mid-week (attaboy Crouchinho!), although I was not thrilled with the Reds' marking or defensive organization against the Turkish squad. The truth is that I've yet to see a game where Liverpool are firing on all cylinders this season.

Saw the second half of Chelsea and Villa's 1-1 draw. It was an exciting half -- the last twenty mintues Chelsea fiercely pressed the game and came a pipe width from going ahead. I actually thought Chelsea looked better and more energetic than they have all season, although I've only seen a few of their matches. Villa posed no threat for almost the entire half I caught, but they did a fine job of disrupting and dispossessing Chelsea. Still, if the game went on another ten minutes, I'd bet the Blues would have won. Villa should be thrilled to have taken a point from the champs in their house. One last thing: Makelele's one heckuva of a defensive midfielder.

FF