For the teams that are still alive in the UEFA Champions League, this weekend's domestic fixtures were nothing more than an obligation before the quarterfinal first leg matches later this week. FC Barcelona, Juventus, and Lyon have a double-digit lead in the standings over their domestic rivals, whereas Arsenal, Benfica, Inter, Milan, and Villareal have deposited all hopes of defining success this season based on their progress in the Champions League. Barça's goalless draw against Malaga today, coupled with the other results this weekend, confirms this strategy: Juventus and Lyon drew, Inter and Villareal lost by one goal, and Arsenal's match was postponed due to rain. Only Benfica and Milan (both of whom fielded strong sides) won their domestic matches, although it will be interesting to see if their efforts today will come back to haunt them later in the week.


With a wide margin for error in the league and an eye on the players' form for the Benfica match, it was no surprise to see Barça field a weaker lineup in Malaga. Rijkaard rested Ronaldinho in Barcelona, whereas Deco was left on the bench in the Rosaleda stadium on Andalucia's coast of eternal sunshine. The biggest changes were to see the youth team player Rodri pair up with Oleguer in defense, and Gabri donning the captain's armband in the absence of the team's other three captains (Puyol, Ronaldinho, and Xavi).
Malaga knew that this was their best chance to beat Barcelona, and attacked the game from the initial whistle. It took Barça a little time to take control of the game, but when Giuly, Eto'o, Larsson, and Van Bommel carved out the opportunities, the final shot was not enough to rattle the Malaga goalkeeper, Francesc Arnau - himself a product of the Barça youth system. With halftime approaching, Barça grabbed a goal in the 39th minute - or did they? A freekick into the Malaga area was handled by the former Real Madrid youth team player, Cesar Navas. The ball fell to Eto'o, who shot past Arnau and into the net. The referee Rodriguez Santiago (yes, that´s the same inept official from Galicia who unjustly red carded Ronaldinho against Zaragoza), consulted his linesman (the equally infamous Rafa Guerrero), and disallowed the goal for reasons that will never be known. Barça were victimized once again, but fortunately this time, the stakes were not too high because of their hefty lead in the standings.


In the second half, both Barça and Malaga fancied their chances to break the deadlock, but much like when the teams met earlier this year, Arnau emerged as the local hero as he kept out goalbound shots from Giuly, Larsson, Eto'o, Ezquerro, and Van Bommel. Arnau's brilliance can be attributed to the immutable law of the ex, the football theory which states that some players put in a stellar performance every time they face their old club, like Luis Enrique and Samuel Eto'o have done time and time again to Real Madrid, Larsson to Celtic, and Riquelme, Bonano, and Arnau to Barça.


In stoppage time, Barça had the best chance to go home with three points, when Eto'o's fierce voley rattled the crossbar. But at the end of the day, Barça managed a point in Malaga that should not figure in the title race, which is all but over. The positive aspects for Barça from today's game were: seeing Rodri put in 90 minutes of no-nonsense performance; Gabri getting a chance to captain the team (and Valdes taking over from him after the midfielder was substituted in the 64th minute); rest for Puyol (5 yellow cards), Ronaldinho, and Deco; and no new injuries.




Barça's next match is the important clash on Tuesday at Lisbon's Estadio Da Luz against Ronald Koeman's Benfica.


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