Scouting report: Milan put up wall as Barca fire blanks at San Siro

Barcelona or AC Milan are next if the Blues can finish the job against Benfica, and on the evidence of a compelling first leg in the San Siro, the odds that keep being defied are about to be stacked even higher.

Barcelona were slight favourites at the outset and remain so after a goalless draw illuminated by the weaving passing patterns that have helped make Pep Guardiola’s side European champions twice in the last three years.Possession means everything to Barca. When they get the ball, they are loath to let it go, and the same mentality evidently applies to their hold on the Champions League trophy.They lacked a cutting edge, for once, but defended resolutely when required, and had their customary lion’s share of the ball.

Dani Alves looked for all the world as if he was sprinting forward for a shot at goal from a 30-yard free-kick, until Xavi took responsibility at the last moment, with a pass to Sergio Busquets on the edge of the area. Milan’s unsuspecting defenders remained static, as Alexis Sanchez took Busquets’  first-time flick in his stride and bore down on goal.The Barca forward was denied a penalty after being upended by keeper Christian Abbiati, but the lesson for Chelsea was clear enough. The Catalan stylists’ strengths may be apparent to anyone, but they can still spring a surprise.

If they have a fault, it is a tendency to over-elaborate, as when Iniesta’s pinpoint pass picked out Sanchez, through on goal near the penalty spot. Control with one foot and dispatch with the other would have been any normal striker’s response, but that was too simple. Sanchez chose instead to backheel to Xavi on the edge of the area, and it cost Barcelona a breakthrough as the midfielder’s shot was blocked and cleared.

It is a trifling criticism, though, one that hardly registers amid so many captivating moments. The dizzying speed of their passing was evident in the 26th minute, when Iniesta and Xavi sliced through Milan’s cover, and Messi supplied the final touch for Xavi to draw a diving save.

Alongside him, mystery continues to surround Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s rating as one of Europe’s most revered strikers. To English audiences, it does, anyway.

Have we missed something? We must have, judging by a tame finish that wasted the second of Milan’s two  clear-cut chances and left the balance tilted Barcelona’s way.