In a festive atmosphere in Abu Dhabi Barcelona won the FIFA Clubs' World Cup for the first time in their history. There were many highlights from the day; the great crowd, nice organization, the Argentine fans and Messi's genius goal.



This time we decided to move early from Dubai and avoid traffic congestion which would start an hour before the match, just like the semifinal. As we arrived we set off to the Fans' Oasis to get the colors painted on our faces, the flags and the photos in the warm up for the game.



Abu dhabi police stole our cigarettes for security reasons and then we took our place in the stands. This is my third time in a football stadium, and I have to say this was the best of them all! 43,050 fans came to see the likes of Messi, Ibra, Henry, Xavi and Veron. soon it was clear that Estudiantes fans were outnumbered, as the UAE local population was clearly siding with the Catalans. Having said that, the Argentines were not going to be intimidated by the other side! They were impressively organized, loud and never gave up! I can't say this about us as we were largely posers :). Not spaniards that is. The spaniards behind me tried in vain to create a rhythm, but our Spanish capabilities stood in the way.



An interesting incident took place. A police man approached the Saudi guy sitting below me and ordered him not to unfurl the Saudi flag! I couldn't understand why as others were waving other flags but the police man insisted. The Saudi guy expectedly ignored him and continued waving the flag for spite!



The match was exciting and we had a lot of fun, but as time passed by I was nearing the point of heart attack until Pedro looped a header past the Argentine goalie in the 89th minute. The crowd went nuts! And I personally lost my voice at that moment, and almost lost my eye to the flag being waved by the spaniard behind me! Off to extra time.



The Argentine fans started losing their drive as they began to realize that they had a glorious advantage which they threw away in the last minute. The tension continued until the little diavello, that is Lionel Messi "chested" a cross by Alves to the far side of the goal! The crow went "Loco" and Messi ran half the pitch in celebration! What a nerve! Not with his foot, not with his head but with his chest! Oh so casually. Now I can boast that I saw Messi scoring two goals live! I just admire this player, and I couldn't have asked for a more rewarding end of the day.



The crowd spent the remaining 8 minutes or so shouting and singing adding salts to the Argentine fans wounds!... Then comes the final whistle to announce Barcelona World Champions, and the Cherry on the top was Messi being named the Player of the Tournament! Nobody other than him deserved it. Veron took the Silver ball, and Xavi collected the bronze.



After the Ceremony we headed back to Dubai. On the way back, 160 km's everyone we saw was wearing the Barcelona Jersey with the Blugrana colors covering their happy faces. We stopped by a gas station to have a late night snack and you could swear this was a gas station in Barcelona! It was just a fantastic atmosphere.



We took a lot of pictures. Unfortunately, I'm too tired to try and download them from my Camera at this late hour. But we promise you'll have them posted soon enough :)



Viva Barca, and Viva Messi.