AS Roma vs Bayern Munich: Player Ratings and Man of the Match

Ouch!  Very ouch!  AS Roma was absolutely dominated, outplayed, outclassed, annihilated, beaten like a rented mule (just an expression, kids, no animal cruelty, please), drawn and quartered (don't do that one either), and just plain shown up by the scoring machine known as FC Bayern Munich.

And this is the 2nd-best team in Serie A, not some schmoes from the bottom of a lesser league (OK, you could make an argument that it is a lesser league, as has been shown by Bayern's dismantling of Juventus two seasons ago), so anyone who says they were expecting this kind of result is lying, high, or a time traveler.

But, let's get down to the purpose of this article: picking a Man of the Match. Who tickles your fancy? Who do you favor? There are so many to pick from, so let's introduce the candidates:

Manuel Neuer - I know, how can I suggest a keeper who didn't have that much to do, until the game was essentially decided? Well, he still turned in a world class performance, denying Roma even a sliver of hope, turning away point blank shots at will. He was powerless to stop the only goal scored by the Italians, as that one can be blamed on his defense (who looked a little sluggish in the 2nd half) and the linesman (who missed a close offside call on Gervinho).

Arjen Robben - What else is new?  The Flying Dutchman was dynamic, constantly terrorizing his former teammate Ashley Cole (and anyone else that tried to help the poor Englishman out), creating chance after chance, opening the scoring with a beauty to show Roma this was no Chievo they were playing against, potting a 2nd one on a great run into the box (although De Sanctis looked a little weak on that one), notching an assist on Ribery's highlight goal, and last but not least, working hard on defense, consistently coming back to help break up Roma's attempts at attacking.

Thomas Müller - The usual tireless effort from Müller that we've come to expect.  He was all over the field, making his opening runs to either get the ball himself, or to create space for his teammates.  He got a goal (on a well-taken PK) and an assist (on Götze's goal) on his scoresheet, before getting a well-deserved rest in the 60th minute.

Mario Götze - The WC winning goal scorer has been in fine form lately, and this game was no different. He was constantly on the ball, moving to get open, and showing some of that incredible skill that he possesses. The quick interplay with Müller which resulted in his goal was a joy to see, and deflated Roma when they were thinking "well, we're just a goal down, that was just bad luck".

Robert Lewandowski - A solid performance from the Polish striker, netting a goal on a nice header, with a pretty assist to a streaking Robben. In addition, Lewa moved around a lot, sometimes showing up on the wings, sometimes coming all the way back into the defensive midfield to provide an outlet pass option, and sometimes, he even made an appearance as a forward. Also got to call it an early day, when he made way for Franck Ribery in the 68th minute.

So, how do you rate the players' performances in Bayern's footballing lesson?