ON INITIAL CONTACT WITH DTW APCH; AN A320 CREW WAS TOLD TO EXPECT VECTOR FOR A RWY 21L APCH. CREW REQUESTED RWY 21R BUT WERE TOLD RWY 21L. ON FINAL; CREW LINED UP WITH RWY 21L AND WERE SENT AROUND FOR NOT BEING LINED UP FOR RWY 21R.

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ON POLAR ARR TO DTW WE WERE GIVEN VECTORS FOR RWY 21L. WE HAD PLANNED AND BRIEFED RWY 21R; AS THAT WOULD BE STANDARD FOR ARRS FROM W. WHEN WE RECEIVED VECTORS FOR RWY 21L; WE QUESTIONED THE CTLR AND HE AGAIN SAID RWY 21L. WE REBRIEFED AND PROGRAMMED FOR RWY 21L. WHEN WE XFERRED TO THE FINAL CTLR; HE GAVE A VECTOR TO INTERCEPT FINAL AND ADVISED US TO MAINTAIN 3000 FT AND 170 KTS CLRED FOR THE APCH. THIS NEW HDG POINTED US AT NESBI FIX ON FINAL AND THE CORRECT ALT FOR NESBI IS 3000 FT. THE FIRST CTLR HAD US ON A HDG FOR ROBBI FIX AND TOLD US TO MAINTAIN 5000 FT TILL ROBBI AND INTERCEPT RWY 21L. THE FO REPLIED TO THE FINAL CTLR; 3000 FT; 170 KTS; AND CLRED FOR THE APCH. IT IS NOT UNUSUAL FOR DTW TO VECTOR YOU FOR THE OPPOSITE RWY. THEY DO IT FOR FLOW CTL. HOWEVER; MANY TIMES THE COORD BREAKS DOWN AND WHAT HAPPENED TO US IS NOT UNUSUAL. ON FINAL WE NOTICED WE WERE VERY CLOSE TO THE TFC AHEAD OF US ON FINAL AND AT THE SAME ALT. AS WE STARTED TO QUESTION THIS; THE FINAL CTLR TOLD US TO TURN TO 190 DEGS AND INTERCEPT. THEN HE SAID; 240 DEG HDG TO INTERCEPT. BEFORE WE COULD START THE TURN; HE GAVE US A HDG OF 090 DEGS AND STATED WE HAD BEEN CLRED FOR RWY 21R. BOTH THE FO AND I AGREE THAT WE WERE ALWAYS CLRED FOR RWY 21L AND THERE WAS A BREAKDOWN IN COM BTWN THE 2 CTLRS.