Metz reached the semi-finals of the League Cup, which was the biggest news in French football in a week and the number one news in the Lorraine region, so no one cared about the following Lorraine derby.

Everyone is immersed in the excitement of the team's historic breakthrough. This is the first time Metz has reached the semi-finals of a European event in so many years since its establishment.

Chu Zhongtian, Ribery and Menez, who scored goals in the game, were all sought after by fans. French businesses saw business opportunities, and more and more companies came to them to endorse advertisements.

Mr. Merry had spent all his time on the commercial development of these two people before, but the effect was very average. Now he doesn't need to run away, and someone comes to him to deliver money.

The players' photos and names frequently appear in major media and become the object of worship by many teenagers. The teenager wearing Chu Zhongtian's jersey even appeared in the distant Marseille, which shows how far Metz's influence has expanded in the subsequent League Cup.

The team was exhausted and decided to give up the league.

So in the 32nd round of the league on May 15, Metz lost to Derby opponent Nancy at home with a score of 0:2, and it did not cause any criticism.

Nancy media is happy that the team finally defeated its mortal enemy, but Metz's fans and media seem to be very tolerant for the first time - we are going to pursue the League Cup, and the outcome of a league match is not important.

The gunpowder smell of both sides was not as good as before in the game. Metz was absent-minded in this game, and only half of the main players were sent. Everyone was still immersed in the excitement of reaching the semi-finals of the League Cup. After Nancy found that there was not much pressure, he also played like he was strolling in the garden.

On April 22, in the 33rd round of the league, Messe lost to Marseille 1:2 away. The team suffered the longest losing streak of the season - five consecutive losses. The ranking also dropped from the original third to ninth. But Messe's team still did not take this bad result seriously.

Compared with Marseille, they are more concerned about the team's semi-final opponent Espanyol.

On the evening of April 26th, the first leg of the League Cup semi-finals will be played. Metz will go away to challenge Espanyol, and then return to home to face his opponent on May 3rd.

Whether the team can enter the finals and go to the Hampton Park Stadium in Glasgow, Scotland, to watch these two games.

For this game, Fernandez has hidden all the main players in the league with Marseille. How could Messe, who plays as a substitute, be a match for Marseille? Losing is naturally reasonable.

The media did not care about the fact that Metz had just lost to Marseille and therefore fell to ninth place, and began to make suggestions for Metz's trip to Barcelona.

"I think Jean Fernandez should be stable away. The away game against Tottenham cannot be used as a reference, because it was a game where Metz was forced to no retreat. I don't want the second round against Espanyol to be forced to a desperate situation, and then the whole team broke out... To be honest, I am tired of such a game, and I believe that not many Metz fans will be happy to see such a game. A thrilling game that won in the end is not as stable as a game, but we established the victory result early... So we should defend and counterattack, 0:0 is a very good result..."

"...The most important thing is to score away goals. We must score away goals in the away game and get away goals. So offense is the first. Defense? Even if we concede the goal, it's no big deal. As long as we score a goal! What's good about 0:0? We don't score an away goal, and when we return to the Saint Mountain Forian Stadium, Espanyol scores one goal, we have to score two goals. Such a fool will calculate - we can't make it. So to attack, you must attack! Just like playing Tottenham Hotspur at the White Hart Lane Stadium, defeating the opponent with more goals! This is also the usual style of Fernandez..."

"There are several people in the Espanyol who need attention, first, their captain Raul Tamudo, followed by ivan_de_la_pena, the bald man was once considered Ronaldo's successor. The last man was their goalkeeper Carlos_idriss_kameni. These three people are the best players of Espanyol..."

"It's been a few days since the game. The news from the Holy Mountain Forian Training Base is that the whole team of Metz is in good condition, no injuries, and no physical problems. Metz will show its best form to go to Spain!"

All French media are covering the match between Metz and Espanyol.

In previous years, only teams who participated in the Champions League could get such treatment.

The little Metz has now become a big star in France.

※※※ Unlike France, the Spanish media has not paid much attention to this game, because the competition for domestic league championships is becoming increasingly fierce. After the winter break, the league leader Barcelona once led Real Madrid by as many as six points, but after the 31st round of the league, the difference between the two teams is only two points. There are currently six teams in the Spanish Football League championship championship competition, and the most fierce competition is Barcelona, ​​Sevilla and Real Madrid, which are ranked first three in the league standings.

Spanish media are paying attention to this fierce pursuit. At the end of the season, was Barcelona the last laugh, or Real Madrid come from behind? Or Sevilla quietly breaks the championship monopoly of the two giants?

In comparison, the League Cup between Espanyol and Metz was only mentioned in the local media in Barcelona, ​​and it only expressed a good wish - hope that the Spanish team can meet in the League Cup final. If that is true, it can also comfort the Spanish fans who are disappointed because the Spanish army was eliminated from the Champions League.

The French media is because there is basically no suspense in the domestic league, and Lyon takes the lead and there is no news. If Lyon eventually loses the league championship, that is the biggest news. In this case, they can only turn more attention to the European arena. Metz's strong performance in the League Cup is the best subject to attract the attention of French fans.

On April 25, Metz set off early in the morning to go to Barcelona to prepare for the next night's game.

When it comes to Barcelona, ​​most people will only think of the team with the same name - Barcelona Football Club. But they don't know that there is another team here. Even if someone knows such a team, they will think that this team must not be very popular in Barcelona, ​​and they think that those who support them are Espanyol, which seems to be true from the team's name. But in fact, there are many non-Catalans who support their arch-rivals in the city. Because Barcelona Football Club has an influence all over the world, many Asian, European and American fans like this team with beautiful playing styles.

However, in Barcelona, ​​the capital of the Catalonian region, there are also many fans who support Espanyol, and most of them are Catalans. However, the grudges between the two teams are indeed inseparable from the national political dispute. The establishment of the Espanyol Club is also to compete with Barcelona, ​​because this city that always wants to make an independent city must have the mark of Spain. For example, there is a Plaza de Catalonia in the city center, and there will definitely be a Plaza de Espanyol within four kilometers; there will be a Catalonian Opera House and a Royal Opera House. Therefore, there is a Barcelona Club representing Catalonia, and a Spanish Club representing Spain will be established a year later.

But not all fans who support both teams are fanatical nationalists or extreme separatists. Most of the time they just like football and support their favorite teams, and they can't stand any other fans. Just like all the same city derby, the supporters of their mortal enemies always don't like each other. But not every city derby will be as dangerous as Glasgow, Scotland - you walk on the street in Celtic jerseys and you may be shot from behind... Barcelona is a tourist destination full of sunshine and vitality, with many famous scenic spots and beaches that attract tourists from all over the world. But none of the Metz players have the intention to come here to shop or go to the celestial bath to enjoy the naked body of beautiful women.

They just want to play.

Espanyol's home stadium Monhuic can accommodate more than 50,000 people, but not every game will be full. The same city derby with Barcelona will definitely be full, and the match against Real Madrid will also be full. But if "your most hateful opponent" is thrown to Espanyol fans and let Espanyol fans choose between the two answers of Real Madrid and Barcelona, ​​all Espanyol fans will choose Barcelona without hesitation.

Therefore, when Metz appeared, Espanyol fans did not boo the team very much. In their opinion, Metz's grade is not as good as Barcelona, ​​nor as good as Real Madrid. An opponent like Metz will soon let them know how terrible Monhuic Stadium is! Barcelona and Real Madrid have to bow down to their favor when they arrive here!

At present, this team has no hope of winning the championship, and they have no worries about relegation. Even if they continue to participate in European competitions next season, they are not likely to be very good. So they put all their energy into this season's League Cup, which is quite similar to Metz.

The Spaniards, who devoted all their energy to the League Cup, sent the strongest lineup they could send.

The same goes for Metz.

※※※Espanyol scored just eleven minutes into the game. The person who scored was their captain Raul Tamudo.

He successfully counterattacked and received a pass from De La Pena, pushing the ball at a low angle. The football passed through the attacking goalkeeper Wynby's armpit and rolled into the far end of the goal.

The moment the football crossed the line, the entire Monhuic Stadium shook like an earthquake.

The Espanyol fans cheered loudly, making the 3,000 Metz fans who came to cheer for the team away without making any sound.

Until the end of the first half, Espanyol took advantage of this momentum to take the initiative on the court and threatened Metz's goal many times. If Metz hadn't been very attentive in defense, he would have been pierced many times. So Metz launched a defensive counterattack and also got two opportunities, but unfortunately he could not grasp it.

At the end of the first half, Espanyol walked into the lounge with a score of 1:0, which made Espanyol fans very happy. The team's performance was full of confidence, and they could also be in a very happy mood during the halftime break.

But I didn't expect that the second half of the game had just started five minutes before Metz equalized the score.

Ribery made a cross after breaking through the sideline. Espanyol's defender Daniel Halke (daniel_jarque) did not clear the ball, and the football fell at Ibisek's feet. The smart Ibisek stretched out his foot and poked it, and the football rolled into the net.

Espanyol goalkeeper Cameni was very dissatisfied with this. He roared at his teammate Halke: "How did you get through the siege? You can't see the distance!"

Hark knew that Kameni was a anxious temper, so he did not defend himself, which would only attract louder criticism from the Cameroonian national gate.

He just waved his hand helplessly.

Not far behind him, the Metz players were hugging each other excitedly.

"It's so regretful... A defensive mistake from Espanyol led to Metz's goal, so they got away goals... If they want to advance to the final, Espanyol must score more goals!"

"Beautiful! Beautiful! So beautiful! Ibisevic scored another goal! It's hard to imagine this was the waste center who scored only one goal in the last half season last season! Now he has scored fourteen goals for Metz in all games!"

"Frank Ribery's breakthrough is really sharp! During the game, we kept saying that Espanyol's defense line would become a key. Compared with their attack line, Espanyol's defense line has always been unstable..."

The concealment of the ball deeply stimulated the Espanyol players. They launched a fierce offensive towards Metz's goal in the subsequent game, one wave after another, as if they wanted to make Metz's goal a sieve.

Their efforts paid off in the 73rd minute of the game.

It was Dela Pena who dribbled the ball in the midfield again. Just when Metz players were guarding against him to pass the ball, he suddenly took a long shot. The football drew an arc, crossed the goalkeeper Winby's fingers and hit the net.

2:1!

"Oh-World Wave! From Dela Pena!"

"gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!! De La Pena - gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!! goolgolgolgolgolgolgolgolgolgolgolgolgolgolgol!!!" Spanish commentator suddenly roared passionately. Their commentary style is very different from France, Britain, and Germany. They like to elongate the pitch after scoring the goal - gool - gool - gool - and be proud of yelling in one breath. Many people think that this is a passionate commentary, but in fact it is just a kind of passionate commentary.

"Damn... There was also a problem with Metz's defense line. They were not focused enough... How could this situation allow De La Pena to drive straight in the middle without going up to press and just retreating?" The French commentator was very disappointed with the concealment of the ball.

What was even more disappointing than him was Metz's head coach Jean Fernandez. After seeing the team conceal the ball, he waved his arms angrily on the sidelines.

In this season's League Cup, Metz has not lost a game, which is an amazing result. But now it seems that it will be over at Monhuic Stadium.

After conceding the ball, Metz tried to counterattack, but this time Espanyol's defense did not continue to make mistakes, so until the end of the game, Metz did not score a goal. In this way, they lost their first game in the League Cup this season.

However, after the game, most Metz players were very satisfied with the result, because they scored a away goal and were only one goal behind, so they had a great achievement when they returned to the home court.

Only Chu Zhongtian expressed dissatisfaction with this result when interviewed by reporters.

"We could have won, just be more serious..." Then he realized that it would be better not to say too much to the team's unity when facing reporters, so he changed the topic. "We must do our best to go back to home, and now is not the time to be happy."

After saying that, he hurriedly left the mixing area.

"It seems that losing the game made Chu feel bad..." The familiar French reporter was powerless to do anything to Chu Zhongtian who was not cooperative with the interview. You should know that such a Chu Zhongtian is not common.

"Maybe it was because Metz has lost too many games in the league recently. When was the last time they won?" Other reporters spoke.

"If I remember correctly, it should be the 28th round, they beat Valencienna. It was... March 10th. Then Metz never scored a point in the league again."

"Jean Fernandez is gambling... put all his bets on the League Cup. If Mes did not perform well in the first half of the season, they would be afraid they would have slipped into the relegation zone."

"I hope that at the end of the season, Metz will not be empty-handed..."

"Who knows? Football is something..."

Chinese journalists were originally planning to wait until the French reporters finished asking questions, so they came up to ask a few questions. However, after answering the French reporters' questions, Chu Zhongtian walked straight ahead of them, at most he would wave his hands to a few of the more familiar reporters and whisper: "I'm sorry, I'm not in the mood now."

Chu Zhongtian buried his head and walked towards the locker room alone. Ribery caught up from behind and patted him on the shoulder hard: "You look very troubled, Chu. Is it because of the game?"

"What else can it be?" Chu Zhongtian spread his hands and said to his good friend. "We lost the first game in the League Cup, but in fact we can not lose this game..."

"Come on, Chu!" Ribery smiled, "It's better to lose the game here than lose the game in the final! OK, don't be sad, otherwise your teammates think you're complaining about them. OK, OK, smile! Just let us win the next game, what's the point of losing a game?"
Chapter completed!