Chapter 168: The Second Round of the Red and Blue War
There were a lot of discussions outside, but inside Guardiola's office at Manchester City's training base in Carrington, it was deathly silent.
In the dark office, there was nothing you could see, except for a cigarette butt that flickered on and off, and the thick smoke of the cigar.
Guardiola sat at his desk, finished smoking a cigar, stood up and opened the window, and suddenly a cool air with the smell of grass and trees hit his face.
In this afternoon's game against Huddersfield, he couldn't think of the real reason for the draw.
There are no mistakes in tactics, the players are in excellent condition and they all work very hard.
Whether it is ball possession rate, shooting, defense, and other statistics, they have an overall advantage. The ball possession rate in the game even reached a terrifying 75%, with as many as 21 shots and 12 shots on target.
They almost pressed Hades to attack, but the goal was wrong and there was no goal.
Now that they are tied, as long as Liverpool beat Chelsea, they will be on the same points with them. The championship will probably be decided by the goal difference between the two sides. When he thinks of this, he feels extremely uncomfortable.
…
On May 6, 2018, the 37th round of the Premier League, at 3 pm local time in England, in the visiting team's dressing room at Stamford Bridge.
After Klopp reviewed the tactics for the players again, he directly pushed the tactical board in front of him to the ground, making Mo Yang and the others look at each other.
This scumbag has been acting weird ever since he learned that Manchester City was tied last night. He has been grinning, and his big white teeth are a bit scary no matter how you look at them.
"Tell me, do you have the confidence to win this game?" Klopp's face turned red, and his eyes flashed with a terrifying light like a beast devouring people.
"have!!!!"
Everyone in the locker room replied in unison, their voices high and loud.
"very good!!!"
Seeing the high morale of the players, Klopp, who was grinning and grinning, was extremely satisfied. With a crisp sound, Klopp raised his foot and chopped the tactics on the ground into four pieces, shouting: "Go! Go, tear them apart."
!”
"We are the champions!!!!!!!" Klopp roared.
"Tear them up!!"
"Tear them up!!!"
“Tear them up!!!!”
"Tear it to pieces...uh!"
Seeing Salah and others rushing out of the locker room after being beaten unconscious by Klopp, Mo Yang's voice suddenly stopped, and he looked like a black question mark.
"Head! The game doesn't start until thirty minutes!" Mo Yang reminded carefully and kindly.
"(￢ω￢llll)" Klopp, whose face was full of excitement, was instantly petrified.
So sloppy!
More than ten seconds later, Salah and others, who had just rushed out of the locker room, returned to the locker room one by one. Everyone was holding back their laughter. Damn, this chicken blood hit my head a little, and it almost made a joke.
After everyone returned to the locker room, everyone who was looking at each other suddenly burst into violent laughter.
Outside the locker room, Liverpool fans and Chelsea fans were singing team songs to each other. They were coming and going, and boos were everywhere. It was very lively.
In addition, there are many fans wearing Manchester City jerseys at the scene today. It is self-evident that they came to watch this game.
"This season of the Premier League is really magical. It can be said to be the most fiercely competitive season since the establishment of the Premier League!" Zhan Jun in the live broadcast room marveled at the confrontational interaction between the fans in the stands.
"No!" Zhang Lu said cheerfully: "Let's not talk about Liverpool and Manchester City. If you look at the ten teams from the 10th place in the Premier League standings, they all have points of 38/37/36/35/34/32.
As long as you lose today, you will be pushed into the relegation zone tomorrow!"
"It's true!" Zhan Jun was amused. "In the 37 rounds of the Premier League, it can indeed be said that there were even upsets. It is not an exaggeration to say that it was a fight between gods."
"Brighton 1-0 Manchester United!"
"Bournemouth 1-0 Leeds United!"
"Leicester City 0-2 West Ham United!"
"West Bromwich Albion 1-0 Tottenham!"
"Manchester City was also held to a draw by Hardes!"
"In short, the teams on the verge of relegation won and defeated the top teams."
"So I often say that there are no underdogs in the Premier League. Once they fight you hard, even if you are a giant and you should lose, you will lose! Manchester City is an example. They are twisted into a rope, but they can't break through the shield. Haha
Desfield."
While the two were talking, the game time was approaching, the players from both sides came on the field, and the starting lineups of both sides for this game were shown on the live broadcast screen.
Chelsea:(352)
Goalkeeper: Courtois
Defenders: Azpilicueta, Cahill, Rudiger
Midfielder: Moses, Fabregas, Kante, Bakayoko, Alonso
Forwards: Hazard, Giroud
"Chelsea's lineup is basically the same as the last red-blue war. On the front line, Hazard and Giroud are still positioned one behind the other, with a position of 3511."
Liverpool:(433)
Forwards: Mane, Firmino, Salah
Midfielder: Mo Yang, Fabinho, Wijnaldum
Defenders: Robertson, Van Dijk, Matip, Alexander-Arnold
Goalkeeper: Alisson
"Klopp on Liverpool's side has made certain rotations of the main players. Henderson, Milner and others were all put on the bench by Klopp. They said it was a rotation, but these players are actually still in the main lineup!"
"Beep!"
With the whistle of the referee Anthony Taylor, the red and blue battle officially started.
After the game started, Conte walked back to the coaching bench and sat down.
In this game, he followed the same tactical strategy as the last time he faced Chelsea, restricting Liverpool's attack from the center, and restricting Mo Yang's ball play and activities in the center, focusing on solid defense and seeking counterattacks.
This game is crucial for Chelsea, as it concerns their place in the European War.
There is only two points between them and Leeds United, which has 68 points. As long as they can win against Liverpool, they will rise to fifth place and directly qualify for the Europa League.
On the court, during the opening period, Mo Yang felt as if he was playing against Juventus.
The pace of Chelsea's game was not fast, and the intensity of the frontcourt press was not high, allowing them to control the ball back and forth around the defense.
But as long as the ball crosses the center line and enters the Chelsea half, whether it comes from the two wings or the center, it will be resolutely grabbed by Chelsea.
Mo Yang tried to give the ball a few times on the wing, but when he saw that Mane and Salah were often forced to go back by Chelsea players after receiving the ball, he knew that Klopp's arrangement before the game was right.
.
In order to avoid making mistakes and losing the ball and being counterattacked by Chelsea, Mo Yang directly slowed down the pace of the game, controlled the ball, and patiently sought offensive opportunities behind Chelsea.
In the 5th minute of the game, after receiving a direct pass from Van Dijk on the left, Mane was forced to turn around by Moses who was following up from behind. He could only bring the ball back along the sideline and then handed it back.
At the feet of Van Dijk in the middle.
"Virgil!"
"To Arnold!"
Mo Yang, who retreated to the arc of the center circle, suddenly shouted.
Although Van Dyke didn't know Mo Yang's intention, he still did it out of his trust in Mo Yang.
After Arnold got the ball, he looked towards Chelsea's frontcourt and his heart suddenly moved. He suddenly understood the purpose of this transfer directed by Mo Yang.
So he quickly dribbled the ball across the center line, and after Bakayoko and Alonso on the sideline pressed forward one after another, he suddenly crossed to Mo Yang in the center circle.
Seeing the ball coming, Kanter also rushed over. Moyang was shocked. If he was entangled by Kanter, it would be difficult for him to get a chance to kick forward.
So he quickly took off the ball and sent a long pass directly behind Chelsea's defense.
The moment Mo Yang took off, Firmino, who was standing between Cahill and Rudiger, suddenly started to speed up, successfully countered offside, and went straight to the right rib.
The ball bounced into the penalty area from the right rib, and Mo Yang gave it just right.
After Firmino entered the penalty area, he aimed at the ball that bounced off the ground for the second time in front of him and raised his right foot.
But Courtois chose his position very well and saved his shot tightly.
The ball bounced back, allowing Rudiger to make a timely clearance from the sideline.
Liverpool's attack scared Conte so much that he jumped up from the coaching bench and walked to the coaching area, unable to sit still.
The Blues fans at the scene were also frightened and all screamed.