I started with Torres, to revive German football

Chapter 318 A Natural Victory

In November, Manchester was shrouded in clouds and fog. It was still cloudy in the morning, and at noon, the sky started to drizzle.

Players on both sides of the field have already set up their formations under the rainy sky.

Goalkeeper: Joe Hart.

Defence: Cancelo, Stones, Laporte and Clichy.

Midfield: Gundogan and Kante stay deep, De Bruyne moves forward.

Forward: Mahrez, Zhao Jinge, Mane.

Like Manchester City, Mancini adopted a four-three-three formation.

Goalkeeper: Courtois.

Defence: Marcos Alonso, David Luiz, Gary Cahill and Cesar Azpilicueta.

Midfielder: Cesc Fabregas, Matic and Moses.

Forwards: Hazard, Diego Costa and Pedro.

The tactical choices of both men are consistent.

Mancini used the four-three-three that Guardiola is best at. The coach from Italy actually played offensive football.

This is fresh.

Mancini knew in his heart that the reason why he chose [-] was because Chelsea's midfielder was more rigid and lacked creativity.

In Chelsea's [-] formation, their two Spanish defenders can assist in the frontcourt at any time to participate in the attack. After Moses retreats, Chelsea can transform into a [-] formation, which can not only improve the midfielder's conduction ability, It can also support the frontcourt to the maximum extent.

And Guardiola's four-three-three is not suitable for dynamically adjusting the number of midfielders like Mancini used at Chelsea, but to further utilize Manchester City's high press!

A very important reason why he did this was to confine Chelsea's midfield and frontcourt and compress the passing space of Chelsea players.

Needless to say, the defense line has two defensive midfielders, Gundogan and Kanter, in the midfield. Whether it is running coverage or pressing and pressing, except for the strength confrontation, they are all leverage.

The key is that there is De Bruyne in front. The Belgian midfielder is more stationary on the defensive end. When switching from defense to offense, he will actively dribble forward and actively use this area.

After the two wingers in the frontcourt trio receive the ball, they can directly use their speed advantage to attack the opponent's defense. As for Zhao Jinge, he only needs to hand the ball to him, and there is nothing else to worry about.

It is actually not difficult for Chelsea to break Manchester City's high position, as long as they have two midfielders who can press the ball in the backcourt.

But the problem is that the only core midfielder Mancini has now is Cesc Fabregas.

Another way is to play Diego Costa and use the advantages of the high center to create opportunities in the frontcourt.

But Guardiola actually arranged for Laporte, who has excellent physical fitness, to specifically mark Diego Costa.

Diego Costa is undoubtedly a top center, but he has already declined a bit from his peak. This season is his last peak at Chelsea and the last peak season of his career.

His body has begun to decline, and an increasing number of injuries are also plaguing him. Laporte is still in his prime, in his early 20s, which is when his physical strength reaches its peak.

So, when it came to the game, everyone discovered that Laporte was doing nothing but staring at Diego Costa.

This posture is a bit like Drogba staring at Arsenal's central defender Centros and rushing forward.

The key is that after several battles at the beginning of the game, Diego Costa discovered that he could not take advantage of Laporte.

When it comes to physical play, he doesn't have an advantage; when it comes to speed, Laporte is not slow either; when it comes to active running, Laporte can keep up, and even Diego Costa consumes more energy than Laporte.

As for the trash talk and all kinds of disgusting little tricks that he has always been good at, they did not affect Laporte, who was fully mentally prepared before the game.

In the end, Mancini sadly discovered that he was powerless against Guardiola's high-position pressing tactics!

On the contrary, Guardiola's midfield, especially the two central midfielders combined with the double midfielder, was so brutal that Chelsea was overwhelmed from the beginning of the game. When facing other teams, The tactic of opening up space and holding the ball to find the center forward was also cut to pieces by Manchester City's defense.

Moses, who has been praised by many fans this season, said that he has developed his passing organization ability, but in this game, he was completely misfired.

Mancini knows very well that when there is space, any goalkeeper, let alone Moses, can play the role of playmaker.

The key depends on how big the space is.

But the real difference lies in getting and delivering the ball under high pressure.

Moses really cannot compare with technically sophisticated organizers in this regard.

Not only Moses is not, Matic is also not. The two of them are not meant to do this kind of thing. Fabregas, the only one who can hold the ball, is constantly disturbed by Zhao Jinge's retreat. It is really miserable!

What's even more disgusting is that sometimes De Bruyne will double-team Fabregas, which is very annoying!
When the game reached the 209th minute of the first half, Chelsea encountered Manchester City's high pressure during an offensive advance and was forced to pass the ball to Cesc Fabregas.

As a result, as soon as Fabregas stopped the ball, De Bruyne suddenly rushed up from behind, forced Fabregas away with his body, and took away the football that Fabregas had not yet stopped.

After taking the ball away from Cesc Fabregas, De Bruyne took the ball forward and instigated a counterattack.

Mahrez and Mane in front both pulled away to both sides, especially Mane, who was closest.

After Mane dribbled the ball across the center line, without waiting for Matic to come over, he passed the ball straight to the feet of Zhao Jinge in front.

Manchester City's players were rushing forward to counterattack, while Chelsea's players were retreating.

While running between each other, Zhao Jinge happened to be swimming between Gary Cahill and David Luiz, and De Bruyne's pass happened to be at the feet of Zhao Jinge, allowing the Manchester City center to stop the ball and turn around, directly at the top of the arc. Facing the goal, he fired a furious shot with his left foot.

The ball flew into the right side of Chelsea's goal at great speed, almost grazing the post and entering the net.

"GOAL!!!!!!"

"Zhao Jinge! Zhao Jinge!!"

Manchester City fans throughout the Etihad Stadium were cheering wildly.

"This stop is so exciting!"

"Zhao Jinge opened the scoring for Manchester City!"

"De Bruyne's steal and subsequent counterattack were also very good."

"It can be seen that Manchester City's twin stars played very well today!"

Zhao Jinge was so excited that he rushed to the sidelines, ran all the way to celebrate the goal, and finally knelt down under the fans' stands.

The visiting team's coach, Mancini, looked disappointed on the sidelines.He really didn't expect that Guardiola would greet Chelsea in this way in this game. He knew the shortcomings in Chelsea's lineup very well!

In this world, there is never the best tactic, only the most appropriate tactic.

Guardiola's use of this set of tactics to deal with Chelsea is undoubtedly the most appropriate.

After changing sides in the second half, Mancini made a substitution at the 60th minute.

Oscar replaced Matic.

This is a signal to strengthen the wing attack.

Guardiola made decisive adjustments, allowing Mahrez and Mane to move closer to the wing and take on more defensive tasks, leaving Mahrez and Mane to suppress Chelsea's full-backs.

Gundogan and De Bruyne still protect the two ribs and help defend the full-backs.

Guardiola saw through Mancini's plan and knew that the Italian wanted to play on the wing.

Manchester City's adjustment came in time.

Although Chelsea created two threatening attacks, only one threatened Manchester City's goal.

Joe Hart showed great courage and made a smooth side dive to block Pedro's shot into the far corner.

Instead of throwing it out, he directly controlled the ball with a side dive.

This wonderful save also earned the England goalkeeper a warm round of applause.

Guardiola made his first substitution in the 70th minute, replacing Gundogan with David Silva.

This substitution quickly created a threat.

After Mahrez got the ball on the left, when facing Azpilicueta one-on-one, he dribbled the ball into the penalty area and tried to pass the ball to the center, but David Luiz blocked the ball first. De Bruyne's long shot went straight high.

But this also allowed Guardiola to see the loopholes at the front of Chelsea's penalty area.

After Matic went off, neither Moses nor Fabregas could provide strong protection for Chelsea's front line in the penalty area.

And this also gave Manchester City an opportunity.

After Manchester City stole the ball in midfield, they quickly launched a quick counterattack.

Mahrez drove the ball down the left wing and passed the ball to David Silva.

The Spanish midfielder glanced ahead before stopping the ball. Without stopping the ball with his left foot, he directly passed the ball to Zhao Jinge who was retreating. After he turned around and bypassed Fabregas, he ran horizontally and raised his hand to ask for the ball.

"here!"

Zhao Jinge knowingly passed the ball to the front of Silva's running route, just in time for the Spanish midfielder to avoid Fabregas. When he stopped the ball, he was about to move forward, but Moses caught up in time and forced David Silva stopped and turned around to protect the ball.

Moving forward, Moses is probably about to take action.

David Silva was like spinning in a circle. After getting rid of Moses, he looked to the right and saw De Bruyne raising his hand for the ball in the space on the right, and immediately passed the ball with his left foot.

The Belgian is not fast, but he can still make interspersed runs.

With his back to the right sideline, he had an unobstructed view of the entire penalty area.

As the top midfielder and the best and smartest passer of this era, De Bruyne's vision is undoubtedly very broad.

A top passer must be able to see six directions and hear all directions.

Not only must you be able to see far and fine, but you must also be aware of every move of everyone around you at any time and at any time, and immediately deduce their intentions in your mind.

Just like now.

De Bruyne just raised his head and glanced ahead, clearly seeing the entire penalty area inside and outside, and deducing various possibilities and passing routes in his mind.

For example, he could pass back to Cancelo, but then miss an offensive opportunity.

David Silva is also running and he can pass the ball, but Moses follows closely and has no chance.

Pass it to Zhao Jinge?
No, he just retreated to the outside of the penalty area, and now it's too late to intervene. The pass will probably be intercepted by David Luiz and Gary Cahill.

The best way to deal with it is to move to the left. The left side of the penalty area is a bit empty. Mahrez is about to step in. Marcos Alonso is a little closer to the central defender and the outside is free. As long as the ball is passed, Mahrez comes up to receive the ball. It's one-on-one.

And if Mahrez can pass the ball across Marcos Alonso in a one-on-one situation, Zhao Jinge can just step in and complete the shot.

All the information seemed complicated, but in an instant, it flooded into De Bruyne's mind and outlined a route through the goal.

Facing David Silva's pass, De Bruyne stopped the ball with his right foot and moved forward. He quickly caught up with him and got ahead of Azpilicueta. He directly hit a curve ball with his right foot. Foot transfer.

After the ball took an arc from the right, it fell to the left side of the penalty area.

When Mahrez quickly stepped in and removed De Bruyne's pass with his chest, Marcos Alonso had already rushed out.

But Mahrez didn't wait for Marcos Alonso to stand firm, and just made a fake move, pretending to cut inside. After scaring Marcos Alonso, he suddenly stabbed the ball to the baseline, accelerated to catch up with him, and left The low ball was passed crosswise to the small penalty area.

Marcos Alonso was passed by Mahrez almost immediately. Gary Cahill behind him was also shocked. He had no time to stop him and just instinctively shouted:
"Danger!"

Behind Gary Cahill, Zhao Jinge quickly stepped in, got ahead of David Luiz, fell to the ground and shot, shoveling Mahrez's low pass into the Chelsea goal.

Courtois made a flying save, but how could he stop this close shot?
"GOAL!!!!!!"

"No. 707 minutes, Zhao Jinge! It's Zhao Jinge again!"

"Manchester City's attack was very imaginative. Zhao Jinge's final shovel shot was just right, scoring twice! Another brace!"

After Zhao Jinge scored, he rushed towards Mahrez and Teacher Ding excitedly. Together, the three of them rushed to the sidelines to celebrate the goal.

Behind him, the Manchester City players chased him one by one.

Two to zero, with only about ten minutes left in the game, Manchester City has basically won the opponent.

Especially considering that Chelsea failed to create much threatening offense throughout the game.

Their two core offensive players, Hazard and Diego Costa, have been firmly restricted by Manchester City's defense. Cesc Fabregas, the core of the midfield ball control, is also extremely uncomfortable. In such a difficult situation , Chelsea has absolutely no way to play a sustained and threatening offense, so failure is natural!

(End of this chapter)