I started with Torres, to revive German football

Chapter 340 Another meeting with the mortal enemy

At the beginning of the second half, Stoke City was a little bit ready to make a move. After all, they were one goal behind. There was still a chance to fight hard in the second half. If they could get a point in front of Manchester City, let alone this is a real league. Points, the glory brought by them alone is enough for Stoke City to boast about for the first half of the year!

But in the face of Stoke City's little move, Manchester City didn't panic at all. Even if it was just a one-goal lead, such an advantage was not safe. They also patiently waited for Stoke City to make the first move, and then waited for opportunities to find loopholes.

Seeing this, Mark Hughes could only let the players on both wings try to advance with the ball.

After many attempts to no avail, Manchester City sat firmly on the Diaoyutai and began to control the field near the center circle.

In desperation, Stoke City pressed forward as a whole. At this time, even if it is a risk, it has to increase its offensive strength.

After De Bruyne saw the change in the situation, he decisively retreated with his teammates, hooking the players on both wings of Stoke City to continue deep into the heart of Manchester City.

In the 607th minute of the second half, De Bruyne was attacking from east to west. Looking at Mahrez's movement, he sent a long pass directly to Sterling on the right.

The England winger's handling of the football did not live up to the expectations of his teammates. He took advantage of the chaos of Stoke City's midfielder to defend and decisively kicked off the right wing. The ball landed directly behind Stoke City. !

Zhao Jinge's roundabout movement and sprint speed allowed him to successfully counter the offside. Mahrez immediately took away Huth's defense. Therefore, after passing Shawcross, Zhao Jinge directly got a one-on-one opportunity!
After the fake shot and real dunk deceived Grant's center of gravity, Zhao Jinge easily pushed the shot and succeeded in the empty goal. Then he ran to the bottom of the visiting team's fans' stand, laughing and beckoning his teammates to come over to celebrate winning the game!
Sterling once again received an assist and received a loving celebration from all his teammates with a pat on the head.

Mahrez excitedly threw himself on Zhao Jinge's back, signaling the Manchester City fans to cheer them louder.

Don't get me wrong, he is not so happy because he won this game, but excited for the upcoming game!
This is true for all members of Manchester City. The game with Stoke City is coming to an end, and the arrival of the next game is what they are most concerned about now.

That's right, what could be more satisfying than killing an enemy in the same city? !
The score of [-]-[-] was enough for Manchester City to securely win Stoke City.

Guardiola decisively replaced Mahrez with Yaya Toure after 10 minutes of the game, further strengthening the interception and air defense capabilities in the midfield.

In the 706th minute, Guardiola replaced De Bruyne with David Silva. Mark Hughes knew that Guardiola was unwilling to give up control of the midfield.

In desperation, Mark Hughes could only signal the Stoke City players on the field to play more simply and directly.

It is undoubtedly stupid to compete with Manchester City in the middle. He can only choose the final tactic of pressing the box.

That is to go directly to Crouch with a high ball, and then let other Stoke City players wait for the opportunity to attack.

This move may work better against other teams, but here at Manchester City, Crouch cannot take advantage of Yaya Toure or Laporte, who is defending top.

Even if Stoke City got a chance to set the ball, Manchester City still had nearly four 1.9-meter players positioned in the penalty area to defend.

Therefore, in terms of high-altitude bombing that Stoke City is best at, Manchester City can now also keep a close eye on Stoke City's high points one-on-one.

Guardiola's adjustments made Stoke City shattered and failed to knock on the door of Manchester City.

Enough caution and sufficient preparation allowed Manchester City to securely win another away game.

And when the Manchester City players returned to Manchester with the joy of defeating Sky City and began to prepare for the game, Manchester United fans also felt a little nervous inexplicably.

Whether it is rotation or main players, the recent state of the Manchester City team has remained very average. Manchester United's last five games have also been two wins, one draw and two losses, and the record is quite mediocre.

Moreover, in the two games won, the hard-fought scores obviously did not bring much confidence to Manchester United fans.

Manchester United's way of winning this season seems very unstable. Except for Ibrahimovic, they don't have any stable output point.

They can only rely on the intermittent outbursts of Ibrahimovic and other midfielders to get through repeatedly. Although the Red Devils are still barely biting the tail of the first-tier Champions League, they always give people the feeling that they may collapse at any time. Feel.

Because their injuries are too serious and they don’t have a second stable striker. Can you believe that after more than half of the league has been played, Manchester United’s second striker in the league is actually Uncle Mata, and he only has four goals. A goal!
Then three or four goals from other players, such as Mkhitaryan, Rooney, Martial, and Pogba, were completely unable to save Manchester United's decline.

Even though Mourinho has expressed his confidence in his disciples many times in interviews with the media, Manchester United fans all know that if they lose to Manchester City in the next round of the FA Cup, the season will basically be over. .

They were eliminated early by Manchester City in the League Cup. They were trailed by Manchester City by more than 20 points and close to [-] points in the league. If they lose again in the FA Cup, they may really have zero honors this season.

After all, they did not qualify in the Champions League group stage, and they have to play in the Europa League knockout play-offs later. Even the most optimistic Manchester United fans have no hope for this year's European results. They are still eager to reach the top four and earn money. To qualify for a Champions League zone.

But even this small wish is not easy to fulfill. Not to mention other things, there is still a full seven-point gap between Manchester United, which is ranked sixth, and Liverpool, which is fourth, and it is also different from Arsenal, which is fifth. There is also a difference of five points!

On the other hand, Manchester City's opponent in the first round of the Champions League knockout round is Monaco, and the schedule is still on the fifth day after the FA Cup match, but Manchester United is going to France to play against them on the third day after the FA Cup match. Saint-Etienne has a showdown and has to play two more games than a team like Manchester City that plays in the knockout stages of the Champions League. This is a real burden!
The time, place and people are favorable, and Manchester City has not occupied even one of the favorable places, and has occupied the rest.

And no one thinks that Old Trafford's home court can scare Manchester City. At most, it can give the players of Manchester United a little more fighting spirit.

Counting from last season, Manchester City has captured the home stadiums of all the major powers in the Premier League. Now that their strength is even higher, there is no reason to be afraid of you, the Red Devils, and Old Trafford has been there since last season. Defeated by Manchester City three times in a row!

No matter how you look at it, Manchester United's encounter with Manchester City this time will be unlucky. No need for others to badmouth it, Manchester United's own fans panicked first.

On February 17th, the entire Manchester City team gathered in advance and checked into the hotel at the Etihad Stadium. Guardiola then stayed behind closed doors, and the Manchester City players quietly returned to the hotel after the afternoon training session. , declined all interviews.

At the same time, Mourinho also issued a gag order and did not allow any Manchester United players to speak against Manchester City before the game.

They are still in the awkward position of being beaten by Manchester City six times in a row across the season. They have been suppressed by Manchester City at home and away. Their performance on the field is not strong, and no matter how harsh they say off the field, it is in vain.The silence of Manchester City and Manchester United added a tense atmosphere to the battle. The quarrel between fans of both sides on the Internet seemed to be affected by this tense atmosphere and gradually subsided.

On the afternoon of NO.18, countless reporters entered the Old Trafford Stadium in advance with their guns and cannons. When the fans gradually filled the entire stadium, and the players from both sides also came out to start their own warm-ups, all the people on the scene The audience felt the restlessness in their hearts.

After all, it is the most topical matchup in English football right now. Whether Manchester City continues to suppress Manchester United strongly or Manchester United succeeds in revenge, it will become a traffic password.

And the scene of these two teams playing against each other is really beautiful.

The score may not be as exaggerated as [-] to [-] or [-] to [-], but there are fierce technical and tactical competitions and there are many shining scenes of the stars.

The only regrettable thing may be that Manchester United currently does not have a superstar who can compete with Zhao Jinge.

Regardless of whether the scene and the lineup are comparable, as long as there are such conditions, the FA's courage is definitely the same as that of the British media.

After all, when it comes to propaganda and rhetoric, the British are ancestral in the West.

The England national team may not be considered a winner in recent years, but the British media have.

All kinds of gossip and tidbits, regardless of whether they are true or false, British reporters can make them up for you.

Media such as "Sky Sports" and "442" may be a little more reliable, at least with the right amount of traffic and the bottom line.

But as soon as the "Sun" makes a move, it can always attract the attention of fans all over Europe in an instant, relying on a slanted sword and no bottom line.

Over time, reporters on Fleet Street were affected, and they had to figure out how to attract traffic.

At this time, under the crazy flashing lights of these uncrowned kings, Zhao Jinge ended the warm-up and led his teammates to the players' tunnel.

Although there was no trash talk before the game, Manchester City's players clearly seemed ready.

Zhao Jinge even raised four fingers high with his back to the Manchester United fans as he was about to enter the tunnel.

When the reporters saw this, they quickly pressed the shutter on Zhao Jinge, but now they, like the Manchester United fans, were confused about Zhao Jinge's actions.

Only Manchester City's own players know that their king has begun to declare war on Manchester United.

This means that they will defeat Manchester United for the fourth time this season and personally knock Manchester United out of the championship competition in each event!

At this point in the Premier League this season, if you want to say which team Manchester City's coaching staff studies the most frequently, it must be Chelsea and Tottenham. After all, these two teams are Manchester City's biggest competitors in the Premier League.

But if you want to say the most attentive, thoughtful and perseverant, it must be Manchester City's good neighbor Manchester United!

Many players have read Guardiola's tactical analysis of Manchester United. If more details were added, I'm afraid it could be bound into a book.

Since Guardiola took office last season, Manchester City has not stopped studying Manchester United.

At first, it was just to get to know ourselves and the enemy. After all, they were mortal enemies in the same city.

But last summer, the joining of big-name coaches and football superstars such as Mourinho and Pogba made Manchester United instantly look like a huge force. The successive large investments were dazzling.

Therefore, Guardiola does not dare to have the slightest contempt for Manchester United. Even though he defeated Manchester United twice last season, he still regards Manchester United as one of Manchester City's most important enemies this season.

To deal with such an opponent, it is natural to study in every possible way. From the tactical adjustment habits of head coach Mourinho, an old opponent who has been fighting for many years, to the overall performance of Manchester United players in the past two seasons, Manchester City's coaching staff has spent a lot of time on it. time to analyze the target.

Under the analysis and emphasis of the coaches again and again, although Manchester United's performance has declined day by day after a strong start in the season, and even now Manchester City's research focus has shifted to Chelsea and their opponents in the Champions League knockout rounds, but after the previous influence Next, for Manchester City players, Manchester United is very familiar.

It is precisely because of this familiarity that they have the confidence to win when facing Manchester United.

Apart from other aspects, Zhao Jinge's ability to cause trouble in Manchester United's midfield and backcourt has been proven many times. He is also the greatest confidence for Guardiola to dare to change formations and compete with Mourinho many times.

The person in the Manchester City team who wants to compete with Manchester United the most is Zhao Jinge. This kind of team cannot withstand the impact in the midfield and does not have a top central defender in the backcourt. For Zhao Jinge, it couldn't be easier. Think about it every time. Being able to score a big score against our rivals in the same city couldn't be more exciting!
After a few more laughs, the Manchester City players gradually stopped smiling after entering the locker room. Guardiola cleared his throat and made his last tactical emphasis before the game.

Needless to say, the importance of the game. If they win this game, they only need to win three more games in the FA Cup to win another domestic championship this season.

Of course, in the final stage of the most important Premier League championship, if they encounter difficult problems, they may also give up the fight for the FA Cup, but judging from Manchester City's current lead, this is simply impossible. thing.

They came to Old Trafford today and the only thing they want to do is take away a great victory from this great stadium.

At this moment, Manchester City players will not worry about how they will play in the Champions League four days later if they work hard today.

In the second half of the season, it is the time when the bayonet is popular, and it is time to fight both skills and tactics as well as willpower.

Having chosen to fight on multiple fronts, there is no concept of giving in in the eyes of the entire Manchester City team.

(End of this chapter)