I started with Torres, to revive German football

Chapter 347 The opening of the final

And it has come to this point, the players on both sides will not make the slightest concession.

Fighting until the last moment is the only belief of the players on both sides. There are no cowards in front of the champion!

Manchester City's players unconditionally trust their own strength at this point. They are the strongest team in the Premier League!

Manchester City almost has the heart of a champion and all the objective conditions to win the championship. Now is the time to launch the final sprint!

The weather in London is rare to be strong this afternoon.

The bright sunshine was spreading at Wembley Stadium. Although it did not bring much warmth to the fans at the scene, it was much better than the rainy weather.

The ponchos prepared in advance seemed to be unusable, so the fans felt a little less worried, and began to compete with their opponents in their respective camps.

Manchester City and Southampton don't have much grudges at the club level, so the fans of both sides are relatively harmonious at the moment. There is not much excitement in the entire Wembley Stadium. Fans of both sides are singing their respective team anthems. , cheer for your beloved team!
However, when the referee team led the players of the two teams into the stadium together, the fans stopped singing and cheered for their players at the top of their lungs!

The momentum of 9 people cheering together is amazing.

Even though Manchester City's players have seen many big scenes, in such scenes, they still find it difficult to suppress the surging emotions in their hearts.

For Southampton's players, having 9 people come to watch their game is considered a career success.

And Wembley Stadium will always hold a special place in the hearts of English players.

Foreign players such as Zhao Jinge and De Bruyne may not feel it, but local English players may stimulate more potential in this stadium.

Under this kind of spiritual inspiration, it is not impossible for the weak to defeat the strong. Although the probability is very small, at least facing the enemy bravely and having a firm belief in winning the championship is the first step to create a miracle.

Not to mention, just a few years ago, Birmingham's victory over Arsenal in the League Cup final in the [-]-[-] season gave Southampton players great encouragement and motivation.

Although Arsenal at that time could not compare with the strong Manchester City now, their Southampton was also much better than Birmingham, which was in the relegation zone at the time.

Birmingham can beat Arsenal [-]-[-] even though they are at the bottom of the league. Their Southampton are now on the verge of reaching the top six in the league. Why don't they dare to dream boldly?

With this positive attitude of giving it a try, Southampton's players stepped onto the court with high morale, and their confident momentum made Zhao Jinge on the side look at them.

"What a group of courageous guys!"

Listening to Qiao Hart's whisper behind him, Zhao Jinge also secretly agreed in his heart.

After all, they are the same team as Manchester City, fighting every game to the end, and even defeated Liverpool in the semi-finals. It is normal for Southampton to have such momentum.

In the face of such opponents, it is natural to try our best to defeat them, so that we can fully express our respect and respect.

Southampton must try their best, and Manchester City will not let go in the slightest. If they want to win the championship, then everyone must rely on their own abilities. In the end, the performance on the field must speak for itself.

"Then let's play a sufficiently exciting game together!"

Zhao Jinge raised the corners of his mouth and walked forward firmly. He was ready for a big fight!
The game started on time. After Zhao Jinge kicked the ball to Mahrez, Andy Gray, who came to the scene to commentate, also quickly read the opening remarks and began to analyze the arrangements of both sides.

"Guardiola made a lot of adjustments to the lineup today. The formation did not choose the [-]-[-]-[-] that Manchester City is best at. Instead, he arranged a [-]-[-]-[-]-[-] formation to deal with Southampton's [-]-[-]-[-]. It was a bit surprising. It means recruiting.

The five midfielders allow Manchester City to control the field more freely, but the configuration of a single forward also makes Zhao Jinge need more to attack Southampton's defense on his own, so he is willing to give up! "

Carragher, who also came to the scene, nodded and continued his analysis with Andy Gray's words:

"Guardiola should have guessed the arrangement of Southampton coach Pierre. Facing the opponent's [-]-[-]-[-], if they play [-]-[-]-[-], Manchester City's offensive will be very fierce, but Mahrez and Kante, including Including Sterling, the physical reserves of these people are a problem. If they do not return to defense in time, it is likely to give Southampton room to use on the wing.

Changing to [-], [-], [-], [-] will be much safer. Mahrez did not return to defense in time. De Bruyne, who played as an attacking midfielder today, can help him make up for it. Sterling on the right did not play in the last round of the Champions League and his physical fitness is not a problem. , coupled with the double midfielder combination of Gundogan and Kanter, Southampton has very little room to make a fuss in the midfield.

As for the issue of the lone forward, I think it's not bad. De Bruyne ambushed behind Zhao today and ran more. When the offense is pressing, he can not only send threatening passes but also act as a second forward. He has a certain ability. The foot is capable of shooting, and the toe is very hard!

If the deadlock really cannot be broken, Mane, Yaya Toure and David Silva can be replaced. They are also a few back-up players. Guardiola's arrangement is very stable and there is no big problem. "

The two have no objections to Guardiola's arrangements. It is feasible to play more safely in the opening stage of the final.

And Manchester City's ability to change formations is also very strong. Even if they don't change players, they can push Mahrez and Sterling up to the front and pull De Bruyne back, and they can change into a four-three-three in an instant.

The only pity is that Kyle Walker has not been able to make a successful comeback recently, and may not be able to make it to the next round of the league. His absence has made Manchester City's offensive on the right less sharp than before, and Sterling also needs to take on more offense. responsibility.

Fernandinho's defensive ability is online, but it is a bit overwhelming for him, who has passed [-] and started several games in a row, to run up and down the wing and run back and forth.

Fortunately, he and Zhao Jinge have a good cooperation. If Guardiola has a tactical design, he should be able to achieve good results.

After the game started, Zhao Jinge dove into the defensive crowd in Southampton's backcourt.It’s not yet time for him to perform. Gundogan will lead his teammates in the midfield to deal with Southampton for a while to test each other. He will also try the defense of Southampton’s backcourt players today. state.

Players from the two sides have played against each other twice in the league. Knowing the basics is not counted, but they are quite familiar with some of each other's technical characteristics.

Seeing Zhao Jinge's approaching figure, Maya Yoshida and Stephens were both subconsciously nervous.

Southampton's defensive midfielder Romeu kept an eye on De Bruyne, fearing that he would suddenly make a long pass to Zhao Jinge.

It is true that he had a stress reaction when the Manchester City twins of Zhao Jinge and De Bruyne joined forces in the league.

In other words, teams without top central defenders in the Premier League will have this reaction when they encounter Manchester City.

Zhao Jinge knows how to use his own advantages to break through the opponent's double central defenders. Southampton had been psychologically affected by Zhao Jinge's strong breakthrough before.

Their two central defenders today, the bulky Yoshida Maya, can only defend and compete with Zhao Jinge for air supremacy. The young England central defender Stephens needs to use his relatively flexible footsteps to entangle Zhao Jinge who wants to break through as much as possible. .

Once Zhao Jinge is allowed to rush forward, the bulky Yoshida Maya and the young Stephens may have no choice but to watch Zhao Jinge shoot the goal except for a foul. Therefore, Southampton does not dare to rely on the defense to suppress Zhao Jinge's performance. They put the defense The focus is still on the midfield.

Nowadays, many teams in the middle and lower reaches of the Premier League will choose to cut off the connection between Manchester City's midfielder and Zhao Jinge's oppressive defensive play to try to prevent Zhao Jinge from scoring, and they will not be stingy at all in the process of defending Zhao Jinge's foul opportunities. When it is time to start, Get started, foul when you need to, without any hesitation.

Although Zhao Jinge's number of goals has not decreased, at least from the appearance of the scene, Manchester City does have to spend more time to patiently conduct in order to create more opportunities for Zhao Jinge.

And this extra time is what Southampton wants to take advantage of today.

They may not be able to stop Zhao Jinge's goal, but the later this moment comes, the better it is for them. If they can score before Manchester City breaks the deadlock, the situation on the field will change dramatically.

Of course, if Zhao Jinge makes a big splash, drops back to catch the ball and scores a goal past several people, then Pierre will have nothing to say.

Fortunately, everything seems to be going well so far. Manchester City has focused more on fighting for control of the midfield. De Bruyne did not get many opportunities to pass forward and threaten the ball under tight surveillance. Southampton's The players continued to drag Manchester City to test each other step by step.

De Bruyne didn't notice anything was wrong at first, but after playing for almost 10 minutes, Southampton still had the patience not to launch an offensive easily. Teacher Ding felt that Pierre's tactical design was weird.

This season, when the mid-to-lower teams in the Premier League play against Manchester City, they basically sit back and defend in a tight formation in the first half, waiting for opportunities to counterattack. In the second half, they may change their formations and strengthen their offense to get a start.

But with the way Southampton played today, you could say that he mainly focuses on defense. He didn’t have many people in the backcourt, but he fought happily with Manchester City in the midfield. But you could say that he wanted to compete with Manchester City for control, but he couldn’t. There is not much thought of investing in troops to strengthen midfield control.

If your tactics focus on one side, you will inevitably invest more players in this aspect. Whether it is defense and offense or organization and field control, no matter how your tactics change, you cannot escape this most basic truth.

So after Teacher Ding discovered that something was wrong with Southampton's tactics, he quickly reacted.

Southampton doesn't want to compete with them for control of the midfield. It's obvious that they want to drag down Manchester City's offensive and kill time as much as possible!
Although he didn't know what Southampton was planning, De Bruyne would not let Pierre get used to his erratic thoughts and directly start organizing to speed up the game.

This sudden change of rhythm made Pierre's heart skip a beat on the sidelines!
He originally designed the team to change around the 10st minute, allowing Gabbiadini, who has strong support ability, to disrupt Manchester City's defense. Raymond attacked Fernandinho on the left wing, and then created a pass for Tadic. offensive opportunities.

But now it seems that before Guardiola can make adjustments, Manchester City's midfield core has already seen his tactical plan.

As Manchester City accelerates, Southampton must also keep up with the pace, and subsequent tactical deployments must be adjusted accordingly, otherwise they will have to completely fall into the rhythm of Manchester City's constant offensive.

Everything else is easy to say. Southampton also took tactical measures against Manchester City's sudden attack from the two wings today. However, once the formation is compressed by Manchester City, how to deal with Zhao Jinge will become a headache for the entire Southampton team.

Pierre really didn't dare to engage in a positional battle with Manchester City in the first half. Zhao Jinge's ability to attack tough situations is so strong that, to be more rigorous, he is unique in European football, if not the entire world.

How many teams had set up iron bucket formations but were smashed to pieces by Manchester City's sledgehammer named Zhao Jinge.

Pepe Garamos' central defender combination failed to stop Zhao Jinge, nor did Chiellini, Bonucci, and Barzagli's triple B combination. Pierre did not dare to be arrogant enough to think that his defense could limit it today. Live Zhao Jinge's performance.

"The formation cannot be compressed, it must be pushed out!"

Pierre made a decision quickly and stood on the sidelines to signal Southampton's backcourt players to push the defense out, at least to the top of the center circle.

Once they are forced into the defensive third zone, whether Manchester City takes the ball from the wing or attacks from the center, Zhao Jinge's presence will be a unique weapon hanging over Southampton's head, the kind that can kill him with just one hit!
Guardiola first calmly looked at the situation at the venue. When Pierre was anxious to adjust, he touched his chin and made the same decision as De Bruyne.

The five midfielders do not necessarily have to organize the attack slowly, completely drive the opponent's players out of the midfield area, and then press forward as a whole.

The five midfielders can also advance quickly after variations. Whether it is Mahrez on the left or Sterling on the right, their advancement speed is not slow.

Coupled with the organizational transfer of Gundogan and De Bruyne, Manchester City's offensive on both sides started very quickly. No matter how timely Pierre adjusted, Southampton's defense lines on both wings still retreated again and again.

At the critical moment, it was Raymond and Ward-Prowse's immediate retracement that helped the defense stabilize the situation.

Tadic also withdrew directly to the midfield. It seemed that Pierre was well prepared before the game. Southampton players put a lot of effort into defense, with almost nine players piled up in the backcourt. , still suppressed Manchester City's offensive.

(End of this chapter)