Full-level pass, please call me the speaker of the Three Lions

Chapter 445: The lineup determines the lower limit, and the stars determine the upper limit!
"Glory to Manchester United."

"Glory to Manchester United."

The team song rang out continuously at Wembley Stadium.

All Manchester United fans' faces were filled with happy smiles.

For Mourinho's Red Devils, this championship is small, but its significance is self-evident.

This is not only an opportunity to cultivate a winning mentality and accumulate championship temperament, but is also seen as a turning point that can prove the Red Devils' revival!

How will Manchester United celebrate if they win such a milestone championship?
Generally speaking, clubs that win the league or cup championship will hold a championship parade.

This is the traditional culture of the football world.

The championship parade is, on the one hand, a reward for the players’ hard work throughout the season, and on the other hand, it is the best affirmation of their dedication and efforts for the club!
On the other hand, such celebration activities are very helpful in promoting the club culture, and can also interact closely with the fans, expand the fan base, and allow the fans to continue to walk side by side with the club in the coming season!
However, in Mourinho's view, it was just a small League Cup championship.

With his and Manchester United's status, they should not be complacent about winning a small League Cup.

They are Manchester United!

The most successful club in England!

Their ambition and goal should not be just to be satisfied with a small League Cup championship!
Therefore, even at the awards ceremony, Mourinho just smiled slightly and did not show too much happiness.

When interviewed by reporters at the post-match press conference, Mourinho denied on the spot that there would be any celebrations for the League Cup championship.

And he said very domineeringly:

"Championship parade? Let's wait until we win the league championship!"

Mourinho's attitude has also won unanimous recognition from fans and celebrities.

This is the style of a "madman"!

You know, Manchester United is the most successful team in the Premier League era and should have bigger goals and a higher positioning.

During Ferguson's time, Manchester United won 13 Premier League titles, 2 Champions League titles, and a total of 38 trophies including other cups.

It is no exaggeration to say that winning the championship was commonplace for the Red Devils of that period.

Even in the wasted years of the post-Ferguson era, they won an FA Cup.

But this is far from enough!

If the head coach has no ambition and dominance, how can he live up to everyone's expectations of Manchester United, a wealthy club!

Mourinho's "I am the only one" temperament is a perfect fit for Manchester United!
For a time, everyone was praising Mourinho's tactics and his rich experience in winning championships.
Even without star player Ling Feng, even if several main players such as Rooney and Herrera did not play, Manchester United was able to beat Southampton and win the League Cup!

Mourinho also used this game to prove to the world why he is one of the best coaches in the world today!

As for the "Ling Feng addiction" that was widely discussed before the game, it was also self-defeating.

Of course, no fan who understands football would think that Manchester United would be better off without Ling Feng.

Just like Barcelona, ​​they know that even without Messi on the pitch, the team is at a top level in Europe.

But there is no way they won't let Messi play.

Because Barcelona without Messi and Barcelona with Messi are two completely different teams!

The same is true for Manchester United, which has Ling Feng.

The overall strength of the team's lineup and the coaching level of the head coach ensure the team's lower limit.

Superstars like Messi, Ronaldo and Ling Feng who can change the situation of the battle on their own determine the upper limit of the team!

For Ling Feng, it was a fresh experience to sit on the bench for 90 minutes.

After all, it was thanks to his performance in last year's League Cup final that Leicester City defeated Liverpool and won the championship.

This year, he didn't even have to play. He just waved the towel and cheered on the bench, and the team won the championship.

The difference between the two is not only reflected in the strength of the team, but also in the level of the head coach.

Of course, it doesn’t matter if you can’t participate in the final of a useless competition like the League Cup.

After all, he doesn't need a League Cup title.

Moreover, his ambitions and goals are even greater.

If Mourinho dared to "hide" himself in the Champions League final, he would never be as easy to talk to as he is now.

Of course, in his opinion, Mourinho would not be stupid enough to "hide" his favorite disciple and star player in the Champions League final in order to demonstrate his authority in the team.

Ling Feng has always felt that the relationship between players and head coaches should be a win-win cooperation.

Instead of competing against each other for the right to speak in the team.

No matter how great the head coach's tactics are, he cannot play on the field himself, and he also needs players to implement specific tactics.

If we lose, the head coach and the players are jointly responsible.

If we win, it is the joint credit of the head coach and the players.

We are a mature team if we win together and lose together!

On the night of the championship, the club simply booked a hotel in Manchester and held a very low-key championship dinner.

The club also paid out the League Cup winning bonus on the spot and gave it to the players in cash.

Afterwards, Mourinho also announced that the team would have a day off!
For the players, they can relax for a while.

However, for Mourinho, it is not time to relax this season!
Although they won the League Cup, they still have a great chance of winning the other three competitions. In Mourinho's view, the priority of the three events, the League, the FA Cup and the Champions League, should be the League over the Champions League and then the FA Cup.

The season goal that the club's top management has set for the team is to ensure they win the league title and reach the quarterfinals of the Champions League at the very least!
As the head coach who once led Inter Milan to win the season treble, Mourinho is well aware that when coaching a top club, one must make trade-offs when fighting on multiple fronts.

Especially in the Champions League where every game is a battle between strong teams, a small detail may cause a team to lose the whole game.

When fighting on two fronts, the physical condition of the team's main players will definitely be affected.

What's more, with their current lineup, there is a certain gap compared to the favorites to win the Champions League, such as Real Madrid, Juventus, Atletico Madrid and other teams.

Therefore, if they want to achieve breakthrough results in the Champions League this season, they must not only make reasonable lineup rotations, but they must also first ensure a greater lead in the league so that the team's main players can focus on preparing for the Champions League!
They still have two league games and an FA Cup quarter-final to play before heading to Monaco's Stade Louis II in mid-March.

As the FA Cup quarter-final match is too close to the Champions League match, Mourinho has already prepared to give up strategically.

As for the next two league games, his goal is to get all six points!

. . .

As March begins, two-thirds of the Premier League schedule has passed.

The championship race has also reached a white-hot stage.

In the just concluded 27th round of the Premier League, the league's top team, the "Red Devils" Manchester United, defeated the "Cherries" Bournemouth 5-2 at home.

Ibrahimovic and Martial both scored twice, and Ling Feng scored again with a pass and a shot!
With all three points won, Manchester United achieved an impressive record of 26 wins, 24 draw and 1 loss in 1 league games.

Before we knew it, with one game less, Manchester United is already 17 points ahead of Tottenham, who are third in the league!
However, Manchester United's biggest title rival, Chelsea, is also in great form.

With a record of 27 wins, 22 draws and 2 losses in 3 games, the team has 68 points. With one more game to play, the team is only five points behind Manchester United!

The two sides will have another head-to-head confrontation in the league.

Moreover, Manchester United will be distracted by the Champions League and may not be able to maintain its lead.

It is still unknown who will win.

However, the media and fans all agree that this season's Premier League title race has become a two-man show between the Red Devils and the Blues!
This reminds many people of the days when Manchester United under Ferguson competed with Mourinho's Chelsea in the Premier League!

But things and people have changed.

Ferguson retired successfully after leaving Manchester United with the last Premier League title;

Mourinho, however, went from being Manchester United's former rival to becoming the new boss of the Red Devils by accident!
A week later, Southampton, located on the seaside, welcomed their "enemy" Manchester United, who had just snatched away the League Cup trophy from them, in the league game!
Compared to the League Cup final, this time, Ling Feng did not sit on the bench, but started and took over the game!

This man, who is recognized as the best player in the Premier League and the strongest person in Britain today, completed one pass and one goal in just forty-five minutes!
Throughout the first half, under the leadership of Ling Feng, Manchester United launched wave after wave of attacks, pressing the Saints into the half court and rubbing their defense hard.

In the first half, Manchester United had 70% of the ball possession and dozens of shots to zero!
If all Southampton players had not retreated, and if Ling Feng had not taken the attack too seriously, perhaps both goals would not have been scored.

He wanted to avenge his defeat in the League Cup final, but was stunned by Ling Feng.

It was not until this time that the Southampton players realized how merciful it was for Mourinho not to play Ling Feng in the League Cup final!
In the first half, the media and fans also witnessed the difference between Manchester United with Ling Feng and without Ling Feng!
Same opponent, but different playing field!
One is defensive counterattack, the other is complete suppression.

It’s clear at a glance which is higher and which is lower!
As the team would travel to Monaco to participate in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 in a few days, and as they were already two goals ahead, Mourinho chose to replace two core players, Ling Feng and Ibrahimovic, for a rest in the 60th minute of the second half.

However, what he never expected was that this decision would make the team lose in the remaining 30 minutes.
With Ling Feng and Ibrahimovic leaving the field, Manchester United's offensive was not enough to suppress Southampton.

In addition, the players were a little slack after taking a two-goal lead, which led to Southampton creating more opportunities.

First, Saints captain Van Dijk scored a header from a corner kick, beating Smalling and equalizing the game.

Then, the morale-boosted Saints continued to intensify their attack with the cheers of their home fans.

When Manchester United's defense was under tremendous pressure, Smalling, who returned to the starting lineup in this game, made another low-level mistake.

Facing Van Dijk's long pass from the backcourt, he made a misjudgment and headed the ball directly, giving Gabiadini behind him a chance to face De Gea alone.

The latter steadily sent the ball into the near corner, equalizing the score for the team!
It took the Saints less than twenty minutes to go from 2-0 to 2-2!
Sitting in the coaching booth and watching the team being equalized, Mourinho had a solemn expression.

At this moment, he tried hard to suppress the anger and impulse in his heart.

His many years of coaching experience tells him that if he wants to truly challenge for the Champions League title, he must replace the useless Smalling!

Under normal circumstances, Manchester United's frontcourt attack is too sharp, so the defense line is naturally under little pressure.

Coupled with the protection of Kante in front of the defense line and the grabbing central defender partner Bailly, most of the opponent's attacks were almost blocked.

Even if he could finally get in front of Smalling, it would be like a spent force.

This is also one of the important reasons why Smalling has been able to perform well as the team's defensive center back this season.

However, once the team's offense fails to suppress the opponent, and the opponent seizes the opportunity of the offense-defense transition to launch a quick counterattack, or if the opponent exerts continuous high-intensity pressure, Smalling will appear very panicked, resulting in various mistakes and errors.

When a central defender is not stable enough, he is not suitable to start in a top team like Manchester United!
Especially compared with the opponent's starting central defender Van Dijk, Smalling was completely defeated!

However, just as Mourinho stood up and looked back at the bench, trying to find a suitable candidate to replace Smalling, he also hesitated.

Because the central defender on the bench is not much better than Smalling!
Jones, a center back with no ball, no body, only fighting spirit;
Blind, who has good passing skills, but has average physical fitness and cannot defend against most forwards;
Rojo has a strong body, is tough, and has comprehensive abilities, but his form is unstable and he tends to get carried away
It is worth mentioning that in the Van Gaal era, there was such a consensus among the Red Devils fans:
Smalling and Jones played together, it would be a blessing if they didn't lose!
But these people are the cards Mourinho can play at the moment.

All he could do was eat according to the food available.

If he holds on a little longer, during the summer window, he can spend money to sign a central defender that people can trust!

After thinking for half a minute, Mourinho made a choice among the three:
"Marcos (Rojo)! Go warm up!"

When his name was called, Rojo immediately stood up and ran to warm up.

A few minutes later, Mourinho replaced Smalling, who was closely related to the two goals, with Rojo.

With Rojo's appearance, the defense felt a little more reassuring.

In the end, after a "fantastic first half" and a "shitty second half", Manchester United was tied 2-2 by the Saints at St. Mary's Stadium and only got one point.
(End of this chapter)