The two sides continue to be entangled in the midfield. Shevchenko is still AC Milan's most threatening player. He continues to make breakthroughs on the wing. However, Inzaghi is under the tight surveillance of Dortmund players. Shevchenko
Ke basically has no chance to break into the penalty area and can only use crosses to create opportunities.
Dortmund continued to use counterattacks to interfere with AC Milan's offense. In the 36th minute, they relied on Ruit's breakthrough to create a free kick. Rosicky took the free kick and Cavinagi nodded.
After the ball was passed, Metzelder followed up and his header missed the near post and flew out of the baseline under the control of Nesta. This was Dortmund's most threatening shot in the first half.
After that, the actions of both sides gradually became louder, which caused some unfavorable situations for Dortmund. In the 40th minute, Metzelder protected the ball in the backcourt. Shevchenko fouled in the press behind him. Metzelder collapsed in pain.
On the ground, the referee blew the whistle, and Metzelder was carried off the field on a stretcher.
"Thigh sprained, need to be replaced."
The team doctor said helplessly to Dick, who could only shake his head. At this time, Metzelder's injury was quite an unexpected blow. If he couldn't play, Ismael would have to play. I hope the Frenchman is in good condition.
Could be better...
Ismail quickly replaced Metzelder, who also sat on the bench with a look of helplessness - in such a final, leaving midway is a very helpless thing, and because
Being injured and leaving the game is even more helpless!
However, at this time, Metzelder could only sit helplessly on the sidelines, cheering for his teammates, hoping that they could perform better and help him win this championship!
"Don't worry, we will win this championship." Dick patted Metzelder on the shoulder and said firmly.
Ismail didn't suffer much impact after coming on the field - this was a good thing for him, because the incident happened suddenly and he didn't even have time to warm up. Fortunately, during this period, Dortmund began to take the initiative to launch an attack.
AC Milan was suppressed in their own half. Rivaldo, who had been somewhat quiet before, created an opportunity with a beautiful direct pass to Cavinagi. Cavinagi's shot was blocked by Dida and Dortmund won consecutive points.
After two corner kicks, Everton's shovel shot in the penalty area was pinned down by Dida.
Seeing that this attack failed to achieve results, Dortmund's players immediately rushed back like a tide. Seeing that there was no chance to counterattack, AC Milan prepared to spend the last time of the first half on the last attack.
Generally speaking, teams that lack final experience are often easily distracted at the beginning of the game and at the end of the half. However, Dortmund's players did not show such emotions. They still continued to intercept AC on the court.
Milan's players did not suffer from lack of concentration at this moment when the first half was about to end.
In the end, AC Milan ended the attack with Kaladze's long shot from outside the penalty area. Facing the shot from a relatively positive angle, Lehmann easily bent over and closed his jaw to hold the ball in his arms. When he was in the penalty area
After taking two steps and kicking the ball out, the referee blew the whistle to end the first half!
"The first half is over! The score is zero to zero! The whole game is not exciting, but the two sides are fighting each other anywhere on the field. The game is very fierce! Now let us take a look at the statistics. AC Milan has
Eleven shots were taken, five of which hit the goal frame. Dortmund had six shots, two of which hit the goal frame... AC Milan committed 16 fouls and received a yellow card, and Dortmund committed 11 fouls.
There is no card, and the ball possession ratio between the two sides is 61 to 39. AC Milan has an absolute advantage... In short, judging from the first half of the game, AC Milan has a considerable advantage, but Dortmund is definitely not without it.
The ability to resist, I’m afraid the second half of the game still depends on the performance of both sides.”
"Dick adopted a very safe approach... In terms of offensive ability, although Dortmund's three frontcourt attackers, Cavinagi, Rivaldo and Everton, are also quite outstanding, as well as Rosicky's
The organization and Frings' forward penetration... However, compared with the offensive combination of Shevchenko, Inzaghi, Rui Costa, and Seedorf, there is still a certain gap. In the semifinals before, they were able to do so in some cases.
The reason for suppressing Juventus is that the technical content of Juventus's midfield is slightly inferior. However, compared with AC Milan, their midfield has no advantage in any aspect.
Will be beaten by the speed of players like Shevchenko - just like in the group stage, at that time AC Milan defeated Real Madrid by relying on the direct pass from the midfield and Shevchenko's forward penetration, Dick
He couldn't tolerate such mistakes in the final, so he adopted defensive tactics. Now it seems that he did a pretty good job..."
"The problem with Dortmund now is that they don't have much strength in their counterattack. Rivaldo is under the tight defense of the opponent, and Cavinagi is not strong enough to create any opportunities in front of Nesta and Maldini. In fact, I think it is better to let
Okocha plays, after all, he has excellent ball control skills, which can allow Dortmund's midfielder to control the ball to a certain extent and reduce the pressure on the defense."
"No, no matter how good the ball is, it will be difficult to create any opportunities under the pressure exerted by AC Milan's midfield. Dick sent Everton just to make use of his speed and personal skills... Didn't Dick think about it?
Do you want to use offense to solve the problem? Did he save the money in the second half?"
At this time, even the boldest commentator never thought that Dick was betting on overtime and penalty shootouts - because it was actually very dangerous to have such an idea from the beginning.
One thing, if the opponent sees this and launches an attack with all his strength from the beginning, then even if your defense is iron-clad, it won't last that long!
But Dick is so sure, because he knows how cautious AC Milan is in this final in history. With Ancelotti's character, facing the first heavyweight championship in his coaching career, he will definitely be cautious.
In addition, although Dortmund was passively beaten in the first half, it also took the initiative to launch some counterattacks. By the end of the first half, he had no doubts about this. When the second half started, it didn't matter. He didn't have much time at that time.
, and there is not enough room for adjustment!
"Well done in the first half, guys. Although it was a bit unexpected, it will not affect our overall plan."
Dick said with a smile. He knew that the confidence of this plan came from not conceding the ball, so no matter what, he could not concede the ball - when Lehmann saved Inzaghi's close header in the first half
, Dick wanted to rush to the venue and kiss this guy to express his gratitude...
"In the second half, continue to defend. Be careful with Shevchenko dribbling the ball forward. However, he seemed very excited in the first half and his condition should have declined in the second half. You must not relax your defense against Inzaghi in the penalty area and don't cause anything.
Offside, this guy almost lives on the offside line... cut off some passes flying towards the penalty area, be careful of Rui Costa and Pirlo's long shots at the front of the penalty area, Seedorf should also pay attention to their offense
There are many good players, but the offensive ability of their defense is lower than usual. We should not pay too much attention to this. When counterattacking, be careful that only the three people in the frontcourt can participate in the counterattack, and the others should not show any signs in the backcourt.
Flaw, do you understand?"
Dortmund's players nodded one after another. Their defense in the first half gave them more confidence. Except for that excellent opportunity, AC Milan's offense at other times could only be played on the outside and unable to hit the penalty area.
This is nothing to Dortmund's defense, because Lehmann is in good shape now - as long as he does not make mistakes, few shots from outside the penalty area can break through his fingers, unless it is that kind of world wave -
But such a goal may not appear even once in ten games. Is there really such a high probability that a world wave will knock down Dortmund?
They don't believe it!
So at this time, they still have endless fighting spirit and courage to face the second half of the game.
"We created some opportunities in the first half and missed some opportunities."
In another locker room, Ancelotti frowned and said to all the Milan players: "But this is necessary because Dortmund's counterattack and offensive capabilities are not weak. If we relax
If we defend, it is very likely that they will succeed in a sneak attack - you must know that in the finals of a competition, such a situation can easily occur. We must not give them such an opportunity. The process is not important, but the result is important. Do you understand?
?”
"Understood!" the AC Milan players replied in unison. As Serie A players, they understand this very well, and AC Milan's defense may not be monolithic. When facing Ajax, they were almost defeated.
If the opponent is defeated, if it is not a decisive victory at the last moment...
The half-time break passed quickly. When the players from both sides appeared on the court again, the fans on both sides of the stands let out huge cheers at the same time.
The trophy was still placed at the exit of the players' tunnel, but this time Dick didn't make any other unnecessary moves. He didn't even look at the big ear cup, but went directly to his team's coaching bench and sat down.
Many commentators sighed regretfully because they didn't see anything exciting. However, many commentators nodded: "Dick is a head coach who likes to show off, but his show
It's all before the game starts. When the game starts, he will focus all his attention on the game... Although some of his celebrations are sometimes exaggerated, we believe that this is his instinctive reaction.
If all he thinks about is how to stand out, he won't always be able to make timely adjustments during the game..."
In fact, this is what Ancelotti is most worried about. Not to mention, in the semi-finals, when Dick unexpectedly sent Ricken on, everyone was laughing at whether Dick was so superstitious that he wanted to start believing in someone.
A rookie forever, but at the end of the game, everyone was dumbfounded. It was precisely because this midfielder, who was almost forgotten by them, used a lob from outside the penalty area that reminded people of his peak period to make Juventus fall in the end.
At the critical moment, Dortmund, which was not expected by anyone before the start of the season, reached the final of the Champions League!
Ancelotti is not sure whether Dick will solve the game through an adjustment or a substitution in the second half. Therefore, he must be cautious and not give Dortmund any chance to score, even if it is for him.
This will give up some scoring opportunities, and don't let your own door be threatened!
