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Chapter 213 Participate in rotation

The UEFA Champions League 14 finals are out, and two past finals are a rematch. In addition to Arsenal versus Barcelona, ​​the encounter between Manchester United and Bayern Munich is also an eye-catching heavyweight dialogue.

The topic will inevitably be dragged back to 1999. Manchester United's official website commented: "Of course, the 7 encounters between the two teams include the 1999 final at Camp Nou, which may be the greatest night in the history of the Red Devils. Sheringham and Sol

Skjaer's stoppage time goal sealed the historic Triple Crown."

Manchester United will never forget that game, even though they were the luckier side in the process. After Bayern led 1-0, they had many opportunities to make up for it. Effenberg's long-range shot missed the post, and Yankel

The overhead kick hit the crossbar, and Sauer's lob hit the goalpost... Of course, the Red Devils lost their main center midfielder combination of Keane and Scholes before the game, which was also an important reason for Bayern's upper hand.

Judging from the historical confrontation, Bayern also has a slight advantage over Manchester United. The two teams drew 2-2 and 1-1 in the UEFA Champions League group stage in the 1998-99 season. Manchester United came back to win in the final. However, in the 2000-01 season, Bayern

in the Champions League

Double play (2-1 at home, 1-0 away) against Manchester United. In the UEFA Champions League group stage in the 2001-02 season, the two sides tied again (1-1, 0-0). In the pre-season Mercedes-Benz Cup Invitational Tournament, Bayern had

Defeated Manchester United on penalties to win the title.

But history has become history after all, and the actual situation is the most important. To be fair, although Bayern today has famous players such as Robben and Franck Ribery, its status and weight in European football are no longer what they were in the late 1990s and 20th century.

The original Giants team, the configuration of other positions in the lineup and the overall combat effectiveness were far behind compared to top giants like Manchester United, and the team led by Van Gaal

In the first season, the team's situation was hardly stable, and the elimination of Fiorentina in the 18th final was a huge effort and a lot of controversy. Looking at Manchester United, the traces of Rotvis leaving the team have been in the past year.

was eliminated by Ferguson, Rooney, and Li Yu are in the best condition of their careers. In addition, the Red Devils 451's playing style has become more stable, and their defensive and offensive capabilities have been extremely outstanding.[

When facing Bayern again, Ferguson must be full of words of respect. For the "giant" with historical background, Sir Alex Ferguson has always had no lack of respect. But just like the 18th final against Milan, history is only the past, and the actual strength comparison and state determine

everything,

This is an eternal truth on the football field. Milan used to be Manchester United's nemesis in the European war. The Red Devils were eliminated in the previous three encounters. However, now the Rossoneri are no longer as good as the dynasty era. Manchester United's 3-2, 4-0 sweep shows that

The "realistic gap" between the two teams.

According to public opinion, Bayern's situation is similar to that of Milan in the face of Manchester United, which is gaining momentum. The changes in the odds before and after the draw at William Hill Bookmaker show this view. Bayern's winning odds have changed from 1100 to 1300, which is better than the draw.

It was even less optimistic before, but Manchester United has changed from 450 to 400, and the popularity continues to rise. Obviously, the reality is more valuable than historical records. This is also the reason why Manchester United defeated Milan and continued to be optimistic after being drawn against Bayern.

Manchester United was drawn against Bayern Munich in the Champions League finals of 14. Everyone in the club believed that the team had a good chance of advancing. Head coach Ferguson said that he hoped that the team would have a complete lineup to face the competition.

Ferguson said: "The history of the past encounters with Bayern Munich in European competitions shows that this will be a very difficult matchup."

"There will be a very good atmosphere in both games, they have an excellent stadium, good turf and our opponent is a good, experienced team."

"Hopefully we will have a complete squad with everyone we need available and we will have a good chance (of advancing)."

Manchester United club secretary Ramsden expressed optimism: "If we can choose the result of the draw, then it will be a good draw, but the game needs to be won, and we are still a long way from the final.

I am sure that there will be no thought of underestimating the enemy at Old Trafford."

The overall combat effectiveness is superior, but Manchester United has some off-field problems.

The first is the influence and schedule of the Premier League. At present, the competition for the league has become fierce. The Red Magic have to make choices and give up, so they can only fight hard on both fronts.

On March 30, Manchester United will visit Munich for the first leg, and return to Old Trafford to play Bayern at home on April 7. Sandwiched between these two Champions League games is a home game against Chelsea on April 3.

In just 9 days, the Red Devils have to fight three tough battles, and these three are key battles that may determine the fate of the season. The pressure and the physical and mental fatigue caused by it can be imagined.

It can be said that how Chelsea performs and how much pressure it can put on Manchester United in the league will largely affect the Red Devils' Champions League preparations.

If they can successfully overcome the schedule and defeat Bayern, Manchester United's prospects in the semi-finals are widely optimistic. Both Lyon and Bordeaux are regarded as "underdogs" with far inferior strength. However, the reality is that

But that may not be the case. The two French teams are not as easy to deal with as people imagined. The former eliminated Real Madrid, and the latter is a powerful team with amazing stability. No matter who plays against Manchester United, they may become a difficult team.

The unpredictable team.

Manchester United has suffered the loss of underestimating the French team in the history of the Champions League. In the 1997-98 season, the Red Devils lost to Monaco (0-0 away, 1-1 at home). In the 2005-06 season, Manchester United failed to qualify from the Champions League group.

To qualify, one draw and one loss against Lille (0-0 at home, 0-1 away) was the key.

In this Champions League draw, two French teams met in the finals of 14. It seemed like they were killing each other, but from a "conspiracy theory" point of view, this was equivalent to ensuring that there would be a French team in the semi-finals, extending to the semi-finals.

In the final, will this French team be "escorted" to advance to the final at the Bernabeu? Of course, this is just a wild guess. Platini will never admit that his Champions League has any stains or shady secrets.

Sometimes the road seems smooth, but if you don't pay attention, you will fall into the abyss. Chelsea in the 2003-04 season is a lesson for Manchester United. It was the first year that Abramovich took over. Ranieri's team overturned and suppressed themselves in the 14th final.

Arsenal in one season, and considering the semi-finals that year (the other three teams were Porto, Monaco and Deportivo), Chelsea's prospects for winning the championship looked very good. However, in the semi-finals, the Blues lost 1-1 away from home.

3. They lost 2-2 at home to Monaco and were sadly eliminated.

During the interview, Li Yu was also asked about whether Manchester United's excessive consumption in the domestic league would affect the Champions League.

"It is a difficult process. Next we have to face Liverpool. This game will have a great impact on the final trend of the league. Now every game is the focus. However, enjoying this difficult process will also help

My growth, I hope to be able to get through this difficult stage with Manchester United!"

It seems that Manchester United's No. 9 is still very confident, describing the tough competition as a growth process.

Ferguson is not so calm anymore![

The old man was angry again. In the tense competition for the league title, he took aim at the Football Association. The cause was Gerrard's elbow.

During Liverpool's victory over Portsmouth, the Reds captain elbowed the opponent's Michael Brown. If the FA punished him based on the video, Gerrard may miss Sunday's game against Manchester United, but in the end the FA did not make any decision.

The punishment measures made Ferguson very angry.

"I didn't expect Gerrard to be charged at all, because the FA body (disciplinary committee) is completely out of business. I don't know if they know what they are doing. Some of the decisions are head-scratching and not sustainable.

"

"But I definitely think that if a Manchester United player did this, he would be punished. Look at the example of Ferdinand." Ferdinand was suspended for four games by the FA for a similar elbow strike. No wonder Ferguson was dissatisfied.

.

Ferguson also called for some former coaches to be brought in to topple the current establishment: "I think it might be worthwhile to have some coaches who are not currently employed to take over the department, who have been involved in the game and that's a huge advantage for them, especially with the current ones.

Compared to guys.”

In addition, Manchester United midfielder Nani is also launching an offensive against Liverpool. He publicly mobilized Gerrard to transfer and said that if the Englishman is really ambitious, he should not stay in Liverpool.

"I don't know what Gerrard's plans are this summer, but a player of his quality definitely wants to win the championship. This didn't happen at Liverpool. He can consider leaving the team."

"Last summer I included Liverpool in the championship group. I was surprised by their performance. It will not be easy for them to enter the top four this year. Other teams performed well. The smallest changes may affect the entire situation."

No matter what was said, the game came as scheduled.

No one expected that Liverpool would turn against the visitors at the beginning and give Manchester United a blow at Old Trafford.

Liverpool got a perfect start. In the 5th minute, Torres stole the ball in midfield and passed the ball to Gerrard. The Red Army captain passed the ball directly. Kuyt made a pass near the bottom line on the right side of the penalty area. Torres, who was defending, scored with a header from 10 yards. This was him.

The 18th goal of the season.

After conceding the goal, Manchester United immediately launched an offensive, and the striker led by Li Yu and Rooney also joined in the crazy counterattack.

In the 12th minute, Li Yu broke into the penalty area and was pulled down by Mascherano. Li Yu won a penalty kick for Manchester United. The referee had already pointed to the penalty spot. It was an undisputed penalty kick.

Li Yu personally took action and sent the football into the Liverpool gate controlled by Reina. Just four minutes later, Manchester United equalized the score with Li Yu's penalty kick.

The two sides regained the balance. Suya intercepted Carrick's pass and passed a long pass to Torres. Vidic got it first. Park Ji-sung made a mistake in stopping the ball in front of the penalty area and missed the chance to shoot.

In the 21st minute, Kuyt separated and Torres' cross won a corner kick. Gerrard took it and Lucas' header was confiscated by Edwin van der Sar. But Manchester United missed the opportunity to take the lead 1 minute later. Valencia's right

After breaking through, Suya made a pass. Park Ji-sung, who was being defended, headed the ball from the edge of the small penalty area and missed the goal. In the 25th minute, Torres was given a yellow card for a foul on Park Ji-sung. In the 29th minute, Fletcher passed the ball and Nani left

Lu Yuan's "shot" was saved by Reina into the near corner.

The two sides were in a stalemate. Manchester United's ball possession rate in the first half was 59% higher than Liverpool's. Although Manchester United's passing success rate was only 822%, it was still 10 percentage points higher than the Red Army. This can be seen intuitively from the data on the field.

We can draw a conclusion that in the double-red match, both sides will fight aggressively and put a lot of pressure on their opponents.

In the 40th minute, Evra made a diagonal pass from the left, and Park Ji-sung headed the ball from 12 yards away. The ball missed the right post and missed. In half-time stoppage time, Carragher fouled Fletcher in front of the penalty area and was given a yellow card.

The referee awarded a free kick.

Rooney and Li Yu stood in front of the ball, looked at each other in tacit understanding, nodded at the same time, and the two of them had already decided on the penalty plan.

Li Yu stayed in front of the football, while Rooney ran into the wall, trying to squeeze out a gap to gain more space for Li Yu's shot.

How could the Liverpool players not know the skill of Manchester United's No. 9 free kick? Seven people formed a human wall, and they secretly moved forward when the referee was not paying attention.

Li Yu started to run, but the powerful free kick that people imagined did not appear. Suddenly Li Yu gave a light shot, and Rooney suddenly burst out of the wall and took advantage of the situation.[

Oh my God!

Li Yu and Rooney played a one-two with a free kick in front of the Liverpool penalty area. Without Li Yu's absolute speed, this kind of cooperation would not have been possible. Besides, there were people everywhere in the penalty area. As long as one of them stretched out and called, this free kick attack

It's over.

Wearing No. 9, he rushed into Liverpool's penalty area like lightning. When the ball arrived, all the Liverpool players seemed to have just reacted. The funniest one was Agger. After jumping up to block the ball, he turned around and was still looking for the ball.

traces.

After Li Yu caught the ball, he immediately hit the goal with great force, and the football went in close to the near post.

Reina had no reaction at all, it was so wonderful, almost perfect free kick coordination.

The score in the first half was fixed at 2:1, with Manchester United leading Liverpool at home.

The half-time battle was still fierce. In the 52nd minute, Rooney passed the ball, and Park Ji-sung's volley in front of the penalty area was scored by Reina. Manchester United gradually took advantage of the home court advantage to take the initiative, and Liverpool's counterattack force investment was obviously insufficient. Manchester United's 60th minute

To expand the score, Rooney passed the ball to the right, Fletcher passed the ball, and Park Ji-sung grabbed a header from the edge of the penalty area before Glen Johnson. This was the South Korean winger's second goal in the past three games.

3:1, the double red meeting completely lost suspense, Manchester United already led by two goals at home.

Ferguson immediately made substitution adjustments. Li Yu was replaced by Scholes. This time it was Manchester United's No. 9's turn to enjoy the early end of the game.

However, after Li Yu came off the court, he still seemed a little unsatisfied and walked to the sideline reluctantly.

"Boy, the tough battle is still to come, your task now is to have a good rest!" Ferguson frowned, but he still explained the original intention of the substitution to Li Yu while shaking hands.

"Boss, I know, I'm just not used to being replaced so early!" Li Yu took the towel and clothes handed over by the staff and expressed his thoughts.

Even if there is no communication, a few simple sentences can avoid many unnecessary misunderstandings.

Especially when faced with a head coach who is known for his toughness and iron fist like Ferguson, it is not easy to explain to his players.

Ferguson nodded and asked Li Yu to sit on the bench.

In the 76th minute, Fletcher passed the ball and Rooney passed two people and then shot from 25 yards over the crossbar. Then Babel replaced Maxi Rodriguez. In the 79th minute, Giggs replaced Nani. Liverpool completed the final adjustment in the 83rd minute, and Benayoun replaced Lucas. In the 86th minute, Park Ji-sung passed the ball, and Rooney broke into the left rib of the penalty area and shot low from 15 yards and missed the near corner.

In the 90th minute, Gerrard made a pass from the right side of the penalty area. Torres missed a good opportunity from 12 yards. He hit the ball high. Benayoun's weak header from the edge of the small penalty area was picked off by Edwin van der Sar. Injury time In 5 minutes, Manchester United maintained the victory until the end. Manchester United had won 4 consecutive games and was 9 points ahead of Chelsea, which had 2 games in hand.

Liverpool have gone 6 consecutive league away games without a win.

Today's game was very intense. Webber showed five yellow cards one after another, but Ferguson thought it was too light. In his opinion, the penalty kick awarded to his team was no problem, but Mascherano, who committed the foul, deserved a red card. Leave the field, but Webber did not do so. Ferguson said: "I think it should be a red card if the penalty decision is made. Because I don't understand how, if you use normal actions, you can block Valencia's shot." .This is an absolute last-minute opportunity.”

When talking about the entire game, Ferguson said: "The fight was very intense. Liverpool was very good at interception. We know that the reason why they did this was because we were strong. So you have to be patient. Park played Scored a very wonderful goal, and he played another important role for us today." When asked whether this game was considered a classic, Ferguson replied: "I'm sure it's not qualified. But the fight was so intense that you couldn't take your eyes away. I think there is no one who can hold a cup of tea and watch the TV broadcast quietly. I'm sure of this."

At the last moment of the game, Torres missed a rare good opportunity, and Ferguson was also a little worried. He said: "Torres may have played too hastily. This was our only big defensive hole in the entire game."

When the media asked whether Li Yu was replaced early and seemed unwilling to do so, Ferguson did not express much, insisting that it was just a necessary rotation. As for the rest, there was nothing to talk about!

Li Yu also answered similar questions in the same tone and said that there was no problem in communicating with the head coach!

However, in the league match three days later, Li Yu did not appear in Manchester United's starting lineup, which caused quite a stir.

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