The draw for the UEFA Champions League 14th final was uneventful. Except for a "Premier League derby", there was no strong dialogue in the traditional sense. And how many variables are hidden in these four duels?
The battle between Manchester United and Chelsea is a match between two Premier League giants, as well as a match between Ferguson and Ancelotti. Judging from the Premier League standings, Manchester United has played one more game and is 9 points ahead of Chelsea.
In the Champions League final of the 2008 season, Manchester United also defeated Chelsea in a penalty shootout, but judging from historical origins, Chelsea did not have no chance against Manchester United.
Chelsea's biggest opportunity lies with Ancelotti. In fact, Ancelotti and Ferguson met 4 times in the Champions League. In the 18th final of the Champions League in the 2005 season, Ancelotti's AC Milan won 1-0 at home and away.
A complete victory over Manchester United, with Crespo scoring the goal. And in 0
In the UEFA Champions League semi-finals of the 607 season, AC Milan, led by Ancelotti, lost 2-3 on the road, but completed a clean reversal 3-0 at home and eliminated Manchester United again. It is worth mentioning that Ancelotti
After defeating Manchester United twice, Ti led the team to reach the final.
The feud between Ancelotti and Ferguson continues in the Premier League. In the two Premier League clashes this season, in the 18th round, Chelsea, which had been winless for 5 rounds before, defeated Manchester United 2-1. Ancelotti faced off against Ferguson.
The results have reached 3 wins and 1 loss, which has a huge advantage. Of course, Manchester United's schedule of visiting first and then home will be a favorable factor, because Ancelotti eliminated Ferguson's Manchester United twice before, and Manchester United's schedule is first home first.
guest.
There is another objective situation. Chelsea no longer has much progress in the league. If Ancelotti wants to stay, he must make a difference in the Champions League. Manchester United is at the top of the league but only has 3 points more than Arsenal with 1 game more.
, the current situation cannot allow Ferguson to be distracted.
Taken together, although Manchester United is in superior form, Chelsea is not afraid of Manchester United, especially Ancelotti is not afraid of Ferguson. Coupled with Chelsea's all-or-nothing situation, among the two teams, Chelsea has a greater chance of advancing.
Manchester United drew Chelsea in the Champions League quarter-finals. Judging from the schedule, Manchester United plays guests before hosts, which is an advantage. But if Sir Alex Ferguson sees the upcoming Manchester League schedule, even if Chelsea is eliminated, he will never laugh.
The first leg of the quarter-finals between Manchester United and Chelsea will be held on April 6. Four days ago, Manchester United challenged the London team West Ham away from home in the Premier League. Three days after the first leg against Chelsea, Manchester United will play in
The Premier League will play Fulham at home; after three days of rest, Manchester United will face Chelsea in the second leg at Old Trafford. Within 11 days, Manchester United will play 4 games against three London teams.
Starting from the second round with Chelsea, Manchester United ushered in a truly devilish schedule. This is also the last devilish schedule for Manchester United this season.
On April 12, Manchester United will play Chelsea in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals; on April 16, they will play the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City at Wembley; on April 23,
Manchester United will play the difficult Everton at home in the Premier League; if they can defeat Chelsea and advance to the Champions League semi-finals, April 26
On May 1, Manchester United will go to an away game to challenge the winner of Inter Milan and Schalke 04; on May 1, Manchester United will have an early decisive battle with Arsenal for the Premier League championship; on May 4, Manchester United will compete in the Champions League semi-finals.
They will face the winner of Inter Milan and Schalke 04 at home; on May 7, Manchester United will face Chelsea at home in the league.
In other words, if they fail to reach the Champions League semi-finals, Manchester United will play five important games in 26 days, encounter Chelsea twice, and face Manchester City, Everton and Arsenal. If they successfully reach the semi-finals
In the final, Manchester United will play 7 important games in 26 days. In addition to the four strong opponents mentioned above, they may also encounter the defending Champions League champion Inter Milan twice. Five of the 7 games in 26 days will be against giants, which can be called a century.
A super devil's race once in a while.
This is the third devilish schedule that Manchester United has encountered this season, but it is also the most difficult one. The past two devilish schedules have made Manchester United miserable, but this time it is more intense than any other time.
From September 22 to October 2 last year, Manchester United challenged Scunthorpe, Bolton, Valencia and Sunderland in away games in 11 days, and finally achieved a record of 2 wins and 2 draws. From February
From the 23rd to March 6th, Manchester United ushered in their second four consecutive away games this season. In 12 days, they challenged Marseille, Wigan, Chelsea and Liverpool away from home. As a result, they only achieved 1 win, 1 draw and 2 losses.
achievements.
Currently, Manchester United is still in the Premier League, competing in the Champions League and FA Cup, but relatively speaking, the Premier League and FA Cup are undoubtedly more realistic. The former is very hopeful that after the end of this season, it will surpass its old rival Liverpool in the number of top domestic league titles.
; The latter can even accomplish his feats in one game and win the FA Cup after a long absence of several seasons.
If Manchester United goes all out to play in the Champions League and fight Chelsea to the death, but loses the Premier League and FA Cup, it will undoubtedly be very uneconomical and may even be difficult to win. The specific choice depends on Sir Alex Ferguson's skills.
Manchester United narrowly defeated Chelsea in the battle for the Premier League title last season, but the Blues were not convinced because in their view, Chelsea defeated Manchester United through controversial goals at home and away.
In the battle at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea captain John Terry's winning goal, Drogba was suspected of interfering with Edwin van der Sar in the offside position; in the battle at Old Trafford, Drogba's winning goal was obviously offside, but the main goal was that he was offside.
The referee did not give a penalty. With this controversial goal, Chelsea got the decisive three points at Old Trafford.
Judging from the strength comparison between the two sides, Chelsea has a slight advantage. Compared with the lineup of the Champions League final three years ago, Chelsea purchased Torres in the winter and introduced Benayoun and Ramires last summer. Their strength has increased.
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Manchester United lost Cristiano Ronaldo and Tevez, and mainly purchased potential stocks such as Valencia, Hernandez and Smallin. However, compared with Chelsea's signing level, Manchester United is still slightly insufficient.
But it should also be noted that the Blues' main lineup is too aging, and Drogba has been reduced to a substitute in poor form; Malouda has gradually lost his way after his heroic form at the beginning of the season; Essien and Lampard are often injured.
Troubled by illness; Mikel is standing still; what's more, if Alex cannot come back smoothly, since Luiz will lose the qualification to represent Chelsea in the Champions League this season, Ivanovic will play as a central defender, which will make the right back position become Chelsea's
's weakness.
Looking back at Manchester United's lineup, although Ferdinand cannot return in time, as long as Vidic can return and is supplemented by Smallin, Manchester United's central defense should not be a big problem. And by then, Rafael will most likely return, and Manchester United can still make up for it.
Come up with a set of relative
With a reasonable back line, the Red Devils' best advantage may be the striker combination. It is not an exaggeration to say that Manchester United's current striker is the sharpest striker in Europe. Rooney plus Li Yu, supplemented by Mexican teenager Hernandez, this way
The front line is terrifying.
Since 2002, Manchester United has never won at Stamford Bridge, but for the Red Devils, playing first before home is definitely an advantage. Of course, Manchester United is still facing a three-front battle, and although Chelsea is fighting on two fronts, there is no league win.
There is pressure to compete for the title. Therefore, Chelsea, who are more eager for the Champions League honors and aim to use the Champions League honors as a life-saving straw, will be more determined than Manchester United. This may affect the final balance of victory and defeat.
However, apart from a slight advantage in the schedule, for Manchester United, the biggest asset the Red Devils have is still the experienced Ferguson.
In the 2008 Champions League final, just three days after Chelsea lost to Manchester United on penalty kicks, Chelsea coach Grant was fired. In the summer of 2008, Abramovich hired Brazilian coach Scolari as Chelsea's new coach, but the Brazilian was acclimated and had a poor coaching record.
, was fired early.
Later, Abramovich asked Hiddink to come over to help. As the caretaker coach, the famous Dutch coach did a very good job. He led the team to win the FA Cup and prevented Chelsea from going empty-handed throughout the season.
In the summer of 2009, Abramovich hired famous Italian coach Ancelotti as Chelsea's new coach. In his first season coaching Chelsea, Ancelotti led the team to win the Premier League and FA Cup double crown. After the start of this season, Chelsea
It has always been smooth sailing, but with Abramovich firing assistant coach Wilkins, Chelsea's state has plummeted.
Now, Abramovich has given Ancelotti a death order. If he cannot win the Champions League this season, he will fire the Italian this summer. In other words, if Ferguson leads Manchester United to eliminate Chelsea in the quarter-finals,
That's compared to pulling the trigger on Ancelotti himself.
Since acquiring Chelsea in the summer of 2003, the Blues have been coached by six famous coaches including Ranieri, Mourinho, Grant, Scolari, Hiddink and Ancelotti, while Manchester United has always been coached by Sir Alex Ferguson.
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If Chelsea are eliminated in the quarter-finals this time, Sir Alex Ferguson will have the opportunity to see the arrival of a new opponent this summer, and this will be the seventh coach of Chelsea under Roman Abramovich. He will have to fight against the opponent's six top names in a row with one person.
Handsome, this should be another miracle created by Sir Alex Ferguson.
Back in the Premier League, Manchester United faces Bolton Wanderers at Old Trafford this round.
Manchester United has recorded 5 wins and 1 draw against Bolton in the past 6 times. They have defeated Bolton in the past 7 home games, scoring 18 goals and conceding only 2 goals. The last time Bolton won at Old Trafford was in September 2002, and the current Newcastle midfielder No.
Lan scored the only goal.
The two sides have met in the Premier League for 23 times. Manchester United has the upper hand with 15 wins, 5 draws and 3 losses, including 8 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses at home. This is the 119th meeting between the two sides. Previously, Manchester United had the upper hand with 51 wins, 25 draws and 42 losses.
Ferguson started a 5-game suspension, O'Shea and Rafael were absent due to injuries, and Scholes received a total of 10 yellow cards and suffered a 2-game suspension. Evans, who recovered from his ankle injury, came on the rotation, Valencia's first game since September last year
In the starting lineup, Irving and Park Ji-sung returned from injury and entered the bench.
It wasn't until the 88th minute that Manchester United broke the deadlock. Valencia passed the ball and Nani cut inside and shot a rebound ball from 20 yards that made Jaaskelainen save. Li Yu suddenly broke out from the crowd and followed up with a follow-up shot into the net.
Facing Manchester United's No. 9, Bolton cannot relax even for a second. As long as the game is not over, Li Yu will tirelessly look for killing opportunities.
Manchester United relied on Li Yu's buzzer-beater to score three points, while their main rival Arsenal drew with their opponent.
They conceded a goal in just 3 minutes of the opening game, and suffered another blow in the 57th minute of the second half due to Almunia's stupid mistake. Seeing that Arsenal was about to face a humiliating defeat, they suffered a "season double kill" from a newly promoted team.
Finally, Arshavin and Van Persie stepped forward in time. After a magical and lucky 2 goals in 8 minutes, the Gunners finally avoided embarrassment.
However, coach Arsene Wenger's joy could not last for a few minutes. Then on another field, Manchester United relied on Li Yu's winning goal and actually scored 3 points with less and more.
So in the standings, Arsenal, who were temporarily in second place, were once again widened by the leaders. They had one game less and were already 5 points behind Ferguson's team.
"Today's league has become a two-power competition. Only we can compete with Manchester United for the championship. The other teams are already too far behind. Unless Chelsea can defeat Manchester United and win all the subsequent games, they will be able to win.
Opportunity. But this possibility is too small." This game compares
Before the game, Professor Wenger was still very optimistic about the Gunners' championship situation. Indeed, the most realistic goal for many teams, including Chelsea and Manchester City, is to compete for a Champions League seat next season. However, compared to the leader Manchester United,
How sure are Arsenal of going back and winning the title?
At least judging from the current momentum of the competition, Arsenal have already lost a game.
After losing the League Cup final on February 27, and then being eliminated by Manchester United in the FA Cup on March 12, Arsenal were eliminated from three competitions in just 13 days; from being almost within reach
The first championship in 6 years, and now they may end the whole season empty-handed. It can be said that Wenger's disciples have experienced everything.
The reincarnation from hall to hell, the huge psychological gap, and the severe impact on morale are all conceivable. As for the only league that Arsenal people can compete for now, they have been stretched to 5 in the standings.
points, could it be that in just 21 days (3 weeks), Arsenal had lost all four lines and the season ended early?
To say the least, Arsenal, who have repeatedly missed opportunities to win the championship, may have to look at the eyes of rival Manchester United. However, disappointment does not mean despair. At least in the competition for the league, the Arsenal people are not out yet! Because Manchester United
They are not monolithic! In the just-concluded Champions League draw ceremony, Manchester United and Chelsea were drawn together. Single-line combat will be Arsenal's biggest advantage in overturning Manchester United.
Let’s look at the schedule again. The first leg of the 14th final between Manchester United and Chelsea will be held on April 6. Four days ago, Manchester United challenged the London team West Ham away from home in the Premier League. Three days after the first leg against Chelsea, Manchester United will
They will play Fulham at home in the Premier League; after three days of rest, Manchester United will face Chelsea in the second round at Old Trafford. Within 11 days, Manchester United will play 4 games against three London teams.
It was not until the second leg against Chelsea on April 12 that Manchester United ushered in a truly devilish schedule; four days later, they will play the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City at Wembley; on April 23, Manchester United
Facing Everton in the league; if they can defeat Chelsea and advance to the Champions League semi-finals, on April 26, Manchester United
United will challenge the winner of Inter Milan and Schalke 04 away from home; on May 1, Manchester United will have an early decisive battle with Arsenal for the Premier League championship; on May 4, Manchester United will face Arsenal at home in the Champions League semi-finals
The winner of Inter Milan and Schalke 04; on May 7, Manchester United will face Chelsea at home in the league.
In other words, if they fail to reach the Champions League semi-finals, Manchester United will play five important games in 26 days, encounter Chelsea twice, and face Manchester City, Everton and Arsenal. If they successfully reach the semi-finals
In the final, Manchester United will play 7 important games in 26 days. In addition to the four strong opponents mentioned above, they may also encounter the defending Champions League champion Inter Milan twice. Five of the 7 games in 26 days will be against giants.
On the contrary, Arsenal's upcoming schedule is extremely easy. Not only do they not have to face the terrifying and difficult double-match week, but not all of their upcoming opponents are tough to crack.
They will face Blackburn (home), Blackpool (away), Liverpool (home), Bolton (away), Manchester United (home), Stoke City (away), Villa (home), Fulton (home), and Manchester United (home) in the league.
LeM (away), plus a North London derby against Tottenham. Based on this analysis, in addition to Manchester United, Arsenal only has two strong enemies, Tottenham and Liverpool, on their way to the championship. If they can win in May
Wenger's team won the Tianwangshan battle against Manchester United on the 1st. It can even be said that Wenger's team has great hope of reversing Manchester United and winning the championship. After all, compared to Manchester United, which has a tight schedule and frequently encounters wealthy clubs, Arsenal will be much, much more relaxed!
Finally, don’t forget Manchester United’s scarred defense. Rio Ferdinand, the leader of the defense, has almost bid farewell to the season. Vidic, Rafael and others also have varying degrees of injuries. It is difficult to imagine relying on Etienne.
With the immature central defender combination of Vince and Smalling, how far can Manchester United go in the FA Cup, League and Champions League?
Of course, it is still the same sentence. If Wenger's team can avoid the embarrassment of repeatedly losing points to weak teams like today, then it will be possible to reverse Manchester United and win the first league championship in seven years since 2004.
became extremely hopeful.
Regardless of whether it is Wenger's stubborn words or not, Arsenal has not lost the opportunity to compete for the Premier League crown. Whether they can have the last laugh, they cannot just rely on their opponents' mistakes. Arsenal must also produce corresponding results!
