The away game against Galati Steel is definitely a good opportunity for Manchester United to reverse their decline after having drawn the previous two games.
The opponent is the Romanian champion who has been bullied by everyone before, which indicates that this will be a devastating half-time offensive and defensive performance.
However, the home team's tight defensive system really made the confident Manchester United players suffer. The two central midfielders Mata and Carrick were not a threat at all. Nani was focused on by his opponents and frequently fought hard one-on-two.
The Portuguese, who has been in great form recently, cannot break open the opponent's defense. Valencia has become the terminator of their own offense. The poor form of the Flash has almost completely paralyzed the Red Devils' attack on the right.
At the critical moment, Li Yu stepped forward. He almost single-handedly turned the tide in the second half. He used two golden goals to help the team get the key 3 points with difficulty, and also scored twice with his performance.
Helped Manchester United gain three points in the away game.
In the 64th minute, Manchester United got a chance to counterattack. Li Yu received a pass from Nani and broke into the penalty area. Seeing the man in the middle marking Hernandez, Li Yu immediately sent a half-high pass. Seeing that Xiaopea was about to form a single shot
, Galati Steel captain Costin stretched out his hand to block the ball. Referee Bridge decisively pointed to the penalty spot. Manchester United, which had been unable to attack for a long time, got an excellent opportunity to break the deadlock.
Li Yu, who has scored 11 goals in all competitions this season, successfully deceived the goalkeeper and shot into the lower right corner of the goal to help the team take the lead.
After scoring the goal, Li Yu clenched his fists and shouted excitedly, and kissed the Manchester United team emblem. It is worth mentioning that this is Li Yu's 25th Champions League goal, surpassing Scholes (24 goals) and becoming the first goal scorer in the Champions League history.
The English player who scored the most goals, while Lampard (20 goals) and Gerrard (19 goals), who ranked third and fourth, are both in their thirties. In other words, in recent years, Li Yu’s
The leading position will be shaken by others.
Sure enough, in stoppage time, Li Yu further consolidated his position on this list. In the 92nd minute, Li Yu took the ball from the left side of the penalty area. Facing Antal's frontal defense, Manchester United's No. 9 took advantage of the rhythm.
The change lured the opponent to stretch out his feet to steal the ball, and then moved the ball outward. He was tripped and Manchester United got another penalty kick opportunity.
Li Yu still chose to shoot from the right side of the goal, but this time it was more powerful. Although the goalkeeper judged the right direction, he still couldn't stop the ball from flying into the net. Li Yu helped the team with his 26th Champions League goal.
Seal the victory.[
In fact, Li Yu had two shots before, showing his excellent feeling in front of the goal. In the 31st minute, Xiaopang took a direct free kick on the right side of the penalty area, and his low curve shot went straight around the wall.
In the lower right corner of the goal, unfortunately, the force was a little weak and Grahova failed to save it.
In the 63rd minute, Nani dunked the defensive player from the left and passed a low pass to the middle. Li Yuxiao took the ball with his back in the penalty area, turned 180 degrees on the spot and shot. The ball missed the left goal post.
Manchester United's official website commented after the game that Li Yu was still far behind his best form, but it still determined the direction of the entire game.
A victory allowed Manchester United, which had two consecutive draws in the Champions League, to move up to second place in the group. However, for Manchester United, ranking second is nothing more than creating problems for themselves in advance. In this way, they may encounter the Spanish duo prematurely, or even next year.
Bayern, which will play at home, should not be underestimated. Therefore, for Manchester United, winning the last three games and ranking first in the group is their only option.
After the game in Bucharest, Anshuai briefly summarized the team's first three games in the Champions League this season, "We are very happy with the draws in the first two games. This gave us a certain amount of pressure, so we must win tonight and get the reward."
I'm very happy."
Such polite words were not what Ancelotti said willingly. If the away draw against Benfica was worth it because of the subsequent 3-1 victory over Chelsea, then the 2-0 lead against Stoke City was equalized by Basel.
An unplanned home game dropped points.
Even in this game against Galardi Steel, the opponent's strict defense once made Manchester United unable to perform. Fortunately, they finally got three points. While sentencing Galardi to death, they also secured themselves the opportunity to top the group.
, and their opponent is Benfica, who currently ranks first in the group.
Because of their away win in Basel, Benfica currently leads the group with 7 points. For them, the most important thing is that they challenge Manchester United away. Manchester United hides its main force at the Stadium of Light, and substitute goalkeeper Lindegaard's outstanding performance helps them take away
One point, but facing Benfica at home is their only way to win.
In the 2005-2006 season, the Portuguese team caused a huge humiliation for Manchester United, which placed them at the bottom of the group. In that season, Benfica also eliminated the defending champion Liverpool 2-0 in the knockout round in the quarterfinals. Fortunately, Manchester United did not have to fight to qualify this time.
If they are struggling, as long as they win the other two opponents, they can ensure qualifying from the group. But if that happens, this season's Champions League knockout rounds will begin with a fierce battle.
Back in the Premier League, for the Manchester duo, the midweek Champions League match is a must-win game. The two teams, which had previously been winless in the first two rounds of the Champions League, urgently need a victory to save themselves.
The fate of qualifying for the Champions League; but whether it is Manchester City at home against Villarreal, which is at the bottom of the group, or Manchester United, which is challenging the weakest team in the group, the Garadi Steel, this seemingly simple game has become extremely complicated. The reason?
For them, the weekend’s top spot battle cannot help but distract them!
Manchester City faced Villarreal and suffered a blow in the beginning. With Aguero's goal in the last minute of injury time when he should have rested his energy, they barely managed to take all three points. In Romania, Manchester United only scored three points.
Two penalty kicks defeated Galardi Steel, and captain Vidic was sent off, causing the 10-man team to consume so much energy.
This should not have happened, but it is reasonable. As Ancelotti said, "This is the most evenly matched derby in my coaching career." Not to mention, the two teams are currently staggered in the standings.
The city derby is still a battle for the top spot!
Manchester City, which has many soldiers and generals, may be more comfortable physically because they are at home. Aguero only played for half an hour, but Dzeko, especially the team's core players Silva and Yaya Toure, played the whole game. Maybe
It was not in Mancini's plan; similarly, Manchester United's No. 9, who has been recuperating, has no problem playing the entire game, but Nani is also not known for his physical strength.
But in comparison, Manchester City has declined from its heyday. After repeated big wins, this game was only won by Aguero's score in the last minute. The subsequent Champions League games will surely continue to distract them. Manchester United, on the other hand, has slightly improved.
, after three league games with one win and two draws, at least they have a complete victory in Romania and have the fate of qualifying as the group leader in their own hands.
The two coaches also had completely opposite attitudes towards the game. Mancini appeared high-profile and shouted "Manchester United, come here", but in fact, from his tactics against strong opponents last season to his "initiative" against Bayern in the Champions League this season,
"Passive", the Italians did not seem to completely let go; and Ancelo
Ti Ze calmly arranged the game in his own way, resting a leading winger for two consecutive games, allowing Hernandez and Li Yu, who had just recovered from injuries, to slowly find their form in the last two games, and used injuries carefully.
Ferdinand and Vidic returned to reorganize and stabilize the defense, and Anshuai was able to do it with ease.[
Even the derby in the same city was the first time the two Italian coaches collided head-on!
For Manchester City, they only need one draw in the away game to keep the top spot, which is the reason for Mancini's negative attitude; while for Ancelotti, it is interesting that he did not arrange an escape route for the team. At the beginning of the season
In the Charity Shield, Manchester City's passive response after taking a two-goal lead allowed Manchester United's youth team to complete a great comeback. Now, Ancelotti has created a reversal situation for the team from being behind in points before the game, so the smoke is definitely about to break out.
This Sunday the Premier League will stage an eye-catching top-of-the-table battle. Two Manchester teams will face off in the derby. Before the game, Manchester City seemed very confident. Dutch midfielder De Jong said that the team will take the standings with them.
The first strong mentality goes to Old Trafford.
"Of course, everyone believes we can win," De Jong said. "We go to Old Trafford as number one in the table and the goal is to remain number one after the game."
"The pressure is the same as last season but the difference is that we go into this derby top of the table and that brings pressure but there will always be pressure because that's how City have grown.
Get up."
In last season's FA Cup, Manchester City eliminated Manchester United and eventually won the championship. De Jong believes that they have the ability to repeat this scene. "Last season we proved that we can beat Manchester United, so we have nothing to prove, in this
We have shown our strength since the beginning of the season and do not need to play against Manchester United to prove how good we are. We are now at the top of the Premier League, so we will be very confident in this game and will display our own style as usual.
.This is a conversation between the two best teams in England and I expect it to be a good game."
In the current Premier League standings, the Manchester duo are strong, Chelsea are catching up, and Arsenal have fallen behind. Some people say that this Manchester derby has the effect of determining the trend of the championship, but De Jong does not agree with this. He believes
It's still early in the season and a game like this won't ultimately decide anything.
In addition, one of Manchester United's advantages over their rivals in the same city is their long history, but De Jong said that Manchester City is creating its own history. "You can't change Manchester United's achievements and history in twenty-five years in one year.
Repeat, we are making our own history, step by step, but it takes time. Maybe after spending a lot of money, you won't be allowed too long, but you
It still needs to be gradual, that's the reality. This team can be part of history, and that would be a great thing. So I and many players chose to join Manchester City, and to be honest, the treatment they gave was really good, everyone
You can all earn a high salary, but that's not the most important thing. Every player wants to win trophies, and we feel we can do that at Manchester City."
In the Champions League match in midweek, Manchester City defeated Villarreal 2-1 with Aguero's stoppage goal. This was also the team's first win in the Champions League this season. Everyone in the team felt confident.
De Jong said: "It's a huge boost, every game gives you some influence on the next one, and a win like this helps a lot before Sunday's big game."
Manchester City midfielder Barry also believes that the Champions League victory has given the team great confidence. "The goal in the last minute cheered everyone up, which has a huge boost in confidence. Entering Sunday's game, we will be even more confident."
Confidence, of course, you can't relax when you go to Old Trafford, we have to play at our best level this season, we respect Manchester United and hope it will be a good game."
Manchester City's Argentinian defender Zabaleta believes that Sunday's game against Manchester United is an opportunity. If it can be grasped, it will be very beneficial to the team's championship prospects this season. If they can beat the Red Devils away from home, Manchester City will establish a 5-point advantage.
Zabaleta said: "We are two points ahead of Manchester United in the standings and now have the opportunity to extend our advantage, so this will be an important game."
Zabaleta also compared the in-form forwards of the two teams, saying that he admired Aguero more. "Aguero and Li Yu are both top forwards, not only in the Premier League, but also around the world."
.They are players who can play the same role, can score a lot of goals, and are very important to their respective teams. In this game, it will be interesting to see who is better between the two, but for me
Say, the answer is simple, I think Aguero will win."
The war is now on the verge of breaking out, and a war of words has begun between the players and coaches of both sides.
The first thing I want to say is Manchester City's right winger Richards. In the derby match of the league last season, the opponent's arrow figure Li Yu completed the overhead kick under his nose. Now, Richards said that he is absolutely
I will never make similar mistakes again. "I still remember that ball very well. Can I forget it? I use this humiliating episode to remind myself every day. Kompany happened to not be in his position at that time, and
I tried to stop Li Yu with a header, but I couldn't."
"This is an exquisite goal, amazing. Every time I think about it, I use it to push myself to do better. I think I should stretch my body longer at that time, so that I can touch
The ball came to the ball. But as I said before, that was Kompany's marking area. Of course, he also regretted it after the game. We created a lot of opportunities in that game, but it is undeniable that
It was a brilliant goal."
Richards said. "Now that I see Li Yu, he often talks to me about that ball. I feel that he is very confident now, and of course we are too. We will not let the incident happen again. This time we will make him very quiet. I
I believe De Jong will keep an eye on him this time."
Of course, head coach Mancini also cheered for the team. "Our team has no problems or pressure at all, let alone injuries. Although the derby will be different from ordinary games, this time it is even more
Special, because this is the first time in a long time that we are at the top of the table. We know that this game will be extremely difficult, and Manchester United's record at home is particularly terrible, but the important thing is that we are ready and
Our defense is very good, even though they have fantastic forwards."
"If we can take away 1 point at Old Trafford, it will be a good result. But we must show our mental strength and we will try our best to win every game. If we really win, then this
The result is quite important, but I don't think it can change anything because the league is still very long. We hope the fans are as excited as we are, but of course, we still need to work harder."
When talking about Aguero's buzzer-beater in the last game, Mancini continued: "We scored at the last second and it was so perfect. If we only got a draw in that game, then we would have qualified.
The situation will be very difficult. I am very happy for Aguero's goal. Of course, Manchester United is a strong team and they will strive to win at the last minute, so if we want to win, we must persist until the last minute."
But this time, even Ferguson's former disciple, Sunderland coach Bruce, was unexpectedly optimistic that Manchester City could win the first place. "When I played football, no one cared about Manchester City. At that time, our biggest derby was
It was with Liverpool. Liverpool was the team that Ferguson wanted to knock down the most. But now, our noisy neighbors have improved significantly, and this derby has become very beautiful and thrilling. Manchester City has improved too fast in the last 2 or 3 years.
Already, the Arab Emirates' petro-pound has turned them into another team, and their lineup is so strong that it is suffocating." When asked whether Manchester City was enough to compete for the championship, Bruce said: "They are already competing for the championship, and they are strong.
Than, there's no doubt about it. They can win the championship."
Another good news is that Balotelli, the original thorn in the side of the team, has gradually adapted and gradually played a decisive role in the team under the guidance of his "sub-father" Mancini. "I am no longer uncomfortable.
Because I changed my lifestyle. Now I just want to stay at home more with my family and girlfriend, who were not here last season." Balotelli also said about Mancini: "Under him
I felt comfortable working with him, he believed in me and when no one in England believed in me, he was on my side and still is today. I hope to win something important with him here.
