Remember? Exactly 10 years ago, the Red Devils and Manchester United were ranked second in the Premier League standings as they are now, and the one above them at that time was Leeds, who challenged the FA Cup last Sunday. The latter's current ranking
?Only the first place in League One, and not only is the ranking gap between the two teams as much as 42 places, but the total transfer value of the entire Leeds team is only a mere 400,000 pounds--just two weeks of Li Yu's
salary.
Such two teams played at Manchester United's home court. Not only did the former Young Guards not collapse as most people predicted, but they also played a typical game with the blood of the old and young guards on the territory of the giant opponent.
, and even angered the opponent with the clever goal of Beckford, the team's top scorer, in the 19th minute.
Not only to show the importance he paid to his past heavyweight opponents, but also to take into account the League Cup semi-finals against his city rivals in midweek, Manchester United coach Ancelotti ignored that his players had just participated in two league games in the past week, and in the
In Sunday's game, a starting lineup with Li Yu, Mata, Brown and other main players as the framework was sent out. The intention was very obvious, which was to use the home court advantage to defeat the opponent in one go, and then consider letting the second-line newcomers come on to feel the atmosphere of the game.
However, from the first minute of the game, Ancelotti's wishful thinking was wrong - Leeds, led by young coach Grayson, not only did not grit their teeth and defend like many teams that visited Old Trafford, but instead used their bodies.
The special skill of confrontation launched a charge into the Red Devils' hinterland, and once suppressed the opponent within its half. The visiting team's efforts were quickly rewarded. During a quick counterattack, Leeds' long pass from the midfield to the backcourt found the forward single arrow Beckford.
Germany, the latter took a determined kick under the interference of the home team's central defender Brown, and the ball rolled into the net from the gap between Brown and goalkeeper Kuszczak.
After conceding the goal, Manchester United counterattacked like they were waking up from a dream, but they became impatient because they were unable to break open the opponent's defense. As a result, just at the beginning of the second half, players from both sides broke out in a collective conflict because of a flagrant foul committed by Brown. Fortunately, referee Foy was timely.
After some persuasion, the situation was calmed down. Seeing that the situation was not good, Ancelotti immediately replaced teenagers Obertan and Welbeck with Giggs and Valencia in the 57th minute, and then sent out the final ace 12 minutes later——
Owen, trying to give it a go.
Indeed, the experience of Owen and other substitute veterans has greatly improved the quality of Manchester United's offense in the frontcourt. However, Leeds did not retreat blindly in the final stage, but pressed the whole court and even waited for opportunities to counterattack. Among them, if it is not the final shot
When the ball was slightly off, Beckford should have helped the team secure the victory in advance.
The only consolation for Manchester United in the entire game is that the defensive injuries that have deeply troubled the Red Devils in the past month have finally been greatly alleviated. You know, when the situation was at its worst, only left back Evra was healthy in the team.
The first team of defenders, but now Brown, Neville, Da Silva brothers, and Vidic have returned to the field one after another, helping the team bid farewell to 2009 with two consecutive league wins. During Sunday's game, before the game
Northern Ireland's young central defender Evans, who Ancelotti predicted would "come back in 10 days," also unexpectedly got the start, but unexpectedly ushered in the new year with a defeat.
In fact, too much has been said before about the degeneration of the youth team 10 years ago. What is particularly worth mentioning is that the team had a chance to avoid being in the situation it is in today, but fate happened to be such a trick.
After Leeds was relegated from the Premier League in the 200304 season, the following season's record was mediocre, but the following season showed gratifying signs of recovery, and finally achieved fifth place in the English Championship and a qualification for the promotion play-offs. But just
In the final play-off final, Leeds, who had performed steadily throughout the season, unexpectedly lost 0-3 to Watford. After this blow, the team failed to recover in the following season and was relegated to League One in May 2007.
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Just when people thought this would be Leeds' lowest point, they didn't expect that this would be the beginning of a nightmare.
Not long after entering the first season of League One, the club was exposed to a tax arrears scandal and was fined 15 points by the Football League.
Because of this, current Leeds coach Grayson described Leeds as "impossible to be worse" when he took over the team a year ago.
Fortunately, Grayson, who was born in the northern suburbs of Leeds and was also a product of Leeds' youth training during his playing days, has lived up to the expectations of Jiangdong's father. Under his careful training, the team has gradually got on the right track. Since the start of the new season, Leeds has
It has shown an invincible and absolute advantage in the English League One. It is currently 8 points ahead of Norwich and Charlton who are tied for second place, and this does not include one game in hand.
"I went to watch their game and I was deeply impressed." Manchester United coach Ferguson spoke so highly of Leeds before Sunday's game. "I must admit that Grayson's work there is very good.
Some people who support Leeds and were once Leeds players have their own ideals in life since childhood, and his ideal seems to be to coach Leeds, and he has achieved his wish."
After Sunday's game, Anshuai was of course more optimistic about the current Leeds team: "At the beginning, Leeds' collapse was just a financial problem. The club had to sell the best players in the team to maintain financial balance - but once the best players left,
, I dare to risk my life to guarantee that the team's performance will definitely plummet. I think they will definitely be promoted to the British Championship this season, and considering Grayson's continuous encouragement and motivation to his players, I believe that within a few years, they will be promoted to the Championship.
Can get back into the Premier League."
Manchester United were drawn against Leeds United in the FA Cup, which excited fans on both sides of the Pennine Mountains, especially the white side from Yorkshire. The situation was like a shark smelling blood, just like in the movie "Green Street Hooligans"
, West Ham fans' blood boiled when they heard that they would face Millwall in the FA Cup.
In British football, hostility and confrontation between football clubs is everywhere, but only a handful of them can reach the point where enemies are jealous of each other. The feud between Manchester United and Leeds United is one of the top five derbies in English football and can be traced back to ancient times.
The battle for the red and white roses has left countless legends in the past half century.
How deep does the two fans hate each other? A more civilized example is a Leeds United fan who works as a painter and refuses to use red paint. If you ask him to remove the red surface, he will automatically give you a discount. One day, he will
The red bulletin bus station in a town was all oiled up and turned white. Flynn, who scored the winning goal at Old Trafford in 1981, is still reaping the benefits of that goal. People often ask him on the street.
Asked for an autograph and asked him to add the note "The man who contributed to the winning goal at Old Trafford".
Examples of uncivilized behavior? There are many. In addition to fights, the most horrifying thing for neutrals is that Leeds United fans openly disrespected the recently deceased Sir Alex Busby. Every stadium followed the rules and observed a moment of silence for the late Manchester United coach.
The exception was the Elland Road stadium, where hundreds of Leeds irons broke the silence and shouted, "There is only one Don Revie (the greatest manager in Leeds history, who died in 1989)!" Even Revie's widow said so.
Overdoing it: "Don will be ashamed of himself." The Leeds fans' salute was not entirely directed at Busby, but more of a protest against the British football community for considering Revie's contribution to English football.
The hostility between Manchester United and Leeds United is a continuation of the struggle for kingship between the York and Lancaster families in the 15th century, but the incompatibility between the red and white roses on the pitch stems from the story of the two sides competing for the double crown in the 1960s.
Hatred was born in the FA Cup. The two teams met in Hillsborough in the semi-finals. Both teams had ruthless players. Manchester United's Stiles and Claren and Leeds' Bremner and Lorima were present.
The shots were fierce, and in the end Bremner scored a goal in the 89th minute to eliminate Manchester United. Fans from both sides immediately staged a full-scale show of force in the stands. Manchester United had the last laugh in the league, beating Leeds to win the championship with an average goal advantage, but Leeds was in the league.
They were second best in cup competitions. But 10 years later, Leeds fans have found balance: Manchester United has been relegated.
Although the two sides have deep hatred, they are not like Manchester United and Liverpool. Players from both sides trade frequently. Jordan and McQueen from Leeds joined Manchester United in the 1970s. McQueen helped his club reach the FA Cup final and win the cup.
He made a great contribution and publicly announced on the day of the transfer: "More than 90% of the players hope to join Manchester United. The rest who say they don't want to are all lying."
More than ten years later, Strachan moved from Manchester United to Leeds and was even more successful. He was a first-class contributor to the White Rose winning the last league championship in team history. What saddened Leeds fans the most was that Cantona gave him almost nothing.
The price was sold to Manchester United, thus beginning the era of the Red Devils' monopoly on the Premier League. Alan Smith was cultivated by Leeds, and he repeatedly vowed never to join "them", but as soon as Leeds was relegated, he defected to his mortal enemy.
The classic battle between the two sides is intriguing. After the FA Cup semi-final in 1965, the two families met again in the semi-finals five years later. It took three games to decide the winner, and it was Bremner who scored. In 1978, McQueen
Returning to Leeds with Manchester United, the audience greeted him with a deafening "Judas" sound. In the end, Manchester United triumphed 3-2. Cantona returned to Elland Road for the first time after joining Manchester United. He scored but did not win, but after he scored
The look with his collar turned up and staring into the distance is very intoxicating for Manchester United fans.[
After unsatisfactory performance in the FA Cup, back in the league, with the celebration of the official naming of the Ferguson Stand, what kind of game will it be like for Manchester United to face Sunderland at home?
Various signs before the game indicate that the game against Sunderland is almost a showdown without any suspense for Manchester United.
The last time Manchester United lost a home game at 3pm local time on Saturday was back on September 24, 2005, six years ago. In the past nine games against Sunderland in the league, Manchester United has kept a clean sheet seven times.
, at the same time, Manchester United has been able to score in 35 consecutive league home games.
As a result, in this campaign, the old player Wes Brown scored an own goal, helping his old club get three points without any blood, while he himself embarrassingly received his fourth own goal in the Premier League. This number was even higher than his
The total number of goals in the league (3 goals) is even higher. The Mirror even used "Oolong Wes Brown celebrates Ferguson with a perfect gift" as the title of the game report, while Sky Sports' title has the same purpose: "Brown is the old boss"
Send a big gift".
Maybe the way of winning was not hearty, but the important thing is that Manchester United got the three points they were bound to win.
After this campaign, Manchester United has accumulated a total of 901 home points in the Premier League, thus becoming the first team to score more than 900 points at home, and is the well-deserved home king of the Premier League. Arsenal, ranked second, this round
Despite the victory at home, the total home score in the Premier League was only 805 points, followed by Liverpool's 786 points and Chelsea (Weibo)'s 782 points.
Coupled with the away record, Manchester United's advantage is even more obvious. Under the rule of predecessor Ferguson, the Red Devils have scored 1,600 points in the Premier League, while Arsenal, the second highest scorer, has 1,398 points, which is 202 points less than Manchester United.
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Looking at Manchester United's next schedule, no one will doubt that the team led by Ancelotti will set off a red storm in November to grab points. After defeating Sunderland, the Red Devils will have up to 14 days of rest time.
Then they will challenge Swansea away from home, followed by three consecutive home games, namely against Benfica in the Champions League, Newcastle in the league, and Crystal Palace in the League Cup. With the strong aura of Old Trafford, it is entirely possible for Manchester United to continue their winning streak.
Extended to December.
In contrast, city rival Manchester City is about to face a suffocating devil's schedule: the remaining four games in November are first at home against Newcastle, which ranks third in the league standings, and then a Champions League life-and-death battle away from Naples, and then they have to play again in the league.
Challenge Dalglish's Liverpool away, even in the League Cup
It is also a visit to the Emirates Stadium to compete with Arsenal. In the first four games of December, Manchester City played against Norwich at home in the Premier League, Bayern at home in the Champions League, Chelsea away from home in the Premier League, and Arsenal at home in the Premier League. It can be said that the Blue Moon Army will play eight games in the future.
, 7 of them are out-and-out powerful dialogues.
More importantly, the ambitious Mancini wants to attack on all four fronts this season with his strong bench strength. The league, FA Cup, Champions League and League Cup are all indispensable. Although the team's squad is enough to produce two first-class teams.
The starting lineup, but core players like David Silva, Yaya Toure, and Aguero find it difficult to get a chance to rotate and rest.
Ancelotti has also implemented Ferguson's rotation system. Regardless of whether it can reach the magical level of his predecessor, the player's condition is still guaranteed. In terms of dealing with multi-line operations, he has the skills and experience that Mancini can match.
Advantage, this may become the biggest capital for the Red Devils to develop in the future.
There is a saying: Barcelona plays for art, Manchester United plays for spirit, and Ancelotti fully inherited the spiritual power that Ferguson left at Manchester United.
There is no doubt that the Red Devils are the most resilient team in today's football and the best at attacking from behind. Sir Alex Ferguson has instilled a belief in never giving up into this steel team, and it continues. This kind of spiritual power has been used in many games.
Show your power in one season.
Ranked second in the league standings with a 5-point gap, regaining the lead in the Champions League group stage, reaching the quarter-finals of the League Cup and winning the lottery, this situation is definitely not good for Manchester United, which has been tempered into steel in adversity.
Not bad. Ancelotti may introduce strong reinforcements during the winter transfer period, and Manchester United will be even more worth looking forward to in the second half of the season. 1-6? That is a thing of the past, and the immortal Red Devils have been reborn.
Good things continue to happen for Manchester United, but their rivals in the same city have been troubled by a former Manchester United player!
Something happened to Tevez again! Manchester City originally expected to see him return to the team, but the Argentinian "missed".
The Sun revealed that Tevez was ordered to report back to the team, but he went his own way and stayed in Argentina 7,000 miles away, ignoring the club's instructions. This made Manchester City very angry.
A Manchester City spokesman said: "Tevez should return to the team on Tuesday, have a day off and start training on Wednesday, and we have developed a training plan to help him regain his fitness."
However, according to the "Sun", Tevez flew to Buenos Aires on Monday and told reporters after landing, "I came here to rest for a while." The newspaper said that Tevez rushed back to the UK on Tuesday
There is a small chance that he will return to the team late without permission. In professional teams, this move of the beast is called "wol" (absent from duty), and it is an act that will definitely be punished.
Not long ago, Tevez was fined 4 weeks' salary by Manchester City. Recently, Tevez accepted Manchester City's accusation of inappropriate behavior against Bayern and did not plan to appeal. It seems that the situation has just calmed down, and now it is again.
After being exposed as not returning to the team without permission, Manchester City may not show mercy to him.
Mancini once said that Tevez must apologize to him and his teammates, otherwise the Argentinian will definitely be sold in January. But so far Tevez has no intention of apologizing, and he has become "disappeared" again. It seems
It turns out that he is determined to put himself into the winter transfer market and leave Manchester, which makes him troubled.
At the same time, Manchester City's bad luck is far from over. Manchester City officially announced a penalty for Kolo Toure, deducting 6 weeks of salary, totaling about 740,000 pounds. Kolo Toure had previously taken his wife's weight loss pills by mistake.
He was punished by the Football Association and suspended for 6 months.
Manchester City club statement said: "The club's internal disciplinary department has concluded that Kolo Toure has been fined six weeks' salary for failing to meet his obligations as a player. Toure has accepted the above decision and both he and the club hope that
We can put an end to this incident and focus on playing well in the rest of the season."
It is worth mentioning that Manchester City's fine for Toure this time exceeded Tevez not long ago. The Argentine was fined four weeks' wages, and the six-week penalty is the club's upper limit for player fines.
