A strange atmosphere spread across the Mestalla stands.
Fans of the Bat Corps couldn't be happy when they saw the 1:0 score on the scoreboard. From their expressions to their hearts, they were all worried.
Judging from the situation in the first half, it was only a matter of time before Valencia conceded the goal.
Millwall didn't score a goal or equalize the score, but the pressure brought by Europe's top teams is frightening. Think about the countless dangers in front of the goal in the first half. There are still 45 minutes left in the second half.
Can Lencia really hold on?
The confidence accumulated over the years makes Lions fans relatively calm.
They firmly believed that the team could score in the second half and even reverse the score. In the first half, except for that one successful counterattack, Valencia had no offensive achievements, while Millwall's offense was booming and bombarded.
The effect of indiscriminate eyeball explosion is very exciting, just missing a goal.
It doesn't matter, the goal will come naturally.
Players and coaches from both sides walked out of the tunnel. Cooper lowered his head and was worried. He could not find a way to curb the decline in the first half.
Perhaps a wide-open play like the Premier League team can alleviate the defensive pressure, but this is not the style of the La Liga team. It goes against their technical style of play that emphasizes midfield passing and control, even though they frequently clear the ball to keep the ball away from the danger zone.
It can relieve the immediate defensive pressure, but it is equivalent to handing the ball back to the opponent. Millwall's ability to launch fast breaks at a fast pace is extremely terrifying. If the nerves of their own defense are relaxed, it will lead to catastrophe and be overwhelmed by the opponent.
Take it away in one wave.
In fact, Valencia's counterattack failed to pose a threat. The key point lies in Aimar.
After Aimar joined, Cooper has begun to develop new playing styles. 4312 is the one they have used frequently recently. Aimar is the core of the organization. He not only instigates quick counterattacks on both wings, but also delivers artillery shells to the front line.
But in the first half of today's game, Aimar disappeared and did nothing in Gattuso's fight. Because of the fast pace of the Premier League, defensive players' ability to stick to people is more distinctive. When they are full of physical fitness, they can defend a large area.
.It is a common situation to stick to the opponent in the defensive zone like a dog-skin plaster.
Even though Aimar is a talented boy, he is still a little immature. When he came to the stage of the Champions League quarter-finals and faced Millwall, he himself was unable to perform at his best due to nervousness and pressure. At the same time, he encountered Gattuso who was always with him.
Opponents who are also highly aggressive have been at a disadvantage in repeated confrontations and battles. Over time, their confidence has also disappeared bit by bit.
At the beginning of the second half, Valencia launched a fast break from the wing. Aimar did not dare to stick to the ball too much in front of Gattuso. He played an exquisite one-two with Mendieta, and then suddenly moved in front of the penalty area and passed the ball.
He hit Gonzalez on the left, and the latter made a pass with an excellent landing point, right in front of the center of the goal.
Carew jumped to compete for the top, and Materazzi also jumped to compete. When the ball fell, a pair of big hands steadily picked the ball from the air and took it into his arms.
Carew and Materazzi collided in the air, and coupled with Pagliuca's impact, the Valencia center and Millwall center back lost their center of gravity and fell to the ground.
The two of them almost fell to the ground in a figure-eight shape. Pagliuca stood firmly in the middle, hugged the ball and straightened up, looking around the penalty area, looking for the ball point and planning to launch an attack quickly.
There were boos in the Mestalla stands, and the referee stopped the game. Aimar and Mendieta rushed to the referee and pointed at the Millwall penalty area, signaling a foul!
"The referee ignored Aimar and Mendieta's complaints. He just stopped the game and walked over to ask about Carew and Materazzi. Two tall players collided and fell to the ground. It's hard to tell who fouled the ball.
Everyone was going towards the ball, but neither of them touched the ball. It was Pagliuca who picked the ball off. If the referee awarded Millwall a foul on this ball, it would be simply unreasonable."
Although Materazzi and Carelu had physical contact after taking off, both of them were actually knocked over by Pagliuca!
Pagliuca took the initiative to take off and exert force, and the goalkeeper himself raised his knee to protect himself. Materazzi was hit on the shoulder by Pagliuca's elbow, and Carew was hit hard on the side.
The scene was very strange. The two tall and strong men fell to the ground and could not get up for a long time. When Pagliuca saw the referee calling the game to stop, he lowered his head and asked about their situation.
After a short period of time, both men returned to the court and continued the game.
Aldridge secretly cried out on the sidelines that it was a pity.
Valencia's fast break is only in pairs. As long as there are no mistakes in one-on-one, Millwall will not give the opponent a good scoring opportunity. On the contrary, if the opponent attacks, the counterattack opportunity will be better than positional battle.
Fighting and fighting, Millwall once again pressed forward with troops, and Valencia's door was once again filled with turmoil.
"Ronaldinho made a long-range shot from outside the penalty area! Canizares blocked the ball from the baseline with one hand!"
Ronaldinho frowned. The long shot he just hit was in the lower left corner of the goal. Unexpectedly, he still failed to score.
Aldrich gestured to the offensive players on the sidelines, asking them to speed up the flexible switching of offensive methods.
Pirlo and Nedved hit another threatening long-range shot one after another, and then Valencia's defense moved further out in order to reduce the space for Millwall's long-range shot.
This conversion process played into the opponent's hands. In the 57th minute, Millwall played a wonderful match. Larsson took the ball from the right and passed it to Pirlo. Pirlo then handed it to Ronaldinho, who switched to the center. Ronaldinho kicked it.
The ball was kicked to Nedvěd, who then passed it through. The ball passed between Baraja's legs and fell at the feet of Henry, who was running diagonally to counter offside.
After Henry countered offside, Canizares abandoned the goal. On the line of the small penalty area, Henry made a gesture to hit the goal. His fake move deceived Canizares into smashing the ball to the center of the goal, almost facing an empty goal!
At this time, the hearts of all Bat Legion fans were in their throats.
Henry decisively took a shot, but at the moment he shot, someone from behind on the right side stretched out a kick, blocking the ball he shot. The flying ball refracted and rubbed the outside of the post and rolled out of the baseline.
Henry was in disbelief and turned around to see Ayala being hugged excitedly by Pellegrino. Canizares got up from the ground and shouted to Ayala with a ferocious face. The two high-fived hard.
"Incredible! Millwall played a wonderful combination of touching the ball and passing the ball. After Henry succeeded in countering the offside, even Canizares passed, but the final shot was destroyed by Ayala. What can I say? Millwall
If you had better luck, maybe even if Ayala stepped in and changed the trajectory of football, you might still score a goal. I don't want to say it, but I have to say it again, Valencia escaped!"
Warm applause erupted from the stands. The Valencia fans were very satisfied with the team's performance. Millwall's strength was obvious to all, with a variety of offensive methods. The continuous long shots just now created space for the following penetration and cooperation. The fleeting
Millwall seized the opportunity, and their last kick was turned away by Valencia's unremitting defense.
Luck?
Valencia fans don’t think so. Football is not only about footwork, teamwork, but also spirit and other aspects.
Although the team did not concede a goal, Cooper made substitutions in the 60th minute.
Aimar and Carew came off the field and were replaced by Dukic and Juan Sanchez.
This substitution caused a commotion in the stands and there was a lot of discussion.
Valencia fans felt aggrieved, but had no choice but to accept their fate.
Lions fans asked each other.
"Sanchez is a forward, and he replaces Carew in the opposite position. The forward is replaced by a forward. Dukic seems to be a defender, right? The defender is replaced by an offensive midfielder. Is Valencia trying to block the goal?"
Aldrich's mind was spinning.
Valencia's substitution seems to be removing an offensive player and adding a defender, which seems to weaken the offense and strengthen the defense.
It is certainly true to strengthen defense, but it is definitely impossible to say that Valencia will give up offense when it is 1:0.
After observing the game from the sidelines for 5 minutes, Aldrich understood Cooper's intention of substitution.
Dukic plays more like a sweeper, strengthening the defense in the penalty area, and at the same time alleviating the task of Albelda and Baraja retreating deep to defend the penalty area. In this way, the double midfielders can help defend the wing more and switch to the wing.
And let Mendieta and Gonzalez invest more in the wing attack.
Valencia completely stopped attacking from the center and relied on wing attacks.
Aldridge did not make any adjustments. The opponent Aimar came off the field, and Gattuso was also released. He can help defend the wing. Depending on the situation, his physical fitness is enough to cope with the horizontal coverage on both sides.
Halfway through the second half, Millwall still didn't score a goal, and the team's offense became more and more fierce.
In the 72nd minute, Nedvěd dribbled the ball and forced Albelda away, and took a long-range shot with strong footwork, which bounced off the crossbar and bounced into the stands.
Seeing that the goal was just a hair away, Nedved closed his eyes and looked up to the sky and sighed.
It's really evil today.
No matter how I shoot, the ball just doesn't fly into the goal.
The balls that could fly into the goal were blocked by Canizares or Valencia players.
Aldrich also bowed his head and cursed on the sidelines.
This situation is too demoralizing. If the team is not strong-willed enough, it may collapse if it fails to score after repeated opportunities. The mentality of the Millwall team is not so fragile and they have been insisting on attacking, attacking, and attacking continuously.
In the 77th minute, Ronaldinho moved from the left to the center to get the ball and couldn't find any space to pass. He dribbled the ball horizontally to get rid of Alberda and Baraja. In front of Gonzalez, he went straight into the ribs of the penalty area.
, Larsson got the ball diagonally, but he couldn't find the right foot to shoot, and at the same time he couldn't find the passing route. Pellegrino was in front of him and Carboni was double-teaming behind him.
In front of Pellegrino, Larsson spiked the ball outwards in an attempt to create some space to pass or shoot. As a result, Pellegrino blocked him with his foot and stepped on Larsson's foot.
On the ball, Larsson fell in the penalty area.
As soon as the whistle blew, the referee pointed to the penalty spot and awarded Valencia a penalty for a foul in the penalty area!
"Larsson was fouled in the penalty area and Millwall won a penalty! This penalty is undisputed. In slow motion replay, Pellegrino was indeed slow to steal and stepped on Larsson's foot."
The Valencia fans in the Mestalla quit and booed in the stands to protest the referee's decision.
The referee ignored the protests gathered by the Valencia players, and the protagonist Pellegrino did not go up to defend himself. He knew whether the action just now was a foul, and he really stepped on Larsson's foot.
Millwall's players seemed relieved and almost attacked the entire field. Now, they finally saw the light.
Larsson, the team's first penalty kicker, walked to the penalty spot. He faced Canizares, who played brilliantly in this game.
The boos in the stands continued, with Valencia fans making as much noise as possible to disrupt Larsson.
However, Larsson was very calm and opened up his running distance to prepare to take the penalty kick.
If this goal can be scored, Valencia's efforts throughout the game will be in vain. They will not be able to win at home and will give Millwall an away goal. They will be a guest in London in the next round, which is a near-death situation. (To be continued.
