Thanks to "Thieves", "Mito Yoheimori" and "Ren Erxiaozi" for their rewards!
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Leeds United's performance in the league this season is roughly the same as last year, and they were fighting for four at the end of the season. However, reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League has written a glorious chapter for the club. It is only one step away from the club's peak record in the history of the club's Champions League runner-up in 1975.
Far away, if you pass the semi-finals, you will at least be tied!
O'Reilly looked neither humble nor arrogant when looking forward to the semi-finals. He admitted that Millwall was strong and the favorite to advance, but he also said that Leeds United also had a chance to reach the final.
Aldridge, on the other hand, faced "every kind of difficulty" from reporters. Fleet Street tried to create an atmosphere of equal confrontation, describing Aldridge and O'Reilly as close rivals.
The theoretical basis is quite reliable.
Since Leeds United had one win and one draw against Millwall in the league last season, when the head-to-head results were calculated, although O'Reilly was slightly at a disadvantage, it was not to the extent of being one-sided.
Aldrich did not respond directly, but said something incomprehensible.
"Some neighbors praised my son for being sensible at a young age and looking very smart, but no one said he was a genius. After all, he has never experienced an intelligence test."
Reporters understood Aldrich's subtext.
Words of mouth cannot name any champion.
No matter how the outside world tries to close the gap between Millwall and Leeds United, making the showdown between the two teams quite interesting, the fact is that Leeds United is not worthy yet!
Aldridge tried to anger O'Reilly and create an imbalance in Leeds United's mentality, thus adding fuel to the fire.
"Now everyone is saying that Leeds United has created brilliance. Compared with the historical achievements of the club itself, it is true. Congratulations to O'Reilly, he has become a famous figure in the history of Leeds United, but that is Leeds United's matter, they
Reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League is worth celebrating, but what about Millwall? This is the fourth consecutive season that we have reached the semi-finals of the Champions League. We are very calm. Concentrate on playing these two semi-finals. If we cannot advance to the final, it will be a big loss for us.
, it’s just not a successful season.”
Aldrich's remarks are not exaggerated, they are just the facts.
Even if we look at the European giants, if they can reach the Champions League semi-finals for four consecutive years and already have two Champions League titles in hand, no matter what the result is, it will definitely not be associated with the word failure, but Millwall's standard is to be better than others.
Be high.
On the match day, when day and night rotated and the sky was not completely dark, the local streets in Leeds were bustling with people. At a glance, the supporters of the "White Army" put on their jerseys and hung scarves around their necks. The fan groups also carried homemade slogans.
Everyone flocks to one place: Elland Road.
Leeds United is not particularly advantageous from the geographical situation in England, but they have their own advantages. In Leeds, there is only one professional football club, Leeds United, which allows local fans to devote all their enthusiasm to Leeds United without reservation.
In this regard, local fans will not be divided and will unite together to form huge energy.
Before the start of the Champions League semi-finals, fans flocked to the Elland Road stadium like a tide, and the local bars were full. This kind of scene has not been seen in Leeds for more than 20 years. It can also be seen from the enthusiasm of the fans that the Olympic Games
Riley has indeed brought Leeds United to the pinnacle of the modern era!
Even though there were more than 3,000 Lions fans in the stands at Elland Road, cheering for the team hoarsely, they were like inconspicuous splashes in the ocean, drowned in the overwhelming cheers of Leeds United fans.
In the VIP box, Ridsdale stood with his head held high, waiting for the game to start. Next to him, Millwall chairman Arthur, who had a big belly, was also standing there.
Over the past year, Arthur has become more and more restrained. He has behaved well in public. In the past, he has acted wildly at the Premier League Chairman's Roundtable, overwhelming Bates, riding on Eduardo's head, and Dane retreating. With the strength of Millwall,
, Aldridge also serves as the England national team coach.
Andrew has business connections within the FA. Arthur has changed from a suppressed person in the game circle to a person with the right to speak. He does not like the quarrels and intrigues of the Premier League chairman at the negotiation table. If possible, everyone can
If it's not the right way, then take off your sleeves and fight.
If no one messes with him, he will be at peace with others.
Ridsdale was arrogant for a while, but he could no longer be arrogant after Arthur hummed "Auld Lang Syne" in his ear last season.
Now, the two presidents gather at Elland Road to cheer on their respective teams.
Before the game started, the two extended their arms to each other, sat down to watch the game together, and chatted from time to time. Ridsdale really wanted to learn from Arthur now. Leeds United had problems in its management. The expectations two years ago have reached this year.
There have been changes. Leeds United's record is fine, but it cannot stop the external economic environment. The football economic bubble is bursting, and the club's current income is much less than previously expected.
Arthur is a layman when it comes to running a club, and he doesn't get involved in specific matters. However, he has seen a lot over the years, and he speaks fluently. Ridsdale nodded frequently as he listened, and occasionally showed a thoughtful expression.
Se laughed in her heart.
When Aldridge came out of the tunnel, he was booed, booed, and given the middle finger by the stands.
His remarks before the game made Leeds United fans uncomfortable. Facts are facts, but they are irritating.
Aldridge doesn't care whether the fans are comfortable or not. He doesn't care. As long as the Leeds United coach and players are uncomfortable, that's what he wants.
O'Reilly took the initiative to walk up to Aldridge, and the two shook hands with confident but unassuming smiles on their faces.
Aldridge doesn't like the outside world to put him and O'Reilly together and call him a young coach dispute. O'Reilly also hates comparing his trajectory with Aldridge's, as if Aldridge is his target. If he is too open-minded,
If he doesn't have enough courage, he will become like Keegan in front of Ferguson, unable to hold his head up for the rest of his life.
The two patted each other's arms, then turned around and walked to the coaching bench.
Players from both sides entered the stadium, and the 22 starting players were in high spirits. There was strong fighting spirit in their eyes.
"The Champions League semi-final match at Elland Road is about to begin. Leeds United, which has reached the semi-finals as a dark horse this season, will host the defending champion Millwall in the first round. Both sides sent out their main players today, but they didn't know what to expect in the first leg.
In the competition, whether both sides will be more conservative.
Although Leeds United's starting formation is 442, Smith is a forward who invests heavily in defense. Therefore, the formation can be switched flexibly to ensure the defensive strength of the midfield."
Aldridge stood on the sidelines and observed Leeds United's attitude after the start. Even though Leeds United and Millwall are not competing at the same level in the league, the league and the cup are completely different environments. The league is about endurance and stability, and the cup is about presence.
A clash of performance, skills and tactics, a 180-minute burst, to see who can have the last laugh.
After watching for 5 minutes, when the general outlines of Leeds United players' offensive movements and defensive strategies emerged, Aldridge felt confident.
Unlike Valencia, who are "innately deficient" and can only play defense, Leeds United are just the opposite. Their two full-backs are characterized by their strong assist ability. In addition, Premier League teams have always focused on confrontation and have physical advantages. This kind of Premier League
Civil war, unable to control the rhythm of Serie A, La Liga's finesse
They are tired of passing and controlling, but they are fast-paced, strong in confrontation, and fight for every inch of ground. Often, both teams cannot attack in a certain period of time, but they fall into frequent strangleholds. In the Premier League, the duel is the most intense.
Yes, people can't pass the ball. No matter how skilled you are, I will still make it difficult for you with my body.
Leeds United are determined to compete with Millwall in overall offense and defense today!
Perhaps Valencia has taught them a lesson. In terms of counter-attack prevention, there is probably no team in Europe that is more threatening than Valencia during this period. If Leeds United also defends against counter-attack, they may be defeated.
Kill it like boiling a frog in warm water.
When Leeds United defended today, every player had a marking task.
Viduka and Smith focused on restricting Pirlo, sticking close to him and not giving him a chance to get the ball. Gatto asked for the ball, no matter what, he would definitely not be able to pass the threatening ball anyway.
Cahill and Dacote guard the penalty area, double-teaming Nedved, Kewell and Bowyer. They are stuck on the wing. They can block Millwall's two defenders when they advance, and they can form a confrontation with the full-backs against Millwall's wingers when they retreat.
With double-teaming to help defend, one of the remaining two central defenders is to stay close to Henry, and the other is a backhand to prevent the opponent's players from breaking away from the defense and advancing forward to pose a threat.
By doing this, Leeds United directly gave up harassing the two defenders of Gattuso and Millwall.
Ideally, Leeds United's defense like this can form a perfect double-team for Millwall's offensive players. As the offense pushes forward and Leeds United's formation compresses backwards, this double-team defense will become more and more restrictive.
powerful.
Millwall adopts a high-pressure pressing strategy. In a sense, it is similar to the core of the opponent's defensive strategy. They are the main instigators of limiting threatening passes. They do not wait for the attack to reach the front line, but intercept and destroy it before that.
Due to the fast pace and strong confrontation, there is not much space for players to get the ball on the court. No matter which team attacks with the midfield as the center, when moving towards the opponent's half, no player has enough space to stop the ball, get rid of it, and adjust.
, or a breakthrough, at the same time a fierce physical confrontation must be carried out.
Pirlo's physical confrontation is not his strong point, and Smith and Viduka are tough players. In the first 15 minutes, Pirlo fell to the ground twice and lost the ball once. His performance was temporarily limited.
Lived.
"The whole Premier League, no, the whole of Europe is discussing how to crack the offensive tactics of Millwall, Pirlo, Nedved or Ronaldinho. Today, it seems that Leeds United have found the code to crack.
In the fast-paced confrontation, Pirlo's weaknesses were magnified, but Leeds United did this at the expense of the best opportunity for forward counterattack. We can't yet draw a conclusion on whether playing like this is effective. Maybe the result of the game will be
It’s the most convincing.”
Leeds United's striker retreated to restrict Pirlo. The problem was that when Leeds United counterattacked, the forward's starting position was not in front of the penalty area, pressing Millwall's back line, forming a threat point with the best opportunity.
Millwall has more time to set up defenses, mark people, and limit the opponent's offense.
O'Reilly looked determined. There is always a gap between strength and weakness. Now Leeds United is using the weak to fight against the strong without sacrificing. It is impossible to limit the opponent. Compared with some teams who use 5 defenders or double midfielders to play with central midfielders, he is just
Adopting a similar strategy, Smith is a false forward and a central midfielder when defending.
Hopefully, this will cause Millwall's offensive system to fail, and then the offensive and defensive system to collapse. (To be continued...)
