The game has only lasted for more than 20 minutes. If we make major adjustments to the lineup or tactics that have been practiced for a long time, it may have negative effects.
Besides, Van Gaal's "big circle tactic" has also changed. Otherwise, how could it be effective in such a fiercely competitive Premier League?
I really thought that Van Gaal’s status as a master tactician came from talking.
Therefore, under the command of Van Gaal, Manchester United's midfielders Fellaini and Herrera moved a little closer to the center, which allowed Carrick to receive more support and the connection between the two wings was no longer
As divided as before.
At the same time, these two midfielders, together with Ashley Young, Mata and Rooney in the frontcourt, began to press Chelsea's midfield and backcourt, trying to disrupt Chelsea's transmission cooperation.
After all, Chelsea only has Kante in the midfield at this time. If Manchester United strengthens their pressing in the middle, they will have a chance to take back the initiative.
But Pan Yi immediately responded.
He also moved Hazard and Willian a little further back and closer to the middle ribs, while Marcos Alonso and Ivanovic moved a little higher.
In this way, they formed a five-midfield position with Kante. Although Chelsea's formation is still a "514 poke", it will become a more standard 3-5-2 when defending, which can better
Deal with Manchester United's midfield press.
In the process of such changes, Chelsea's versatile midfielder Kante undoubtedly plays the most crucial role.
It can be said that he is the same "eye of the formation" as Manchester United's Carrick, but he has done more than Carrick.
When defending, Kante will fight and retreat, retreating all the way to the central defender position, a bit like what Pan Yi told him to do when he was in Milan;
And when attacking, he will rush in quickly to provide sufficient fire support for the frontcourt.
This is why Pan Yi dared to have only one person in the midfield.
Without Kanter, to be honest, Pan Yi is really not sure that he can use the "514 poke" to deal with Van Gaal's big circle tactics.
His tireless running, good defensive awareness, and comprehensive offensive and defensive abilities make him the man most suitable to stand in the middle.
And if 20 minutes ago, Chelsea had only Kante in the middle of the midfield, which made him hesitate to attack;
Now teammates in the frontcourt and backcourt are coming to support, which gives Kanter more time and space to display his offensive talents.
On the court at this time, Kanter suddenly approached David Luiz: "If there is a chance to counterattack later, I will press forward. Please remember to help me stand up."
Midfielder David Luiz's eyes flashed with surprise, but he nodded firmly: "No problem."
David Luiz is a central defender, and it is his job to help him defend from the front and back of the midfielder. This is of course not a problem.
He was just a little surprised that Kanter, a black boy who was usually taciturn, actually made a request to him today and still wanted to attack!
Did he discover any defensive loopholes in Manchester United?
Although the two of them have not been working together for a particularly long time, they have already established a tacit understanding and trust between each other. David Luiz did not ask too much, but suddenly patted Kanter on the shoulder and said with a bad smile.
:
"If you score a goal, can you remember to pay when you come back to my restaurant for dinner next time?"
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Soon, Manchester United launched another offensive.
This time it was initiated by Valencia and Mata on the right.
Since Fellaini on the left was watched by Zouma, Van Gaal ordered Carrick to move the ball more consciously to Mata's side, allowing the "dexterous team" here to use technology and footwork to
Move forward.
Valencia is also very fast, and he also has the ability to run from wing to wing.
But Kanter quickly got over and directly entangled Valencia who was dribbling the ball.
Valencia tried to use speed and direction to get past Kanter, but found that this guy's position was very stable and it was really difficult to get rid of him, so he gave up the idea and prepared to pass the ball to Mata in front of the sideline.
But Kanter had already predicted Valencia's intention, fell to the ground and made a tackle, scooping the ball away cleanly, and then turned his body on the ground to protect the ball to his side.<
/p>
That's a nice, clean tackle!
The ball was immediately transferred to Chelsea.
Not to be outdone, Valencia immediately followed Kanter closely, trying to get the ball back again.
And this kind of position can force Kanter to pass back even if he can't get the ball back immediately.
This will prevent Kanter from attacking immediately and slow down Chelsea's counterattack.
At this time, Chelsea's wing-back Marcos Alonso has also pulled out of the space to the left.
Kanter didn't think much and really passed the ball back, but he didn't stay where he was. Instead, he turned around and rushed forward along the left side.
Marcos Alonso also understood it clearly. Facing the incoming ball, he made an overhead kick without thinking and flicked the ball directly in front of Kanter.
This surprised Valencia, who quickly turned around and chased after her.
Kanter was not fast, and Valencia quickly caught up.
But just when he was about to intercept Kanter, the little Frenchman suddenly stopped, changed direction, and spiked the ball toward the middle.
The sudden change surprised all Manchester United players, including Valencia.
Pan Yi, who witnessed all this on the sidelines, was also brightened:
"Kante, this kid, really gets smarter the more he plays, and the better he gets."
Obviously, Kanter has observed Manchester United's defensive risks on this side in advance.
That is, after falling behind by one goal, Manchester United shifted its forces to the center, and Herrera moved further away from the wing.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!
And Mata's defensive ability is far inferior to Ashley Young, Fellaini and others on the other side.
Therefore, the side guarded by Mata and Valencia is actually relatively weak defensively.
In addition, Carrick is always surrounded by Chelsea players, and it is difficult for him to come here to support Mata's team. This gives Kanter space and opportunities to move forward.
In this process, Kanter's cooperation with the wingers, including the display of personal skills, is amazing.
Even Zhang Fei can embroider, let alone Kanter who is already very versatile!
On the field, after Kante cut inside to get rid of Valencia's defense, his whole body seemed to suddenly light up.
The originally chaotic scene caused by fierce fighting seemed to suddenly become clearer, and every route of dribbling or passing the ball could be clearly understood!
He saw Manchester United's center back Smalling rushing toward him;
He saw another central defender Jones moving towards the center of the penalty area and was getting ready to help defend;
He also saw his teammate Lukaku moving forward into the middle, preparing to receive his pass;
He also saw that at the far end, William was also moving forward quickly.
All of this came into his mind in an instant, and he quickly made his best choice.
A big foot passed the ball to the back point!
William also rushed forward, and at that moment, a small, undefended area was formed at the front of Manchester United's penalty area.
Because at this time the attention of Manchester United players is on Kante and Lukaku!
In the penalty area, Jones and Smalling were taken aback. The former didn't even care about Lukaku and quickly attacked.
But he is fast, and William is faster than him.
Before Jones could get closer, William took the lead and pushed the ball forward.
The ball quickly rolled past Jones and went straight into the net from the near corner of De Gea's defense.
"goalllllllllllllllllllllllll!
”
"In the 30th minute, Chelsea broke Manchester United's goal again!"
"Beautiful! Kanter made a beautiful breakthrough and pass, William made a beautiful push, and the ball went in again! Kanter completed his second consecutive assist in this game!"
"0:2! Chelsea is already two goals ahead in the away game!"
"William, the hero of the offense, rushed over and hugged Kanter tightly, and the two celebrated this beautiful goal together!"
"He really has to thank Kanter. After all, although he scored the goal, most of the credit for this goal must be attributed to Kanter!"
"From stealing to launching an attack, to advancing into the Manchester United penalty area, and then to the final pass, Kanter destroyed Manchester United's entire defense by himself!"
"We can see from the camera that Kanter was talking to William, and then pointed at David Luiz who also ran over to celebrate with him."
"David Luiz rushed over and kicked Kanter in the butt, and everyone laughed happily."
"The relationship between Chelsea players is really good! Perhaps it is this wonderful locker room atmosphere that allows them to trust each other on the court and perform at their best!..."
Of course, the commentator has no way of knowing what Kanter is talking about.
"You are also a restaurant owner, and you have scored goals now. Tell David later that you won't ask for money if I go to your restaurant to eat. You are both good people..." This is what Kanter said to William. And what David Luiz said after kicking Kanter's butt was: "Damn you, you didn't even score the ball for Bai Lao, right? You also passed the ball to my restaurant partner, how treacherous!"<
/p>
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After celebrating with his assistants on the sidelines, Pan Yi also set his sights on Kanter.
The French midfielder has always been very low-key, and he is no different today.
After William scored and everyone hugged and celebrated, he lowered his head and ran back to his position, as if the goal had nothing to do with him.
"Well played! Kante!" Pan Yi shouted into the field and gave him a thumbs up.
Kanter also showed his big white teeth towards Pan Yi and grinned.
This actually surprised Pan Yi.
This kid usually only responds with a shy smile. Why is he smiling so happily today?
Then, Willian and David Luiz, who were standing near Kanter, also laughed.
This even made Pan Yi feel a little hairy:
"md, aren't these kids too excited after scoring a goal at Old Trafford and a little stupid?"
"No, you still have to cheer up!"
"Being behind by two goals, Van Gaal will definitely start a massive counterattack!"
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Conceding two goals at home, Van Gaal was certainly not willing to suffer such a defeat.
After the game restarted, the Red Devils launched a more intense offensive, putting greater pressure on Chelsea.
But Chelsea is naturally not afraid at all.
They didn't even have any intention of retreating. Instead, they resisted the Red Devils' offensive in the midfield and then pushed them back.
Being powerful means being so tyrannical!
Of course, Chelsea would not dare to be careless about the key figures of Manchester United.
For example, their forward Rooney.
Although Rooney is nearly 30 years old this year and his physical condition is far inferior to that of his youth, his experience and shooting skills are still there, and his impact is not weak.
If he is allowed to face the goal near the penalty area, it will also be very dangerous for Chelsea.
Therefore, when Chelsea defended, they not only limited Manchester United's advance on both wings, but also blocked Carrick's ball in the middle. The two central defenders even pushed Rooney into the penalty area, forcing him to leave them.
The most threatening area.
Oh? Why two central defenders? Doesn’t Chelsea have a three central defenders formation?
Because one of the central defenders, Zouma, was following Fellaini all over the field and had no time to deal with Rooney!
In short, Chelsea's defensive strategy makes Manchester United's offense look powerful, but it has never been able to create a threat.
In the 38th minute, Manchester United could not attack for a long time and made a mistake in the backcourt.
After Jones and Smalling passed back and forth, a passing error occurred due to interference from Lukaku.
After William got the ball, he passed it behind him and Hazard started quickly!
When Hazard was about to enter the penalty area, he was tripped by Jones and fell into the penalty area.
But the referee did not award a penalty kick, but instead awarded a free kick outside the penalty area without taking a card.
This made everyone at Chelsea very dissatisfied, because they all thought it was a very obvious foul in the penalty area.
And judging from the slow-motion replay on the stadium's big screen, it was indeed a foul in the penalty area.
Chelsea fans in the Old Trafford stadium booed, but these boos were quickly drowned out by the overwhelming applause.
------------------
"That's how it is in the away game, there's nothing we can do about it." Steve Holland shook his head.
"Especially at Old Trafford," Scaloni added with an unhappy expression.
"It doesn't matter, we are still ahead." Pan Yi said with a smile, "As long as we keep an eye on Fellaini and Carrick, it will be difficult for this Manchester United to pose any substantial threat to us."
Keep an eye on Carrick, this is what coach Pan Yi has emphasized time and again to Chelsea players in the past few days.
Fellaini does need to be watched, but this task is left to Zuma alone and has nothing to do with anyone else.
This is how the tactic of exchange is used!
Carrick is different. He needs more Chelsea players to help defend him to pressure or induce him to pass the ball where Chelsea wants.
Of course, the most critical role in this is Kanter.
Everyone is standing in the middle of the midfield. Of course, it is impossible not to have a head-on confrontation.
On the contrary, the two of them collided a lot.
The duel between the two sides was originally one of the highlights of this "rare tactical duel".
And Kanter also completed his task very well.
Carrick really had a hard time playing in front of a player who can cover 29% of the earth's surface.
Whether dribbling or passing the ball, it is difficult to find the rhythm that I am familiar with.
Therefore, Carrick will sometimes open his position wider to avoid Kanter's frontal interception, and then find opportunities to wash the dirty ball, or directly pass the ball to the frontcourt for counterattack.
In the 43rd minute, Manchester United wanted to launch an attack quickly before the end of the first half. In this way, going into the halftime break with only one goal behind, the disadvantage would not be that big.
So after seeing center back Smalling pass the ball to Blind on the wing, Carrick pulled aside to prepare to receive the ball.
But Kanter posted it immediately!
As soon as Carrick got the ball, but before he could stop the ball, Kanter appeared in front of him.
Carrick didn't expect Kanter to follow him to the wing. He was not alert for a moment, slowed down his foot movement, and lost the ball!
All of this happens in an instant.
Many viewers even only saw Carrick take the ball, and then the ball reached Kante's feet, but they failed to see clearly how Kante made the move.
But before everyone thought about it, Kanter quickly launched a counterattack.
He sent the ball forward and handed it to William who was on the wing.
At this time, the entire Manchester United midfield and backfield were actively pressing forward, preparing to cooperate with Carrick's pass to organize the attack, but unexpectedly they were suddenly intercepted and counterattacked, catching everyone off guard.
Therefore, Manchester United's backcourt is very empty at this time!
William reacted quickly after receiving the ball. He did not choose to dribble, but passed the ball directly to the left side of the front edge of the penalty area.
There, Lukaku had already made a diagonal run, successfully countered offside, and then quickly sprinted forward from the other side.
This whole process was completed at lightning speed, and Manchester United's defense did not react at all.
When Lukaku caught up with the ball again, he was already facing De Gea in the penalty area, one-on-one!
De Gea hurriedly abandoned the goal, but Lukaku had already shot!
A powerful blast!
No matter how quick De Gea reacts, he can't stop this powerful shot.
The ball rolled into Manchester United's goal again, and the score became 0:3!
From stealing the ball to scoring a goal, it only took a few seconds.
In these few seconds, the entire Old Trafford stadium fell into a dead silence.
Almost all Manchester United fans opened their mouths, unable to believe what they were seeing and what was happening on the court.
0:3!
At Old Trafford, trailing by three goals at halftime!
------------------
"Damn, really damn!"
Van Gaal on the sidelines was already a little furious.
He even kicked a bottle of water away from the sidelines and was given a warning by the referee.
Only then did he realize that no matter how much fine-tuning he made, Pan Yi always seemed to have the key to his formation.
Both Fellaini and Carrick were completely restricted. Even Rooney in the frontcourt could not play any role.
Being three goals behind at halftime was undoubtedly a huge blow to Manchester United's morale.
Van Gaal really needs to seriously consider whether to stick to this style of play...
And obviously, his change was very determined.
During the halftime break, Van Gaal made a decisive substitution adjustment.
He replaced Fellaini with Di Maria.
This is a signal to strengthen the attack in the middle, and it is also a denial of his "big circle tactics" in the first half.
After all, Fellaini really had no effect at all under Zouma's defense in the first half.
Even at the start of the second half, Fellaini, who had already put on his coat, said something to Pan Yi with a wry smile:
"Coach Pan Yi, tell Zuma not to follow me. I'm ready to go home."
Therefore, this "big circle" battle with "514 pokes" that can be recorded in the history of football actually lasted only half a game!
Of course, "lap" can't stand up to "poke", so being two or three goals behind is very reasonable.
But in this way, after the two teams entered a relatively regular match, the advantages of Chelsea's formation in terms of running-in and proficiency became more obvious.
After all, Manchester United has been practicing large circle tactics before!
After about twenty minutes of relatively boring competition, Chelsea stole the ball in midfield and immediately launched a quick counterattack.
Marcos Alonso dribbled the ball along the left wing and passed the ball to Hazard.
Hazard glanced ahead before stopping the ball. Without stopping the ball with his left foot, he directly passed the ball to Lukaku who was retreating. After turning around and bypassing Carrick, he ran laterally and raised his hand to ask for the ball:
"Quick, this way!"
Lukaku knowingly passed the ball to the front of Hazard's running route, just enough for him to get the ball comfortably.
The two-on-one cooperation between these two Belgian internationals can be said to be very skilled.
At this time, Manchester United midfielder Herrera also came over.
Hazard quickly stopped and turned around to protect the ball. After getting rid of Herrera's first steal, he looked to the other side, that is, the right side.
At this time, Yinvanovic had already stepped in from the back row and was raising his hand to ask for the ball in the space on the right.
Hazard immediately passed the ball over.
Now Hazard is more than just an assaulter!
He also has very good vision and passing awareness.
Although he had only raised his head for a moment, he had already clearly seen the positions of his teammates and opponents in the distance, and he had also quickly deduced the appropriate passing route in his mind.
As expected, Yinvanovic got the ball very easily, because at this time the opponents here were all marking Lukaku, Bamford and William, and it was easy to ignore him running up from behind.
When the ball reached Ivanovic's feet, the Manchester United players' defense quickly moved over to prevent him from continuing to break into the penalty area.
But Yinvanovic just flicked the ball and made a curve ball with his right foot.
The ball arced from the right and fell to the left side of the penalty area.
With just two moves, Manchester United's defense was stretched loose and could no longer keep up with Chelsea's agile players.
At this time, everyone saw Hazard rushing up quickly again, and directly passed the low ball with his left foot to the front of the small penalty area.
In front of the goal, Manchester United defender Smalling and Chelsea center Lukaku rushed over together.
But Lukaku’s legs seem to be longer.
He got ahead of Smalling, fell to the ground and tackled Hazard's low pass into the Manchester United goal.
De Gea flew to save, but how could he stop the shot that was so close?
"goalllllllllllllll!
”
"In the 66th minute, it's Lukaku again! He scored twice!"
"He received a wonderful pass from Hazard and shoveled the ball into the Manchester United goal!"
"Oh my god, the score is now 0:4, Manchester United is four goals behind at home!"
"Can anyone imagine that today's game will be like this? And now there are still more than 20 minutes before the game is really over!"
"The biggest defeat in Manchester United's history occurred around the 1930s, when they lost three games 0:7. But this is already too far away."
"The most painful defeat in recent years was the 1:6 loss to our city rival Manchester City, which was also at Old Trafford!"
"So, will today's game create new history?"
"From the current point of view, the entire Manchester United team is playing very poorly. Both the score and the scene are at a disadvantage. If this continues, it is not impossible to concede goals again."
"Whether it's the big circle vs. 514 in the first half or the more conventional confrontation in the second half, Manchester United seems to be no match for Chelsea!"
"In this game, it can also be said that Pan Yi completely defeated Van Gaal at the tactical level!"
"From this point of view, the coach who quarreled with Pan Yi before the game seems to have no good results..."