This year’s Club World Cup will be held in Japan from December 10 to 20, 2015.
The competition system of the Club World Cup is relatively special, that is, the champions of Europe and South America directly enter the semi-finals, waiting in the upper and lower halves respectively.
The other two places will be determined through knockout rounds in several other areas where football is relatively backward.
Before Chelsea faces Leicester City in the Premier League, several games have been played in the Club World Cup.
First, in the opening game on December 10, the host team, Sanfrecce Hiroshima of Japan defeated the Oceania champion Auckland City 20.
Yusuke Minagawa broke the deadlock in the 9th minute, and Tsukasa Shiotani expanded the result in the 70th minute. Sanfrecce Hiroshima successfully qualified and entered the quarterfinals.
Then on December 13, they defeated the African champion Mazembe with 30 in the quarter-finals and entered the semi-finals.
In another quarter-final, the Asian champion Changzhou Hengtai of the Dragon Kingdom faced the Central and North American champions Mexico America.
In the 54th minute, Oribe Peralta of the Mexican American team scored with a header; then Gao Lin of the Changzhou Hengtai Taobao team assisted Zheng Long to equalize the score.
In stoppage time, Changzhou Hengtai's Paulinho header completed the winning goal, helping Changzhou Hengtai defeat the Mexican American team 21.
Changzhou Hengtai also entered the top four!
At this point, the semi-finals of this year’s Club World Cup are revealed.
One game is between host Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Copa Libertadores champions River Plate;
And the other game is between Changzhou Hengtai and the Champions League champion Chelsea!
Among them, the duel between Changzhou Hengtai and Chelsea is naturally the most eye-catching.
Pan Yi leads the European champions to face his homeland team and his disciple Paulinho, while Changzhou Hengtai head coach Felipe Scolari also faces his old club, both of which are worth the hype.
As for Pan Yi, he doesn't care about this.
What he cares about is how to arrange the players' training and rest, and how to minimize their fatigue and injuries.
Although Pan Yi had already rotated players significantly against Bournemouth and Porto, these were two extra games out of thin air, which still had a great impact on the team's arrangement.
The game against Leicester City is on December 14th. After the game, I will leave for Japan immediately, because on December 17th, I will play the semi-finals of the Club World Cup against Changshu Kota.
Then there will be the final three days later on December 20, with a high probability of playing River Plate.
After playing two games in the Club World Cup, the Christmas schedule will start immediately after returning, which will be followed by the game against Sunderland on December 23, the game against Watford on December 26, and the game against Stoke City on December 29.
vs. Crystal Palace on January 3.
Then there will be the League Cup semi-final first leg against Liverpool on January 6, the FA Cup on January 10, and then the Premier League match against Manchester United on January 14, which is whether Milan can break the milestone of 58 games unbeaten.
Battle.
Finally, it was against Everton on January 16th, and this long series of consecutive games came to an end.
Basically, we play a game every three days.
Needless to say, running back and forth, the intensity of the schedule is also suffocating.
Therefore, Pan Yi and the coaching staff are extremely cautious.
Against Leicester City, of course, we have to let the main players who have basically rested for a week come on.
Although Leicester City is playing at home, they must still play according to Ranieri's anti-counterattack tactics. At this time, Chelsea's stars who are good at passing and controlling can come in handy.
They can control the ball at their feet, minimize consumption, and then follow Pan Yi's instructions to make a fuss on the wing.
For this tactical purpose, Chelsea's formation was also adjusted to a 424.
The goalkeeper is Courtois.
The four defenders from left to right are Cancelo, Van Dijk, David Luiz, and Azpilicueta.
The double defensive midfielder is Kante Matic.
The left winger Hazard, the right winger B, and the two centers are Lukaku and Harry Kane.
This basically means mobilizing all the attack power, especially the attack power from the wing, while taking into account a certain speed.
Cancelo was chosen as the left back instead of Marcos Alonso, considering that Longo is slower and playing as a regular left back is not what he is good at, and Cancelo is obviously more suitable.
Such a formation that focuses on offense and light defense would be more risky under normal circumstances, but if you set up a bus when coming to Leicester City, you can better utilize the offensive capabilities of this formation.
When Leicester City launches a counterattack, the wingers on both sides must block it immediately, and then cooperate with the double midfielders and defenders to slow down their attack speed.
In the locker room speech before the game, Pan Yi also emphasized:
"They may not have the strongest offense, nor are they the best in technology, nor are they creative, but this team is very tenacious, full of resilience, and has excellent power confrontation and running coverage capabilities."
"Facing such a team, no one will be relaxed, and we can't relax either."
"When we suppress the opponent and attack, we must pay attention to the movements of their arrow figures, especially Vardy and Mahrez."
"If they counterattack with the ball, and if you can't stop it, you can choose to foul immediately, don't hesitate!"
Afternoon of December 14, King Power Stadium.
In the 16th round of the Premier League, Chelsea challenged Leicester City away from home.
In the 75th minute of the game, Vardy stood in front of Chelsea's penalty area.
Facing the formidable Belgian national goalkeeper Courtois, he quickly took a run-up and shot angrily!
Although Courtois judged the direction correctly, the ball was too fast and there was no way to save it.
The ball went in!
The whole King Power Stadium is boiling!
One to zero!
Leicester City is ahead!
At this time, there are only about ten minutes left in the game!
In front of the visiting team's coaching bench, Pan Yi shook his head helplessly.
David Luiz is really not determined enough sometimes.
As soon as the game started, Chelsea fired four arrows at once, launching wave after wave of attacks on Leicester City's position.
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As expected, City's defense was tight, allowing Chelsea's attacks to come back in vain again and again.
Obviously, Ranieri is very aware of Chelsea's strength, so he is more determined than ever to defend.
The formation he lined up today is a 4-4-2 that he has commonly used this season.
Goalkeeper Schmeichel Jr., and the four defenders from left to right are Fuchs, Morgan, Huth, and Simpson.
The four midfielders are Mahrez, Drinkwater, Mikel, and Albrecht.
The double forwards are Vardy and Shinji Okazaki.
During the actual game, Shinji Okazaki often retreated very deep, forming a defensive posture of nine people, leaving Vardy in the frontcourt for counterattacks.
Under such circumstances, even with the strength of Chelsea's stars, it would be difficult to break through their defensive formation.
The game remained stalemate until the second half.
The second half of the game lasted for more than 20 minutes, but both sides still failed to get a good chance.
Chelsea completely controlled the ball, with a ball possession rate of 70. The number of shots was n times that of Leicester City, reaching 20, but only four shots were on target.
How many shots did Leicester City have? 1.
Or Vardy's long shot from the corner of the penalty area.
Pan Yi himself feels that the Chelsea players are still in good condition, but their footwork is a little bit unsatisfactory. The opponent's goalkeeper Schmeichel also performed very well, and his four saves were all wonderful.
But such low efficiency is mainly caused by Leicester City's defensive pressure.
They defended very fiercely! This also made Chelsea players uncomfortable.
Under high-intensity pressure, Chelsea often shoot hastily when they attack the frontcourt, which results in a low-quality shot.
It stands to reason that Leicester City plays so fiercely in every game, and Ranieri's tactical system consumes a lot of players' physical energy. In addition, Ranieri only uses 23 players regularly, which is the least in the Premier League.
……
Tactics that consume a lot of money and players who play the most minutes. The combination of these two factors will only remind people of a severe wave of injuries. Last season’s super dark horse Southampton fell due to the wave of injuries.
But Leicester City has the second-fewest number of injuries in the Premier League - only slightly more than Chelsea.
The problem is, Chelsea have so many players that they can play, but apart from the set of players that Leicester City have today, there are probably only a few players on the bench like Ulloa, Andy King, Inler, etc. who can be used.<
/p>
This is not only due to Leicester City's team medical team, but also probably due to metaphysics.
Or maybe Leicester City sacrificed their former head coach Pierce before the season, allowing them to get the attention of the injury goddess?
Of course, the fact that Leicester City's schedule is not as close as that of other strong teams should also be an important reason.
At the beginning of the season, Leicester City chose to give up the FA Cup and League Cup.
In the middle and later stages of the season, even though they consume a lot of physical energy, their one-game-a-week schedule gives them enough rest time compared to their opponents who have double or even three games a week.
He is 180cm tall, with a registered weight of only 60kg. He is a winger, left-footed, and his dribbling is elegant and sharp. Who do these statistics remind you of? Yes, the former glass man Robben.
But Mahrez, who has the same physical data, only came on the bench once this season and attended all other games. He turned a glass stat into a steel plate. Robben said that he fainted in the infirmary from crying.
The penalty kick scored by Vardy in the 75th minute was created by Mahrez.
Leicester City got a chance to counterattack. The "Polo King" took the ball on the right side of the pitch, broke through the defenses of Matic, Cancelo and David Luiz, and then inserted directly into the penalty area to prepare for a shot. At this time, David Luiz panicked and reached out to pull Mahrez down. Of course, he was sentenced to death and David Luiz himself also received a yellow card.
What makes Pan Yi depressed is this penalty kick.
Of course there is no problem with fouling. David Luiz also acted according to Pan Yi's instructions, but it was just a little too late.
If the foul was committed when Mahrez had just advanced to the edge of the penalty area, it would not have been a penalty kick.
David Luiz hesitated for a moment when he was passed by, and then reached out again. By this time, it was already too late, Mahrez had already put the ball into the penalty area.
Having said that, Mahrez is really very agile, and he is almost possessed by Messi.
Pan Yi took another closer look and saw that Mahrez's hands were wearing gloves.
It's December now, and Mahrez has said that his hands and feet tend to get cold when the weather is cold, so he likes to wear gloves.
And Mahrez wearing gloves is really not easy to mess with!
Pan Yi couldn't help but sigh: "It is indeed Ma Dongmei!"
Ma Dongmei is a meme among Dragon Country fans. It probably means that if Ma Jerez puts on gloves and plays football in winter, he will become Messi.
Arteta on the side didn't understand and asked: "Ma... what is Ma Mei?"
Pan Yi had no time to explain to Arteta. He turned around and pointed at Mbappe on the bench: "Go and warm up and get ready to play."
Mbappe jumped up from his chair excitedly and started running along the sideline.
Pan Yi now just wants to use Mbappe to attack Leicester City's wing.
Leicester City's four defenders, Fuchs, Morgan, Huth, and Simpson, are all very old, and their physical fitness will inevitably decline. In such a high-intensity game, their physical fitness is still somewhat problematic.
of.
Right back Simpson is the youngest, almost 29 years old, and he is also the relatively weakest among these defenders.
In the previous seventy minutes, he was very exhausted in the battle with Hazard, and his speed of returning to defense was also much slower.
Of course, Hazard has been attacking with the team for so long, and his physical energy has also been consumed a lot.
At this time, Pan Yi replaced Mbappe, just to use his speed and impact to hit Simpson hard!
Soon, Mbappe came back from the warm-up and stood next to Pan Yi.
"Killian, when you go up, replace Eden Hazard."
Mbappe kept nodding.
This young player, who will not turn 17 in another week, has made rapid progress in Pan Yi's hands. He even performed very well at one time and is now one of the important rotation players.
He also really admired Pan Yi. After all, it was Pan Yi who brought him from Monaco to a big team like Chelsea, promoted him directly from the youth team to the first team, and gave him full trust. "Simpson was already very strenuous when facing Hazard, and the consumption must be very high. After you go up, try to rush more, and try to open a breakthrough from him on this side."
"Understood." Mbappé nodded in agreement.
"Tell them not to fight with Morgan and Huth, but to play more on the wing and insert more from the back. If you create a breakthrough on the wing, our back row must follow up in time."
Pan Yi noticed that the central defender combination of Morgan and Huth performed very well tonight. The defensive midfielders Drinkwater and Mikel also looked like they were playing hard.
The 32-year-old center back captain Wes Morgan, after leaving Nottingham Forest to come to Leicester City, became the team leader and a good example for the players.
And the 32-year-old center back Huth, after leaving Stoke City, this former Sky City tower came to Leicester City and established his position as the leader of the defense in just one season.
Although the overly tough style of defense makes opponent players angry, it also ensures that the team's defense is stable and does not concede goals, which is a reassuring anchor for Manchester City's backcourt this season.
The 26-year-old Drinkwater was a former Manchester United player. According to the plot, he was lost in countless loans and became a mortal. But after joining Leicester City, Drinkwater's diligent professional attitude and outstanding performance made him
Marked.
This season he has become a passing master, the brain behind Leicester City's backcourt ball control.
Needless to say, Mikel, after being sold to Leicester City by Pan Yi, performed as well as Kante in his previous life, playing a very important midfield interception role.
Therefore, as Pan Yi expected before the game, it is really difficult for Chelsea to penetrate Leicester City's defense from the center today.
Chelsea's centers Harry Kane and Lukaku were unable to take advantage of them throughout the game.
Therefore, Pan Yi's current strategy is to contain Leicester City's defense in the middle, make a fuss on the wing, and focus on one back row.
Mbappe quickly replaced Hazard.
The French youngster's performance at Chelsea is also obvious to all. He has made great progress. His four goals in the last game against Norwich made him even more famous.
It is said that Deschamps, the head coach of the French national team, has noticed him and is preparing to call him up to the national team.
Now, this extremely fast young player seems to have come up with Pan Yi's instructions, which can't help but make Leicester City fans feel worried.
Ranieri even walked to the sidelines and called on the players to pay attention to Mbappe.
He also directed Leicester City's midfielders to come back a bit, not only Drinkwater and Mikel, but also Albrighton and Mahrez on both sides, to actively come back to protect the defense. p>
After all, time is running out, and City is still one goal ahead!
If they can maintain this score until the end, they will defeat Chelsea and break the Blues' undefeated myth!
Supported by this belief, although Leicester City players defended for a whole game, they were all really tired, but they still kept their spirits up and fought hard!
This is also one of the important reasons why Leicester City can achieve good results this season.
The players are full of hunger for success and their will on the court is extremely determined!
As a result, Chelsea's offense has still been greatly hindered.
Although Mbappe did cause several breakthroughs on the wing after coming on the field, Leicester City's central defender and defensive midfielder were still very quick to resolve the danger time and time again.
Time passes bit by bit.
Chelsea has more and more time on the ball, but fewer and fewer threatening attacks.
Especially as the game is coming to an end and entering stoppage time, everyone begins to speculate whether Chelsea is really going to lose???
This will undoubtedly be big news!
Chelsea's unbeaten record in the Premier League will be fixed at 53 games!
At the last moment, Pan Yi also replaced Harry Kane, who was trying his best, and replaced him with a new force, Abraham.
Chelsea also began to move back and forth more from the outside, testing back and forth on both wings.
Mbappe still moves more in the rib area, trying to cut inside.
Mbappe played as a left inside forward today, and the right-footed winger played on the left. Of course, he often tried to cut inside.
After he came on the field, he used this method several times when trying to break through Simpson.
When the game reached the 90th minute, Mbappe once again walked sideways and seemed to start cutting inside again.
Simpson also paid close attention to his every move, and Drinkwater immediately returned to Simpson's front to block Mbappe's cutting route.
This wave of defense seems to be stable.
Although this young French player is powerful, he is still too young and does not know how to be flexible.
His breakthrough has been resolved by Leicester City in the same way several times, but he is still stubborn and insists on breaking through.
Maybe this is a common problem among young people, sometimes they get stuck.
At this time, the distance between Mbappe and Simpson was getting closer and closer, so close that you could already hear the breathing of the right back who came from Manchester United's youth training camp.
At this moment, Mbappe suddenly swung the ball toward the baseline, and threw Simpson away at great speed, like a vigorous cheetah, quickly pounced on the food and rushed to the baseline.
He is going to the bottom this time!
Simpson was startled, but he immediately turned around and chased after him.
It's just that Drinkwater is now far away. The position he was standing in was to guard against Mbappe's inward cutting route, and now it is useless.
Mbappe seized the opportunity, took a quick step, and had already caught up with the ball and entered the left side of the penalty area.
Just when Leicester City's right back wanted to push Mbappe to the bottom line and towards the corner flag, Mbappe did not break through.
He suddenly flicked the ball with his right foot and sent a light low pass to the front edge of the small penalty area.
When Mbappe broke through with the ball, Lukaku in the middle had already been running non-stop.
His path position also interfered with Morgan and Huth. Both of them thought Lukaku was going to meet Mbappe, so they sandwiched each other one after another in the small penalty area, fearing that Mbappe would pass to the goal. But the two central defenders retreated too far, and the gap behind them was exposed.
At this time, Abraham quickly stepped in from behind and volleyed directly in the face of Mbappe's pass.
The ball went into the lower left corner of the Leicester City goal with lightning speed!
This is a perfect goal!
"gallllllllllllllll!
”
"At the critical moment, Abraham decides the outcome with one kick!"
"The score became 1:1!"
As the commentator exclaimed, Chelsea's players rushed out of the stadium crazily and ran all the way to the stands where the visiting team's fans were to celebrate.
Many people also shouted and roared at the live broadcast camera, venting their inner excitement and excitement.
It was an explosion of emotions accumulated after ninety minutes of fierce battle!
Although this was just a goal to tie the score, scoring such a goal at the last moment of the game can continue the team's unbeaten record, which undoubtedly makes everyone excited.
"Pan Yi's on-the-spot skills once again showed their effectiveness."
"After Mbappé came on the field, he kept playing his role on the wing and finally helped his teammates score goals!"
"From the slow-motion replay, we can see that Leicester City players are preventing him from cutting in. Both Simpson and Drinkwater instinctively thought that Mbappe's last attack would also go.
Cut inside."
"But in the end, the young French forward suddenly stepped down and sent an inverted triangle pass back with his right foot."
"In the end, 16-year-old Mbappe passed the ball and 17-year-old Abraham shot. Chelsea completed a youth connection!"
"The two players who came on the bench completed the rescue of Chelsea. Pan Yi's substitution is really amazing!"
"Chelsea's unbeaten record will continue! Now this number has become 54 games!"
Pan Yi jumped up high in front of the visiting team's coaching bench, cheered and cheered for the players on the court.
A final victory or a draw is definitely the most touching moment in a football match and the most addictive moment for fans.
Think about the 1999 Champions League final, when Manchester United scored consecutive draws at the last moment and defeated Bayern, finally completing the treble. How many people still remember this scene?
Of course, as a head coach, Pan Yi still doesn't want his team to experience such thrills often.
My heart can’t bear it!
It is not a good habit to lead a game with a quick-acting Jiuxin Pill.
Fortunately, Chelsea has not often let him experience such things in the past two years...
Not long after the Chelsea players celebrated, the referee's final whistle sounded.
In the end, Chelsea drew with Leicester City 1-1 away from home.
When Ranieri came over to shake hands with Pan Yi, the look on his face was obviously frustrated.
Although a draw with Chelsea is already a dream result for many teams, after all, Leicester City is only one minute away from defeating their opponent...
It's a pity that at the last moment of the game, the cooked duck flew away.
"You performed very well." Pan Yi said sincerely.
Ranieri smiled bitterly and shook his head: "But I still can't beat you."
Pan Yi laughed and said: "Let's compete again next time."
Ranieri shook his head even more: "I stayed at home for so long, and finally found a chance to score a goal. When I get to Stamford Bridge... I'm afraid I won't have a chance."
Pan Yi was not polite: "Indeed. I suffered a loss from your defense today, and I won't do it next time."
Ranieri curled his lips.
Both he and Pan Yi knew that with the strength of the two teams, Leicester City would definitely not be able to get any favors at Chelsea's home court.
"Come on, I look forward to us appearing in the Champions League together next season!" When the two said goodbye, Pan Yi patted the coach on the shoulder and said.
Ranieri stopped: "By the way, I have a question that I have been wondering about."
"What's the problem?"
"Why do you think we can achieve good results from the beginning of the season? But even I don't have confidence. After all, we are just a relegation team."
"Uh..." Pan Yi looked up at the sky, and then said something he didn't know what to say:
"Princes, generals and prime ministers would rather have the seed!"