After warming up, the players from both sides returned to the locker room to prepare for the upcoming Champions League play-offs.
home team locker room
Espanyol coach Sergio, who had been gentle before, finally turned serious.
"The first game of this season, which is also a crucial game, is about to start.
I believe that everyone must be as excited and nervous as me.
There is no doubt that the opponent Monaco is very strong, perhaps the most powerful opponent we have encountered besides Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.
It was our first time playing against a Ligue 1 team, and we were not familiar with the opponent's skills, playing style, and tactics.
In this game, we may encounter difficulties that we have never encountered before.
However, as long as everyone goes all out, I believe we can defeat our opponents and enter the Champions League, which we have never set foot in before.
At this moment, I don’t want to say anything more. We have done everything we should do before the game. Everyone just needs to remember, regardless of victory or defeat, to go all out.”
Sergio was not very good at speaking, and he did not make a long speech. He gave a short speech to boost morale. When the referee blew the whistle outside to assemble, he let the players go out.
In the tunnel, Monaco's players had already come out and stood up. The players from both sides met at close range. When they looked at each other, sparks immediately appeared in the friction.
The three referees noticed something strange in the atmosphere, but they didn't care. It was like two boxers meeting before a boxing match. This kind of stare was actually putting pressure on the opponent, trying to overwhelm the opponent in terms of momentum and gain a psychological advantage.
When the players walked out of the mixed tunnel, their feelings were also mixed with ice and fire.
The Espanyol players received overwhelming cheers from the Espanyol fans.
Monaco's players were met with a flood of boos from the visiting team's fans, and even some debris was thrown at them.
Although they knew that the opponent's fans were putting pressure on them, Monaco's players were still young and couldn't help but feel angry. Several young people even secretly raised their middle fingers to the fans.
After getting on the court, they shook hands, took photos, and exchanged team flags and emblems as usual. After picking sides, the players from both sides stood in their own half, waiting for the referee to blow the whistle to start the game.
The stands gradually fell silent. Fans from both sides put down their snacks and drinks, left their mobile phones, and turned their attention to the stadium.
Taking advantage of this gap, the commentators introduced to the fans the starting lineups of both sides, the possible tactics of both sides, and the status of missing players.
"Zhao Yang is a forward on the starting list, but judging from his position, Zhao Yang's position is behind the two forwards Moreno and Caicedo. He plays roughly as a second forward or an attacking midfielder."
"Monaco's Falcao did not start, which is a major loss for them. Falcao, like Zhao Yang, is a player who can change the situation of the game."
"However, Monaco has many talented players this time, and the Spaniards must not be careless and underestimate the enemy."
"The Espanyol players are very nervous, or excited! Veteran Diego Lopez looks very relaxed. Indeed, such a game is child's play for him."
…
Rossi, the Italian referee, looked at his watch and blew his whistle.
The first to kick off was the home team Espanyol.
Caicedo and Moreno in the center circle dropped their feet, passed the ball to Zhao Yang, who was standing slightly behind, and then quickly penetrated into the opponent's hinterland.
Monaco players are young and play with great vigor. After Espanyol kicked off, their three forwards of Silva, Gilman and Dilard quickly ran across the half court to press Zhao Yang.
Although he is a bold artist, it was Zhao Yang's first time to play in a Champions League match and a knockout match, so he felt uneasy.
The opponent pressed forward, and Zhao Yang passed the ball back to Diop very steadily, running laterally to meet his teammates.
Silva followed Zhao Yang, Gilman and Dilard and continued to move forward, approaching Diop who was receiving the ball.
Diop habitually passed the ball to Zhao Yang, but Dilard pressed forward too quickly. In order to avoid him, Diop passed the ball farther away from Zhao Yang's body.
Silva saw it clearly and quickly rushed towards the ball, trying to intercept it.
Zhao Yang has the advantage of his position. If it were a La Liga game, Zhao Yang might try to get past Silva.
But now Zhao Yang was more cautious. He took the lead and passed the ball to full-back Ruben Duterte.
Silva had already reached Zhao Yang. Ruben did not dare to pass to him, so he passed to center back Oscar Duterte.
Oscar wanted to move to the other wing, but the opponent's forward Gilman was pressing on the wing, so Oscar passed the ball to midfielder Diop.
Diop glanced at the frontcourt. The two forwards were drowned in the opponent's defenders. He didn't take a big shot and passed the ball to Jurado who came to meet him.
The Spaniard played the ball too slowly in the backcourt. At this time, Monaco's overall formation was almost pressed to the center circle.
As soon as Jurado got the ball, Fabinho pounced on it as quickly as possible.
Jurado dunked the ball and passed Fabinho who pounced too hard.
But Fabinho seemed to be prepared. After an emergency stop, he quickly chased after him from behind.
Jurado failed to get rid of the defense completely and had no choice but to pass the ball long to find the forward.
Monaco's two central defenders, Glick and Jamerson, are both in their prime. Glick is 1.90 meters tall and has excellent aerial control. Such long passes cannot pass his interception.
The ball was intercepted by Glick and passed to teammate Lemar.
Lemar quickly dribbled the ball forward along the left wing, crossed the center line, and went straight to the Spaniard's bottom line.
Monaco is very good at wing attack. They have two excellent wing midfielders in Lemar and Silva.
When Lemar dribbled the ball forward, full-back Mendy followed closely, and Bakayoko in the center also moved forward to meet Lemar.
Piatti quickly and full-back Alvarez intercepted Lemar, and midfielder Diop also moved to the right to mark the forward Bakayoko.
Piatti prepared to flank Lemar with Alvarez, but the two did not expect to go together. Alvarez was playing in the Champions League play-offs for the first time and was a little nervous. Faced with the menacing Lemar, he directly faced him.
Lemar passed the ball across to Bakayoko and moved forward himself.
Bakayoko made a wall pass and then passed it back to Lemar. He then made a one-two against the wall and easily got rid of Alvarez.
Alvarez quickly turned around and chased back, and Piatti also ran decisively towards the penalty area to prevent Lemar from crossing the ball.
Center back Gonzalez used the fastest to cover the side to prevent Lemar from cutting inside.
Lemar rushed to the side of the penalty area and saw Gonzalez coming over. Lemar moved the ball horizontally and rushed directly towards his opponent.
Gonzalez moved sideways towards Lemar, trying to push Lemar to the baseline.
Lemar is a player with very delicate skills and a balanced left and right foot. From the baseline position, he pushed and pushed past Gonzalez like a black whirlwind.
Gonzalez panicked and tripped Lemar.
The referee Rossi had already followed him to the penalty area line. He saw clearly and blew the whistle directly, pointing to the penalty spot.
Less than two minutes into the game, Monaco took the lead and won a penalty kick.