[With the Champions League Round of 16 about to begin, the form of the three Premier League giants is worrying!]

[Leeds United and Manchester United continue their slump, while Arsenal reclaim the top spot in the league!]

[The Premier League takes another turn as Arsenal overtakes Leeds United and Manchester United after two consecutive wins! Wenger admits Arsenal hopes to achieve good results on all three fronts!]

Chelsea and Liverpool drew, leaving the outcome of the top-four battle uncertain!

The day after the end of the 26th round of the Premier League.

Leeds United, Manchester United, and Chelsea, who failed to win their matches yesterday and are about to represent the Premier League in the Champions League, were besieged by various media outlets.

The Sun even put together photos of Lee Shiguang, Ferguson, and Grant standing on the sidelines yesterday with their arms looking grim, and then compared them with Wenger laughing heartily.

Online, besides the Arsenal and Liverpool fans who are just watching the show, the fans of these three clubs have also started arguing fiercely!

In southeastern France.

Located in the Lyon training base in the Rhône-Alpes region of Lyon.

Lyon's head coach, veteran French manager Gerard Houllier, was taking a walk along the training ground frequently used by the first team after having lunch with his assistant, Nicholas.

This is something Houllier has to do every day after meals. There's no way around it; ever since he took charge of Liverpool, he's been plagued by heart disease, and taking a walk after meals is a strict requirement from his attending physician!

Interestingly, Houllier suffered his first heart attack in 2001 during a Premier League match in which he led Liverpool against Leeds United, their opponent in the Champions League Round of 16.

Yesterday, Lyon defeated Sochaux 4-1 in the 24th round of Ligue 1, further consolidating their position at the top of the standings. As a result, a pleased Houllier gave the players two days off.

But the veteran coach himself did not slack off.

This morning, I called my assistant Nicks to the training ground and we spent the whole morning watching Leeds United's match videos.

Hollier knew it.

From the moment the draw ceremony ended, across the entire European continent, perhaps apart from Lyon's fans and themselves, no one believed that Lyon could eliminate Leeds United in the Champions League Round of 16!

After all, Leeds United were simply too strong, both in terms of squad strength and the team's form at the time!

But the 60-year-old coach doesn't believe in these things.

Having seen countless ups and downs, Houllier firmly believes that the ball is round and there are strong and weak players, but no one can say for sure what the final outcome of the game will be until the referee blows the whistle!

“Girard, Leeds United are really not in good form.” While taking a walk, Nicholas was also looking at his phone. “I glanced at the news reports from England, and the atmosphere was like they were going to hang up the names of those three teams that are about to participate in the Champions League on Big Ben and curse them!”

I found the Knicks' analogy somewhat amusing.

Houllier smiled and shook his head slightly: "Knicks, it's true they lost the game, but we can't judge based on media reports. I've studied Lee's historical record since he took over Leeds United, and I have to say, there's one thing he really did very well."

"Which point?"

"A season is such a long time, it's impossible for a player to maintain a high level of performance all the time. Injuries, physical fitness, international competitions, and even family and external factors can all cause fluctuations in a player's performance, don't you agree?" Houllier countered.

The Knicks, no strangers to the game, nodded in agreement with Houllier's comments.

"In my opinion, the most important thing for a coach when leading a team is not tactical reserves, on-field command ability, or the ability to discover new talents, but the ability to help players turn around their bad form in the shortest amount of time! Li did this very well!"

Seeing how seriously Hollier was taking what he said, I realized that Hollier was quite serious.

Knicks asked with some confusion, "Girard, did you speak with him before when you were in the Premier League?"

“No, I’ve only met his father.” Houllier shook his head. “His father passed away the year after I left Liverpool, and that’s when Lee took over Leeds United, which was on the verge of bankruptcy.”

"Then why do I get the feeling that you know him very well?"

Houllier rolled his eyes: "Because I'm the head coach, you only need to give me the statistics for Leeds United's matches in the last two months, while I, in order to study Lee's tactical habits, have gone through their matches from the previous two years! Every year, Leeds United has a period of poor form, but it only lasts for two or three matches, and Lee can turn the team's slump back around."

“Hmm… I didn’t notice that.” Knicks smiled sheepishly. “So, according to you, by the time we play, Leeds United might have already shaken off their slump? If that’s the case, Houllier, to be honest, this series is going to be tough for us.”

"I don't know... Of course, that's possible." Even knowing his team was at a disadvantage, the veteran coach had long since developed the ability to maintain a calm mindset despite the torment of illness. "But you don't need to worry. The preparations we started so far in advance weren't for nothing. At least when they came to the Olympic Park stadium for the first leg, I was still confident!"

····

A whole week.

Numerous media outlets camped out at the entrance of Thorpe Arch training ground, hoping to get a chance to interview Li Shiguang in person.

Everyone knows that.

Mourinho and Lee Shiguang are the two biggest critics in the Premier League.

Now that Mourinho has left for Italy, what Li Shiguang will say in the face of the current frenzied public opinion is undoubtedly what the media reporters are most concerned about.

However, Li Shiguang did not give these boring media outlets the opportunity to interview him.

He hasn't shown up at the entrance of Thorpe Arch this week.

Simone was somewhat indignant and wanted to rush out and say a few words, but Li Shiguang stopped him.

According to Li Shiguang, football issues should be resolved on the field, and those who criticize the team online are not the die-hard fans.

Once we win the game, those bored people will naturally shut up.

····

Over the weekend, Leeds United will face their FA Cup fifth-round opponent, League One side Huddersfield Town.

Considering that we will be traveling to Lyon in three days to play the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16,

Li Shiguang still fielded a substitute lineup for this match.

Even with their reserve squad, Leeds United didn't give Huddersfield any chance.

These players, who had all experienced Li Shiguang's raging anger in the away team's locker room at the Stadium of Light last week, were fully committed to the game from the moment they stepped onto the field, and dared not slack off in the slightest.

final.

Leeds United also secured a resounding 5-0 victory over Huddersfield Town at home, advancing to the next round of the FA Cup.

The victory improved public opinion somewhat, but only somewhat. After all, the opponent was a team from a lower league, and such a victory could not silence those who were good for making trouble!

In this chaotic environment of public opinion.

The first leg of the 2007-2008 UEFA Champions League Round of 16 matches has finally arrived...