On January 16, the French Ligue 1 season resumed, with Marseille hosting last season's formidable rivals Monaco at the Stade Vélodrome.
A month and a half ago, the clash between the two teams still seemed vivid in their minds. The 4-0 scoreline was as clear as if it happened yesterday, etched in the minds of every player. Looking at the relaxed Monaco players in front of them, the Marseille players' eyes gradually hardened.
They didn't want to be trampled underfoot again.
Just as the head coach said before the game, this is their home ground, and they won't tolerate those kids being arrogant here.
In preparation for this match, not only did the head coach do a lot of research beforehand, but they also worked hard to achieve victory, constantly practicing tactics to counter Monaco's lineup.
The match officially began as the referee blew his whistle.
Marseille, who prioritized attacking, did not immediately launch a full-scale assault. Instead, they began to probe and constantly stretch Monaco's formation.
For five minutes, the ball was still being passed around in the midfield, which made the originally enthusiastic host feel as uncomfortable as if he had a blockage in his bowels!
The expected back-and-forth attack?
What about a passionate offensive?
Where is the burning anger?
Marseille, what are you doing?!
The presenter really had an urge to rush to the sidelines and replace Marseille's head coach, Tudor.
However, Tudor, the team's head coach, was very satisfied with all of this.
The players observed his pre-match tactics very well, constantly wearing down the Monaco players' patience.
As his old rival, he was naturally unwilling to accept the 4-0 defeat in the previous match. In order to regain his pride and to prove to the world that he was no worse than Yardin, he stayed up for three whole nights preparing for this match. Heaven knows how many brain cells he burned during that time.
When the game reached the seventh minute, things finally changed on the field.
But this change immediately prompted Marseille coach Tudor to shout anxiously, "Stop him!"
On the pitch, Marseille, who were still trying to play it safe, finally showed a weakness. During a midfield pass, the ball was touched by Lemar, who was pressing hard to win it back. This led to a small scramble in midfield, and the ball was passed to Gilman on the other side of the field.
Unfortunately, Gilman failed to capitalize on this opportunity. When he went down the wing to make a strong run, he couldn't evade the opposing defender's defense, and the ball was blocked out of bounds.
In the 9th minute of the match, Monaco earned their first corner kick.
Lemar took the corner kick, but the ball didn't go towards the penalty area. Instead, it landed outside the penalty area, where Bernardo Silva had been lurking. Facing the incoming ball, he reached out to block the opposing defenders and unleashed a long-range volley.
That was a very imaginative shot, comparable to a celestial strike.
Unfortunately, perhaps because it was his first touch of the ball since the start of the game, he didn't control the force well, and the ball flew past the threshold and into the stands.
This allowed many home fans present to breathe a sigh of relief.
No one expected that Monaco would score such a high-quality shot with just their first touch of the ball, which made many people nervous.
Fortunately, Marseille's attack followed, and the home fans cheered for their players.
Marseille's goalkeeper delivered a precise throw-in to midfielder Wernker, who, without hesitation, passed it directly to winger Cabella on the other side.
Cabella quickly made a run down the wing, and despite being marked by Monaco defender Toure, he remained unfazed. He executed a croquet move, successfully creating an opening, and passed the ball without even looking up.
There, Marseille's center forward Gomis arrived at the perfect moment, leaping high to deliver a powerful header, intending to teach the Monaco team a lesson. However, unexpectedly, what was originally a very tricky shot in terms of speed and angle was firmly welded to the opposing goalkeeper's damn right hand.
"Damn it!"
How did he do that?
Gomis stared wide-eyed as he recalled the lightning-fast scene, completely bewildered as to how the guy had appeared there. He had clearly observed the other's position before deliberately shifting to the right.
Even so, the opponent still anticipated it. What's even more puzzling is how they managed to catch the ball firmly with one hand!
At that moment, Lei Ming, who had just received the ball, ignored the dazed black giant and rushed out quickly, throwing the ball far and accurately to the striker.
Seeing this from the sidelines, Marseille's coach roared, "Gomis, what the hell are you doing? Couldn't you at least try to distract me...?"
The loud noise did not disturb the football as it flew out normally. The ball leaped high and quickly arrived above Fabinho in the blink of an eye.
Contesting for the ball, letting it slip by, turning and dribbling – Fabinho's finesse was on full display at this moment. Facing the opponent's counter-pressing, he calmly and methodically received the ball and dribbled past them.
Once he got past his opponent, there was nothing but flat ground ahead of him.
This is why Lei Ming passed the ball to him just now. In his opinion, Fabinho is trustworthy and will definitely be able to achieve the result he wants. And in fact, he did.
On the sidelines, Monaco's head coach Jardim smiled slightly as he watched his team's attack.
Ray's overall vision was even more outstanding than he had imagined. To be honest, he hadn't even seen that spot yet, but Ray was able to find Fabinho accurately from the backfield. Based on that alone, he had no reason to keep him on the bench.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
