After Manchester United kicked off for the fourth time, the referee blew the whistle to end the 90 minutes. After a short break, the two sides will enter half an hour of extra time.
In the blink of an eye, the five-minute break was over.
In fact, at this point in the game, neither coach has many cards left to play, and the starting players of both teams are basically exhausted. Other factors such as player ability and team tactics have to take a backseat. What matters now is which team has a stronger mental attitude and a more resilient will!
As the players returned to the field to prepare for the restart, the cameras promptly showed close-up shots of them.
Unlike at the end of the first half, the dejected and slumped side is now the young Manchester United players. In one close-up shot, captain Neville can be seen clapping his hands and shouting to his teammates, encouraging them.
On the other hand, although most of the Leeds United players were panting heavily with their hands on their thighs, the viewers in front of the TV could feel Leeds United's determination to win the game from their fighting spirit!
"Alright! Friends here! To be honest, I'm already getting a little excited. The last time a match had such a dramatic plot twist was the last one, hahaha, just kidding. Overtime is about to begin, let's see who the final winner is!"
Lineker's banter slightly eased the tense atmosphere, eliciting laughter from the fans. A moment later, the referee, with a slight smile, blew the whistle to start the first half of extra time.
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Almost 10 minutes into the first half of extra time, despite Scholes and Neville's efforts to motivate their teammates, the fact that a four-goal lead had been pegged back was a huge blow, leaving most of the players frustrated. The low morale prevented Manchester United from mounting an effective attack, and several clear chances ultimately failed to produce any threatening shots.
Ferguson saw the players' poor performance, but with no substitutions left, he could only stand on the sidelines yelling at the players who made mistakes, trying to bring his beloved disciples to their senses.
Li Shiguang clearly noticed this as well, so as soon as Manchester United gained possession, he immediately shouted for Leeds United players to rush up and press, hoping to put maximum pressure on Manchester United players. The results of this pressing method were significant. In the past 10 minutes or so, Leeds United frequently won back possession in Manchester United's half and eventually managed to get a shot on goal.
However, this intense running also caused the young men's already depleted stamina to be consumed even faster, with Milner and Ram already experiencing cramps.
Li Shiguang had just taken a moment to check the system and found that, apart from Neuer and Modric and Ribery who came on in the second half, the other players' stamina had dropped to single digits. Like Ferguson, he had no substitutions left and could only stand anxiously on the sidelines, hoping his players' willpower would be stronger than the opponents'...
Watching the Leeds United players, who were almost exhausted but still fighting hard on the field, both the commentator Lineker and the neutral fans who did not belong to either side unconsciously began to lean towards Leeds United.
This is perhaps a common problem for spectators in competitive sports: when you are in a neutral position, the relatively weaker but very tenacious side often makes you unconsciously hope that the weaker side will be the final winner.
This is how neutral fans are in the stadium now. As soon as Leeds United get the ball and start attacking, they immediately give them a deafening roar of support, as if they were ten-year Leeds United fans.
Leeds United responded to their enthusiasm!
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In the 12th minute of the first half of extra time, Manchester United made another mistake in their own half, and this time it was a fatal one!
This was originally a very ordinary throw-in. Ribery had kicked the ball out of bounds during a challenge with Neville. Instead of passing the ball back to Vidic on the back line, Neville threw it to Park Ji-sung, who was standing in midfield.
The nearly 110-minute run was a bit too much for the South Korean, who is known as "Park the Three Lungs". In the past, if his teammates threw him the ball from the sideline, he would have been the first to run over and catch it.
But the excessive physical exertion caused a brief blank in Park Ji-sung's mind. Watching the soccer ball flying towards him, he didn't run over immediately. Instead, he hesitated for a moment, thinking that he might as well just stand there and wait for the ball to land.
But in that instant of his daze, he suddenly heard the sound of hurried footsteps behind him.
"Oh no!" Park Ji-sung thought in alarm, but before he could react, a figure had already rushed in front of him.
"Alonso! He burst out from behind Park Ji-sung! He delivered a beautiful through ball!" Lineker shouted.
Alonso didn't stop the ball. After passing Park Ji-sung, he immediately volleyed a through ball with the instep of his foot. The pass was beautiful, positioned perfectly between Neville and Vidic. Ribery reacted quickly, and when he saw Alonso start his run from behind Park Ji-sung, he immediately turned and ran towards Manchester United's byline.
"Ribery controlled the ball beautifully, but Vidic had already closed in, and Neville was also chasing him desperately on his right rear. The two tried to block Ribery's position from the left and right, preventing him from dribbling into the penalty area! There was nothing Ribery could do but dribble the ball towards the byline, hoping he could still have a chance to pass!" Unconsciously, Lineker's live commentary had become a little emotional.
"Damn it, when the hell did you become a Leeds United fan?!"
"I'll throw it in your face, can't you even talk back?!"
Manchester United fans below the commentary booth started cursing. "You're a neutral commentator, are you trying to prove your loyalty here?"
But as Lineker said, Ribery is indeed having a tough time right now. Vidic is blocking his position, and the experienced Neville is constantly tugging at his shirt from outside the referee's blind spot.
With only about 2 or 3 meters left to run to the finish line, Manchester United fans gradually relaxed.
But at that moment, Ribery suddenly tapped the ball with his foot, then quickly shifted his weight backward and stopped in place. Vidic and Neville were clearly not prepared for Ribery's move, and due to the momentum, the two rushed out of bounds.
Seeing that Ribery had broken free of the defense, Van der Sar in front of the goal could no longer hold back and immediately rushed out to try to block Ribery's shooting angle.
But before Van der Sar could fall, Ribery deftly flicked the ball with his left foot, then chased after Van der Sar from outside the byline, caught up with the ball, and gently pushed it into the empty net...
5:4!
Leeds United have completed the comeback!
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