Jon was right.
Leeds United's performance today was remarkable. In less than 30 minutes, they had already completed 11 threatening shots, 7 of which were on target. Manchester City were completely pinned back in their own half for the past half hour and couldn't get ahead!
Even the Leeds United fans in the stadium were starting to feel sorry for Edin Dzeko, who was on loan to Manchester City this season. After all, the young man had been standing in Leeds United's half for almost 7 or 8 minutes without touching the ball once...
Even under such extremely favorable circumstances, Li Shiguang did not relax. He stood on the sidelines and loudly urged his players not to relax and to continue to intensify their attack.
"Luca, the defensive pressure isn't too high right now. Leave the back to Xavi. Move your position forward a bit and work with Kevin to put some more pressure on them outside the penalty area!"
"Zlatan, are you taking a stroll? Get running! You haven't scored a goal today yet! Push into their penalty area! If you don't break down their defenders today, you'll be a substitute next game!"
"Michael, push forward! They can't even get past half-court, what are you doing hiding in the back?"
"Great job! Kevin, keep it up! Pass the ball as soon as you see an open space, don't hesitate!"
Manchester City manager Stewart, standing nearby, was furious but helpless upon hearing Li Shiguang's unbridled remarks, as the gap in player ability between the two sides was indeed too great.
Especially that kid who kicks the attacking midfielder.
Stewart really didn't know where Li Shiguang had found such a genius. It was as if his feet were equipped with positioning devices. His diagonal passes and through balls were all accurate, and he was always attacking behind Manchester City's defense, leaving Manchester City's two flanks completely exposed by Podolski and Torres.
In the 34th minute, Podolski attempted a dribble past Danny Mills on the left side of Manchester City's penalty area and was fouled. Leeds United were awarded a free kick about 24 meters from the goal on the left side of Manchester City's penalty area.
The free kick was in a very good position, and several of Leeds United's free kick specialists were eager to take it. After some discussion, the team's first-choice free kick taker, Modric, gave the ball to Ibrahimovic, who had not yet scored a goal that day.
After Manchester City formed their wall, the referee blew his whistle to signal that Ibrahimovic could take the penalty.
Ibrahimovic first looked up at the goal, then took two big steps forward with his long legs and flicked the ball with his right foot!
The football flew directly over the wall from the right and headed towards the goal guarded by James.
Ibrahimovic's free kick was of very high quality! Some Leeds United fans sitting behind the Manchester City goal had already stood up, looking ready to cheer and celebrate in advance.
Contrary to expectations, the ball did not fly directly into the goal. Instead, it struck the junction of the crossbar and the post on the upper right side of the goal with a loud "bang" before bouncing back into the penalty area!
Immediately, chaos erupted in Manchester City's penalty area as players from both sides tugged at each other as they rushed toward the ball. In this chaotic situation, Richards seized his opportunity.
He was already standing in front of the right goalpost. After Ibrahimovic's shot was denied, he was the closest to the ball. Richards rushed forward ahead of everyone else, controlled the ball before Torres could kick it, and then with a flick of his right foot, he dribbled past Torres's challenge and rushed out of the penalty area.
To Richards' utter surprise, he saw Alonso blocking his way as soon as he rushed out of the penalty area!
Instinctively, Richards nudged the ball with his right foot again, trying to avoid Alonso's interception.
But Alonso seemed to have anticipated Richards' move. He took a step to the side with his left foot, and then the ball that Richards had deflected from his feet was poked away by Alonso! And coincidentally, it was poked right in front of Ibrahimovic.
Ibrahimovic, who was still regretting that his shot had missed, was not about to miss such a good opportunity. Seeing the ball flying in front of him, he drew his bow and arrow again and slammed his right foot into the ball!
"Whoa! Ibrahimovic! He's found another opportunity!"
Eddie Gray saw Ibrahimovic shoot and started yelling at the top of his lungs again!
This time, Ibrahimovic didn't choose to curl the ball into the far corner again. Instead, he cleverly fired a low shot towards the left side of Manchester City's goal!
What made James even more pained than the previous goal was that Manchester City's penalty area was packed with people, and he couldn't see the direction of Ibrahimovic's shot at all!
James only reacted when the ball flew out from the left side of the crowd, skimming the grass. Unfortunately, he had too little time to react; before he even fell, the ball had already grazed the post and gone into Manchester City's goal.
2-0, Leeds United extended their lead!
After the restart, Leeds United slowed down the pace slightly under Li Shiguang's direction, which gave Manchester City a chance to catch their breath. Although they didn't have any threatening attacks, at least the game wasn't as bad.
After a stalemate of about 10 minutes, the referee blew the whistle to end the first half.
As the players left the field, the camera zoomed in on them, showing a stark contrast between the relaxed Leeds United players joking and laughing with each other, and the Manchester City players with their heads down and silent.
During halftime in the locker room, Stewart hadn't given up on the game yet. After encouraging his players, he also made corresponding tactical arrangements for the second half.
But what he didn't expect was...
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