Just as Lineker and Ron were having a long conversation.
Li Shiguang was also in the locker room giving the players their final pre-match instructions: "Guys, are you nervous?"
Faced with Li Shiguang's question, the already somewhat noisy locker room fell silent.
After scanning the players, whose eyes all pretended to be calm but whose hands and feet were making subtle movements, Li Shiguang already understood perfectly.
This is, after all, the knockout stage. Most of the Leeds United players are stepping onto this big stage for the first time, so it's normal for them to be a little nervous.
He was thinking about how to encourage his players when a sudden sound from the corner broke the silence in the locker room.
"Don't be nervous!"
Upon hearing the sound, everyone, including Li Shiguang, instinctively looked in the direction from which it came.
Then they saw Rivaldo, who had just put on his sneakers and looked up, also looking blankly at everyone who was staring at him.
? ? ?
Is there something on my face?
Rivaldo first touched his face, then raised his hand and waved it in front of everyone: "Why are you all looking at me? Don't you guys need to wear equipment?"
"Hahahaha, get the hell out of here! Ferreira, of course you're not nervous, you've walked on this grass countless times."
As Li Shiguang's laughter and scolding subsided, everyone joined in the laughter, and the somewhat tense atmosphere in the locker room became much more relaxed thanks to Rivaldo's banter.
Seeing that the players were at least in a better mental state, Li Shiguang breathed a sigh of relief.
He clapped his hands vigorously, and after everyone had refocused their attention on him, he continued, "Without a doubt, our opponents will go all out in this match. When the defending champions unleash their full potential, they will be quite terrifying, so we need to be mentally prepared!"
"As expected, they will definitely launch a fierce attack on us after the game starts, taking advantage of their home field! But we must hold on! It doesn't matter if we are a bit overwhelmed. Only by withstanding their attacks for at least the first 20 minutes can we find a chance for a fatal counterattack!"
"Everyone, remember this: if we can score an away goal today, we've already won half the series!"
····
"Alright, viewers, as you can see on the TV screen, the players have lined up in the player tunnel, and we also have the starting lineups for both sides. Now, let Jon introduce the starting 11 for both sides today!"
Don't you have one too? Why do I need to explain it to you?
Jon rolled his eyes at Lineker, who was also holding the starting lineup, with disdain. Helplessly, he picked up the paper on the table and began to introduce it.
"Let's take a look at the starting lineup for the home team, Barcelona, today!"
"Rijkaard used his most frequently used 4-3-3 formation this season, with Valdes in goal. In defense, due to Thuram's injury, Rijkaard's options were a bit limited, with veteran Zambrotta at left-back, Belletti at right-back, and captain Puyol and Marcos at center-back. In midfield, Motta played as the lone holding midfielder, with Xavi and Deco as the two central midfielders."
"What's surprising is Barcelona's attacking line. Rijkaard actually benched Eto'o today, and Saviola replaced him. To his right is the young Messi, who has been performing well recently and is gradually winning Rijkaard's favor, and to his left is Barcelona's core player, Ronaldinho!"
After Lineker handed the task of announcing the starting lineup to Jon, he didn't look at the starting lineup list again.
When he heard that Barcelona's starting striker for the day was Saviola instead of Eto'o, a look of surprise flashed across his face: "Huh? Is Eto'o injured? Rijkaard is giving us a surprise!"
Jon shrugged, indicating he didn't know, then picked up Leeds United's starting lineup and his expression suddenly became even more interesting.
"What's wrong?" Reinkel asked, looking puzzled.
Jon shook his head, not answering Lineker directly, but instead earnestly introducing Leeds United's lineup.
"Next up is Leeds United's starting eleven. Today, Lee used the 4-5-1 formation he used against Arsenal. It seems he still believes in stabilizing the defense first away from home before considering anything else!"
"The goalkeeper is Schmeichel. In defense, several key players who had a good rest in the last game have returned to the starting lineup. From right to left, they are Alves, Kompany, Cannavaro, and Lahm. In midfield, the two holding midfielders are still the undisputed Alonso and Modric. The three starting attacking midfielders are a bit of a surprise to me. The right winger is Sneijder, the left winger is De Bruyne, and the starting central midfielder... Li actually fielded the veteran Rivaldo, with Torres leading the attack!"
"What? Rivaldo? Has he made more than 10 appearances this season?"
After hearing Jon's introduction, Lineker was dumbfounded and picked up the Leeds United starting lineup on the table to check it repeatedly.
Jon also found it a bit unbelievable. If Li Shiguang hadn't been standing on the sidelines, he would have thought that Simeone had put together the starting lineup!
"That doesn't make sense! There are so many players in Leeds United who can play that position, why would Lee choose Rivaldo? Is he trying to give us Leeds United fans a surprise?"
"Pfft..." Hearing Reinkel's mutterings, Jon couldn't help but laugh. "Gary, I don't think this is a surprise, it's more like a shock..."
····
As the two commentators discussed the starting lineups in the studio, the players entered the Camp Nou stadium to the accompaniment of the UEFA Champions League theme song.
Leading the way was captain Kompany. As soon as he stepped out of the players' tunnel, he looked around and saw a large number of giant TIFOs covering most of the stands.
Especially after he took a few more steps forward, Kompany could even hear the roars and shouts of the Barcelona fans on both sides.
At that moment, the large screen atop Camp Nou was also simultaneously displaying footage of the players entering the stadium.
Rivaldo walked at the back of the Leeds United team with his ball boy in hand. As he walked out of the players' tunnel, the big screen switched to him, and the director even zoomed in on the shot. Instantly, a deafening chorus of boos erupted from the Nou Camp stands.
However, Rivaldo did not seem to be greatly affected and continued to walk slowly onto the field with the team. However, when he passed the substitutes' bench, he turned his gaze to Li Shiguang, who was also watching him.
It was as if it were saying, "Boss, you see? This is why I wanted to start today..."
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