When the players from both sides appeared in the player tunnel to wait for their turn to play, even Schmeichel didn't dare to talk to his former teammates. The Manchester United players all stood seriously in their own line. In contrast, the Leeds United players, who had just received the good news of their bonuses being doubled, looked much more relaxed.
In the Sky Sports studio.
After a long series of commercials, the scene finally switched to Old Trafford.
Reinkel and Jon received the notification through their earpieces and quickly delivered their opening remarks.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Sky Sports! We're bringing you the highlight of the ninth round of the 2007-2008 English Premier League season: Manchester United vs. Leeds United at Old Trafford! I'm your old friend, Gary Lineker!"
"Hello everyone, I'm Jon."
After exchanging greetings, Lineker didn't waste any time and immediately looked at the computer screen to introduce the starting lineups for both sides.
"First up is Manchester United, playing at home. Ferguson has fielded a 4-3-3 formation today. The starting goalkeeper is Kasper Schmeichel, who just transferred from Leeds United this summer; this is his first time facing his former club since the move! In defense, from left to right, are Evra, Vidic, Fiddlesticks, and John O'Shea. In midfield, Carrick plays as the lone holding midfielder, with Scholes and Giggs in front of him. The three forwards are Berbatov in the center, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Rooney on the left and right respectively!"
"Next up is Leeds United. Today, Leeds United is using a 4-2-3-1 formation. The starting goalkeeper is Neuer, the left-back is Lahm, the right-back is Alves, and the two center-backs are Cannavaro and Leeds United captain Kompany. In midfield, the two holding midfielders are Modric and Xabi Alonso, the attacking midfielder is Kaká, the right winger is Ribery, and the left winger is Bale. Up front is the in-form Ibrahimovic!"
After reading out the starting lineups for both sides, Lineker immediately turned to his partner: "Jon, I had a pretty good idea of Ferguson's starting lineup before the game. But Lee, he actually abandoned the 4-3-3 and 4-3-2-1 formations that he's used the most this season. What are your thoughts on that?"
“I think on the one hand, Li wants to strengthen control of the midfield; on the other hand, this is Old Trafford after all, and facing a Manchester United team in good form, Li might be thinking of stabilizing the defense first, and then looking for opportunities to launch counter-attacks!” Jon answered matter-of-factly. “Haven’t you noticed? Since the beginning of this season, Ferguson has started to move Cristiano Ronaldo further forward, while Giggs, as he gets older, has gradually started to move more centrally. Speaking of which, Manchester United’s tactical focus is still on the flanks, but since their winning streak began, they have actually been opening up the opponent’s weaknesses through the middle more often!”
Reinkel nodded first, then asked with a puzzled look, "If the plan is to launch a counter-attack, why didn't Li bring on Adriano, who has a stronger attacking presence?"
Although Jon had the same doubts, Li Shiguang's unpredictable on-field command made him hesitant to draw conclusions, so he could only say perfunctorily, "I can't guess that either. After all, he is the head coach of Leeds United, and Li is the one who knows the Leeds United players best!"
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Actually, Li Shiguang hadn't considered that much about whether to play Ibrahimovic or Adriano.
Before the match, he used the system to check the condition of several forwards.
Adriano and Ibrahimovic are both normal.
However, considering Adriano's stronger impact, Li Shiguang decided to bring on Ibrahimovic first. If they still couldn't break through in the second half, they would let the energetic Adriano go on for a while.
While the two commentators were analyzing the match, the pre-match ceremony was proceeding smoothly.
Line up, shake hands, the two captains toss the coin... while the players were doing these things, the television cameras were also busy.
In addition to the star players from both teams, the live broadcast also focused the camera on the two head coaches who had shaken hands and returned to their respective benches.
Li Shiguang seemed relatively normal. After smiling and hugging Ferguson, he returned to the bench and chatted and laughed with Simeone next to him.
Ferguson, on the other hand, looked a bit serious.
Before the match even started, he stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed and a serious expression.
Lineker noticed this too and quickly joked with Jon: "Jon, look at Lee and Ferguson, I feel like Leeds United is leading the standings now, not Manchester United, and today's match is on Elland Road, not Old Trafford."
"Hahahaha." Jon laughed at Lineker's words. "The pressure is immense! Today is a revenge match for Manchester United. Have you forgotten the title of 'three runners-up' that Ferguson is currently carrying? Lee is one of the culprits."
"Huh!?" Reinkel blinked, clearly not expecting this...
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Manchester United, wearing their red home jerseys, kicked off the match first.
Ferguson's pre-match pep talk proved effective.
After the match began.
Manchester United, playing at home, didn't even bother with any probing and immediately launched into attack mode.
They started by launching an attack from the kickoff, and finally Ronaldo received a cross from Berbatov in front of the penalty area and fired a powerful shot that went wide of the post.
Seeing Manchester United launch an attack from the start, Leeds United's young lads naturally weren't going to give their opponents any leeway.
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