From the moment Ronaldo turned and launched his counter-attack until he crossed the halfway line and received the ball back from Scholes, it only took three or four seconds.
Just a tiny bit of time.
Even if Kompany and Silva run desperately into Manchester United's penalty area to contest headers, they cannot immediately return to their own half to defend.
So when Ronaldo received the ball for the second time, all that was left in front of him was Sun Jihai, who was rushing towards him.
If Ronaldo had received the ball stationary, he would likely have considered how to break through Sun Jihai's defense. But now that Ronaldo has increased his speed, the Portuguese player doesn't need to think too much when facing Sun Jihai's defense.
They seized the opportunity when Sun Jihai was about to shovel the ball.
At high speed, Ronaldo simply used his left foot to cut the ball inward, easily dodging Sun Jihai's tackle, and then he passed right by Sun Jihai!
"He's past him! There are no defenders in front of Cristiano!" Jon crouched down, seemingly ready to receive the first goal of the game.
Next to him, Lineker clenched his fists tightly, his face was pale, and he remained silent.
It's clear that he's very nervous, being a Leeds United fan.
Back on the court,
Although Sun Jihai's sliding tackle failed to stop Ronaldo, he still made his contribution, at least Ronaldo slowed down a little when dodging the tackle.
That is, it's slow.
Modric and Lahm, who had been relentlessly pursuing Ronaldo, caught up.
Even so, both of them were just running behind Ronaldo, with no chance of overtaking him. Once Ronaldo adjusted his posture, the Portuguese player would definitely pull away from them again!
Fortunately, both Lahm and Modric are incredibly composed players on the field.
It's clear that catching up with Ronaldo is no longer possible.
The two made a decision immediately.
Modric used his leg strength to throw himself forward, crashing into Ronaldo's back.
Lahm immediately fell to the ground and, using the momentum, made a tackle on the football at Ronaldo's feet in a move that would definitely earn him a card!
Modric didn't touch Ronaldo, but Lahm did.
The German's shoe, pressed firmly downwards, touched the ball and then appeared in Ronaldo's path.
"Cristiano! Oh no, he's been brought down by Lahm! That's at least a yellow card!" Jon's voice was tinged with regret. "There's nothing we can do. Cristiano beat all of Leeds United's defenders. If Lahm hadn't made that tackle, the deadlock would probably have been broken!"
“Yes! If they don’t bring Cristiano down soon, he’ll be closing in on the edge of Leeds United’s penalty area. Lahm’s yellow card was unavoidable!” Zola nodded in agreement. “But as the main defender against Cristiano, Lahm got a yellow card after only twenty minutes... Leeds United are going to have a tough time in the rest of the game!”
····
Ferguson was somewhat dissatisfied with Mikhail only showing Lahm a yellow card. In the old manager's view, Lahm's tackle from behind was a standard red card offense.
However, the fourth official, Vladimir Linak, who is also from Slovakia, patiently explained to Sir Alex Ferguson that the referee, Michael Müller, had already said that Lahm touched the ball first and did not show his studs, so a yellow card was appropriate.
at last.
Ferguson walked back to his bench, still grumbling, hoping that Ronaldo could score from the free kick against Leeds United.
To be honest.
What just happened gave Li Shiguang a fright.
Before the game starts...
Li Shiguang quickly walked to the sidelines and pressed his hands down on Kompany, who was coming over to rehydrate: "Vincent, if there are any more set pieces, only one of you and Silva can go up. I don't want to see that happen again."
Hearing Li Shiguang's instructions.
Kompany, who was squeezing water onto his bald head, nodded solemnly and immediately ran back onto the field to relay Li Shiguang's instructions to Thiago Silva.
····
One minute later.
Ronaldo's free kick posed little threat to Neuer, as it was too central and was caught tightly in Neuer's arms.
They were caught off guard by Manchester United's counter-attack.
Leeds United will certainly not be outdone.
A few minutes later, they capitalized on Manchester United's mistake!
Thirty-first minute.
Adriano's shot was saved by Schmeichel, and Manchester United immediately launched an attack.
After two passes, the ball reached Carrick's feet.
Leeds United, having just completed an offensive, are now retreating to defend.
Besides Adriano at the very front, even Kaká and Reus are about to retreat past the center line.
Carrick received the pass on the right side of the field and took two steps forward.
I don't know if he suddenly lost his mind, or if Ferguson's instructions were too harsh.
Carrick suddenly, as if possessed, started to pass the ball!
But he didn't pass the ball forward.
Instead, it was passed laterally to the left lane.
It's obvious.
Carrick is looking for Cristiano Ronaldo.
But his pass... seemed to have gone astray.
The football didn't fly high into the air, but flew towards the left half of the field at a height of about half a meter above the ground.
Reus, who was retreating, immediately stopped and intercepted the ball!
Seizing the opportunity, Reus showed no mercy, pushing the ball forward and then dribbling at lightning speed down the middle towards Manchester United's penalty area!
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