It was exactly 3 p.m.
With the sounding of today's referee Howard Webb's whistle.
The first match of the new English football season, filled with rivalries, kicked off amidst the cheers of nearly 100,000 fans at Wembley Stadium.
After the match began.
Many people, including Jon, have realized they were wrong.
Manchester United did not adopt the defensive counter-attacking tactic they had planned; they had no intention of retreating into the 30-meter zone to play a defensive game.
on the contrary.
The two full-backs, Evra and Gary Neville, were positioned a bit too far forward, having moved up to the midfield area at one point, appearing to have transitioned from full-backs to wing-backs.
"Hey, this is a bit surprising." After watching the game for a few minutes, Jon said with a frown, "I didn't expect Ferguson to dare to push his two full-backs so far forward. Isn't he afraid that Leeds United's three central midfielders are among the best in the world? Isn't he afraid that Leeds United will seize the opportunity to play through the defense?"
“Do you think it’s possible?” Lineker pointed to the TV screen and explained, “Ferguson originally wanted to play a defensive counter-attacking style, but after finding out that Leeds United only fielded one defensive midfielder, he changed his mind at the last minute.”
Jon's eyes lit up, and he slammed his hand on the table: "That's possible! Now that you mention it, I suddenly noticed! At the start of the game, Cristiano and Bale didn't actually drift wide, and their positioning wasn't very advanced either. Instead, they consciously moved towards the center, trying to help Kanté protect Leeds United's midfield and defense... But if that's the case, isn't Lee completely wasting the attacking attributes of these two? If he wants to directly confront them in midfield, why not use the Modric and Martinez combination?"
The situation on the field does indeed lead one to think in that direction.
The two commentators also guessed half of it correctly.
However, this is only half of the story.
It belongs to Ferguson!
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Actually, before the match.
Ferguson anticipated that Li Shiguang might field a combination of Ronaldo, Kaká, and Bale in the midfield and forward line.
We've faced off so many times.
Ferguson already knew Kaká and Bale's abilities well enough, and he also knew Cristiano Ronaldo, whom he had personally trained, inside and out.
That's why Sir Alex Ferguson used a five-defender formation.
The goal was to make Manchester United's backline more compact, so that these three players wouldn't have enough space to accelerate!
But after seeing that Li Shiguang's lineup only had one defensive midfielder, and that this defensive midfielder was a player he had never even heard of, Ferguson changed his mind.
Manchester United only lost Ronaldo, not their attacking prowess.
If we can make good use of this.
A goal in the lead.
Then, once you've gained the upper hand, you can retreat and defend.
It's definitely more comfortable than having a bus parked right away!
As for why Li Shiguang consciously moved Ronaldo and Bale towards the center, it was actually a last-minute decision. He didn't want to engage in any midfield battles or control with Ferguson.
Instead of utilizing the advantage of three fast horses, Li Shiguang chose to engage in positional warfare with Ferguson; this is not his style.
When Li Shiguang saw Ferguson deploy a five-defender formation, he knew that the old man's main strategy today was counter-attacking.
Wouldn't it be easier to pretend that Ronaldo and Bale are helping Kanté defend against Scholes and Giggs, and then attack behind Manchester United's two full-backs after drawing them out of the box?
····
It was under these circumstances.
The match had been going on for a relatively uneventful seventeen minutes.
Leeds United just had a long-range shot from outside the penalty area by Kaká, but it went over the crossbar. Now it's Manchester United's turn to attack.
Schmeichel took the goal kick with a short pass.
After several passes.
The ball came to Fletcher's feet.
Fletcher intended to pass the ball to the flanks, as he had done before, to find Evra or Neville on either side.
But as soon as he turned around, he saw Scholes waving for the ball in an open position.
Fletcher didn't think much of it.
He immediately passed the ball to Scholes.
The ball had already crossed the center line.
The Leeds United players also sprang into action. Kante ran from the center toward Scholes, while Ronaldo on the wing was also busy, rushing toward Scholes as well.
Regarding Manchester United...
In order to support his teammates.
Scholes' longtime partner Giggs immediately moved over, and as soon as Ronaldo moved, Neville, who was supposed to be marking him, naturally moved a few steps towards the center.
The Manchester United captain has thought things through very thoroughly.
Move towards the middle lane yourself.
On the one hand, it gives Scholes another point of support; on the other hand, if Leeds United intercept the ball and pass it to Ronaldo, Scholes can immediately move over to defend.
From the start of the match.
This scene has happened many times before, and this time it didn't attract much attention either. The commentators were talking non-stop, and even the two head coaches, who had been directing from the sidelines for a while and were getting tired of standing, returned to the bench to sit down.
Scholes, Giggs, and Gary Neville behind Ronaldo can be considered the cornerstones of Manchester United right now.
The three veterans are not only highly skilled but also experienced, and they know exactly what choices to make on the field at any given time.
So when Scholes turned around and saw Kanté running towards him...
His first choice was not to dribble past the defender.
It's very simple.
Although his opponent was very young, after the first ten minutes of the game, Scholes still hadn't figured out Kanté's playing habits, and he could also sense that Kanté wasn't going all out in the challenges.
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