Chapter 251: Falling behind and then turning the tables, a fierce battle at Camp Nou

Seeing Lin Quan's defensive strategy against Messi, Busquets' eyes lit up at the back.

Can Lin's method be used to defend him?

Busquets was still brooding over his previous failure in defending Lin Quan. If he had succeeded, Barcelona would not have lost the ball at home.

Professor Bu was eager to try this method out during the next Manchester City attack.

This is called giving someone a taste of their own medicine!

Barcelona's attack did not stop. After Messi lost the chance to break through, he passed the ball to Iniesta.

Iniesta handed the ball to Xavi to reorganize the game, and Xavi took a look at Manchester City's penalty area.

The penalty area was packed with players from both teams, making it too difficult to pass the ball directly.

So he passed the ball back to Busquets and controlled the rhythm slightly by passing the ball back in the backcourt.

Barcelona's attack was quick and fierce, and Manchester City's defense was compressed severely, with the three lines of defense almost sticking together.

Seeing Barcelona passing the ball back in the backcourt, they immediately pressed their formation out and restored the flexibility of their defense.

However, this is exactly what Barcelona's brain - Xavi wants to see!

In the 43rd minute, after Barcelona passed the ball back and forth several times in the midfield, they saw that Manchester City's defensive formation had moved forward a lot and there was a gap in the backcourt. Xavi suddenly transferred the ball to the wing on a large scale.

There were no Barcelona players here, but after Xavi passed the ball, a figure rushed over and received Xavi's pass in the empty space on the wing.

Who? Barcelona's No. 22, right back Alves!

Alves immediately dribbled the ball down the wing after receiving it. Manchester City's left-back Kolarov thought the opponent was going to make a cross, so he put his hands behind his back, ready to block it.

Other Manchester City players also had the same idea and they all blocked their positions in the penalty area to prevent the opponent from getting a chance to head the ball.

However, surprisingly, Alves did not choose to cross the ball, but knocked the ball back.

Neymar appeared on the ball's path and received the ball at the corner of the penalty area.

This is a connection between two Brazilians. Alves' dribbling down the line is just a cover. His purpose is actually to create space for Neymar and give him a chance to shoot.

Neymar did not waste the assist from his big brother. After receiving the ball, he adjusted himself and shot the ball into the dead corner of the goal.

Joe Hart could do nothing about this ball and could only watch the ball fly into the goal.

Barcelona reversed the game and changed the score to 2:1. This was Neymar's fourth Champions League goal this season, which tied the number of goals Ronaldinho scored in European competitions in his first season with Barcelona.

Although his statistics are not as dazzling as those of superstars such as Lin Quan, in the 9 Champions League games he played, Neymar scored 4 goals and contributed 3 assists, creating 7 goals by himself.

If we exclude the monster Lin Quan, then his data is absolutely impressive, and he can even be said to be the best newcomer in the Champions League this season.

After scoring the goal, Neymar seemed particularly excited. He ran to the corner area and danced the samba.

The fans at Camp Nou also gave warm applause and cheers to the rising star in their team.

Neymar's outstanding performance made Barcelona fans feel much better.

Hey, we have Messi, we have Neymar, we don't need Lin!

They began to sing Messi's song and Neymar's song in turn to express their inner thoughts and support for the two Barcelona stars.

Seeing Neymar's goal, Lin Quan felt a little helpless.

There's a gap in the defense line!

The teammates probably relaxed a little because Barcelona did not attack as fiercely as before.

Their laxity gave Barcelona the opportunity to create killing opportunities.

Xavi made a good pass in this game, using the change in rhythm to catch Manchester City off guard.

Of course, Neymar's positioning was also excellent. When Alves dribbled the ball to the bottom, he did not rush into Manchester City's penalty area immediately, so that Manchester City players did not focus on him. Otherwise, he would probably not have a chance to shoot.

"Barcelona scored two goals in ten minutes, and Manchester City fell into a huge crisis at Camp Nou. If the score continues to widen, then even if they have a valuable away goal, it will still be very difficult to eliminate Barcelona after returning to their home court!"

"Yes, for Manchester City, a score of 1:1 or even 2:1 is acceptable, but 3:1 is not acceptable. Facing a strong team like Barcelona, ​​they cannot lose too much. If they lose too much, it will not be difficult to turn the tables at home!"

"The first half is almost over. I don't know what adjustments Manchester City will make during the halftime break. They were in a very passive situation in the first half. If they continue to play like this, I'm afraid it won't be long before they concede a third goal."

On the sidelines, Pellegrini also frowned.

We conceded more goals than expected in the first half, but fortunately we scored a goal, so the result is acceptable.

“How many games has Xavi played this season?”

Suddenly, Pellegrini turned his head and asked his assistant coach.

"This season Xavi has played 35 games in total, 23 in the league, five in the cup and seven in the Champions League.

In the first half of the league season, he often played the entire game, but in the second half, he was often substituted around the 75th minute.

"Did he play the entire game in the last La Liga match?"

"Yes, the last match between Barcelona and Espanyol was quite tense. Barcelona didn't score until the 77th minute. After the goal, Martino started to make substitutions, but for some reason, he substituted Neymar, Fabregas and Pedro, but didn't choose to replace the veteran Xavi."

Pellegrini nodded. Martino probably knew Xavi's importance to the team, so he chose to keep him on the field! But using a 34-year-old veteran like this is a bit too much!

Thinking of this, Pellegrini has already thought of the tactics for the second half.

The first half whistle blew and the two teams entered the locker room with a score of 2:1.

This score is more favorable to Barcelona, ​​and the expressions on the faces of Barcelona players are relatively relaxed.

Manchester City players can accept this score. Although they are one goal behind, this is Barcelona's home court after all, and it is normal to be behind.

Besides, aren’t there still 45 minutes left?

…

In the locker room, Pellegrini took out the tactical board and prepared to explain the tactical arrangements for the second half to the players.

Before starting the explanation, the Chilean asked the players a question: "After playing against Barcelona for half a game, what do you think of Barcelona's strength?"

When Manchester City players heard this question, they expressed their thoughts.

"Very strong, very oppressive!"

"Their passing and control are really good. I'm afraid our possession rate is less than 30%?"

"I can't hold the ball. Before I even catch it, the opponent's players rush up like mad dogs. If I hold on to the ball for a few more seconds, I'll lose it. When I pass the ball, there are often opponent's players on the passing route, so I lose it easily!"

Seeing that the players had hit upon the point, Pellegrini smiled and clapped his hands, stopping the discussion: "It seems that everyone is deeply touched!"

Pellegrini looked at Lin Quan and asked, "Lin, are you tired?"

He saw that Lin Quan was fighting very hard on both offense and defense, so he subconsciously thought that Lin Quan had consumed a lot of physical energy and should be very tired.

But what surprised Pellegrini was that Lin Quan shook his head after hearing his question and said, "Fortunately, I'm not tired!"

Well……

Not tired?

In the first half, you ran the most distance. When attacking, you sprinted at all costs, and when defending, you actively retreated to the front of the penalty area to participate in the defense.

Isn't that tiring? Pellegrini was a little surprised for a moment: "Okay, okay, I'm glad you're not tired. The team's attack in the second half still depends on you. You should save some energy for the counterattack!"

Lin Quan’s answer made Pellegrini a little unconfident. Fortunately, he asked a few more people afterwards, and everyone’s answer was that they felt very tired.

Being physically tired is one thing, but being mentally tired is also important.

Facing Barcelona's passing and controlling style of play, Manchester City players must always be fully alert and not dare to relax at all.

If you maintain this level of concentration for a long time, you will of course feel mentally exhausted.

"If I tell you that you are tired, but Barcelona on the other side is even more tired, do you believe it?"

The players all shook their heads. They only saw Barcelona players constantly passing the ball. How much energy would that consume? "Don't you believe it? Then we'll find out in the second half!"

Pellegrini did not try to convince the players, but instead explained his tactics for the second half.

After the start of the second half, Barcelona quickly discovered the difference of Manchester City.

They found that Manchester City played more proactively and the players were more active in counterattacking Barcelona in their own half.

Barcelona has encountered this kind of pressing before, so they didn't care at the beginning.

But as Manchester City players committed several fouls on the field, they began to realize that something was wrong.

"Barcelona has the ball, Xavi holds the ball, Yaya Toure comes forward to intercept, De Bruyne also comes over, and Xavi is pressed by Manchester City!"

Not only did Barcelona realize that something was wrong, but the commentators in the commentary booth also discovered Manchester City's intentions.

"Since the start of the second half, Manchester City seemed to increase their pressure on Xavi. Whenever Xavi got the ball, there would be a Manchester City player who rushed to grab it, which made it difficult for Xavi to get space to organize an attack."

Xavi is the core of Barcelona's midfield and the brain of the team. Without his command and dispatch, Barcelona's offense was not as smooth as in the first half.

And because of Xavi's position, once he loses the ball, Manchester City will immediately form a threatening attack.

Such attacks rarely occurred in the first half, but less than 10 minutes into the second half, Manchester City had already launched two.

If it weren't for the outstanding performance of the defenders and goalkeeper, Manchester City might have equalized the score by now.

Xavi is experienced and after realizing the opponent's intentions, he reduced the number of times he received the ball and did not give the opponent any chance to steal the ball and counterattack.

But doing so would be equivalent to killing one thousand enemies and losing eight hundred of your own.

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Manchester City certainly couldn't make a breakthrough through him, but without Xavi's organization and coordination, Barcelona's offensive threat dropped significantly.

Moreover, Manchester City's counter-attack strength in the second half was comprehensively improved. It doesn't mean that Xavi gave the organizational work to Fabregas and Iniesta and they stopped fighting.

When Fabregas and Leicester have the ball, Manchester City players will still press them.

It's a pity that Manchester City lacks a sweeping defensive midfielder. If Fernandinho is on the field, with his sweeping range, Manchester City's efficiency in counter-attacking will be greatly improved.

In the 57th minute, Manchester City successfully counterattacked in the backcourt. After getting the ball, Kroos immediately passed it to David Silva on the wing.

David Silva knew how quickly these Barcelona players could press, so he didn't dare to dribble the ball and immediately passed it to De Bruyne.

De Bruyne didn't dare to take more and quickly passed the ball to Lin Quan.

When the ball came to Lin Quan's feet, it had basically gotten rid of most of Barcelona's defensive players.

While Barcelona's full-back had not returned from his assist, Lin Quan quickly dribbled the ball along the sidelines.

Aguero, David Silva, De Bruyne and other players were also sprinting towards Barcelona's penalty area at the fastest speed.

Manchester City's counterattack was so powerful that the fans at Camp Nou could not sit still.

How come this scene is so similar to the one in the first half when they lost the ball? Busquets was a little hesitant, not knowing whether to restrict Lin Quan or continue to follow Aguero.

After taking a look at the positions of Fabregas and Pique, Professor Bu calculated the time and decisively abandoned Aguero and chose to intercept Lin Quan.

Although Lin Quan is on the wing, Busquets still thinks he poses the greatest threat.

Because if left alone, he can dribble inside and shoot.

Busquets soon appeared in front of Lin Quan, he had already calculated in his mind.

If he could just delay Lin Quan's advance a little and drag the full-back Alba back to his defensive position, he would be able to resolve the danger this time.

Facing Lin Quan again, Busquets still chose to retreat and defend.

Lin, let me defeat you with your method! Busquets was full of confidence. He felt that he had at least 80% chance of stopping Lin Quan this time.

Lin Quan seemed unaware of Busquets's plan, and he seemed to be planning to get past Busquets in the same way as last time.

The time is now!

Busquets turned around quickly the moment Lin Quan completed the breakthrough, blocked Lin Quan's cutting position, and stayed close to him, in order to disrupt Lin Quan's dribbling rhythm and force him to stop.

This move really worked, Lin Quan was successfully forced to stop! I finally stopped Lin! Busquets was so excited that he wanted to cry. Since the opponent had stopped, this fast break could not be launched. After his teammates got into position one after another, they could launch a counterattack and get the ball back.

Wait, where's the ball? Busquets was shocked to find that the ball had disappeared from Lin Quan's feet without him knowing when.

He turned back suddenly, only to find that the football had been passed to the middle by Lin Quan and landed at Aguero's feet at some point.

Pique gritted his teeth and rushed towards Aguero, but as he rushed over, Aguero passed the ball to David Silva.

David Silva made a shovel shot and sent the ball into the goal, and Manchester City changed the score to 2:2 away from home!

Silence, dead silence.

After David Silva scored, Camp Nou fell into silence for more than ten seconds.

Barcelona fans cannot accept that their team was reversed by their opponents at their home ground. What they long for is a resounding victory.

But how did it become like this? After the silence, there was an even more violent outburst of anger.

The thunderous boos once again flew into the stadium, flying towards the Manchester City players who were celebrating the goal.

Spectators near the stadium even threw various objects, including lighters and coins, at the celebrating Manchester City players.

At this time, disappointment and anger had clouded their heads. Even though Manchester City had no grudge against them, they took out their anger on Manchester City players.

It wasn't just the Barcelona fans who were angry, but also the 11 players on the field! We are the universal team Barcelona, ​​the top club in Europe! We have won four Champions League titles! This is Camp Nou, our sacred home ground, and we won't allow anyone to run wild here! After the restart, they launched the most fierce counterattack since the start.

Barcelona players were running and pressing frantically in the frontcourt, even at the cost of committing fouls.

In just ten minutes, Barcelona's aggressive fighting caused Iniesta and Alba to each receive a yellow gem card!

In order to stop the opponent's attack, Manchester City players also received two yellow cards.

Kolarov and Zabaleta were given cards.

These two yellow cards are very unfavorable for Manchester City, as three players in their back line now have yellow cards.

This means they have to be careful when defending, otherwise if they get a red card, not only will they have to play with fewer players in this game, but they will also have to face a suspension in the next game! Seeing that Manchester City's defenders all had yellow cards, Messi increased the number of breakthroughs.

In the 63rd minute, Messi dribbled into the penalty area, dribbled the ball under Kompany's block, created space, and then aimed at the blind corner of the goal and made a lob shot.

The ball finally passed Joe Hart's fingers, but with a bang, it was blocked by the post.

The fans at the scene sighed. Did even their own goalpost betray the team? However, the attack was not over yet. The ball bounced back by the goalpost and was caught by Iniesta. At this time, the goal was empty and Joe Hart had not yet climbed up from the ground. This ball was almost 100% sure to go in.

However, Iniesta's follow-up shot was blocked on the goal line by Demichelis who was tackled on the ground.

The football rolled out of the baseline and hit the post heavily.

Iniesta held his head in disbelief! How could this ball be blocked? After completing the follow-up shot, he raised his hands to celebrate.

However, Demichelis's clearance turned his celebration into frustration and regret.

Manchester City teammates ran over and hugged Demichelis who made the key clearance.

This goal was scored thanks to Demichelis's selfless clearance, otherwise Manchester City would have fallen behind again.

"Brother Martin, are you okay?"

Lin Quan asked with concern. He just saw Demichelis hit the post and was probably injured.

Demichelis is already 34 years old. For old players of this age, the thing they fear most is injuries.

Young people have good health and strong recovery abilities, so an injury may only take a few months to recover.

But for these veterans whose form has declined and who are on the decline, a serious injury is likely to lead to their retirement.

"It's okay, don't worry, if I can't hold on I will apply for a replacement myself!"

Demichelis patted Lin Quan on the shoulder and said to him with a smile.

Seeing that the other party was so confident, Lin Quan felt relieved and returned to his position to prepare to defend Barcelona's corner kick.

Iniesta stood in the corner area, took a look at the positions of the players on both sides, and kicked the ball to the back post.

There are not many tall players in Barcelona. Apart from the goalkeeper, the tallest one is Pique.

Iniesta's goal was aimed at Pique.

Pique started running back when his teammate was taking the penalty kick. When he saw the ball coming, he immediately jumped high and prepared to head the ball.

However, before him, Kompany had already jumped up and tried to clear the ball.

With a loud bang, the two men collided with each other and both fell to the ground.

(End of this chapter)