Chapter 1024: Su Dong is no longer able to play?
The second half of the game starts again.
Manchester City still firmly controlled the initiative on the field, but the overall formation retreated appropriately, especially the front trident's pressure on Chelsea's midfield and backcourt was significantly weakened, which allowed Chelsea's ball possession rate to be improved to more than 30% after the start of the second half.
Many people have also noticed this phenomenon.
The TV commentator believed that this was a move that Manchester City had no choice but to take into account the players' physical fitness to run the entire field.
"If they continue to use the high-pressure tactics of the first half, Manchester City's players will definitely not be able to sustain the game for 90 minutes, and there may even be overtime. So Guardiola retreated appropriately to reduce the physical consumption of the players in the midfield and frontcourt. It seems that he is not confident enough to break the deadlock."
"Chelsea's players played really well tonight, especially the combination of Cahill and Terry, who completely froze Su Dong in the first half. I believe that if they can continue to maintain this level in the second half, Chelsea will have a good chance of shutting out Manchester City tonight, or even defeating Manchester City."
And the course of the game seemed to prove that Su Dong seemed to be submerged between Cahill and Terry.
After the start of the second half, although the team's midfield and backcourt retreated, Su Dong still did not get much room to play, which made his performance at the beginning of the second half still lackluster.
Manchester City fans were a little anxious, and many fans in the stands were shouting Su Dong's name, hoping that he could stand up.
In the past two years, they have become accustomed to Su Dong always stepping forward when the team needs him. I believe this time is the same, but for some reason, Su Dong does not seem to have a very good performance.
…
"Is he a little tired?"
In the stands, Su Dong's father Su Wenji asked with some concern.
He heard the calls from the Manchester City fans around him and felt their anxiety. In fact, he was anxious too.
It's already the second half and the offense still hasn't picked up. Are we really going to end the regular game with a score of 0-0?
Or, will Chelsea really drag us into a penalty shootout? Wang Qingquan is also a veteran football fan, but he doesn't understand things that are too professional. He feels that something is not right, but he can't tell where it is.
On the contrary, it was Wang Chuqing who knew Su Dong best.
"He is not tired, and his condition is fine. It may be a tactical factor."
After a pause, Wang Chuqing revealed a hint of a sweet smile, "Don't worry, he will definitely be able to overcome it."
If you were to ask who in the entire stadium has the most confidence in Su Dong, it would definitely be her.
From the time they knew each other until now, Su Dong's performance has never disappointed her, and she believes that this time will be no exception.
Su Wenjie and Wang Qingquan were both quite worried, but they didn't know much about football matches, so they could only nod and continue watching the game.
…
Not far from Su Dong's parents, Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi, Iniesta, Jose Semedo and others were sitting together, watching the game anxiously.
But as the best professional players in the world, who have played against both teams and are very familiar with each other, their thoughts on the game so far are obviously different from those of ordinary fans.
"It's already 55 minutes. Manchester City still needs to speed up and adjust and organize the attack as soon as possible, otherwise there will not be enough time." Iniesta said solemnly.
Many people thought that Manchester City simply moved its formation back from the second half, but as a midfielder, Iniesta knew better than anyone that although it seemed simple, there were actually many issues involved.
Guardiola wanted David Silva and Toni Kroos to play more flexibly, so they often appeared on the wing after the start of the second half. For example, David Silva went to the left wing, but how to cooperate with Marcelo and Di Maria to form a local numerical advantage? There is no problem with strength, but how to cooperate is the key.
The same is true for Toni Kroos' side.
Now that Manchester City's formation has retreated, Chelsea has naturally followed suit and pressed forward. There is more space in the frontcourt, but there are some problems with the advancement of the ball, which must be resolved as soon as possible so that Su Dong can get the ball in the frontcourt.
"What he is thinking now should be what I said before the game. The biggest problem for Gary Cahill and Terry is still to prevent the ball from going under their feet. This is even Chelsea's biggest problem. Su has the ability to break through and create goals, but the prerequisite is to give him space," Messi analyzed.
In the first half, Manchester City's tactics were high pressure, which directly compressed Chelsea into an iron plate, causing Su Dong to be trapped in the frontcourt. No matter when he got the ball, he was surrounded by people, not to mention a target as big as Su Dong. Faced with such defensive pressure, Messi asked himself if he could do anything on the court.
Looking around the world, how many basketball stars can consistently win a one-on-one match?
Not to mention one on two or even one on three.
Many times, the one-on-many scenes that appear in the videos that fans talk about with great relish are actually a kind of mismatch, taking advantage of the gaps in the defense to attack the opponent's loopholes.
But the situation that Su Dong faced in the first half was obviously not the same. He was facing multiple defensive players at the same time. Who could handle this? "Manchester City played wrong in the first half. They did not bring out Su Dong's all-round characteristics. Instead, they forced him to fight with Cahill and Terry like a center forward. Facts have proved that this is not possible. It should be like this now, with space for him to get the ball." Cristiano Ronaldo is also familiar with the Premier League, familiar with the opponents, and even more familiar with Su Dong.
"Chelsea's central defenders are typical English central defenders with different characteristics. They are all good at high and frontal defense, but they are slow to turn. Cahill's positional sense is not very good and he likes to be the first to attack. Terry is old and his body can't keep up with his consciousness. As long as these two players are staggered, let alone Su, you and I can easily deal with them."
Cristiano Ronaldo is also full of confidence about this.
Messi responded with a smile and did not answer, but was just as confident.
As the top three superstars in world football, they all have a clear understanding of their own strengths.
Ronnie's characteristics are explosiveness and speed, while Messi's characteristic is excellent dribbling ability. If what Ronnie said is true, then there is a real chance to defeat Cahill and Terry.
"If it doesn't work, replace Hazard and let him share the pressure. He is still very good at dribbling the ball," Messi suggested.
But at this moment, no one knows what Guardiola is thinking.
It seems like no one quite understands why he is so obsessed with controlling the ball?
…
Time slowly entered sixty minutes.
Manchester City still holds the initiative, still trying and penetrating and advancing.
Chelsea's possession rate remained stable at just over 30%, but they still did not dare to take risks on the offensive end.
There was a very obvious difference from the first half, that is, the fight between the two sides was basically in the midfield.
This represents a change in tactics for both sides.
If, like in the first half, one side retreats very far back and the other side attacks very far forward, there won't be much fighting in the midfield between the two sides, because the retreating side will concentrate all its forces on defense, allowing the other side to control the game, and then wait for the opportunity to make a long pass behind them to launch a counterattack.
During the whole process, the midfield was more passive in defense.
But now it’s different. Manchester City retreated appropriately, and Chelsea naturally pressed forward. Both sides had opportunities to get the ball, so naturally there were more battles in the midfield.
For Manchester City, this has certain risks, because once the opponent seizes the opportunity and hits behind, defense will become a problem, but Chelsea also has the same risk, that is, the overall formation no longer defends the penalty area, leaving Manchester City with more space to attack.
In the 63rd minute, Chelsea took the first shot of the game.
Lampard passed the ball to the right in the midfield, Drogba went to the wing, played behind Marcelo, rushed into the penalty area with the ball, and shot directly before Pepe got into position, but was saved by Courtois.
The Belgian goalkeeper failed to catch the ball at first, but he immediately hugged the ball in his arms after falling to the ground.
There was warm applause from Chelsea fans at the scene.
Although the first shot was not taken until the 63rd minute, which is indeed embarrassing, it is already commendable for Chelsea, after all, the team maintained a stable defense.
Moreover, it was a threatening shot.
As the saying goes, the beginning is always the hardest. Once there is a first time, there will naturally be a second time.
Chelsea fans began to cheer for the players on the field. Both head coaches Guardiola and Di Matteo had no intention of making substitutions. The players on the bench took turns to warm up, but no one came on as a substitute.
Obviously, both of them were waiting.
In the words of the TV commentator, "What if it goes into overtime?"
Time passes by unknowingly.
Just after 70 minutes of the game, Pepe suddenly rushed forward and intercepted the ball that Ramirez passed to Drogba, and quickly passed it to David Silva in front.
Chelsea players immediately counterattacked on the spot, Lampard pressed straight towards David Silva, but the Spanish player kicked the ball directly to the left. Marcelo had already shaken off Ramirez and was moving forward along the left side at the fastest speed. After receiving the pass from David Silva, he rushed forward with big strides.
Under the restriction of Ramires, Marcelo's performance in this game was not very bright. This time he got rid of the entanglement of his Brazilian compatriot. He dribbled the ball into Chelsea's 30-meter area and passed it directly to Di Maria.
Ivanovic reacted quickly enough and took the lead to snatch the ball before Di Maria.
The ball was intercepted, but Ivanovic had not yet controlled the ball. Di Maria counterattacked on the spot and poked the ball. Marcelo followed up and kicked the ball to Su Dong who was retreating to the left rib and was unguarded before Meireles.
Ivanovic immediately left Di Maria behind and ran towards Su Dong.
But Su Dong stopped the ball with his left foot and moved it to his left side, which is the middle. He turned around and got rid of Ivanovic's defense, completing a beautiful stop and pass.
This is definitely Su Dong's specialty!
(End of this chapter)
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