Chapter 194: Group of Death [Continued outbreak, fifth update, begging for monthly ticket subscription! ]
Su Dong didn't know that in faraway Britain, two old enemies scolded each other for half a day because of a sneeze.
After playing away against Slavia Prague in the Czech Republic, Valencia returned to Spain and immediately began preparations for the new season of La Liga.
The next afternoon, after lunch, everyone gathered in the lounge area to watch the live draw.
In faraway Monaco, the annual Champions League group stage draw is taking place.
As in previous years, the Champions League draw and UEFA's annual best awards are interspersed, but the latter has nothing to do with Valencia, because these awards have always been a game for top teams.
Buffon, the goalkeeper of Juventus, won the European Goalkeeper of the Year, Roberto Carlos, who plays for Real Madrid, was selected as the best defender of the season, Nedved, the Czech midfielder of Juventus, was selected as the best midfielder in Europe, and Van Nistelrooy, who plays for Manchester United, won the best forward in Europe.
In the season that just ended, Maldini, who led AC Milan to win the Champions League as captain, was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Without exception, these winners are all from the top European clubs.
In Valencia, getting this kind of award is as difficult as climbing to the sky.
This is why, when Valencia reached the Champions League final twice and won the runner-up both times, captain Mendieta still wanted to go to Real Madrid. However, due to the feud between Valencia and Real Madrid, he was forced to go to Lazio.
To put it bluntly, Mendieta wants to take his career to the next level.
Compared with Sporting Lisbon, Valencia is already superior, but after entering the four major leagues and joining Valencia, Su Dong looked up and saw naturally a more top-notch giant.
Watching the people receiving awards on TV, Su Dong knew very well that at his current age and development momentum, sooner or later, he would have to leave Valencia, otherwise, it would be a failure! Of course, before leaving, he had to work harder and work harder to improve his strength.
…
The rules for the Champions League group stage draw are very simple. The 32 teams are divided into four tiers based on the European competition points. Each group draws one team from each of the four tiers to avoid teams from the same country.
Because Valencia reached the Champions League finals for two consecutive years at the beginning of the century, it earned enough European points and was placed in the first tier, tied for seeding with AC Milan, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Lazio.
But this may not be a good thing.
Among the second-tier teams, although we avoided Deportivo La Coruna from the same country, teams such as Inter Milan, Porto, Lyon, Chelsea and PSV Eindhoven are all strong and will be very difficult to deal with if they really fight.
From the current perspective, the strongest teams are Inter Milan, Chelsea, Lyon and Porto. No matter which of these four teams they draw, it will be quite fatal. Among them, Inter Milan defeated Valencia in the knockout round of last season.
The Nerazzurri's head coach Cooper is also the former head coach of Valencia.
"According to conspiracy theories, there is no doubt that the team we are most likely to draw is Inter Milan."
Aimar came close to Su Dong and said with a serious expression.
Last season's two-round knockout match was a huge blow to Valencia.
Cooper is so familiar with Valencia that Valencia couldn't come up with an effective strategy when facing Inter Milan.
Of course, the lack of striker position was also a key factor in the loss.
Seeing the handsome Argentine boy staring at him, Su Dong smiled and reached out to touch his head, but Aimar slapped his hand away coquettishly. Like all short people, he didn't like being touched on the head.
"Don't worry, if we meet Inter Milan again, we don't know who will win." Su Dong said with a smile.
He has no shadow of regret towards Inter Milan and is eager to try.
At first, Luis Suarez tried to recommend him to Inter Milan, but they didn't like him.
I heard that Moratti also said at that time that Inter Milan has money, so if they want to buy someone, just buy the God of War, why buy the little God of War?
If they really meet Inter Milan, Su Dong would like to let Moratti see whether the old God of War is better or the young God of War is better! There are also many strong teams in the third tier, such as Celtic, the runner-up of the UEFA Cup, Ajax, the old giants of the Netherlands, Marseille of Ligue 1... These are all strong teams with good strength, and it will be troublesome to meet them.
Logically speaking, the fourth tier should be the weakest, but in reality, there are still teams such as Real Sociedad, Stuttgart, Monaco and Besiktas.
Even though Besiktas was eliminated by Sporting Lisbon in the UEFA Cup last season, this Turkish team is quite strong. Head coach Lucescu is a famous European coach with extraordinary coaching ability.
There are no weak teams in the Champions League, and none of the teams that make it to the group stage have an easy time.
…
The results of the draw are coming out one after another.
Almost every time a team is drawn, it makes people's heart beat faster.
I don’t know if it was Aimar’s bad luck or if there was really a conspiracy, but Valencia, as a seeded team, actually drew Inter Milan in the second tier.
This made everyone in the lounge gasp.
Valencia will face Inter Milan, Benítez will face Cooper again, and Su Dong will also face Vieri.
What is more disappointing is that after a failed loan period, the God of War Batistuta left European football and went to play for a team in Qatar. It is a bit regrettable that there was no confrontation between the new and old God of War.
What is even more unexpected is that the third-tier team was drawn to be Marseille from Ligue 1.
This is another strong team! The fourth tier was lucky enough to be drawn against Bruges of Belgium. However, this team eliminated Borussia Dortmund of the Bundesliga in the third qualifying round to advance to the group stage, so its strength should not be underestimated.
Everyone in the lounge was a little confused. The scene became extremely quiet and everyone showed a solemn look.
Valencia’s strength is indeed not weak, but it is not strong enough to ignore any opponent.
Not to mention Inter Milan, Marseille and Bruges both have the strength to challenge Valencia.
In other words, the four teams in this group are very close in strength, and anyone has a chance to stand out.
This is also a kind of "conspiracy" in the Champions League group stage.
If you are lucky in drawing lots, then the strong and weak are clearly distinguished; if you are unlucky in drawing lots, then the strength is evenly distributed.
"Have we been drawn into the group of death?" Vincent asked with a wry smile.
"Not really. After all, they are not top-tier giants," Marchena replied.
Valencia is a newcomer and Inter Milan is considered an established powerhouse, but the Nerazzurri's record this year cannot be called top-notch.
"The four teams in our group have all participated in the Champions League final," captain Albelda reminded.
"Ah?" Everyone was surprised.
"Inter Milan and Marseille have both won the Champions League. Inter Milan has two titles and has participated in four Champions League finals. Marseille has one title and has participated in two Champions League finals. We have participated in two Champions League finals and Brugge has participated in one."
After a pause, Albelda smiled bitterly and said, "It's probably rare to see someone like our group."
Everyone was silent. It was not easy to play in such a group match!
"I think..."
Feeling the solemn atmosphere at the scene, Su Dong smiled slightly, "Don't think too much, the draw has come out anyway, there's no point in thinking about it. We Chinese have an old saying, if an enemy comes, we will fight him; if water comes, we will block it with earth. No matter who we meet, we will just fight to the death!"
When everyone heard this, they all thought that Su Dong was overthinking it.
But if you think about it carefully, this is indeed the truth.
No matter how much you think about it, you still have to go to the court and fight for real.
Unlike the others who were in a heavy mood, Su Dong was eager to try.
It’s also a good opportunity to face Inter Milan! …………
…………
As soon as the Champions League group stage draw results were released, it immediately caused a huge stir.
Media around the world rushed to report on the draw, with mixed reactions to the results.
The teams that get a good draw are as happy as if they had picked up gold. After all, every game in the Champions League brings in real money. If they can stand out from the group stage and enter the knockout stage, the income will be even more substantial.
Of course, if you are too happy and end up in tragedy, then you are doomed.
People like Valencia who got the worst draw feel bitter but can't express it.
Sometimes, the luck of the Champions League draw is indeed crucial. It can even be said that every team that laughs last has relatively good luck.
In an interview with the media, Benítez said that he would not consider the Champions League group stage draw too early, because the most important thing for Valencia at the moment is the opening game of the La Liga.
According to the schedule, La Liga will play two games in four days before the national team match day in early September. This is also a big challenge for Valencia because Valencia has played two more Champions League qualifiers than other teams.
"In today's Champions League, there are seven or eight teams that have the strength to challenge for the championship, such as Manchester United, Real Madrid, AC Milan and Juventus, but Valencia is not included, even though we are a seeded team."
Benítez remained calm and then changed the subject.
"But we have enough strength and experience to play more games. We will not stop in the group stage. The premise is that we must focus on playing well in every game, so that we have a chance to advance to the knockout stage."
Benítez also said that the team's strength has improved compared to last season, and it is a good thing to face Inter Milan again. "Meeting the same opponent can better let everyone, including ourselves, see the improvement of the team's strength."
Benitez said he respected Cooper but was eager to beat Inter Milan.
"If I had to choose one player from among many players who could help the team out of a stalemate like the one in the knockout round last season, I would undoubtedly think it would be Su Dong."
"That's why I decided to sign him. He will be the most crucial winner in the game!"
Benítez's remarks put Su Dong, who had already become a little famous before the start of the league, at the center of media attention again, especially in the first round of the league, which has always been difficult to play.
Will Su Dong play?
Can he score a goal?
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(End of this chapter)
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