Chapter 379 Su Dong VS Chelsea
On the evening of April 12th, at Camp Nou.
In the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals, Barcelona faced Chelsea at home.
The game was in the 33rd minute.
When the Chelsea midfielder intercepted the ball, Lampard launched a counterattack and made a quick long pass.
The ball accurately penetrated Barcelona's defense and landed behind them.
Irish speedster Madhav shot through Barcelona's defense at lightning speed, broke into the penalty area and passed the ball to the middle with the outside of his left foot. Barcelona's seemingly solid defense was instantly torn to pieces.
In a hurry, Valdés rushed out to save the ball, but missed.
Belletti cleared the ball in front of the goal before Joe Cole, but he made a mistake in his haste and shoveled the ball directly into his own goal.
Own goal! Zero to one!
The total score is three to four!
This own goal was like a bucket of ice-cold water, soaking everyone in the Camp Nou stadium.
From the fans in the stands to the players on the field, everyone was awake.
The Blues Chelsea relied on their indomitable tenacity. Even if they were unable to control the ball, even if they were unable to shoot, they could still score goals.
Barcelona made a mistake themselves!
…………
…………
After bringing back a 3-3 score from the away game, the whole world reversed their pre-match underestimation of Barcelona and began to look favorably upon them.
Even Barcelona are quite optimistic about beating their opponents at home.
From Rijkaard to the players to the management, basically everyone is full of confidence in the second leg at Camp Nou.
This can be seen from Barcelona's lineup.
The tactics adopted by Rijkaard also seemed a bit too arrogant.
After the opening, Barcelona successfully controlled the ball and launched a fierce attack on Chelsea, suppressing the Blues quite badly.
At Camp Nou, Barcelona has absolute confidence and can suppress all teams.
So much so that in the first half hour, Chelsea's ball possession rate was less than 30%, and the number of shots was a shocking zero!
Yes, Mourinho's team was suppressed to the point that they couldn't even create a shot.
On the other hand, Barcelona had a strong desire to defeat their opponent in one breath, so they put crazy pressure on their opponent after the opening.
Can anyone imagine that Ronaldinho and Giuly had more shots than Su Dong? Can anyone imagine that Deco and Xavi made more runs than they made direct passes? When the midfielders frequently made runs, the back line also followed suit, exposing the gaps behind them.
Rijkaard was not surprised by this situation. He guessed it, and it was even the situation he wanted to create before the game, to suppress Chelsea by controlling the ball, try to score before the opponent, and then attack and exploit the opponent's will to resist.
But he underestimated Mourinho's Chelsea! In the first 30 minutes, the Blues did not have any shots and could not organize an effective attack, but they still maintained their fighting spirit and even resolved Barcelona's attacks again and again.
Not only did Cech show the strength of a world-class goalkeeper, but the combination of Terry and Carvalho also performed even better than in the first leg.
After defending against Barcelona's repeated attacks, Chelsea seized the best chances of the game, causing Barcelona's defense to make consecutive mistakes, leading to an own goal.
…………
…………
The sudden goal loss made the entire Camp Nou silent.
Rijkaard stared at the pitch in a daze.
He was originally confident of victory, but now he suddenly became flustered.
He realized that he had made a mistake! Playing at home, with absolute possession of the ball, in this case, it was not wrong for Barcelona's defense to press forward, because without pressing forward, there would be no threat in possession of the ball.
But the problem lies in two places.
One is that the back line was pressed too high, and the players did not fight back in time when the ball was lost, forcing Lampard to have enough time to launch a counterattack, and Duff used his speed to tear open Barcelona's defense.
Another one is Puyol also pressed forward.
The Barcelona captain is the fastest player in the back line with the strongest personal defensive ability. In one-on-one situations, Puyol is definitely ranked among the top five in the world. His biggest weakness comes from his height disadvantage.
If Puyol had been dragging back just now, he would probably have been able to block Duff, or at least prevent him from crossing with the outside of his left foot.
But there are no ifs in this world. "What should we do now?" Rijkaard was at a loss.
Things have come to this point, and Ten Cate has no better solution.
If Chelsea were behind in away goals in the first half hour but still managed to keep their composure and defend tenaciously, then now that they are one goal ahead, they will definitely be more willing to defend.
And they will defend even more resolutely! "Mourinho is really amazing. He really instilled his will into everyone in this team. Even if there is one person who disobeys, Chelsea will not be able to defend so resolutely." Ten Cate sighed in admiration.
There is nothing big about playing with the wind, the key is playing against the wind.
Chelsea drew 3-3 with Barcelona at home in the first leg, and the Blues were at a disadvantage because they had to visit Camp Nou.
But after the opening, the Blues defended extremely resolutely. Even under Barcelona's fierce bombardment, the Blues defended for 30 minutes with only 26% ball possession. This definitely requires a will of steel.
Every player must obey Mourinho unconditionally to achieve this.
If even one player is distracted, Chelsea's defence will be left vulnerable.
Just like when Chelsea counterattacked just now, Barcelona's defense was obviously not focused.
Valdes failed to catch the ball and Belletti's hasty tackle caused an own goal, which were all the results of inattention.
"Facing such a team, we have no other choice but to fight with consumption and continue to maintain pressure. Wait until they are tired and see if they will make mistakes!" Ten Cate shook his head helplessly.
Originally, the initiative was in Barcelona's hands, but now, due to a goal loss, the initiative has been handed over.
Rijkaard had no choice.
On-the-spot command and adjustment has never been his strong point, not to mention that he was facing Mourinho.
…………
…………
If Barcelona does not change, Chelsea will naturally not take the initiative to seek change.
After the first half, there were no changes on either side at halftime.
The situation remained basically the same as at the beginning of the game. Barcelona firmly controlled the ball, using passing and controlling the ball to constantly pull the ball, consuming the physical energy of Chelsea players and waiting for the opponent to make mistakes.
The only difference is that Barcelona pays more attention to defense, and Puyol basically lingers at the end. Once the ball is lost, everyone immediately fights back, and after getting the ball, they quickly launch a counterattack.
Chelsea continued to defend impregnably and did not give Barcelona any chance.
Even in the second half, except for Drogba and Duff, the other eight players in Chelsea's frontcourt all retreated to the 30-meter area, showing a determination to defend the goal and live and die with it.
It can be seen that Mourinho is determined to hold on to this one-goal lead.
…
In front of the visiting team's coaching bench, Mourinho did not dare to be careless.
He kept directing the players in their defensive positions, and he would reprimand anyone who left their position slightly or failed to return in time without hesitation.
His requirements are very simple, and everyone strictly follows his tactics.
He believes that as long as the players perform well, Chelsea will be able to advance.
This is also the reason why he was not in a hurry to score in the second half of the first leg.
As early as the first round, he already knew how bad Barcelona's defense was, so he believed that as long as he could hold on in the second round, Barcelona would definitely make mistakes.
Sure enough, he guessed it right! After guessing it right, Chelsea players trusted him more and executed the tactics more effectively.
"Now, we only have two biggest enemies." Mourinho still dare not slack off.
"Apart from physical energy consumption, is there anything else?" Boas asked with concern.
Chelsea’s biggest enemy right now is physical energy consumption, which is an uncontrollable factor.
When any player's physical energy is consumed to a certain extent, his technical movements will become distorted and he will be prone to making mistakes.
Mourinho has strengthened his daily training. For example, his daily training is strictly controlled to 90 minutes of high-intensity intensive training, so that the players can adapt to the intensity of 90 minutes of game in training.
But training can never replace actual combat. When it comes to the real competition, the consumption will be greater than training. Under the pressure of the opponent, the probability of technical movements going wrong will be higher, which no one can control.
"There is another uncontrollable factor, that is Su Dong!" Mourinho looked at Su Dong, who was wearing the No. 9 jersey of Barcelona.
He had a vague feeling that Su Dong was suppressed by Terry and Carvalho tonight, which was not normal.
Because in the last round of La Liga, when Barcelona beat Getafe 2-0 at home, Su Dong scored a goal.
He has been scoring goals in recent games, so how could he be suppressed so easily tonight? The only explanation is that he is controlling his physical energy consumption and firepower output.
As a professional player, it is impossible for him not to give his all.
Then the most reasonable explanation is that he is waiting for an opportunity.
"Su Dong's condition tonight is indeed not excited enough, which doesn't make sense." Boas also felt strange.
"He's waiting!" Mourinho said with certainty.
"Wait?" Boas looked at Mourinho in surprise.
"He's a cunning fellow, waiting for the moment when we become physically exhausted, mentally exhausted, and involuntarily slack off."
Boas was a little puzzled and he had reservations about Mourinho's words.
Is it possible that Su Dong is as amazing as Mourinho said? Is his tactical literacy really that high? "In the Champions League final last season, I found that he didn't learn anything else from that bastard Benítez in Valencia this year, but his tactical literacy has improved a lot. I guess he guessed the moment Barcelona conceded the goal."
The more I thought about what Mourinho said, the more it seemed to be the case.
On the contrary, Boas, who was standing aside, was somewhat surprised when he heard it, but his heart was full of doubts.
Is Su Dong really like what Mourinho said? He is only 20 years old. If he really has this ability to analyze and think, how terrifying he would be? Will this really become a showdown between Su Dong and Chelsea?
As the two were talking, Rijkaard made a substitution.
Iniesta replaced Giuly.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
