Chapter 975 Let’s continue the attack!
Allegri’s wishful thinking was very loud, but after the game started, he found something wrong.
As the whistle of the game sounded, Manchester City launched an attack on AC Milan with all their might, and AC Milan had no intention of retreating. Instead, they attacked against the opponent, adopted a tit-for-tat tactic, and actively sought opportunities for counterattacks, especially in the midfield and frontcourt.
The problem soon became apparent.
Manchester City had an absolute advantage in passing and controlling the ball, and they were playing at home, which allowed Manchester City's players to lock on to the ball from the start. AC Milan could only defend through pressing and oppression, but this was where the problem lay.
El Shaarawy and Ibrahimovic in the frontcourt were both running relatively forward, almost sticking to Manchester City's defense line. Robinho's task was to fall back and pinch Busquets, but the Brazilian striker was not running very actively. Regardless of whether he was saving his strength for an attack or not, he was very passive on the defensive end.
This made it easy for Busquets to get free.
Everyone knows that the number four position plays a vital role in Manchester City's tactical system, especially in the midfield passing and controlling system.
Once Busquets is alive, Manchester City's midfield possession will basically be alive.
After learning from the lessons of the first leg, Marcelo and Toni Kroos frequently moved to the sidelines, David Silva retreated, and broke free from the constraints of AC Milan's three defensive midfielders. Su Dong's position was also very flexible. He actively retreated and roamed between the three defensive midfielders and the back line, ready to receive the ball at any time.
This made AC Milan's entire defense very divided.
There is an obvious defensive vacuum between the three players in the frontcourt and the three defensive midfielders, and in this area, Manchester City's passing and controlling the ball will basically not be hindered.
Marcelo and Toni Kroos's pulling to the side turned the original small diamond in the midfield into a large flat diamond, forcing Ambrosini and Nocerino on both sides of AC Milan's three defensive midfielders to also pull to the side.
As a result, Van Bommel seemed a little lonely sitting in the middle.
At this time, the retreat of the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe brought about a very serious problem.
Will the central defender follow? No, Van Bommel can't handle Su Dong.
Then, a gap appeared in the back line. Sanchez and Di Maria did not retreat with Su Dong, but were ready to cut into the penalty area at any time.
Not only that, another fatal point is that after Robinho let Busquets go free, Manchester City's entire midfield control of the ball came alive. They were like an engine, continuously passing the ball and penetrating, delivering ammunition to the frontcourt.
The double striker combination of Ibrahimovic and El Shaarawy was not aggressive enough in pressing and it was difficult to restrict Manchester City's three defenders. Whether it was Pepe, David Luiz, or Javi Martinez who lagged behind, Manchester City's ability to get the ball in the backcourt was very solid.
From the beginning of the game, AC Milan fell into a very passive situation.
Logically speaking, at this time, the correct approach would be to adopt the tactics of the first leg and retreat completely, but Allegri's strategy before the game was to try to score an away goal first, forcing Manchester City to take the risk of attacking wildly.
But now, he not only failed to steal the chicken, but also broke his own leg.
Just five minutes into the game, David Silva dribbled the ball forward and made a two-pass combination with the retreating Su Dong. Su Dong passed the ball back and David Silva dribbled the ball straight into the penalty area.
Van Bommel had no choice but to trip David Silva from behind when he returned to defense, for which he was shown a yellow card by the referee.
The main defensive midfielder received a yellow card five minutes into the game, which shows how much defensive pressure AC Milan faced.
Fortunately, Su Dong's first direct free kick after the opening was not very good, and he failed to control the momentum of the ball, so he escaped danger.
But just four minutes later, Manchester City created another chance.
Busquets suddenly moved forward, received the pass from Toni Kroos, dribbled the ball forward, and made a straight pass to the feet of the retreating Su Dong.
Su Dong stopped the ball and turned around, dribbling the ball diagonally to the left side of the top of the penalty area. After attracting the attention of Thiago Silva and Bonera, he passed the ball to Di Maria, suddenly accelerated and went straight to the left side of the goal.
Di Maria received the ball on the left side of the penalty area, and he understood what he meant. Without thinking, he passed the ball with his left foot to the left post. At this time, Su Dong also shook off Nesta and Van Bommel, and rushed straight to the left side of the small penalty area. He jumped high, overpowered Thiago Silva, and headed the ball from close range.
Poor Thiago Silva!
It was obvious that he had reached the position earlier, but Di Maria's pass was a little higher. Su Dong was obviously taller and more bounced than him, so he couldn't get the ball past Su Dong at all, and he almost got knocked away.
The ball was headed into the left side of AC Milan's goal by Su Dong.
"GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!"
"Nine minutes into the game, Manchester City scored the first goal, one to zero!"
"My God, Su Dong and Di Maria completed a beautiful two-man teamwork on the left side of the penalty area. The two seemed to have a very good understanding of each other."
"Manchester City scored the first goal right from the start."
Su Dong pointed at Di Maria from a distance and quickly rushed out of the stadium. After reaching the sidelines, he celebrated the goal with the fans on the scene, then turned around and hugged Di Maria who was running towards him.
The whole stadium was chanting his name crazily.
One to zero!
This goal is crucial for Manchester City and represents a good start.
Manchester City players also ran over to celebrate the goal with Sudong and Di Maria.
This goal cannot ensure that Manchester City has much advantage. To some extent, Manchester City is not safe now because it is their home court.
"We have to try to score one more goal, at least one more goal, do you understand?" Su Dong shouted loudly.
The scene was noisy, but the players could still hear Su Dong's shouting.
In fact, even if Su Dong didn’t shout, many of them understood.
It would be too dangerous to be satisfied with a score of one to zero, because as long as AC Milan scores a goal in the final stage of the game, they will be able to eliminate Manchester City with an away goal.
Therefore, for Manchester City now, leading by one goal is really dangerous.
Only if they score one more goal can Manchester City feel a little relieved.
"Okay, let's go back and continue the attack!" Su Dong boosted morale.
…………
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Allegri regretted it as soon as the game started.
He found that he had made a mistake, which was to overestimate AC Milan's players.
In the past few days, he has repeatedly emphasized one point to Ibrahimovic, El Shaarawy and Robinho, that is, how important it is for their own forward line to put pressure on the opponent's midfield and backcourt players.
Especially Robinho, he repeatedly emphasized before the game that he must keep a close eye on Busquets.
Robinho also repeatedly promised that when he gets to the game, he will pay attention to Busquets and will not give him any chance.
But what is the result?
As soon as they entered the field, the Brazilians were so focused on attacking that they even forgot where Busquets was.
It really proves the saying in the coaching circle that when it comes to tactical execution, the Brazilian geniuses are so reliable that even sows can climb trees.
Perhaps, before going on the court, they were really determined to implement the coach's tactics and help the team win, but once on the court, they let themselves go and completely forgot what the coach said before the game.
If Kevin Boateng is there, at least he can limit Busquets.
Substitution? Allegri quickly rejected the tempting impulse.
There are only ten minutes left. If we make substitutions, it will really offend the players.
Without making any substitutions, Allegri decisively adjusted the tactics and began to signal the entire team to retreat.
He is not stupid either. He knows very well where the home team’s 0-0 advantage in the first leg lies, so it doesn’t matter if they lose a goal away from home, as long as they don’t lose the second one.
But even so, he was still not sure.
The most important thing is that AC Milan's midfield pressure on Manchester City tonight was not strong enough, especially on Busquets.
Unable to suppress Manchester City's midfield, Manchester City's frontcourt was able to receive a steady stream of passes and constantly create opportunities, which made AC Milan's defense hard to defend.
What’s even worse is that Manchester City has a Su Dong in the frontcourt.
Allegri kept walking to the sidelines, constantly reminding his players to pay special attention to Sudong, Busquets and other players, especially Sudong.
The two central defenders, Nesta and Thiago Silva, kept close to him, fearing that he would create a threat again.
This caused the situation to be deadlocked for more than twenty minutes.
In the 34th minute, Manchester City launched another attack.
After Marcelo dribbled the ball forward on the left, he pulled Nocerino out of the defensive zone, and Su Dong immediately retreated, ran towards Nocerino's defensive zone and raised his hand to ask for the ball.
After receiving the pass from Marcelo, Su Dong turned and passed the ball behind him to Di Maria on the left side of the penalty area.
The Argentine winger quickly moved forward, caught up with the ball before Bonera, suddenly stopped in front of the baseline, dribbled the ball back, and made a reverse triangle pass to Su Dong who was behind.
At this time, Su Dong had already advanced into the penalty area. He stopped with his right foot and barely avoided Thiago Silva who turned around to block him. He took a step to the right and shot again with his right foot.
The ball traveled in a straight line and shot into the right side of AC Milan's goal.
Abbiati was standing on the left, and was completely helpless in the face of Su Dong's shot from the right. He could only watch the ball go into the net.
Two to zero! "GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!"
The fans at the Etihad Stadium once again rushed out of their seats and roared wildly.
In more than half an hour, Manchester City scored two goals.
If the first goal just now was not enough to ensure victory, then Su Dong's second goal was like a reassurance to them, giving Manchester City a decisive advantage.
If AC Milan wants to turn the tables, they have to score at least two goals.
But is this possible?
Su Dong ran around the field excitedly, kissing the ring on his left hand vigorously and waving his arms towards the stands.
Nearly 50,000 fans in the stadium were shouting his name frantically, and he was finally surrounded by his teammates who caught up with him.
2-0, Manchester City finally scored a crucial goal!
(End of this chapter)
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