Chapter 976 Ibrahimovic, if you have the guts, don’t run!
In the crowded Etihad Stadium, Manchester City fans were shouting at the top of their lungs.
The score is still 2-0, with the home team in front and the away team behind.
After the two sides changed sides in the second half, the situation of the game remained unchanged. Manchester City continued to firmly control the ball and the rhythm. AC Milan could only passively defend and occasionally seize the opportunity to launch sporadic counterattacks, but it was difficult to create threats in the frontcourt.
Players such as Ibrahimovic, El Shaarawy and Robinho could only vent their anger through long shots.
Anyone can see that the overall strength of the two sides is not at the same level.
Not long after the start of the second half, Manchester City actively launched attacks on both sides and won corner kicks one after another.
It is now the 51st minute of the second half. Sanchez's forced breakthrough on the right created a corner kick opportunity.
David Silva stood in the corner and slowly raised his left hand.
AC Milan's penalty area was full of people, each staring at another.
Manchester City has deployed a total of three central defenders tonight, Pepe, David Luiz and Javi Martinez, all of whom are tall and strong players with excellent heading ability. Coupled with a center forward Sudong, this puts pressure on AC Milan's defensive players.
After creating a series of corner kicks but failing to pose a threat, Su Dong decided to adopt a different corner kick tactic this time.
A group of people just got together and said that everyone would follow Su Dong's arrangements.
Now Pepe and David Luiz are lying in ambush at the front point, Javi Martinez is standing in the middle, and Sudong is lying in ambush at the back point. AC Milan is also facing a formidable enemy and has specially arranged Nesta to mark Sudong, Thiago Silva to guard the front point, and Van Bommel, Ambrosini and others have also returned to defend the penalty area.
In an instant, there was panic in AC Milan's penalty area.
The Manchester City fans in the stands were also on edge.
As soon as the referee blew the whistle, David Silva ran forward and kicked a corner kick with his left foot.
Not a tactical corner kick!
AC Milan's defensive players immediately followed the players they were marking.
Pepe and David Luiz, who were originally lying in ambush at the front point, were seen running at the same time. David Luiz took the initiative to press forward and had already run out of the goal. It seemed that he was going to grab the first point and then head the ball, while Pepe was running towards the middle.
This immediately made Thiago Silva and Ambrosini, who were defending them, not think much and immediately followed the two Manchester City central defenders. The area in front of the right post of the goal was suddenly empty.
When a corner kick is taken, the defending players do not have the time to judge the path of the ball. The first thing they need to do is to keep close to the player they are defending.
Otherwise, if you know the ball's path but the ball is not in your range, and your opponent gets there first, how can you defend? First, follow the person you are defending closely, and then determine the ball's landing point. Even if you can't get the ball, your opponent can't get it either.
But this will bring a risk, which is missing people.
There are many types of leaky defense, and one of them is what Manchester City wants to create now.
Almost at the same time when Pepe and David Luiz started running, Javi Martinez broke free from Van Bommel, ran forward two steps quickly, and suddenly retreated quickly. This made Van Bommel, who was following him closely, not think much and immediately followed him and retreated.
Di Maria, who was originally near the penalty spot, quickly cut in to the back post. This move attracted Nesta's attention, and Su Dong took advantage of Nesta's distraction and rushed forward quickly.
It was between Pepe and Javi Martinez that Su Dong rushed over, while Nesta following behind him was blocked by two Manchester City players.
Everyone was shocked and no one knew what was going on.
All this happened in the blink of an eye. Even the live TV broadcast only saw Su Dong suddenly rushing forward from the back point and jumping high into the empty position at the front point, like a god descending to earth.
David Silva's corner kick happened to fall in this position, and Su Dong headed the ball from close range.
The ball hit Su Dong's head, turned in another direction, and quickly shot into the upper right corner of AC Milan's goal.
Bonera, who was standing in front of the goal, used his hands and feet to try to kick the ball out, but he couldn't touch it at all.
The ball went straight into the upper right corner of the goal!
Three to zero! "GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!"
"In the 51st minute, Manchester City used a corner kick to score against AC Milan again. Su Dong scored a hat trick!"
"My God, Manchester City played very well this time, especially the players' movement, which dazzled the defenders and made them unable to cope with it. Su Dong calmly seized the opportunity and scored with a header."
"Three to zero! Su Dong completed his first hat trick in this season's Champions League knockout round!"
After landing, Su Dong rushed out of the court excitedly.
Pepe, David Luiz and others behind him also rushed up frantically and knocked him to the edge of the court early.
The entire Etihad Stadium was chanting his name.
"This is a slow-motion replay. We still can't see the movement of the Manchester City players clearly. Let's slow it down a bit more."
"It can be seen that the Manchester City players cooperated very well. Pepe and David Luiz created a defensive vacuum in the front. Javi Martinez and Di Maria made a feint. Su Dong's run was very fast this time. Nesta wanted to follow but was blocked by the Manchester City players."
"We can only see the clever movement of Manchester City players through slow-motion replays. AC Milan players find it difficult to keep up with the movement of Manchester City players in the ever-changing situation."
“It’s wonderful!”
"Manchester City scored the third goal of the game, a hat trick from Su Dong!"
After celebrating the goal on the sidelines, Manchester City players walked back to the field happily.
The players of AC Milan were like defeated roosters, all of them laid down their arms and looked dejected.
No wonder.
The 0-0 score in the first leg gave them hope and made them think they could snipe Manchester City. Even before the game, Allegri also used offense to try to score an away goal when arranging tactics.
This is Manchester City's first time participating in the Champions League knockout stage, which makes many people feel that the Blue Moon lacks experience in knockout stages. AC Milan is one of the most experienced giants in European competitions, so it is normal for them to have such an illusion.
But when the game really started, the cruel reality slapped them three times.
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With Manchester City scoring three goals in a row, AC Milan completely gave up on luck.
In the 55th minute, Allegri replaced El Shaarawy with Kevin Boateng and let Robinho partner with Ibrahimovic as a double striker, and the lineup configuration returned to that of the first leg.
But the facts also prove that the same tactics and the same lineup can produce completely different results in different game environments, especially when the game entered the 65th minute, Manchester City replaced Javi Martinez with Trippier and the team returned to the 4-3-3 tactics, Manchester City's offensive power became significantly stronger.
Contrary to what many people imagine, Manchester City's 3-4-3 formation is actually more about improving ball possession. The 4-3-3 formation is what activates the team's offense because both full-backs will be more active in advancing and creating an advantage on the wing.
This also reflects Guardiola's determination to give AC Milan a complete defeat at home to avenge the defeat in the first round.
AC Milan also understood this, so they retreated with all their might.
But even so, Manchester City still seized an opportunity in the 76th minute.
After intercepting the ball in the midfield, Trippier made a 45-degree pass to the frontcourt to find Su Dong.
Su Dong retreated behind Van Bommel, stopped the ball with his back, then turned around and passed the ball directly behind him on the left side.
Di Maria cut diagonally into the left side of the penalty area, stopped the ball before Bonera, made an abrupt stop, started suddenly, shook off the defender, and passed the ball to the back point with a low left foot.
Sanchez, who was unguarded, rushed over and easily pushed the ball into the goal in mid-air, making it 4-0!
The Chilean winger roared excitedly and rushed out of the stadium frantically, waving his hands all the way, looking extremely excited.
This was his first Champions League knockout goal in his career, how could he not be excited? This goal also completely killed the game!
Afterwards, although AC Milan still counterattacked, they basically failed to launch a decent attack. After taking a four-goal lead, Manchester City did not continue to pursue the opponent, but left some face for the visiting team.
After all, with a four-goal lead, Manchester City has already secured the qualification to advance.
In the end, the game ended with Manchester City winning 4-0.
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The moment the final whistle sounded, the entire Etihad Stadium turned into a sea of jubilation.
Su Dong was also deeply encouraged and celebrated with his teammates on the court.
Many of them were participating in the Champions League knockout stage for the first time, or participating in the Champions League knockout stage as the main players for the first time. The draw in the first round made them feel very nervous and uneasy, and they were also under considerable pressure.
But precisely because of this, they seem particularly excited and thrilled after their victory.
Reaching the quarterfinals in the first Champions League is definitely a satisfactory answer.
More importantly, Manchester City’s management has offered huge bonuses for the Champions League. If they can reach the quarterfinals, every player on the first-team will be able to receive a considerable match bonus.
With fame and fortune in their hands, who wouldn't be happy? Who wouldn't be excited? After Su Dong celebrated with his teammates, he went to say goodbye to the AC Milan players who were about to leave the stadium.
Although Nesta and his former teammate Van Bommel could not hide their inner disappointment, they still graciously congratulated Su Dong on his promotion. Even Robinho politely shook hands with Su Dong when they met.
When he joined Real Madrid, the media compared him to Su Dong. Over the years, Robinho is far from meeting the expectations of the outside world. Let alone becoming the new Pele, he has not even reached the level of a top star.
What disappointed Su Dong the most was that he did not see the rebellious Swedish center on the court.
I guess this guy slipped away after the game.
What a pity! Ibrahimovic, if you have the guts, don't run!
(End of this chapter)
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