Chapter 240 Super Talented Goalkeeper?!

The second largest cup competition in English football - the League Cup, whose full name is the English League Cup, should be more accurately called the English Football League Cup.

This tournament is a knockout tournament between all 92 clubs in England, regardless of level. This cup was established by the Football League in 1962 in order to allow clubs to have a knockout tournament outside the league to challenge the FA Cup, which was run by the English Football Association, because at that time the FA Cup had a much higher status in the hearts of fans than the league.

The Football League is in charge of all the seasons of all 92 professional football clubs in England, so the cup competitions it created are highly valued by all clubs. Therefore, in the early stages of the establishment of the League Cup, it was still very influential in English football.

However, in 1992, 20 teams in the English League One collectively rebelled, and these 20 best clubs in England formed the English Premier League, which is now the English Premier League.

As a result, there are only 72 clubs left under the Football League, and these are all low-level clubs. Because of this, the weight of the Football League's words is naturally not as great as before. If they want the top Premier League clubs to participate in the League Cup, they naturally have to look at the faces of others.

As for now, for these top clubs in the Premier League, ignoring the League Cup is not for any historical reasons, but mostly out of helplessness, because the top clubs in the Premier League, in addition to participating in the league, FA Cup and League Cup, also have to participate in the lucrative European Champions League or the UEFA Cup. If the results are good and they continue to kill all the way, like Manchester United who won the treble, there can be nearly 70 games in a 9-month season, nearly two games a week, and the players are not made of iron.

Of course, even teams in the Premier League have strong and weak teams. For mid-level Premier League clubs, they have long lacked the strength to win the championship. When the giant clubs do not pay attention to them, they can win the League Cup to boost morale, and also use it as a second way to qualify for the UEFA Cup.

Chelsea's next game is the knockout round of the League Cup round of 32. Perhaps fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, Chelsea's opponent is Newcastle United, which is also a Premier League team.

At the beginning of this season, when a reporter asked about Chelsea's goal this season, Mourinho said: "Our goal is to win all the championship trophies we have the opportunity to win!"

Yes, when he first came to Chelsea, with the support of club chairman Abrahammovich, and after "generously" spending 100 million euros, Mourinho had reason to be confident about the new season. When he said this, he also thought so in his heart.

However, six rounds of the league have passed, and after experiencing the busy schedule of the Premier League teams, Mourinho no longer has much interest in this cup competition, especially now that the opponent is Newcastle United, which is also in the Premier League, which makes the Portuguese even less interested.

If one of his players gets injured in the League Cup, even if he wins the game, it will be a loss.

For Chelsea Football Club, the League Cup trophy is not as important as the safety of its players.

Therefore, in the English League Cup round of 32 qualifying match on September 24, Mourinho fielded a lineup with so many substitutes that there was no room for further substitutions:

Goalkeeper: Thomas Clarke Defenders: Glen Johnson, Celestian Babayaro, Wayne Bridge, Paulo Ferreira Midfielders: Felipe Oliveira, Alexia Smerkin, Scott Parker, Thiago Mendes Forwards: Eidur Gudjohnsen, Joe Cole Subs: Geremi, Alan Wong, Pete Cech, Makarambi, William Gallas... Newcastle United is a prestigious old powerhouse in England. It is one of the earliest football clubs not only in the UK but also in the entire European continent.

However, in the past decade or so, Newcastle United's record has been very mediocre. In the Premier League, it has ranked between 9th and 15th every year, making it difficult for fans to have much impression of it.

However, this summer, Newcastle United also made headlines in the media because they brought the famous star Patrick Kluivert from Barcelona.

If we add the world superstar Alan Shearer to the team, most people would probably be shocked by their brilliant risks.

Unfortunately, these two are outdated stars... Even though Kluivert is only 28 years old now, his condition is really not satisfactory. He is completely different from the high-spirited super genius who helped Ajax reach the top of Europe ten years ago.

"The former 'Wind Chaser' was once famous throughout Europe, but now, his form has declined a lot. Although he has scored quite a few goals, he has wasted more opportunities." This is how most Spanish media evaluate Kluivert, so this season, after his contract with Barcelona expired, he joined Newcastle United on a free transfer.

Putting aside Kluivert who joined for free, in fact, this summer Newcastle United sold the team's defensive general Woodgate and introduced England's talented midfielder James Milner and international player Butt. These three heavyweight transfers combined have reduced Newcastle United's overall strength - Woodgate's value is more than double that of the other two combined! !

Perhaps, a player's worth cannot explain everything, but at least it has a certain reference value.

In this situation, the elderly Sir Robson did not aim too high. The goal he set for the team was to consolidate the league ranking and strive for the League Cup or FA Cup.

However, Newcastle United has been plagued by bad luck this season. First, the media broke the news that the team's legendary striker Alan Shearer and coach Robson were at odds, and the team's performance in the league has been very poor. Then, there was a crisis of coach Robson's contract termination. Even a few days ago, a viral infection broke out in the team, leading to frequent "eye diseases". Four Newcastle United players have been struck down by the disease one after another.

Under such circumstances, although the old coach Robson had a headache, he still stayed at his post. This season, the team's goal was very clear, that was the League Cup championship.

Yes, in order to have a good ending to his coaching career, Robson will certainly strive for a championship for Newcastle United within the possible scope, and the League Cup championship is the best choice. This event is not valued by the top clubs, so Newcastle United will have a greater chance.

Putting aside the four major clubs of Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool, compared with other teams, Newcastle United's strength is still among the top

On September 23, the League Cup round of 32 qualifying match finally kicked off at St. James' Park in Newcastle upon Tyne.

Old Robson arranged a standard 442 formation, with legendary star Alan Shearer and young player James Milner as the team's double striker.

After the start of the game, Newcastle and Chelsea started a fierce competition in the midfield. Lee Bowyer, Nicky Butt, Jamien Jenas and Lauren Robert, four midfield generals, sat in the midfield, putting Chelsea in a passive situation for a time.

In the beginning, Chelsea's all-substitute lineup was unable to show its strength at all, and there were always omissions in the cooperation between the players. This allowed Newcastle's experienced legend Alan Shearer to take advantage of Glen Johnson's pass error, steal the ball in the frontcourt, shake off Ferreira, and score the first goal for the team 7 minutes into the game.

Although Alan Shearer is already 34 years old this year, his physical strength and explosive speed are not comparable to those young people in their 20s on the field, but his game experience and excellent personal skills allow him to always perform well - the title of a legendary star is definitely not something that can be hyped up by the media! !

However, as the game time slowly wore on, the performance of Chelsea's players on the field became better and better. In a star-studded Chelsea, it is simply impossible to gain recognition from the Portuguese who have aroused their attention without certain efforts and performance. They finally have such an opportunity to start, so of course they have to work hard to show their strength. For example, in defense, even if they are easily dribbled past by opponents, they have to use tackles without fear of yellow cards to show their ferocity and fearlessness.

In fact, most of Chelsea's players on the field are not afraid of yellow cards or red cards at all, because even without these cards, it is still difficult for them to get a chance to play in normal games.

Back to the topic, Wang Li sat on the bench today. Originally, Mourinho did not plan to let him follow the team to Newcastle. Since the start of the season, Wang Li has played almost all the game time for Chelsea. Taking this opportunity, Mourinho planned to let him have a rest, but Wang Li finally decided to come and take a look.

Anyway, the League Cup is also a championship honor, and I have never won any championship. If the team is not in a good situation, I may be able to save the defeat with my own condition. ... This is just an excuse for Wang Li to come with the team.

In fact, the main reason was that his good friend Thomas Clarke was the starting player today and he insisted that Wang Li come to see his "majestic appearance". So, just 7 minutes into the game, Wang Li saw him being hit by a bullet... "There is really no way to deal with this ball." Thomas, who was guarding in front of the goal, said to himself as if to comfort himself: "It's a one-on-one shot, what can I do, but I must keep it next time!" - "I am a super talented English goalkeeper who is going to compete for the position of the main goalkeeper!!"

(To be continued)