Chapter 72 The tense atmosphere of the team (1)
"The dancing master returned from injury, made one assist and one goal in 45 minutes, and won the man of the match award!" - the front page headline of the Wolverhampton Post.
"In the 24th round of the Premier League yesterday, Portsmouth adopted a 5311 defensive counterattack tactic. Facing this dense defense, Wolverhampton's offense was a bit weak in the first half. Not only did they fail to break through Portsmouth's goal, but they were counterattacked by the opponent and scored first. In the second half, head coach Dave Jones replaced Allen who had returned from injury. Our dancing master used his legs to tell the opponent: This is our territory. With his wonderful performance of one pass and one shot, he deservedly won the best player of the game. The most gratifying thing is that Allen did not suffer any psychological impact due to the injury. He is still the protagonist of the court and no one can replace him!"
The next day, the Wolverhampton Post used the photo of Wang Li being sprayed with champagne as the front page picture, reported the game in detail, and praised Wang Li's performance. However, this newspaper is dedicated to the city of Wolverhampton, so of course they only write about topics that interest local fans in Wolverhampton.
The mainstream media in England only briefly mentioned the result of this game in the corner. Wang Li's fame is far less than that of the star players of those giants. The focus of English fans is of course Chelsea vs. Arsenal.
Although Wolverhampton won the game, there was no laughter on the first-team training ground. Instead, there was a tense atmosphere. Every player was sweating on the field, training as if to vent. Even Harrison and Peter, who usually loved to joke, seemed a little taciturn, lowering their heads and rubbing the ball under their feet.
Their next opponent is the league leader, a truly powerful team with an all-star lineup - Manchester United! Even the usually boastful head coach Dave has little confidence, so it is conceivable that these players are even more irritated.
For a team, the greatest sorrow is not failure, but the despair of fearing the opponent and being powerless. Obviously, facing Manchester United, everyone in Wolverhampton was a little cowardly.
Seeing this situation, Wang Li was a little worried, so he joked with Harrison: "Harry, I have a few of Amy's new albums here, do you want to take a look?" He wanted to use words to ease this irritable feeling.
"It's nothing. I already have a girlfriend. Christine is very nice to me and I like her very much. Now I no longer watch Amy's album." Harrison looked up at Wang Li, and then continued to fiddle with the football at his feet.
Wang Li shook his head helplessly, trotted a few steps, and walked to Miller's side. "Miller, Pete is very interested in your wife. I think you should be on guard. This guy is not a good guy."
"Alice is still in the United States, so I feel relieved. Besides, there is no way she would fall for a big, stupid guy like this." Miller glanced at Pete who was practicing shooting across the court, and said with some disdain.
After the provocation failed, Wang Li felt a little annoyed, so he came to Oaks. He also wanted to do some free kick practice. Free kicks are very important in the game, and having an extra ability will be very beneficial for the players.
"Alan, what are you doing here? Do you want to try this machine too?" Oris asked with interest when he saw Wang Li coming over. In front of him was a shooting machine, which would automatically pop out a ball every few seconds. What he had to do was to catch as many balls as possible to exercise his reaction ability.
"Aren't you afraid that I'll take your job?" Wang Li laughed and continued, "Ox, how about you come and practice shooting with me?"
Hearing this, Oaks immediately shook his head vigorously, with a pleading expression on his face, "Allen, you should go find Paul. You see, I've been training here for a long time, and I'm really tired. I just want to take a break." After saying that, he pretended to pack up and prepare to return to the sidelines.
Wang Li smiled and punched Oaks. He knew that Oaks didn't want to train with him.
"I'm going to practice free kicks today. The kind of arc-shaped free kicks that don't require any strength at all, so don't worry!"
After hearing this, Oaks stopped what he was doing and turned to stare at Wang Li suspiciously, "Really?"
In the office of head coach Dave Jones of Wolverhampton Club, all the players were sitting around a video recorder, watching the game on TV. They had been sitting here for a whole afternoon, but no one complained about the hardship, and they were still watching very seriously.
"Manchester United's front, middle and back three lines are very sharp. Center forward Ruud van Nistelrooy is still firmly in the top of the scorer list. The forward line led by him has strong offensive capabilities. Add in Scholes, Keane and even Uruguayan teenager Fran, and super substitute Solskjaer. Their offensive capabilities are very strong. Pay attention to defending Ruud van Nistelrooy and don't let him receive the pass in the penalty area."
"On the wing we have Giggs, Phil Neville and Portugal's rising star C. Ronaldo. Giggs is not to be mentioned. Manchester United will definitely send C. Ronaldo to play in the next game. This young player has a very good dribbling level. Butler, you are facing him. You must stabilize the defense first and then look for offensive opportunities."
Butler nodded solemnly, "Don't worry, boss, I will do it well."
"Well, although Manchester United's defense is very good in the Premier League, it is obviously not as good as their frontcourt. Gary Neville, Ferdinand and O'Shea are all strong and experienced, but after watching the videos of these games, we can find that their coordination and blockade of the back line are not perfect. There are also many loopholes in the players' running positions. We must try to seize these loopholes to create scoring opportunities."
"In this game, it is almost impossible to get a point by defending. Manchester United's offensive ability is very strong. They have a lot of experience in dealing with iron bucket formations. Moreover, whether it is C. Ronaldo, Giggs or Scholes, these players are very good at taking free kicks. It is best not to foul in dangerous positions."
"Overall, although the chances are slim, we still have hope of winning." Dave looked at the nervous eyes of the players and said in a somewhat comforting tone. He knew that these players were more or less nervous, but he was not good at boosting morale, and this required more training and experience accumulation in the future.
In fact, Dave had no hope for this game. It was too difficult for a newly promoted team like Wolverhampton to snatch points from Manchester United. In terms of tactics, personal ability, cooperation, etc., they were at least one level behind these giants. In the face of absolute strength, any conspiracy would not work. Dave felt a little powerless now.
"It all depends on luck. I hope that Manchester United's forwards don't have shooting boots on that day." He thought silently in his heart. At this time, he turned his eyes to Wang Li, "If there is a glimmer of hope of winning, it must be this kid..." However, he thought of Wang Li's weak performance in the match against Liverpool and shook his head in disappointment. The strength of this kind of giant team is really too strong. Personal ability is like a drop in the ocean in front of the entire team and has become somewhat insignificant.