Chapter 1082 The ball goes in! !
It is the same football game, the same scene, but the head coach and ordinary fans have two completely different understandings because they see completely different things.
Just like in the current game, Southampton didn't even have a single shot from the start until now. After Atletico Madrid scored the first goal at their home ground, they were still being suppressed by the Colchoneros.
It can be said that this has never happened in Southampton in the past few years.
Everyone knows that since the Bielsa era, Southampton has been best at getting off to a good start.
Some people even joked that if the Saints could just make three attacks at the beginning, they would have won half the game.
But in such a crucial final, the Saints were suppressed so badly by Atletico Madrid. How embarrassing was it for the Saints fans?
According to the comments of the fans in the stands, the audience in front of the TV, and even the TV commentators, the Saints' current problems are due to being suppressed by Atletico Madrid. The trident in the front court did not give the team enough support, causing the team's entire offense to be completely paralyzed. Otherwise, how could they not even have a decent attack and shot?
But in Ancelotti's eyes, is this the case?
Obviously not!
In Ancelotti's eyes, being suppressed in the midfield and backcourt is not a problem at all.
In other words, this is a problem, but it is not the most important and core problem.
What he values is that the team's front trident does not put enough pressure on the opponent's back line.
There is a saying that goes, the best defense is the best offense.
But in tactics, offense does not mean that you have to push all the players forward.
Southampton has three top scorers in the frontcourt who are among the best in the world in passing, breakthroughs and scoring. If you pick any one of them, the opponent will have to use at least two players to defend to feel at ease.
In other words, what would happen if these three players put enough pressure on the opponent's defense at the same time?
The answer is simple, withdraw from the midfield to provide support!
If the opponent's midfielders go to assist the back line, then the pressure on our own midfield will be reduced, the operation will be smoother, and the offense will be more active. Isn't that right?
Therefore, after Atletico Madrid scored the first goal, Ancelotti not only did not ask the front players to retreat actively, but instead adjusted the responsibilities of three players.
The 30-meter area to the goal and the front of the penalty area is divided into two halves, with Messi and Hazard occupying one each.
Breaking through the wing, cutting inside, penetrating through the ribs, and actively pulling and running are all the specialties of Messi and Hazard.
More importantly, once they get the ball, it is basically difficult for them to lose it unless the opponent commits a foul.
Many times, fouling is often the last weapon of the defending side, because without fouling, they can't defend.
So, after Atletico Madrid scored, although Southampton did not adjust its tactics or launch a large-scale counterattack, what was strange was that Atletico Madrid committed more fouls in the backcourt.
Of course, all fouls are relatively restrained and are directed at the ball rather than the person.
Suarez's activity area is within the penalty area, but it is mainly concentrated in the two corners of the penalty area. He will appear on the side where the team focuses on attacking, to support Messi and Hazard.
The way to respond is also very simple, which is to pull the defense line.
When Messi or Hazard gets the ball on the wing, he moves over. If his teammates cut into the middle, he pulls to the wing, or presses forward, taking away Atletico Madrid's defensive players and creating space for his teammates.
If Messi and Hazard are restricted on the wing, Suarez will withdraw from the penalty area to receive the ball from the midfield, leaving the penalty area free to give Messi and Hazard space to penetrate the penalty area diagonally.
It's not just Suarez. In the midfield, Pogba and Di Maria will also immediately wait for their chance as soon as they get the chance and the ball reaches the feet of Messi and Hazard.
Pogba and Di Maria's ability to attack from behind will definitely be a headache for all opponents.
Not to mention, the two full-backs David Alaba and Danilo are also ready to move forward at any time to provide support on the flanks.
The most fatal thing about Southampton is that the three players in the front court not only cooperate well with each other and have very compatible tactical characteristics, but more importantly, they all have extremely strong personal abilities.
If they run, will you follow them?
If you do this, your defensive formation will definitely be affected, and may even become chaotic.
But don’t follow. Well, if you don’t follow, once they get the ball, they can still create threats and you can’t defend against them at all.
In this situation, whether to follow or not is a difficult question.
Because of this, Atletico Madrid's entire defense line seemed to be well defended on the surface, but in fact it was under tremendous pressure, and every player was dealing with the opponent with trepidation.
Even if the Saints' front three just ran around like that, they would have to be nervous and ready for battle.
So, on the surface, Southampton's attack was at a disadvantage and was contained.
But in fact, the problem is not that there are no shooting opportunities, nor that the ball moves smoothly, but that the pressure exerted on the opponent in the frontcourt is not great enough.
Ancelotti's adjustment was aimed at further increasing the threat of Messi and Hazard in the frontcourt with the ball, as well as the pressure the front trident puts on the opponent, but the reaction on the field was not obvious.
Everyone simply saw that Atletico Madrid committed more fouls and Southampton still had no threatening attacks, let alone shots, but Ancelotti remained as steady as a rock and remained calm.
This also makes Saints fans worried, and they are afraid that the team will be suppressed by Atletico Madrid.
But only the players on the field and the head coach standing on the sidelines know how dangerous the current situation is.
Beep!
A clear whistle sounded in the turbulent stadium.
Following the sound, I saw Di Maria lying on the ground, while Illarramendi next to him had just gotten up.
The referee quickly ran to the scene of the incident and waved to Illarramendi, motioning him to come over. His right hand had already reached into his chest pocket.
Anyone who has played football knows what this action means.
He is finally going to give the cards!
After nearly thirty minutes, he finally decided to give up his cards!
Everyone in Atletico Madrid excitedly surrounded the referee, trying to persuade him to show mercy, but the referee's attitude was very firm and he repeatedly stressed that he had been tolerant enough.
How many times has Illarramendi committed a foul?
I don’t remember!
Atletico Madrid indeed committed too many fouls. Although they were clean and had no intention of hurting anyone, they were still a headache.
Of course, this is part of the Bed Sheet Army's tactics.
The referee finally gave Illarramendi a yellow card, which was also the first yellow card of the game.
The entire Glory Stadium was suddenly filled with boos and cheers.
Both opposing teams went crazy!
Toni Kroos naturally stood in the free throw position, raised his head and looked at his teammates in front of him.
Neymar, Suarez and Messi lined up in front of the penalty area, which made Atletico Madrid feel like they were facing a formidable enemy.
Because the free kick was aimed to the left, Di Maria and left-back David Alaba both came over to receive the ball.
This is also a signal to everyone that the Saints' free kick will attack the left side.
Atletico Madrid also caught it, so they focused their defense on the left.
Everyone knows that if such a free kick in the frontcourt is not handled carefully, it may result in a goal being lost.
Simeone called on the players on the sidelines to be careful and pay attention to the Saints' attack, especially on the right side.
But Toni Kroos quickly sent a free kick straight to the left wing to David Alaba.
Alaba stopped the ball and moved forward. After catching up, he passed the ball forward before the defender got close and turned around to cut diagonally to the middle.
Neymar retreated from the front but did not receive the ball because Atletico Madrid's right-back Montoya was following him. So, Neymar did not let the ball stay at his feet. He touched the ball directly and knocked it to David Alaba who was cutting diagonally into the middle, forming a small-scale two-on-one.
As soon as Alaba received the ball, he dribbled straight towards Illarramendi.
The entire defensive formation of Atletico Madrid suddenly felt like they were facing a formidable enemy. Everyone was on edge, especially Illarramendi, who stared at Alaba without blinking.
But just as Alaba was about to enter his defense zone, a figure flashed behind him.
Di Maria was seen passing quickly from behind Alaba, and Alaba passed the ball in the direction of Di Maria's sprint.
At this moment, Illarramendi had a bad feeling, and after throwing David Alaba away, he turned and ran.
Di Maria received the pass from Alaba at the front of the penalty area, but at this time Otamendi also reacted and appeared in the penalty area, trying to block Di Maria.
But what was unexpected was that Di Maria suddenly passed the ball horizontally.
Otamendi was shocked because he saw Suarez running from the middle to receive the ball. There was only Jimenez beside him and he was behind him, making it difficult to stop Suarez from receiving the ball.
At this moment, Otamendi had no choice at all.
Although he saw Di Maria starting to rush towards the left post of the goal, he chose to run towards Suarez.
Because he knew very well that if he didn't double-team him, Suarez would just kick the ball and it would be a shot.
But it turned out that even if he went there, there was nothing he could do.
As soon as Suarez stopped the ball, without waiting for Otamendi to get close, he passed the ball directly from Otamendi to Di Maria. It was another small-scale wall-to-wall cooperation!
Otamendi felt like he had gone crazy for a moment. He stopped suddenly, turned around, and rushed towards Di Maria quickly.
Otamendi's reaction was very quick, and even goalkeeper Courtois was prepared and stood far to the left, resulting in Di Maria's shooting angle being narrow.
But Di Maria has a left foot!
"Wow wow wow Di Maria Di Maria Di Maria"
"Messi! Messi!! Messi!!!"
“Messi!”
"The ball goes in!"
"Southampton had a very beautiful free kick. Di Maria passed the ball to the right in front of the goal and Messi followed up and scored. It was one to one!"
"Well done, Southampton!"
"Atletico Madrid is hard to defend. Their entire defense line has been disrupted by Southampton's penetration!"
"From Alaba and Neymar's first wall collision on the left to Di Maria's second wall collision with Suarez at the front of the penalty area, Southampton's continuous cooperation in this small area demonstrated the Saints' players' delicate footwork and outstanding personal abilities."
"Atletico Madrid's defense is very tight. Their airtight defense did not leave much space for Southampton's players, but the Saints' players have this ability. They will cooperate continuously in this extremely narrow space and disintegrate the opponent's defense!"
"It's not that Atletico Madrid didn't do well enough, but the opponents they faced were too strong!"
The moment Messi scored the goal, the entire Glory Stadium turned into a sea of celebration!
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