Chapter 567 Let the situation come more violently!

Sturridge's goal completely broke the deadlock on the field!

Southampton was encouraged and began to launch wave after wave of attacks, making Chelsea's situation in front of the goal even more precarious.

First, Drogba successfully broke through the offside trap and had a one-on-one chance, but the referee blew the whistle for offside at the critical moment.

But judging from the slow-motion footage of the game, it is hard to say whether it was offside.

Immediately afterwards, Sturridge took the ball and broke through, causing Chelsea to commit a foul, resulting in Mikel receiving a yellow card.

In the following free kick in the frontcourt, Varane headed the ball, but it was saved by Cech over the crossbar, resulting in a corner kick.

The Saints took a corner kick, Drogba headed the ball back and passed it to Sturridge, who made a powerful shot after running in, but Cech flew to save it again.

This battle of Saint-Cech perfectly proved the saying that an excellent goalkeeper is worth half a team!

The first half ended with a score of 1-0, but in the second half, after the two sides changed sides, Southampton's offensive continued unabated and they still launched a fierce attack on Chelsea.

At the beginning, when Gareth Bale faced Ivanovic's defense on the left, he used his own speed to force Ivanovic to pass the ball into the penalty area. Drogba grabbed the ball in the crowd and hit the ball to the lower left corner.

Cech is standing on the right and is out of reach!

But just as the ball was about to cross the goal line, Ashley Cole flew in to save the ball.

But Southampton players complained to the referee, believing that the ball had clearly crossed the white line of the goal.

But Chelsea players were not convinced and believed that they had not crossed the line.

The referee also made a decision quickly, believing that there was no crossing of the line and Chelsea’s defense was successful!

But I can stop it this time, but I can't stop it next time.

Southampton quickly took a free kick opportunity in the frontcourt. Drogba took the ball on the left and passed it back to Gareth Bale.

The Welsh winger received the ball and rushed into the penalty area, which immediately caused a fatal flaw in Chelsea's entire defense.

But at the critical moment, Gareth Bale suddenly returned to the front of the penalty area. Pogba rushed over, met the ball, and shot directly. The ball went into the net, 2-0!

The whole St. Mary's Stadium was excited!

Southampton's offensive was so strong that they almost completely crushed Chelsea!

But a two-goal lead was still not enough for Southampton, and the Saints continued to press and attack Chelsea frantically.

Even the defensive midfielder Matic sneaked forward, seized an opportunity, and made a high-quality long shot, but it was saved by Cech who flew out of the baseline, which was a pity!

Southampton then made substitutions, replacing Ravelle Morrison, Isco and James Rodriguez one after another, and the team lineup also changed back to the usual 4-3-3 tactics.

At this point in the game, Chelsea had no power to resist.

Therefore, even if Bielsa changed the formation and made substitutions, it would be difficult for the Blues to resist.

In the 81st minute, Isco dribbled the ball through two players in the middle and passed it to James Rodriguez. The Colombian passed the ball behind the defense line. Drogba understood what he meant and chased him, shooting the ball into Chelsea's goal again, 3-0!

At this point in the game, it has basically ended early!

…………

…………

When the referee's crisp whistle was heard from the 50-inch LCD TV hanging on the wall, there was deathly silence in the conference room of William Hill bookmaker's headquarters in London.

Everyone sitting here is an executive of William Hill bookmaker.

Including Group Chairman Gareth Davies, Chief Executive Ralph Topping, and the heads of various departments.

They all stared intently at the LCD TV screen, looking at the time, the names of the two teams, and the score in the upper right corner.

Three to zero!

Southampton beat Chelsea at home!

It should be said that it is not surprising at all that the Saints beat Chelsea.

To be able to conquer Chelsea in this way and with such a dominant performance is enough to make everyone drop their jaws!

Who would have thought that Southampton would be a newly promoted team?

Who could have thought that after enduring the winter break and a short period of adjustment, Southampton would perform so well?

"After defeating Liverpool and Chelsea in a row, the Saints can be said to be unstoppable!"

Ralph Topping said with a sigh.

At the beginning of the season, no, even in October, who could have thought that Southampton would have such an amazing performance?

Even in February, when Manchester United was ten points ahead, everyone felt that the Red Devils' title win was a foregone conclusion.

But now, seeing Southampton defeat Chelsea so overwhelmingly, everyone could only marvel.

Also, the suspense about the Premier League championship!

"In this game, Southampton did not send out all their main players, but whether it was veterans like Drogba, young players like Sturridge and Pogba, or the defensive players like Danilo and Nastasic, they all performed well!"

"Yes, it's amazing. According to Opta data, they had 42 shots in this game!"

"Oh my God, forty-two shots?"

"Or facing Chelsea?"

"Twenty-four shots on target. If it weren't for the outstanding performances of Cech and Benatia, I'm afraid this would have been another astonishingly high score!"

"What's going on with Southampton recently? Why are they in such a strong state?"

Everyone in the conference room was talking and exclaiming in amazement.

Ralph Toppin sighed. "When I was watching Charlene Lahrie's self-media program [Off the Field], I vaguely heard Charlene Lahrie mention that Southampton had already started studying the training plan for the new season as early as last season. One of the important points was how to adjust the team's physical reserves."

"Have you started preparing since last season?" Some people were amazed, even shocked.

Could anyone in Southampton predict this?

Ralph Toppin nodded and said, “Don’t forget, Southampton won the Championship last season with a record-breaking lead!”

After he said this, everyone remembered that this was indeed the case.

Southampton has completed a triple jump in the past three years, rising from League One to the Premier League in one go.

Even this season, as a newly promoted team in the Premier League, Southampton is currently the second favorite team to win the championship after Manchester United!

It is also one of the only two teams in the Premier League that have the ability to win the championship!

You can imagine how amazing this team is!

"Southampton has been strictly following the team's season plan since the summer preparations began. It is said that they have started to adjust the winter break schedule since November, with the aim of allowing the players to find their form again in March and April!"

The reason why Chelsea suffered a humiliating defeat in this game was that the team was inferior in strength and skills on the one hand, and in tactics on the other hand, but more importantly, the team was in too bad a shape!

It's not surprising if you think about it. With the depth of Chelsea's bench, the rotation has not achieved much effect. What's more, they have to fight on three fronts in the FA Cup, Europa League and league. After the players have survived the devilish schedule of the winter break, by March and April, their physical condition has deteriorated significantly.

In this situation, when they met a team like Southampton which was in excellent form, the result was predictable.

"Southampton's tactics are very targeted. I heard from them that they have a data analysis system for pre-match simulations, and they can also scientifically rotate the team's lineup. So, in this game, even with such a large rotation, they still overwhelmingly defeated Chelsea!"

At this point, Ralph Topping shook his head worriedly.

“Who will be Southampton’s opponent next?”

Following the CEO's question, someone immediately retrieved the database.

"Next up is Reading away, West Ham at home, Swansea away, West Bromwich at home, Tottenham away, Stoke at home, and Sunderland away."

The Premier League has now played 31 rounds, with seven games left.

Judging from the opponents in these seven rounds, Southampton has always had the advantage in strength.

If we really just look at the cards, it is very likely that the Saints will win seven consecutive games again.

"What about Manchester United?" Gareth Davies asked with a frown.

“Manchester City at home, Stoke City away, Aston Villa at home, Arsenal away, Chelsea at home, Swansea at home and West Bromwich Albion away.”

When the schedule came out, everyone in the conference room almost held their breath.

Damn, what’s going on?

In the next seven rounds of games, Manchester United will have to play against Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea?

Damn, what is this?

Of course, no one present would doubt that the FA was deliberately helping Southampton.

The reason is simple. The schedule was drawn up at the beginning of the season. Who knew that in the end it would be Manchester United and Southampton competing for the league championship?

Besides, Southampton’s opponents in the last few rounds were indeed not strong, but looking at the past two rounds, they challenged Liverpool and Chelsea successively, and further ahead are Manchester United and Manchester City.

What else do those doubters have to say?

There are only 20 teams in the league, and it’s a double round-robin system. If they don’t match up early, they will have to match up later.

Manchester United played against weak teams early on, and the three strong teams were all in the end, while Southampton played against strong teams early on, and the last few rounds were against weak teams.

Gareth Davies sighed deeply, "Although Manchester United is leading by eight points now, if Ferguson is not careful, it is very likely that they will capsize in the ditch and hand over the league title in vain!"

Who says it’s not?

Southampton pursued so fiercely and their form was getting better with each game.

With such a pursuer behind you, and the slogan of winning consecutive victories, the pressure will only increase for anyone.

Manchester United is actually showing signs of fatigue now!

After beating Norwich 4-0, Manchester United won the next two games against Reading and Sunderland with great difficulty.

Especially against Sunderland, they won by relying on an own goal. You can imagine how bad Manchester United's condition was.

"Manchester United is now eight points ahead with seven rounds left. The next game against Manchester City is very crucial!" Ralph Toppin said very incisively.

Manchester City is as strong as Manchester United, and is even much better than the Red Devils.

In addition, although this game is held at Old Trafford, it is a Manchester derby.

I believe no one will forget the classic battle last season, also at Old Trafford, where Manchester City defeated Manchester United 6-1.

"If Manchester United wins this game, the team will be under less pressure and morale will be boosted."

Ralph Topping paused here deliberately.

"But if Manchester United draws or even loses, then Manchester United will be in a passive position. At that time..."

Although Ralph Topping didn't say it, everyone present knew it clearly.

Once Manchester United loses points in the derby, the situation will be worrying!

Especially considering that they will face Arsenal and Chelsea next, Wenger and Benítez are neither easy to deal with.

Don’t think that Benítez lost so badly to Southampton in this round. It was because the team’s lineup was incomplete and its strength was weak.

But can Manchester United's lineup compare with Southampton?

Everyone present heard this with a worried look on their face.

Because if Manchester United lost the championship and Southampton really won the championship, creating a miracle of a newly promoted team winning the championship, William Hill would lose a lot of money.

Because they not only took the one million pounds bet placed by Yang Huan, but also took the risky bets from the other two bookmakers.

If Southampton wins the championship, William Hill will be in trouble!

More than 400 million pounds will be William Hill’s worst loss in history!

Therefore, senior executives such as Ralph Toppin and Gareth Davies, while worried, are also praying to God, hoping that Manchester United can perform better and other teams can pose more threats to Southampton.

As for causing trouble for Southampton in private?

They are a regular gambling company, not those underground bookmakers, how dare they do that?

I really regret it! r1148