Chapter 112: Serie A Opening Game! Spear and Shield! Showdown between Old Rivals!
August 22, 19:45.
The Olympic Stadium in Rome, with 72,000 seats and over 97% attendance, became the first in the first round of Serie A.
In terms of absolute attendance, it is only behind the San Siro Stadium, which can accommodate 85,000 people.
Mourinho loudly encouraged the players in the locker room before the game:
“When they saw last season’s ranking, they said we couldn’t do it;
When they saw the people we bought this season, they said we couldn’t do it;
When we lost in the preseason, they said we couldn’t do it;
When discussing Juve and Inter, they said we couldn’t do it;
After we beat the Turkish team, they still said we were no good;
You can never convince all of these people who write in newspapers and open their mouths on TV. Even if you win all the championships, they will still say that you are just lucky and you will not be able to do well next season.
I, Jose Mourinho, have been talked about by them for nearly twenty years, since I left Porto to join Chelsea!
So, erase from your minds all the bullshit media reviews in the newspapers, on the Internet, and on TV recently!
Then walk out of this locker room and into our home court!
Go and listen to the cheers of 70,000 fans outside!
Then use a 90-minute game to prove to them whether you can do it or not!"
Compared to Gerrard, Mourinho's locker room speeches do not always require passionate responses from the players.
He hopes that players can take to the court in a thinking state.
Instead of being full of enthusiasm for a moment, it is better to increase the players' sense of mission and responsibility.
In fact, most of the players understand that as a team that has not won the Serie A championship for 14 years, the pressure they personally bear is far less than that on Mourinho.
In the 16-17 season, they competed with Juventus for the championship until the end, and finally finished second with a 4-point deficit after 38 league rounds.
This is also the closest they have been to winning the championship in recent years.
Since then, especially in recent years, they have not only been getting further and further away from the championship, but have even been unable to enter the Champions League zone.
Mourinho's arrival has made many Roma fans believe that this is the key to the team's revival.
In the eyes of others, this is a combination of a frustrated team and a frustrated head coach.
When he left Manchester United to coach Tottenham, many people said that this two-time Champions League champion who had coached Real Madrid was no longer favored by top clubs.
After arriving in Rome, such doubts became louder and louder.
Rome was not built in a day, and bringing a declining team back to its peak cannot be accomplished in just one season.
However, he has made preparations for all difficulties. As long as he steps into the field, his goal is to win. He wants to use a season to instill the mentality of a winner and a champion into the hearts of these players.
Although the game started at 2:45 in the morning in the Red Country, the presence of two extremely popular players, Chen Xiaoliang and Mourinho, still attracted millions of fans to flock to the live broadcast room.
Penguin Live has even launched the commentary combination of Huang Jianxiang and Zhang Lu.
Players from both teams entered the field, and the whole audience cheered.
The commentator on the scene announced the numbers and names of the Roma players entering the field one by one.
Although every player received enthusiastic cheers from the fans, Chen Xiaoliang could still hear that the Italian local players headed by Pellegrini, especially Cristante who had just helped Italy win the European Cup in the summer, received much more cheers than other players.
However, when the live commentator introduced Roma head coach Mourinho, the cheers of the home fans far exceeded any previous ones.
Under the guidance of the referee, Roma captain Pellegrini and Fiorentina captain Biraghi shook hands and presented each other with team flags.
After choosing the sides, players from both teams lined up in their respective half. Vlahovic stood at the center circle ready to kick off, and Chen Xiaoliang kept his eyes on him.
The referee whistles! Fiorentina kicks off first!
Just as Mourinho had envisioned in his pre-match tactical arrangements, with three central defenders, two defensive midfielders and two wingers piled up in the backcourt, they did not put much effort into controlling the ball.
As long as Fiorentina does not cross the halfway point, they can let them pass the ball back and forth in the backcourt. Once the Roma players get the ball, after controlling the ball, they will try their best to choose a quick attack method such as ground balls or half-high balls straight to the frontcourt to attack the opponent from behind.
No matter how much the new coaches of both teams mobilized and arranged their teams before the game, this was the opening game of Serie A after all, and both sides played very conservatively in the first few minutes.
Especially on the Roma side, once the through pass fails, they will immediately retreat and not allow Fiorentina any chance of a quick counterattack.
Chen Xiaoliang was not under much pressure, and he didn't even have a chance to face Vlahovic one-on-one.
He felt a little uncomfortable. He really didn't expect the pace of this game to be so slow. Especially after the fast-paced high-altitude bombing game against Trabzonspor in the previous game, this feeling was more obvious.
In the 7th minute, Zaniolo retreated to get the ball, and suddenly accelerated and dribbled past the opponent in the middle.
Fiorentina midfielder Joseph Mahler stepped forward to press.
Zaniolo used the right side of his body to hold Mahler and continued to dribble the ball forward!
Pellegrini had already run to the left side at this time, and Zaniolo passed the ball to him before he lost his balance!
Facing the interception of Fiorentina right-back Venuti, Pellegrini cleverly pulled the ball and turned around, making a fake move as if to bring the ball back, then suddenly turned around, got rid of Venuti and rushed to the baseline!
As Pellegrini got closer to the penalty area, the cheers from the audience became louder and louder!
Facing Venuti's desperate defense, Pellegrini found the opportunity and made a cross with his left foot!
The ball was passed a little too far and rolled directly to the right side.
Right-back Karsdorp received the flying ball, but due to the small angle and the defense of Fiorentina captain and left-back Biraghi, he did not have much space to pass the ball and could only choose to pass it back.
However, Abraham who was near him made a wrong judgment and thought that he was going to pass the ball into the penalty area and chose to move forward instead. Karlstorp's ball was passed directly to the opponent's midfielder Pulgar!
Pulga took a few steps and passed the ball directly to Vlahovic in front!
After Vlahovic received the ball, he turned around and saw a red countryman appearing in front of him!
He feinted his left leg a few times, trying to break through, but when he saw that Chen Xiaoliang was unmoved, he passed the ball to his teammate, Argentine left winger Nicolas Gonzalez.
However, at the moment Gonzalez received the ball and attracted the attention of the Roma defenders, Vlahovic started quickly and rushed forward from the right side of Chen Xiaoliang's body!
Oh no, it’s a two-on-one!
Chen Xiaoliang immediately turned around and held Vlahovic with the left side of his body!
The ball was passed back as expected!
At this time, the two have come to the left side of the top of the penalty area!
Vlahovic was very surprised that this seemingly thin player from the Red Country had such great strength!
And Chen Xiaoliang also truly felt the power that he could not feel from the video!
Seeing the ball rolling to Vlahovic's feet, Chen Xiaoliang accurately judged the ball's path, leaned on Vlahovic with his left side, fell to the ground, stretched out his right foot, and shoveled to the outside of Vlahovic's left foot!
Vlahovic pushed his right hand hard outward, trying to run a few steps to the left to catch the ball in advance!
But he found that Chen Xiaoliang was like an octopus! He couldn't shake him off, and he couldn't push him away!
Holy shit! Where did Rome get this weirdo from? !
He had no choice but to use Chen Xiaoliang's strength to hold him back, and stretched out his left foot to rub the incoming ball with the instep of his foot!
Chen Xiaoliang tried his best to stretch his feet as far as possible!
In an instant, he felt his toes touching the ball!
The ball made an arc and flew towards the goal!
The two people who lost their balance and fell to the ground looked up at the ball!
Goalkeeper Patricio didn't make any move!
The ball went wide of the post!
Although the arc was beautiful, this defense was still successful!
The home fans gave applause!
Smalling and Ibanez beside him also gave him a thumbs up.
Vlahovic made a regretful expression, stood up and walked back, but couldn't help but look back at Chen Xiaoliang.
Chen Xiaoliang saw one thing in his eyes—surprise caused by contempt.
Although his defense was effective, the scene just now still played in his mind several times.
This was the first time in more than a year since he started playing football that a player was able to shoot a high-quality shot without completely getting rid of him!
This is the main player of the team that ranked 13th in Serie A last season!
In AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus, there are a group of well-known players waiting for his challenge!
Lautaro, Dybala, Leao, Giroud, and Chiesa who shone in the European Cup and dribbled past countless opponents! And the legendary Ibrahimovic who is 40 years old but gets better with age!
Thinking of this, an irrepressible sense of excitement surged in his heart!
Isn't this the reason why he left the Scottish Premier League and came to a stronger league? !
【Dong Dong Dong】
[Enemy detected: Vlahovic]
[Rival system is activated]
[Rival Mission: In this game, the rival has no goals and no assists]
[Restriction conditions: Player rating after the game, enemy rating is lower than the host]
[Mission Reward: 1 Legendary Star Card of the Enemy's Team]
Isn't this just a one-on-one mission?
Is there anything more exciting than a bayonet fight between two men? !
This task not only means defending him to death, but also completing other tasks on the court!
This is the only way to win the post-match scoring!
Chen Xiaoliang took on the task, turned off the system, and excitedly got back into the game!
In the 12th minute, he received a cross pass from Cristante, and seeing Abraham waving at him in the frontcourt, he directly passed a half-high ball up!
Abraham started accelerating in the direction the ball was flying!
In an instant, he left Fiorentina's defenders behind!
However, Chen Xiaoliang's pass was a little , and the opponent's goalkeeper Dragowski chose to attack! He ran out of the penalty area!
Abraham stretched out his long legs and touched the ball!
The ball changed direction slightly!
Dragowski's outstretched hands didn't touch the ball! Instead, they tripped Abraham!
Abraham fell to the ground, and due to inertia, he rolled several times before he got up!
At this time, players on both sides realized that the turning point of the game might be coming!
They all gathered around the referee and said something loudly!
The referee didn't hesitate at all and directly took out the red card and pointed it at Dragowski!
Although Fiorentina's players were complaining to the referee, the video referee team in the headphones reaffirmed the referee's decision through the playback!
The fans in the stadium cheered loudly, they were even happier than when a goal was scored!
Fiorentina had to replace striker and former Real Madrid player Callejon with substitute goalkeeper Terraciano.
Huang Jianxiang: "Chen Xiaoliang's pass was so deadly! It directly led to Dragowski's recklessness and turned the balance of the game! Mourinho should be the happiest person now!"
Zhang Lu: "Hehe, originally both teams played conservatively. Now once the balance is broken, it is very likely that Roma will attack. This should be a good thing for the fans who stayed up late to watch the game."
Huang Jianxiang: "I just saw a camera footage of a Roma fan who looked like an old lady holding up a poster of Abraham and kissing it non-stop! Coach Zhang, if this scene could happen in the Red Country, and an old lady in the Red Country could kiss Wu Lei's poster crazily , then I think our football environment would definitely improve."
Zhang Lu: "Haha! I think it's okay for an old lady, but if it's a young girl, then Mrs. Wu might have some opinions."
Pellegrini takes a free kick outside the penalty area!
According to Mourinho's instructions, Joao has hinted to his players to take advantage of the fact that the opponent's goalkeeper has just come on the field and has not yet warmed up, and to play more high balls into the penalty area.
Pellegrini's ball is lifted into the penalty area!
Smalling is there!
The angle was not good, he couldn't adjust his body, so he had to pass the ball back to the full-back Karsdorp!
Karsdorp made a low pass to the middle, Abraham stepped forward to meet the ball but deliberately missed it!
Pellegrini, who was just taking a free kick, shot the ball!
Close to the earth, the angle is very tricky!
Unfortunately, the ball hit the goal post and went out of bounds!
In the following time, although Roma still did not deliberately control the ball, their effective attacks gradually increased.
Although Fiorentina was one man short, they still tried their best to control the ball and look for opportunities.
In the 22nd minute, Fiorentina had a counterattack opportunity after intercepting the ball in the backcourt. Captain Biraghi made a long pass to forward Nicolas Gonzalez!
After the Argentine got the ball, he dribbled towards Cristante a few times and then passed it horizontally to Vlahovic who had already made a run!
Vlahovic was just about to look up to see if there was any feasible route when Chen Xiaoliang's figure rushed towards him!
The previous round of fighting made him realize that he did not have much advantage in a physical fight with the boy from the Red Country.
This time he didn't wait for Chen Xiaoliang to rush up, but directly kicked with his left foot!
Fortunately, Mancini, who was standing in the penalty area, blocked the ball with his body!
Smalling received the ball and kicked it directly to Binya on the left.
The Uruguayan left-back didn't play well in the last game and was replaced by Niles at halftime. In this game, he still got a chance to start and he was determined to prove himself and defend his main position!
He ran a few steps with the ball and saw the opponent's midfielder Bonaventura coming towards him. He hooked the ball with his left foot and pushed it to Abraham with his right foot!
The ball passed through the opponent's two midfielders, Bonaventura and Pulgar, and went directly to the penalty area line!
Abraham moved two steps with the ball and three players surrounded him!
Abraham passed the ball lightly to Pellegrini who went around into the penalty area!
The Roma captain aimed at the lower right corner and shot! The ball went in!
All the defenders of Fiorentina raised their hands to indicate that the ball was offside!
The referee runs to the VAR area!
At this time, the camera cut to Fiorentina coach Italiano, who was shouting at Vlahovic, but the live broadcast system could not hear what he was shouting.
Huang Jianxiang joked: "Vlahovic was obviously a bit impatient in that ball just now. Judging from the current world football, if he can kick a ball like that and not be complained by the head coach, he should change his name to Cristiano Ronaldo."
Zhang Lu: "It seems that he was intimidated by Chen Xiaoliang's momentum when he rushed over to grab the ball. He shot from more than 30 meters away. I think Ronaldo doesn't play like this now. At the World Cup in South Africa, he shot directly from 40 meters away."
About half a minute later, the referee ran back into the court, made a TV-shaped gesture with his hand, and then pointed to the center circle!
The goal counts! Roma leads 1-0!
Huang Jianxiang: "Although he is our own player, it can be seen from this goal that it is very reasonable for Wu Lei to sit on the bench."
Zhang Lu: "Hehe, there is indeed a gap. When in possession of the ball, the response to pressure and the handling of small techniques are not on the same level. But Wu Lei also has his advantages. Mourinho now puts him on the field in the second half to use his frequent running to press the opponent's defense line with reduced physical strength. Even if he can't create direct opportunities, he won't let you control the ball comfortably."
Huang Jianxiang: "Let's see how Fiorentina will play when they are behind. If the forward line, especially Vlahovic, still uses this style of play, it will not be too difficult for Chen Xiaoliang to defend him."
