Chapter 16: No. 33 comes on stage!
Just now in the player tunnel, Chairman Dave's words ignited a fire in Gerrard's heart.
Yes, we lost to the Celtics in the first two years, and those games where we were leading by one goal but were eventually reversed were also due to the fact that we were not in a hurry to make substitutions and wanted to wait and see, allowing the opponent to change their tactics first.
Starting today, he will dominate the game in his own way and make his opponents play at his own pace.
"Why him?" McAllister saw Chen Xiaoliang jogging and stretching near the sideline, and came over to ask Gerrard.
"I saw anger, hunger, and the desire to survive in his eyes."
McAllister couldn't believe his ears: "That's it?"
"You look back and see how complacent those people were. If you didn't know, you would think this was the last game of the season and we had already won the championship.
The team really needs a newcomer to act as a catfish!
And I just want him to play defense.”
McAllister stopped talking. As a former Liverpool teammate, he witnessed Gerrard's rise in the later stages of his career and knew his temper well.
A man who can lead his team to victory after falling behind by three goals against AC Milan in the Champions League final no longer needs to use anything to prove his desire for victory.
At the beginning of the second half, St. Mirren replaced the black player Ethan Hahon. He and the full-back Fraser continuously attacked the Rangers' left side, making Rangers' left-back Barisic exhausted.
Kamara and Kent, who are strong in attack but weak in defense, could not help Barisic at all. They ran back and forth again and again, and then assisted in defense with their eyes.
After the left side was penetrated, Barisic, as a left-back, did not dare to advance to the opponent's half during the attack. Once he left his defense area, it meant that after losing the ball and the offense and defense switched, the left side he was responsible for would face the embarrassing situation of no one defending.
The full-back didn't dare to make a move , and the team's attack on the left was completely paralyzed.
Several times, after being embarrassed by the two opponents, Barisic greeted Kamara's family warmly, and Kamara also reciprocated the greeting and mocked Barisic for running like an old woman.
Gerrard realized the time had come.
He let Chen Xiaoliang come on the court and replaced Kamara, who was still chattering about Barisic.
Although nominally the position is left midfield, Chen Xiaoliang only needs to do one thing, which is to intercept any ball that can be intercepted on the left side.
When the fourth official raised the substitution number plate, all the Rangers players on and off the field were surprised.
Especially the players on the field, who were thinking that the score was only 1-0, so why did the head coach replace this red country kid to gain experience? They thought they would let Chen Xiaoliang warm up for 30 minutes before going up to experience it in the last 5 minutes.
Only Barisic, who was embarrassed by the opponent, and left winger Kent were slightly more accepting of it. They knew that this was the reinforcement sent .
In the stands, the cheers of Rangers fans also became much quieter. They thought that this little Red Country player was an accessory to a certain cooperation between the club and Tottenham, or that the club had brought in a mascot to increase revenue and expand the Red Country market. They did not expect that Gerrard would replace him at such an important juncture.
"Chen, don't be nervous, just treat it as a normal training. I will help you defend the left side." Barisic called softly to Chen Xiaoliang in front of him.
When he said this, it was more like he was comforting himself. After all, he was the one who needed help the most at this moment.
But he found that there was no nervousness at all in Chen Xiaoliang's reaction. Instead, he looked like he was ready to make a big move.
Chen Xiaoliang also complained in his heart: You are almost being walked like a dog by others, how can you have time to help me.
On the St. Mirren side, after seeing the tall, black and strong Kamara being replaced, he was replaced by such a tall and thin yellow man with a childish look on his face. This made them more determined to make a big scene on the right side where they were already doing well.
After the substitution, St Mirren held the ball and the game continued.
Chen Xiaoliang was concentrating and observing the path of the ball.
But the system rang at this moment.
【Dong Dong Dong】
[Whether to enable the tacit understanding value system]
Chen Xiaoliang was stunned and answered "yes" subconsciously.
[The tacit understanding system has been turned on. The tacit understanding between players will increase as the game time accumulates]
The system shut down after saying that.
"So, the more Barisic and I work together, the better our understanding will be?"
Chen Xiaoliang thought to himself and looked back at Barisic.
Barisic was also very surprised. Why did Chen Xiaoliang turn around to look at him after the opponent had already kicked off?
"The ball is coming!" he shouted quickly to remind them.
St. Mirren's Ethan Hahon received the ball and broke straight down the wing.
As soon as Chen Xiaoliang turned around, he was passed by him in an instant.
"Woo..." There was a round of boos from the stands, with the home fans expressing their dissatisfaction with the newcomer.
"Can this kid play football?"
“Is he here to watch the game?”
"I thought Gerrard would strengthen the defense in a targeted manner, but I didn't expect to replace him with a guy who can't even defend with his eyes!"
Davis on the bench still had a calm expression on his face, but he was smiling in his heart.
He looked at Gerrard, who was moving back and forth in front of him and shouting at the players on the field, feeling unwilling and mocking.
He did not disrespect his head coach, but he thought that Gerrard was too young and too idealistic as a head coach.
It would be fine if they just left his experienced self aside and replaced him with substitute midfielder Jack, but he was very puzzled that the team was in such a one-sided weakness and he was not playing when the defense on the left side should have been strengthened.
However, he was certain that with Chen Xiaoliang unable to even defend with his eyes, Gerrard would ask him to replace him within ten minutes.
By the time the defense is strengthened, the offense will naturally flow again and the game will be won smoothly. In this way, no one will be able to challenge his starting position.
While everyone was discussing their own issues, Ethan Hahon had already reached Barisic.
Fraser also followed up, and the two's one-on-one pass was successful every time. They firmly believed that if they continued to play like this, they would be able to create a deadly threat on the right.
Barisic didn't dare to rush forward and had to keep retreating, because once he kicked the ball, Ethan Hahon would pass it to Fraser, and there would be nothing but air behind him.
Ethan Hahon was also sure of this, and this time he was more ambitious. He wanted to wait for Rangers' central defender Balogun to come out to assist in defense before infiltrating the ball into the penalty area.
Seeing that the ball had reached the side of the penalty area, Balogun was helpless and left the middle of the penalty area to assist in defense as planned. Fraser immediately moved to the top of the penalty area, ready to receive the pass from Ethan Hahon.
But he couldn't wait for the pass.
With a scream, Chen Xiaoliang came up from the side and rear and tackled Ethan Hahong to the ground with the ball.
The referee blew the whistle immediately.
St. Mirren's players immediately surrounded them. Their captain pushed Chen Xiaoliang away, while the others surrounded the referee and asked for a red card.
"It's over... He will most likely be sent off..." McAllister said to Gerrard on the sidelines, "We can only replace one striker with Davis to strengthen the defense."
