Ten Hag's tactical plan of letting Chen Xiaoliang play in the front is nothing new in the team and has been tried in previous games.
Chen Xiaoliang's super impact, ball-carrying ability and physical confrontation ability do make him possess the qualities of an all-around forward.
But there is a problem. Chen Xiaoliang's threat can only be reflected when he has the ball. If he stands in front of the player and relies entirely on the conduction of the midfield, it will reduce the number of times he gets the ball.
At the same time, playing as a striker will greatly reduce the number of times he participates in midfield defense.
Therefore, the attacking midfielder becomes the best solution. In this way, Chen Xiaoliang does not have to fight directly with the opponent's central defender, but can roam in the wide area between the midfield and the front line. At the same time, he can also switch positions with Rashford and go to the right side to make a single-point blast, or he can retreat to the midfield to deliver ammunition to his teammates who are coming in from behind.
In other words, Manchester United played without a striker tonight.
To this end, Chen Xiaoliang took out 80 points from the 24 training points of the previous 6 days of training (77→101) and the pitiful 3 training points given in the previous draw (101→104), and improved his 1 point of ball stopping (15→16).
After all, when playing in the front, you often have to try to receive the pass from your teammates while being marked or even double-teamed by the opponent's defenders. The difficulty level is different from the situation and environment of receiving the ball when there is a large open space in the midfield.
Everything is ready, just waiting for the competition to begin.
In the player tunnel, Chen Xiaoliang found that there were nearly twice as many staff and security personnel as usual. When he walked out of the player tunnel and stepped onto the stadium, the security guards in yellow jackets and policemen in black clothes formed a circle, sticking to the stands around the stadium.
On the west side of the stand, next to the Liverpool fans gathering area, in addition to security guards, there are also small teams of police stationed directly.
This is not an exaggeration by the local police. In the past two days, more than 30 fights of varying scales between fans of both sides have occurred in Manchester. More than 120 people have been arrested and seven people have been sent to the hospital.
Due to the different and story-filled experiences of both teams last season, the feud between the fans of the two teams has risen to a new level.
Liverpool fans taunted Manchester United as they beat the Reds 7-0;
Manchester United fans mocked Liverpool for being ranked fifth;
Liverpool fans mock Manchester United for buying compasses;
Manchester United fans mock Liverpool for corner kick;
Liverpool fans mocked Ten Hag as Ten Hai;
Manchester United fans mocked Klopp for being double-standard;
The final outbreak point was Chen Xiaoliang.
These two veteran giants, who are also in urgent need of renewing their midfield, started a continuous overt and covert struggle over Chen Xiaoliang before the summer transfer window opened.
Liverpool fans thought they had Gerrard;
Manchester United fans think their new owner has money;
Liverpool fans think they have Klopp;
Manchester United fans think their new owner has money;
Liverpool fans believe that as Chen Xiaoliang's agent, Riise will definitely push him to join the team;
Manchester United fans still think their new owner is rich.
Of course, unlike what the fans saw on the surface, the two teams did a lot of meticulous work in private, but by coincidence and due to some special reasons, Chen Xiaoliang finally became associated with the Red Devils.
But this undoubtedly hurt the Reds fans very much.
If you can’t get the love you want, it will turn into hatred.
"Money! The money you asked for! Here you go!"
When Chen Xiaoliang and Van Dijk led the two teams out on the field, Liverpool fans immediately waved paper money props in their hands and shouted loudly at Chen Xiaoliang.
There were even people holding up signs with Chen Xiaoliang's No. 33 Roma jersey printed on it, but with the word "Judas" written in red. The director also timely turned the camera to Gerrard, who had a serious expression on his face, in the VIP viewing area.
What the fans mean is very simple, Chen Xiaoliang betrayed his mentor Gerrard, just as Judas, a disciple of Jesus, betrayed Jesus as stated in the Bible.
Coincidentally, the place where Judas betrayed Jesus was in the city of Rome.
However, at Old Trafford, these are just noises. As the largest stadium in the Premier League, Old Trafford was packed with more than 60,000 Manchester United fans singing Manchester United's fourth team song "Come on you reds Manchester United" in unison. The "reds" here refers to both Manchester United and Liverpool.
This is not only to cheer up the team, but also to tell Liverpool through singing that there is only one red in England, and its name is Manchester United.
Manchester United players did not disappoint the fans. At the whistle of referee Robert Jones, Manchester United, who kicked off first, immediately launched an attack towards Liverpool's half!
Chen Xiaoliang kicked the ball directly to Casemiro who was lagging behind, then turned and ran forward.
Casemiro took a few steps forward and Gakpo had already rushed in front of him.
Crazy high-pressure pressing is the signature style of Klopp's "heavy metal football". With the younger midfield and frontcourt combination this season, the power of this style of play has once again been demonstrated. About 40% of their goals come from on-the-spot counterattacks after high-pressure steals .
Casemiro passed the ball to Fred on the right, and Nunez rushed towards Fred again.
Fred, who was much rougher than Fat Tiger, kicked the ball directly to the right.
Rashford sprinted forward quickly, while Liverpool left-back Robertson was also running.
The two men rushed to the landing point of the ball and jumped at the same time. Rashford, relying on being taller than Robertson, grabbed the ball first and headed it to the front left.
The ball bounced on the ground, and B Fee, who had been pressing forward, immediately rushed towards the ball. However, facing Gvardiol, Big B had no way to do anything and could only watch the ball being pushed back again.
But it was the ball that was headed back by Gvardiol that allowed Chen Xiaoliang to determine the landing point of the ball in the first time!
Although there was nothing special between the two when they shook hands before the game, they have maintained close contact since leaving Rome.
Although they both have new platforms and Gvardiol is also a favorite player that Klopp asked the board to buy, Roma's treble experience is still regarded by the Croatian central defender as the most wonderful moment of his life so far.
However, it was precisely because they were familiar with the place that Chen Xiaoliang could predict his habits and movements.
In this game, Bayicetic, who was again arranged by Klopp to focus on defending Chen Xiaoliang, saw that Chen Xiaoliang was speeding up and it was too late for him to get the ball before him, so he simply took a few steps back.
He did this because he was worried that Chen Xiaoliang would rush forward after receiving the ball and he would be overtaken in an instant if he was too close.
However, the unmarked Manchester United No. 7 did not follow his script. He instantly flashed to the right and kicked the ball directly at the ball that was headed back from 38 meters away from the goal!
He used all his strength in this kick, which also triggered his two skills [Excellent at Powerful Shooting] and [Excellent at Long-Distance Shooting]!
The ball blasted out from his right foot, and the ball barely even rotated, as if it was going to pierce through the air, and flew towards the upper left corner of Liverpool's goal!
Alisson was standing slightly forward at first, but after taking a step back, he realized that the power of this shot was so great that it was unbelievable!
He kicked off with both feet at the same time and flew to the right. As soon as he stretched out his right hand, the ball passed by him with a "whoosh"!
Zhan Jun: "This ball goes in!!! Xiaoliang from the Red Country is the champion of the Premier League! I didn't expect that while I was still announcing the starting lineups of both teams, the score between the two sides has already changed!"
Zhang Lu: "Hey! This ball was played beautifully. Xiao Liang hit the ball directly to the upper left corner of the goal from the right side of the court. The diagonal line the ball drew in the air was mesmerizing to watch."
Zhan Jun: "Manchester United fans immediately left messages on the platform, saying that if we had Xiaoliang in the FA Cup final last season, how could we have lost to Manchester City!"
"The on-site statistics are out. The goal was scored in 9.71 seconds! It ranks third among the fastest goals in Premier League history!"
"Although I failed to break the Premier League record, I have created the fastest goal record in Manchester United's history!"
"The original record was set by Giggs in 1995 with 15 seconds, and the one who assisted him at that time was another No. 7, 'King' Cantona!"
Barrage:
[The referee blew the whistle and Manchester City led 1-0. Oh no, it’s Manchester United today.]
[Cousin's fans, please stop caring about my Magic so much, okay? Just go watch your Pep Guardiola]
[Feel proud! Today I will give the toilet a 7-0! ]
[The trajectory of this ball is exactly the same as the one when Ronaldo played against Porto. At first glance, I thought Ronaldo was back.]
[Even if I had to trade him for Peak Luo and Xiao Liang, I wouldn’t trade him]
[Xiaoliang wants to surpass Ronaldo, he should first score 42 goals in a single season in Manchester United! ]
…
Unlike the nonsense in the comment section of online fans, the scene at Old Trafford was simply a carnival mecca, especially in the stands next to Liverpool fans. Manchester United fans were shouting and gesticulating wildly, and Liverpool fans did not back down at all.
But the spit from both sides failed to spray on each other's face, instead the security guards and police officers in the middle got their faces wet...
It seemed that as soon as the three rows of security guards and police standing in the middle moved aside, a large-scale fight would break out between the two sides.
Chen Xiaoliang rushed to the sidelines, jumped up and punched the air to celebrate. Now the home fans are familiar with his celebration moves. They will make a "wooo" preparatory sound when he sprints, and then shout "Yeah" the moment he jumps up and punches hard!
Barella was very annoyed. He had clearly told his teammates in the locker room that at Inter Milan, he had lost to Roma for two consecutive years and also lost to Chen Xiaoliang, who was against him.
For this reason, he accepted Liverpool's transfer invitation. He came to the Premier League just to defeat Chen Xiaoliang!
At this moment, he shouted at his midfield partner Bayicetic, asking him why he retreated instead of going forward and bravely blocking.
The young Bayicetic was also innocent. Such a magical shot was not something a normal person could predict. In the end, it was Van Dijk and Gvardiol who calmed down the dispute between the two.
Klopp frowned, and loudly encouraged the players on the sidelines, and kept gesturing to the left with both hands to the players, indicating "Forward! Forward! Forward!"
“Beep!”
The referee Robert Jones had just blew the opening whistle and then blew it again, this time Liverpool kicked off.
Gakpo, who played as center forward, passed the ball back and Liverpool launched a quick attack!
But Manchester United, playing at home, also pushed the pressing line forward. Chen Xiaoliang retreated to the defensive midfielder position of Liverpool, intercepting and clearing the passes between the central defender and the midfielder.
The main target was none other than Barrera.
Barrera wants revenge, and so does Chen Xiaoliang.
They clearly beat Liverpool, who had not yet recovered, twice in Rome last season, but when they came to Manchester United, they were saddled with a 7-0 defeat.
How can you seek justice for this?
When reason doesn't work, we can only use physics. Today we must deal a heavy blow to this ultimate enemy!
In the 4th minute, Wan-Bissaka dribbled the ball forward from the wing, and Nunez and McAllister surrounded him. Wan-Bissaka had no way to pass the ball inside and could only kick the ball forward.
The ball fell to an area slightly in front of the center circle. Barrera was about to receive the ball, but Chen Xiaoliang rushed over and jumped from behind him.
Barrera, who is 1.75 cm tall and slightly bent down to get the ball, actually looked up and saw Chen Xiaoliang's butt flying over his head, and then headed the ball to Casemiro behind him!
He had a bad temper and went crazy in an instant. The laughter from the Manchester United fans in the stands made him even more furious!
He rushed forward and tackled Casemiro who received the ball, completely ignoring the fact that Casemiro had already turned sideways and changed direction with the ball.
“Beep!”
Casemiro fell to the ground in pain, covering his feet with his hands, but the whistle of the referee Robert Jones did not calm the anger of both sides. Fred rushed up first and hit Barrera with his chest. Barrera immediately raised his hand and wanted to fight back, but was held back by Arnold who came over.
"Go stop him!"
Klopp was so anxious on the sidelines that he immediately asked his assistant Lijnders to come in and mediate. It was a blessing from God that he didn't get a red card for his previous action. If he continued to fight at this time, the suspense of the game would end in less than 5 minutes!
Bayicetic and Salah rushed over and joined the team fight instead of Barrera, and soon Nunez and Gakpo also joined the melee.
On the Manchester United side, Chen Xiaoliang, Fred, Lima and B Fee are the corresponding opponents.
“Beep, beep, beep!”
“Beep, beep, beep!”
Some people on both sides were trying to separate the two, some were separating them, some were pointing fingers and yelling at each other, and some were trying to bypass their teammates and rush forward for revenge.
During the conflict, B Fee pushed Barrera and Salah bumped into Fred.
Chen Xiaoliang and Nunez's foreheads touched each other, and were pulled apart by Varane and Gvardiol.
The fans in the stands were also very angry. Two walls of security and police on the west stand were breached, and it was estimated that more than 20 fans from both sides were fighting with each other.
Just like those fans who curse each other every day over who is stronger, Ronaldo or Messi, or James or Curry, for the fans who are fighting each other in the stands at this moment, the team is more inviolable than parents and beliefs.
Zhan Jun: "Wow! I didn't expect that the game had just started and the smell of gunpowder was burning from the court to the stands!"
Zhang Lu: "Ouch, ouch, ouch..."
Zhan Jun: "The security guards on standby outside the stadium rushed to the stands to provide support! The police raised their batons!"
"Wow, it's been a long time since I've seen such a hot Reds-Reds clash!"
"Parents who are watching the game with their underage children must warn their children that this is not a role model worth learning from!"
Zhang Lu: “Hahahaha.”
The game was interrupted for a full 5 minutes, and finally the head coaches of both sides entered the court with the permission of the fourth official to intervene.
Referee Robert Jones called on the captains of both teams, Chen Xiaoliang and Van Dijk, and after giving them a serious warning, he began his card work.
Zhan Jun: "Wow! The referee actually showed a red card! Barrera was sent off!"
"This is the new player that Liverpool spent 70 million pounds to buy !"
Zhang Lu: "Ouch! There's another red card!"
Zhan Jun: "B Fee was also sent off with a red card!!!"
"Referee Robert Jones is killing it at the moment!"
Zhang Lu: "In such a major game, it is rare to see a red card right at the start."
Zhan Jun: "It seems that the referee has reached the limit of his patience. No, is he going to make another move?!"
"No way...Xiao Liang...No way!"
"Wow, luckily, it's a yellow card!"
Zhang Lu: "Who else? It was so fast that I couldn't see clearly!"
Zhan Jun: "The technical table has issued a yellow card. Xiaoliang, Fred, Nunez, and Salah, a total of four people received yellow cards!"
"After more than 4 minutes, 2 red cards and 4 yellow cards! This is even more jaw-dropping than Xiaoliang's amazing long-range shot just now!"
Each side sent a midfielder to the field, and it was still the beginning of the game. Although the actions of both sides were suppressed forcefully, their inner emotions were still surging.
Barrera, who had just left the field, was being pulled away by assistant coach Linders, but he was still pointing at and cursing at B Fee who had also left the field.
And Bruno Fernandes is not the kind of person who will not pay back after suffering a loss. Under the control of Anthony and Sancho on the left and right, he tried to rush to Barrera...
After the two arrived at the sidelines, they were separated by security and sent directly back to the locker room.
The game started again, it was already the 11th minute...
The loss of two central midfielders on both sides led to changes in formation and positioning.
Chen Xiaoliang completely became a single attacking midfielder, while on the Liverpool side, McAllister retreated to form a double midfield with Bajicetic.
Klopp already felt something was wrong at this time, so he asked midfielder Elliott and defender Van der Ven to start warming up, ready to adjust the lineup at any time.
But Chen Xiaoliang didn't give him a chance to think.
In the 15th minute, after both sides adjusted to the formation with one less player each, Chen Xiaoliang became more active in Liverpool's empty midfield.
There is only one Bayicetic. Although he has made obvious progress this season, no matter how fast he improves, can he be as fast as Chen Xiaoliang?
They couldn’t defend me last season, let alone this season!
Salah cut in from the right and tried to pass the ball to Gakpo who was retreating in the middle while being double-teamed by Dalot and Casemiro, but the ball was touched by Casemiro's toe and slowed down.
Lima, who was in the upper position defending Gakpo, took the opportunity to move forward and pushed the ball forward before Gakpo received it.
Casemiro caught up with the ball and immediately kicked it to the left.
At this time, after Salah cut inside, Arnold was the only one left on Liverpool's right!
Last season in Rome, No. 77 Kva made No. 66 Arnold experience what it meant to "pass through people like crazy" - he felt as numb as Arnold after being passed through by Kva!
Kwa received the ball, Arnold stepped back directly, and then turned sideways to take a defensive stance.
The name of Route 66 was second only to "Nu Corner" in Liverpool last season. Nunez thanked the old defender for sharing the fans' firepower with him, but Arnold did not want to ruin his career because of this.
As long as I retreat deep enough, the opponent can't get past me.
Kva didn't waste time with him and sent a long pass with his right foot towards the left side near the penalty area line!
Liverpool's midfield and backcourt, which were pressing forward as a whole, immediately retreated, but on the left side of Van Dijk, Chen Xiaoliang had already rushed up from the outside!
While running, Van Dijk paid attention to Chen Xiaoliang's every move, stretched out his hand to direct his new partner Gvardiol who was closer to the middle to pay attention to the defensive position, and observed the situation around him.
This is a perfect template of what a top center back and defensive leader can do in a short period of time while returning to defense at high speed.
He found that no other players in front of Manchester United were following him, and the nearest Rashford had just crossed the right center line.
Therefore, in his mind, when the ball is about to fall and Chen Xiaoliang tries to unload the ball and slows down, he will approach him and then make corresponding defensive moves. In case he is passed, Gvardiol behind him can make up for the defense, and he can turn back to form a double team with him from front and back, so as to ensure safety to the greatest extent.
But the problem today is that the screenwriter in Merseyside has written the script, but the leading actor in Manchester doesn't want to act that way.
When the ball was halfway down, Chen Xiaoliang was still 5 meters away from the penalty area line. Van Dijk noticed that Chen Xiaoliang began to slow down, overtook Chen Xiaoliang from the parallel line, and then began to approach him.
The ball fell to the height of Chen Xiaoliang's eyes. He was still 2 meters away from the penalty area line, and Van Dijk was less than 3 meters away from him.
The ball fell to Chen Xiaoliang's waist. Chen Xiaoliang took another step forward and was less than 1 meter away from the penalty area line. Van Dijk, who also took a step forward, was ready to accelerate again and block the ball in front of Chen Xiaoliang on the right, which was the line between him and the goal!
Chen Xiaoliang swings his left foot back!
Seeing that Chen Xiaoliang was about to unload the ball, Van Dijk prepared to turn around to prevent him from stopping and dribbling past the opponent after receiving the ball!
But just as he turned halfway, the ball flew past his eyes towards the goal, and at the same time a loud "bang" was heard in his ears!
"What?!"
"Shoot?!"
Although in a split second, all the people watching the game inside and outside the stadium did not have time to make any sound or move, the scene in which Chen Xiaoliang swung his left foot hard and volleyed the ball directly with his left foot without waiting for the long pass to land still made them raise a big shocking question mark in their hearts!
Alisson moved slightly forward to the left corner of the small penalty area and watched the ball flying towards him. He did not make any preparatory movements such as squatting and exerting force, so he could not dive to his left side at all. He could only stretch out his left hand to block it to the left.
But the ball heading straight to the right side of the goal once again whizzed past the left side of his body before he could even stretch out his hand!
Zhan Jun: "This ball...goes in again!"
"In the 16th minute, Xiaoliang scored twice! Two magical goals!"
"A Van Persie-style volley!"
"Xiaoliang and Kwa almost replicated the classic work of Van Persie and Rooney!"
"This is Xiaoliang's 18th Premier League goal this season. Is he trying to catch up with Haaland who has scored 22 goals?!"
"Harry Kane, who ranks third, has only 10 goals, far behind these two killers!"
Zhang Lu: "Liverpool are doomed if they continue to play like this, Klopp needs to make adjustments quickly."
"Both sides are short of one player. Manchester United's loss of Bruno Fernandes will not have much impact, but Liverpool's loss of Barella means they have lost their most powerful weapon against Xiaoliang in the midfield. Without the midfield barrier, Van Dijk is completely exposed to Xiaoliang's firepower. Three years ago, Van Dijk might have been just as good as Xiaoliang, but now he hardly seems to be Xiaoliang's opponent."
Barrage:
[It looks like this bottle of 7-Up is going to be poured down the toilet today]
[Is Xiaoliang going to monopolize the top three of this year's Puskas Award? ]
[I am in great shape today. I feel like I can play well no matter how I play.]
Soon, the barrage of comments on the screen followed Chen Xiaoliang’s heavy fist in the air and turned into an overwhelming “YEAH!!!!”
Klopp on the sidelines didn't dare to gamble anymore. A score of 7-0 could only be given to others by oneself, but never to oneself by others.
The team has finally shown a strong momentum this season and must not let Manchester United destroy all its confidence and morale tonight.
He replaced Gakpo with central defender Van der Ven bought from Wolfsburg to play with three central defenders, and let Arnold and Robertson play as wingbacks, so that Nunez and Salah would have more energy to attack in the middle.
On the other side, Ten Hag excitedly punched the ball repeatedly on the sidelines to celebrate, his joy was beyond words, but he didn't say a word.
It’s not that I don’t want to talk, it’s that I don’t know what to say!
Jasim, who was watching the game in the box, was high-fiving Van der Sar to celebrate. Van der Sar then put his hands in his pockets and looked at Chen Xiaoliang who was surrounded by his teammates.
In the past 10 years, Manchester United has spent 1 billion pounds but bought many players who are hard to describe. This is related to the chaos in the management and the fact that CEOs such as Woodward are not professional football players, but all the responsibility cannot be placed on this point.
Look at France's Paris Saint-Germain, who refuse to let Mbappe go. Then look at Manchester City, whose terror index has increased exponentially after getting Haaland.
Think about it again, in order to promote Ronaldo, Ferguson was willing to send away the killer Van Nistelrooy.
In the past 10 years, Manchester United has not had top players like Ronaldo and Rooney who are capable of becoming the core of the team.
Rashford, B Fee and others are indeed excellent, but they are not good enough to be the core of a team like Manchester United, nor can they be on par with core players like Salah, Haaland, Benzema, Mbappe and Lewandowski.
And now, with Chen Xiaoliang's arrival, building the team has become extremely easy.
What the management and transfer team have to do and what they have to achieve are very clear, which is to build a new Manchester United around Chen Xiaoliang. All the recruitment goals are only one, and that is to buy someone who can make this Manchester United No. 7 perform at a stronger level!