Chapter 391: Hat trick in the first half, the strongest Red Devils No. 7!
Liverpool, who switched to a three-center-back system, piled seven players in the backcourt, with only Salah and Nunez roaming and pulling in the front.
There was no high-pressure defense, no quick frontcourt connection, and all that was left was defensive counterattacks.
And it was an extremely passive defensive counterattack.
Having also been sent off, B Fee has returned to the bench to witness the team's performance with his teammates, while Barrera still disappeared in the locker room. Liverpool is worried that he will have another extreme performance and be subject to additional penalties from the league.
Gerrard in the stands had a livid face, as if he were the head coach of Liverpool. He looked at the performance of the Red Army players on the field with disgust, and he wished he could go into the locker room and scold them.
It is true that Chen Xiaoliang is the player he admires, recognizes and is most optimistic about, but for him, Liverpool is a sacred existence that cannot be compared to anything else in the football world.
For this reason, he specifically rejected his daughter Lily's request to go to the game with him, just to prevent her from standing up and clapping and cheering happily after Chen Xiaoliang scored a goal, thus embarrassing himself as the old captain of Liverpool.
So at this moment, sitting next to him was Reese.
This teammate nicknamed "Norwegian Cannon" certainly has deep feelings for Liverpool, but he has also played for his hometown team Aalesund, Ligue 1 Monaco, Serie A Roma, Premier League Fulham, and even an Indian team Chennai, so the trace of Liverpool in his heart is not that strong.
As his own agent and shareholder of the agency, he was naturally fully committed to Chen Xiaoliang, but he had to be a little more restrained when sitting next to his old friend.
But he still sensed that Gerrard was a little "sour".
The first goal had the style of Cristiano Ronaldo, and the second goal replicated Van Persie's volley. The No. 33 of Roma, who was dubbed Gerrard's last disciple when he first arrived in Rome, seemed to have never used Gerrard's style of long-range shots again after he changed to the No. 7 jersey of Manchester United.
Riise glanced at Gerrard's obviously unhappy and depressed expression, and laughed secretly in his heart, thinking: "Chen, why don't you score a goal for him and make your old coach and brother happy, haha."
On the court, Chen Xiaoliang was wandering around the frontcourt "without a fixed place to stay" , and Bayicetic was still following him closely, but the more he defended, the more difficult it became.
Fortunately, the team changed to playing with three central defenders. No matter where Chen Xiaoliang appeared on the left, middle or right side close to the penalty area, the corresponding central defender would run out and double-team Bayicetic.
Klopp knew that it was a dangerous night. The early loss of the ball and Barrera's sending off made it impossible to implement his midfield strangulation tactics. For a player like Chen Xiaoliang, the larger the space and the fewer people there are, the greater the threat he can pose.
For example, if there are only two players left on the field and Chen Xiaoliang is left one-on-one, the game will become a one-sided massacre.
Klopp has already started praying that "tragedies happen every year and don't happen at my home today".
However, facts have proved countless times that it is not always possible to run away after pretending to be cool. The more common situation is "You will pay for what you have done sooner or later."
Chen Xiaoliang, who played as the "striker without a striker" today, was completely crazy and his feet were particularly smooth. Apart from passing the ball to Kvart and Rashford on both sides, he was too lazy to even enter the penalty area. Within 30-35 meters from the goal, he would shoot hard when he found an opening, sometimes with his left foot, sometimes with his right foot, sometimes cutting inside, sometimes with a volley, sometimes with the outside of his foot, and sometimes with an elevator ball. After kicking the ball so many times, he even didn't take aim at all, like a blind sniper with the target in his mind.
In the 21st minute, Chen Xiaoliang leaned against Bayicetic with his back, and leaned back slightly as if sitting on him, not giving him the chance to go around.
Dalot's long pass fell, he raised his right foot and hooked the falling ball behind him with the instep of his foot. As the ball flew over the heads of the two fighting people, Chen Xiaoliang had already turned to the right, like a center in a low post in basketball, and while turning, he stretched out his right hand to block Bayicetic, and then used his strength advantage to block the 19-year-old Spanish midfielder behind him.
Originally in Klopp's plan, Bajicetic was mainly to harass Chen Xiaoliang closely, putting him under constant pressure during the attack, and then let Barella and the back line form a double team to ultimately curb Chen Xiaoliang's threat.
As Gvardiol rushed forward, the other two central defenders Van Dijk and Van der Ven immediately moved inwards, while Arnold and Robertson on the two wings also started to run back.
Once Gvardiol goes out, the four of them will have to retreat to form a four-back formation to ensure that there are enough defensive forces near the penalty area.
Originally, this style of play was prepared to deal with the powerful Manchester City, but they did not expect that they would be forced to use it today.
Old friends meet again and face off head-on, just like in the more than 100 days of training in Rome. Neither side wants to lose to the other, especially Gvardiol who has already lost two games.
When it comes to losing a player worth 30 million in a game, De Gea on the field is definitely the most familiar with it, and today Barella and even Liverpool's defense are facing such a precarious situation.
Chen Xiaoliang pushed the ball out with his left foot. Instead of going inside and getting trapped by Gvadiol in front of him and Bayicetic behind him, he chose to force a shot from the outside.
Gvadior knew very well how abnormal Chen Xiaoliang's body . He turned around in advance, raised his shoulders, raised his elbows, and stretched out his hands to block Chen Xiaoliang.
Unexpectedly, Chen Xiaoliang kicked the ball with his left foot and it flew from under his armpit to the goal!
Left foot?! Left foot again?!
Gwadior was full of alpacas. He even began to doubt whether the Chen Xiaoliang he met today was a clone from a parallel world. When did this guy like to use his left foot so much? !
The ball flew straight towards the goal without any curve. Alisson squatted slightly and prepared to save the ball, but when he was about to dive sideways, Van der Ven subconsciously stretched out his foot to block the shot ball!
All I heard was Zhan Jun shouting, "Xiao Liang shoots!"
"There's a change of direction!"
"Alison!"
Zhang Lu: "Ouch! It's dangerous!"
Zhan Jun: "More! Shoot again!"
Zhang Lu: "Ouch! Hoo!"
Zhan Jun: "Van Dijk clears the ball!"
"Wow! There was another panic in front of Liverpool's goal. Xiao Liang's domineering and powerful shot was touched by Van der Ven and changed direction. Alisson, who was ready, reversed his center of gravity and made an extreme save, blocking the ball on the goal line, but the ball did not bounce far. Rashford made a supplementary shot, and Alisson stretched his legs to block the ball again!"
"Van Dijk finally got to the front of the goal and kicked the ball out to the left sideline."
Guan Zeyuan: "Teachers, today's game reminded me of the second leg of the 2008-09 Champions League semi-final between Manchester United and Arsenal."
"Manchester United also played without a striker in that game. Cristiano Ronaldo, who was at the front, kept stretching Arsenal's defense with long shots and running."
Zhan Jun: "That's right! In that game, Ronaldo scored a stunning direct free kick about 40 meters away from the goal on the right side of the court!"
On the field, the game continues.
Klopp is in a dilemma.
Chen Xiaoliang's threat is too great. If he is not double-teamed, he will shoot at the goal. If he is double-teamed, he will pass the ball to both sides.
If the defense against him is to be strengthened, one of Nunez and Salah must be replaced with Henderson or Elliott, but in this way, the team will only have one person left in front, and the offense will be completely scrapped.
To be honest, the individual performances of the two forwards in this game were actually very good.
In the 30th minute, Nunez overtook Wan Bissaka on the left.
This English right-back has a natural advantage against technical wingers like Mitoma Kaoru who rely on rhythm and shaking, but his defensive efficiency is not that high when facing forwards like Grealish and Nunez who have strong bodies and good ball protection, although Nunez's style is completely different from Grealish.
Using his speed, Nunez dribbled past the defense and entered the penalty area from the baseline.
Originally, when they reached this position, with Gakpo supporting in the middle and Salah coming in from the right, plus attacking midfielder McAllister, they could form a multi-point flanking formation.
But now, Salah was alone on the right side of the penalty area. Nunes looked sideways and saw that there were three Manchester United players blocking the way to pass the ball to his teammate...
How about a shot?
In a flash, Nunez took another step and prepared to shoot.
As a young man, he was also fascinated by the Internet.
He was quite clear about the term "Nujiao", but also quite helpless...
Throughout the summer, he practiced shooting at angles less than 45 degrees to the left and right, especially shooting into the far corners, and he also studied the videos and movements of Henry and Benzema.
Of course there is an effect, so with 6 goals and 4 assists in 15 rounds this season, he has become the new hero of Anfield.
But the problem is that at this moment, he is close to the baseline, and the angle with the goal is only about 10 degrees. This is no longer a corner shot, this is a zero-degree shot...
When he raised his foot, he seemed to see a hint of white on the right side among the many reds, revealing a strong offensive aura.
He didn't think any more, nor did he have time to think. He let his right foot drop and then used the outside of his foot to rub the ball hard outside the penalty area.
The ball flew over the heads of Varane and Fred behind him, and landed at the feet of a Liverpool player outside the penalty area.
Zhan Jun: "McAllister!"
"The fierce shot from the penalty area line hit the crossbar and bounced out of the bottom line!"
"De Gea, who was blocking the near corner just now, didn't have time to react. I guess he was also scared by this ball and broke into a cold sweat!"
Zhang Lu: "He played very decisively, and Nunez's awareness was also very good, able to catch such a pass line."
Guan Zeyuan: "This Argentine international, who was forced to retreat, showed the attitude of the Red Army with this shot!"
"Double Reds, there is no retreat!"
The ball boy threw the ball to De Gea, who was about to take a goal kick. Varane and Casemiro said a few words to Fred who was retreating, and Fred nodded repeatedly.
Near the midfield, Chen Xiaoliang saw this scene and cast a look at Ten Hag.
Ten Hahe felt Chen Xiaoliang's gaze, and their eyes met. Ten Hahe nodded very subtly.
As the club is about to finalize all the transfer procedures for Milinkovic-Savic, one of the two midfielders, McTominay and Fred, must be sold to ensure the rationality of the lineup and to recover some funds appropriately to meet the Financial Fair Play regulations of UEFA and the FA.
But the management and coaching staff have different ideas about who to sell.
The management represented by Van der Sar is inclined to keep McTominay because he is a Manchester United youth training player and a Scottish. He can enjoy half of the household registration bonus in the Premier League registration, fill the team's youth training quota in the Champions League registration, and is younger.
Ten Hag prefers Fred. Although the latter's performance is unpredictable, his unreserved positive attitude and excellent physical fitness enable him to play a certain defensive and connecting role in the midfield.
As the only player whose opinion was sought, Chen Xiaoliang expressed his support for Van der Sar's opinion.
He has no personal grudge against this hard-working Brazilian teammate, but from a tactical execution perspective, he really thinks he is not suitable for the team's current construction plan.
Because his feet are too rough, so rough that he doesn't even look like a Brazilian, the speed of attack, especially in counterattacks, will immediately slow down when the ball reaches Fred's feet.
This is a very uncomfortable thing for Chen Xiaoliang, who needs his teammates to pass the ball forward at any time in the midfield.
On the defensive side, although Fred ran actively, like McTominay, he had a poor sense of position and poor defensive positioning.
The ball just now was a typical example. The team actively retreated to the penalty area to assist in defense, but missed McAllister who came in from outside the penalty area.
Watching the ball instead of the players is a taboo in zone marking. If the ball hadn't been a little more powerful, the score would have been changed.
On the other hand, such players who are neither high nor low also reflect the club's past mentality of "making do".
If it's still usable, just keep it and use it again.
This mentality is fatal and totally inconsistent with the aspirations and ambitions of the giants, because whether in the Premier League or the Champions League, judging from the current competitive situation, it is impossible to win the championship by just "making do".
Will Manchester City's starting XI include any makeshift players? The answer is clearly no.
Liverpool, which failed to replace its midfield in time last season and chose to make do with it, obviously suffered the backlash.
Personal relationships are personal relationships, and the team is the team.
With the look just now, Chen Xiaoliang once again expressed his point of view to Ten Hahe, and Ten Hahe responded with a nod of acceptance.
Fred on the field and McTominay on the bench had no idea that the glances they exchanged at that moment determined their future at the club.
Seeing hope of attack, Liverpool began to strengthen the individual explosion on the flanks.
Unlike the aging Salah, Nunez, who was ridiculed last season and is determined to clear his name this season, is fully displaying his abilities on the left flank.
Of course, Wan Bissaka was not completely at a disadvantage. This full-back who couldn't even cross the ball had obviously put all his football talents into individual defense and tackling.
With Robertson and Arnold gradually unable to suppress their offensive desire, Liverpool made some progress on the flanks, while in the middle, McAllister became the busiest person running back and forth.
But it was obvious that Chen Xiaoliang liked them to press forward and attack.
In the 51st minute of the first half, seeing that the 7-minute extra time caused by the group fight was about to end, Liverpool took the opportunity to press forward and tried to score a goal before the end of the first half.
Salah challenged Dalot on the right. To be honest, if it had happened three years ago, Salah, who has both speed and explosiveness, would have definitely beaten Dalot, who was playing on the left, to a pulp. However, Liverpool, who also has European competitions this season, has not given up on the Europa League. After all, if there is a fluctuation in the league's top four race , the Europa League championship is also a way to enter the Champions League.
The continuous fighting made the 31-year-old Salah very tired.
He cut in from the right and swung back and forth in the corner of the penalty area.
Dalot pulled two steps away to prevent him from breaking through, and Casemiro came over to double-team him, ready to make a tackle.
Suddenly, Salah kicked the ball with his left foot and rubbed it towards the far end of the penalty area. Nunez jumped high and prepared to head the ball!
Varane retreated immediately and jumped as well. The two collided in the air. Nunes tried hard to maintain his balance, but he failed to hit the ball.
De Gea took it easily, and while he was still hesitating, Casemiro had already run forward and waved for the ball!
De Gea immediately threw the ball over!
This is a quick counterattack!
Seeing that the situation was not good, Salah immediately rushed over to defend.
Casemiro didn't stop for a moment after receiving the ball and pushed the ball forward!
The target of his pass was naturally Chen Xiaoliang who was retreating to receive the ball!
Bayicetic followed Chen Xiaoliang, ready to block him the moment he received the ball, but he didn't expect Chen Xiaoliang to kick the ball back to the middle with his heel, then turned around and ran forward!
Rashford, who was returning to defense, had already run from the right side of the penalty area to the middle. After receiving the ball, he dribbled forward five meters, then quickly caught up with the ball and passed the ball straight to the left front with a powerful low right foot!
Zhan Jun: "The ball was passed to the left, and Kvaratskhelia received the ball and moved forward!"
"Rashford in the middle, and Xiaoliang on the right!"
"Manchester United counterattack!"
"Van Dijk defends, Kwa passes to the middle!"
"Baycetic can't keep up!"
"Xiao Liang just shoots the door!"
“The ball goes in!”
"3 to 0!"
"Manchester United scored the third goal of the game in the 51st minute of the first half!"
“Oh my God! Klopp couldn’t help but frown and shook his head repeatedly while looking at the situation on the field!”
"Two red cards completely disrupted the pre-match plan, but our Xiaoliang proved with his actions what countless fans had imagined before the game. If Manchester United had him at Anfield last season, a 7-0 win would never have happened!"
Guan Zeyuan: "I told you, this game is too much like the 2008-09 Champions League."
Barrage:
[A Liverpool fan wrote in blood, asking Guan Tou Niu to shut up]
[This mouth is really enlightened]
[The line of this match is almost exactly the same as that ball back then]
[Do these players also watch goal highlights? ]
…
While the fans were discussing, Chen Xiaoliang turned around and called his teammates to come over to celebrate, while quickly rushing to the sidelines.
He raised his right hand, twisted his index finger a few times, then swung both hands, jumped high, and then put his hands forcefully on both sides of his body from in front of his forehead!
Although this scene was a little unfamiliar, many fans at Old Trafford still followed his movements and shouted out earth-shaking cheers:
"SIU!!!!!!"
The strongest No. 7 that Manchester United has been missing for a long time is back today!
