Volume 1: Playing football with me will break your legs Chapter 64: No one knows how to attack better than me
"Good job, guys!"
Entering the locker room with a score of 2:0, Adre praised his disciples:
"Southampton is now one man short, so they will have to make adjustments during the halftime break, and they will most likely have to make up the number of defenders, so their frontcourt pressure is bound to weaken, which will become our opportunity. If we can score another goal in the first 15 minutes and expand the score to 3:0, Southampton will 100% be unable to recover!"
Looking at the ambitious head coach, Akinfenwa did not dare to disturb his interest, but just muttered softly:
"3:0? Isn't that the most unsafe score?"
…
The 15-minute break passed in the blink of an eye, and both sides returned to the field.
Adlei, who had just sat down on the chair, took one look and couldn't help but straighten his back:
"What kind of substitution is this?"
Koeman did make a substitution, but his main central defender Alderweireld was replaced not by Bertrand, who was ineffective in the first half, but by left-back Targett.
Cox also frowned:
"Is he going to let Bertrand retreat?"
Anyway, Bertrand often plays as a left-back for Chelsea, and after retreating, it is still a complete four-back defensive system.
But when the game resumed, they were once again surprised:
Bertrand...didn't retreat!
Koeman directly gave up the four-defender formation and switched to three-defender formation!
…
No one understands offense better than Koeman - at least within the confines of this stadium.
As the absolute main force in the Netherlands' all-out attack and defense era, although Coman was a defender during his playing days, he scored more than 250 goals in 613 games in his career!
Such numbers not only make other so-called "defenders with swords" feel ashamed, but even make most forwards pale in comparison.
After all, in that ancient era, an average of 0.5 goals per game and 20 goals in a single season would be praised as a "super striker" or a "goal machine", not to mention that he was just a defender!
Such a football superstar undoubtedly understands football better than Adre.
The reason why he insisted on not completing the back line was actually very simple:
Southampton, two goals behind, needs to attack!
At the same time, he is also confident that with Southampton's overall strength, they can completely suppress their opponents for 45 minutes!
As long as we have complete control over the rhythm and prevent Wimbledon from attacking, what difference does it make whether we have three defenders or one defender in the back?
…
At the start of the second half, Southampton launched a fierce attack from the first second. They wanted to narrow the score gap as soon as possible while the negative impact of the numerical disadvantage had not yet fully taken effect.
Although it was a little beyond Adre's expectations, his team was not stupid and abandoned the tactics formulated in the midfield without his instructions.
The opponent’s attack is so fierce, let’s defend this wave first!
It has to be admitted that a killer like Mane is an unstoppable existence among a group of English League Two players. He does not need to have the extraordinary skills of Messi, Neymar, Hazard, and Robben. He only needs to swing his legs and use his speed to make the two lines of defense of Wimbledon fall!
After only 12 minutes of play, Rigg and Smith received yellow cards in succession. In particular, Mane's main target, left-back Smith, was 31 years old and his physical fitness was far inferior to the 22-year-old Senegalese striker. Even with two players defending, he still felt a little overwhelmed.
Adre had to give orders to substitute guard Kennedy to start warming up and be ready to replace Smith at any time.
Southampton can play with three defenders, but Wimbledon can't!
In the 59th minute, Kennedy had just started warming up when the situation on the field changed unexpectedly.
After besieging the team for 15 minutes, Southampton passed the ball back to the midfield. Mane no longer forced his way forward and seemed to want to give his legs a rest after sprinting for half a day.
Wimbledon did not relax their vigilance immediately. Only Akinfenwa and Reeves chased the opponent's ball holder for a few steps and interfered symbolically.
After circling around for half a minute, the football came to Bertrand's feet again. Fuller, who had nothing to do, quickly perked up and rushed towards his defensive target.
Li Polo shook his head and moved a few steps to the right to prevent the opponent from taking the opportunity to attack Fuller from behind. Having played as a defender for several years, he still had some position awareness.
But his worries were obviously unnecessary.
Bertrand was really not very competitive. Under Fuller's one-on-one pressure, the "Champions League champion" not only failed to break into the penalty area, but retreated repeatedly. Finally, he could only half turn his body and use his butt to push against Fuller, thus protecting the ball in front of him.
"Damn it! You're hatching eggs!"
Fuller, feeling a little proud, cursed and waved to Francon, who was closest to him, indicating that he should steal the ball from the front.
Francon rushed over without hesitation, but just when he got within three meters, he saw Bertrand suddenly shake his ankle and pass the ball!
Everyone was stunned!
When Bertrand passed the ball, Li Polo's sight was completely blocked by Bertrand and Fuller's bodies, and he couldn't see his movements at all. When the ball flew out, even if the plug-in was activated, it would have no effect!
What's more, Li Polo had moved several meters outwards to fill in for Fuller, and now in front of the goal... there is only one defender, Phillips!
Bertrand's pass rolled into the penalty area!
Shane Long, who had been suppressed for a whole hour, started instantly, took a step forward to meet the pass, and shot with a kick without any adjustment!
In terms of height and jumping ability, he is not as good as Phillips, but if we only compare explosive speed, Phillips is far inferior to him!
Xie's reaction was quick, but he was still helpless against this shot!
1:2!
Southampton scored a goal!
…
"snort."
Ronald Koeman pumped his fists in celebration.
He turned back to his seat and said to his assistant coach, his elder brother, Erwin Koeman:
"I've said it before, this guy Bertrand is still something, he's not just here to make up the numbers at Chelsea."
Erwin nodded and smiled:
"If we play like this, we can tie the score!"
Koeman's face is full of confidence:
"Not only to equalize, we want to end the battle within 90 minutes!"
- In the League Cup system, a tie within 90 minutes will go directly to a penalty shootout. No mature coach would pin his hopes on this kind of gambling game.
…
Although Wimbledon had the right to kick off, they only passed the ball three times before the morale-boosted Southampton intercepted it.
High-pressure pressing and large-scale running are the core essence of all-out attack and defense in Dutch football. Koeman is also instilling his own football philosophy into this Saints team.
After completing the steal, the ball was quickly transferred to Mane this time . After resting for two minutes, the Senegalese striker once again completely suppressed the left side of the Crazy Gang!
Smith, who had been attacked by him continuously for an hour, was completely unable to keep up with the rhythm, and even a foul failed to stop Mane from rushing into the penalty area!
Fortunately, Mane's final shot still had some "happy football" DNA. The football didn't even hit the goal frame, but flew directly into the stands, making Xie A, who was nearby, break out in a cold sweat.
"Change, change!"
Adley didn't want to wait any longer, and immediately pushed Kennedy, who was full of energy, up.
Smith returned to the bench in frustration. He had only played for 62 minutes, but he was clearly exhausted, even more tired than playing a full 90 minutes in the league.
"That guy is not a human! He's an animal!"
Looking at Mane who was still full of energy on the court, he spat viciously and wrapped himself in a thick down jacket in indignation.
A thought popped up :
[Maybe... I am really old? ]
…
Smith, 31, quickly recovered from his depression.
Because he was "gratified" to see that Kennedy, who replaced him, did a split and sat on the ground when he first defended Mane...
The corners of his mouth even turned up.
In order to avoid being accused of "gloating", he immediately launched a personal attack on Mane:
"That animal must have been on drugs!"
…
"Are you OK?"
Phillips pulled Kennedy up from the edge of the box.
Mane's breakthrough just now was still very threatening. If he hadn't stretched out his foot to block it in advance, Mane's pass would have leaked from the area he was defending to the front of the goal!
Shane Long, who is eyeing the penalty area, will definitely not miss this opportunity!
"Not bad..."
Kennedy took a deep breath and glanced at Mane with lingering fear:
"This bastard... is too fast!"
Phillips nodded slightly and reminded again:
"Stuck in the penalty area, let him go down the bottom, don't rush in blindly!"
…
As the game entered the last half hour, the physical strength of the players on both sides was rapidly depleted, but the pace on the field did not slow down too much.
In the 72nd minute, after another cross was cleared, Mane couldn't help but become anxious.
Having just joined the Premier League, he only has the killer move of blasting from the wing. The effect of cutting inside and shooting is far less outstanding than that of Robben, who is also a winger. What's more, the opponent has accumulated heavy defense in front of the penalty area. Even if Robben himself comes, he will only run into this wall of people.
"Silly! Silly!"
He suddenly heard someone calling his name from the sidelines.
Turning his head, he saw head coach Koeman stretching out his hands and gesturing the latest tactical intentions in the air.
Mane fell into deep thought:
[What does this mean? ]
The Senegalese winger, who had been playing in Ligue 1 before, only knew how to say hello and curse in English. Even if Koeman communicated with him face to face, he might not be able to fully understand...
The game resumed, and Wimbledon's attack was blocked by the opponent as soon as it crossed the center line.
Although Southampton only had three defenders, the partnership of Alderweireld and Jose Fonte was surprisingly reliable. The Portuguese veteran Fonte actually had the last laugh in the direct dialogue with Akinfenwa, and headed out Rigg's overhead pass.
Reeves, who successfully made an offside move, missed the ball. Alderweireld controlled the landing point of the ball before Porter, and then moved forward and drove straight into the Wimbledon midfield!
Adley couldn't help but jump up:
"Three defenders...he dares to dribble forward?"
No one could answer his question. Wimbledon's defense was already retreating quickly, but the tall and long-legged Belgian defender seemed to be one step faster!
Just as Bulman was about to fill in the position on the right, he saw Alderweireld make a long pass directly to the right!
It's still Mane!
This time, Mane did not try to cut inside, but resolutely went down the line and passed the ball in front of the goal!
The young Kennedy didn't even make a sliding tackle, and Phillips, whose legs were already heavy, obviously didn't have time to clear the ball.
Only Li Polo, who stayed at the back, stretched out his right foot before Shane Long!
With the [Eagle Eye], he is one step faster than his opponent!
[Negative emotions from Shane Long, +5! ]
The Saints striker just felt a surge of anger, but the next second he couldn't be angry anymore.
Mane's low pass hit Li Boluo's toes, then changed direction 90 degrees and flew directly into the goal!
2:2!
Thanks to Li Polo's own goal, Southampton equalized the score in the 73rd minute!
Shane Long glanced at the sweaty young defender, smiled and extended his hand to him:
"Thank you, young man!"
