i want to be king

Chapter 994 Manchester City must win!

On April [-]th, the FA Cup semi-final, Manchester City played against Tottenham Hotspur.

The goalkeeper is Cudicini, the defense is Hector, Ledley, Gallas and Kyle Walker, the midfielder is Livermore and Parker, the frontcourt is Gareth Bale, van der Vaart and Aaron Lennon, and the lone striker is Adebayor.

This is Tottenham Hotspur's starting XI.

When Manchester City got this starting list before the game, everyone's first reaction was that it was incomprehensible.

It is said that Redknapp is going to give up the FA Cup, but it doesn't look like it now.

Could it be that the news released before the game were all smoke bombs?
Some staff members walked into the locker room and distributed black gauze belts to Manchester City players, requiring every player to tie them on their left arms.

This was requested by the FA because April 23th happened to be the [-]rd anniversary of the Hillsborough tragedy.

The tragedy 23 years ago can be said to be a turning point in the rapid decline of English football from its historical peak. It also prevented the English league from catching up with European football for a long time. It was not until after Manchester United's triple crown that the Premier League gradually caught up with the mainstream.

In recent years, the influx of capital has brought advanced techniques and tactics to the Premier League, as well as outstanding players. Only today's Premier League can show such a prosperous scene.

Therefore, the FA holds commemorative activities for the Hillsborough tragedy every year. On this day, black veils will be worn to mourn the victims, but this year happens to be the FA Cup semi-final.

……

Su Dong distributed the black gauze belts to his teammates, and everyone asked their teammates to help them tie them.

It can't be too tight, for fear of affecting the game, but it can't be too loose, or it will fall off easily and be easily distracted.

Coach Guardiola's pre-match mobilization is more based on the game. He believes that Manchester City's strength is higher than that of Tottenham Hotspur. As long as the players play steadily, there is no problem in winning the game.

"We don't need to be disturbed by the outside world, and we don't need to be distracted to guess the opponent's mind. That doesn't make much sense to us, because we only need to play ourselves well, and we will be able to win the opponent."

Guardiola once again emphasized that Manchester City is still in the game [I am the main player], insisting on passing and controlling the ball. No matter what tactics the opponent adopts, Manchester City will not change their tactics.

This requires patience from everyone.

Before going on the field, Su Dong had just asked Pepe to fasten himself a black gauze belt. Now he has the captain's armband on one side and the black gauze belt on the other.

Everyone waited silently, and only raised their heads when he was ready and walked in front of everyone.

"We don't know what kind of tactics Tottenham Hotspur will adopt, but I agree with what Pep said just now, don't think about the opponent, because no matter what tactics they adopt, we will beat them and we will definitely beat them!"

Su Dong said this very proudly and confidently.

"It's April 34, [-] days until the Champions League final."

When Su Dong said this suddenly, everyone in the locker room suddenly raised their heads. Many people looked at him inexplicably, while some began to think about the meaning of Su Dong's words.

The UEFA Champions League final will be held at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany on May [-].

Exactly 34 days from now.

Su Dong must have counted.

"I know that in the past few months, each of us has worked very hard, no matter whether we played or not, no matter how many games we played, whether it was the main force, rotation or substitute, even the young players of our youth team, everyone worked very hard."

"We have been able to get to where we are today, and this step is inseparable from the hard work of everyone in the past few months."

In the locker room, the players who entered the roster were very touched.

Manchester City's bench thickness is very strong, but the problem is that Manchester City's schedule is also very dense.

Four-line battles, two-line battles almost every week, sometimes even turning around, coupled with various factors such as injuries and state fluctuations, have caused every player in Manchester City to bear heavy pressure and burden.

Even the substitutes and young players, in the atmosphere of the team, they are all trembling, walking on thin ice.

why?
Because anytime, anywhere, which player is injured or declines, they must be able to step up at any time.

If you go to the top and perform unsatisfactorily, you will be the sinner of the whole team.

Can enter Manchester City, which one is not the best among professional players?Which one is irresponsible?Who doesn't want to help the team win?
In this atmosphere, each of them will go all out and strive to be the best, whether it is training or competition.

Even players like Joe Hart, who will definitely leave the team this summer, are desperate in daily training.

And this kind of atmosphere is also created by Su Dong, the coaching staff and the management, because only in this way can the team be twisted into one rope, form a joint force, and exert the strongest combat effectiveness.

If the rich team really has the so-called background, then this should be part of the rich background, even the most important part.

"In the next 34 days, I hope everyone in the team can go all out."

"Everyone of us is very tired and difficult, but we must grit our teeth and overcome various difficulties. We must maintain the current momentum of the team. We must defeat all opponents and enter the Allianz Arena in 34 days."

"Even, we will have the last laugh at the Allianz Arena!"

"In the past 34 days, we have to fight every day, not only against our opponents, but also against ourselves. We must not only defeat our opponents, but also ourselves. We must prove our determination and strength to the whole world, to the fans who have always supported us, and to ourselves!"

"I believe that as long as we do it, from now on, we will be the most competitive top team in European football and even world football, and everyone in our team will be a part of this team."

Speaking of this, Su Dong clearly felt that the players in the locker room were mobilized.

He took a step forward, walked into the players, and stretched out his right hand.

The players also scrambled to get closer, and stretched out their hands one after another, overlapping with Su Dong's right hand.

"The next 34 days will be hard battles, and tonight is the first battle!"

When he said this, Su Dong gritted his teeth and shouted loudly: "Manchester City will win!!"

"come on, come on, come on!!!"

…………

…………

The FA Cup semi-finals, especially the strong dialogue between Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur, the FA also attaches great importance to, and specially arranged England's best referee Howard Webber to enforce the law.

As soon as the game started, Tottenham Hotspur took the initiative to attack, whether it was a test or really wanted to grab a start, they all took the initiative to put pressure on Manchester City after the opening, and both sides also actively inserted.

Less than a minute after the opening, Lennon got the ball on the right side and passed it to the penalty area, trying to find Adebayor.

The Togo center quickly stepped in and competed for the header near the penalty spot.

But Manchester City goalkeeper Courtois decisively abandoned the goal and grabbed the ball from midair before Adebayor.

Courtois is tall, with long arms and has really good control over the lob.

After taking off the ball, Courtois quickly threw the ball to Marcelo, and the Brazilian left back began to instigate Manchester City's attack.

Tottenham's defense retreated quickly, and the two sides began to entangle near the halfway line.

Gradually, Redknapp's tactical intentions were revealed.

He did not intend to give up the game, but he did not overemphasize that the formation was quite satisfactory, and he rotated two or three positions. This is also a conventional strategy, but the players who should start, such as Gareth Bale and van der Vaart, also basically started.

The four-two-three formation strengthened the protection of the defense, and at the same time gave Tottenham Hotspur the confidence to push the defense forward. Obviously, they did not want Manchester City to get too close to their goal, especially Sudong.

Recently, several teams have adopted this tactic when they encountered Manchester City. I don’t know if it was affected by the Champions League game against Real Madrid, because all four of Su Dong’s goals came from the penalty area.

Later, the media gave him a new nickname: the king of the restricted area.

Of course, this nickname does not ring true, because Su Dong's current achievements are higher than those of Romario and Van Nistelrooy back then.

The opponent pushed the defense forward, more because they did not want Manchester City's attackers, especially Su Dong, to get too close to their own goal.

Arsenal and West Bromwich Albion did it, and Tottenham Hotspur still do it today.

But this will also bring about another problem, that is, once the defense line is pressed, once it is pulled away, or is beaten behind, can the central defender defend against Su Dong alone?

Just like this time in the 5th minute of the opening game, after Manchester City hit the rocks in the frontcourt attack, they quickly passed back to their own half and handed it over to the back line to reorganize and sort out.

Toni Kroos retreated outside the center circle to meet Busquets, stopped the ball in the unguarded area and turned around, took a look at the situation in front of him, and immediately sent a long pass over the top, which was accurately sent behind the defense line.

Almost at the moment when the German midfielder launched a long pass, Su Dong quickly advanced.

Ledley King was tall, but after consecutive injuries, his speed was not fast, and he was directly thrown away by Su Dong, while Gallas returned to the defense at the first time, even running faster than Su Dong.

The reason why Su Dong was slow was because he had to judge where the ball would land, so even though he was overtaken by Gallas, Su Dong remained calm and blocked Gallas with his body outside the top of the arc.

At this time, Su Dong's physical advantage was revealed.

After being suppressed by Su Dong, Gallas behind him kept retreating, while Su Dong kept leaning back according to the ball's landing point, so that Gallas was helpless.

Ledley King, who could really compete physically with Su Dong, just ran in front of Su Dong at this time, and hadn't had time to rush over.

But the ball has arrived.

Su Dong grabbed the best position, judged the ball's landing point, and stopped the ball with his right foot to the right rear of himself and Gallas.

The whole movement was done in one go, without giving Gallas and Ledley King any chance to react.

By the time everyone reacted, Su Dong had already stopped the ball and turned around, speeding up to chase the ball.

(End of this chapter)