Handsome position is not easy

Chapter 175 Decisive Battle against the Celtics ([-])

Young's fierce tackle at the beginning of the game obviously aroused the anger of the Celtics players. Although Martin O'Neill did not say anything, they still showed a very tough attitude in physical confrontation, and they fought for the top several times in a row. Both stretched their elbows and pushed their hips. The referee obviously felt this, but he also knew that the final would be full of gunpowder. As long as there were no malicious fouls, he would not stop the game too much. It will greatly reduce the fluency and enjoyment of this duel.

Mourinho, who has always encouraged his players to be brave in the middle of the field, was quick to regret not having put pressure on the referee, and there was a moment of turmoil after Baia's kick-off. Chaotic, with the ball changing hands continuously at the center line, Young, Maniche and Deco had long been caught in a battle group, and it was not until Costinha joined that the problem was resolved.

However, when "Mr. Minister" grabbed the ball and tried to push it forward, Stiryan Petrov seized the opportunity to kick the ball and fell to the ground. On the ground, while shaking his head, he pulled off his socks as gently as possible.

Mourinho knew something was wrong when he saw Costinha checking the shin pads and ankles. He immediately waved his hand to signal the team doctor to come in quickly to judge the injury of Porto’s midfielder. The referee’s position was very close to the place of the foul. , He saw Petrov's tackle clearly. It was obviously a foul that first touched the opponent's ankle from the side and then kicked the ball. He walked up to the Bulgarian midfielder and held up the yellow card.

But a yellow card will definitely not help Porto's dilemma. After communicating a few words with Costinha, Rafat began to discuss with Nelson a little nervously. Seeing Mourinho make a gesture of substitution, and directly called the stretcher team waiting outside the field.

After the team doctor told him that Costinia could not continue the game, Mourinho knew that Porto was in serious trouble. There were indeed a few midfielders with good defensive capabilities on the bench, but none of them were like Costinia. This type can compete for high balls at the first point without suffering losses. Thiago Moreira is good at ball control and organization in the backcourt. Paulinho Santos is good at one-on-one marking of flexible players. Replace them It means that Porto will lose the air supremacy in the midfield.

Fortunately, Mourinho led Porto's coaching staff to list in detail the situations where injuries and substitutions occurred in each position as early as a week before the game, so there is no need for the head coach to scratch his head and think desperately .

The division of labor of the coaching staff is also very clear. The moment Costinha fell to the ground, Faria immediately called out several substitute players to warm up urgently. Within a few minutes of the start of the game, the players all participated in the pre-match training session. Stepping on the field training, you only need to run a few steps to reheat your body.

Mourinho did not change the temporary substitution strategy that he had set before. After Costinia left the field, what he needs is not running or organizational ability. Increasing the high point and reducing the threat of the Celtics' long pass is the most important thing. Urgent, so the Setubal people brought up the 1.8-meter-four Ricardo Costa.

The 22-year-old was still in the reserve team last season, but now he is Porto's fourth overall starting central defender, and because of Mourinho's firm implementation of the rotation mechanism, he has nearly [-] points in the team's third-line battle. The most important thing is that Ricardo Costa's running ability is not bad, and he can play both central defenders and full backs.

Although Mourinho is suffering from the recurrence of Costinia's old right ankle injury, he is not too worried that Porto's defense will lose control after he leaves the field. The team's right back Paulo Ferreira is 1.8 meters tall. He can play in any position on the back line, and he can be called a versatile defender. Mourinho is going to let Ferreira and Ricardo take turns in front of the two central defenders to solve the opponent's high-ball threat.

Such a choice is actually a helpless move. Porto's coach even has to switch positions between Jan and Maniche, who occupy the two wings respectively. After losing the protection of Costinha, he needs to be so energetic that he can't run. Maniche came to cut off the link in the Celtics' frontcourt.

In order to guard against the opponent's direct long pass from the backcourt, Mourinho had to let Ferreira or Ricardo help Maniche who switched to this side. Although his midfielder played tough and fierce, But from the opening scene, it can be seen that Maniche is absolutely unable to compete with Celtics high center Chris Sutton in the air. At the same time, in order to avoid too much impact on the defensive end, Porto must pass control The ball takes the initiative in the rhythm of the game. In this way, the burden on Deco and Yang's shoulders is even heavier.

Porto's defense line was obviously not stable in the early days after the change. Larson and Sutton spent a lot more time holding the ball on this side. If Young and Maniche hadn't withdrawn to participate in the siege and further compressed their activities Space, the Celtics are bound to create more dangers.

However, after overcoming this period of time that made the Porto fans shudder, the Blue and Whites finally slowly took control of the initiative on the scene. There is no way to effectively prevent Porto from controlling the ball at their feet. As long as the ball does not keep flying in the air, Mourinho is not too worried about being scored by the Celtics first.

The Scots were obviously not used to the hot weather in Seville, and their running slowly slowed down in the second half of the first half. Young and Deco began to take the initiative to hold the ball and press towards the Celtic half. Because Costinha's injury treatment delayed some game time, the referee gave 4 minutes of stoppage time, and Porto finally found an excellent opportunity in stoppage time.

When facing Petrov in the opponent's half, Young deftly kicked the ball with his right foot and passed the Bulgarian international. Although Petrov followed behind and chased after him, the boy was still under siege. I found a nearly perfect passing line before. When my legs were moving like flying, I tapped my left foot to pull the ball and turned around. I put my right leg behind me and stepped on the turf to stabilize my balance. The next second the ball had already reached Germany. over there.

This is Porto's favorite three-man tactic in the frontcourt. Deco didn't stop the ball, wrapped his left foot around the ball and rolled it out. Del Rey, who was ambushing on the edge of the penalty area, immediately understood the intention of his teammates and thrust in obliquely. The Celtics were empty in the middle, and Dean Popobald failed to keep up with the slippery Brazilian striker for a while. Deco's scalpel-like pass also directly penetrated the opponent's defense. Delray ran a single Chance.

Facing the young Celtics goalkeeper, the Brazilian striker did not make much adjustments. He led the ball with his right foot and pushed half a step to his side, then raised his thigh and volleyed towards the far corner of the goal. Marshall failed to make much Responding, the Celtic goalkeeper took half a step to the left and knew it was too late. Del Rey hit the goal kick so fast that he could only lie on the goal line and watch the ball sighing.

Porto 1:0 Celtic, just a simple triangle cooperation, the Blue and Whites scored the first goal, and it was still in stoppage time in the first half, which will undoubtedly have a great impact on the morale of the Celtic players. Big blow, the whole half-time they had to reflect painfully in the dressing room for this conceded goal.

(End of this chapter)