Football’s First Defender

Manchester United's corner kick opportunity, this time Giggs chose to send a tactical corner kick directly. After all, the set kick passed into Chelsea's penalty area basically has no chance to compete for it. Instead, it may be snatched by Chelsea players. Drop the point, then pass the ball directly to seize the opportunity to counterattack.

Giggs took a tactical corner kick and sent the ball to Evra on the wing. Seeing that there were no Chelsea defenders around, Evra took two steps forward. Before Nei threw himself out, he forcibly completed a long-range shot to hit the goal.

It's just a pity that although Evra's kick was full of power, the ball didn't wrap it, and he hit the plane directly.

Taking advantage of this dead ball opportunity, Chelsea made their first substitution adjustment of the game just after the 59th minute of the game.

The defensive midfielder Mikel came on the field and replaced the veteran Deco who had been running on the field for nearly 60 minutes, was physically weak, and was obviously out of rhythm on the defensive end.

The double defensive midfielders of Mikel and Essien constitute the double insurance of Chelsea's defense in the midfield. Coupled with Ballack who is further retracted to the defense line, Chelsea's three defensive midfielders further restrict Rooney from outside the penalty area. catch-and-play attempts.

Manchester United's offense, after a little disbelief, tried to continue to find Rooney. After all, Rooney received the ball in front of the penalty area twice before. Chelsea posed a great threat.

But one can be two, not three. When Rooney was about to catch the ball in front of the penalty area again, he found that under the full-time marking of Mikel, who had just come off the bench, it became quite difficult for him to receive a pass from his teammates matter.

For players like Mikel or Essien whose defensive skill points are almost full, although it is impossible to completely lock up a frontcourt superstar in a 1v1 situation, it is uncomfortable for him to receive the ball and launch an attack , Limiting his offensive efficiency and success rate is still achievable.

From Deco's eye defense, which was almost paper-like before, to Mikel's personal defense, which is now strong and energetic, the sudden increase in defensive intensity makes Rooney feel very uncomfortable on the offensive end.

Valencia's pass from the right was also a bit too pursuit of the speed of the pass, resulting in a rough footwork of the pass. Rooney's stop made a little mistake in the end, and Mikel directly A strong physical confrontation, squeezed forward, stretched out his legs, and successfully completed the tackle.

Manchester United's offense has not changed much since then. They continue to look for Wayne Rooney, the core of their attack in the frontcourt, and try twice. Passing the ball still comes to Rooney, but under Mikel's strict defense, Rooney alone really can't easily create opportunities to hit the goal like before.

Mikel was tightly attached to Rooney's body like a piece of bullshit plaster, and Rooney couldn't shake it off even if he wanted to.

Although due to personal marking reasons, Mikel's side could not help defend into the penalty area, making Chelsea's penalty area defense, under the impact of other Manchester United players, somewhat not as strong as before.

But everything is worth it. After all, the most threatening Rooney is limited. Compared with Rooney's threat, the impact of other Manchester United players on the penalty area is within the acceptable range of Chelsea.

Mikel's appearance somewhat slowed down the rhythm of the game. The two sides fell into positional warfare again, unable to play a fast pace.

After Rooney was directly watched dead by Mikel, Manchester United's offense fell into a bit of a fragmented battle on the wing. At best, they could occasionally send a cross kick to the center from the wing, allowing Fletcher or Cary Ke followed up with a long shot.

As for set-pieces, facing Chelsea, Manchester United, which has no height advantage, nine out of ten set-pieces were directly ejected by players in blue. It is unrealistic for the offensive end to count on set-pieces. Manchester United suffered a wave of injuries. The influence began to show in this game.

The absence of the double central defender combination that started last season in the backcourt has made Manchester United's threat to set the ball down by more than one level. The truce of many offensive players in the frontcourt has made Manchester United's offensive striker only Rooney.

With the consumption of Yang Feng's defense in the first 60 minutes, Rooney used up a lot of energy in order to get rid of Yang Feng's defense. Now he is facing Mikel, who is full of energy and has nothing to do but stare at him. Rooney himself can't get rid of it.

Ferguson on the sidelines saw that the current lineup could not open up the offensive situation, so he also made substitution adjustments on his side.

After all, Manchester United was only one goal behind on the scene, so as the game time entered 70 minutes, it was time to give it a go on the offensive end.

Manchester United made two substitutions at the same time. The teenager Gabriel Obertan faced the replaced veteran Giggs. Gabriel was called the new Henry. Ferguson hoped that his impact on the wing could help the team Open the situation on the left flank.

Michael Owen, who came on a free transfer this summer, was once a chasing boy, and now he is wearing the red jersey of his arch-enemy, playing as a substitute for Anderson, increasing Manchester United's striker strength.

After two consecutive substitutions and adjustments, Ferguson hopes that Manchester United can reorganize their offense at the last moment and play a threatening offensive coordination.

"Manchester United made two substitutions on the offensive end and changed to a double striker. Gabriel and Owen are more offensive players. Ferguson finally invested more in the offensive end at the last moment. energy."

Chelsea's defense has not made too many adjustments. Although Manchester United's offensive style will be slightly aggressive, Ancelotti believes that his players can find the rhythm of defending Manchester United only through fine-tuning.

After all, Gabriel is only called the new Henry. After all, he is just a young player with a little talent. His breakthrough on the wing will indeed be impactful, but he is obviously lacking in game experience and physical confrontation , An Pang believes that Ivan's experience can play a big role at this time to achieve the limit of success.

As for Owen's playing, his name is indeed scary. He was once the European Golden Globe winner and England's chasing boy, but he is already 30 years old, and since leaving Liverpool, his career has not been smooth for many years, and he has suffered a cruciate ligament injury. Seriously injured, Owen, who lost his proud speed, can only be said to be a pretty good striker, not the talented player who led football back then.

Under Ferguson's instructions, both Rooney and Owen entered Chelsea's penalty area according to the latest tactics, waiting for their teammates to deliver ammunition for them.

As for Chelsea, Yang Feng still defended Rooney mainly, and Owen handed over to Terry to mark. As Manchester United's offensive power gathered to the side, the threat from the center was less, and Mikel, who was more physically fit, entered the penalty area to help Yang Feng and the others. Assist in defense, while Essien, Ballack, and Lampard focus on protecting Ivan's side while sticking to the center.