Red Rebels

594 God

Some people say that the weather in the UK is unpredictable. If you go out without an umbrella, you will not feel at ease at all, because it will rain at any time and dren you to death.

But the so-called unpredictability is sometimes just the opposite.

Three days ago, during the match between the Red Rebels and Manchester United, it rained heavily all day and night. However, south of London, when it was the turn of the Red Rebels to face Chelsea in the Champions League semi-final, the sky suddenly turned into clear skies. It's really hard to understand.

But equally incomprehensible is Mourinho.

Everyone must be wondering, what is the structure of the Portuguese brain?

He said before the game that he would try his best to score away goals. This is in line with the strength of the Red Rebels. After all, this team has just defeated Manchester United to win the championship and is fully capable of defeating Chelsea on the road. But what?

Mourinho arranged a three-midfielder tactic in this game.

Michael Johnson, Essien, and Mikel, the three midfielders appeared in front of the defense. Before them, Villa, Aguero and Robben formed an offensive trident, all speed players. He was obviously determined to play defensive counterattack.

The arrangement on the defense line is also quite interesting. The two veterans Zambrotta and Thuram played together again. Their partners are Vidic and Maicon, and the goalkeeper is Adler. Czech goalkeeper Cech this season He sat on the team's bench for the first time, but no one knew when Mourinho would arrange for him to appear.

With this lineup, Mourinho is obviously determined to carry out the defensive counterattack to the end in the away game.

Villa and Robben are the most threatening players in the game, and Aguero is no less generous. With a solid defense behind them, their presence has caused huge trouble to Chelsea, reminding Anche all the time. Lottie, although these three players are not tall, they are definitely slipperier than loaches. If you don't pay a little attention, you may be bitten at any time.

This makes Chelsea's offense never dare to let go, while the Red Rebels are stationed in the middle, because there are no real wing players in Chelsea's starting lineup. Although Ronaldinho is very active on the left, But he mostly cuts inside, and Essien and Maicon focus on taking care of this magician, so that he doesn't have much performance in the game.

Aguero frequently retreats to harass Deco, and Michael Johnson is positioned further forward, making it difficult for Deco to even get the ball in the simplest way. He always gets the ball in a hurry and plays. The ball, when it reaches him, bounces like hitting a wall. Mourinho wants to prevent him from controlling the time of the game.

Shevchenko, Lampard, Ballack and other players were also completely submerged in the Red Rebels' defensive system. They did not get any decent opportunities, let alone score.

62% ball possession rate. If Chelsea showed this data to others and told everyone that our opponent was the Red Rebels, I believe everyone would scream in surprise, but other data are a bit... Ashamed to see people.

"17 shots, 2 shots on target, Adler and Cech each had one save. Chelsea has also become the best target for the Czech goalkeeper to warm up. It seems that there are a lot of shots, but in fact There are very few threatening shots, so Cech can fully use them to practice his reflexes."

When Andy Gray introduced this game, he was a little helpless, but he was also understanding.

"The Red Rebels just tried their best in a life-and-death battle with Manchester United. Many stars including Ronaldinho, Messi, Kaká, Drogba, Beckham and others played the entire game.

After a long period of fighting, they all had physical problems. It was understandable that Mourinho simply chose to let them rest and use a steady defensive counterattack tactics in the away game. "

"Remember what Mourinho said in the interview before the game? The decisive battle must be at the Red Rebel Stadium! This shows that he has already expected that he will not lose this game, or in other words, he is prepared to bear the loss. The consequences of the ball, but it won’t be a big defeat, it will probably be a small loss of 1:0, but it seems that Chelsea didn’t live up to expectations and didn’t even score a goal.”

"Ancelotti came on as a substitute in the game against Bolton, resulting in a 1:2 home defeat to Bolton. This makes Chelsea's current league standings only 1 point behind Droylsden, which is tied with Manchester United. With the same points, we are only 3 points behind Everton, fifth in the league, and only 4 points behind Arsenal and Liverpool."

"The failure to win against the Red Rebels in the home game is equivalent to pulling Chelsea back into the quagmire from which they can't extricate themselves, because they will face Arsenal next. The Gunners are eager to participate in the Champions League and will definitely give their best at home. , Chelsea cannot afford to lose. Once they lose this game, they are likely to be overtaken by Everton and fall out of the top 4. By then, Chelsea will be in a very dangerous situation, which becomes a dilemma."

Mourinho is very smart. He had already thought of this trick before the first round. He is confident that as long as he does not lose more than two goals against Chelsea in the away game, then when he returns to home, the Reds will be waiting to work. Rebels.

Although the Red Rebels' midweek game is against Liverpool, the Red Rebels are at home and can completely arrange for substitute players to play. Those so-called unbeaten home records and so on, if they can exchange for a real Champions League championship , Mourinho will choose to change without hesitation, only a fool will not change!

In the first round of the game, Mourinho's defensive counterattack seemed conservative, but in fact he left the key to the decisive victory at the Red Rebels' home court. Ancelotti knew this very well.

Therefore, when the referee blew the whistle to end the game, Ancelotti's face was as gloomy as if he had been fired by Abramovich, because he knew very well that he could not win against the Red Rebels at home. In the semi-finals of the round, Chelsea lost 80%, and the remaining 20% ​​depends on whether he gambles or not.

Taking a gamble, there may be a chance, but it may cause Chelsea to be pulled out of the top 4 of the league and once again lose the qualification for the Champions League next season. I believe that after experiencing some doubts this season, Chelsea will not be able to do so again next season. Obtaining a UEFA charter will inevitably miss the Champions League unless he can win the championship.

Abu will definitely not want to see this situation!

Don’t bet, the Champions League will stop at the top four, and Chelsea should have no problem retaining their qualification for the Champions League next season.

While Ancelotti was struggling, Mourinho hugged and greeted the players walking off the court one by one on the sidelines. In the eyes of Chelsea fans, these actions of his were simply celebrating the victory.

This caused many Chelsea fans in the stands to angrily throw debris at Mourinho. Everyone looked at him with hostility in their eyes, and they wanted to tear him in half, but Portugal People are still the same.

"Well done, Lilian!" Mourinho smiled and hugged Thuram.

Facing the praise from the head coach, Thuram was also in a good mood. The competition he faced when he moved to the Red Rebels was fierce, and he also felt that his competitive level had declined, which was greatly related to his age. Relationship.

However, Mourinho obviously knows how to use him, so he doesn't pay much attention to the late starters in the league on weekdays. He often comes off the bench or plays in cup matches. However, on certain key occasions, Mourinho will always be special. Trust him and Gianluca Zambrotta.

Thuram knows that the Portuguese are relying on their experience!

Thuram was convinced of Mourinho. Although he failed to play the main team, he was not unwilling at all. On the contrary, he naturally accepted it, because as early as when they transferred, Mourinho Ao personally interviewed them and convinced them to accept the rotation arrangement.

In this game, Mourinho once again arranged for Zambrotta and Thuram to start. As a result, the appearance of these two veterans made the Red Rebels' defense impregnable. Chelsea hardly got any decent opportunities in the game, 17 times. He shot, but only two shots were on target, and both of them were non-threatening shots.

Judging from this report card, Thuram is undoubtedly outstanding. Some people even think that he is getting stronger with age and should be in the starting lineup. However, he knows his own affairs. Thuram knows that he is no longer the player he was back then. Ram.

"How's it going, Lilian, can you still bear it?" Mourinho was like an old buddy, putting his arm around Thuram's shoulders and walking back to the locker room side by side.

"Well, no problem, boss, although today's game is very fierce, I can still bear it!" Thuram said with a smile.

"What about the league in three days?" Mourinho suddenly asked.

Thuram stood still and looked at Mourinho, who nodded heavily.

"Although we have won the championship, I don't want to throw away the unbeaten record at home so casually. I hope this game will at least be a draw!"

After finishing speaking, Mourinho patted Thuram hard on the shoulder.

"I know Lilian that you are a very capable player and you hope to be able to perform. I also know that the person you played tonight is not really all you are. I hope, Lilian, that you will be able to play against the Red Rebels in three days' time. On the court, you can see the best version of you!”

Mourinho smiled and encouraged Thuram, then turned and walked into the locker room.

Thuram stood there in a daze. I don’t know why, but he felt deeply about Mourinho’s words. Although he is not young, in fact, he has always been very high-spirited. , otherwise, when he was about to leave Juventus, he would not have shouted out that he would not join Barcelona unless he was given the main position.

But after switching to the Red Rebels, he faced fierce competition. Terry, Curtis, and Vidic. Each of the three central defenders here has the strength to not lose to him, and they are all younger and better than him. Being more familiar with and understanding the Red Rebels' tactical system, even Chiellini has potential.

Under such circumstances, it was normal for Thuram to fail to play the main role, but slowly, he also lost his original spirit.

But at that moment, when Mourinho said those words so seriously, he felt that the original pride returned to him again. He felt that his whole body was burning, and he wanted to vent. Want to explode.

Sure enough, Mourinho did not disappoint him. Three days later, the Red Rebels faced Liverpool at home.

Liverpool, who are striving to reach the top 4 of the league, are fighting hard. They just lost 1:0 away to Manchester United in the first round. But even so, Benitez still played all the main players in this game, hoping to win A victory.

But Thuram, the French central defender, stood in front of the Red Rebels' goal like a god. In front of him, Trezeguet didn't get any chance at all, not even a close shot. His shots were all blocked by him.

The Red Rebels arranged for many young players to start, including Ismail and Walcott, who all appeared in the starting lineup. Spanish teenager Cesc Fabregas also represented Beckham as the core organizer, but he also It was this group of young players who were suppressed by Benitez's tactics during the game.

But at the critical moment, Thuram stood up.

After defusing Liverpool's attacks many times and showing his good competitive form, Thuram hit Cesc Fabregas' corner kick in the 29th minute of the first half and slammed it into the goalkeeper guarded by Reina. When he entered the gate, he felt that the entire Red Rebel Stadium was completely boiling, and every cell in his body was rekindled with passion.

After that, Thuram kicked with his head and kicked again, defusing Liverpool's offense many times and becoming the anchor of the Red Rebels' backcourt. His partner Vidic also performed well in the game.

Although after the halftime break, Benitez's team was more active in the second half and once overwhelmed the Red Rebels. However, it was a critical moment and Thuram made a long clearance in the backcourt. pass.

This long pass accurately found Ismail, who was leaning against Carragher. Ismail, known as the new monster, was forced by Carragher to head the ball in front of the Liverpool defense.

At this time, Liverpool's defense was pressing very high in front, and there was a large space behind it. Walcott was like a flying man, passing through Liverpool's defense at extremely fast speed, and rushing ahead of everyone like lightning. In front of him, after receiving a pass from Ismail, he ran wildly with the ball and cut diagonally into Liverpool's penalty area from the left.

Facing Renner, Walcott was very calm. He even seemed to want to see Renner's every move clearly. Especially when he saw Renner trying to move, he suddenly made a move. The sudden stop tricked Reina into losing his center of gravity and threw himself in one direction. Then he suddenly faced the opposite direction and succeeded in pushing and shooting, 2:0!

This was a surprising score. Even Mourinho himself felt a little surprised, but this did not prevent him from celebrating at all, because this victory was definitely beyond his expectation, but he was very considerate of the players. We are proud, especially Thuram.

The French central defender showed his world-class peak in this game. Although he is not young anymore, he wants to maintain this state in every game, no, even if he only maintains 60% of the state. It's difficult, but it is undeniable that in this game, he is still world-class and the best!