Chapter 949: A Game that Belongs to Asia

On the same day, Raul's speech was ridiculed by the younger generation of Manchester United led by Gao Xiaodong.

Gao Xiaodong said on his Twitter and Weibo: "Uncle Raul, you can have memories, but there are really no goals."

Rooney replied to Gao Xiaodong's tweet: "You can't live by memories anymore. You are 33 years old, not 23."

Nani replied to Gao Xiaodong on Twitter: "Goals can be scored, but good memories will not be, because we will score more goals."

Rafael said: "Schalke 04, this is a good name, let's make it 4:0."

Even the honest Valencia left a message saying, "Rangnick said their goal is to win. Isn't this nonsense? Whose goal is to lose?"

The younger generation, led by Gao Xiaodong and Rooney, have a little too much confidence. Giggs, Scholes and Ferdinand, the old stars who have played against Raul, are a little worried. During training the next day, they repeatedly reminded the younger brothers not to underestimate the enemy. Ferguson also told his disciples that what he said at the press conference was psychological warfare and should not be taken seriously. The German team was difficult to play and must be dealt with carefully.

Obviously Manchester United had just eliminated the defending champion, and a team of Schalke 04's level really couldn't lift the spirit of Manchester United's players. The players agreed, but they didn't really take Schalke 04 to heart.

After 7 pm on April 7, the Old Trafford Stadium was already packed. Red Devils fans from all over the world gathered together, waiting to watch the Champions League quarter-final between Manchester United and Schalke 04.

The game will start in 45 minutes, but the on-site commentators have already got the starting list. The fans are watching Manchester United's goal video on the big screen while listening to the commentators interpret the starting lists of both sides.

Manchester United's starting lineup is: Goalkeeper: No. 1 Edwin van der Sar

Defenders: No. 21 Rafael, No. 12 Smallin, No. 15 Vidic, No. 3 Evra

Midfielder: No. 13 Park Ji-sung, No. 16 Carrick, No. 10 Gao Xiaodong, No. 25 Valencia

Forwards: No. 7 Rooney, No. 14 Hernandez

On-site commentator Andy Gray believed that this was a relatively stable start. In fact, Ferdinand and Nani had recovered from injuries, but Ferguson probably did not let them play for the sake of safety.

Fletcher and Scholes did not play because they had not fully recovered from the flu. However, commentator Andy Gray believed that there was a mystery to this starting lineup, because among the six players in the midfield and frontcourt, except for Carrick,

They all have a good relationship with Gao Xiaodong, and they are all players of the younger generation. In addition, the captain's armband is worn on Gao Xiaodong's arm. It is obvious that Ferguson intends to train Gao Xiaodong.

Schalke’s first starting lineup is:

Goalkeeper: No. 1 Neuer

Defenders: No. 22 Atsuto Uchida, No. 32 Matip, No. 4 Hovides, No. 2 Sarpe

Midfielder: No. 17 Farfan, No. 14 Papadopoulos, No. 11 Baumjohn, No. 18 Jurado

Forwards: No. 7 Raul, No. 9 Edu

Rangnick did not blindly make corrections after coaching. He continued the 442 formation used by his predecessor Magath. Jurado, the left midfielder, moves to the center when attacking, while Farfan usually sticks to the right and delivers high-quality crosses. Two double midfielders are used in the midfield. Papadopoulos has a larger range of activities and is responsible for interception and protection. Baumjohn is positioned deeper and becomes the iron gate in front of the defense.

The competition is clearly divided between strong and weak, and there are two Chinese players. The Chinese commentator He Hui is smiling and seems very relaxed.

"The game will start soon. There should be no suspense about the outcome of the game. The strength gap between the two sides is huge. Now everyone should be paying attention to whether Hao Jun can play and play a Chinese derby with Gao Xiaodong. However, judging from the starting lineup just analyzed, the difficulty Not small, unless the game turns into garbage time, but we don't just want to see the Chinese derby. In fact, there are Asian derbies to watch. Today Schalke 04's right back is Uchida Atsuhito. He is a Japanese player and has a high opponent. Xiaodong is also very interesting. I believe many fans will definitely want to see the matchup between Gao Xiaodong and Atsuhito Uchida. Of course, Japanese fans also hope that Uchida can prove himself in such a game. On the bench, Schalke 04 Not only is China’s Hao Jun sitting there, but also Iran’s Karimi. If this game is Schalke 04’s three Asian players, all three Asian players will have a chance to play, and Manchester United’s Park Ji-sung and Gao Xiaodong will also play, that is A derby feast that belongs to Asia.”

In the locker room, the coaches of both sides were making final arrangements before the game. Ferguson was still reminding the players not to be careless, to firmly suppress the opponent, to score as early as possible, and to shatter the opponent's confidence and morale.

Rangnick mainly repeated tactics, boosted morale, and asked Schalke's players to take advantage of the defensive shortcomings of Manchester United's center back and the gaps left by full-back Raphael's assists.

With five minutes left in the game, Spanish referee Carlos led the players from both sides out of the locker room and toward the court.

Seeing the players coming out, the originally noisy and chaotic stands burst into jubilation. The Red Devils immediately welcomed the players with warm applause and cheers, and at the same time put pressure on the visiting team Schalke 04 players.

When the captains of both teams Neuer and Gao Xiaodong exchanged team flags and emblems, Neuer said to Gao Xiaodong: "Even though you have scored so many goals, I will keep you clean today."

This is a way for the goalkeeper to put pressure on the striker. Although Gao Xiaodong is young, he knows it. He said with a smile: "I have no use in keeping a clean sheet. I am not a striker. Rooney just scored a hat trick in the last game. You should find a way to deal with him. "

Neuer was speechless for bringing trouble to his teammates like this. He believed that if Rooney heard what Gao Xiaodong said, he would probably break up with him.

After exchanging team flags and emblems, with the whistle of referee Carlos, the Champions League quarter-finals officially kicked off.

The first to kick off was Schalke 04.

Rangnick is a coach who likes to attack. Although this was a game at Old Trafford, Rangnick's team was not conservative. After the opening, Schalke 04 boldly pressed forward and attacked Manchester United from the right.

Farfan received the ball and quickly attacked Rafael, trying to open a gap from the young Rafael.

Raphael was very confident when facing Farfan's breakthrough. He followed Farfan closely and did not allow Farfan to cut inside or give him space to cross.

Farfan had no choice but to pass the ball back to Atsuhito Uchida who had inserted into Manchester United's 30-meter area, but South Korean star Park Ji-sung's very active running had the effect. He stole the ball before Atsuhito Uchida.

After Park Ji-sung grabbed the ball, he immediately went to Gao Xiaodong. Seeing Gao Xiaodong assisting in defense in the midfielder position, Park Ji-sung did not pass the ball to Rooney and Hernandez in the frontcourt, but passed the ball to Gao Xiaodong.

Gao Xiaodong quickly turned around when Park Ji-sung stole the ball and was ready to counterattack.

After the ball was passed, Gao Xiaodong glanced ahead. Rooney and Hernandez had already started running, especially Hernandez, who ran faster than Rooney and was almost parallel to the defender.

Gao Xiaodong did not hesitate to kick the ball forward to find Hernandez.