Chapter 957: Preparing for the FA Cup

In the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals, Manchester United beat Schalke 04 5:2 at home and almost entered the semi-finals with one foot.

In another game in the first half, Chelsea lost an upset 0:1 to Bayern at home and lost the initiative to advance.

In the two games in the second half, Real Madrid defeated Tottenham 4:0 and Barcelona defeated Shakhtar Donetsk 5:1. The two teams were more stable than Manchester United and almost met in the top four.

In the Champions League group stage, Gao Xiaodong scored 5 goals, one less than Messi and two more than Ronaldo. In the two rounds of the quarter-finals, Gao Xiaodong scored 3 goals, and the number of goals exceeded Tied with Messi and surpassed Ronaldo by 4.

In the first round of the Champions League quarter-finals just past, Gao Xiaodong scored twice, while Messi did not score and only had one assist. Gao Xiaodong finally surpassed Messi in the Champions League scorer list with 10 goals. The ball dominates.

However, in the league, Gao Xiaodong was suspended due to a red card, and his goal tally was overtaken by Ronaldo, who scored 35 goals.

In the next game between Manchester United and Fulham, Gao Xiaodong will still be suspended. If Ronaldo continues to score goals, it will be very difficult for him to defend the European Golden Boot.

For Manchester United, as injured players are returning one after another, and Rooney is in good form, it is not a big problem to win Fulham at home. Manchester United's main focus is not on Fulham. Their main consideration is mid-week and Manchester City's FA Cup semi-final.

After Manchester United was taken over by a wealthy man from the Middle East, the momentum of Manchester United's rise was very strong. In the last Manchester City Derby, Manchester City even tied Manchester United. Even if it is not for the Triple Crown, Manchester United must suppress Manchester City severely and prevent them from letting them win. Win the FA Cup.

The league is well arranged, but the FA Cup game puts Ferguson in a bit of trouble.

Manchester United's three fronts this season are the main players playing in the league and the Champions League, and the substitutes and second team players playing in the League Cup and FA Cup.

For a giant club like Manchester United, the players who sit on the bench are also the absolute main force in small clubs. If they are not given a chance to play, it may be difficult for them to sit on the bench at Manchester United with peace of mind.

Now the players on the bench and the second team have worked hard to reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup. If all these players are replaced at this time and all are played with the main force, the players on the bench and the second team will probably be dissatisfied. .

But obviously, Manchester United cannot continue to play Manchester City with the original lineup, because after losing the hope of winning the league, Manchester City's main goal has become the FA Cup championship. In this semi-final with Manchester United, Manchester City will definitely use its main force and give its full strength. To go.

If Manchester United uses its original substitutes and young players to play, the possibility of losing is very high.

Although Ferguson is a domineering person, he is not unreasonable and does not know how to adapt. In the 32nd round of the league with Fulham, Ferguson selected four FA Cup main players into the league's squad and asked them to follow. The main players will get used to each other, and then they will play alongside them in the FA Cup semi-finals.

Among the four players selected by Ferguson, there are two second-team players, one of whom is the French genius Pogba who serves as a defensive midfielder.

This is a very good opportunity for Pogba, because this is the first time he has been selected for the league squad. If he can perform well in the league and gain the trust of Ferguson, maybe he can play in the Manchester City derby in the FA Cup. There will be a chance to play.

Before the game against Fulham, Pogba came to Gao Xiaodong's home again, hoping to get Gao Xiaodong's help.

Since Beibei has been abandoned by Ferguson, Pogba did not come with Beibei this time, but came to Gao Xiaodong's house alone.

Pogba is now a contract player of Xinglong Agency, that is, Gao Xiaodong. If Pogba plays, Gao Xiaodong will also gain a lot, and Gao Xiaodong is even more dedicated to Pogba.

Manchester United currently has too many people in the midfielder position, including Fletcher, Kalek, Anderson, Hargreaves and Gao Xiaodong. Pogba is somewhat lacking in confidence in himself.

Although Gao Xiaodong has not been following Ferguson for a long time, he is very close to him.

I also often hear the old people in Class 92 talk about Ferguson, so he is more familiar with Ferguson than the average player. He told Pogba that Manchester United has many midfielders, which shows that Sir Alex Ferguson attaches more importance to the position of midfielder, and there are several midfielders in Manchester United now. , are not very tall, and are poor at intercepting high-altitude balls. This is Pogba's advantage. In addition, except for Gao Xiaodong himself, Manchester United's other midfielders have poor organizational planning and forward offensive abilities. If Pogba can be in training Showing talent in this area may increase the possibility of playing.

However, Pogba is only 18 years old after all. Gao Xiaodong still hopes that Pogba will not be impatient, train hard and wait patiently for opportunities.

Monkey also saw that Pogba was a little eager for success, and advised him that not everyone can be a blockbuster like Gao Xiaodong, Rooney, Messi, and Ronaldo. That requires high opportunities. Monkey hopes that Pogba Be patient and don't set your goals too high this season. Next season should be the time for him to enter the first team.

With Gao Xiaodong, the 20-year-old Mr. Ballon d'Or, by his side, Pogba was under great pressure. Although Gao Xiaodong and Monkey repeatedly advised and comforted him, Pogba's restless heart was still difficult to calm down. During training, Pogba had a strong desire to perform, but he overexpressed himself and handled the ball unreasonably. This disappointed Ferguson. In the league match with Fulham, Pogba was included in the 18-man squad, but he did not. Get a chance to play.

It turns out that among the main players in the FA Cup, goalkeeper Kuszczak and teenager Gibson got the chance to start.

Fulham is ranked eighth in the standings and is expected to advance to the Europa League. In this game, they faced the undefeated Manchester United and did not give up their desire to win. They counterattacked steadily and actively passed the half. Pressing to stop Manchester United's attack.

Fulham caused a lot of trouble for Manchester United in the first half, but at the beginning of the second half, Nani passed two people and then passed the ball through. Berbatov received the ball in an offside position and scored the ball alone, but the referee did not watch it. When it arrives, the goal is ruled valid.

After Manchester United scored, they completely controlled the rhythm of the game. Valencia and Nani then scored two goals in a row. Finally, in the absence of Gao Xiaodong, Manchester United defeated Fulham 3-0 and continued to maintain an 8-point advantage over Chelsea. .

Manchester United's opponent in the midweek FA Cup semi-finals, Manchester City, played against Liverpool. In order to prepare for the FA Cup match against Manchester United, Manchester City, which had a huge advantage in the top four in the league, strategically abandoned this game and used substitutes. , In the end, Manchester City lost the league game 0:3 away from home, but it allowed the main force to retain enough energy.