Volume 1: Heroes Come and Go, People Pay Attention Chapter 34 Everyone Is His Own Master, No Mercy (Second Update Guaranteed~)
Chapter 34 Everyone is his own master, no mercy (Second update guaranteed~)
Chen Yingxiong met Skrtel when he walked out of the player tunnel. Skrtel is now Liverpool's main central defender.
In this game, Skrtel was responsible for defending Chen Yingxiong.
However, there were not many confrontations between the two in the first half, because Chen Yingxiong lacked support and did not perform well. He put little pressure on Skrtel. Skrtel even had time to run and intercept Arshavin's attempt to break through into the penalty area.
Skrtel, who was in a good mood, was looking at Chen Yingxiong with a smile.
"You did a good job in the first half, hero. Keep doing it in the second half. When it's over, I'll treat you to a big dinner!"
Chen Yingxiong rolled his eyes.
"In the second half, be careful, I'll blow you up!" Chen Yingxiong said, unwilling to be outdone.
"Hey, let me see it." Skrtel smiled.
Arshavin walked up and punched Skrtel, "Win or lose, I'll treat you tonight!"
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Naples kicked off the second half, and from the kick-off, the football was always under Naples' control.
Hamsik's running was much more active than in the first half, and it was also more purposeful and targeted.
He connected the team's offense and defense. De Jong and Blasi swept back and forth in the midfield to help Hamsik clear obstacles so that he could concentrate on organizing the offense.
At the same time, Maggio and Aronica also got Mazzarri's attention during the halftime break and frequently moved forward to participate in the attack. What to do with the space behind them?
De Jong and Blasi can drop back and temporarily serve as full-backs until Macho and Aronika return.
At the same time, Cassano and Arshavin also actively took the ball and changed positions on the court.
There is only one person who looks no different from the first half, and that person is Chen Yingxiong.
He didn't move much, and he didn't withdraw from the opponent's heavily defended penalty area. He just stayed at the front.
In this way, it was as if the whole team had recovered, but he was still the same.
But outsiders don't know that this is the request of coach Mazzarri.
Since Liverpool is going to shrink, Naples will push forward and fight them in a positional battle. Naples is not afraid because we have a very powerful center!
Chen Yingxiong is at the front. He has the ability to get the ball in the penalty area and is very good at heading the ball. These are very suitable for positional combat.
So Mazzarri put Chen Yingxiong at the front, like a nail, firmly nailing the opponent's defense in the penalty area and unable to provide any support for Liverpool's counterattack. As a result, Naples' defensive pressure has also been reduced.
In fact, Chen Yingxiong was not in bad shape in the first half, but a center like him needs support from the whole team. If the people behind him are not in good shape, then he will naturally not perform well. Now that Cassano, Arshavin, Hamsik, Maggio and Aronika are all active, he will naturally get more opportunities.
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Liverpool initially dealt with Naples according to the impression they had in the first half. They moved back and forth in the backcourt and then looked for space behind Naples.
In the second half, they really shrank their formation and wanted to fight Naples' defensive counterattack.
So when Xabi Alonso received a pass from his teammate in the backcourt with his back to the attacking direction, he did not kick the football out immediately, but planned to turn around and send Chu Zai a direct pass. He kept turning his head to look in that direction. There was a space there, and Liverpool forward Torres was also cruising there. As long as he passed the ball, it would be a kill!
But he was so focused on looking at this side that he forgot to look at the other side...
Behind him, De Jong was already approaching silently like a wolf.
When the two people reached a suitable distance, De Jong suddenly rushed forward and rushed forward!
"Be careful..." Skrtel reminded Alonso in English. But before he could finish his words, he saw De Jong slam into him from behind, poke with his foot, and the football rolled out from Alonso's feet.
As for Alonso, he had just raised his right leg to prepare for a long pass, but now he lost his center of gravity and fell headlong.
"Alonso lost the ball!" the commentator exclaimed.
After de Jong intercepted Alonso's ball, he quickly distributed the football to Hamsik on the side.
Hamsik caught the ball, turned around, and sent the football to the wing with one kick. Mascherano came up and tried to steal the ball, but it was already too late...
Cassano used his chest to stop Hamsik's long diagonal pass, and then tried to break through, deceiving the Liverpool defender Glen Johnson who was guarding him to step back suddenly, leaving room for the pass.
Cassano crosses directly!
Although Skrtel quarreled with Chen Yingxiong before the start of the second half and expressed that he was not afraid of Chen Yingxiong, when the football really started flying, he still mobilized all his nerves and stared at Chen Yingxiong closely.
Chen Yingxiong jumped up!
He jumped too.
Two people meet in the air.
But this time, because of his understanding of Chen Yingxiong, Skrtel got stuck first. He originally wanted to throw the football away, but just when he was about to do so, he suddenly felt a huge impact...
He knew that Chen Yingxiong had bumped into him!
So he no longer expected to push the football out of the danger zone, as long as Chen Yingxiong didn't push the football...
Under the pressure of Chen Yingxiong, Skrtel pushed the football directly over the bottom line.
"Corner kick!"
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When Chen Yingxiong jumped up and found that Skrtel was stuck in the position, he knew that his goal was probably hopeless, but wouldn't it be great if he could get a corner kick or something? So he just ran into Skrtel.
Sure enough, under his own pressure, Skrtel pushed the football over the bottom line.
The two landed at the same time, and Chen Yingxiong pulled Skrtel.
"Be careful, be careful, don't fall, otherwise the referee will call me a foul!" He teased Skrtel.
Skrtel chuckled: "Don't think I'm so weak!"
Chen Yingxiong smiled: "That's good. It would be boring if you fell down as soon as I hit you!"
"When Chen Yingxiong played for Zenit St. Petersburg, he and Skrtel were very good friends, and the two had a close personal relationship. But in this game, the two of them have to work for their own masters and compete tit for tat on the court! "The commentator also noticed the fight between Chen Yingxiong and Skrtel.
Currently on the court, the Liverpool player closest to Chen Yingxiong in height is Skrtel.
There was originally another player with the same height as Chen Yingxiong - Greek defender Sotiris Kyrgiakos (sotiris_kyrgiakos), who is 1.93 meters tall and weighs 88 kilograms. However, he was injured and could not play in this game. Come on stage. So now the only central defender who can compete with Chen Yingxiong is Skrtel.
His center back partner is Carragher. Carragher's height and weight are not as good as Chen Yingxiong's, so he will suffer some physical disadvantages.
The corner kick came out, and Chen Yingxiong was held tightly by Skrtel. He was unable to squeeze in front of the goal to grab the point. The football was directly picked up by the attacking goalkeeper Reina.
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Napoli suddenly increased their speed, which made Liverpool uncomfortable.
But after they finally began to adapt, Naples' offense changed again.
When attacking in the frontcourt, Mazzarri very much hopes that the Trident can have more improvisational cooperation, which will bring difficulties to the opponent's defense and also create some opportunities.
Therefore, his requirements for the team's offense are very free. Players with outstanding skills such as Cassano and Arshavin can use their talents at will without sticking to tactical requirements.
In addition, the tacit understanding between the three of them is indeed very high.
There are often some coordinations that are not developed in training...
Like this time!
Cassano got the ball from the wing. When everyone thought he would choose to break through and cross, he suddenly dunked the football into the middle and deceived Glen Johnson who was defending him.
At the same time, Liverpool's entire defense line was pressed outside the penalty area, a very neat line, trying to cause offside.
But Chen Yingxiong was not stupid enough to rush over and fall into the offside trap.
He has been cruising in front of the defenders, with no intention of getting in, as if he wanted to watch Cassano perform alone. At the same time, Arshavin moved from the other wing to the center, seemingly to connect with Cassano.
But all eyes were still focused on Cassano who had the ball. He stopped and had no intention of continuing to break through.
At this moment, Chen Yingxiong suddenly started and rushed towards the penalty area in a diagonal direction!
Almost at the same time, Cassano jerked his ankle, raised his leg and picked up the football!
"Cassano passed the ball——"
Skrtel turned around and chased Chen Yingxiong almost as soon as he passed by him, but he was still left behind by Chen Yingxiong.
He saw Chen Yingxiong spread his arms and stopped the football with his chest.
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"Hero! Not offside! This is a great opportunity for Napoli!!"
the Italian commentator roared excitedly.
Thousands of Naples fans at the scene also cheered, but as soon as their voices rang out, they were drowned in the boos of the Liverpool fans.
With boos everywhere, Chen Yingxiong used his chest to stop the football towards the goal. The ball was not stopped very well because the football bounced slightly, but Chen Yingxiong planned to make the mistake and shoot directly with his foot.
But at this moment, out of the corner of his eye, he saw someone behind him!
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Although Skrtel turned slowly, he did not give up on defense. Sure enough, he saw that Chen Yingxiong's chest was not perfect in stopping the ball, and the ball bounced a little far...
His body was not able to protect the football, this was his chance!
Skrtel suddenly kicked his legs forward and ran towards the football.
He planned to clear the ball before Chen Yingxiong could react.
Just as he was staring at the football, a back figure suddenly appeared in his field of vision. When the back figure appeared in front of him, he had no time to brake!
Skrtel ran headlong into it!
Everything goes dark!
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Chen Yingxiong glanced at someone behind him, no matter who it was, he quickly took a cross step, took a step with his long legs, and moved his body sideways, putting the football under his protection again. At the same time, the body leaned back slightly, preparing for the impact.
Then he felt someone hit him on the back.
His body swayed, and finally he stabilized his center of gravity. At the same time, the football also fell. He didn't care about the situation behind him anymore, and just shot with his feet!
Powerful volley!
The football flew past goalkeeper Reina like a cannonball and into the net!
“The ball went in——!!!”