Chapter 1079: Persistence
"Players from both sides have appeared." Zhan Jun glanced quickly and then stood up and looked through the glass window. "Real Madrid made substitutions, but Manchester United did not adjust."
Zhang Lu: "Gareth Bale replaced Isco. This is for sure. Manchester United has made no adjustments. Sun Wu should be very satisfied with the performance of the starting players."
"Indeed, almost every Manchester United player was at his best." Zhan Jun nodded in agreement, "Although Griezmann missed the penalty kick, overall he performed well."
"Beep!"
"The second half of this Champions League final has begun. Let's see whether Real Madrid will stage a comeback or Manchester United will win the Triple Crown!"
From the first second of the first half, Manchester United caught Real Madrid off guard with a crazy high press.
In the second half, Manchester United adopted a defensive posture from the first second. After the kick-off, other players except Harry Kane and Salah did not even cross the center line.
"This is Best." Mourinho chuckled: "Everything he does is just for victory and the championship."
Mortensen shrugged: "You have enough championships to be qualified to consider other things. Why so many superstars yearn for the Bernabeu is not because Real Madrid has won so many Champions League titles!"
"boom!"
A large piece of turf was lifted up and hit the face of Modric who fell to the ground. The Croatian protested angrily to the referee not far away.
Seeing Sun Wu shrugging his shoulders and acting innocent, the Real Madrid fans in the stands booed. Although the referee did not give Sun Wu a card, he gave him a verbal warning.
Sun Wu sincerely accepted the warning and pulled up Modric in a friendly manner. Although Real Madrid was in poor overall condition today and had low morale, the Croatian midfielder was the only exception.
With Manchester United's overall defense restored, it was actually difficult for Real Madrid to tear apart Manchester United's defense, but Modric used his dribbling and distribution to create two opportunities.
In the 48th minute, Modric made a cross pass to Marcelo in the left midfield, but suddenly changed direction and accelerated to force a breakthrough between Salah and Fletcher, and then sent a long-distance ball with the outside of his right foot.
Gareth Bale took the ball and cut inside to attract the attention of Lucas and Van Dijk, but the Welsh winger sent a reverse pass, Carvajal sent a high-quality cross, and Benzema headed the header Slightly higher.
In the 53rd minute, Modric once again broke the siege of Kante and Pavard.
Then he cleverly passed with his toes before Fletcher could help defend. Cristiano Ronaldo's shot from a small angle was deflected by De Gea with one hand. Gareth Bale's header shot missed the target.
If we only talk about the ball-carrying ability of midfielders, Modric may be the best in the world. No matter Pogba, Rakitic, Kroos, De Bruyne, or Thiago, they can't compare with him, let alone Don’t talk about Sun Wu...
He can get rid of in a small space, and his dribbling pace is small, his acceleration is fast, and his confrontation ability is not weak, making it difficult for defensive players to find opportunities to take action.
Therefore, Sun Wu focused on this old friend. Although his frontal defensive ability is not strong, he is also the best organizing midfielder in Europe. He has accurate judgments on Modric's possible choices to take the ball and break through. Sun Wu has a lot of small moves on his hands, and he will foul decisively if he is shaken away.
In just 3 minutes, Modric was intercepted by Sun Wu once and brought down by Sun Wu twice. Real Madrid's offensive immediately came to a halt.
Cross's performance was quite satisfactory but without any highlights. Gareth Bale found it difficult to make a difference without much space. After all, his advantage lies in speed, and getting rid of others in a small space is not his strong point.
But even so, Manchester United's defense is still under considerable pressure. Carvajal and Marcelo press forward very much, Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo frequently change positions, and Gareth Bale's height and jumping ability can also play a role. A strong containment effect, coupled with the strong long-range shooting ability of Kroos and Modric on the outside.
In the 56th minute, Benzema switched to the left and cooperated with Cross and Marcelo continuously. Marcelo forced an inward cut but was destroyed by Kanter. Benzema sent a 45-degree cross.
"Marcelo... Benzema crosses!"
"Bell... got the point and headed over!"
"Danger!" Zhan Jun shouted anxiously: "Oh, De Gea is attacking!"
Thunderous applause and huge sighs sounded in the stands at the same time, Gareth Bale beat Lucas and nodded the ball in behind.
The ball passed Van Dijk, and Alderweireld and Ronaldo took off at the same time. The Portuguese's jumping ability was fully demonstrated at this moment. He jumped more than a head higher than Alderweireld.
But De Gea abandoned the goal at the critical moment. Although he was too late to confiscate the ball, his fingers moved slightly and the ball flew just over Ronaldo's head. The Portuguese shook his head and missed it.
Seeing this scene, Sun Wu finally let go of his worries. He thought about it for two seconds with his hands on his hips and then ran towards Salah.
"Although Gareth Bale has already played, Real Madrid's threatening offense still mainly comes from the left." Mourinho commented: "Benzema, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kroos, Marcelo and even Modric. They are all concentrated on the left or left midfield. If Manchester United does not make adjustments... it will be difficult to withstand it."
"Especially the change of positions between Benzema and Ronaldo." Mortensen nodded in agreement. "The attack just now was a typical example. In fact, Ronaldo was moving on the left rib until Benzema sent the cross. Ronaldo suddenly accelerated and rushed into the penalty area and tried to use Bale's header to score a shot."
"Now it depends on how Manchester United adjusts..." Mourinho paused and smiled: "I guess... Best will not be willing to accept this situation."
Before he finished speaking, Real Madrid organized another offensive on the left. Marcelo threw a side ball. Cross took the ball and was hit hard by Kanter. As a result, the ball fell crookedly to the feet of Ronaldo on the left rib.
"C Ronaldo..." the Spanish commentator became excited. Cutting in and shooting from this position is Ronaldo's famous stunt.
At this moment, Fletcher, Alderweireld, and Sun Wu rushed forward from all directions at the same time. All Manchester United players knew how dangerous Ronaldo was in this position.
But Ronaldo did not shoot. He showed the calmness and brains of a world-class superstar. After making an inward movement, Ronaldo suddenly spiked the ball with his right foot and poked with the toe of his left foot.
"Through ball... terrible!" Zhang Lu blurted out, "Marcelo... shouldn't be offside!"
When everyone's attention was focused on Ronaldo, Marcelo came out from behind Pavard to receive the through ball. He made a powerful horizontal stroke and then sent an inverted triangle pass.
After sending a through ball, Ronaldo appeared in the penalty area with understanding. He raised his left foot and volleyed without stopping the ball!
"Cristiano Ronaldo...shoots!"
"boom!"
The crisp sound of the ball hitting the post came, and Zidane on the sidelines jumped in disappointment. This was Real Madrid's closest chance to score in this game, but Ronaldo's shot unfortunately hit the far post.
But soon, Zidane couldn't care less about regrets. He roared and pointed at Salah, wishing he could jump into the field and make a flying tackle.
De Gea, who was holding the ball, heard a familiar voice and immediately got up without looking at his surroundings. He threw the ball to the left with a hand throw.
The ball flew over the heads of Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema and Kroos. Salah, who was sprinting at high speed, headed the ball from the sideline and overtook Modric from the outside, who had already sensed the danger!
"Manchester United's counterattack is coming!"
"It's Salah again, it's Salah again!"