Chapter 508 Hazard

On the evening of October 24, in the fourth round of the League Cup, Manchester United, who played with a substitute rotation lineup, defeated Swansea 2:0 away and entered the fifth round of this season's League Cup.

Four days later, at 12:30 noon on October 28, the first game of the 10th round of the Premier League was played. Manchester United played against Tottenham at Old Trafford.

This was a strong dialogue between the top team and the third team in the Premier League, and it was also the focus of this round of games.

Although Manchester United would go to Italy to challenge Rome in three days, Mourinho still played his best in this game.

Harry Kane missed this game because of the avoidance clause.

After a fierce battle, with Bruno's goal in the 81st minute, Manchester United defeated Tottenham and won ten consecutive Premier League games, breaking the Premier League's historical record of consecutive wins.

However, Manchester United did not get rid of the points gap with its rivals in the same city behind them in the standings. In the later game, the Blue Moon narrowly defeated West Bromwich Albion 3:2 away from home, and achieved an impressive record of 9 wins and 1 draw in the first 10 rounds, nipping at Manchester United by 2 points.

However, starting from the third place, the points gap widened with the top two.

Although Tottenham lost, it still ranked third, but the White Lily only got 6 wins, 2 draws and 2 losses in the first 10 rounds, ranking third with 20 points.

Chelsea ranked fourth with 6 wins, 1 draw and 3 losses, and got 19 points; Arsenal ranked fifth with the same record as Chelsea, but ranked behind with a disadvantage in goal difference.

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Manchester United, who won 10 consecutive league games and 17 consecutive wins in all competitions in the new season, rushed to Rome in the Apennines with an invincible momentum, intending to hit the 18th consecutive win in all competitions in the new season.

Since the gap with Roma behind them has opened up 5 points in the first three rounds and the gap with Atletico Madrid has opened up 8 points, so as long as Manchester United wins this game, they can not only advance to the knockout stage two rounds in advance, but also lock in the first place in the group two rounds in advance.

Therefore, Manchester United was determined to win this game.

However, after a fierce battle, Manchester United could only draw 3:3 with Roma away.

Even Manchester United was very lucky to take 1 point at the Olympic Stadium in Rome.

In the game, El Shaarawy, who did not start in the first round, was in great form, scoring twice, and Perotti also scored a goal.

On the Manchester United side, Bruno also scored twice, and Harry Kane scored a goal.

Just 38 seconds into the game, Kolarov made a cross from the left side of the frontcourt, Dzeko passed between Maguire and Van Dijk, and El Shaarawy in the middle followed up and shot directly with his right foot. The ball went straight to the upper left corner of the goal, and Roma, who played at home, led Manchester United 1:0.

El Shaarawy's goal 38 seconds after the start was the fastest Champions League goal in the history of the Roma team, and it was also the fastest goal in the Champions League this season.

However, Bruno's goal in the 20th minute helped Manchester United equalize the score. He dribbled the ball from the left side of the penalty area, got rid of the defense, cut inside, and scored a curved ball into the goal of Roma.

In the 37th minute, Nainggolan made a diagonal pass from the left side of the midfield. Lindelof, who played as a right back in this game, inexplicably let the ball pass. El Shaarawy shot the ball into the net with his right foot in the middle of the penalty area, and Roma took the lead again 2:1.

Before the end of the first half, Manchester United equalized the score. Bruno passed the ball horizontally in front of the penalty area, and Rashford's right-footed shot from the left side of the penalty area was saved by the goalkeeper. Then Manchester United took a corner kick, and Bruno's header helped Manchester United tie the score to 2:2.

In the 63rd minute, Gundogan made a mistake in passing the ball in the midfield. Kolarov intercepted the ball and passed it to Perotti, who dribbled the ball from the left side of the frontcourt and cut inside and shot with his right foot. The ball went straight into the lower left corner of the goal. Roma led Manchester United for the third time in this game.

Manchester United did not equalize the score until the 87th minute. Bruno dribbled the ball on the right side of the front court and attracted all the defensive players of Roma. Then he knocked the ball to Harry Kane on the other side, and Kane also sent the ball into the empty goal steadily.

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Manchester United's first game in November was against Chelsea, and it was at Stamford Bridge.

For Manchester United, this was another difficult game.

Before the game between Manchester United and Chelsea started, another focus game of this round had ended at the Etihad Stadium. Manchester City beat Arsenal 3:1 at home. With one more round, they temporarily topped the standings with a 1-point advantage.

At 4:30 pm on November 5, the stands of Stamford Bridge, which can accommodate 41,000 people, were full.

Just ten minutes into the game, the two sides ended the trial stage and Chelsea began a large-scale attack. Playing at home, Chelsea naturally had to fight for victory with all their strength.

Manchester United knew what tactics Chelsea would use, so they played a defensive counterattack in this game. First defend steadily, then wait for an opportunity to counterattack. Defense is the top priority. If they can draw 0:0 with Chelsea away from home, it is not unacceptable. After all, this can still ensure that they can rely on the goal difference advantage to surpass their city rivals Manchester City and return to the top of the standings.

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As Chelsea's top star, Hazard constantly attacks Manchester United's defense on the wing. In order to defend him, Bruno sometimes goes to the wing.

Fifteen minutes after the start of the game, the two had three direct face-to-face opportunities.

The first two times Hazard used his teammates and his own cooperation, as well as his speed and technology to break through Bruno. The third time happened in the fourteenth minute, when Hazard tried the same trick again and wanted to break through Bruno.

Bruno didn't give him time to move, and kicked the ball decisively and swiftly. Hazard stepped over, but the ball was left by Bruno.

Looking back and seeing Bruno still lying on the ground, Hazard quickly turned around and rushed to the ball.

Bruno had expected that Hazard would not give up so easily. If the opponent was someone else, Hazard might have lost the ball, but facing him, this person would definitely fight with him to the end.

So he didn't have time to get up and lay on the ground and swept the ball out with his right foot. Kante received the ball swept by Bruno and passed it to Gundogan in front.

Hazard missed.

"Damn it!" He muttered.

Although Bruno successfully prevented Hazard's breakthrough, the team's situation was not good.

The strength of the two teams is comparable, and Manchester United even has a certain advantage, but at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea seems to have blood suppression against Manchester United. In the previous 25 Premier League matches, the Blues have achieved 11 wins, 9 draws and 5 losses, with a very obvious advantage.

Moreover, Chelsea's style is very strong against Manchester United. Their playing style is tough and direct. Manchester United is good at playing offensive football, with delicate feet, well-organized passing and more short passes.

Chelsea is much more direct, with high-pressure defense in the midfield, and then using the personal abilities of Hazard, William and others to attack Manchester United's defense.

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Chelsea sent out the strongest lineup they could in this game.

The goalkeeper is Courtois, and the three central defenders are Azpilicueta, Christensen and Rudiger; Moses, Matic, Fabregas and Alonso form the four midfielders; William, Lukaku and Hazard form the front trident.

Among them, Fabregas plays a role similar to Bruno, connecting the midfield and frontcourt, while taking into account defense.

Hazard and William are on the two wingers, and Lukaku, as a strong center forward, is at the forefront and does not retreat easily, threatening Manchester United's goal with his headers and shots.

In the 23rd minute, Manchester United launched a counterattack. Bruno got the ball in the midfield. Matic came up to interfere. He passed the ball to Kante who was inserted from behind and continued to run forward. As a result, when Kante passed the ball forward to Gundogan, the ball hit Fabregas's leg and bounced out, and was intercepted by Hazard who was returning to defense.

Hazard received the ball and turned around. He didn't pass the ball to anyone, but rushed forward with the ball himself!

Bruno was originally running forward. Seeing Hazard intercept the ball and turn around to carry it forward, he knew what this kid was going to do. He immediately turned around and chased Hazard. At the same time, he secretly decided in his heart that he would stop Hazard even if he had to foul this time!

Hazard also knew Bruno's thoughts, so he passed the ball out just as Bruno approached.

Bruno just wanted to foul, but he missed. He could only watch the ball being sent out by Hazard, and there was an obvious loophole in the middle!

William ran to the middle to receive the ball and also pulled out the central defender Maguire who was defending him.

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After passing the ball, Hazard did not stop, he continued to move forward in a straight line. Bruno was stunned for a moment, he saw that William did not shoot, but passed the ball to the side again.

Hazard caught the ball, he started to chase, but it was too late.

Hazard did not continue to break down, but passed the ball directly. The ball passed over the heads of the Manchester United defenders who were caught off guard and landed very accurately on Lukaku's chest. He used his chest to remove the ball, then turned around and raised his foot to shoot. The ball flew into the goal with a "whoosh", and goalkeeper De Gea had not reacted at this moment!

"The ball is in! The ball is in! Chelsea played a beautiful counterattack against Manchester United!"

Stamford Bridge was full of jubilation.

Hazard, who completed the assist, ran to Lukaku. He and Lukaku have a good relationship in the team. Because the two are not only teammates in the club, but also partners in the national team.

In fact, the current Chelsea team is dominated by the Belgian gang. Lukaku on the front line, Hazard in the midfield, and goalkeeper Courtois are three very important players in Chelsea.

Losing only one goal is not unacceptable for Manchester United, so losing the ball did not allow Manchester United to press forward to equalize the score.

Mourinho did not make such instructions, and Manchester United still insisted on defensive counterattacks.

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Hazard is very active. Sometimes he is on the right and sometimes on the left. The back and forth position changes have caused headaches for Manchester United's defense.

Bruno had to temporarily give up the task of organizing the attack and come back to assist in defense to help his teammates defend against Hazard, who gave them a headache.

When Hazard faced Bruno, he seemed to have taken stimulants and became more excited.

When Hazard saw Bruno running towards him, he dribbled the ball at full speed and then turned his back to Bruno.

Originally, he could have dribbled the ball straight ahead, but now he unexpectedly turned around and gave up the chance to move forward, as if he was going to fight a positional battle. Hazard just turned his back to Bruno, and immediately used his right foot to gently knock the ball back, and then... turned around!

Bruno immediately made his own defense when Hazard turned around. He did not tackle the ball, nor did he block Hazard, but turned around and retreated.

Hazard's right foot knocked the ball over, and his left foot, as a supporting foot, supported his body to complete the turn, and pushed the ball forward with his toes!

According to the plan, he should speed up to chase the ball and completely get rid of Bruno who was dumbfounded. But the situation was not as he imagined. When he turned around and pushed the ball away, he saw not a flat road, but Bruno's back.

Bruno took advantage of the opportunity of turning around and pushing the ball to complete the blocking and separate the ball from Hazard. Hazard couldn't stop and ran into it head-on. As a result, he was bounced to the ground by the reaction force.

Bruno looked back at Hazard and controlled the ball under his feet.

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"Hey! Blocking foul!" Hazard, who was sitting on the ground, raised his arms and shouted to the linesman next to him.

The linesman ignored him.

Bruno turned around with the ball, then shook his right index finger at Hazard. Then, in Hazard's unwilling eyes, he passed the ball.

The first half ended like this.

After scoring, Chelsea slowed down the pace a bit, and Manchester United did not show any intention to score, as if losing the game 0:1 was an acceptable result for them.

During the halftime break, Mourinho praised the team's performance. In addition to the counterattack failure that gave Chelsea a chance, Manchester United's defense was well organized and did not give Chelsea too many opportunities.

Lukaku only had three shots in the first half, one of which scored a goal, and the other two did not even enter the goal frame. It can be seen that Manchester United's defense against Lukaku was very successful.

The only trouble came from Hazard. As Chelsea's most active player in the first half, he gave Manchester United's defense a headache.

Fortunately, Bruno's defense also gave Hazard a headache.

Mourinho instructed the team to continue playing like this in the second half, to stabilize the defense and wait for an opportunity to counterattack. If there is no good opportunity, it is better to give up the opportunity to counterattack than to give Chelsea another chance to score.

As for what is considered "no good counterattack opportunity", it depends on the players on the field to grasp it, especially how Bruno grasps this degree.

Manchester United's tactics are very simple, which is to strive for a draw away from home. Of course, it would be a pleasant surprise if they can win.

Chelsea's tactics are also very simple, which is to attack. After all, a one-goal lead is not safe, especially against Manchester United, a team with the best attacking power in the Premier League.

Chelsea coach Conte was dissatisfied with the team's performance in the first half, because they slowed down the pace after scoring a goal and were not so eager to score goals. He asked Chelsea to strengthen the offensive in the second half and must score another goal, at least one more, so as to lock in the victory.