Starting From Playing as a Defensive Midfielder for Real Madrid

Chapter 223 Let’s Set a Small Goal First and Win the League Cup [Please Subscribe! ]

"UEFA is really a piece of shit, it's messing with Arsenal! Even I, a non-Arsenal fan, feel heartbroken!"

"After playing Barcelona and Real Madrid, they will play Bayern. UEFA is so afraid that Arsenal can play more games in the knockout rounds."

"Does Bayern have any say this season? Real Madrid and Barcelona, ​​who beat Arsenal in the first round of the Champions League knockouts, both won the Champions League in the end."

"This year, it depends on Real Madrid and Bayern. Barcelona's forward line still needs to be strengthened. Messi can't always play in the middle. It's too wasteful."

"Bayern will definitely be able to get revenge. This year, Real Madrid's midfielder doesn't have Li Ang. Humph, just clean your neck and wait!"

...

The draw for the first round of the Champions League knockouts is over, but the big discussion about the draw ceremony among fans from all over the world has just begun.

The unlucky Arsenal has naturally become the object of pity for countless fans.

Maybe Wenger himself doesn't know whether he accidentally offended the top management of UEFA before, or Arsenal's luck is really that bad.

In the past four seasons, they have drawn Real Madrid, Salzburg and Munich in the first round of the Champions League knockout stage!

If UEFA really didn't do anything tricky, then Arsenal's luck is really bad.

After all, apart from their match with Bayern, the only strong dialogue drawn in this year's Champions League draw is the match between Manchester City and Barcelona.

Other powerful teams have basically drawn more satisfactory opponents, including Chelsea.

Paris Saint-Germain performed very well in the Champions League last season.

But this season, they lost Ibrahimovic and didn't even compete with Olympiacos in the group stage, and finally could only qualify as the second in the group.

In the six group matches, the strength of Paris Saint-Germain fluctuated too much, and it was not a stable strong team at all.

Chelsea, which has performed very strongly in the Champions League and the Premier League, is currently generally regarded by fans as the top team in Europe this season.

Therefore, in the Champions League knockout match between Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain, most fans are more optimistic that Chelsea will easily pass.

There are also few fans who think that Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain are now teams of the same level.

However, although the strength is not at the same level, there are no fewer highlights in the match between the two teams.

After all, there are many former Real Madrid players who played for Mourinho's Real Madrid in the first team of Paris Saint-Germain.

Face brother Khedira, who was cleared out of the team by Mourinho at the beginning, still complains to the media from time to time.

And the current Paris striker Higuain.

These are Mourinho's former disciples and Li Ang's former teammates.

In addition to the friendly relationship between Diego Silva and Leon and Ibrahimovic, Ibrahimovic was the biggest contributor to Paris Saint-Germain's entry into the Champions League semi-finals last year...

The relationship between the two teams is really deep!

There are old friends reuniting, and there are also enemies who don't get along.

The conflict between Leon and 272 was quite a big deal in La Liga back then.

After so many years, whenever Leon thanks his former teammates, he will directly ignore 272, as if he is dead.

And 272 never hides his dislike for Leon.

Perhaps until now, he still firmly believes that it was Leon who took away the Real Madrid starting position and championship honor that should have belonged to him.

After all, he has complained to the media himself or through his father in recent years.

However, Leon has never paid attention to his remarks. Even if he knows his weird remarks, he might still regard him as a pure fun and joke.

Also, Leon has been waiting for this duel opportunity for a long time!

If you didn't meet him before, there's no need to talk about him.

But now that he has met him by chance, Li Ang's thoughts have become active.

After watching the draw ceremony that night, Li Ang thought about how to greet his former teammate.

However, there are still more than two months before the 1/8 knockout round of the Champions League, so Li Ang is just thinking about it for the time being.

More energy should be focused on the upcoming League Cup and Premier League.

After defeating the current relegation team Crystal Palace 3:0 the day before yesterday, Chelsea has squeezed all the soft persimmons in the first half of the league.

In the first 16 rounds of the Premier League, Chelsea has achieved a record of 13 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss, which is a luxurious record.

But in the next three rounds of the league, Chelsea will face the challenges of Arsenal, Swansea and Liverpool.

Before the league war begins, there is a crucial League Cup quarter-final knockout match with Stoke City!

From December 17th to December 29th.

Chelsea will play a total of 4 games in these 13 days!

The schedule is very difficult and the task is arduous, but Chelsea must hold on.

Withstanding, the League Cup advances to the semi-finals, aiming for February, and the first half of the league can be perfectly concluded.

If they can't hold on, they will play overtime with Stoke City, and then fight Arsenal in a bloody battle, but it's a draw.

Then at the last moment, Chelsea may really be overtaken by Arsenal again in the standings.

Morale is a mysterious thing, but it's like this. As the saying goes, if you can't keep it up, you will naturally fall behind.

Li Ang was unusually serious and nervous, and Mourinho almost took his team to sleep in the tactical meeting room of the base.

He must make tactical plans as far in advance as possible, because the preparation time for the future is short, and the games are played one after another.

In the final stage of the first half, they will play against the tough Sky City, currently ranked second, fourth and tenth in the Premier League.

The fans must have enjoyed it, but they will have to play these four games in 13 days, and the pressure on Chelsea is really too great!

"In fact, we are still six points ahead of Arsenal and Manchester City, with two wins. Otherwise, we..."

Ruiz, who kept rubbing his temple in the meeting room, made his own suggestions, but Mourinho interrupted him without thinking.

"No! We can't consider this point, let alone let the players know that we are making such assumptions!

This is not a direct dialogue with Everton, Southampton and Manchester United.

These teams are not our real competitors this season.

When facing Arsenal and Liverpool, which can really threaten our top position, we can't retreat a step!

We retreat a step, and they advance. If we give in this time, will we give in or not next time we encounter such a schedule?"

Mourinho's words completely set the tone for this tactical meeting.

The entire coaching team of Chelsea also quickly unified the tactical thinking.

Since they have to go all the way, they will no longer discuss too much what will happen if they fail or lose.

Going all out to figure out the opponent's tactical weaknesses and lineup weaknesses has become their most important preparation work.

When such a firm will to play was passed on to all the players of Chelsea's first team by the coaching staff.

Chelsea tightened the clockwork directly and devoted themselves to the preparation work.

Of course, for Chelsea's opponents. To challenge the top team in this tight schedule, their pressure is also quite high.

Stoke City, who was the first to bear the brunt, ushered in the League Cup quarter-finals battle with Chelsea on the evening of December 17 in a solemn and tense pre-match atmosphere!

10 days ago, they had a 0-0 draw with Chelsea at their home stadium, Britannia Stadium.

But that draw cannot bring them enough confidence now.

Because everyone knows that Chelsea had no reason to fight them to the death in that game.

Rather than saying that they fought for a draw with Chelsea, it is better to say that Mourinho chose to let the main veterans in the team continue to rest and also chose a draw.

Now ten days have passed, and the main veterans in Chelsea have all had enough rest time.

In the last round of the league against Crystal Palace, Lampard and Ibrahimovic were also replaced by Mourinho in advance when they had a 2-0 lead at halftime.

So in this round of the League Cup, Stoke City will face a full-state Chelsea with all the main players, and there is enough reason to beat them!

Stoke City players and their head coach Mark Hughes are under great pressure.

But the League Cup has already reached the final eight, and it is impossible to be eliminated easily anyway.

Going one step further, that is the semi-finals, and the final championship is only two more opponents away!

Stoke City's current tactics happen to be very suitable for cup games. It is difficult to win the League Cup, but there is always a chance.

In the 10-11 season, the relegated team Birmingham defeated Arsenal to win the League Cup.

For all the mid- and lower-level teams in the Premier League, it is a very good example of the weak defeating the strong.

So even under great pressure, the Stoke City players still hold earnest hopes in their hearts, hoping to create a real miracle at home!

What if, what if they get past Chelsea?

Which team can make them worry about it? !

With such thoughts, the nervous and excited Stoke City players finally stepped onto the big stage to play against Chelsea!

After the game officially started that night, the entire Stoke City team instantly felt Chelsea's attention to this game.

Chelsea, who used the 4231 starting formation, did not rush to attack at the beginning.

Instead, after gaining stable control of the midfield, they slowly advanced and launched an offensive test against Stoke City from the two sides.

Li Ang even played as a defensive midfielder at the start of the game today, and he and Matic tightly controlled the middle of the midfield!

Mourinho used this starting lineup to clearly tell Mark Hughes:

Don't try to hit my center line with a high ball today. I will place my trusted general in front of my penalty area. This road will not work!

Chelsea, who did a good job of defense and control, was very stable on the field.

Steadily eroding the midfield space, and also steadily and slowly suppressing Stoke City tactically!

Stoke City, unwilling to follow Chelsea's rhythm, will of course fight back.

But their high-handed counterattack method with Crouch as the frontcourt fulcrum in previous games is not very effective today.

Crouch is quite tall, but his light weight also drags him down.

Even though his confrontation ability is not weak.

But in the face of the resolute double-team defense of Leon and Matic, it is very difficult for him to stand in position and steadily take the long pass from his teammates.

From a certain perspective, Crouch is proud of his tactical value.

He is the first person to be double-teamed by Leon and Matic, the current Premier League's top midfield defense group!

But for Mark Hughes, this situation is quite bad.

After all, Crouch is not a prolific shooter. Compared with his scoring ability, his tactical value is more important.

And in Stoke City's frontcourt offensive system, if Crouch can't play his fulcrum radiation role.

Then Stoke City's counterattack will be completely a bubble in the water.

After all, high-altitude balls can't land stably, so what's the point of playing long passes and counterattacks?

Mark Hughes saw it only 20 minutes into the first half.

Mourinho would rather sacrifice a little more initiative on the offensive end, but also strangle the most important link in Stoke City's counterattack system first!

He, like other mid- and lower-level Premier League head coaches, complained about Mourinho's abnormal pursuit of central defense at this moment!

The defensive combination of Matic and Leon is simply a football bug that violates the rules!

What kind of offensive players can they defend against?

If they work together, there is no way to solve the double-teaming. If they separate to do one-on-one single defense, they are also very strong in this aspect!

After watching for a long time, Mark Hughes, who really couldn't think of a way to break the deadlock, finally had to consider changing to another offensive mode.

That is to let Arnautovic take over the task of counterattack.

Although the "Austrian Ibrahimovic" is far from the strong goal-scoring ability of the genuine Ibrahimovic on the Chelsea side.

But his characteristics of being able to play on the wing and in the middle and his outstanding skills are enough to drive the offense of the mid- and lower-level teams in the Premier League such as Stoke City.

Mark Hughes wants the Austrian striker to use his ability to take the ball and make the ball more on the offensive end to help Stoke City tear open Chelsea's defense.

In this case, even if Crouch is used as a tactical bait.

Stoke City's forward line still has one season left to score double-digit goals. Walters can complete the final blow.

But Arnautovic doesn't just want to be a supporting role for others.

After getting more offensive ball rights, he wants to rely on his footwork to become the absolute focus of the game, just like the young Ibrahimovic back then.

He also went from being a variation point on Stoke City's counterattack to a ball-losing maniac.

After all, the Chelsea defenders near him were Li Ang and Ivanovic!

The two took turns to confront Arnautovic.

This kid couldn't even successfully complete a few stable offensive advances, not to mention tearing Chelsea's defense with the ball, and he fell on the grass frequently.

While Stoke City's counterattacks failed repeatedly, Chelsea used their patience to slowly show their sharp fangs on the offensive end!

Hazard, who didn't play well in the last round of the duel, became Chelsea's well-deserved offensive protagonist in today's game.

When he had enough offensive possession, with Ibrahimovic in front and Lampard behind to assist him.

He is currently the most destructive super winger in the Premier League!

Perhaps in terms of the visual scene of attacking the opponent's defense, Hazard is still incomparable to Bale, who switched to Real Madrid in the summer window this year.

But in terms of tactical effect, Hazard's superb dribbling ability is better than Bale, and he can continue to break through and create opportunities in a small space.

This is quite amazing.

Even without much space, he can break through dense defense and force threats.

The best player in this job in today's football is Messi, and Hazard is one of the top players of this type under Messi's single-handed defense.

In the first 30 minutes of the first half, Stoke City's N'Zonzi and full-back Camron on Hazard's side were passed over again and again.

According to Stoke City's previous style, some rough tactical fouls would have to be made at this time.

However, perhaps thinking of the previous game scene where Chelsea strongly counterattacked West Ham United, Stoke City could only endure it again and again.

Although the defensive action was big, it was not to the point of a lethal tactic.

This intensity of confrontation is still within Hazard's acceptable range.

So his breakthroughs have been successful and he has created many threats on the offensive end.

It's a pity that today Ibrahimovic and Lampard's two shots in Stoke City's penalty area were both substandard.

And Hazard was very depressed when he saw that he missed two assist opportunities.

It was not until the 34th minute of the first half that Li Ang actively advanced from the backcourt, and Hazard saw another excellent offensive opportunity!

Lampard's escape from the cross pass allowed Li Ang to further advance the ball into Stoke City's defensive hinterland in a relatively loose defensive environment.

Ibrahimovic also pulled out of Stoke City's penalty area and came to assist Li Ang.

The possible connection between the two immediately caused a slight confusion in Stoke City's backcourt defense.

At this time, Li Ang quickly sent a ground pass to his right front!

De Bruyne, who had not played well before, finally got a rare chance to pass the ball from the side.

He adjusted his pace and started to run up before the ball came to him, and then he made a long arc pass without stopping the ball!

Ibrahimovic, who had already accelerated in the back of the Stoke City penalty area, immediately became the focus of all Stoke City defenders!

Shawcross's active struggle made it impossible for Ibrahimovic to occupy the position and head the ball directly.

However, Ibrahimovic, who had always been paying attention to Li Ang's running position, also had the offensive option of header ferrying.

After sideways withstanding Shawcross's defensive interference, Ibrahimovic headed the ball directly to Li Ang who was currently in the middle of the Stoke City penalty area.

This was a return header, and Li Ang's position was not very good, but there was still a chance and possibility to handle the ball in the next step.

Facing the close defense of Mark Wilson, another central defender of Stoke City, Li Ang subconsciously chose to block the offensive position first.

Being entangled by the opponent in the middle of the penalty area, it is basically impossible to shoot directly.

Heading the ball is even more ridiculous, there is no rush, and the header has no speed and power.

After instantly rejecting two ways of attacking in his mind, Li Ang suddenly caught a glimpse of a blue figure standing on the edge of the penalty area in his peripheral vision...

"Li Ang has taken the position! He is going to... head the ball back again! Hazard!"

Zhan Jun exclaimed in the studio, and at this moment all the Chinese fans also looked at Hazard who received Li Ang's header!

The Belgian winger finally waited for the opportunity to shoot that he had always wanted in the first half!

There is nothing to hesitate.

He stopped the ball, took the ball, adjusted his pace, and then played his best right-footed shot!

Begovic was still distracted by too many offensive and defensive players in front of him.

And the angle of Hazard's shot was too tricky!

By the time Begovic saw the flight trajectory of the ball, it was too late to save it!

The ball went straight to the upper right corner of Stoke City's goal!

The Chelsea players who successfully broke the balance of the game also clearly saw the bright prospects of advancing to the final four of the English League Cup!

The 20,000 Stoke City fans in the Britannia Stadium were panicked at this moment.

Because Chelsea scored the first game this season, Chelsea won in the end!

Mourinho was very scary and cunning after taking the lead, and Stoke City fans believed it.

Of course, Mourinho soon used his tactical adjustments to further deepen the anxiety of Stoke City fans.

"Return to defense! Everyone return to defense! Don't let even a mosquito fly into our penalty area!"

Mourinho encouraged his disciples with unconcealed excitement.

Mark Hughes, who was standing not far from him, only felt noisy and headache when he heard his words.

The situation on the field suddenly changed. Chelsea became the active defender, while Stoke City became the active attacker.

Unfortunately, Stoke City did not have a strong offensive point that could stably tear open Chelsea's defense, nor a midfield core that could break the offensive and defensive balance on the field.

So they got nothing except a long shot attempt in the remaining time of the first half.

With a one-goal lead, all Chelsea players entered the halftime break with satisfaction.

When the second half started, Mark Hughes saw that Chelsea was still in a posture of defending, and his heart was cold.

Mourinho certainly could defend the entire game with only one goal ahead.

Not only could he do this, he had done it many times, and he could do it very well!

So Mark Hughes was anxious, and the players of Stoke City were anxious too.

Even in the first fifteen minutes of the second half, Stoke City was still calm.

But once the match time exceeded 60 minutes, Stoke City no longer had the qualifications to negotiate with Chelsea.

Stoke City began to press forward and attack aggressively.

De Bruyne also drew his sword in the 77th minute of the second half!

When he used an over-the-top diagonal pass of more than 30 meters to help Ibrahimovic to go to the meeting alone, expanding the team's lead to two goals, the suspense of the game was completely ended.

After the game, it was not Hazard and Ibrahimovic who scored the goal who were named the best players of the game.

It was Li Ang who played more on the defensive end than the offensive end throughout the game!

Contributed six effective interceptions, eleven steals, one key clearance, 84 passes in total, 77 successful passes, about 92% pass success rate, plus two threatening passes and one assist...

Li Ang's perfect offensive and defensive performance once again impressed countless Premier League fans.

For the entire Chelsea team, after entering the semi-finals of this season's League Cup, it is time for them to set a small goal for the season.

Let's get a League Cup championship first!

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Starting From Playing as a Defensive Midfielder for Real MadridCh.228/445 [51.24%]