Chapter 599: Fighting Liverpool again, the pinnacle battle at Anfield

In the 21st round of the Premier League, Manchester City's winning streak finally came to an end.

In the away game against Crystal Palace, Manchester City once again encountered the opponent's intensive defense.

Since they maintained a winning streak in the Premier League, almost all the mid-to-lower teams they encountered have used this trick against them.

Everyone seems to have no hope of defeating Manchester City and only hopes to get a draw.

Relying on defense to win a draw is the most effective method.

Newcastle United failed in the last game, but Crystal Palace succeeded.

At the end of the game, the two teams were tied 0:0. Manchester City was denied a clean sheet by its opponent for the first time since the start of the new season.

This game was very boring in terms of the scene, process and final result.

But the Crystal Palace fans watched with gusto. The moment the referee blew the final whistle, Shelhurst Park Stadium erupted in enthusiastic cheers.

They acted as if they had won a great battle!
For an ordinary team like Crystal Palace, it is indeed a commendable thing to end the leader's 18-game winning streak. Before them, so many giants in the Premier League had never done it, but they did it!
During this period, whenever there is a Manchester City game, it will almost be scheduled to be on the front pages of major media.

But the difference is that in the past, media reporters' reports focused on who Manchester City defeated so and so, and how many games they set the Premier League's largest winning streak record.

But this time, when Manchester City was tied and their winning streak was ended, the major media outlets were like sharks smelling blood. They did not skimp on their space. They not only used front-page headlines to report, but also specially replaced them with bold and bold words. Bold font size!
While Manchester City is advancing all the way, the fans have become somewhat numb in the endless media reports.

As if seeing Manchester City win is a matter of course, on the contrary, Manchester City losing or drawing is the real big news.

Therefore, this kind of reporting method by major media immediately attracted the attention of readers!
They know journalism!

"Manchester City has finally stopped. If we keep winning, I will almost get tired of it!"

"Who says it isn't? How lonely it is to be invincible. It's really boring to watch too many games like this!"

"Haha, Manchester City's winning streak has just been terminated. They are still undefeated. I wonder who has the ability to give Manchester City a defeat!"

"I think both Tottenham and Liverpool have a chance!"

Tottenham and Liverpool are both teams with a very strong upward momentum in the past two seasons, especially Tottenham, which has now been promoted to the BIG6 of the Premier League and is favored by many people.

"Why not Manchester United or Chelsea? These two teams are currently ranked second and third in the standings!"

"Forget it about Manchester United. When was the last time they defeated Manchester City? As for Chelsea, I feel like their style is a bit overpowered by this Manchester City team!"

Since Ferguson retired, Manchester United's record against Manchester City has been terrible. They have almost never won, and have even been defeated twice in the league for several consecutive seasons.

Their occasional wins only come in cup competitions such as the League Cup or FA Cup, and the gold content is not very high, so it is normal for fans not to be optimistic about them.

As for Chelsea, Chelsea's record this season is actually not bad, but it is far from as strong as last year.

The Chelsea team that won more than ten games in a row last year was very strong on both offense and defense. It only lost to Manchester City in terms of goals scored. Its defensive intensity was higher than that of Manchester City. It was the team that conceded the fewest goals in the entire Premier League.

But this year's Chelsea don't feel that momentum at all.

Moreover, in recent years, apart from winning against Manchester City once last year due to controversial referee decisions, Chelsea have either been defeated or tied by Manchester City at other times, making it difficult to take advantage.

Although Chelsea is still the top team in the Premier League in terms of hard power, it is difficult for them to pose a threat to Manchester City.

Compared with Chelsea and Manchester United, teams like Liverpool are crazy because of their large number of young players and their aggressive playing style. Once they gain momentum, even Manchester City can be defeated by them.

But the shortcomings of this Liverpool team are still quite obvious. Their defense is not stable and they lack a talisman.

Scoring goals is not a problem for Liverpool. The problem is whether they can hold on to their advantage and not be equalized or even reversed by their opponents. Don't let the forwards score a few goals with difficulty in front, and the defense loses more than they score due to a few mistakes. , then it’s pills!
This is also the reason why Klopp is willing to spend a lot of money to sign Van Dijk.

If Van Dijk really joins Liverpool, he can bring a qualitative improvement to Liverpool's defense.

……

第21轮的10场比赛中，一共出现了6场平局，除了曼城和水晶宫的这场平局之外，曼联主场0:0战平南安普敦、阿森纳客场1:1战平西布罗姆维奇、热刺主场1:1西汉姆联。

Among the BIG6 of the Premier League, only Chelsea and Liverpool have won this round.

Because Manchester United also tied, Manchester City's lead over Manchester United has not been reduced. On the contrary, because of Manchester United's recent three consecutive draws, their lead has further expanded to 15 points.

If this continues, Manchester City may win the championship six or seven games ahead of schedule.

Fortunately, Manchester United finally stopped their decline in the 22nd round and defeated their younger brother Everton 2:0 in the away game.

Thanks to the fact that we met Everton, if we had met other teams, it might not have been this result.

Just like Southampton in the last round. This is Liverpool's younger brother. If it encounters Big Brother's mortal enemy, it will definitely be kicked to death and there will be no mercy.

Therefore, Jianghu is not about fighting and killing, but about human relations.

Although Manchester City has gained momentum in recent years, their historical accumulation and foundation in the Premier League are still not as good as those of several established giants. Therefore, at this time, Manchester City does not have any true younger brothers.

Of course, as Manchester City's own youth training system continues to improve, it will definitely maintain closer ties with many teams in the Premier League in terms of the loan of young players and the transfer of main players in the future.

At that time, teams will naturally gradually move closer to Manchester City because of interests and cooperation.

The prerequisite is that Manchester City can remain stable. A short-lived team is not called a giant.

Manchester United won, and Manchester City naturally won too.

After being held to a draw by Crystal Palace, not only did Manchester City not suffer a blow, but it was as if some shackles had been removed from their shoulders. The players' state and spirit were more relaxed, and they played better.

This round they were at home and easily took away Watford 3:0, still maintaining a 15-point lead over Manchester United.

This season, there is not much suspense about the Premier League championship, but the competition for the Champions League is unprecedentedly fierce. Although Manchester United cannot catch up with Manchester City in points, it has firmly maintained its second place.

After Manchester United, Chelsea came from behind and with the outstanding performance of the Christmas Express, they successively surpassed Tottenham and Liverpool and rose to third place.

Liverpool is currently ranked fourth, Tottenham is temporarily ranked fifth, and Arsenal has fallen to sixth place.

Since Tottenham's strong rise, it has become increasingly difficult for Arsenal to get a Champions League spot. It seems that only one of these two North London teams is destined to make it to the Champions League.

From second place Manchester United to fourth place Liverpool, the points difference between the three teams is not much. Manchester United is only 3 points ahead of Liverpool and 1 point ahead of Chelsea.

As long as a game is not played well, this ranking will change.

The 23rd round is the time when such changes may occur.

The highlight of this round is undoubtedly the match between Liverpool and Manchester City at home.

As the team that the outside world is most optimistic about breaking Manchester City's unbeaten streak, Liverpool's morale is high when playing at home, and the desire for revenge can be seen on everyone's face!

In the fourth round of this season, Manchester City defeated Liverpool 6-0 at home, giving Liverpool a very painful defeat.

It even almost nailed Liverpool to the pillar of shame in history!

The consequences of this game were very serious, making Liverpool unable to find their form. The previous league games were stumbling, and the results were hard to describe.

If it hadn't been for a poor start, Liverpool wouldn't have so few points now.

At the beginning of this season, their goal was the Premier League championship!
Compared with the sharp-edged Liverpool, Manchester City is like a sharp sword that has not yet been drawn out of its sheath, with restrained murderous intent and no hint of it.

Anfield Stadium is the famous home stadium of the Premier League. No matter what team comes here as a guest, it will be frightening.

But for Manchester City, they conquered this stadium not once or twice.

Although Liverpool, supported by home BUFF, is strong, it is not so strong that it is difficult to defeat.

A few years ago they were able to stage reversals here and come back again, and finally beat Liverpool and escape unscathed, and they can still do it this time.

But today's Liverpool seems a little different from the past few years. They are even crazier.

Everyone in the entire Premier League knows that Manchester City's offensive firepower is fierce, and they must rely on defense to limit them and not give them the opportunity to attack wantonly, otherwise a tragedy is likely to occur.

But Liverpool, playing at home, decided to go in the opposite direction and fight against Manchester City.

This is Anfield. If you don’t have the courage to fight against yourself, then Liverpool is not Liverpool!

So what if you are the leader, what if you are number one in the world?
When you come to Anfield, no matter you are a dragon or a tiger, you have to be honest!

Manchester United was so powerful in the Ferguson era, almost to the point of dominating the Premier League, but Liverpool still had no fear. Every time there was a double-red meeting at Anfield, they would fight to the death with the Red Devils, leaving the Red Devils without any advantage. .

This time is no exception, it’s just a change of clothes and a name!
No matter if you call it Manchester United or Manchester City, as long as it is a Manchester team, you will die!

After the opening, Liverpool relied on their home advantage and launched a fierce attack on Manchester City with the crazy cheers and cheers of more than 50,000 fans at home.

In the ninth minute, Chamberlain, who was the biggest scapegoat for the 0:6 defeat in the previous game, stepped forward. When Liverpool succeeded in pressing in the midfield, Chamberlain dribbled the ball forward quickly and found the target amid almost four players from Manchester City. He found the only shooting route and used a very fast low shot that hit the dead corner and scored the first goal of the game for both sides!

Chamberlain was very excited after the goal. He just transferred from Arsenal at the beginning of the season. He was questioned by the fans because of that disastrous defeat. For him, this game was a revenge game for him and the team.

And he did it!
Chamberlain's goal further ignited the atmosphere.

Liverpool fans became even more enthusiastic, their cheers became louder, and the classic Liverpool anthem "Never Walk Alone" even rang out over the stadium.

The Liverpool fans were singing loudly. This was their battle for revenge. One goal was not enough, they needed more.

So, run, charge, use the Red Army's unstoppable attack to tear apart the opponent's defense and humiliate them severely!
Infected by the atmosphere at the scene, the Liverpool fans on the field became more motivated and ran and fought harder.

The pace of the game has become very fast, and both sides have achieved the ultimate in offensive and defensive transitions. The two sides may have been fighting in the midfield a second ago.

The next second, after stealing the ball, Liverpool quickly hit Manchester City's penalty area and formed a threatening shot.

And Manchester City is not a vegetarian. After Liverpool's shot was resolved, Ederson, the goalkeeper, was the first point of attack and the initiator of the attack. After he quickly threw the ball to his teammates, the midfielder made a clean kick. After passing the ball, the ball immediately hit Liverpool's penalty area.

The wingers Mbappe and Sane came in at high speed, and even Aguero in the center was already outflanked and could shoot directly.

The goalkeepers of both teams were very busy today, because the fighting between both sides was very fierce. Under the sports battle and fierce fighting, both sides made many mistakes.

The tactics of both teams today are to play fast break, without too much entanglement in the midfield, and pass the ball directly to the feet of the forwards, allowing them to attack the opponent's defense that has not yet been fully recovered.

The slight difference is that Liverpool mainly plays on both sides of the wing, using the left and right wing cuts or crosses to form shots.

Manchester City, on the other hand, can not only attack quickly from the wing, but also advance through the middle with passing control, and its offensive methods are more abundant.

Neither team seemed to have very good luck today. At 30 minutes into the first half, the score was still 1:0, but both teams had already hit three goal frames.

For Manchester City, Sane contributed once and Lin Quan also contributed once.

On Liverpool's side, Mane also hit the post.

If all three goals had been scored, there might have been four goals in the first half.

However, what should come will eventually come. In the 41st minute of the first half, it was also a quick counterattack after forcing and stealing the ball from the center. When Lin Quan dribbled the ball forward, he avoided the opponent's tightly defended center.

Passing the ball to the wing, Sane caught the ball and passed it continuously. After entering the penalty area, he hit the near corner and succeeded, rewriting the score to 1:1.
Before the end of the first half, Manchester City tenaciously equalized the score.

However, the really crazy moments are yet to come! ! (End of chapter)