Chapter 1006 Masters Game
Because of the goal conceded in the final moments, Manchester United players were not in a very good mood when they left the field. Most of them walked hurriedly with their heads down.
The Real Madrid players, on the other hand, were still chatting as they walked on. They must have been looking forward to the second half, how to equalize the score and continue chasing Manchester United and achieve revenge.
Now it seems that Manchester United's goal in the first eleven minutes was just an illusion. Their players must have exhausted all their energy in the intensive schedule, and Real Madrid was actually frightened by Manchester United's aggressive attack at the beginning. Thinking about it now is really... embarrassing.
But it doesn't matter, everything will return to normal in the second half.
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During the halftime break, in the home team's locker room, Mourinho did not criticize Maguire for his mistake. Instead, he praised the team's performance in the first half. This surprised the players, who thought a storm was waiting for them. Many of them sat down with their necks hunched and heads lowered, expecting to be scolded, but they didn't.
Mourinho simply asked everyone a question: "Now, how many people still believe we can beat them?"
Bruno was the first to raise his hand: "I believe it."
"Okay, tell me why you still believe it?" Mourinho called Bruno's name.
Bruno didn't refuse the politeness and stood up and said, "I don't know if you noticed, at the end of the first half, the Real Madrid players came off the field talking and laughing. What does this mean? It means they were very relaxed and felt that the game had returned to the rhythm they wanted. They must have thought that if they put even a little pressure on us in the second half, we would collapse."
"If they really think so, then it's good news for us. Because this goal was just bad luck for us and it doesn't mean anything. Our performance in other aspects was impeccable, so I firmly believe that as long as we continue to play like we scored in the first half, we will score again and we will definitely win."
After saying that, Bruno sat down.
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Mourinho looked at him, smiled, nodded, and said, "Yes, Bruno is right. This is what I want to tell you, don't lose confidence easily. The reason why I want to praise you is not to encourage you, but you really deserve my praise. The goal in the first half made me see a united and invincible Manchester United. I am very happy, guys, if we keep playing like this, there is no championship we can't win!"
After verbally praising and encouraging the players, Mourinho did not just talk big, he also made some adjustments and more detailed arrangements to the tactics for the second half.
For example, Real Madrid had just equalized and were on a tear. Ancelotti might have pushed his team to attack with all their might in the second half, aiming to completely crush Manchester United. After all, Real Madrid's pre-match slogan was revenge, both for the night in Kiev four years ago and for their Champions League quarter-final defeat to Manchester United two years ago.
Since it is revenge, then we must adopt a revengeful attitude. Now that the team has equalized the score, why can't Real Madrid attack and defeat Manchester United in one fell swoop?
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Real Madrid is going to attack with all their might, and most people would think of countering them with a counterattack, but Mourinho is not an ordinary person.
Mourinho is called a "madman" and is famous for his personality, and there is a reason for that.
Although Mourinho has always given people the impression of being conservative, and his "Mourinho Bus" is even more famous in the world of football, when necessary, Mourinho is absolutely willing to go all out, even to the point of being crazy. He has used four or even five forwards, not to mention tit-for-tat attacks with the opponent.
Therefore, facing Real Madrid who intended to press forward and attack, the tactics Mourinho formulated for Manchester United were not defensive counterattacks.
"Let's fight them!"
"In the second half, I hope each of you will double your running, use more active running and cover a larger area to seize opportunities. When Real Madrid attacks, their defense will definitely face tremendous pressure, and the current Real Madrid defense cannot withstand this kind of pressure. As long as we keep putting pressure on them, they will collapse!"
Mourinho said this through gritting his teeth, and his players felt a warm current flowing through their bodies.
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After the two sides changed sides in the second half, as Mourinho analyzed, Real Madrid, who had equalized the score, were in high spirits and launched an attack on Manchester United soon after the start of the game.
Manchester United did not show any weakness and launched an offensive against Real Madrid.
What is ultimately being compared in an offensive confrontation is not the stability of the defense. In an offensive confrontation, there will definitely be mistakes in defense, resulting in goals being lost, but at this time, no one will care about losing the ball. What everyone is competing for is who has a stronger attacking power and who can score a goal sooner.
In this regard, Mourinho is still very confident in his team.
Ancelotti did not expect that Manchester United could still press forward and fight against Real Madrid, which had intensified its offensive. After the initial surprise, he was relieved - this was exactly what he wanted.
Isn’t it just about who can score more goals?
In this regard, Ancelotti is also very confident in his team and tactics.
The two sides started to attack each other as soon as the second half began, which first made the Chinese fans who stayed up late to watch the game very happy. Regardless of the result, the good scene made them not feel sleepy at all.
The happiest people were the supporters of Real Madrid. When they saw Manchester United pressing forward in their home stadium against the fierce attack of Real Madrid, those Real Madrid fans who could not go to the scene to cheer for the team waved their fists in front of the TV.
The excited voice of the Spanish commentator came from the TV: "Manchester United chose to play against Real Madrid in their own home stadium. This is not a good choice. You know, Real Madrid's fast break is very sharp. As long as there is a chance, Real Madrid will definitely not show mercy!"
Lineker was a little worried, thinking that it was not very wise to attack against the morale-boosting Real Madrid in this way, because investing so much energy in the attack would inevitably lead to too many gaps behind him. What if Madrid seized the opportunity and lost the ball again?
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The Manchester United players on the field will not hear the doubts and concerns from the commentators. They continue to walk on the edge of what many people consider to be a "danger zone".
Compared to the first half, the speed of each Manchester United player's passing and receiving the ball increased. Often after three passes, the ball would reach the center circle.
Bruno got the ball here. As soon as he received it, he passed the ball to Greenwood on the wing.
After passing the ball, he ran towards Greenwood and made a gesture to cooperate with Greenwood.
Bruno's move attracted the attention of Real Madrid's defensive players. Casemiro was the first to come up, and Ferland Mendy, who was originally defending Greenwood in front, couldn't help but turn his eyes to Bruno.
Although it was only a moment, it was enough in Greenwood's opinion.
As the number one player in the world of football and the absolute core of Manchester United, Bruno has such a deterrent power in the opponent's half!
Greenwood took advantage of the moment when Ferland Mendy's attention was not focused on him, and suddenly pushed the ball to the outside with the outside of his right foot, then accelerated!
By the time Ferland Mendy reacted, Greenwood had already rushed past him. When he turned around, it was difficult for him to increase his speed.
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Greenwood rushed towards the penalty area of Real Madrid!
Greenwood's breakthrough immediately caused a chain reaction in Real Madrid's defense. Varane rushed towards him, reducing Real Madrid's defensive strength in the penalty area.
In addition, Harry Kane also cooperated very well and pressed towards the front of Real Madrid's goal, bringing Alaba back.
Rashford cut into the penalty area from the left and stuck Carvajal to his side.
Casemiro, who was originally following Bruno, also had all his attention attracted by Greenwood's sudden breakthrough. When he turned around and looked back at Greenwood, Bruno suddenly started from behind him and headed towards the penalty area!
Greenwood keenly observed Bruno's forward run, and he quickly passed the ball back with an inverted triangle pass. The ball was passed very accurately to the side and front of Bruno's running route.
Bruno adjusted his pace slightly while sprinting, swung his right foot and kicked the football directly. This was not a hard shot with the instep straightened, but a shot that cut the football with the inside of his right foot!
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"Bruno--!!!" He Wei shouted excitedly. Is Bruno going to score?
The ball arced in the air and flew directly to the upper right corner of the goal. Courtois jumped into the air, stretched his body as much as possible, and pounced on the ball.
But he failed to catch the ball, because the football did not hit the goal frame, but hit the outside of the goal post and flew out of the bottom line!
"Oh——!" A cry of surprise came from the stands.
"Oh! What a pity!" He Wei held his head in his hands when he said this in the studio.
There have been rumors that he is a Real Madrid fan. Regardless of whether the rumors are true or not, at least at this moment, he did not act like a Real Madrid fan at all.
"Bruno's direct shot was beautiful, with a clear arc, but he was just too focused on the angle, so it went wide... Alas! What a shame!"
Lineker also exclaimed: "Bruno! He almost took the lead for Manchester United again!"
