Chapter 1013 Everyone Has a Chance

"Toni Kroos! Not offside! One-on-one!" the Spanish commentator shouted at the top of his lungs.

Toni Kroos, who was in a one-on-one situation, shot a low left-foot shot from fifteen meters away from the goal, and the ball went straight into the far corner.

De Gea made a desperate move but this time he failed to touch the ball. The ball did not roll into the goal but instead brushed past the post and went out!

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Toni Kroos! Toni Kroos!" The Spanish commentator held his head in his hands, almost unable to believe his eyes.

How could such a good opportunity be missed?

Toni Kroos, whose shot missed, also held his head in his hands and stared at the place where the football went wide-eyed.

"That was a close call! That was a close call!" The fans in front of the TV could almost hear Lineker patting his chest.

As a former top professional player, Lineker could see that although the Manchester United coach and captain Bruno had reminded the players to be careful when playing away against Real Madrid, most of the Manchester United players did not actually listen to the coach and captain's words because of the huge advantage they had gained at home in the first leg.

They were clearly unprepared for the difficulty of today's game!

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Far away in the East, CCTV commentator He Wei was also saying: "Real Madrid had three consecutive one-on-one chances in the opening period, but they were unable to capitalize on them."

"But three times is enough. Manchester United must be extra careful. Although none of the three goals were scored, it also shows from another perspective that Manchester United's defense has given the opponent three such good opportunities."

"Can they be lucky three times, or four times? Van Dijk should also be careful. Before Toni Kroos's shot, the entanglement between him and Vinicius in the penalty area was too dangerous..."

"The game had only been going on for fifteen minutes, and Real Madrid had three one-on-one chances. But they also squandered all three of them... Manchester United shouldn't be too happy too soon. It's a shame Real Madrid didn't take the lead right away. But if Manchester United doesn't get into the game quickly, I'm afraid Real Madrid's offensive attacks will continue."

"As long as they keep playing like this, scoring a goal will happen sooner or later. This is their home ground after all, and the performance of Real Madrid players is almost like two different teams compared to the last round..."

It can be seen that Real Madrid is definitely not just talking about making a comeback at home. If the Manchester United team is not mentally prepared enough, it is possible that they will collapse!

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Because the pace of the game was so fast, after Toni Kroos's shot missed, the TV broadcast finally found an opportunity to replay the close-up slow-motion footage of Van Dijk and Vinicius having physical contact in the penalty area.

Different people have different interpretations of this slow-motion shot. The Spanish commentator was very certain that Van Dijk committed a foul and it should be a penalty.

His evidence was that Van Dijk made a very obvious movement to push Vinicius, and it was this movement that caused Vinicius to lose his balance and fall to the ground.

Since there was physical contact and the causal relationship is clear, why can't Van Dijk be called for a foul?

However, British commentator Lineker believed that although there was physical contact between the two players, Vinicius's fall was too exaggerated and suspected of diving. Whether Van Dijk's squeeze was strong enough to cause Vinicius to fall like that is worth discussing.

Of course, he did not deny that Van Dijk did have physical contact with Vinicius, which was very dangerous. He was lucky this time, but he might not be so lucky next time.

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When Real Madrid was frantically besieging Manchester United's goal, what Manchester United fans were most worried about was that the team would not be able to withstand it and lose a goal, which would be the end of it.

However, after fending off Real Madrid's "three-pronged attack"—literally three-pronged attack, with three one-on-one chances—Manchester United also tried to counterattack. Rashford and Greenwood had chances to shoot, but both were saved by Courtois.

After the opening three-shot attack, Real Madrid still had a strong offensive momentum, but they never had any offensive opportunities as good as those three one-on-one chances.

In the 20th minute, Mbappe passed the ball and Benzema shot from the edge of the penalty area on the left, but the ball missed the near corner.

In the 25th minute, Toni Kroos forced a breakthrough and passed the ball back from the left side of the penalty area. Mbappe's powerful shot from the edge of the penalty area was blocked by De Gea again.

After missing three chances at the start, there were no more good opportunities left. The Real Madrid players became a little impatient and made more and more aggressive moves in defense.

De Gea's pre-match advice to Bruno came true. As the core of Manchester United and the initiator of counterattacks, he was naturally "attended" by the Real Madrid players. To ensure he didn't get injured, Bruno sometimes had to give up possession.

Of course, he would not let the opponent steal the ball directly from his feet. When encountering pressure, he would always kick the ball out of the sideline or try to kick it to a place where there was no one in the Real Madrid backcourt. Even if Manchester United players could not receive the ball, letting Real Madrid players chase it could waste some time and give Manchester United players a chance to return to defense.

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In addition to Bruno, Harry Kane, who scored a hat trick in the last game, was also favored by Real Madrid players in this game. Nacho received the first yellow card of the game for fouling Harry Kane.

When Osato showed Nacho the yellow card, the Bernabeu Stadium stands booed loudly, and the Spanish commentator also complained: "If Nacho deserves this yellow card, then Van Dijk should not be spared!"

They are still upset about Van Dijk's foul.

Thinking about it now, I should have felt resentful about it, perhaps even more so.

Because if that foul had been called, Real Madrid would have been awarded a penalty kick. After Benzema scored the penalty kick, they would have been one goal ahead, and the mentality and situation would have been completely different.

And with a relaxed attitude, Nacho's yellow card wouldn't even have happened...

As the victim of that foul, Vinicius was also very angry. In the fight with Manchester United players, his movements were inevitably a little bigger, so he also received a yellow card.

Of course, Manchester United were not exactly gentlemen either. Both starting defensive midfielders Gundogan and Kante were given yellow cards.

The first half hadn't even ended yet and two players from each side had received yellow cards, which shows how intense the game was.

Especially for Manchester United, both of their defensive midfielders received yellow cards, which was disadvantageous to Manchester United. In the second half, Real Madrid could have taken advantage of this and gained control of the midfield.

It can be said that the yellow cards given to these two players may have laid the groundwork for some special situations in the second half!

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Until the referee Osato blew the whistle to end the first half, neither side had scored a goal and the score was fixed at 0:0.

There were only 60 minutes left until Manchester United reached the Champions League final for the fifth consecutive year, and Real Madrid only had an hour to create a miracle!

"At the end of the first half, no one was able to score a goal. Overall, Real Madrid had far more chances than Manchester United, but they didn't seize any of them. I wonder if these wasted opportunities will make Real Madrid regret it after the game. If they had seized one of these opportunities, the situation might have been very different..." The Spanish commentator said with regret.

In the Real Madrid locker room, Ancelotti is cheering on his team.

It is such a pity that we didn't score a goal in the first half, but now is not the time to discuss how the first half went. The key is to let the players focus on the second half. The most important thing is how to score three goals in a row in the second half.

"...I know we've been through a lot this season, and that these things have created a gap between us. But at this moment, I hope everyone will put all the gaps aside and fight for the team emblem on your chest. At this moment, each of you is a warrior! Treat the second half as a war, a war that requires bloodshed and sacrifice to win!"

The team's captain, Marcelo, stood up from his seat, waved his fist and said to his teammates: "We must fight to the end, guys! Prove to those who are waiting to see us laugh that Real Madrid will not be defeated! Let's go out and tell them! Why Real Madrid is the most successful team in the history of the Champions League!"

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The atmosphere in Real Madrid's locker room quickly became heated and everyone was cheering.

At the same time, the atmosphere in Manchester United's locker room was rather heavy.

In the first half of the game, Manchester United was clearly at a disadvantage, which made every Manchester United player cautious.

Mourinho said to his players with a serious expression, "There are still 45 minutes left in the game. Stability is more important than anything else. Remember, time is on our side. Every passing minute and second will make Real Madrid anxious. Don't make any mistakes, and all that's left is to wait for the game to end. Patience and stability are above all else!"

There were no shouting slogans or excited crowds, and the players' biggest movement was just a nod.

At the start of the second half, both sides changed sides and no one made any substitutions.

In the 49th minute, Rashford made a cross from the left, and Harry Kane was unguarded in the penalty area. He shot from more than ten meters away from the goal, but the ball went over the crossbar.

Although the ball did not go in, it scared many Real Madrid fans into breaking out in a cold sweat.

When Harry Kane shot, there were exclamations and screams in the stands of the Bernabeu Stadium.

"Harry Kane! He almost scored! Real Madrid's defense made another mistake at this time. How could Harry Kane be left unguarded?" He Wei said.