Chapter 693: 2 Stunning Blows

Bruno was a little out of breath after the continuous acceleration, dribbling and changing directions. He felt a little depressed when he walked back.

He knew that he was being closely monitored by Schalke 04.

This kind of targeted defense with multiple people double-teaming is really a headache.

Just now, after he got rid of Bugstadler, McKennie's steal was very timely. If it was a second slower, Bruno would have been able to change direction and not cut in laterally, but go straight forward diagonally.

Horizontal and diagonal insertion, these are two completely different effects. At the very least, Bruno has to change direction and insert straight after the horizontal insertion.

I have to say that Schalke 04's defense is really meticulous.

Bruno turned his head and glanced at the bearded man in front of the visiting team's coaching booth on the sidelines.

Tedesco looked to be in good spirits, and smiled an obnoxious smile as he watched his team fend off a Manchester United attack.

He must be happy that his targeted defensive tactics worked, Bruno thought.

Bruno could feel that Schalke 04's defensive focus had always been on himself and Harry Kane, and both were relatively successful, which directly led to Manchester United's passivity after the opening.

How to do?

If they continue to play like this, if Schalke 04 really scores first, Manchester United will be in a passive position.

We must find a way to break their defense!

Bruno was looking for opportunities.

………………

Soon, Schalke 04 launched another attack on Manchester United. Embolo made a very threatening long shot, which just brushed the post and went out of the bottom line, shocking everyone in the Cardiff Millennium Stadium.

The goal almost went in!

Bruno also got a chance soon. This time he suddenly appeared in the left side of the midfield and received the ball. He quickly rushed forward with the ball, got ahead of McKennie, and passed the ball to Harry Kane accurately. But when the English striker kicked the ball, he was disturbed by the Schalke 04 defender and missed the target. He kicked the ball off target, which was a bit outrageous.

Harry Kane was also very depressed because he was trapped by two players.

Bruno knew that the failure of this attack was largely due to the fact that Manchester United's midfield retreated too far back after the start of the game, which resulted in the team's front center being empty during the counterattack. If Gundogan could quickly get forward, with his long-range shooting ability...

Thinking of this, Bruno did not forget to wink at Gundogan when he ran back to his own half.

The two have been working together for more than two years. Bruno has passed the ball to Gundogan many times, and Gundogan has also assisted Bruno many times. They have a good understanding of each other. Bruno just gave a wink, and Gundogan guessed his intention. After hesitating for a moment, he nodded.

Bruno then made another gesture to Harry Kane.

………………

Tedesco's team did a good job in overall offense and defense, very efficient and fast. They were able to quickly attack and quickly retreat when defending.

When Manchester United intercepted the ball again and launched a counterattack, when Bruno received the ball on the left, Konoplyanka was already in front of him, and next to him was Van Hoomoeth.

With just one glance, Bruno could guess that it was impossible for him to break through the right-wing defense of these two players by himself, not to mention that there was McKennie who was eyeing him covetously next to him.

But this time, Bruno wanted to attract attention. So he quickly started after receiving the ball and rushed directly to Burgstadler with the ball, forcing Schalke 04's defense to retreat again and again.

When retreating to the 30-meter area, Bruno suddenly did a bicycle kick, but did not pass the opponent. Instead, he feinted and changed direction to cut inside with the ball.

McKennie rushed forward quickly, but Bruno was faster and pushed the ball to the middle with his right foot.

A flash of lightning suddenly flashed through the American midfielder's mind: Oops! I've been tricked!

………………

When Kante and Gundogan saw Bruno dribbling towards Bugstärer, they immediately understood Bruno's intention.

This time, Gundogan, who was in the best position, quickly rushed to the front of the penalty area. He believed that Bruno must be able to bring the ball out and pass it to him.

This is his confidence in Bruno after the two sides have been partners for more than two years!

As it turns out, Bruno rarely disappoints. When Gundogan just rushed into the 30-meter area, he saw Bruno shake off Bugstärler and pass the ball to him before McKennie.

If it were someone else, they would definitely curse at this time: Damn, couldn't you pass the ball closer? But in the game, Gundogan didn't have time to think about it and chased after him at his fastest speed.

As a passer, he knew very well that Bruno's pass was definitely not that simple.

When Gundogan caught up with the ball, he suddenly realized why Bruno passed the ball here. Because when he received the ball, he was a little distance away from Serdar. Stambury and Sane were restrained by Harry Kane, and a channel was completely opened in the middle of Schalke 04.

After Gundogan stopped the ball in front of him with his right foot, he quickly chased after it and shot it with a powerful right foot.

The entire stadium was filled with the sound of a muffled "bang". Before anyone could react, they saw the ball flying into the goal guarded by Schalke 04 goalkeeper Feldmann at an extremely fast speed.

Schalke 04 goalkeeper Feldmann didn't even have time to react. He just bent his body slightly and the ball flew into the goal behind him!

………………

"GOOOOOOOOOOOALLLLLL!!!!!"

"Gündogan!"

“The ball goes in!!!”

"1:0! A quick counterattack from Manchester United, Bruno assisted Gundogan to score, a very exciting long shot from meters away!"

The German had a very strong feeling when he kicked the ball, he knew the ball was in!

When he saw the ball fly into Schalke 04's goal, he quickly rushed out of the court and ran to the sidelines to celebrate the goal.

Before joining Manchester United, Gundogan played for Dortmund. The Bundesliga Hornets and Schalke 04 are sworn enemies, and the Ruhr derby between the two is considered the hottest derby in the Bundesliga.

Now, although he has joined Manchester United, he still doesn't have a good attitude towards Schalke 04.

The most important thing is that this is a goal in the Champions League knockout stage!

Gundogan is so happy that he is going crazy!

Manchester United players also came over and surrounded Bruno and Gundogan, celebrating the German midfielder's key goal, which will greatly relieve Manchester United's pressure.

"The person they want to focus on is me. I will be responsible for breaking up their defense. You guys run and fight like this to kill them!" After Bruno's plan succeeded, he became more confident.

The teammates all nodded, obviously realizing that this was an opportunity.

The main reason was that Schalke 04 pressed too close.

………………

Ruined!

Tedesco felt a little dizzy, as if he had been hit on the head with a club.

In the first ten minutes of the game, Schalke 04 had an overwhelming advantage, but unexpectedly they lost a goal suddenly.

What should we do now? Just retreat? We were so close to scoring just now. It would be a pity to retreat now, and all our efforts would be wasted.

But if you don't go back, what if you lose the ball again?

Under normal circumstances, the coach's choice at this time must be to stabilize the defense first and then slowly wait for the opportunity. But Tedesco has no way out, so his choice is to continue to gamble.

The Schalke 04 players were obviously also angry about the goal they conceded, because they had the advantage and almost scored several times, but in the end Manchester United scored first. How could they accept this?

So, the head coach did not stop them, and they launched an even more crazy counterattack.

On the football field, calmness and rationality are the most important things on the field. Statistics show that in a football match, the ten minutes after a goal is the peak time for scoring another goal. Either the team that lost the goal will counterattack and score a goal, or the team that scored the goal will take advantage of the opponent's loopholes to score another goal and expand the score advantage.

But it is also possible that the team that lost the goal launched a crazy counterattack but failed to score a goal, and was instead counterattacked by the opponent, just like Manchester United did this time.

………………

After Bruno received the ball on the left rib, he passed it diagonally to Harry Kane on the left.

After the England center forward pulled out the Schalke 04 defender, he passed the ball back to the left side to Rashford who was coming up from the back row.

After receiving the ball, Rashford passed it to Bruno who was running to the middle.

Bruno blocked McKennie with his body, faced the ball with his left foot, and gently passed it behind Sane.

At this time, Mbappe suddenly appeared behind Sane, caught up with the ball, and shot directly from the top of the penalty area. The ball went over the head of goalkeeper Fährmann and fell into the goal of Schalke 04.

2: 0!

“GOOOOOOOOOOOALLLLLLLL!!!!!”

"Five minutes, five minutes! Manchester United scored two goals in five minutes, both assisted by Bruno!"

"My God, he was clearly facing the middle, but how did he see Mbappe coming from the back? Does Bruno have a pair of eyes on the back of his head?"

"It was a very clever pass, it went in an arc, past Sane, and all Mbappe had to do was shoot."

"With an assist from Bruno, Mbappe's long shot from the edge of the penalty area once again penetrated the goal of Schalke 04!"

"2:0!"

Mbappe rushed out of the stadium first, and Manchester United players followed him to celebrate the team's goal.

Others also congratulated him and were full of admiration for Bruno's assist. It was totally unexpected, because he was facing the left side to receive the ball and had no way of seeing Bruno behind him, but he passed the ball and it was just right.

To say that this was a coincidence is too far-fetched, but to say that he did it on purpose is also a bit unbelievable.

Bruno didn't explain. Sometimes, it's a good thing to maintain some mystery.