Chapter 240 Ricardo Liqi's first Premier League goal, Part

In the stands of the Manchester derby, old Schmeichel, who once played for both clubs in Manchester, Manchester United star Roy Keane, who will lead Sunderland to face his old club the Red Devils early next month, and new Manchester City owner Thaksin were all watching.

Needless to say, the former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin, who has not yet been imprisoned, is a recent celebrity.

Thaksin Shinawatra was born on July 1949, 7 in Chiang Mai, Thailand. He is a fourth-generation Chinese. His Chinese name is Qiu Daxin and his ancestral home is Chaozhou City, Guangdong Province.

On February 2001, 2, he was elected as the 9rd Prime Minister of Thailand, becoming the first prime minister in Thai history to serve a full four-year term and the first prime minister to be re-elected through elections. On September 23, 2006, the Thai military launched a coup and Thaksin was forced to step down. He went into exile abroad in the same year and has been wanted by the Thai authorities ever since. However, as of 9, Thaksin still ranks 19th on the Forbes Global Billionaires List.

Thaksin's first stop in exile was the United Kingdom, where he bought Manchester City Club for 2007 million pounds on June 6, 21.

Thaksin's entry into the club has made Manchester City the most watched big buyer in the Premier League this summer. The Thai tycoon is also not ambiguous, and together with Eriksson, he continues to spend money. Including the free signing of Geowani, Manchester City has spent 3680 million pounds to introduce eight first-team players this summer.

Among them, there are four major signings. In the defense line, 700-year-old Croatian defender Corluka was bought from Dinamo Zagreb for 21 million pounds; in the midfield, Brazilian midfielder Elano was bought from Shakhtar Donetsk for 800 million pounds; and in the forward line, Bojinov was introduced from Fiorentina for 600 million pounds, and Bianchi was introduced from Reggina for 880 million pounds.

At the beginning of the season, experts and media generally said that Manchester City's ranking was difficult to predict. After all, this lineup has changed a lot. Although the players introduced are not top players, no matter what, judging from the fame of the players alone, it is definitely better than the Manchester City lineup of previous years...

However, even the most optimistic estimates did not expect Manchester City to win three consecutive games at the start and top the list, especially in the Manchester derby against their city rivals - the defending champion Manchester United.

Although at the Manchester City Stadium, the red Manchester United was the real protagonist on the field, with 19 shots to 8 and a ball possession rate of nearly 60%, they just couldn't knock on Manchester City's door.

At the post-match press conference, Sir Alex Ferguson was also helpless: "I can't fault the players' performance. Manchester United played beautifully and should have won the game."

But today the goddess of luck was not on Manchester United's side. Manchester City scored 1 goal with two shots in the whole game, and it was a deflection. Giovanni's long shot hit Vidic's butt and turned into a super arc. The ball went from the outside of the goal post into the dead corner. Van der Sar tried his best but still failed to keep the only gap.

Manchester United also had many chances to equalize the score. Until the 90th minute, they still had a chance to equalize the score, but the Red Devils just couldn't break through this thin membrane, oh no, it was the window paper. Tevez's header shot from the goal line went wide, and Ferguson had raised his hands to celebrate but they froze in an instant. The expression on Sir Alex's face changed from excitement to disbelief, and he even forgot to put down his raised arms...

After losing at the City Stadium, Manchester United set a new record for the worst start of a defending champion in the history of the Premier League, following their worst start in 15 years in the previous round. This is a shame for the Red Devils, who have a brilliant historical record. What makes Ferguson and his disciples sad is that they are so close to victory.

In the first round, they pressed hard on Reading, but failed to get 3 points even with Rooney injured. Ferguson said, "We could have won if Rooney was not injured." In this round, they had a clear advantage in the first game against Portsmouth, but were equalized by the opponent, Ronaldo was sent off, and Li Qi was injured. In the third round, they pressed hard on Manchester City again, but the ball just wouldn't fly into the opponent's goal!

No one in the Manchester United lineup has played too badly. From the three rounds of evaluations by the British media, it can be seen that the worst player is just "quiet". There are players who get high scores in each round, which is very contradictory to the record of 2 draws and 1 loss. Last season, Mourinho said that Manchester United "can win in any situation", but this season it has become "can't win in any situation"...

This Manchester derby is a meeting between the two coaches with the longest and shortest tenures in the Premier League. Ferguson and Eriksson had conflicts before. When the latter was still the England coach, Manchester United often refused to let players report for various reasons, and the two had many arguments. Now they meet again in the Manchester derby, and their situations are very different.

In terms of personnel selection, the two were "one poor and one rich". Eriksson had no worries about not having a striker, so when Bojinov was injured at the start of the game, he still had Mpenza and Bianchi to send on. Ferguson could only watch with envy, Rooney was injured, Lizzie and Saha were recovering, Ronaldo was suspended, Smith and Rossi were sold, and Tevez was the only genuine striker left.

Although Ferguson knew that the Argentine's characteristics made him more suitable to play as a second striker, the dilemma of having no one else available forced him to use him against his will.

Tevez didn't play well during the game. All six of his shots in the 90 minutes were off target. In the last minute of the game, his header from the back hit the post and went out...

Sky Sports gave Tevez a barely passing grade after the game, saying that he was drowned in the crowd. As a lone striker, Tevez was often surrounded by the opponent's defenders and could only take the ball with his back to the goal and pass the ball, with little chance to turn and break through. When the ball was passed into the penalty area by Manchester United, he could not compete with the tall defenders such as Dunne. The Red Devils' repeated crosses either passed through the goal or were headed out by the defenders. There was always a lack of someone who could really score in the penalty area. At the last moment, Ferguson even replaced the young striker Campbell from the reserve team to try his luck.

Judging from his characteristics, the Argentine prefers to break through with the ball, pass or shoot to look for killing opportunities, rather than making a fatal move after running without the ball for a long time. He is the type of person who can only get hot with the ball at his feet frequently. Playing with his back like a center forward and then rushing into the penalty area to grab a point is not the way the Argentine likes and is not used to.

In this game, Tevez occasionally couldn't stand the "loneliness" and pulled out of the penalty area, which was a wonderful performance. Last season at West Ham, it was Tevez's habit to attack from the outside with the ball, and the work of rushing to the top and passing the ball with his back was undertaken by center forwards like Zamora or Haywood, but now Manchester United lacks such a role due to injuries, so there is a Premier League spectacle of a small man less than 1 meters tall rushing forward to play as a center forward.

In the first three games, Manchester United only scored one goal from nearly 70 shots. However, in the next round of the Premier League, Manchester United can barely breathe a sigh of relief when they return to their home court to face Tottenham, because Ricardo Reggie has recovered after the derby and has resumed his terrifying daily routine of two training sessions a day. In addition, French striker Saha's injury recovery is also good, and he can reportedly barely come on as a substitute.

However, when announcing the squad the day before the game, Sir Alex Ferguson was still calm and did not put Saha, who had just recovered from a serious injury, on the bench, but chose to give Dong Yuanchao a chance.

After all, Sir Alex doesn't want Saha to suffer a recurring injury like captain Gary Neville.

The Manchester United captain injured his thigh in recovery training last week and will continue to be absent for at least two weeks. The Red Devils' main defender has not played for the team since he injured his ankle in mid-March this year and underwent ankle surgery in May. After the surgery, he suffered injuries to his calf and thigh.

Sir Alex Ferguson also admitted that captain Neville's repeated injuries and delayed return date have frustrated the entire team.

Facing a must-win game, Sir Alex Ferguson deployed an attacking 4-3-3 formation:

The goalkeeper is No. 1 Van der Sar;

The left and right wingbacks are No. 3 Evra and No. 6 Wes Brown, and the double center backs are No. 5 Ferdinand and No. 15 Vidic;

The iron triangle in the midfield is No. 4 Hargreaves who played well in the last game, No. 16 Carrick and No. 18 Scholes;

The left wing of the forward trident is undoubtedly No. 11 Giggs, No. 17 Li Qi switched to the right, and the center forward is No. 32 Tevez.

Sir Alex Ferguson finally brought Dong Yuanchao to the bench. It was estimated that Campbell's performance as a substitute in the last round was not good. In this game, Sir Alex wanted to give Dong Yuanchao a chance depending on the situation.

As for the opponent Tottenham, this is also a familiar opponent for Ricardo. After all, they had two rounds of confrontation in the League Cup last season, and Ricardo also scored a goal by dribbling past goalkeeper Robinson twice...

Tottenham's starting lineup has not changed much from last year, still a 4-4-2 parallel formation, but the two main central defenders Ledley King and Dawson are both absent due to injuries, which will be a fatal hidden danger for Tottenham. Perhaps the visiting team can only hope that Manchester United's attackers will not bring their shooting boots like in the first three rounds.

The goalkeeper is No. 1 David Robinson;

The left and right wingbacks are Korean fullbacks No. 3 Lee Young-pyo and No. 2 Chimbonda, and the two central defenders are both substitutes, No. 30 Gardner and No. 33 Rocha;

四中场一字排开是8号杰纳斯、22号哈德尔斯通、15号马尔布兰克与首次代表球队首发的18岁小将16号拜尔；

The two strikers are No. 10 Robbie Keane and No. 9 Berbatov.

曼联在双方在双方近12次交锋中10胜2平保持不败。热刺上次在老特拉福德取胜还要追溯到1989年，莱因克尔攻入唯一进球。其后曼联在18个主场对阵热刺取得14胜4平保持不败。但曼联却取得23胜6平战绩。双方英超历史交锋30场，曼联22胜5平3负占据绝对优势。

For fans, the match between Manchester United and Tottenham is always full of anticipation. No one will forget that on September 2001, 9, Manchester United finally completed a 29-5 reversal after falling behind by three goals. That game was also rated as one of the most classic battles in the history of the Premier League.

Like Manchester United, who are in desperate need of victory, Tottenham are also eager to win. After two consecutive defeats in the league, Tottenham swept Derby County 4-0 in the last round, which finally made the team regain some confidence. But Jol still has to fight for his job. If he loses to Manchester United in this game, the Dutchman's coaching position may be handed over to Ricardo's old acquaintance, Sevilla coach Juan Ramos.

2007年8月26日，周日下午16时，07/08赛季英格兰足球超级联赛第4轮一场焦点战在老特拉福德展开争夺，红魔大战白百合一触即发。

Before the game started, Li Qi felt that he was in particularly good shape today. Although he had a training session in the morning, he was obviously not as tired as he was at the beginning of the season. Instead, it seemed as if all the cells in his body were activated. He was cheering and eager to try.

I just don't know if this state is because I have become accustomed to Sir Alex's devilish training rhythm, or because I rested for three days last weekend due to injury and my state has been adjusted, or is it the combined effect of the two? It can be regarded as a blessing in disguise.

However, after the opening, it was the visiting Tottenham who took the first step.

Just 20 seconds after the kick-off, Berbatov stopped the ball with his chest and sent a quick pass with his heel. Robbie Keane received the ball and shot directly from 25 yards in the middle. The ball hit the crossbar with a bang and bounced out of the bottom line! This powerful long-range shot gave the Red Devils a shocking blow!

Afterwards, Li Qi, feeling that he was in excellent shape, frequently waved or retreated to ask for the ball.

In the 4th minute, Li Qi made a quick pass on the right, got rid of the defense and sent a straight pass to the middle. However, it was originally hoped that Giggs, who cut inside, would give Spurs a chance to fight back, but unexpectedly, the latter's long shot from the front of the penalty area directly sent the ball into the stands...

In the 11th minute, Li Qi stopped Ferdinand's long pass from the right with great difficulty, and then heeled the ball past the opponent, making fun of Lee Young-pyo who rushed over to press. The latter is really an opponent that Li Qi likes to tease. I don't know if it's because of the old Li Qi, but last season's match was also mainly to exploit his defensive loopholes...

This time, Li Qi's cross from the right side of the penalty area was sent to the feet of Scholes who was following up, but the latter's shot from his own defensive area went directly into Robinson's arms.

Sir Alex Ferguson, who was chewing gum on the sidelines, also discovered the problem and kept exchanging opinions with the assistant coach. It was obvious that Li Qi was very excited in this game, but the other players in the team were obviously not on the same channel as him, so he had to think of a way...

But Tottenham will not wait for the Red Devils to come up with a response plan. Bai Lily, who is short of defense, has made up her mind to fight against Manchester United, who have not won a game since the start of the season. Of course, it will be a fast-paced offense and defense with mainly defensive counterattacks. She will not be stupid enough to let go and attack the home team directly.

In the 13th minute, Tottenham took advantage of the fact that Li Qi had no time to return to defense and launched a counterattack in his defense area. Bayer received a long pass and broke through Wes Brown on the left, then sent a cross from the bottom line, but the ball was cleared by Ferdinand.

Tottenham Hotspur won the first corner kick after the opening. Jenas took the corner kick from the left side and sent it into the penalty area. Chimbonda, who was lurking at the far end, successfully grabbed the ball and headed it back to the far corner, but Gardner, who was outflanking on the other side, missed the opportunity. He watched the ball float past him and finally hit the post and went out of the bottom line...

Two minutes later, Tottenham made a comeback. Huddlestone's free kick into the penalty area triggered a melee in Manchester United's defense. Finally, Rocha's left-foot shot from the edge of the penalty area went over the crossbar.

Tottenham had their best chance in the 20th minute. Ferdinand was careless after stealing the ball, and was too hesitant and slow to handle the ball, allowing Berbatov to steal the ball from behind on the left side of the penalty area. Then the latter made a slight adjustment and took two steps into the penalty area before shooting low.

Fortunately, Vidic made timely defense and blocked Berbatov's shooting line. The ball deflected and slowed down, and Van der Sar rushed out to catch the ball.

Taking advantage of the opportunity when Van der Sar kicked the ball again, Sir Alex finally gave new instructions, asking Giggs to move to the side to leave space for Li Qi to cut inside, and try to initiate all offensive organizations through Li Qi: This is obviously the tactical treatment for Ronaldo!

Li Qi, who was given more tactical privileges, was more energetic. Whenever Manchester United had the ball, it would basically be sent to Li Qi's feet first, either for transition, or for Li Qi to initiate an attack, or when Li Qi decided to go it alone.

However, Li Qi, who has a high football IQ, basically will not choose to work alone. Instead, he chooses to control the ball more safely under his own feet, wear down the opponent's edge, and cultivate his team's feet feel and tacit understanding first, which is like copying the passing and controlling tactics of his old club Barcelona.

As a result, Tottenham, who could hardly get the ball from Li Qi, was gradually compressed into the half by Manchester United, while Manchester United, who had the upper hand in the midfield, began to fully control the game!

……