Chapter 318: Another Massacre
After advancing to the quarterfinals of the Champions League, Sir Alex Ferguson, in a good mood, gave the team a rare day off, because Manchester United's Premier League game this weekend will be postponed and replaced by the FA Cup quarter-finals, at home against Portsmouth, a team that Manchester United has not lost in two encounters this season.
Needless to say, Manchester United's recent hot form has made Sir Alex Ferguson somewhat complacent and confident of victory, so it is a good opportunity for the group of little monkeys in the Manchester United team to have a rare day of rest during the most intensive sprint stage of the schedule.
Of course, it is not ruled out that this is a combination of work and rest deliberately arranged by Sir Alex Ferguson, so that the team can maintain morale and sprint better at the end of the season, especially after the last round of the league, the gap with the leader Arsenal is only one point.
Although it was a rare vacation, Ricardo did not run around, after all, he had to go to the train station to pick up his mistress, Sarafina, in the evening.
So after attending a business event in the morning, Ricardo returned to the Carrington base in the afternoon because he had an appointment with Ronaldo and Rooney to practice set pieces and do some practice at the same time.
Of course, it was mainly Ronaldo who made the offer. First, because he faced the master of set pieces in the Champions League and had no chance to compete with Juninho on the field, Ronaldo's athlete's foot naturally flared up. He had to get his two good friends to practice with him. After all, Ronaldo couldn't afford to mess with big brothers like Giggs and Scholes.
The second reason is that, I don't know when it started, but Ronaldo started to like competing with Ricardo, from 50-meter sprint, yoyo physical test, dribbling around poles to jumping height, as long as it is an event on the training ground, there is nothing they cannot compare with.
Later, both of them felt that it was too depressing that either you lose or I come last, so they invited Rooney to the competition to be responsible for coming last...
However, Ronaldo found that there were not many events in which he could beat Ricardo. In terms of speed, the two were equally matched. Ronaldo might have a certain advantage within 50 meters, but over 100 meters, Ricardo, who had better endurance, would definitely win.
In terms of ball skills, although Ricardo's technical moves are not fancy, his basic skills are extremely solid. In the two challenges of dribbling around poles and juggling over obstacles, which were originally records dominated by Ronaldo, Ricardo is not much behind. The duel between the two is roughly fifty-fifty.
Therefore, Ronaldo has recently focused on set pieces. After all, this is one of his strengths. He has practiced a lot since joining Manchester United. He has even scored three goals from set pieces this season.
Although Ricardo assisted with a corner kick, his direct free kick was not very impressive.
So on this rare day off, Ronaldo must want to seize the opportunity to tease his good friends, so as to avoid always using the excuse of being too tired from training or having a game tomorrow.
Yes! This weekend, in the FA Cup match against Portsmouth, Ricardo will be rotated and start the game from the bench... So Ricardo has no excuses and can only change his equipment at 3 pm, when the sun is shining, and plan to fight Ronaldo and Rooney for 200 rounds!
"Hey! Isn't this Darren and Michael? And Park. Why aren't you guys behaving yourself? Aren't you worried about getting injured from extra training?" To Ricardo's surprise, as soon as he walked out of the locker room, he found three figures running and playing with the ball on the training ground.
Fletcher, Carrick and Park Ji-sung also greeted Ricardo and the other two enthusiastically, especially Ricardo, who they all patted his shoulders and pulled his hair to amuse each other;
After all, everyone knows that Ricardo is a calm and peaceful person, unlike the arrogant and stubborn Ronaldo and the shy and bad-tempered Rooney. The capable Ricardo can be said to be the team's favorite.
Talking about the position of the team's favorite, I don't know when it was confirmed in Manchester United, but Ricardo somehow became the socialite in the team. Everyone likes to play with him no matter what, just like Cristiano Ronaldo, who would grab Ricardo to practice with him during training sessions and even during vacations.
Ricardo himself was analyzed simply because he is handsome, has good football skills, and has a humorous personality. He is a sunny boy who is always laughing.
Fletcher has a different opinion on this. He really likes Ricardo. Although the young man from Italy is two years younger than him, Fletcher believes that Ricardo has injected different vitality into Manchester United and is also subtly changing the team. He himself has benefited a lot.
Originally at the beginning of the season, Fletcher could not play in Manchester United and even made the bench only a few times, which was not even as good as Ricardo's second season at Barcelona.
However, in recent times, Fletcher has clearly felt that he has improved. Not only did he shine in the FA Cup match where they beat Arsenal 4-0, he also performed well in the knockout round of the Champions League. After the game, Sir Alex Ferguson rated him as one of the three best players in the entire game.
Fletcher also thought carefully about where and when the changes occurred in himself, which greatly improved his on-the-spot performance.
Then Fletcher discovered that during the half season of training and playing with Ricardo, his own playing style began to be influenced by Ricardo. He began to consciously or unconsciously learn the way Ricardo handled the ball, and began to actively cooperate with Ricardo's playing style.
This has a lot to do with Ricardo's ability to work well in a team, his love for passing the ball, and his willingness to communicate with his teammates, but more importantly, Ricardo, influenced by old Li Qi and Barcelona's football style, is playing a more advanced and trendy football.
Like Fletcher and most of Manchester United's players, Ricardo does not play a talented football like Messi or Ronaldo. Ricardo plays a kind of football that requires thinking, running, prediction and teamwork.
This is in line with Fletcher's appetite, although Fletcher has not yet been able to steal the essence of Ricciardo in terms of prediction - of course, Ricciardo has the bonus of talent;
But Fletcher also clearly felt that since he began to learn Ricardo's football style, he was calmer and more relaxed when handling the ball. Through advance and continuous observation, his passes were more stable and accurate, his positioning was smarter, and his coverage was larger and more accurate, so his performance was naturally better...
Of course, Fletcher is not the only one who has benefited from this in Manchester United. Players like Carrick, Vidic, Anderson, O'Shea and Eagles have similar experiences. However, Fletcher has made the most progress and his recent performance has been outstanding, as if he suddenly got it.
Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson is also aware of this and is happy to see it happen.
After all, as proud as Ronaldo is, he has reduced the number of times he flirts with others, and has been training more with Ricardo, who is more self-disciplined. Of course, these two have not yet seen through the true face of Li, who is a good boy in front of people but a scumbag behind their backs!
In addition, the team's style of drinking and going to nightclubs has also changed greatly. Of course, this is also due to Sir Alex Ferguson's repeated warnings. Another reason is that Ricardo is severely allergic to alcohol and cannot stay up late.
So whenever the team has a group activity, they must give Ricardo some soda water and call a taxi for him to go home in advance.
As time went by, some teammates followed suit and drank soda with Ricardo, and went home early to rest with Ricardo: it was a good idea to go together and save money on taxis, right? Oh! The main thing was that the one who left late had to pay...
Before the season was over, Sir Alex felt that spending 2500 million euros to buy Ricardo Liqi in the summer was a great bargain! Who is the championship puzzle and who is the cornerstone of the team? Ricardo is it!
Strong adaptability, multiple position attributes, meticulous training attitude, conscientious competition, excellent skills, outstanding character, no smoking, no drinking, no nightclubs, and can make the team better...
We must renew Ricardo's contract after the season ends to help Manchester United keep him!
Readers who know the true character of the scumbag Li, please don’t vomit yet. The author will immediately skip this disgusting boasting. Vomit...
@
With Sarafina's company and the fun of his good friends, although Ricardo only won the free kick PK against Rooney, he was in a good mood and still felt that time passed quickly, as if he had arrived at the FA Cup match at the weekend in the blink of an eye.
2008年3月8日中午12时45分，07/08赛季英格兰足总杯1/4决赛，红衣白裤的曼联在老特拉福德迎战白衣蓝裤的朴茨茅斯，比赛即将打响！
曼联近7个主场均取胜朴茨茅斯，近14个主场对阵朴茨茅斯取得12胜2平保持不败，庞贝军团上次做客老特拉福德取胜还是1957年的甲级联赛。
双方足总杯历史交锋7场，曼联3胜2平2负，但朴次茅斯唯一的客场胜利还是1907年。双方历史交锋68场，曼联31胜18平19负占据上风。
Moreover, in the two rounds of league confrontations this season, Manchester United has 1 win and 1 draw, remaining unbeaten and having an absolute psychological advantage.
So Sir Alex Ferguson will naturally adopt the rotation method. After all, even Rooney praised Manchester United's rotation this season.
Before the game, Rooney told UEFA's official website: "We had too many injuries last season, and some of our players played too many games in a season. This season, more excellent players have joined Manchester United, and the team looks stronger...
And Sir Alex's rotation policy has helped us, which has reduced our chances of getting injured and made us more energetic. This can avoid the consequences of being eliminated from the Champions League last season due to fatigue and injuries..."
Although Sir Alex Ferguson in the press conference after the last round of games and Rooney in the interview before this game both set a flag, these two people don’t know it yet!
In this game, Sir Alex changed back to his usual parallel 4-4-2 formation as the starting lineup, but at the same time rotated four players including Lizzie, Carrick, Fletcher and Anderson.
The goalkeeper is No. 1 Van der Sar;
The back line from right to left is No. 6 Wes Brown, No. 15 Vidic, No. 5 Ferdinand and No. 3 Evra;
The midfield quartet is No. 7 Cristiano Ronaldo, No. 18 Scholes, No. 5 Hargreaves and No. 13 Park Ji-sung;
The two forwards are No. 32 Tevez and No. 10 Rooney.
It seems that Sir Alex Ferguson has gradually recognized Wyscout's report. It is not necessary to use the four little swans at the same time. It is better to use them separately, and he can also prepare a surprise player on the bench! Sir Alex Ferguson has tasted the sweetness in the previous few games...
Portsmouth fielded all their main players as a guest. After all, although they were playing away, Manchester United had just finished a Champions League match in the middle of the week, and the FA Cup is the only trophy that the Pompey team still has a chance to compete for this season!
Pompey's head coach, Harry Redknapp, first lined up a solid 4-5-1 formation, and then fielded a solid-looking starting 11:
The goalkeeper is No. 1 James;
The back line from right to left is No. 5 Glen Johnson, No. 23 Campbell, No. 15 Distin and No. 7 Hredason;
中场五人战线是由17号乌塔卡、6号迪亚拉、11号蒙塔里、8号迪奥普与19号克拉尼察组成；
The lone striker is the 1-meter-tall Nwanko Kanu.
When the two sides lined up to shake hands before the game, Li Qi on the sidelines felt that this game would not be easy: the opponents were dark and strong, and their average height was much taller... May God bless Ginger Head and Xiao Ai, Gate A!
Just as Li Qi observed before the game, Portsmouth used its physical advantage to rush and attack fiercely after the kick-off, with an overwhelming momentum; it was a naked tactic, which was to use physical strength to drag down Manchester United.
However, the current Manchester United is different from last season's Manchester United. The large-scale rotation allows Manchester United to maintain a good form in this game.
Although Scholes, who was in charge of organizing the midfield, was obviously at a disadvantage in terms of size, but a veteran is a veteran, and he had seen everything. Through more agile movement and more skilled techniques, he firmly controlled the ball and the situation on Manchester United's side.
In the 7th minute, Manchester United took advantage of the gap left by Portsmouth's excessive rush and won a golden opportunity.
Scholes made a direct pass from the midfield to penetrate the Pompey team's defense. Ronaldo successfully made an offside move and broke into the visiting team's penalty area with the ball, facing the goalkeeper who came out alone!
But just when Ronaldo was about to make a fatal shot, Distin, who came to defend, recklessly knocked the Portuguese down!
But the referee Atkinson indicated that there was no foul and the game continued!
This ball immediately caused strong dissatisfaction from Ronaldo and Sir Alex Ferguson; as for the other Manchester United players, they were also dissatisfied, but they didn't have time to respond at all, as Portsmouth's fast break arrived, so they had to defend first before criticizing...
However, the referee's decision cannot be changed, and complaints can only be made after the game. So Manchester United had to make a comeback. After all, although Portsmouth's momentum was very fierce, Manchester United still had the technical advantage.
In the 19th minute, Manchester United once again created a good chance to score.
Tevez passed the ball during the counterattack, and Rooney, who also successfully avoided offside, made a diagonal run to the edge of the penalty area, took the ball, and dribbled past the attacking James.
But Rooney's shot from a small angle was barely intercepted by Distin who was returning to defense; Tevez followed up with another shot from 15 yards, but because the angle was too straight, Glen Johnson returned to the goal line in time and headed the ball out...
For the rest of the first half, Manchester United was still besieging the visiting team, but Portsmouth could only repeatedly block Manchester United's offensive through rough fouls. Even some wrestling and injuring actions were not called fouls by the referee.
This made Li Qi frown on the sidelines: What's going on? Are Lafayette and Bernard incompetent?
Finally, in the last corner kick defense in the first half, Manchester United's old Dutch goalkeeper Van der Sar successfully saved the ball, but was still injured and unable to continue the game.
Sir Alex had no choice but to let Kuszczak come on as a substitute.
During the halftime break, Sir Alex was also thinking about the substitutions for the second half: there were only two spots left, so it would be better not to use Li Qi. The referee's penalty standards in this game were obviously problematic, and it would easily lead to injuries to players. One player was already injured, what if another one got injured...
At least we have to protect Li Qi, as we can't afford to lose in the upcoming league and Champions League games...
In the second half, Manchester United continued with the situation in the first half and besieged the opponent. However, the Pompey Army continued to use the iron bucket formation and rough super technical moves to keep the goal safe.
After Manchester United missed the opportunity for the Nth time, the situation that Sir Alex Ferguson least wanted to see finally occurred.
In the 76th minute, Portsmouth launched a quick counterattack, and Kranjcar broke through the wing and made a precise pass.
Kuszczak rushed out and knocked down Baros, the former European Cup Golden Boot winner who came on as a substitute for Kanu, near the penalty spot!
This time, the black-clad referee Atkinson lived up to his clothes. He showed the red card without hesitation, imposing the most severe red dot package on the football field!
At this time, Sir Alex Ferguson had replaced the thin Scholes and the glassy Hargreaves with Anderson and Carrick ten minutes ago - Manchester United had no more substitutions.
And even if there is, there is no orthodox goalkeeper on Manchester United's bench to replace...
Therefore, the tall central defender Ferdinand had to temporarily play the role of goalkeeper!
However, although Ferdinand miraculously judged the direction of the penalty kick with the help of Li Qi, the penalty kick shot by Muntari still went straight into the lower right corner of Manchester United's goal.
Manchester United, who played with ten men, was defeated by Portsmouth on a penalty kick and was unexpectedly eliminated at the Theatre of Dreams!
[There is a problem with Chapter 90 again, and it has been a long time. It was revised more than a dozen times before it was passed.
This time I added a few more returns, but they still wouldn't let me pass, saying that it was D-type...
This time I revised it more than ten times, but it still wouldn’t pass!
Oh my god! This is too difficult!
So after the author finishes updating tonight, he decided to stay up late to rewrite Chapter 90!
Hopefully...
But please don't blame the author if there is no update tomorrow.
The humble author needs the strong support of readers and friends.
Yesterday's reading volume was pitifully low, and the manuscript fee was only two coins...
It’s not that the author wants to play the victim, it’s just that it’s really miserable.
(?1?7?6?1?0?7︿?6?1?0?6?1?7)
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