Chapter 323: The match that will decide the Premier League champion this season! (1K chapter)

Since 1936, Italy has not won an Olympic gold medal. Even during the heyday of the youth team in the 1990s - when it won three consecutive European Youth Championships and four out of five titles - it never performed well in the Olympic Games during the same period.

In 1996, the U21 European Championship champions led by Maldini included many stars such as Totti, Nesta, Panucci, Cannavaro and Buffon, but the Olympics became a stage for Argentina and Nigeria to perform.

The last Athens Olympics was pretty good. The Italian Olympic team, with the help of Pirlo and Ferrari, won the bronze medal. It was understandable that they were defeated by Argentina in the semi-finals.

但这届08华京奥运会呢？卡西拉吉从U15带队升上来的这支85/86年龄段的意大利国奥可是几乎包揽了同年龄段的所有洲际冠军，U17的欧少赛和世少赛，U19的欧青赛，U20的世青赛，以及U21的欧青赛……

All they need is a U23 Olympic title, and this Italian Olympic team of the 85/86 age group, known as the golden generation, will be crowned as legends.

However, during the team formation process, there were obvious disagreements between the Italian Olympic Committee and Italian Olympic team coach Casiraghi.

While Brazil and Argentina have announced that they will bring over-age big-name players to help, Casiraghi made it clear in an interview:

"It's a tournament for young people, I only take young people there! I know other countries will bring some over-age international players, but I don't think it's a big deal, we also have Ricardo Licci! Of course, I will listen to the Italian Football Association's opinions."

Seeing this, although Li Qi knew

The opinion of Italian Football Association President Abete is: "We hope to bring over-age players, but we just don't want them to overlap with the European Cup squad..."

So what else to bring? Even Olympic-age Ricardo Richie is likely to play in the European Championship!

The Italian Olympic Committee was in a hurry. President Petruzzi said: "I regret what Casiraghi and Abete said. I have always respected them. I immediately called Abete and asked about the position of the Football Association again. Abete said that his ideas were completely different from Casiraghi's.

Okay, we have reached an agreement - the purpose of participating in the Olympics is to win medals, and satisfaction can only be achieved when you win, or when you try your best to win. The team going to Huajing should be decided at the door of the Olympic Committee, not by a few words from Casiraghi. "

Afterwards, the Italian Football Association leader Abete organized a special symposium, calling together the national team coach Donadoni, the national team leader Riva, the national Olympic team coach Casiraghi, and the national youth team technical advisor Zola to discuss the roster for the 08 Beijing Olympics...

The results of the symposium were then published on the official website of the Football Association: the national Olympic team's roster will be determined when Casillaci's position as coach is consolidated, and over-age players will be selected after the end of the league.

However, there are rumors that Piero, Inzaghi, Lucarelli and other old players who are unlikely to go to the European Cup will be selected as over-age players. As for Buffon who volunteered, it will be difficult.

Firstly, the Italian Football Association does not want to put the precious over-age quota on the goalkeeper position, but wants to evenly distribute it among the three lines. Secondly, Juventus will most likely start from the Champions League qualifiers next season, and it is impossible for them to be willing to let their main goalkeeper play in the men's football match of the Beijing Olympics which will not end until the end of August.

08华京奥运男足要求的适龄球员是在1985年1月1日出生后人参加，中场蒙托利沃、诺切里诺、加罗帕、前锋佩莱、门将库尔奇、后卫科达几个在意甲已经踢出来的85年龄段主力都可以参加。

In addition, the Italian Olympic team's main goalkeepers Viviano and Consigli are both playing as starters in Serie B, and defenders Motta, Andreoli, Criscito, Marzorati and De Silvestri have all established their reputations in Serie A.

In addition, midfielders such as Parma's De Sena and Cigarini, Inter Milan's Bolzoni, Juventus' loaned-out Marchisio and Paolo De Cegli all performed well in the league.

As for the forward line, there are Giuseppe Rossi, Pozzi, Acquafresca, Giovinco, Osvaldo and others who are in great form. Especially the latter ones have been quite crazy in recent rounds...

What's more, there is a leader, Manchester United's main attacker Ricardo Richarlich, who is almost reaching double-twenty figures this season!

It is no wonder that Casiraghi has the confidence to clamor for not bringing over-age players. Indeed, judging from the strength on paper, except for the somewhat superior Argentine Olympic team, the Italian Olympic team can be built entirely with players of the right age to form a roster that does not belong to any team and is competitive for the championship.

However, several key players aged 21 who won the U84 European Championship with the team last year will definitely be absent, including Chiellini, Aquilani, Rosina, Lazzari and Pazzini...

After reading the report, Ricci quickly called Casillaci and the two sides had a preliminary exchange of ideas to avoid any misjudgment.

So Ricardo decided to have a good chat with the club's big brothers about pursuit, ideals and life during the national team match day next week...

@

But Ricardo will soon have to put aside the matters of the Italian national team and the Olympic team, because the Premier League this weekend may be one of the most important games of the season. Maybe this round of games will determine the winner of the Premier League championship.

Although Liverpool, ranked fourth, is 11 points behind Manchester United and has basically bid farewell to the race for the league title; but while Manchester United is playing against Liverpool, Arsenal, ranked second in the league, will play a London derby with Chelsea, ranked third in the league.

Yes, there are too many teams in London, and Chelsea staged two London derbies in one week.

If Arsenal loses and Manchester United wins, with only seven rounds left in the league, they will be 7 points behind Manchester United and will almost lose the chance to compete for the championship. It may even make the direct confrontation between the two sides after three rounds a meaningless game.

Of course, Chelsea also has to win to have a chance to keep the title; because in the 36th round of the league, Chelsea also has a chance to play directly against Manchester United, but the premise is that Chelsea has to keep up with it, and Arsenal has to help:

Helped lose to Chelsea and helped beat Manchester United...

As for the help from other teams, looking at Manchester United, who have scored 16 goals and conceded only 1 goal in the last four rounds, normal people would think it is impossible. Of course, the Champions League is also a variable!

Therefore, Sir Alex Ferguson must try his best to establish a leading advantage before the Champions League quarter-finals, so the home game against Liverpool at the weekend is a game that must be won!

To this end, the entire Manchester United team entered a first-level preparation state. The coaching staff strictly came up with a 3-day, 72-hour preparation plan that was detailed to the minute level, as well as a Liverpool analysis report that was detailed to the players' habitual small movements...

Therefore, Sarafina, who came to Manchester to spend the weekend with Ricardo, felt neglected for the first time. Even changing into the scumbag’s favorite outfit didn’t work: the scumbag Li really had no energy left!

No wonder Manchester United under Sir Alex Ferguson has been able to dominate the Premier League for so many years. With strict discipline, clear strategic pursuits, and extremely serious pre-match preparations, all the strength of the entire club has been mobilized, and everyone has their own responsibilities...

@

2008年3月23日中午13时30分，这可是一个晴朗的超级星期天，适合争冠！

One of the highlights of the 07st round of the 08/31 English Premier League will be played at Old Trafford:

This is the famous Northwest Derby in the Premier League, and also the world-famous Premier League Reds battle, between the Red Devils Manchester United and the Red Army Liverpool!

Manchester United has won all three of its games against Liverpool in the past two seasons, without allowing the Reds to score. Manchester United has also won all of its last three home games against Liverpool.

The Reds have scored no more than one goal in the last 11 games between the two sides. Benítez has never won against Manchester United and Sir Alex Ferguson since taking over at Anfield...

双方英超交锋31场，曼联17胜7平7负占据上风，其中主场8胜4平3负。这是双方历史上第175场交锋，此前曼联67胜50平57负稍占优势。这也是双方的第150场联赛交锋！

Sir Alex Ferguson made drastic adjustments to the lineup for this game. Compared with the lineup in the middle of the week, he made 8 adjustments. Except for Vidic, Ronaldo and Li Qi, almost all of them were replaced.

The formation was also changed to the Christmas tree formation, 4-3-2-1, which was used for the first time this season.

It can be seen that Sir Alex Ferguson attaches great importance to this game. He sent out the starters who he believes have the most blood and ability to win the game, and also deliberately adjusted this cautious yet sharp defensive counterattack formation.

The goalkeeper is the No.1 goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar who has returned from injury;

The back line from right to left is No. 6 Wes Brown, No. 15 Vidic, No. 5 Ferdinand and No. 3 Evra;

The midfield trio consists of three all-round midfielders, No. 16 Carrick, No. 17 Lizzie, and No. 18 Scholes. Among them, Carrick pays more attention to defensive protection, Scholes pays more attention to midfield organization, and Lizzie is responsible for large-scale sweeps and deep attacks!

The double forwards, oh no, should be the double inside forwards are No. 7 Cristiano Ronaldo and No. 11 Giggs; although at the beginning of the game the two of them are still playing the bottom cross-field play from the right in front and the left in the back, but after the opening they will definitely change positions and then cut inside with the opposite foot like crazy!

After all, this is the trendy style of play for a single striker, with the inside forward cutting in with his opposite foot.

As for the lone striker, it is undoubtedly No. 10 Rooney!

而利物浦主帅贝尼特斯并未改变近期取得5连胜的首发阵容，仍然是一个4-2-3-1的阵型。

The goalkeeper is No. 25 Reina;

The four defenders are No. 17 Arbeloa, No. 23 Carragher, No. 37 Skrtel and No. 12 Aurelio;

The double defensive midfielders are No. 14 Xabi Alonso and No. 20 Mascherano;

The three attacking midfielders are No. 18 Kuyt, No. 8 captain Gerrard and No. 19 Dutch genius Babel;

The lone striker is No. 9 Torres, who has been in good form recently.

The home team Manchester United, in red shirts and white pants, and the visiting team Liverpool, in white shirts and black pants, the 22 starting players of both teams have already formed their formations on the field. After the referee blew the whistle, they sprinted towards the other team's formation...

After the opening, there was not much probing between the two sides, and they went straight into a fierce hand-to-hand fight with bayonets drawing blood!

However, Manchester United, who played at home, was clearly better prepared. In the midfield battle, they technically overwhelmed Liverpool. After all, among the five midfielders selected by Sir Alex Ferguson, Carrick, who had the worst small-ball skills, was not much worse than Xabi Alonso, who had the best small-ball skills on the Liverpool side...

Moreover, the personal ball protection and dribbling abilities of Leeds, Giggs and Ronaldo really make Liverpool's tough and aggressive midfield pale in comparison and they are overwhelmed to cope with them.

And Manchester United got a golden opportunity in the 6th minute of the game!

In the midfield battle, Scholes and Carrick's wonderful short pass broke Liverpool's central interception and sent a straight pass to Li Qi.

Li Qi, who was waiting for an opportunity to move forward, did not waste this chance. He got the ball near the center circle and without hesitation, he made a straight pass according to the situation he had observed before, accurately tearing open the Red Army's defense.

Rooney made a diagonal run and successfully got past the offside trap, then he had the ball and had a chance alone!

Unfortunately, although the Red Army defender Carragher lost his position and did not dare to commit a foul, he never gave up chasing back. At the moment when Rooney entered the penalty area to shoot, he cleverly made a tackle, which not only blocked Rooney's possibility of changing direction and breaking through, but also interfered with Rooney's shooting action...

So Rooney's shot from about 14 yards in the middle of the penalty area was guessed by Reina, who was on the other side of Carragher's block, and he bravely saved the ball from going out of the baseline!

Manchester United missed the opportunity for a dream start, while Liverpool escaped!

However, thanks to the strength of the midfield, Manchester United had a large number of opportunities afterwards.

In the 9th minute, Li Qi broke through the middle and was pulled down by Mascherano to get a set piece near the center circle. Scholes, who was right next to Li Qi, did not wait for Li Qi and Mascherano to start politely beeping, and directly kicked a free kick into the penalty area.

Rooney succeeded in getting back on the offside again and got a good chance at the 12-yard line. However, his technique was rough or he was too excited to get such an easy chance again. He actually stopped the ball in the arms of Reina who was halfway through his attack...

It's really a bit embarrassing... Rooney couldn't help but hold his forehead with his hand to block the contemptuous looks from his brothers.

In the 11th minute, Liverpool's new midfielder Mascherano could no longer withstand the pressure from Manchester United's midfield and could only foul Scholes to intercept another wave of Manchester United's attack, because Alonso, who had just assisted, had lost his position.

Mascherano then received his seventh yellow card of the season.

It wasn't until the 13th minute that Liverpool got their first shot of the game.

Babel broke through on the left and won the first corner kick. Liverpool took a tactical corner kick. Alonso passed the ball directly to the left edge of the penalty area. Ronaldo failed to intercept the ball. Aurelio's left-footed shot from a small angle slipped wide of the goal.

But then, they completely entered Manchester United's rhythm, and Manchester United once had a ball possession rate of nearly 7%...

Manchester United missed another chance in the 24th minute. Giggs took a free kick from the right, Rooney headed the ball, and Ronaldo's shot from 6 yards far away hit the near post and bounced out.

Although Liverpool were still able to create some threats through sporadic long passes and counterattacks, there was not a single shot that hit the goal.

Manchester United's continuous attack wave finally borne fruit in the 34th minute, and this goal was a coincidence.

Liverpool tried to regain the initiative in the midfield, and Gerrard once again confronted Li Qi in the midfield.

Although Li Qi is a cunning guy who works very hard and fights hard in the game, he likes to use more people against fewer people, whether in offense or defense. He follows the teachings of his elder brother Xavi and constantly looks for free men in open spaces. There are free men in offense and naturally there are free men in defense.

So Li Qi would not go one-on-one with Gerrard, the famous Premier League midfielder, and there was a high probability that he might not be able to beat Gerrard who was at his peak; so Li Qi called Wes Brown to help, after all, Babel had not found a position yet...

The addition of Wes Brown forced Gerrard to make a mistake and lose the ball, and Manchester United immediately switched from offense to defense!

At this moment, Wes Brown, who was near the midfield, was still hesitating whether to retreat to fill in the position or move forward to assist, but he heard Li Qi behind him shouting to him loudly: "Wes, go, go, go! I'll fill in for you!"

Li Qi poked the ball away from Gerrard and watched Carrick, who had the ball, being pressed by Babel and Kuyt. He sensitively realized that in these two rounds, whether in defense or offense, Wes Brown would be the free man who could change the situation!

So Brown moved forward decisively, and as the ball progressed, he cut into the penalty area without anyone noticing...

Scholes, who was pushing for a quick counterattack, was intercepted by Mascherano in the middle and decisively passed the ball to the left. Rooney, who was on the side, brought out Carragher and made a cross to the middle of the penalty area without hesitation.

The cross had a slight spin, which affected Liverpool goalkeeper Reina's dribbling, and his attack was half a beat slow.

So Wes Brown, who was unmarked, won the jackpot. He was behind Skrtel, in front of Reina, about 8 yards in front of the goal. He jumped to compete for the header, overpowering two people and actually used his back to block the ball into Liverpool's empty goal!

This was Brown's first goal in 35 months and the third goal in his career, helping Manchester United lead Liverpool 3-1 in the first half!

Although most people could guess the situation on the field, Manchester United, the home team that had missed several sure-shot chances, would be the first to break the deadlock;

But indeed, almost no one could have imagined that the one who helped Manchester United take the lead was not the midfielder who had scored so many goals this season, but Manchester United's iron-clad defender!

However, in the past four seasons, Manchester United has played against Liverpool eight times in the league, and the Red Devils' defenders have scored six goals.

Of course, the first five goals scored by Manchester United's six defenders were relatively normal, coming from free kicks or corner kicks, and only Wes Brown's goal was a spur of the moment goal in open play...

Impulsive? But Li Qi, who celebrated excitedly with Wes Brown, didn't think so. This was an unexpected attack, or this was the most typical example of the use of free men in Xavi's passing and controlling football.

And I didn't expect that the effect of the transition from offense to defense would be so obvious.

Eh? Why does this tactic of the full-back stealing the ball and then running into a wide area seem so familiar?

……