Chapter 509 Messi's tactical value

Three days later, the same stadium once again welcomed Tottenham Hotspur. Ferguson was worried. The reason was simple. In the game against Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford last weekend, Ye Qiu didn't try his best.

Ye Qiu's external explanation was that the players were in poor condition, but no one knew what was going on.

The first leg of the Champions League semi-finals is not an ordinary game, but a key battle that determines who can reach the Champions League final. No one dares to be careless, and Ferguson gave his best in the league because he had to win. Do this, otherwise, Manchester United will never have another chance to win the Premier League.

Manchester United tried their best, but Tottenham Hotspur stayed. The score of 2:1 seems quite reasonable.

If before the thirty-fourth round of the league, Ferguson was still a little unsure of Ye Qiu's specific thoughts, then after the thirty-fourth round of the league started and saw Tottenham Hotspur's starting lineup, he had already The guess is very clear, that is to break the boat and do everything possible to win the double crown.

Judging from the current situation, Tottenham Hotspur has a league point advantage. They are four points ahead. After losing the 34th round of the league, they are still one point ahead. In other words, Tottenham Hotspur is still To firmly grasp the initiative to win the league, Ye Qiu's team must maintain a complete victory in the remaining four rounds of the league.

Judging from the schedule, Manchester United is the same as Tottenham Hotspur. Ferguson also emphasizes rotation in the second half of the game. And like Ye Qiu, Ferguson’s rotation is not large because they both know that to ensure the team’s combat effectiveness. is the key.

So Ye Qiu used three points in exchange for Manchester United to try their best to create an advantage for themselves in the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals. This is undoubtedly a very courageous risk, and it is also in line with Ye Qiu's goal, because what he wants is Double crown.

After the 34th round of the league, Ferguson prioritized adjusting the players' physical fitness because he knew very well that the first game at Old Trafford was a game that Ye Qiu had already given up. The only hope is to wear down Manchester United's physical fitness.

And if Ferguson's guess is followed, Ye Qiu will definitely give his best in the second game at Old Trafford.

But Ferguson was unsure. He didn't know how Ye Qiu would play in this game. Although he arranged for scouts to go south to London to spy on Tottenham Hotspur's military situation, and got the news that Robin van Persie was absent due to injury. It comforted him somewhat.

According to Ferguson's guess before the game, if Van Persie is absent, Ye Qiu should play Cavani, the untouchable Messi on the right, and Gareth Bale on the left, because even though Franck Ribery has recovered quickly after his comeback, , also scored a lot of goals, but in terms of state, he still lost to Gareth Bale.

The Welsh youngster is the biggest discovery in the Premier League this season. He showed great impact on Tottenham Hotspur's left wing and also showed his outstanding potential. The only obvious shortcoming is his style of play. It is a bit inconsistent with Tottenham Hotspur's overall style, because his basic technical skills are not detailed enough and he cannot cooperate with some teammates.

But Ferguson always felt something was wrong, because three days ago, Ye Qiu fought against Yaya Toure, David Silva and Alves. Could it be that none of them would join in this fight? If they don't go up, how will Tottenham Hotspur's tactics work?

In fact, it is not difficult to guess from another angle. If Tottenham Hotspur did not show a certain strength in the battle three days ago, how could Manchester United be consumed by Tottenham Hotspur?

Just when Ferguson was thinking, he saw the Tottenham Hotspur coaching staff walking out of the player tunnel one after another, and Ye Qiu followed them out. When he saw Ferguson, he smiled and waved. He waved his hand as a greeting.

"It's not easy to still be in such a good mood after losing the game!" Ferguson walked over not far from the entrance of the tunnel.

Ye Qiu shook his head and said with a smile: "We Chinese have a saying, which is to enjoy happiness in hardship. There is no other way. In your territory, I can't do anything to you!"

Ferguson seemed to want to find something from Ye Qiu's eyes and expression, but he obviously couldn't find anything. It was as if it was difficult for Ye Qiu to see the anxiety in his heart from his face. They are both very good at pretending, especially in front of competitors.

"Are you so confident that you can get an advantage in this game?" Ferguson was thinking, Ye Qiu's goal is to score away goals, and the best thing is to beat Manchester United.

"I don't know, but I think I should give it a try!" Ye Qiu still answered with a smile, but this answer was obviously unsatisfactory, so Ferguson snorted after hearing it.

"We'll see!" After saying that, Lafayette turned around and walked back to the home team's coaching bench.

Ye Qiu's confidentiality work was obviously done before the game started. It wasn't until the players from both sides walked out of the tunnel that Ferguson discovered Tottenham Hotspur's starting lineup. He guessed half of it correctly, but he guessed the other half wrong.

Beckham!

He never expected that Ye Qiu would arrange for Beckham, David Silva and Cesc Fabregas to play at the same time. Is he really that confident? Or does he have other plans for this game?

Gareth Bale did not play. The Welshman did not play in the last league game. Ferguson originally thought he would play in this game, but he did not expect that he would not play. Instead, Ribery played. The Frenchman and Cavani Form a trident with Messi.

In the defense, Marcelo started two games in a row, Zieglinski and Thiago Silva started together, but Alves was not on the right, but Arbeloa. Was this aimed at Cristiano Ronaldo on Manchester United's left?

Ferguson did not make much changes and adjustments in this game compared with the previous league game, because he was very clear about the current strength of the team. Playing Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United must go all out, otherwise, there is not much chance of winning at home.

The goalkeeper is Van der Sar, the defense is Evra, Vidic, Ferdinand and O'Shea, the three midfielders are Anderson, Carrick and Scholes, and the front trident is Cristiano Ronaldo, Tevez and Park Ji-sung.

After seeing Tottenham Hotspur's starting lineup, Ferguson was always a little worried. When both sides returned to their respective half-courts and prepared to kick off, he called O'Shea over and told him to be careful of Ribery.

O'Shea is tall, and Ferguson mainly uses him to block Gareth Bale, because he thinks the Welshman didn't play in the last league game, so he must play in this one, but he didn't expect Ye Qiu to play Ribery.

The Frenchman is short and flexible, and O'Shea will obviously have a harder time dealing with such a player than with Gareth Bale, especially considering that if Manchester United is suppressed, it will suffer a big loss.

Manchester United's opening tactics are actually the same. Ferguson will attack at the beginning of the home game, but it is still the iconic Ferguson tactic. After six minutes of attack, the team began to shrink because he couldn't hold on.

If he is sure enough, Ferguson can still hold on for ten minutes, but he always feels uneasy.

Because as the game unfolds, he once again discovered a difference in Tottenham Hotspur, that is, Cavani went to the right side, while Messi was arranged by Ye Qiu from the right side to the middle. What does this mean?

Evra had no advantage in height and strength against Cavani, and Cavani's running ability and pressing allowed him to suppress Evra very well. Messi met two big men, Ferdinand and Vidic, in the middle, and Ribery faced O'Shea, which was simply...

"Fuck!" Ferguson felt like he was fooled!

Ferguson, who realized the danger, immediately walked to the sidelines and signaled to the players to be careful of Messi. The young Argentine player had been cruising between Vidic and Ferdinand, which always made Ferguson feel uncomfortable.

"He realized it!" Mauro Tassotti said to Ye Qiu with a smile when he saw Ferguson coming to the sidelines to direct the game a little impatiently.

Sometimes he also admired Ye Qiu's courage. Giving up a strong dialogue with Manchester United and giving up a three-point lead was equivalent to putting all the chips on the players. It was either a double crown or nothing.

In the current situation of Tottenham Hotspur, the team leads the league by one point, but as long as Ye Qiu's tactics do not work, the team will be eliminated from the Champions League, which will inevitably affect the situation of the league, and this will undoubtedly end in a miserable defeat for Tottenham Hotspur.

Of course, the voting support of Tottenham Hotspur fans also gave Ye Qiu enough courage. In his interaction with the fans, he received full support from the fans, so he dared to gamble on this.

"What if he saw it? He has no choice!" Ye Qiu snorted and smiled, walked over, waved to Messi, and signaled him to withdraw from the front, which was also the signal given by Ye Qiu when arranging tactics before the game.

"The greatest tactical value of Messi is not his right-wing cut-in goal. There are many right wingers who can score goals, but it is extremely rare to be able to do it like him, almost never lose the ball after getting it!" Ye Qiu said to Mauro Tassotti.

In fact, Ye Qiu had tried to arrange Messi in the middle many times during training. This was a suggestion from Peter De Visser. He had seen Messi play football and felt that with Messi's technical skills, he might be able to play a greater threat in the middle, because after he got the ball, he would basically not lose it unless he encountered a foul from a defensive player.

Moreover, when Messi got the ball, he could not only find teammates to cooperate, but also dribble and break through by himself, and he could also turn around and insert himself into the penalty area after passing the ball to find a scoring opportunity. Such players are rare in the world.

Messi retreated from the front of the front line to the area between Carrick and the back line, which was equivalent to giving a signal to everyone in Tottenham Hotspur that our attack was about to begin!

After a continuous pass from the midfield, Messi retreated to receive the ball, held the ball with his back to the goal, and tried to turn around, but Vidic quickly blocked Messi behind him, but the Argentine almost stuck the ball under his feet, and neither Vidic nor Carrick had a chance to kick, and Messi quickly passed the ball to Fabregas.

After Fabregas got the ball, he passed it straight and saw Cavani quickly cut into the penalty area from the right. Although he was a right-footed player, his left foot was also good. In addition to his height and strength, he used his body to press Evra, and stopped the ball with his left foot and pulled it back.

Ferdinand thought Cavani was going to kick directly in the penalty area, and he immediately jumped over in fear, but Cavani passed the ball from behind him to Ribery on the left, but the hurried pass was not well controlled, and the ball was caught by Van der Sar.

Ribery was originally sprinting, and when he saw Van der Sar get the ball, he immediately slowed down and shook his head at Cavani with a wry smile, as if to say, you should pass it a little further, it's too close to the goal.

If this attack was just a test, then one minute later, Tottenham Hotspur once again attacked the ball into Manchester United's hinterland. Messi retreated to get the ball, used his body to get rid of Vidic, and passed it to Ribery. The Frenchman cut in from the left and shot directly at the front of the penalty area, but it was slightly off target.

Two consecutive attacks created threats, and Ferguson's face became more and more solemn because he found that he was fooled.

Ye Qiu now clearly wanted to use Messi and Ribery, two stars with excellent personal abilities and skills, to cooperate on the left and middle to attack Manchester United's three high tower defenses composed of O'Shea, Ferdinand and Vidic, because these three players all have a very obvious shortcoming, turn around!

Now Messi specifically holds the ball between the defense and the midfield, using his ability to hold the ball to create opportunities, and in this area, the defensive players dare not move easily, because they have to worry about being passed at any time and place, and also have to worry about fouls.

Ye Qiu used Beckham, I believe there are multiple meanings, one of which he is very sure is that Manchester United's midfield cannot threaten Beckham, because Tottenham Hotspur will suppress Manchester United in this game.

On the contrary, if Ye Qiu used Gareth Bale, the situation would be much better than it is now.

Just when Ferguson was anxiously thinking about countermeasures, the time on the field did not stop or slow down at all. Messi suddenly pulled to the left side of the arc top and received a low pass from Ziglinski in the backcourt. After stopping the ball, he took the ball and got rid of Ferdinand, and dribbled into the penalty area.

O'Shea ran quickly from the left side, and seeing that Messi was about to get a chance, O'Shea fell to the ground and shoveled the ball, but also shoveled Messi, but the referee did not signal a foul, nor did he whistle Messi for diving. The players on both sides were obviously dissatisfied with this move.

When a tall player meets a short player, especially in a narrow defensive area, such a contest is simply not a weight class. The short player has almost all the advantages, especially in the front of the penalty area, where they have to worry about not committing fouls.

O'Shea's shovel just now made all Manchester United fans, even Ferguson on the sidelines, sweat coldly, because they all knew that if it was a penalty, Manchester United would almost not have to play this game.

Although Tottenham Hotspur did not get a penalty, the protest only lasted for a short time. They quickly re-entered the game and actively accelerated the pace, organizing and planning offensives again and again.

Now Tottenham Hotspur has an advantage in physical fitness. Manchester United just fought a hard battle with Tottenham Hotspur three days ago, and before that, they had fought continuously. Their physical fitness has reached the critical point, so Tottenham Hotspur wants to take advantage of this. After the opening, they will directly speed up the pace and chase you desperately.

As long as there is one goal, the initiative of this game, or even the initiative of the two-round game, will all be in Ye Qiu's hands.

Everyone in Manchester United is also aware of the severity of the current situation. Ferguson frequently directs the team to pay attention to defense, but with Tottenham Hotspur's offensive, Manchester United's defense line still reveals gaps again and again.

Another pass from the midfield, David Silva's straight pass, Ribery passed between O'Shea and Ferdinand, but when he rushed into the penalty area to stop the ball, Vidic reacted faster, blocked him with his body in advance, stuck in a favorable position, and intercepted Ribery abruptly, allowing Van der Sar to attack and hold the ball.

This is definitely a major test of the nerves of the Red Devils fans, creating danger almost every minute.

But this is also a test for the players of both sides. Whoever can hold on will have the last laugh. If Tottenham Hotspur cannot score, then Manchester United will probably score a goal in the end. On the other hand, if Tottenham Hotspur scores, then the result will make the Manchester United players who just defeated Tottenham Hotspur for the third time this season with a score of 2:1 completely desperate.

As Messi retreated, he frequently created threats and planned offensives by holding the ball in the middle. Manchester United also began to focus on strengthening the defense in the middle, especially the defense against Messi, but this is somewhat like tearing down the east wall to repair the west wall.

Beckham is behind David Silva and Fabregas, and in front of Zielinski and Thiago Silva. His task is not easy, especially at his current age.

Before the game, Ye Qiu once asked him if he could play in this Champions League match against Manchester United. He answered almost without hesitation that he could.

Everyone knows that he doesn't want to play against Manchester United, but he is a professional player and is paid by Tottenham Hotspur, so he will not refuse anytime Tottenham Hotspur needs him, even if the opponent is Manchester United!

When Manchester United's defense focuses on Messi, the defensive pressure in the midfield is much lighter, and Cristiano Ronaldo's side is not very strict, so Beckham's pressure is not very great, which allows him to better observe the situation on the field in the backcourt.

Ye Qiu said that as long as Messi, Ribery, David Silva, Fabregas and others hold the defensive force, then Cavani on the right will have a chance, so Beckham pays close attention to Cavani's movements.

When the game reached the 26th minute, Arbeloa defended Cristiano Ronaldo on the right. The Spaniard's defensive skills were still quite good. This time he accurately intercepted the ball and passed it to Beckham who ran over to receive it. The latter saw Evra advance through the midfield, while Cavani was in front and unguarded.

Beckham had almost no hesitation, swung his right foot and made a diagonal pass over the top, looking for Cavani!