Chapter 784: The Champion and Runner-up

Sometimes, as a superior or a manager, you can only keep many things in your heart and cannot speak them out.

Even if someone speaks for you, you have to deny it solemnly, because once you admit it, something will go wrong.

Just like taking Pirlo, Ye Qiu and many people in the coaching staff know it, and even many media and fans know it very well. This is a necessity, because Pirlo is old and must be taken down, otherwise Tottenham Hotspur will be the second Barcelona.

But such things can be thought of and even prepared in advance, such as Tottenham Hotspur’s introduction of Matic and Stroman, but you must never say it, because once you say it, the impact will be very great.

However, Pirlo is also a very proud person. He talked to Ye Qiu when he renewed his contract. He promised that he would work hard to maintain his condition and make himself meet the tactical requirements of Tottenham Hotspur. He did a good job in all these, and Ye Qiu and the coaching staff are also trying their best to help him.

For example, during the training camp, Pirlo often trained alone. Considering his age and his participation in the Confederations Cup, Peter Brandt specially created a set of physical reserve and adjustment training plans for him.

In the Community Shield, which is known as the outpost of the Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur faced Liverpool at Wembley Stadium, and Pirlo got the chance to start again.

In this game, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool both sent out their main players. Benítez's team is ambitious. After introducing many powerful stars, they hope to launch a strong impact on Tottenham Hotspur in the new season.

Ye Qiu hopes to continue the glory of the past few seasons this season, even if it is in the adjustment period.

Goalkeeper Cech, the back line is Marcelo, Thiago Silva, Kompany and Kyle Walker, the three midfielders are Ramsey, Pirlo and Vidal, and the front trident is a combination of Ribery, Lewandowski and Messi.

Compared with Tottenham's main players, Liverpool's goalkeeper is Reina, the back line is Ali Sissoko, Mamadou Sakho, Skrtel and Glen Johnson, the midfield is Javi Martinez and Gerrard, the front midfield is Mata, and the front trident is the combination of David Villasuarez and Sturridge.

Liverpool's tactics still follow the double back midfielder tactics that Benitez is good at. The attacking power is very good, especially the attacking formation in the front field, which is very threatening. It is the team with the strongest offensive ability in the Premier League after Tottenham.

If you want to say that Liverpool's biggest problem at present, it must be defense.

So Tottenham pressed forward at the beginning and launched a direct attack.

Less than three minutes into the game, Tottenham Hotspur created a threat. Facing the pressing of the defensive players, Pirlo made a light pass to the side. Kyle Walker passed the ball diagonally. Vidal, trapped by two players, pushed the ball to Messi on the right.

As soon as Messi got the ball, he saw Lewandowski running out from the middle of the penalty area and running to the right corner of the penalty area to meet him, while Vidal ran to the middle of the empty space.

Messi passed the ball to Lewandowski, who leaned against Skrtel with his body, stopped, and knocked the ball to the middle with his heel. Skrtel was powerless to do anything about it, but Mamadou Sakho intercepted the ball halfway.

This should have been a very good defense, but the problem was that after Mamadou Sakho intercepted the ball, he let the ball leave his control area, which is commonly known as a long stop.

Vidal rushed forward immediately, intercepted the ball again, passed it to Ramsey who came up from the left, ran forward, Ramsey knocked it back again, Vidal rushed into the penalty area, received the ball near the penalty spot, and shot it directly with a powerful volley!

The ball attacked Liverpool's goal like a cannonball, but this time Reina reacted very quickly, flew up and punched the ball out, defusing Liverpool's goal crisis after the opening.

The whole Wembley Stadium suddenly sighed with loss, and all Tottenham fans and neutral fans were sighing. If it weren't for Reina, Tottenham would have won the ball.

"Liverpool should really thank Reina. If the Spanish goalkeeper really left the team during the summer transfer window, they would have lost the ball now! Benítez seemed very dissatisfied with the team's defense on the sidelines. This game was also seen as a test for Mamadou Sakho, but the situation did not seem ideal. The French central defender was a little uncomfortable with the rhythm of the Premier League!"

When Tottenham Hotspur once again failed to break Liverpool's goal, Kompany's header hit the crossbar and just went out of the bottom line, almost scoring!

But Liverpool was not far behind. The Red Army's tenacity is well-known in European football, especially this iron-blooded army under Benítez's training. The overall team is very strong and the fighting spirit is also very strong. They did not lose their fighting spirit because Tottenham Hotspur almost broke the goal twice in a row after the opening. On the contrary, they quickly launched a counterattack.

Midfielder Gerrard suddenly cut in, intercepted the ball from Pirlo to Ramsey, and passed it directly to Mata. The Spaniard rushed forward with the ball, but this time Vidal returned to defense very quickly, sticking close to Mata all the way into the penalty area, forcing the Spaniard to fail to shoot with his left foot and could only make a soft and weak shot with his right foot.

This was also Ye Qiu's arrangement before the game. Pirlo was Tottenham's weakness. Ye Qiu arranged Vidal to guard Pirlo more when he lost the ball to avoid the opponent's counterattack.

Then Pirlo's side ball was intercepted by Liverpool's Sturridge. Marcelo was forced to make a decisive foul, giving Liverpool an indirect free kick on the right side of the front court. This time Cech held the ball very steadily.

After the opening, the two sides played a very fast-paced continuous offensive. Tottenham and Liverpool did not seem to hold back at all. The two sides played without reservation after the opening. The ball changed hands quickly and the rhythm was very fast, which made the fans at Wembley Stadium very excited.

For Tottenham, the biggest problem is Pirlo's passing. Benítez obviously consciously used this to create articles. Pirlo's passing and handling rhythm is obviously slower, which is not conducive to Tottenham's ball movement and passing.

So after seeing through this, Ye Qiu asked Ramsey to retreat appropriately, and the front court naturally followed back.

Liverpool was a bit unreasonable. Seeing Tottenham retreat, they immediately pressed forward.

But it turned out that being unreasonable is not a good habit.

When Liverpool pressed forward, Tottenham intercepted the ball in the backcourt. Pirlo passed the ball to Vidal and Kyle Walker in succession, pulled to the unguarded area to get the ball, saw Ramsey's position, immediately pointed to the left side in front, and then kicked the ball forward.

Ramsey rushed forward quickly, and after receiving the ball, he went all the way to the left. This is also the advantage of Pirlo's passing, that is, he will use the ball to help you point out the direction of attack, and his pass is always passed to a place where you are very comfortable, and there is no need to adjust it at all.

Ramsey rushed forward quickly after receiving the ball, and quickly dribbled the ball along the right side of the center circle, but Liverpool's defense speed was also very fast, but Messi quickly completed an empty cut with Lewandowski. The Polish center rushed to the right bottom line, while Messi cut inside before Ramsey and shared Ramsey's defensive pressure.

The Welshman dribbled the ball across the half court and came to the 30-meter area. He directly made a diagonal pass to the bottom line to find Lewandowski who was pulled to the side. The latter stopped the ball along the side, chased after him, and made a strong pass directly.

Lewandowski's landing point was not very ideal, but Ribery, who came from the left rib of the penalty area, was near the penalty spot. Regardless of anything, he directly swung his right foot and volleyed.

Reina flew to make a save, but the kick was very good, and the arc was just right. It turned a corner in the air, but just when it was about to hit the goal, it hit the post first and bounced out.

Reina had already fallen to the ground because of the flying save. The two defensive players in the Liverpool penalty area were attracted by Ribery, so Messi, who followed from behind, headed the rebounding ball without being marked.

The ball was slow, but it was fatal. Under the gaze of everyone, it flew into the goal lightly, 1:0!

Amid the shouting of the commentator at the scene, all the Tottenham Hotspur players rushed out of the stadium. Messi and Ribery rushed to Lewandowski's side. The two sandwiched the new teammate in the middle, one on the left and one on the right, and rushed to the bottom of the Tottenham Hotspur fans' stand, celebrating in ecstasy.

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Leading by one goal is undoubtedly a very favorable situation for Tottenham Hotspur, but Tottenham Hotspur still adheres to the usual style of play of Tottenham Hotspur in the past. After taking the lead, they pressed and oppressed Liverpool. And soon after more than a minute, Pirlo made a wonderful through ball to Ribery who was unguarded at the front of the penalty area. The Frenchman stopped the ball and shot with his left foot.

But this time Reina reacted very quickly, and flew to take the ball while retreating.

Tottenham Hotspur still insisted on the high-pressure tactics, and the defense line pushed forward again, further suppressing Liverpool in their own half, and constantly creating opportunities. There were also many good opportunities to break into the penalty area, but they missed the goal for various reasons.

Liverpool was very passive on the field. Although they also counterattacked, they either fell into Tottenham's offside trap or were resolved by Tottenham's faster defense. In addition, Benítez began to pay more attention to defense, which made Liverpool very passive in the following time.

In the second half, the two sides changed sides and fought again. One sign that can reflect the intentions of both sides is that no one made a substitution.

According to the agreement between the two parties, there is no quota limit for the number of substitutions between the two sides in the Community Shield, which makes the Community Shield look more like a warm-up match. However, both sides did not make substitutions during the halftime break. Obviously, they all hope to use this set of main lineups to defeat the opponent and make a good start for the new season.

"Fatty Bei has great ambitions this season!" Ye Qiu stood on the sidelines. He could feel Benítez's desire to win.

After the start of the second half, Liverpool fought hard and began to rebound. Moreover, they began to give up the play against Pirlo and actively focused on their offense. This play can better play Liverpool's offensive threat.

Mauro Tassotti also frowned, he was also very nervous. Although this was just a Community Shield match, for Tottenham and Liverpool, the actual significance was equivalent to the outpost battle for the Premier League title.

Tottenham was the Premier League champion in the past five seasons, and Liverpool was the Premier League runner-up and FA Cup champion last season. In the eyes of many people, they are the top competitor for Tottenham to win the championship this season. In this case, every match between the two sides looks like a championship battle.

At the very least, it is also a struggle for morale!

"The more times like this, the more you have to grit your teeth and hold on. No matter how much painful price you pay, you have to win such a game!" Ye Qiu seemed to be talking to himself, but in fact he was also describing his own experience and insights.

"Such a game has nothing to do with three points, honors, or the ownership of the league championship, but it is related to the morale and confidence of the team!"

As many people say, football games seem to be a contest of skills and tactics, but in fact they are a confrontation between people.

Whichever side has stronger players will win, and this strength is not only about technology and tactics, but also includes comprehensive factors such as morale, willpower, and fighting spirit.

In the second half, both sides fought fiercely. Liverpool frequently launched counterattacks and threatening attacks, but Tottenham Hotspur also threatened the Red Army's goal without reservation. The two sides fought back and forth. The scene was very beautiful and the rhythm was very fast, but the situation was very tense.

Everyone seemed to see a fuse, one end was burning, and the other end was connected to the explosive pack. You don't know how long it will burn, and you don't know how powerful the explosive pack is, but you know that it is going to explode!

Time seemed to pass quickly, and the fans on the court were cheering and encouraging. Time had no concept for them, and the players on the court were also fighting hard, and no one was willing to give up easily.

Pirlo got more room to play without being closely marked by the opponent. He gradually entered the game state and found the rhythm of playing. He made an accurate right-wing diagonal long pass to the right.

Lewandowski pulled to the right, raised his left foot, and stopped Pirlo's long diagonal pass. This long pass was stopped very well and steadily by him, but just when the ball landed, Skrtel made a very decisive move and poked the ball away with one foot, but the ball still fell at the feet of Tottenham Hotspur.

Messi followed up to receive the ball, but Liverpool's Javi Martinez had returned, so Messi passed it to the right.

Kyle Walker came up and gently rubbed the ball with his right foot. The ball passed over the players' heads and landed in the arc area of ​​the penalty area, but he saw Ramsey coming up from behind, facing the right side, stopping the ball with his right foot, turning to face the goal, and then using his right foot to lift the ball.

A lob shot at the front of the penalty area, Reina was a little unexpected. He was still worried about whether Ramsey would pass the ball to Ribery in the penalty area, but he didn't expect that the Welshman would shoot directly himself.

After reacting, Reina jumped high and tried to lift the ball out, but the ball almost rubbed his fingertips and fell into the goal behind him, 2:0!

"GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!"

"Ramsey! Aaron Ramsey scored the second goal of the game for Tottenham Hotspur!"

"A very beautiful lob outside the penalty area, Reina had almost no reaction to it, this is a very wonderful world wave, from the Welsh midfielder, Aaron Ramsey!"

The 22-year-old Welsh midfielder quickly rushed to the sidelines, slid on his knees, and vented his joy after scoring.

In this game, Vidal stayed more beside Pirlo as a thug, so Ramsey had a wider space to play, and the Welshman was also very clear that the team's competitive pressure in the new season is still very high. If he does not show his performance and state better, he will bid farewell to the main position.

The successful experience of last season, as well as his outstanding performance, and the affirmation from the coaching staff, fans and media, have made Ramsey more confident. He knows very well how to help the team and perform better!

Teammates rushed up one by one and hugged Ramsey to the sidelines. The Welshman looked very excited, shaking his fists at the fans in the stands and high-fiving his teammates to celebrate.

On his way back, he ran to the sidelines and high-fived Ye Qiu and Mauro Tassotti who were standing in front of the coaching bench.

Ye Qiu also admired this kid. He was young and malleable. More importantly, he was very comprehensive, excellent in both offense and defense, and had superb running ability. In addition, he showed more and more good organizational and passing abilities, which made Ye Qiu and Mauro Tassotti value him very much.

"The interaction and cooperation of the front trident is very good!" Ye Qiu was very satisfied with Mauro Tassotti's training results during the summer training camp this year. Lewandowski often ran to the wing to receive and take the ball.

The team's first goal was caused by Lewandowski's cross after he pulled to the wing, and this goal was also caused by him going to the wing to receive Pirlo's long diagonal pass. Although he failed, in fact this stop was very crucial.

Tottenham Hotspur has never had much of an advantage in the first point competition, because the previous trident combination of Cavani, Messi and Ribery did not have much advantage in the first point competition in the frontcourt, so Tottenham Hotspur's system is more about the second point competition.

After the introduction of Lewandowski, the Pole's header ability is not outstanding, but his ability to stand in the frontcourt and get the ball is excellent, and he is fast and has strong impact. Although the area coverage is not as terrible as Cavani, his frontcourt fulcrum ability is obviously higher than Cavani.

In this way, Tottenham Hotspur can better launch a second or even third attack.