Hidden Reward [Guarin's Shin Guards]: I'll Go Out There and Smash One!

Conceding a goal less than 15 minutes into the game was something Pellegrini certainly hadn't anticipated.

It's not that he wasn't well-prepared, but rather that Manchester City never conceded a goal in the first 15 minutes throughout the entire 2014-15 Premier League season!

Manchester City under his management was a team with a very high level of focus.

As long as the recovery is done properly, we are never afraid of any Premier League opponent's opening three moves.

However, the fleeting hint of panic in Pellegrini's eyes quickly disappeared, and he regained his composure.

"Conceding a goal early on isn't so bad, especially since Arsenal have already started to retreat after their successful counter-attack. As long as we control the ball in their home stadium and take the initiative, turning the tide shouldn't be too difficult," he thought to himself.

Manchester City quickly began playing possession-based football according to their established tactics.

Manchester City's passing and possession players have a very distinctive feature: in their 4-2-3-1 formation, all four starting forwards in this match are short.

Agüero, Sterling, Navas, and Silva are all small, quick, and agile players who are just over 1.70 meters tall.

Although they are not tall, they are agile and fast, good at breaking through and dribbling past opponents, and all have certain ball control skills.

If we say that in Arsenal's possession-based system, the ball moves like a butterfly flitting across the field;

When the ball is in Manchester City's possession, it's like a three-dimensional pinball, passing back and forth at a very fast pace between the players.

Manchester City players' passing is more solid. Although they don't have the same flair as Arsenal with backheel flicks, outside-of-the-foot touches, and diving passes, they are superior in their use of space and control of the attacking progression.

If Arsenal's passing and possession style is like 11 artists working together to paint a magnificent picture;

Manchester City's passing game is like 11 skilled workers assembling a car with intricate parts.

Through passing, the ball was able to penetrate Arsenal's penalty area multiple times.

"I just don't understand why Arsenal's passing and possession can't get into Manchester City's penalty area, while Manchester City can repeatedly penetrate Arsenal's penalty area?" Keane muttered.

Henry smiled and believed the key difference lay in the two teams' forwards.

"Arsenal's center forward is Giroud. My fellow France has some technical skill, but due to his physique, he mainly plays as a target man."

"Manchester City's center forward is Aguero, and his style is completely different from Giroud's. Look at this play, he pulled away from the penalty area and ran to the wing, switching positions with Sterling!"

No sooner had Henry finished speaking than Clichy's through pass on the wing found Agüero was drifting wide.

On the bench, Tang Long couldn't help but shout "Great goal!" It seems that Agüero, like himself, also saw Arsenal's defensive weakness, which lies on the right-back Bellerin side.

Bellerin stayed up front because he hadn't gone back yet, Agüero easily found an opening, dribbling the ball into the penalty area!

Left with no other choice, Germany center-back Mertesacker, standing at 1.98 meters tall and the tallest player on the field, was forced to step forward.

The two engaged in a one-on-one match inside the penalty area of the stadium, creating a rather comical scene due to their 26-centimeter height difference.

From the broadcast camera, Modesak appeared so tall, while Aguero in front of him looked so tiny; the two had the cutest height difference ever!

However, every inch has its advantages and every foot its disadvantages.

Although Agüero is short, this gives him the advantage of a low center of gravity and high frequency of movement.

There were no fancy dribbling moves, nor any techniques like Step Over or Marseille Turn.

Agüero shifted his weight to the right, then moved the ball to the left, feinting a cross from the byline.

Just as Mertesacker made a sliding tackle to intercept, Agüero deftly pulled the ball back with his left foot.

With just that push and pull, Mertesacker was knocked to the ground, yelling "Ouch!" and falling flat on his backside!

The Argentina striker glanced at the penalty area and flicked the ball towards the far post with his right foot!

Just as Agüero delivered that low cross, all the players on the bench, including Tang Long, jumped up, ready to cheer and celebrate the goal!

Everyone could see clearly that Navas was unguarded at the far end.

Agüero's cross was already over the reach of the opposing goalkeeper, Cech.

Although Navas's shooting angle was not high, he was facing an almost open goal.

Any professional player, with proper footwork, can reliably score a goal with a ground ball.

But for some reason, Navas didn't take a direct shot; instead, he stopped the ball at his feet.

Forehead...

Everyone's raised arms froze in mid-air.

"Shoot on goal!" the players on the bench shouted.

Cechnavas didn't shoot and quickly rushed back to get back on track.

However, Navas still has a lot of space in his close-range position, and with a powerful shot, he can still score.

However, Navas seemed to have lost his mind and didn't shoot. After wasting nearly two seconds, he chose to pass the ball back to the edge of the penalty area.

Yaya Toure, the trailing defensive midfielder, unleashed a powerful shot that flew towards the stands under pressure from Flamini.

"Go shoot! What are you doing here?" Toure helplessly, shrugging at Navas.

Agüero, who thought he had delivered a brilliant assist from a distance, stared wide-eyed in disbelief.

However, he wasn't as agitated Toure. He sighed to himself, didn't blame Navas, and turned to leave.

The substitutes on the bench grumbled and took their seats, while head coach Pellegrini could only manage a wry smile.

"What was Navas thinking at that moment?" Tang Long asked Kolarov beside him.

In this match, the starting left-back was Clichy instead of Kolarov, so the Serbia full-back and Tang Long were both on the bench.

Kolarov couldn't help but complain, "You'll get used to it eventually. Navas is good at everything—fast, dribbles well, and passes accurately—but he just doesn't like to shoot!"

"It's not a matter of liking or disliking, but what player wouldn't shoot when there's a nearly open goal?" Tang Long was completely baffled.

"Let me tell you some information: Navas made 35 league appearances last season, with 8 assists but no goals!" Kolarov said.

Upon hearing this information, Tang Long found it amusing; it seemed Navas indeed disliked shooting.

Given Manchester City's attacking prowess, a winger who has made 35 league appearances, provided 8 assists, but failed to score a single goal cannot be attributed to poor shooting skills. Rather, it simply means he doesn't like shooting and prefers passing, which is a quirk he needs to change!

Manchester City had many good chances in the subsequent match, but none of them could compare to Navas's near-open goal opportunity.

The score remained 0-1 at halftime.

Inside the locker room, Manchester City manager Pellegrini comforted each player with encouraging words.

"That opening goal was just an accident. We played very well and controlled the whole game. If we had been a little more clinical, we might have already taken the lead. Keep playing like this in the second half, and believe me, the kids will win!"

At this point, D'Angelo Greene had no intention of bringing Tang Long on as a substitute.

On the one hand, Pellegrini still has some concerns about Tang Long's back injury.

He wouldn't send Tang Long into battle unless it was a critical moment.

On the other hand, people believe that the team is operating very well right now, and after withstanding Arsenal's initial onslaught, they immediately took control of the ball.

According to the data from the first half, Manchester City had 59% possession within 45 minutes, while Arsenal only had 41%.

In terms of shots, Manchester City had 8 shots, 4 of which were on target, while Arsenal only had 3 shots, 1 of which were on target.

The second half of the match has begun.

Until 55 minutes into the game, Pellegrini firmly believed that his team would complete the comeback.

However, unforeseen events can happen!

58 minutes later, suddenly the sky over London was covered with dark clouds, and a torrential downpour began!

The torrential rain shocked both head coaches.

According to the pre-match weather forecast, today was cloudy with only an 8% chance of rain, which basically meant there would be no rain!

Rainfall can alter the shape of the turf.

Even the most advanced drainage systems can make a pitch slippery after it rains.

The change of venue has an even more obvious impact on the team's tactics and playing style.

Both Manchester City and Arsenal primarily employ a possession-based style of play.

Manchester City, needless to say, controlled the ball most of the time, while Arsenal, although they only had a little over 40% possession, cherished this hard-won possession and were less likely to easily return the ball to Manchester City with long balls.

However, the rain intensified, turning from a drizzle into a downpour, and within just 10 minutes, significant water accumulation appeared on the field!

Manchester City, who had the most possession, were the first to be affected.

The ball movement was sluggish; several short passes were almost intercepted by Arsenal due to inconsistent ball speed.

The seasoned Wenger knew that this was an excellent opportunity for Arsenal to hold onto their 1-0 lead.

Wenger immediately substituted the speedy winger Walcott with the larger Iwobi, who was better able to disrupt the game in chaotic situations.

Pellegrini also realized that it was no longer possible to penetrate the opponent's penalty area and score through short passes!

In his haste, he made two substitutions, replacing the 170cm tall Silva and 172cm tall Sterling with the 181cm tall Bernie and 185cm tall Iheanacho, while simultaneously directing the 190cm tall Yaya Toure to make runs into the opponent's penalty area.

"Wow, Manchester City's going for a high ball, interesting!" Henry said.

"Haha, I knew it! The Premier League is all about physicality. All that fancy footwork is so boring!" Keane perked up.

"I just don't know if Manchester City will play high balls," Henry said, "And Pellegrini doesn't seem inclined to bring on Tang."

"Why can't you lift a high ball? Just kick it up and head it into the goal. It's that brutal. Twenty years ago, when I played in the Premier League, that's how I won the championship with Manchester United!" Keane said proudly.

Manchester City players began their traditional English long ball attack, frequently sending high balls into Arsenal's penalty area.

However, with Mertesacker, a 1.98-meter-tall center-back, on the team, no one can challenge him for a header.

At that moment, Pellegrini glanced at Tang Long, who was warming up as usual.

His request was to keep Tang Long warming up, but at this point, the Manchester City manager had not yet made up his mind to bring Tang Long on.

In Pellegrini's eyes, Tang Long was not a player who excelled in headers and physical battles.

Even Agüero, who is only 172 cm tall, is considered by Pellegrini to be better than Tang Long in terms of heading ability.

Tang Long was warming up in the downpour, but his body had just warmed up when the somewhat icy rainwater chilled his skin.

After September, temperatures in many parts of the UK have dropped below 20 degrees Celsius.

The pain made me feel wet all over, especially around my socks and shin guards, where rainwater had seeped in and clung tightly to my skin.

Tang Long adjusted himself several times, but still felt uncomfortable.

He discovered that he still preferred the old shin guards he had at Inter Milan to the new ones Manchester City had given him.

After greeting assistant coach Rayne, Tang Long quickly ran back to the locker room and retrieved Inter Milan's shin guards.

These shin guards from Inter Milan actually belong to Guarin. Tang Long's pair was swapped with Guarin after the first round of the Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur.

Since that match, Tang Long has never worn Inter Milan's shin guards again.

There were two reasons; one was that he wanted to give him the Guarin set as a keepsake.

Another point is that Guarin's shin guards for Inter Milan are actually quite old, with severe wear and tear, and a crack running down the bottom.

But he couldn't worry about that now. Tang Long quickly threw away Manchester City's shin guards, stuffed Guarin's Shin Guards into his socks, and ran out.

As he ran, a clear, crisp sound suddenly rang in his mind, seemingly coming from nowhere.

"Bite!"

"Congratulations, host, for activating the hidden reward: [Guarin's Shin Guards]!"

Equipment Attributes: Shooting Power +20%, Strength +20%, Speed -10%, Dribbling -10%

"The system has detected that the host is wearing [Guarin's Shin Guards]. The attribute changes are as follows: Shooting Power: 81-97.2, Strength: 82-98.4, Speed: 80-72, Dribbling: 84-75.6."

Tang Long didn't slow down; instead, he ran faster and faster in the player tunnel, his cleats making a thumping sound on the ground.

Doesn't this change in attribute perfectly align with the current situation?

In the pouring rain, on the slippery, flooded track, speed and dribbling are superfluous; power and strength are the keys to victory!

As soon as he rushed back onto the field, he saw assistant coaches Rayne and Pellegrini anxiously searching for him.

"Tang! Hurry up, get ready to go on stage!"

In the 81st minute of the second half, with only about 10 minutes left in the game, the match was about to end.

Ground attacks were ineffective, and aerial bombardment still couldn't get over the heads of Arsenal's tall defenders.

Pellegrini had no choice but to send in Tang Long for a desperate gamble, hoping that this player, the most expensive player in the team's history, could have a magical performance and save the team!

What could Tang Long do after he went up there? Coach Pei had no idea.

After all, Tang Long's strength lies in through balls and passes, but can he really execute that effectively with the puddles on the grass?

When Tang Long was substituted on at this point, Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger on the sidelines didn't seem to care.

If Tang Long were to start, Wenger might have to be cautious, given that Tang Long's role is indispensable in Manchester City's possession-based style of play.

Right now, with the rain pouring down, what's the point of bringing on a more technically skilled player?

Besides, physical strength has never been his forte; his back injury has just healed. Are you suggesting he run into the penalty area and compete for headers with a bunch of tall Arsenal defenders? Wenger finds the thought laughable.

Arsenal's turn for a long pass!

Ramsey launched a high ball, which floated high into the Manchester City penalty area.

Giroud loves this kind of play because it allows him to use his physical advantages to hold off the opposing center-back, control the ball, and then make his move.

That's exactly what he did: Ranocchia behind him with one hand, then used his chest to deflect the ball.

Just as Giroud was about to turn and shoot, Ranocchia pulled him to the ground.

"Penalty! Penalty, referee!" Giroud jumped up, spreading his arms and shouting at the referee.

After a two-second hesitation, the referee waved his hands, signaling for the game to continue.

Just as Giroud was holding his head in his hands, looking on in disbelief, Ranocchia charged forward with the ball and began to advance.

Ranocchia's defensive play perfectly showcased the wisdom of an Italy defender.

His hand did indeed grab Giroud's wet jersey.

But just as Giroud was about to fall, his hand suddenly Ranocchia, and he fell down with him.

This is precisely why the referee hesitated for two seconds before not awarding a penalty.

If it were an England center-back, they would hold onto Giroud's jersey tightly until he hits the ground.

But Ranocchia was different; he understood that he was pushing his foot to the very edge of the referee's call.

Because the field was not conducive to dribbling, Ranocchia quickly passed the ball to Tang Long.

"Eat his body!"

At Mertesacker's shout, the young player Iwobi, who had just entered the game, actively returned to defense, making a shoulder strike and attempting a legitimate collision with Tang Long!

Iwobi holds dual Nigeria and England citizenship. He is a black player with a strong physique and a strength rating of around 88. Normally, he would push Tang Long half a body length away and win the confrontation.

But when the confident Iwobi slammed into Tang Long, it felt like hitting a concrete wall. With a thud, he was not only thrown back, but his arm also hurt terribly, and he almost tumbled to the ground.

Looking at Tang Long again, although his footwork has been adjusted and he is not dribbling fast, it does not affect his ability to turn and dribble forward.

"Don't let him pass the ball!"

Although Mertesacker was closely marking the moving Agüero, and despite the puddles on the ground, Arsenal captain Mertesacker was still worried and shouted loudly in the downpour to the opponents marking Tang Long's passing lanes.

However, his shouts sounded so insignificant amidst the thunderous explosion of Tang Long's subsequent blast!

Thump!!!

Tang Long was no match for the ball. His eyes were watering, and he didn't even look at the goalkeeper's position. He just kicked the ball straight at the goal!

A powerful shot with the instep!

With a shot power of 97, combined with the irregular trajectory of the ball due to its increased weight from absorbing water, Cech, wearing a tank helmet on the goal line, didn't even see the ball clearly before he felt the net behind him being violently pulled!

Water droplets bounced off the nylon netting and hit his neck, feeling icy cold.