Fireworks Bloom in the London Night Sky, Pigeon Droppings Hit Their Mark-A Warm Welcome from the Fans!
Manchester City had no idea what new tactics Arsenal would employ.
Manager Pellegrini has taken the time in the past few days to review Arsenal's last 10 matches in detail.
He discovered that this team was no different from the Arsenal team he had faced in the first leg of the league.
Arsenal haven't changed much in the past six months, still playing their familiar possession-based style. However, in Pellegrini's view, Arsenal's possession-based style is still slightly inferior to Manchester City's.
Recalling the first leg of the league match between the two sides, Manchester City came from behind to win 2-1 away from home, a truly thrilling and exciting game!
With over 80 minutes played and Manchester City still trailing 0-1, Pellegrini's resolve began to waver.
Are we going to suffer a defeat in the fourth round of the league?
But unexpectedly, the situation changed dramatically in the last seven or eight minutes.
First, Tang Long assisted Agüero to score. Then, Tang Long, who rarely takes free kicks, unexpectedly won possession from Kolarov and delivered a precise and fast-moving curved shot that hit Ranocchia's head, giving the Italy defender a decisive victory!
Pellegrini felt a surge of smugness when he recalled Wenger's furious reaction after the last-minute goal.
To be honest, after several years in the Premier League, this was the first time he had ever seen Wenger lose his composure like this.
Although Wenger continued to criticize Pellegrini after the match, saying that Ranocchia's foul on Giroud should have been a penalty and that Manchester City stole three points!
Pellegrini also clashed with Wenger, which at one point escalated into a large-scale brawl between the two teams' players.
For Manchester City, Joe Hart and Agüero were suspended for multiple matches and ordered to perform 50 hours of community service as a result.
Pellegrini was furious at that time.
But now, six months later, looking back, the person is indifferent and doesn't care at all.
After all, Manchester City sits atop the league table with a four-point lead over Manchester United;
What about Arsenal?
They are ranked fourth, just one point behind Tottenham Hotspur.
Whether they can retain their UEFA Champions League qualification next season remains a question!
Looking at the points alone, Manchester City is already more than 20 points ahead of Arsenal!
The huge gap in the league standings between the two sides led Pellegrini to travel to London with a mindset of the strong looking down on the weak.
The hostility towards Wenger is not as strong as before.
"Lads, play according to our established tactics. We are stronger and more resilient than before. We are first in the league, Arsenal is only fourth. I need you to build strong confidence before the match and win our first trophy of the season, the EFL Cup. Do you have the confidence?"
"Of course!" the Manchester City players answered in unison.
After the leaked recording incident, Manchester City's dressing room actually became more united than before.
Although Tang Long is not a universally liked person within the Manchester City team, and many people hold prejudices against him.
However, the Manchester City players strongly condemned the despicable act of leaking information from within, specifically the recording of the players' private gathering!
Everyone cursed the mole, saying that if they caught him, they would kick him out of the team forever, just like Nasri did.
Many people felt insecure about the existence of this mole.
After all, nobody wants a casual remark they make in the locker room to be spread around.
So, faced with media criticism and Wenger's revisiting of the old issue the day before the match, the flames of revenge in the Manchester City dressing room were not extinguished; instead, they burned even higher!
We're determined to win this EFL Cup and prove Manchester City's dominance in the British Isles!
On the eve of that crucial EFL Cup match, the Manchester City players, filled with a desire for victory and a yearning for glory, checked into the Hilton Hotel in a prime location in London.
Outside the hotel, neon lights flickered, and London remained as bustling and tranquil as ever.
However, they never expected that an off-field scheme meticulously planned by Arsenal fans was quietly approaching.
Professor Wenger is actively preparing for the match, and as the team's strongest supporter and 12th man, Arsenal's fans naturally want to add fuel to the fire.
At three o'clock in the morning, when all the Manchester City players were already fast asleep, the quiet night sky outside the Hilton Hotel was broken by a series of sudden fireworks explosions.
"Bang bang bang!"
Colorful fireworks burst across the night sky, illuminating the Manchester City players' rooms and abruptly waking them from their sweet dreams!
Tang Long was the first to wake up from his sleep.
His head was buzzing from the shock. He groggily pulled back the curtains and looked out the window, where he saw bursts of fireworks exploding and exploding.
Colorful fireworks burst forth in the darkness, their light reflecting on his face.
"Holy crap, is it Chinese New Year?" Tang Long exclaimed in astonishment.
The room in Manchester City was a double room, Ranocchia and Tang Long had always been roommates.
Ranocchia rubbed his eyes while muttering curses under his breath:
"Damn it, what's going on in the middle of the night? It must be an underhanded trick by Arsenal fans!"
Ranocchia was knowledgeable and experienced.
He told Tang Long that when Inter Milan played Juventus away two years ago, the hotel they stayed at in Turin was also attacked by Juventus fans in the middle of the night, and the police even arrested several people.
But what's the point of arresting them?
On the day of the match, Inter Milan players were all listless due to lack of sleep;
Coupled with their inferior strength compared to Juventus, Inter Milan ultimately lost 1-3 to their opponents away from home, completely missing out on UEFA Champions League qualification for that season.
Forward Agüero was in a deep sleep.
Startled awake, he sat blankly on the bed for several seconds before recovering. He then shook his head helplessly, glanced back at his roommate Silva under the glow of the fireworks, and found him looking at him with a similarly bewildered expression.
"Alright, now I'm not getting any sleep!"
Immediately afterwards, in the corridor of the 21st floor, the complaints and curses of the teammates who had been awakened echoed, the voices rising and falling, weaving into a chaotic mess.
Pellegrini also woke up and angrily dialed the police.
"It's so noisy! We have a match tomorrow! Who did this?!"
The police arrived and drove away the troublemakers.
Twenty minutes later, the Manchester City players tried to fall asleep again, but then a second wave hit – the fireworks went off again!
This sudden counterattack greatly frustrated the Manchester City players.
The players tossed and turned in bed, some covering their ears with pillows in an attempt to block out the annoying noise;
Some toss and turn in bed restlessly, or simply refuse to sleep and get up to scroll through their phones.
Agüero even took a photo with his exhausted roommate Silva and posted it on social media, sarcastically commenting:
"Thank you to the warm and hospitable fans in London!"
The background is filled with exploding fireworks.
The sound of fireworks gradually subsided around four o'clock.
The players were exhausted and just about to drift off to sleep again when the fire alarm on their floor suddenly went off in the hotel!
"Ding ding ding--"
The Manchester City players jumped out of bed in a panic and hurriedly threw on their clothes.
"Fire! Run!"
Tang Long quickly put on his sweatpants and jacket, and rushed to the door with Ranocchia;
Agüero frantically searched for slippers in the room, but only found one. He didn't care much and put on one slipper, leaving his other foot bare on the cold floor.
Captain Kompany was disheveled, his shirt buttons were all wrong, and he muttered complaints as he rushed down the stairs with the crowd.
The elevator will stop as soon as the fire alarm sounds.
The crowd rushed from the 21st floor to the ground floor.
Inside the hotel, there were not only Manchester City players, but also many tired-looking guests.
The crowd gathered in the hotel lobby, exchanging bewildered glances, their eyes filled with anger and helplessness.
They whispered among themselves, complaining about the sudden turn of events.
"What on earth is going on? Arsenal fans have gone too far!"
Agüero said angrily, his face showing obvious fatigue and dissatisfaction, with dark circles under his eyes, looking tired and annoyed.
"We have a match tomorrow, how can we get proper rest if we keep doing this?"
Kompany frowned, a hint of worry in his eyes.
As the team captain, he knew all too well the importance of adequate rest for the game. Looking at his teammates' disheveled appearance, he sighed helplessly.
The players waited in the lobby for hotel staff to handle the alarm problem. Time ticked by, and the cold air gradually eroded their bodies and patience.
Some players huddled together, trying to warm themselves up;
Some kept yawning, struggling to keep their tired bodies going.
Finally, the hotel manager came to apologize.
"I'm sorry, we've reviewed the security footage. Someone deliberately smoked under the smoke detector on your floor. We've called the police again."
Hotel staff bustled through the crowd, trying to explain the reason for the sudden alarm, but clearly, such explanations could not quell the anger of the Manchester City players.
After all that back and forth, it was almost six o'clock, and dawn was approaching, yet half of the Manchester City players were still unable to sleep.
After all, running from the 21st floor to the 1st floor is quite a workout, and many people broke out in a sweat.
At this moment, the Manchester City players felt both anger at Arsenal fans for their underhanded tactics and a sense of unease about the upcoming match.
They didn't know how this series of unexpected events would affect their performance in the match, but they understood that no matter what, they had to give their all in this EFL Cup final to defend the team's honor!
Tang Long clenched his fist silently, vowing to himself that he would respond to Arsenal's underhanded tactics with an outstanding performance and let them know that they would not be easily defeated!
The next morning, while having breakfast, Tang Long said to his teammates:
"The more they mess with us, the better we must perform and strike back hard against them!"
Captain Kompany chimed in, "Don is right. So what if we didn't sleep? Our strength is undeniable; it can't be erased in one night. Let's cheer each other on, brothers, and lift the championship trophy at Wembley Stadium, making their efforts futile!"
In the afternoon, the Manchester City players boarded the team bus.
Many Manchester City players are catching up on sleep because they didn't sleep well last night.
Just as the Manchester City team bus slowly drove away from the hotel and headed towards Wembley Stadium, an unusual commotion suddenly erupted on the previously calm street.
A flock of seemingly ordinary pigeons, through the meticulous planning of Arsenal fans, gathered at an intersection along the route that the Manchester City team bus would inevitably pass.
These pigeons are no ordinary birds; they have undergone special training and are able to act collectively upon receiving specific signals.
As the bus approached, Arsenal fans hidden in the crowd began to whistle and make soft gestures, a signal they had agreed upon with the pigeons.
In an instant, as if given a command, the pigeons took flight, but not into the sky. Instead, with an astonishing tacit understanding, they circled above the bus and then began their special performance—collective defecation!
This scene was nothing short of a sudden white bombardment for the Manchester City players.
Pigeon droppings fell like raindrops, some hitting the car windows directly, while others splattered onto the car body and the road, instantly filling the air with an indescribable odor.
The players on the bus, even those who were trying to catch up on sleep, were startled awake by this sudden surprise. They all frowned, revealing expressions of helplessness and anger.
"This... this is too much!" Ranocchia covered his nose, his voice filled with disbelief.
He had seen many underhanded tactics in Italy, but this was the first time he had ever witnessed pigeons deliberately dropping droppings on a bus; it was quite an eye-opener.
Agüero could only manage a wry smile, "It seems Arsenal fans will stop at nothing to win."
Tang Long was utterly speechless. First fireworks, then a fire alarm, and now pigeon droppings—a triple whammy of underhanded tactics?
The bus's windshield was instantly covered in dense pigeon droppings, and the driver slammed on the brakes, afraid to continue.
Captain Kompany quickly communicated with the accompanying coaching staff, requesting that the bus be cleared as soon as possible, while also reassuring the players to ensure they were in top condition for the upcoming match.
The team staff quickly borrowed cleaning tools and garbage bags from nearby shops and carried out a simple cleaning of the bus. Although they could not completely eliminate the odor, they at least ensured that the driver's view was not obstructed.
Manchester City players all wore masks as they continued traveling by car.
Amidst chaos and discontent, the Manchester City team bus finally arrived at Wembley Stadium...