Tang Long's One-on-One Finish Left Bony Feeling Inferior!
Who can say that 35-year-old Ibrahimovic is old?
When Ibrahimovic unleashed his powerful left-footed shot into the net, the Parc des Princes fans erupted in cheers!
His name resonates in the Paris night sky.
But only Ibrahimovic himself clearly felt that he was indeed getting old.
As early as the first time he used his stylish "Flip Flap" to get past his old Serie A rival Ranocchia, Ibrahimovic felt a pulling sensation right in the center of his knee.
This is his aging cruciate ligament, a warning to him—your athleticism has exceeded the limits of your body!
Ibrahimovic, who is 195cm tall, experienced a significant increase in muscle mass after the age of 30.
He was tall and strong, frighteningly burly, and his weight once approached 200 pounds.
But his knees are far less agile than they were at 25.
But after getting past Ranocchia, Ibrahimovic's eyes were only on the goal; he didn't care about the reaction in his knees at all.
Under the rush of adrenaline, he used a body-wiping technique to get past Kolarov.
Brushing past an opponent is also a knee-intensive way to get past them.
Before he could even feel the second warning from the medial collateral ligament in his right knee, Ibrahimovic used his right foot as a supporting foot, stomping heavily on the ground to support his 200-pound weight, and unleashed a powerful left-footed shot.
Because the shot was aimed at the far right corner of the goal from the left flank, Ibrahimovic's right foot twisted slightly to the right as he braced himself on the ground, attempting to twist his entire body in mid-air.
This put even more pressure on his already strained knees, and this time the warning came from the lateral ligaments!
The ball went in.
But the piercing pain, like the tidal wave of cheers from the Paris fans at the stadium, surged into my heart all at once.
Ibrahimovic gritted his teeth and smiled, trying not to let others see his pain, then opened his arms to celebrate with his teammates.
At that moment, he saw Nasser, the leader of Paris, clapping and smiling broadly on the huge screen at the Parc des Princes.
"Zlatan, you're 35 years old, you have to give it your all! If you don't win the UEFA Champions League this season, you'll really have no chance left!"
Recalling Nasser's long talk with him at the beginning of the season, Ibrahimovic could only grit his teeth and continue fighting.
Before the match, Nasser gave the team a passionate speech, encouraging them to fight hard in the UEFA Champions League and win the UEFA Champions League.
They even offered the entire team a €10 million bonus for advancing to the next round!
That's why not only Ibrahimovic, but all the other players gave it their all.
You can tell how hard they're working just by how they run!
In the first 30 minutes, excluding the goalkeeper, the average running distance of the Paris players reached 4.3 kilometers, which was 300 meters more than the average running distance of the away team Manchester City.
It's worth noting that Paris's average age is higher than Manchester City's, and the team has veterans in their thirties like Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva, Motta, and Maxwell, while Manchester City has more young players.
So, when Manchester City were down by one goal at halftime...
Inside the locker room, Pellegrini appeared completely confident.
"They ran too much and their energy wasn't distributed properly. They're bound to have problems in the second half. Ladies, conceding one goal doesn't matter. Your chance will come in the next 45 minutes!"
Tang Long chimed in, "That's right, we must equalize the score before they make substitutions in the second half. They're going to collapse in the second half."
Captain Kompany nodded and said to Agüero and Sterling, "Their center-back Silva has been making runs from the backfield all the way up since the start of the game, so he must be exhausted. Generally speaking, the team won't substitute a center-back. When you get the ball, use your dribbling skills to your advantage and focus on getting past Silva. You'll definitely have a chance!"
Paris Saint-Germain coach Blanc was well aware that his team had expended too much energy in the first half.
Even before the start of the tournament, Blanc felt a pang of anxiety after CEO Nasser came to the locker room to give a passionate speech and announced a €10 million bonus for advancing to the next round.
Although the players' cheers still echoed in his ears, Blanc didn't think it was a good thing.
Especially against a strong team like Manchester City!
It's not a bad thing for the team's management to be highly motivated, but we need to consider when it happens.
Passion cannot conquer everything on the football field; in crucial moments, composure and calmness are essential to overcome difficulties.
Just like in the first half, although the team took a 1-0 lead and dominated Manchester City at times, disrupting the opponent's proud passing and control with endless tackling, all of this came at the cost of excessive physical exertion.
Football is a 90-minute match; an unreasonable distribution of physical energy might give a team an advantage in the first half.
However, it is absolutely impossible to maintain the same intensity in the second half as in the first half. This is determined by the players' physiological limits, which no one can change.
So at the start of the second half, Blanc made a decision: he would make substitutions early in the second half, with the first substitution occurring between the 55th and 60th minute.
Whether it was Pellegrini, Tang Long, or Kompany, they all accurately predicted Paris Saint-Germain's reaction in the second half.
The first player to experience a physical breakdown was Ibrahimovic.
As Paris Saint-Germain's target man, Ibrahimovic plays a crucial tactical role, drawing defenders and then distributing the ball around the field, making him a sharp dagger penetrating near Manchester City's penalty area.
However, the throbbing pain in his knees prevented Ibrahimovic from making any moves, even though he wasn't afraid mentally.
Back when he played for Inter Milan, Ibrahimovic suffered a major injury to his medial collateral ligament in his knee, which kept him sidelined for two and a half months.
As he gets older, the effects of old injuries on his body gradually became apparent in the second half.
Unable to continue battling Ranocchia, he stopped relying on his man and instead frequently used one-touch passes to quickly transfer possession.
Ibrahimovic couldn't hold the ball in the middle, and the players making runs from behind couldn't keep up, so Paris had to focus their attacks on the flanks.
54th minute of the second half.
Ibrahimovic and Ranocchia contest a header on a high ball.
Upon landing, Ibrahimovic's knee cracked loudly!
He was stunned for a moment, then squatted down on the ground, not daring to react at all.
The ball flew towards Maxwell on the wing, where the Brazil full-back, panting heavily, made a long run-up.
He looked at Ibrahimovic, who was squatting motionless on the ground, and hesitated for only a second before Sagna on his right closed in!
This was an instruction Pellegrini gave to the France full-back during halftime, instructing him to closely mark the 35-year-old Brazil full-back.
Maxwell came from Brazil street football and possessed exceptional dribbling skills.
Facing the France full-back, he instinctively performed a Marseille Turn place, trying to get past him.
However, Sagna was a star player who had made his name at Arsenal for many years, and after joining Manchester City, he consistently held the starting right-back position. Facing a Maxwell whose stamina had declined, his movements were practically slowed down.
He blocked Maxwell's position with a single kick and dribbled forward.
To prevent Sagna from dribbling directly into his own defensive midfielder, the out-of-position Maxwell had to pull Sagna down from behind.
Taking advantage of the brief pause during the foul and dead ball situation, Ibrahimovic stood up, stretched a bit, and signaled to his teammates that he was alright.
Coach Blanc on the sidelines was extremely nervous at that moment!
He looked at the stadium's big screen and realized that the second half had already reached the 55th minute. He immediately discussed with his assistant coach about making a substitution.
Just as Blanc turned his head to signal Kimpembe on the bench to prepare to come on and replace the exhausted Maxwell, Manchester City quickly took a free kick!
Sagna's quick serve caught his opponent completely off guard!
His tactic even fooled his other Manchester City teammates, the only one who seemed to understand him perfectly was attacking midfielder Tang Long!
Because Tang Long also executed a quick attack against Manchester United in a previous league match this season, and Sagna was also on the field in that match, so he was now imitating him.
Paris's defenders had hoped to use the brief respite from the dead ball to conserve their energy, especially center-back Thiago Silva, 33.
He was panting with his hands on his knees when, in the blink of an eye, Tang Long rushed in front of him, turned around, and faced him with the ball.
"Protect me!" Thiago Silva cried out in alarm!
Tang Long passed the ball to Agüero, Agüero, without stopping the ball, passed it back again, resulting in a simple one-two pass between the two, leaving Thiago Silva with no chance to defend himself.
Tang Long burst into the penalty area!
Facing the onrushing goalkeeper Trapp, Tang Long delivered a deft and powerful lob pass, the ball wobbling just over Trapp's head and slowly rolling into the goal!
"Wow! You can even do a one-on-one chip shot now!"
Agüero was taken aback, then burst into laughter and rushed towards Tang Long, embracing him.
Tang Long did indeed learn this move from Agüero.
Although Tang Long, as an attacking midfielder, rarely gets one-on-one opportunities, he doesn't miss any chance to learn on the field.
Tang Long learned this single-sword flick shot from Agüero.
The Manchester City players on the bench all jumped up and roared with passion!
Captain Kompany ran to the sidelines with a smile and gave Pelle a high-five.
The team has finally tied the score!
More importantly, they secured a valuable away goal!
Although substitute striker Bony rushed to the sidelines, his expression was quite complicated.
Just now, during Tang Long's one-on-one strike, for a fleeting moment, Bony even put himself in Tang Long's shoes.
He conceived two ideas:
One player dribbled past the goalkeeper on the left wing and slotted the ball into an empty net; the other shot into the far corner.
Tang Long's chip shot was completely unexpected by Bony!
However, when he saw Tang Long complete the shot in such a decisive manner, Bony couldn't help but admire him.
These chip shots, from the timing of their selection to the silky height of the ball's flight, were all absolutely beautiful.
For a goalkeeper who can fall at any moment, such a chip shot is unstoppable, with a much higher success rate than a shot into the far corner or past the goalkeeper.
Bony had also observed Agüero's shots and seen him score with a chip shot many times, but whenever Bony faced a one-on-one situation, perhaps due to technical limitations or perhaps because he was too stubborn, he could never think of that!
This also resulted in his one-on-one scoring rate being far lower than Agüero's.
Seeing this, Bony sighed inwardly, feeling a pang of jealousy.
"Sigh, this Tang, he can pass the ball and score one-on-one goals, how come he's better than me in everything!"