Reappearing Manga Moves, Tang Long's "White Whale Return" Leaves Opponent Helpless!

[Holy crap! Manchester City conceded the first goal!]

-[Monchengladbach Mönchengladbach is definitely Guardiola's nemesis, hahaha, absolutely right!]

-[I told you long ago, Monchengladbach is very strong, but you didn't believe me~]

Manchester City's clean sheet streak has been broken! This match is going to be exciting!

Guardiola's attempt to pull off a stunt backfired!

The problem lies in Mkhitaryan and Thiago's lack of coordination!

- [Whose fault is this? They haven't spent enough time working together!]

After Manchester City conceded the first goal, many fans in the live broadcast chat were gloating.

Many Barca fans, in particular, applauded and cheered for Monchengladbach's striker Hahn.

Although Guardiola was unusually low-key at the pre-match press conference, claiming that Barca would definitely finish first in the group, Manchester City could only compete with Monchengladbach and Celtic for a place as the second-placed team in the group.

But Barca fans won't believe Guardiola!

What is Guardiola's ability level?

Barca fans know this all too well.

With Guardiola's coaching ability and Manchester City's squad, regardless of whether they can win the title, at least in the eyes of Barca fans, they are definitely their biggest rival for first place in this group, without a doubt!

A moment of silence fell over the Etihad Stadium.

More than 2,000 Monchengladbach Expeditionary Army fans in the northeast corner erupted in a thunderous cheer.

After being thrashed 0-6 on aggregate by their opponents last season, at least in this match, they see hope for revenge on the road!

As the team captain, Kompany felt very guilty and apologized to his teammates with one hand.

Because he was wary of his opponent's speed, he didn't dare to get too close. When Hahn finally shot, he didn't dare to make a sliding tackle, but instead stretched out his leg to intercept. However, by a twist of fate, he helped his opponent score a rebound goal.

But in reality, the Manchester City players on the field all knew that the responsibility for this goal did not lie with Kompany at all.

Guardiola's three-defender formation requires all three center-backs to cover the backfield, so the distance between them is definitely longer than that of a four-defender formation; this is one reason.

Secondly, and most importantly, Mkhitaryan's one-two pass this time lacked a unified strategy with Thiago!

Thiago was somewhat annoyed and went forward to talk to Mkhitaryan.

However, Mkhitaryan, being rather cold-hearted, instead criticized Thiago for not being prepared in advance, which led to Hahn intercepting the one-two pass.

"It's because you're too weak; you managed to break a 50/50 chance!"

The fans in the live broadcast room were watching the drama unfold, seeing Manchester City players fighting amongst themselves on the field for the first time.

Defensive midfielder Ranocchia, feeling indignant on Thiago's behalf, also stepped forward to argue with Mkhitaryan.

Seeing many Monchengladbach players standing with their hands on their hips, watching the Manchester City's infighting with smug expressions, Tang Long quickly ran back from the attacking third and separated the three.

He first yelled, "Shut up, all of you!" which startled the three players, who all looked at him. Then he said, slowly and deliberately, "..."

"What's all the arguing about? Don't let the other side laugh at us. It's just a lost ball, we can just get it back right away!"

Tang Long's command quickly calmed Ranocchia, Mkhitaryan, and Thiago down.

These three players are all seasoned and experienced players from the middle generation of Europe football, and have seen a lot in the world.

Ranocchia and Thiago didn't lose their composure because of conceding a goal; they just felt that Mkhitaryan's indifferent attitude and lack of responsibility were somewhat disheartening.

From Mkhitaryan's perspective, although he appeared indifferent, he felt very guilty inside. However, he was too proud to admit it. In fact, he had no intention of arguing with his teammates and only wanted to equalize the score as soon as possible.

So when Tang Long made this adjustment, the three of them looked at each other, nodded, and then immediately returned to the game.

Seeing this, Chivu on the sidelines was overjoyed and couldn't help but applaud loudly, trying to rouse the players. Then he turned to Guardiola and said:

"Neither Kompany nor Agüero stepped in to mediate, but Dom immediately intervened in his teammates' conflict. He handled it very well; as the third captain, this kid demonstrated his leadership on the field!"

Chivu deliberately said this to Guardiola, actually implying that Tang Long should be ranked higher as captain in the locker room.

However, Guardiola looked somewhat worried and did not follow Chivu's lead.

He realized at that moment that his tactical adjustments today, at least from the start, were a failure.

"Christian, do you think we need to make some adjustments? It seems the players aren't quite used to this three-man defense, and Mkhitaryan, Ranocchia, Thiago are still a bit unfamiliar with each other. It seems I was careless," Guardiola whispered to Chivu, covering his mouth.

Chivu smiled slightly and waved his hand.

"Pep, you don't need to make any adjustments. Who adjusts pre-match tactics at the start of the game? That's detrimental to your authority within the team! I'm confident we'll equalize before halftime!"

The two then fell silent, but their eyes simultaneously fixed on Manchester City's number 9, Tang Long, on the field.

Both of them knew that if someone had to step forward at this moment, they had to place their bets on Tang Long!

Although Guardiola hasn't managed Manchester City for very long, he is quite familiar with the players' abilities and has observed their competitive form during daily training sessions.

Although the three-defender formation was only practiced for two days before the match, and mistakes were made at the start;

Manchester City is Manchester City after all. Every player who plays for this team has some skills. Their understanding of football and their own technical level are world-class!

Manchester City, playing with a three-defender formation for the first time, quickly found their rhythm after a somewhat disorganized first 10 minutes.

Kompany, playing as a sweeper, deliberately dropped back two meters, giving left center-back Stones more space to operate in the backfield and fully utilize his advantage as a ball-playing center-back.

After communication, Mkhitaryan gradually found the right rhythm for Thiago and Ranocchia's play, stopped being reckless, and the three of them became more skilled at cooperating.

Of course, the most outstanding performer was Tang Long on the front line!

Guardiola used a two-striker formation in this match.

Although Tang Long is 10 centimeters taller than Agüero, Guardiola did not use him as a target man, but instead played him as a shadow striker, allowing him to roam more in the attacking third, essentially making him a free-roaming forward.

Guardiola's arrangement was based on his full understanding and control of Tang Long's abilities.

Tang Long, who switched to playing as a striker this season, has not lost his excellent passing anticipation and overall vision from his attacking midfield position last season.

Furthermore, his frequent goals inside the penalty area have led to a wide range of abilities, allowing him to seamlessly switch between midfield and forward roles, making him increasingly well-rounded!

In the next 20 minutes or so, Tang Long, playing as a free agent in the attacking third, repeatedly created space with his agile movement and excellent dribbling skills, which led to his teammates pushing the team forward.

If Mkhitaryan hadn't received a pass from Tang Long inside the penalty area and fired a long-range shot that narrowly missed the left post;

If Agüero hadn't received Tang Long's through ball and attempted his signature chip shot in a one-on-one situation, the goalkeeper would have saved it.

If Tang Long hadn't dribbled past two players on the left wing and broken into the penalty area, and if the referee hadn't had his view obstructed, resulting in a penalty kick that hit an opponent's hand without the referee not seeing it, Manchester City would have already taken the lead.

"What's going on? Referee, are you blind?!"

Chivu was extremely anxious and yelled at the referee.

Guardiola quickly pulled him back, covered his mouth, and gestured for him to calm down.

Guardiola is less worried now because he sees the balance of the game steadily tilting in Manchester City's favor. It's only a matter of time before his team equalizes or even takes the lead, and Guardiola is mentally prepared for that.

However, when the equalizer came, Guardiola was taken aback!

He thought with utter astonishment, "My God, you can actually play football like this?"

That was in the 40th minute of the first half.

Mkhitaryan passed the ball to defensive midfielder Ranocchia, who, without stopping the ball, flicked it with his heel, completely fooling the onrushing striker Hahn.

Just as Ranocchia was flicking the ball, Thiago, who hadn't yet received it, had already spotted Agüero lurking on the offside line;

He pulls the ball back, turns, Low-trajectory Curve Shot, long pass!

Tang Long, seeing Thiago unleash that Low-trajectory Curve Shot from the left, cheered inwardly.

This Low-trajectory Curve Shot was perfectly timed in terms of both ball speed and the degree of contact with the ground, very similar to Tang Long's signature move.

However, Tang Long immediately realized that Agüero wouldn't be able to get the ball.

Tang Long mentally predicted, "Thiago's Low-trajectory Curve Shot was a masterpiece of footwork, no less than mine. But in order to speed up the pace, he deliberately tried to pass the ball immediately, but he didn't time his shot perfectly. What a pity."

As Tang Long predicted, before Agüero could even get going, the ball was already passed to him.

The Argentina striker rushed to contest the ball, but due to his physical disadvantage, he was tightly marked by Monchengladbach Mönchengladbach's tall center-back Dominguez, who dispossessed him.

Ouch!

Agüero shouted and bent over, covering his nose with his hand.

During that physical tug-of-war, Dominguez intentionally or unintentionally raised his elbow, which struck Agüero's nose.

Unfortunately, the referee was blind and didn't see it, so Agüero suffered in silence. He smelled blood in his nose and felt dizzy from the pain.

However, Dominguez is good at defense, but passing is not his forte. He was eager to launch a counter-attack, but he accidentally knocked the ball to Ranocchia's feet. Ranocchia didn't stop the ball and gently passed it back to Tang Long.

"Shit, again!" Agüero roared.

Seeing Tang Long get the ball, Agüero was feeling dizzy, endured the pain and immediately straightened up.

With Monchengladbach Agüero, who was in an offside position, immediately started a chase back and ran in front of the last center-back, Dominguez.

"Oh, you're disfigured, you have a crooked nose," Dominguez deliberately provoked Agüero.

However, Agüero didn't have time to pay attention to him, because he saw Tang Long had already kicked the ball, and the football was flying towards him in the air!

After confirming he wasn't offside, Agüero charged forward, trying to get the ball.

However, after running only two steps, he noticed that Dominguez, who had been close behind, had slowed down his pace to catch up.

"Goalkeeper's goal!" Dominguez shouted with a laugh.

Goalkeeper Sommer rushed out to intercept the ball.

The two players had anticipated that Tang Long's pass was too heavy, and that Agüero would have no chance of catching it; instead, it would have entered the goalkeeper's control range.

Agüero was constantly observing the trajectory of the ball, also sighed. The pass was indeed too heavy, and Agüero slowed down his pace.

"Sergio, don't stop, keep going!"

With Tang Long's loud shout, what happened next was unbelievable to everyone!

The football, which was originally high in the air, suddenly fell to the ground with a strong backspin!

Monchengladbach Sommer, was taken aback. According to his prediction, the ball should have flown to about a meter inside the penalty area line, where he could have caught it securely with both hands.

But when the ball finally bounced down, it landed right at the edge of the penalty area!

Sommer had intended to catch it with his hand, but quickly pulled back and stepped back.

If it were just that the ball landed early, it wouldn't be so shocking. What's shocking is that after the ball landed, it bounced back sharply as if it had been kicked!

Agüero is Agüero after all. Although he was in considerable pain after being elbowed in the nose by the opposing defender, he still possessed the unique instincts of a striker.

Seeing the ball suddenly bounce towards him, and the opposing goalkeeper Sommer awkwardly stopping halfway through his run, how could he miss such a golden opportunity?

Agüero instantly accelerated, took four or five steps forward to receive the ball, rushed into the penalty area, elegantly dribbled past Sommer, and slotted the ball into the empty net with his left foot!

Guardiola, watching from the sidelines, was speechless, his hands covering his head, momentarily stunned.

Chivu suddenly clapped his hands and laughed loudly:

"Haha, isn't that the White Whale Return! It's a move from a tennis manga!"