UEFA Champions League Shenanigans! Tang Long's Marseille Turn Toys with Godin, Assists Mkhitaryan for an Easy Goal!
The Battle of Dragon and Luo!
The entire football world is enveloped in this intense competitive atmosphere.
In every round of the league, fans closely monitor the goal statistics of the two players, speculating who will emerge victorious in this goal-fest.
The media's cameras and microphones were constantly aimed at them, trying to capture any hint of the competition.
Just as Tang Long and Cristiano Ronaldo were fiercely competing for the European Golden Shoe, and the situation was becoming increasingly intense.
This weekend, however, the two seemed to have agreed beforehand to put away their sharpness and stop chasing each other's goal tally.
The reason is actually quite simple: the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals are about to begin.
In this weekend's league matches, both renowned coaches, Guardiola and Ancelotti, unanimously chose to bench their respective teams' most lethal attacking players.
In the end, both Manchester City and Real Madrid won their matches, but Tang Long and Cristiano Ronaldo had to sit on the bench for the entire 90 minutes.
However, neither Tang Long nor Cristiano Ronaldo complained about the arrangement, because they knew that the upcoming UEFA Champions League knockout stage would be an even greater challenge.
The quarterfinal matchups are now set:
[Real Madrid - Monchengladbach]
[Monaco - Borussia Dortmund]
[Arsenal - Juventus]
[Atletico Madrid - Manchester City]
On Wednesday evening, Real Madrid hosted Borussia Monchengladbach at home.
After a fierce battle, Real Madrid easily defeated Monchengladbach 2-0.
Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo each scored a goal, helping their team secure a crucial victory.
Meanwhile, in the other half of the draw, Monaco and Borussia Dortmund failed to break through each other's defense, resulting in a 0-0 draw.
Real Madrid's easy victory undoubtedly gave Tang Long a lot of motivation. He thought to himself, "My rivalry with Cristiano Ronaldo goes far beyond just league goals. Maybe, just like Uncle Bei said, Manchester City and Real Madrid will definitely meet in the UEFA Champions League final!"
The following evening, Arsenal's match against Juventus and Atlético Madrid's match against Manchester City kicked off simultaneously.
The area outside Wanda Metropolitano Stadium was bustling with activity.
Atlético Madrid fans, dressed in red and white jerseys, marched in droves toward the pitch.
Holding team scarves and flags, and chanting team slogans, the atmosphere was as passionate as flames!
This marks Tang Long's first time stepping onto the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in his professional career.
Standing in the middle of the team, he suddenly felt a sharp killing intent coming from his side. He turned his head and saw that it was Atlético Madrid's star striker, France star Griezmann, staring at him.
Tang Long was about to go up and say hello, but Griezmann coldly turned his head away and ignored him.
"Alright, let's see who's the best on the court," Tang Long thought to himself.
The starting lineups for both sides are as follows:
Home team Atlético Madrid: 443
Torres / Griezmann
Koke / Saúl / Gabi / Carrasco
Filipe / Godin / Savic / Juanfran
Oblak
Away team Manchester City: 3-5-2
Kolarov / Kompany / Stones
Mkhitaryan / Gündoğan / Ranocchia / Thiago / Navas
Tang Long / Agüero
When people saw Manchester City field such a starting lineup, they were all speechless with astonishment.
- [What's going on? Three defenders? Are you sure you're not mistaken?]
- [Doesn't Manchester City usually use a 4-3-3 formation?]
[If I remember correctly, this should be the first time Guardiola has used a three-defender formation this season.]
Why did Guardiola suddenly make such a tactical change for such an important match? Is he just messing around?
Atlético Madrid, on the other hand, is still using their traditional 4-4-2 formation, with no changes.
-[Oh, I remember now, Manchester City used a three-man defense during Pellegrini's time as manager, but that formation hasn't appeared in the starting lineup for a long time.]
[Regardless of the formation, the key is whether Tang Long can score. If he can break through, the team has a chance to win!]
Atlético Madrid manager Simeone looked at the Manchester City players' positioning on the field, a sense of unease creeping into his mind, his eyes occasionally glancing towards Guardiola.
Previously, his tactical deployment had always been aimed at Manchester City's traditional 4-3-3 formation, but this time, Guardiola took an unconventional approach, catching him off guard and disrupting Atlético Madrid's on-field arrangements.
Guardiola, on the other hand, appeared calm and composed, with his hands in his pockets and chewing gum, looking utterly unpredictable.
The change in formation was quickly reflected in the course of the game.
As planned by Simeone before the match, Atlético Madrid, playing at home, intended to seize the initiative from the start, as they would gain a crucial advantage against a strong opponent like Manchester City.
At the tactical meeting the day before the match, Simeone stood in front of the tactics board and said to the players with a serious expression, "In tomorrow's match, we must put pressure on Manchester City from the start, try to score first, and put them on the back foot."
Therefore, it was agreed before the match that the players would launch a fierce attack on Manchester City for the first 15 minutes, and regardless of whether they could score, they would adjust their strategy once the 15 minutes were up.
However, after the game started, Atlético Madrid players were shocked to find that the situation on the field was completely different from what they had expected before the match.
Gabi, Saúl, Koke, and other attacking players pushed high up the pitch, constantly harassing Manchester City's midfield and defense.
Griezmann has outstanding running ability and is one of the best defenders among forwards. Torres, the veteran who returned to Atlético Madrid, is 33 years old, but he works exceptionally hard in the game and cherishes this opportunity to start in the UEFA Champions League.
Even though the five or six players in the attacking third fought with all their might to win possession, they couldn't take the ball away from Manchester City, let alone launch an effective attack into Manchester City's penalty area.
Manchester City's players displayed remarkable composure in possession, repeatedly thwarting Atlético Madrid's pressing through precise passing and seamless teamwork.
Gündoğan, Thiago, Ranocchia firmly occupied the three key midfield positions, and their passing to each other was as smooth as threading a needle;
Not to mention that Mkhitaryan and Navas on both sides frequently tucked in, forming close connections with the midfielders, making Manchester City's midfield possession advantage even more obvious!
The commentator's voice rang out at the right time:
"In this match, Manchester City demonstrated exceptional ball control at Atlético Madrid's home ground!"
"They kept the ball firmly in their possession, and instead of rushing to attack, they moved the opponent around by constantly passing the ball around."
"Gündoğan, Thiago, Ranocchia firmly occupy the three key midfield positions, while Mkhitaryan and Navas on the flanks frequently tuck in, clearly showing that Manchester City has more midfielders than Atlético Madrid!"
"This is interesting. Manchester City's midfield not only has a numerical advantage, but their individual ball control skills are also superior. It seems that it won't be so easy for Atlético Madrid to regain possession."
No sooner had he spoken than Atletico Atlético Madrid were awarded a throw-in opportunity.
As soon as full-back Filipe threw the ball to Saúl, Ranocchia and Diag quickly closed in, forming a pincer attack on Saúl from the left and right.
Before Saúl could react, Ranocchia cleanly intercepted the ball.
"Manchester City's strength lies not only in their passing and control in attack, but also in their high-pressing in defense!"
"The sudden encirclement of Saúl just now reminded us of Barca's peak Dream Team III era!"
"It seems that Guardiola's switch to a five-man midfield was indeed a well-thought-out decision for this match!"
"Manchester City's midfielders already possess superior individual skills and footwork compared to their opponents, and with their numerical advantage, the midfield has become Manchester City's domain!"
Just then, the broadcast camera caught Tang Long's image.
Ranocchia had just passed the ball to Gündoğan on the left after intercepting it, and the camera was still focused on the center circle when Tang Long suddenly appeared in the frame, which seemed rather unusual.
"Huh? Five midfielders aren't enough? Guardiola actually had Tang Long drop back to the attacking midfield position?"
"It seems Manchester City are determined to control the midfield in this match. I wonder if Simeone anticipated this move before the game?"
In fact, it is not unusual for Tang Long to drop back from the forward line.
During Pellegrini's time at Manchester City, Tang Long was already adept at playing in both attacking and defensive midfield positions. He was originally a midfielder, and his switch to striker was only this season.
Guardiola's decision to have Tang Long drop back from the forward line to create space from Agüero was not intended to weaken the attack, but rather to concentrate resources in midfield, maintain control of possession, and suppress Atlético Madrid away from home.
In the pre-match tactical meeting, he explained the tactical arrangement to Tang Long in detail. Tang Long listened attentively and nodded to show his understanding, knowing full well his important role in this tactical system.
Atlético Madrid players continued to run according to their established defensive plan, and the player responsible for marking Tang Long throughout the match was Atlético Madrid's veteran captain, Godin.
Godin has been with Atletico Atlético Madrid for nearly seven years since his transfer from Villarreal in the summer of 2010, consistently holding a starting position as a center-back.
Now 31 years old, he is in his prime as a center-back, maintaining excellent physical condition and at the peak of his skills and experience.
After Ranocchia passed the ball to Tang Long, he quickly moved to the outside of the penalty area.
Godin was closely marking Tang Long, knew that he had deviated from his center-back position and thought to himself:
"Now that we've caught up with Tang Long, we absolutely can't let him turn around!" A fierce glint appeared in his eyes, and he leaned forward slightly, ready to make a move at any moment.
So he secretly used his knee to strike Tang Long's thigh from Tang Long, attempting to take Tang Long down in midfield with this covert move.
Before committing the foul, Godin thought to himself, "It's not very wise to foul in this position, but this is our home ground, so we have to teach him a lesson and make him more cautious when he plays later."
Just as Godin's knee was about to hit Tang Long's thigh, Tang Long suddenly disappeared from sight.
Tang Long, who had been holding the ball with his back to the goal, vanished from his sight in an instant, like a gust of wind.
"Marseille Turn!"
The experienced Godin saw Tang Long's fleeting movement and immediately realized that Tang Long had dodged his sneak attack with this move and even turned around to face the goal!
Now, Godin has no way out.
As a center-back, he chased Tang Long to midfield to mark him closely, but Tang Long managed to dribble past him with his back to goal. What could he do?
With gritted teeth, he took a step forward, reached out and tugged at Tang Long's jersey, trying to pull him down.
Godin thought that the game had only been going on for less than 10 minutes, and it was at his home ground, so the referee was unlikely to show a yellow card.
But Godin's ideas, step by step, were all decided on the fly based on Tang Long's reactions.
From the moment Godin approached him, Tang Long had already planned out his next series of actions.
His mind was quick, and his movements were fluid and graceful; how could Godin keep up with his pace?
After dodging Godin's sneak attack, Tang Long didn't even look at the ball, and instead used the outside of his foot to flick it up, sending the ball soaring high into the air in a rapid arc.
Previously, Manchester City's midfielders maintained possession and constantly lured Atlético Madrid's defense forward. Tang Long's drop back further drew the attention of at least three Atlético Madrid players.
So when Tang Long quickly passed the ball out, a large area in the distance was completely undefended!
Atlético Madrid Savic saw the ball being passed out and quickly grabbed Agüero's shirt tightly, thinking that as long as he kept a close eye on Agüero, no one would be able to receive the ball.
But Agüero stood still, not moving, letting him pull him along, hands on his hips, a smile on his face, looking at Savic like he was a fool.
In truth, he knew that Tang Long hadn't passed the ball to him. He had already understood Tang Long's intention and stood quietly in place, watching the panic of the Atlético Madrid players.
"Mkhitaryan!"
"It's empty!"
Tang Long's pass was clearly not for Agüero.
On the left, Mkhitaryan sped off like lightning, sprinting towards the ball.
It was only then that the Atlético Madrid players realized that everything before was an illusion, and even Agüero was just a decoy. The real killer move was Mkhitaryan's sudden forward run on the left!
In his youth, Mkhitaryan primarily played as a shadow striker, possessing exceptional attacking ability and astonishing speed.
This move was something he and Tang Long practiced specifically under Guardiola's guidance the day before the match.
Making their debut in the UEFA Champions League, the two displayed remarkable chemistry, as if they had rehearsed countless times.
In the blink of an eye, Mkhitaryan cut inside the penalty area from behind Juanfran.
He received the ball at the corner of the penalty area.
Mkhitaryan stared at the terrified Oblak, shouted, swung his arm and raised his leg to feign a shot, but suddenly pulled his foot back at the last moment—another feint!
Oblak was shaken so badly that he lost his balance and landed on his bottom.
Mkhitaryan seized the opportunity and gently poked the ball with his toe, sending it rolling slowly into the goal from Oblak's left!
From Tang Long getting past Godin to passing with the outside of his foot, and then Mkhitaryan cutting into the penalty area to control the ball and shoot, the whole process was seamless and natural, taking only three or four seconds.
"That was awesome!"
Mkhitaryan shouted again, clenched his fist and pounded his chest, then hugged Tang Long tightly as he ran over to congratulate him.
Back when he played for Borussia Dortmund Bundesliga, Mkhitaryan had heard of Tang Long's exceptional midfield passing skills in the Premier League, where he was often able to deliver highly penetrating passes.
After joining Manchester City, Mkhitaryan was eager to witness Tang Long's passing skills firsthand.
Unfortunately, Tang Long switched to a striker role this season, and his main task became scoring goals. He occasionally passes the ball, but he no longer makes the long-range, highly penetrating through balls he did today.
Therefore, Mkhitaryan felt somewhat regretful.
But this time, Tang Long truly demonstrated to him the footwork and vision that a world-class midfielder should possess through his actions!