Green Field Eunuch

Chapter 312 The Proud Real Madrid
The match is on that day, but training is still necessary, focusing on warm-up and recovery to get everyone in top form and help them relax and get back into the swing of things.

Mancini also reiterated the game tactics, telling the players to focus on defense, especially in the opening stages of the game.

Manchester City doesn't know much about Real Madrid, and even Mancini himself doesn't know much about them. In the years he has managed Manchester City, he has never played against Real Madrid. His knowledge of them is limited to reports and game videos.

The ability to adapt to the opponent's style and the pace of the game is very important.

Therefore, defense is very important.

Etihad Stadium.

With only a short time left before the match begins, the stadium is already packed with spectators.

Manchester City fans have already unfurled various banners and cheered on the team. The Shan Yongzhuo Women's Cheerleading Team, the main force behind the cheering, has long since taken their positions and begun their dance rehearsals.

Thousands of English women, dressed in matching outfits, created a truly spectacular sight.

Many proud Real Madrid die-hards followed the team to Manchester. Compared to Manchester City fans, they weren't as low-class. Wearing Real Madrid's white jerseys, they sat there like proud nobles, quietly waiting for the game to begin.

They viewed the enthusiasm of Manchester City fans as if they were country bumpkins.

"Isn't it just a Champions League knockout match?"

"I don't know why they were so agitated."

"It's understandable, after all, it's Manchester City's first time qualifying for the Champions League."

"No wonder, it's a pity their first Champions League journey will end in the round of 16."

"..."

Real Madrid fans were buzzing with discussion, unlike the boorish Manchester City fans, who seemed to be having a meeting of parliament.

In Real Madrid's locker room, Mourinho was still emphasizing the key points of the game, ninety percent of which were about defending against Shan Yongzhuo.

He entrusted this heavy responsibility to Pepe. In addition, Ramos also had to keep an eye on Shan Yongzhuo at all times and be ready to help defend and cover at any time. He even required Ramos to follow up immediately after Shan Yongzhuo got the ball, and try to double-team Shan Yongzhuo together with Pepe.

Pepe and Ramos nodded, but they were both somewhat skeptical.

Both players are world-renowned top center-backs, and they had no experience playing against Shan Yongzhuo, so they didn't take him too seriously.

How much stronger can they be?

Despite Shan Yongzhuo's numerous goals, some people still subconsciously felt that he was perhaps only slightly better than Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi.

As for why he was able to score so many goals, it's probably because the entire Manchester City team gave him their full support.

The rest of Real Madrid seemed relaxed; they didn't really take Manchester City seriously.

If Manchester City were truly that strong, they would have no reason to lose to Bayern Munich and finish second in their group.

Cristiano Ronaldo, in particular, has always been very unwilling to accept defeat against Shan Yongzhuo. This time, he can finally have a direct confrontation, which makes Ronaldo very happy.

"In this match, I will show everyone that I am much stronger than him!"

……

Time flies.

The match between Manchester City and Real Madrid is about to begin. The players from both teams lined up on either side of the field, and amidst the cheers of the surrounding fans, the referee blew the whistle to start the game. Cristiano Ronaldo headed the ball to Benzema, who then passed it back to Alonso.

The game officially begins.

Despite the intense media hype before the match, fans noticed that both teams played very conservatively once the game started.

This is testing.

Manchester City doesn't know Real Madrid well, and Real Madrid doesn't know Manchester City well either. Although they are relaxed in the locker room, these Real Madrid players will not really underestimate Manchester City once the game starts. After all, Manchester City was the treble winner last season and is currently leading the Premier League this season.

Real Madrid is confident, and that confidence comes from their strong squad.

As many have said, Manchester City's good results are mainly due to Shan Yongzhuo, with at most a few players like Silva, Aguero, and Kompany. The overall squad is indeed a notch below Real Madrid's, and also inferior to the top European teams.

As the game progressed, Real Madrid began to exert their strength. They tested Manchester City and found that while their attack and defense were hard to assess, their midfield strength was truly lacking.

In this match, Mancini deployed a 4-4-2 formation, with Yaya Toure and Barry in the central midfield, and Silva and Milner on the wings, a clearly defensive midfield setup.

Yaya Toure and Barry struggled to control the midfield when facing Real Madrid.

Then, led by Alonso and Özil, Real Madrid gradually intensified their attack.

Real Madrid's attacking pace is very fast; they quickly reached the edge of Manchester City's penalty area with a few passes and are constantly looking for opportunities.

Manchester City's defense is in dire straits.

However, from another perspective, Shan Yongzhuo and Aguero believe that Real Madrid's attack could end at any time, and Manchester City could launch a counterattack at any moment.

A crisis also represents an opportunity.

Real Madrid's attack was quickly put to an end. The ball was passed to Callejon on the wing. After a tentative breakthrough on the wing, Callejon could only cross the ball towards the center. However, neither Benzema nor Ronaldo were able to get to the ball, and it was headed away by Kompany to the outside.

Barry controlled the ball and passed it to Milner, who sprinted a short distance before passing it back to Barry in the middle.

Barry chose to control possession of the ball first.

Real Madrid's defensive recovery was very quick, and the opportunity wasn't very good, so Barry didn't choose a quick counter-attack and planned to push forward steadily.

Dan Yongzhuo watched the ball, not rushing forward, but keeping an eye on the ball's position while squeezing into space with Pepe.

Pepe is indeed an outstanding center-back, and he is in his prime, physically strong, powerful, and experienced.

Dan Yongzhuo gave Pepe a high evaluation in his heart. Pepe did cause him a lot of trouble, always changing angles to block his position, making it very difficult for him to rush forward. Moreover, Pepe was always paying attention to the position of the ball, always blocking the ball between him.

This is a bit uncomfortable.

Just then, after Barry and Silva advanced a bit through a combination play, the ball returned to Barry's feet, and he saw Shan Yongzhuo ahead of him.

Manchester City's attack has run out of tricks, and with no other option, he can only pass the ball to Shan Yongzhuo.

"Hopefully, one person can handle it..."

This is the common mentality among Manchester City players: when there's not much else to do, they pass the ball to Shan Yongzhuo and let him solve the problem himself.

These Manchester City players have long developed this dependency.

(End of this chapter)