Xu Zhu's Successor's Football Journey

Chapter 313 The feeling of stepping on the opponent
Everyone knows that December 12th is not destined to be peaceful, because the next day is the battle between Chelsea and Arsenal.

On this day, media from all over Europe gathered in London, and the eyes of the whole world were fixed on this focus battle.

This game is even more popular and attractive than the Manchester United VS Chelsea game. The main reason is that when Manchester United and Chelsea fought, Chelsea was not so strong that it was unstoppable. That is to say, even at that time Chelsea also won a complete victory, but the league has only passed 10 rounds, and even the Champions League has only just begun, so there will not be too many people who pay attention to that game——
But now it is completely different, including the Champions League and the League Cup, Chelsea have won 25 games in a row! !

Many, many media are looking forward to Arsenal's ability to end Chelsea's undefeated myth, so this game has attracted special attention. Even if this is not discussed, this game is also attractive enough. This is not just an England 1, The battle for 2 places, because the two teams are in the same city, adds to the aura of Derby.

In the century-old history of English football, the most representative derby in London has never been a duel between the Gunners and the Blues.In London, the most exciting game is the fight between Arsenal and arch-rivals Tottenham.

But since the Russian "golden wind" blew into Chelsea last season, this situation has changed a lot. Chelsea has made Arsenal no longer alone in the London area.Tomorrow night, the Blues, who are 11 points ahead of Arsenal, will challenge Arsenal away. This is the strongest opponent Chelsea have encountered this season. In fact, it is the battle between Mourinho and Wenger.

Many media believe that in the league, although Chelsea has pulled down Arsenal by as many as 11 points, the outcome of this game will also have a certain impact on the general trend of the league championship. If Chelsea can win as they wish, It will be the best in the standings. If the Gunners win, they will still have a chance to maintain the suspense of winning the championship.

Therefore, almost all England fans believe that this game is almost a battle for the league title --- just one-sided for Chelsea.

In an interview with reporters, a Blues fan said frankly: "If this game can be won, we can celebrate the league championship in advance, because it is impossible for them to catch up, the difference is too far."

"I'm even thinking now that the team will win the championship a few rounds in advance, but the bookmakers don't have this bet. They are behind the times." A very optimistic fan said.

"Tomorrow we will go to Highbury to watch the game. I have already bought the tickets." In an interview, George Scholes, the manager of the fans association, said: "Yes, we are just going to show off. Could be our opponent, the result is obvious."

……

Obviously, due to Chelsea's strength, the Blues fans are very optimistic about this game, but for most of the media, there cannot be such a decisive bias.

In this day's report, London's "Weekly Sports" analyzed the advantages and disadvantages of the two teams in detail from the perspective of lineup and personnel collocation:
"...The Dutch teenager Alkin Robben has shown his strength. Although this teenager seems to be a bit independent and always likes to cut inside and dribble, his breakthrough can indeed cause a great threat to the opponent, and the dance master Alan Wang is even better, and we believe that his performance will be the key to the outcome of this game."

"...Arsenal's magic weapon is on the left. England seems to lack a left midfielder, but Arsenal is proud of the Premier League with its left attack. If Mourinho wants to use Paulo Ferreira to deal with Arsenal's sharp left, That would obviously spell disaster. The combination of Ashley Cole, Pires and Thierry Henry is likely to give his "best right-back" nightmare. The only thing that will make him feel easier is Duff in the The containment of the frontcourt may suppress Kerr's assists."

"However, even though Arsenal have a great advantage on the left, they are stretched defensively. Although their defenders are well-known, they all scored 4 goals against Tottenham. It is conceivable how they will defend in the face of the attack of Alan Wang, who can almost "top the entire frontcourt of Tottenham"? Undoubtedly, this is the problem that Arsenal must face. If the French If this problem cannot be solved, then the game will be without suspense."

In fact, not only the "Weekly Sports Daily", but almost all English media believe that Wang Li's performance will completely determine the outcome of this game. If you play well and score 2,3 or 2,3 goals, then even if Arsenal perform exceptionally well, it is by no means an easy task to score Chelsea [-] or [-] goals at home——
The result is predictable.

The reports on December 12th were almost all of this type. Except for the fans of the two teams, other people would even get tired of watching them. In fact, these media had no choice. They all went to the Champions Cup knockout draw ceremony, which made it impossible for them to interview more news——
Fortunately, on this day, the Frenchman was no longer silent, and Chelsea resumed normal training.

.........

Last season was the time when Arsenal was in a good mood. They only lost one game in a season. If it weren't for the obstruction of Wolverhampton, where Wang Li is, they could even go on unbeaten for more than 50 games.

However, with Chelsea's strong winning streak this season, the confidence of the Arsenal players is also gradually diminishing. Last season's league champions suddenly discovered that their unbeaten record was in front of Chelsea's 20 consecutive victories. , it seems that it is really nothing.

Under the leadership of coach Mourinho, what Chelsea has to do is to make up for the gunner who is gradually losing confidence! !
This battle is not only a battle for Chelsea, but also a battle for Arsenal! !

Although the previous psychological warfare has been unsuccessful, but now there is a best opportunity, and Mourinho certainly does not want to miss it. He knows very well that if he wants to establish the image of a big-name champion in the Premier League, he must defeat the giant Arsenal.

"The whole world will watch it. I hope it will be a good game. The result will prove that we are the strongest team." .If he can really walk out of Highbury Stadium with a smile, Chelsea will be 14 points clear of their opponents, and more importantly, this can also draw a knife on the fragile heart of the Gunners -
Sir Alex Ferguson's team once slashed the knife, making the Gunners unable to do what they wanted in the following games.

And if the Gunners can be pushed to the edge of the cliff, Mourinho will be able to vaguely see the Premier League championship trophy.

Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger needs to face two kinds of provocations, verbal and in the standings. If you have an opponent, you will not be alone. When the Red Devils are gradually sinking, Chelsea has become the professor's biggest enemy, and this enemy is a bit too strong It even made him feel a little powerless.

These days, Wenger has been carefully planning the team's tactics. Vieira's absence and Ljungberg made it difficult to choose. In desperation, a group of young people were pushed to the front stage. In fact, Wenger The worry is whether these young players will feel trembling all over in the face of warships piled up with money standing at Highbury Stadium, and will not be able to release their normal state.

Many people say that Wenger likes to train young players, and he already has this reputation all over the world, but in fact, this Frenchman also has his own difficulties.

Joining Arsenal can spend tens of millions of pounds at will in a season, who would choose young players! ?

Just like Chelsea and Real Madrid, every player introduced is a star or superstar who is in his prime. For a football coach, this kind of mature player is the best to use. For the fans Said that when they see stars joining the team, they feel that the team is developing and the future is more promising.

However, Arsenal's financial situation does not allow this to happen.

Among the existing three giants and an upstart team in the Premier League, Arsenal's financial situation is obviously the worst, and in recent years they have to prepare for the loan repayment of the new stadium, how can there be a pound Go invest in the transfer market! ?

Now, the Frenchman even feels that coming to Arsenal is a mistake, and his life has been very 'difficult'.

.........

For most media reporters, they still prefer Chelsea in their hearts. Most of this is based on the strength of the two teams. This afternoon, the Arsenal club has been filled with reporters from all over the world. Interviewed some breaking news to increase tomorrow's attention.

However, it seems that Arsenal's stars are still very confident.

"Our mood for this game is 'expectation', not 'fear'!" Facing a reporter making trouble, Pires said lightly, that expression seemed to be stating a fact.

And Henry the Great, the King of Highbury, added two points to his kingly spirit: "If we have been playing well, a big game like Chelsea is just one of many games, and it is no different from other games. .”

"...all games are tough games and for us there is no need to emphasize how tough it is to play against Chelsea. We are not only playing against Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool. If we are going to win the title, all teams They are our strong opponents."

However, he still revealed his hatred for Chelsea, because the last time Chelsea beat them at Highbury, the scene of that night and the feeling of being a loser still haunt him: "I really feel sorry for losing that game." Sad, that time we played 8 games in 4 days, we are not machines." The strength of the team is now damaged, and Henry knows the key to victory: "The important thing is that we must be united."

And Vieira, who was suspended this round, was a little arrogant. Facing the reporter's interview, he said bluntly that 'Arsenal will definitely be the winner', and said: "We have a very good behavior record, and the coach also I hope we will be disciplined and avoid yellow and red cards. This style makes us more popular, while some people always 'blatantly' hurt their opponents, but they always get no punishment."

Obviously, what Vieira said was alluding to Wang Li.

In fact, after watching the match between Manchester United and Chelsea, the head coaches of many clubs would feel unbelievable about Van Nistelrooy's injury. Therefore, in the general Premier League, Wang Li encountered more and more fouls. Less, after all, no defender wants to gamble with injuries.

However, before Wang Li said anything about it, Lampard, who had just caught up with his girlfriend, jumped out directly: "We have many players who follow the rules and have not caused any trouble. When an important game comes, anyone can I don't want to have a suspension, and we have avoided it." Vieira accumulated a yellow card suspension, and Lampard's remarks were obviously intended to expose the gunner's scars.

After finishing speaking, the English big man continued to add with a smile: "We are confident that we can get good results from Arsenal. Since the beginning of this season, we have been running wildly, and opponents have fallen at our feet. In fact, I don't think there is anything special about Arsenal at all."

Facing the attack from Chelsea, Henry and Pires immediately counterattacked on behalf of Arsenal——
"People say that compared with some Premier League teams, we don't have a big enough lineup, but we have a lot of outstanding young rookies. Not just Cesco, Flamini, and Hoyt, etc." Henry said Young people are confident.

"They are very young but also very talented. If we show our confidence in them, they can do very well. This is their opportunity." Pires also has confidence in the teenagers.

At the same time, Pires also warned everyone who underestimated the Gunners, "We are not afraid of the Chelsea game at all, we are all looking forward to it", "Everyone says Chelsea have the advantage, they will win the league, and this situation is very important to the team. Quite favorable for us", "If in the end, we defend the title when everyone says Chelsea is better. That will prove that Arsenal are the better team. We are now behind Chelsea, in second place, but this It's more worrying about what we're doing now."

Frank Lampard, who has just fallen into a new relationship and revealed to the media reporters that he is going to marry the 'straight man', is obviously doing well now. Just an hour later, his counterattack again made the media see this big guy from England of 'language culture'.

"...Yeah, Arsenal has a lot of young players, and that Frenchman has a reputation for being good at nurturing young players." As he spoke, Lampard showed a smirk on his face, and continued: "But the best young player in the world It's ironic that the players are at Chelsea, they expect those kids to guard Allen, I think it's more practical to pray to God."

At this time, the former Chelsea coach Ranieri also came to intervene: "This season's Premier League champion will definitely be theirs. Although I have never gambled in my life, if you want me to bet, I will definitely bet on Chelsea."
Many fans agreed with Rather's statement, so the British bookmaker immediately lowered the odds of Chelsea's victory again, which made the odds have been reduced to a pitiful 2.13, while Arsenal's was 4.26. From here we can It can be seen that most fans are still optimistic about Chelsea's victory, mainly because they have never failed in the previous games.

.........

In the anxious and frequent language offensive of the two teams, London soon ushered in the sunrise of the second day.

On this day, Wang Li rarely got up early, and arrived at the Chelsea first-team training ground around 8:[-] in the morning to do some free kick training alone. In fact, he was still looking forward to this game.

Last season, when he was at Wolverhampton, he led the team to beat Arsenal at Highbury, and until now, that game is still recorded in the hearts of many loyal Arsenal fans. In the 11th round, when Wolverhampton met Arsenal again, they were brutally killed by the latter-5:1. This score made Arsenal supporters slightly calm.

However, the biggest culprit is Chelsea, that is, Wang Li. Maybe Arsenal fans are still looking forward to the team's revenge, although many people think they will hurt more.

Wang Li likes the feeling of competing with these powerful stars. In fact, what he likes is to enjoy the fun of defeating his opponent. The stronger the opponent, the better the feeling. This is also an important reason why Wang Li only likes to start the game.

After running a few laps in the first-team training ground, and then with the help of Little John, I did free kick training for about an hour. At this time, Chelsea teammates also came to the stadium.

Today's training match was still completed under the leadership of assistant coach Clark, but when the training was halfway through, the head coach Mourinho also stood on the sidelines, and he looked at the players on the training ground with a serious face. Exercise, I don't know what I'm thinking.

Obviously, Mourinho, who was very flat in front of reporters, still cares about the game very much.

After the players completed their adaptive physical training, Mourinho called everyone together and said directly: "I know, you are under a lot of pressure."

All the players looked at the somewhat scruffy Portuguese in confusion, and listened to his next words.

Mourinho didn't pay attention to the expressions of the players. He continued to say solemnly: "I am also under a lot of pressure. This pressure has started since the summer."

“At the beginning of the season, although we also had a few victories, I never thought that the team’s victories would continue until now. Mistakes all the time..." At this point, Mourinho changed the subject and continued: "However, even if there will be mistakes in the future, it must not be today's game!!"

At this time, all the players had raised their heads. Mourinho looked around at the faces of the players, nodded in satisfaction, and said, "Many people think that this match will be the beginning of the most important derby in London in the future. And some people think this is just an ordinary league game, with 3 points for a win and no points for a loss, but for us, this game must be won!"

"Look at the Blues fans outside, they even organized a few days ago and bought all the scalpers at Highbury, do you know what this means? Yes, you can play as a home game in the afternoon !If this situation still fails, not only us, but all Chelsea fans will not be in the mood to have a merry Christmas! Do you want this?"

After hearing Mourinho's words, the players knew in their hearts that he was trying to boost morale. However, these words really made the players feel the same, and they all started shouting for victory——
"Don't worry, boss!"

"How could those little ones be our opponents!"

"We will win!"

……

"very good!"

In the end, Mourinho concluded: "What we need is victory. There can only be one strongest team in London. I hope it will be Chelsea!"

After finishing speaking, these Portuguese looked to the north, and there was a kind of excited light in his godless eyes——
Perhaps, he also enjoys the feeling of stepping on his opponent.

(End of this chapter)