Chapter 572 The Mu Family Bus Has Set Off

"Let's take a look at Manchester United's starting XI."

Manchester United starting lineup (451):

Goalkeeper: De Gea;

Defender: Cancelo, Maguire, Van Dijk, Luke Shaw;

Midfielder: Kante, Fellaini, Herrera, Bruno, Gundogan;

Forward: Harry Kane.

"Three defensive midfielders? I really didn't expect it." Sun Jihai shook his head and said, "This lineup of coach Mourinho surprised me. The defense is a normal partner. The midfielder consists of Kante, Herrera and Fellaini. Three midfielders..."

"In fact, it should be a 4321 Christmas tree formation, with three midfielders in the midfield, and then Gundogan and Bruno are behind Harry Kane to deliver cannonballs to Harry Kane." Zhan Jun said.

"An outrageous three-back midfielder! This is a regression of artistic football. Only Mourinho can arrange such a crazy conservative formation in order to win." The commentator supporting Manchester City said sarcastically, "Obviously, Mourinho Neo is also worried about Manchester City's offensive capabilities."

Guardiola was also shocked when he saw Mourinho deploying an astonishing three-midfield formation, with Kante in the center, Fellaini on the left and Herrera on the right, which directly blocked the delivery path of the midfield. He had never seen a head coach be so conservative.

Then, Guardiola wanted to yell: "Asshole! That guy vowed at the pre-match press conference that he would score goals and attack against Manchester City, and then he came up with such a starting lineup?!"

It's common for the head coach to set off smoke bombs before a game, but other teams just set off smoke bombs. This bastard is releasing poison gas!

………………

"Three defensive midfielders can't stop us from scoring goals!" the commentator supporting Manchester City shouted.

"Manchester City will be in trouble." Compared to the commentator who supported Manchester City, Sun Jihai frowned and said, "Originally, Manchester United is known for being good at interceptions. Now with the three midfielders, Fernandinho and Deb Laune will be in trouble and it will be difficult for them to perform well. "He is a little worried about this game now.

"Sterling and Sane, one on the left and one on the right, hope they can tear apart Manchester United's wings." Sun Jihai continued, and then he shook his head.

Obviously, Mourinho has been prepared for this game. A healthy Luke Shaw is the best left back in world football today. His speed and strong physical fitness make him a solid barrier for Manchester United's defense. He has excellent interception and marking abilities and can effectively limit the opponent's offensive threats. In addition, his knowledge and contribution to the overall defensive organization are also very important.

This season, Luke Shaw's health has been good. A change from last season's injury-prone state, the British media said that Luke Shaw has completely recovered from the severe leg injury suffered two years ago.

As for a healthy Luke Shaw, it will be very difficult for Sane to take advantage of him.

………………

The chief referee of this game is the famous German whistler Felix Brüsch. He is having final communication with the linesman. After confirmation, the whistle will be blown to start the first half of the game on time.

Soon, amidst the huge cheers in the Etihad Stand, the focus of the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-finals in the 2017-2018 season, the Manchester derby between Red Devils Manchester United and Blue Moon Manchester City, officially started!

Mourinho returned to the coaching bench and sat down, looking through the information at hand. I just happened to see the information about the referee of this game.

According to the media, Mr. Felix Brüsch is a referee with a "strict and tough" enforcement style. Players on the field will be whistled for making any big moves and even be shown a topaz card. Lu Xi is also called a "card-playing machine" by the media.

Such a referee is not friendly to Manchester United. Manchester United is good at fighting and sometimes the movements are relatively large. On the contrary, such a referee seems to be more beneficial to Manchester City, which pursues smooth cooperation.

………………

The boos at the Etihad Stadium rang loudly again.

Fellaini extended his hand in a very friendly manner, trying to pull up his national team teammate De Bruyne, but the latter obviously didn't appreciate it, ignored Fellaini's right hand, got up on his own, and glared at Fellaini fiercely. One glance.

Referee Felix Bruchy raised two fingers at Fellaini, meaning it was the second time.

Fellaini defended himself somewhat innocently, saying that he just touched De Bruyne lightly, but when he saw the referee's expression was bad, he immediately wisely shut up.

At this time, the first half of the game had gone on for twenty-five minutes, and the Manchester City players on the field and the Manchester City fans in the stands had already accumulated too much dissatisfaction.

"That guy committed a foul! It's the second time!" De Bruyne, who got up, shouted at the referee, "It's time to take out the card."

The referee immediately changed his expression, pointed at De Bruyne, and sternly warned the Manchester City midfielder, shut up, beep again, I will give you the card first.

David Silva quickly came over and pulled De Bruyne away, and then he came to negotiate with the referee.

David Silva was not only protesting Fellaini's foul on De Bruyne at this time, but also complaining about the small actions of Manchester United's defensive players after the game started.

The referee said he received David Silva's protest and then told him to shut up.

"Let's take a look at the small movements of Manchester United players when they are defending." Zhan Jun said, "Such small movements are harmless and very hidden. On the one hand, it is difficult for the referee to find them in the first time, and even if he finds them, he can't make a move."

"Manchester City has completely fallen into Manchester United's trap. The two sides are fighting in the midfield, which is exactly what Mourinho wants to see." Sun Jihai said.

………………

After the game started, the three defensive midfielders of Kante, Herrera and Fellaini were like a wall in front of the back line, which made it difficult for Fernandinho and De Bruyne to pass the ball, and even difficult to get the ball comfortably.

This caused Sterling and Sane to have to retreat frequently to get the ball, but the problem is that it is not so easy for Sterling or Sane to continue moving forward after getting the ball.

Mourinho's task for the three defensive midfielders is simple and clear: not to let Manchester City's midfielders get the ball comfortably, let alone let them organize an attack.

In a word, do everything possible to paralyze Manchester City's midfield organization.

Kante, Herrera, and Fellaini played on the side, and the three of them completed the task assigned by Mourinho very well.

For any artist who defends Manchester City, Kante knows how to do it. He led two helpers to encircle Manchester City's midfield, using hidden and practical small moves, reasonable use of physical confrontation to attack the opponent, and taking tactical fouls at the right time without getting a card. Kante led Herrera and Fellaini to play very skillfully.

Facing Manchester United's three midfielders, whether it is Fernandinho, De Bruyne, David Silva, or the young Sterling, Sane and Bernardo Silva, they all seemed helpless. They were embarrassed by the pressure.

Especially Sterling, facing this very tough physical confrontation, the happy boy of England was very uncomfortable. He had just recovered from a hamstring injury. He was obviously a little scared of the tough physical confrontation, and seemed to be worried about being injured again. Herrera later saw Herrera bumping into him and was a little dodgy.

………………

"If Sterling is in good physical condition, he has a way to get past Herrera, but Sterling is still recovering physically and competitively." Sun Jihai defended Sterling.

"It's not three defensive midfielders." Zhan Jun shook his head and smiled, "When necessary, Gundogan also defended and retreated very deep."

Guardiola walked around the sidelines, he was restless. He thought that Manchester United would choose a conservative tactic when they won 3:0 in the first round, but he didn't expect Mourinho to be so conservative.

Guardiola thought Mourinho would repeat the same trick in this game. For this game, Guardiola was well prepared. He can be said to have a lot of experience in the routine of playing against Manchester United again, but he didn't expect that this time, Mourinho was actually scared.

Facing Manchester United's almost rogue conservative play, Guardiola and Manchester City didn't have any good solutions.

The game has been going on for more than 30 minutes, and the total number of shots from both sides is only five, of which Manchester United shot once and Manchester City shot four, most of which were long shots. This shows that the game was boring on the offensive end.

"Goal." Guardiola said to his assistant Arteta, "You must score in the first half, otherwise it will be more difficult to play in the second half."

Arteta nodded in agreement. From Manchester United's conservative tactics, it can be seen that Manchester United's goal today is to get a draw away from home, or even a small loss of one or two goals. After all, Manchester United's advantage in the first round is too great.

If the result of the first half of the game is 0:0, it will only stimulate Manchester United coach Mourinho to continue to stick to this boring conservative tactic.

………………

Guardiola said he wanted to score, and then the goal came.

When the game reached the 39th minute, the goal finally appeared. Manchester United's second shot in this game broke the deadlock.

"GOOOOOOOOOOOOALLLLLL!!!!!!"

"Bruno Fernandes--!!! Beautiful long shot! This is Bruno's signature way of scoring!" Zhan Jun stood up and shouted with his fists clenched.

"This is an unexpected goal. Kante pressed Sterling, who hurriedly passed the ball. Fellaini and De Bruyne went up to grab the ball. De Bruyne slid and the ball accidentally flew to Manchester City's half. After Bruno got the ball, he dribbled forward for a distance and suddenly shot a long shot before Manchester City's defense closed in. The Manchester United captain made a fatal blow in the 39th minute of the first half! Manchester United took the lead 1:0 away, and the total score has been rewritten to 4:0!"

"This is Bruno's 12th Champions League goal this season. He is closely following his national team captain, Ronaldo, on the scorer list. The Champions League Golden Boot does not look so safe!"