To be honest, the Athletic Bilbao players really didn't understand why Li Ang was so enthusiastic about beating them today.
If you want to talk about an explosion, Li Ang is not the defensive midfielder he was before. There is no reason to only work hard on the defensive end and not improve his performance, right?
Bielsa was puzzled at the moment, but besides being surprised, he also had to think about how to break the situation.
Having already conceded a goal first, Bielsa did not see the point in continuing to strengthen defense.
But now that he is asked to adjust his efforts on the offensive end, the only thing he can move is Llorente on the bench.
Thinking of this, Bielsa secretly shook his head.
The club signed Aduriz in the summer window, which to a certain extent made up for the lack of offensive firepower after refrigerated Llorente.
But it cannot achieve the replacement effect.
At least so far, Aduriz's performance cannot be compared with Llorente last season.
The number of goals scored is far inferior, and the fulcrum tactics are not as effective as Llorente.
This is not to say that Aduriz is not good, but that Llorente's size is really rare in La Liga.
No matter how strong Aduriz's ability is in catching the ball, no matter how good his jumping ability is, after he is pulled out of the penalty area, his 1.82-meter frame cannot be compared with the 1.94-meter Llorente.
Last season, Llorente stood in front of Real Madrid's penalty area, and Pepe and Alonso had to mark him together.
Otherwise, it would be really hard to squeeze in the seats.
Now Alonso can hold up Aduriz alone.
Li Ang didn't even do much to help Alonso defend. He could safely force back the ball-handling advances of Gomez and Susaeta on both sides of the defensive third zone.
It can only be said that the top management of Athletic Bilbao is determined to use refrigerated Llorente to show its tough attitude, and the price paid is too high.
It could have been a good time to get together and break up, get at least 30 million more euros in transfer fees, and then continue to qualify for the European competition through reinforcements.
But now, Bielsa just feels that it is quite good if he can lead Athletic Bilbao to not fall out of the top ten in La Liga this season!
"Let Fernando (Llorente) warm up."
Bielsa suddenly turned his head and confessed to his assistant, which made his assistant stunned.
"But, didn't Mr. Chairman say that before?"
"I'm still the team's head coach now! On the field, I have the final say, so you don't have to worry. Go ask Fernando to warm up."
Bielsa's attitude was very firm. When the assistant coach saw this, he didn't say much. He stood up and called Llorente, who also looked surprised.
When Llorente began to warm up on the sidelines, the president of Athletic Bilbao in the box looked ugly to the naked eye.
Lafayette had heard Chairman Biba himself say harsh words such as "Don't give Llorente a chance to look back!" in previous meetings within the circle.
So he didn't say much at this moment, he just complained in his heart, "A guy with no business sense at all!".
Mourinho, who was on the sidelines, was focused on Bielsa.
Because he has a hunch that maybe after next summer, he will no longer see the "Chilean Madman" in La Liga.
"Are we going to make adjustments?"
Five minutes later, looking at Llorente, who was about to play double center with Aduriz, Karanka asked a routine question.
Mourinho turned his head and looked at Bielsa next door, regret flashing in his eyes.
"want!"
In the 38th minute of the first half, shortly after Athletic Bilbao completed their substitutions, Real Madrid immediately made positional adjustments.
However, Mourinho did not first strengthen the defense to withstand the impact of Athletic Bilbao's two centers as most fans expected.
He unexpectedly chose to play 433 instead!
Cristiano Ronaldo and Di Maria were completely moved to the front line, and Li Ang's position was also moved to the left midfield!
"Mourinho chose the tactical adjustment that respects Bielsa the most! They are going to have a head-on offensive showdown! It's spear against spear again! The game will look better!"
He Wei now felt that his voice was a little dry when he spoke.
His mood at this moment is actually not much different from that of an ordinary fan. Excitement and anticipation are the most important.
When Bielsa and Mourinho choose attacking tactics at the same time in the same stadium, what more can they ask for as fans?
The remaining time of this game is destined to become an audio-visual feast for all fans.
For the first time this season, Athletic Bilbao's double center combination has shown its due impact.
Real Madrid's defense was much empty after letting go of the pressure. By the 74th minute of the second half, Real Madrid had already conceded two goals.
It’s just that the score this time has become 4-2!
In the 30 minutes of the second half, Real Madrid and Athletic Bilbao scored two goals each, and the scene was quite exciting and beautiful.
Llorente did not score, but he used his diversionary role to cover Aduriz to grab points and break through Real Madrid's defense.
Susaeta's second goal also came from his back assist.
In the 87th minute of the second half, Llorente successfully broke his goal drought in the new season in the last corner kick opportunity at Athletic Bilbao!
The final score was also fixed at 5-3.
The home fans of Athletic Bilbao watched with mixed emotions.
But for Real Madrid fans and other neutral fans, after watching this game, they are left with only one feeling.
happy!
Cristiano Ronaldo's two goals, Benzema's passing and shooting achievements, Di Maria's long-distance running, including Llorente's passing and shooting performance today, are all wonderful!
Unfortunately, in the second half, Li Ang's two powerful long-range shots from 30 meters away were slightly higher than the crossbar, and the other hit the goal post.
Otherwise, fans can witness the birth of a long-range world wave.
However, even if he failed to gain any personal offensive data, Li Ang's performance today was outstanding enough.
Let’s not talk about the defensive end. On the offensive end alone, Li Ang’s advancement and smooth transfer of ball rights ensure the smooth operation of Real Madrid’s offensive system.
Coupled with his personal defensive performance in the first half, many fans are willing to rate him among the top three in the Real Madrid team.
After the game, Mourinho and Bielsa hugged and exchanged pleasantries on the sidelines for a long time.
Li Ang also found Llorente on the court and specifically asked him to exchange jerseys.
"Great performance today, Fernando. Come on!"
In the end, Li Ang didn't know how to say some words of encouragement, so he could only say cheers to Llorente.
This is an era in which traditional big centers will become increasingly scarce. Li Ang hopes from the bottom of his heart that Llorente will have more opportunities and a larger stage to perform in the future.
After all, Li Ang will also feel bored when his opponents only have small, quick forwards.
"Thank you, Li Ang! You are really a good person!"
After accepting Llorente's one-size-larger jersey and "good guy card", Li Ang smiled and patted the opponent's arm, then turned and left to find his teammates.
Having achieved a hearty league victory, most of Real Madrid's main players were quite happy.
After getting two days of ample rest time, these main players even shouted "Long live the boss!"
When they return to the training base to report later, they will only do some recovery training first.
Because they have no competition tasks for the time being, the next league game will not start until a full week later.
During this period, there was a Champions League group match, and Mourinho chose to train.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Li Ang have once again become the most eye-catching presence in the rotation.
Returning to Manchester, Ronaldo was completely lost in memories.
In this industrial city, Real Madrid players also saw many enthusiastic fans.
But that enthusiasm was not for them, but for the Red Devils Ronaldinho, whom these Manchester City fans once loved.
Instead of going back to Old Trafford, he went to the Etihad. The warmth in Ronaldo's eyes was much less, replaced by more desire to score goals than usual.
Mourinho did not hesitate. With Li Ang as the core in the midfield, he directly gave Ronaldo unlimited firing power on the offensive end.
The combination of Li Ang + Matuidi + Essien is enough to provide continuous ball rights on the offensive end.
It is on the defense line that Real Madrid's starting combination of Varane + Nacho does not seem particularly stable.
But there was nothing that could be done. Albiol sprained his ankle in training two days ago and needed to rest for at least two weeks.
During this period, the only rotating central defenders Mourinho can use are Varane, Nacho and Essien who can make a cameo.
Maybe Li Ang can barely count as one?
But Mourinho will not use Leon and Essien as central defenders unless he has to.
That would be such a waste of their abilities.
The fans here at Manchester City couldn't say they were absolutely relieved when they saw Real Madrid's starting lineup today, but they also gave a heartfelt thumbs up to Real Madrid's "openness"!
The defense is full of children, and the midfielder is difficult to chew. But as long as he gets the opportunity to face Real Madrid's defense, Aguero will go "shark crazy"? !
Many Manchester City fans who were optimistic in advance even thanked Mourinho.
Just after the game started, the rhythm and style on the field were a little different from what these Manchester City fans imagined.
It is true that most of Real Madrid's defense is made up of youth training rotations.
The starting left back today is Coentrao, who has just returned from injury.
But looking at the strength and combinations of these players, why don't they look like rotations at all?
Also, how come Real Madrid's counterattack resulted in more shots than Manchester City's siege? ? ?
Mancini was a little confused now.
But it's not their fault. In these days, the defense line of Coentrao + Varane + Nacho + Carvajal is indeed mediocre in terms of reputation.
When Manchester City was unable to attack for a long time, the players inevitably became impatient and pushed further and further forward.
In the 23rd minute of the first half, Li Ang saw the opportunity and teamed up with Matuidi to make a decisive interception on Aguero who wanted to hold the ball to the side!
After intercepting the ball, Li Ang immediately looked for Essien who was advancing forward.
And Essien also split the ball directly without any delay one second after receiving the ball.
Callejon started the rush mode on the right. Today, Manchester City's starting left back Kolarov did not have an advantage in speed.
His start was a beat too slow, and he was unable to stop Callejon's speed for a moment, so he could only try his best to chase after him!
Several Manchester City defenders had no choice but to move back as a whole.
However, when approaching the right side of Manchester City's penalty area, Callejon did not choose to cut inside or go to the bottom.
He decisively kicked across the middle!
At this moment, Li Ang, who had already followed up and sprinted to the top area of Manchester City's penalty area, chose to pass the ball without stopping!
Such a scene gave Mancini a chill!
The ball that was pushed to the left quickly passed the toes of Maicon who was trying to intercept.
Cristiano Ronaldo almost took off and blasted a shot in the Manchester City penalty area despite Zabaleta's defensive interference!
The two people's continuous passing and shooting cooperation is really smooth and smooth.
Joe Hart immediately rushed towards the far corner of the goal, but the ball was too fast and he failed to touch the football!
Real Madrid's sharp counterattack goal immediately stunned all Manchester City fans!
When the Manchester United fans in the same city saw this scene in front of the TV, they couldn't help but burst out laughing!
Manchester City, Manchester City, I really gave you a chance but you didn’t use it!
(End of chapter)
