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On March 21st, just after noon, the entire Liverpool team took the bus to Manchester.
Liverpool and Manchester were very close to each other. Within an hour's drive, they could reach each other.
This double red tournament had the gimmick of a battle for the title, so it received a lot of attention.
The moment Liverpool's bus drove into Old Trafford, the pre-match footage was broadcast live on BBC TV.
Liverpool arrived at the visitors' locker room at Old Trafford, and the players were methodically preparing for the game.
Comain looked serious as he supervised the players' preparations. He remembered Ferguson's words at the pre-match press conference yesterday.
"Liverpool would be nothing without Qin Xiong."
Ferguson's words hit the nail on the head!
Not only did he erase Comain's contributions, but he also erased the contributions of the other Liverpool players.
Comain did not respond because there was no need.
Liverpool's players knew the importance of Qin Xiong. It was absolutely exaggerated and unrealistic to say that the team would be nothing without Qin Xiong. But to say that without Qin Xiong, Liverpool would never have made it to where it was today!
That was an indisputable fact.
There was no need to go tit-for-tat with Ferguson on this point.
Comain was well versed in the hard truths of football.
The winner was the truth!
As long as Liverpool took down Manchester United, any sound made by Manchester United would be irrelevant.
At three o 'clock in the afternoon, Liverpool and Manchester United players stood in the players' tunnel, ready to take the field for the game.
Qin Xiong turned his head to observe Manchester United's starting lineup. In the past four years, he had only played against Manchester United once. That was in Moscow in 2008, the Champions League final!
Manchester United might be the most tragic character in European football in recent years, of course in the European arena.
They lost to Real Madrid in the 2008 UEFA Champions League final and lost to Barcelona in the 2009 UEFA Champions League final.
Ferguson's team had won two consecutive European Championship runners-up, which left Ferguson with nowhere to vent his anger.
And after losing Ronaldo and Tevez this season, Manchester United's results did not plummet unexpectedly. It was just that in the occasional stumbling forward, Manchester United's dominance of the English game was also obvious to all.
However, the Red Devils were the Red Devils after all. Or rather, Ferguson's Red Devils had always been the type that did not seem to have the strongest lineup, but they could always rely on their super stability and extraordinary tenacity to achieve astonishing results in situations where they were not thought highly of.
This year was no exception.
Logically speaking, Chelsea's squad was definitely better than Manchester United's, but Manchester United was able to go hand in hand in the Champions League and the Premier League. Chelsea had already been eliminated by Inter Milan in the Champions League and was still ahead of Chelsea in the Premier League!
However, there was still a gap between them and the resurgent Liverpool.
Fleet Street believed that the gap between the two teams was actually just one point: Liverpool had a superstar like Qin Xiong!
He was a hero who could often rely on his individual strength to drive the team forward in adversity!
Manchester United used to have Ronaldo, but now they did not. This was the most direct explanation for Manchester United's decline in results.
Under the lead of the referee team, Liverpool and Manchester United's starting players walked into the Theatre of Dreams, Old Trafford.
The deafening noise resounded throughout the stadium, and the atmosphere in the Theatre of Dreams was as warm as ever.
"Welcome to Old Trafford, the focus of the 31st round of the Premier League campaign. Similarly, the battle for the top of the table is about to take place here. The Red Devils, Manchester United, will be at home at Old Trafford against the Red Army, Liverpool. The 179th English derby is about to kick off.
Liverpool's trajectory this season was roughly the same as last season's, leading all the way in the league. However, it was around this time last season that Liverpool had seven draws in ten league games, leading to their eventual failure to win the title. Up to now, Liverpool was still able to lead the defending champion, Manchester United, by six points and their direct rival for the title, Chelsea, by eight points. This showed that Liverpool had made great progress this season.
Perhaps the points in the same period did not increase too much, but we should understand that the gap between a team being able to get 80 points and 90 points in a season is very big. From 80 points to 90 points, it is harder to get an additional point than to climb to the heavens!
Liverpool finally had the hope of winning their first Premier League title this season, but today they would face a big test.
If Manchester United could beat Liverpool at home and shorten the gap to three points, then Liverpool's title might really be in danger.
Both teams were able to deploy a relatively complete starting lineup today.
Manchester United, who was at home, started with 4231 players.
Goalkeeper: Edwin van der Sar.
Defenders: Gary Neville, Rio Ferdinand, Vidic, Patrice Evra.
Midfielders: Valencia, Fletcher, Park Ji-sung, Carrick, Nani.
Striker: Rooney.
Liverpool started with 4231 players.
Goalkeeper: Reina.
Defenders: Johnson, Carragher, Agger, Aurelio.
Midfielders: Kuyt, Mascherano, Gerard, Alonso, Qin Xiong.
Striker: Torres.
The game is about to start. Manchester United will be the first to kick off! "
Ferguson sat in the technical area and chewed his gum. Sir Alex looked calmly at Liverpool's lineup.
It could be said that Manchester United missed an opportunity. That was in the first half of the league tournament when Qin Xiong was injured and absent. Manchester United's visit to Anfield was regrettably not able to win in the end.
Manchester United was not optimistic about the double red at the end of the league tournament.
On one hand, it was the pressure of the game. On the other hand, Liverpool's current hot form could be said to be unstoppable!
Ferguson took a deep breath. He was a stubborn old man. He always had confidence in the team.
Manchester United's fighting power in the game at Old Trafford was unparalleled.
Because this was their home ground!
It was Comain's second time arm-wrestling with Ferguson. In fact, Comain did not think that Ferguson was outstanding in terms of tactics.
But Ferguson's advantage was that he had been in the position for too long!
His influence on Manchester United had long been ingrained, and this influence allowed Manchester United to play some simple tactics to an unimaginable effect. It had the effect of returning to the basics.
Yes, in the entire European football world, there was probably no team that could play simple passes and cuts from both wings so efficiently and incisively like Manchester United!
After the game began, Manchester United launched a direct attack.
Valencia dribbled the ball from the right flank to advance the attack. In front of Qin Xiong, Valencia and Park Ji-sung in the middle made a two-versus-one combination. They were very determined. After passing the ball, they immediately ran forward. The first characteristic of the Red Devils' flank attack was a speed attack!
Ferguson always let the Red Devils play a very aggressive speed attack to keep the game running at a high pace. They continued to attack the opponent's defensive line, so that the opponent could not keep up with Manchester United's rhythm in the fast pace, thus exposing the flaws in the defense.
Valencia rushed past Qin Xiong's defensive line and received Park Ji-sung's pass. Then, they stuck to the ground and crossed!
Rooney, who was in excellent form this season, broke away from Alonso's marking in the middle in front of the penalty area and ran horizontally to receive Valencia's pass. Then, he raised his leg to shoot!
Agger, who used his body to block with no regard for his own safety, blocked Rooney's shot with his thigh!
Manchester United completed their first shot in less than 10 seconds after the start of the game!
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