Chapter 1361
Words:1828Update:22/12/01 08:54:15
Liverpool successfully advanced to the Champions League final. The final task and goal of the season was only the Champions League final.
Comain gave the main players two days off after the game and sent a combination of a young lineup and a substitute lineup for the weekend league game.
Liverpool went to London to face Fulham, the Cottagers.
In the closing stages of the season, opponents with no aspirations were the easiest to play against, and teams with aspirations were the most difficult to deal with. This was recognized by everyone.
Fulham happened to have aspirations. They were in the upper reaches of the table and had a chance to enter the European competition next season.
As a result, Fulham broke out with a strong fighting power at home. Liverpool's young lineup was also young, but it was ultimately no match for Fulham's group of veterans.
Liverpool lost 2: 4 at Craven Farm Stadium. The game was very unrestrained and the two teams played very passionately. Then the league champions Liverpool lost.
Comain did not criticize the team after the game. He looked at the loss objectively.
I can accept today's loss. We have a lot of young players who need training. They are eager to try and are full of hunger for the game. If there's anything bad, it would be today. It's a pity that we lost, but this is growth. They are the future and hope of the Reds. This was a good game. When I go back, I will summarize the game with the players and help them draw on the experience gained in the game. Then, I hope that they can perform better in the next game. "
The league champions lost, or it was obvious that they sent warmth to Fulham, but no one cared.
Now the focus of the Premier League was on the battle between the second and fifth place in the European Championship!
Who would fall before the finish line and be kicked out of the Champions League?
Would there be traditional competitors next season who could only watch from the sidelines?
Fulham had many competitors for the European tickets next season, but in front of them were Tottenham Hotspur and Everton. As for the fifth-placed Arsenal, they could not catch up at all, so they were not considered.
It just so happened that Everton faced the challenge of Manchester City at Goodison Park in this round.
Everton was also a team with aspirations. Being able to play in Europe would naturally bring a positive boost to their financial income.
As a result, they did their best to fight Manchester City at home.
Manchester City led by Mancini had a good start. 30 minutes into the first half, Yaya Toure's goal helped his team to take the lead against Everton at Goodison Park.
Just when the Manchester City people thought that the team could steadily win the game, something unexpected happened. No one thought that the leader of Manchester City's defense, Kompany, would be beaten up!
The situation suddenly changed in the second half. Everton first passed a free kick, and Kompany marked to prevent a leak. He snatched a header in front of Distin's goal and scored!
The score was equalized.
In the 72nd minute of the match, the veteran Phil Neville passed the ball to Kompany again! He was one step too slow when marking Osman, allowing Osman to head the ball 11 yards away from the goal!
Manchester City was turned around!
Mancini was in a terrible mood!
Manchester City could not equalize the score again and returned home defeated at Goodison Park.
Arsenal and Chelsea's game was played behind Manchester City. Manchester City would be worried that if Arsenal won, they would be squeezed to fifth place in the table.
Arsenal was next to make their debut.
They went to challenge the City in the Sky, Stoke City.
Stoke City had already avoided relegation, but Stoke City could not accept Arsenal's frenzied attack in the away game.
If it were at the Emirates Stadium, Stoke City would not really fight to the death with Arsenal. But on their own home ground, how could they easily lose to Arsenal at home?
Of course not. The home fans would not accept that!
As a result, Stoke City played defense and counterattacked.
On the other hand, Arsenal's deceptive defensive line made them suffer.
Stoke City first broke through Arsenal's goal with a free kick in front of the field. Djourou acted as a decoration when defending in front of the goal.
Then in the second half, Djourou changed the trajectory of the ball when blocking the opponent's shot. After the deflection, the ball flew into the corner of the goal.
Stoke City was leading by 2: 0!
Arsenal was really anxious.
They started to counterattack with all their might.
It was not until the 81st minute of the game that Robin van Persie scored a goal to narrow the gap.
Arsenal, who saw hope, added fuel to the fire and attacked with all their might. But Stoke City used a counterattack before the end of the game to completely shatter Arsenal's dream of a comeback.
3:1
Arsenal lost!
After Manchester City lost, Arsenal also lost!
They did not seize the opportunity to overtake Manchester City.
Wenger's comments after the game sounded a little numb.
"I'm very disappointed with the team's performance. Stoke City's fighting spirit and desire to win are clearly much stronger than ours. I think the main reason for our loss in this game is that Stoke City's defensive line is stronger than ours. Basically, I have nothing to say. "
Wenger hinted at the stupidity of his team's defensive line after the game and said that he was already speechless.
After the defensive line's stupid mistake tonight, Wenger was obviously regretting that he did not buy a defender in the winter.
The points of the fourth and fifth place on the scoreboard did not change.
The final highlight of the round was the red and blue battle between Manchester United and Chelsea.
Chelsea of the Blues saw that the two pursuers did not get a single point and relaxed. As long as the team did not lose to Manchester United, they would basically be able to secure a ticket to the Champions League next season.
But Manchester United did not agree. The Red Devils had just lost in the Champions League semi-final. Ferguson would not allow them to be dispirited after suffering a blow.
The Red Devils got a fantastic start 36 seconds into the game. Little Pea Hernandez broke through Čech's conservative goal. After Manchester United took the lead, the game went in a completely different direction.
Chelsea was in a hurry to attack, while the Red Devils played steadily.
In the 26th minute of the game, Manchester United scored with a header assisted by Giggs from a tactical corner kick by Vidic!
2:0！
Ancelotti was about to explode!
Because there was a player on Chelsea's side who seemed to have left the team and was entertaining himself!
Messy hair, David Louis!
The new player liked to assist on the field, but his defense was not reassuring.
Both goals conceded were related to him, which made Ancelotti want to vomit blood.
So, Ancelotti substituted Louis off the field during halftime.
Manchester United's offense and defense were balanced in the second half, while Chelsea tried to find an opportunity to score an equalizer.
Until the 70th minute of the game, in a scuffle in the Manchester United penalty area, Lampard shot the ball into Manchester United's goal.
2:1
Although they recovered a goal, Manchester United continued to make substitutions under Ferguson's on-the-spot command. After strengthening the defense, they did not give Chelsea a chance.
Chelsea also lost at Old Trafford!
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
