Before the first leg of the Champions League semi-final, the fifth last round of the Premier League began as scheduled.
Liverpool was the first to play at home against a desireless Fulham.
For the sake of the Champions League semi-final, Comain sent out the main force, but the game strategy adopted was a blitzkrieg tactic.
At the start of the game, Liverpool bravely took the initiative to attack. Qin Xiong, who had recovered from his injury, made the opponent commit a foul on the left side of the front field. Then Alonso's free kick was lobbed into the goalmouth area. Thiago Silva snatched the point and successfully headed the goal!
Liverpool retreated to tighten their defense after taking the one-goal lead.
Fulham did not burn their boats and had to fight to the death with Liverpool. As long as Liverpool did not force them to a dead end, such as frantically attacking to score goals when they were clearly in the lead, then Fulham could calmly accept the defeat at Anfield.
The game turned into a rhythm of loud thunder but small raindrops. Liverpool created some excellent attacking opportunities later, but in the end, they failed to seize the opportunities and thus failed to expand their lead.
The final score was 1: 0.
Liverpool successfully took all three points at home and continued to lead the table.
Manchester City's form suddenly returned after sweeping West Bromwich Albion with 4: 0 in the last round. In the away game against Norwich City, Manchester City went on a killing spree again and slaughtered the home team Norwich City with 6: 1.
Although Norwich City was a newly promoted team, they had completed the task of avoiding relegation this season. So, being slaughtered by Manchester City at home, they appeared to be very spineless and did not rise up to fight back.
Manchester United successfully stopped their decline by winning at Old Trafford in this round and did not continue the downward trend of their unexpected loss in the last round.
They defeated Aston Villa by 4: 0 and continued to suppress Manchester City and put pressure on Liverpool.
Chelsea was preparing for the Champions League semi-final and held back at home. They were defeated by Newcastle United by 2: 0.
Tottenham Hotspur defeated Bolton Wanderers by 4: 1 in the away game. Ambitious teams either used the strategy of Tianji's horse race to balance the gains and losses in the league and other battlefields, or wildly exerted their strength.
Arsenal, on the other hand, created a shocking upset in this round!
They lost to Wigan Athletic 1: 2 at home.
The neurotic Wigan Athletic was always stirring up trouble in the war between the powerhouses. Teams of the same level as them played terribly. Otherwise, they would not have announced their success in avoiding relegation at the end of the season.
Arsenal's struggle for the four great undertakings was extremely difficult.
Before the Champions League semi-final, Liverpool still led the table.
Liverpool, 79 points.
Manchester United 78 points.
Manchester City, 74 minutes.
Tottenham 62 points.
Arsenal 61 points.
Chelsea scored 57 points.
With four rounds left in the Premier League, Manchester City's prospects for the title were the least optimistic. In the battle for the top four, Chelsea was almost declared out. If they could not win the Champions League, Chelsea would not be able to compete in the Champions League next season.
If nothing unexpected happened, the ticket for the Champions League qualifier would belong to one of the two arch-rivals in North London.
Liverpool's bid for the title had reached its most critical juncture.
The battle in the Champions League was about to begin.
The Red Army was preparing for the game in full swing.
The first game would be played at Anfield.
At the pre-game press conference, Comain solemnly said, "No team that can reach the Champions League semi-finals is weak, and in theory, anyone can win the title. We will not underestimate our opponent just because we are ahead of Chelsea in the league. Just like how Chelsea unexpectedly eliminated Barcelona, underestimating the Blues is bound to be punished!"
Chelsea's manager, Di Matteo, did not have high expectations for Anfield.
"If we can leave Anfield with a draw, then we will be very satisfied and confident of advancing to the final. Anfield is the home of the devil in Europe. Many strong teams have been defeated at the doorstep of the Red Army. Chelsea will try to defend the goal as much as possible, but according to Liverpool's state and strength, it is almost impossible to not let them score. So, we will work hard to score."
.....
On the night of April 18, Anfield was unprecedentedly grand.
Because it was a civil war between the local powerhouses, the atmosphere inside and outside Anfield Stadium was particularly lively.
The Red Army fans pulled up a banner in the stands with the words Champions League Champions Liverpool 7, Chelsea 0!
They wanted to use this to show Chelsea Liverpool's strong foundation of honor and to suppress Chelsea's morale.
Chelsea was actually a mourning army. Among the teams that advanced to the semi-finals this season, Chelsea was the team that was least favored.
Bayern Munich and Real Madrid were more favored than Chelsea to win the title.
Liverpool needless to say, the defending champions were the first favorite.
When the two teams walked into the stadium, the atmosphere at the scene suddenly changed. The Red Army fans roared enthusiastically and cheered for the Red Army.
"Welcome to Anfield Stadium, where the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals will be played.
Liverpool, the defending champions of the Red Army, will be playing at home against Chelsea, a strong team from England.
Liverpool's performance this season was generally stable and strong. They had a slight lead over other competitors in the Premier League, but they had already won the EFL Cup title and also reached the FA Cup final. They would be advancing to the Champions League final today!
Chelsea's performance this season was surprising. Mourinho II Villas-Boas' transformation of the Blues was a failure. He was fired by Abramovich midway through the season, and then Di Matteo took over the team. Although he could not revive the Blues in the league and still stumbled, he led the team to the FA Cup final, which was admirable. At the same time, he also led the team to the Champions League semi-finals. However, Chelsea's luck was not good. They met the defending champions, Liverpool.
Of course, the other two opponents, whether it was Real Madrid or Bayern Munich, were not easy for Chelsea to deal with.
Let's take a look at the starting lineup of both teams.
Liverpool starting lineup: 433.
Goalkeeper: Reina.
Defenders: Johnson, Skrtel, Thiago Silva, Baines.
Midfielders: Mascherano, Alonso, Cabaye.
Forwards: Gerard, Suárez, Qin Xiong.
Eh? Comain's lineup today is not playing according to common sense again!
He actually let Gerard play as the right winger and Cabaye as the center midfielder. This is really an unexpected lineup.
But maybe it will have a miraculous effect.
Chelsea starting lineup: 4231.
Goalkeeper: Čech.
Defenders: Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Ashley Cole.
Midfielders: Ramires, Meireles, Lampard, Mikel, Mata.
Forwards: Drogba.
Chelsea's starting lineup is not surprising. They have put out their strongest lineup. "
Comain and Di Matteo stood on the sidelines to watch the game. Comain glanced at Chelsea's lineup, then looked away and waited for the game to start with a serious face.
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