Qin Xiong became the headline of Fleet Street the day after the opening day of the Premier League.
In the sports section, he and Henry became the key figures for Arsenal to get off to a good start. The Daily Mail's headline was: Breaking through the wasteland, China's hero shines in the opening game of the new season.
The article commented on Qin Xiong's goal and his creation, and he was involved in the attack in the other two goals. The two red cards that played an important turning point in the direction of the game were also related to Qin Xiong. He caused Genas to be yellow and one red, and Bowyer left the field with a red card for a foul in the penalty area.
Last season, the media marveled at Qin Xiong's ability to assist, and occasionally "complained" that he deliberately added assists. It was a pity that he did not directly count the assists in the opening game.
In the entertainment section, The Sun focused on Qin Xiong and his teammate Fàbregas's gaffe in the casino.
"Arsenal's twin-stars got carried away after the game and lingered in the casino!"
Based on what some of the casino guests had seen and heard, The Sun speculated that Qin Xiong might have been drunk at the time. Obviously, there had been an "unpleasant" incident with his girlfriend and Fàbregas, until he was finally "dragged away" by his agent.
It also triggered Fleet Street's publicity of the gambling characteristics of the Chinese in the international image.
In any case, what happened in the casino was a scandal that had little impact.
Qin Xiong himself did not respond. At the Colney training base, Wenger anxiously called Qin Xiong and Fàbregas to the sidelines during training and asked them about what happened in the casino.
Qin Xiong concealed some of the situation and only assured Wenger that he would not go to the casino again so that Wenger could rest assured.
Wenger could not bear to criticize Qin Xiong and Fàbregas. In the end, the two of them did not do anything too outrageous.
Two days later, Arsenal announced a new signing. Arsenal had the right to buy Alexandre Song on loan from Bastia. This was a way for Arsenal to strengthen the midfield this season after Vieira left, although the young Song certainly could not achieve the same effect as Vieira. And this was not to say that Arsenal could replace Vieira with Flamini and Song. Arsenal just hoped that the lineup would not be too thin.
At the same time, Chelsea also completed two one-in and one-out transactions. Mourinho recruited the new defensive midfielder, Essien, and sent away Tiago, who felt that his main position was threatened. Chelsea's moves in the summer were still shocking. They spent more than 50 million pounds to bring in six players. In addition to the return of Crespo and Carlton Cole on loan, the First Team added eight players. Excluding more than ten players led by Kežman and Parker, more than half of them were released from the Second Team.
After Arsenal achieved a good start in the league, they rested for a week to prepare their troops. In the second round of the Premier League, Arsenal went to West London in high spirits and arrived at Stamford Bridge!
The London Double came so early this season, it seemed to be an uninterrupted continuation of last season's war.
And Arsenal's strategy of mainly attacking and defending would be implemented for the first time in the league.
Mourinho could not wait to take the defending champions down a notch. At the pre-match press conference, he commented that Arsenal was a club without ambition.
"After winning the league title, they sent away the championship-level player, Patrick Vieira, and then bought one or two players with potential. Arsenal entered a cycle that we are used to, grooming young players and stopping after achieving some results."
Wenger, on the other hand, responded sharply to Mourinho's comments.
"Chelsea spent more than 150 million pounds in the last three seasons, and then what did they get? Was it successful? Some people's comments are puzzling to me. "
On the day of the game, Stamford Bridge was packed with people. The outside world was not optimistic about Arsenal. In the post-Viera era, whether Arsenal had adjusted to their best state could not be verified by a chaotic Newcastle United game. On the other hand, Chelsea was stable, strong, and well-equipped.
In the players' tunnel, Qin Xiong could observe that the Chelsea players seemed to have a monstrous murderous intent!
They were naturally unwilling. Last season's near-perfect performance only to end up as runners-up, which probably made their holiday a little depressed.
The most tragic runners-up were certainly not as dazzling and fulfilling as the most difficult championship.
The suppressed anger in Chelsea's hearts finally had an outlet to vent.
They were excited to be able to meet Arsenal in the second round of the new Premier League season!
Arsenal appeared calmer. They were the victors of last season, so they should put on a high profile and take their opponents seriously, but they must also have the awareness of a strong team.
The players of the two teams began to enter the field.
"The London derby at Stamford Bridge in the second round of the Premier League is worthy of being the focus of this round. It has even attracted strong attention in Europe. People want to see the performance of Arsenal and Chelsea in a direct confrontation. Last season, Arsenal narrowly won the title and Chelsea regrettably got the highest score in history. Today, Chelsea have a chance to take revenge! Just two weeks ago in the Community Shield, Chelsea gave Arsenal a big defeat, and it was in the neutral position. Today at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea, sitting on the home advantage, may win more easily, but Arsenal will certainly learn a lesson. Next, let's take a look at the starting list for both sides.
Chelsea 433.
Goalkeeper: Čech.
Defenders: Ferreira, Terry, Carvalho, Gallas.
Midfielders: Essien, Lampard, Makelele.
Forwards: Robben, Drogba, Joe Cole.
Arsenal 451.
Goalkeeper: Lehmann.
Defenders: Lauren, Touré, Campbell, Ashley Cole.
Midfielders: Ljungberg, Fàbregas, Qin Xiong, Silva, Pires.
Forwards: Henry.
Well, the London derby, the battle between the two strongest teams in the Premier League last season is about to begin. What will the result of the game be? Let's wait and see! "
The game began, and Arsenal took the lead to kick off.
Henry kicked the ball to Qin Xiong, and Qin Xiong passed the ball back to Fàbregas. Then he began to run horizontally in the midfield, looking for openings, and at the same time observing Chelsea's posture after the start of the game.
Although Drogba rushed forward to press, most of Chelsea's players were still in the backfield and did not rush forward. They chose to compress the space in their own half of the field to contain Arsenal's offensive.
Fàbregas, Ljungberg, and Qin Xiong directly carried out a triangle pass, and then Qin Xiong passed the ball to Pires, who cut inside from the flank. Pires quickly passed the ball to Henry before he encountered Essien.
Henry directly kicked a long shot nearly 35 yards away from the goal!
The football flew about a meter above the crossbar and into the stands.
After Henry shot, he turned around and walked back, and Arsenal's players in the front field also quickly retreated.
Mourinho saw Arsenal's hasty end to their first attack on the sidelines, and an ominous premonition arose in his heart!
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