The Chelsea players and fans certainly had reason to question the referee's decision. They could say that the rainy ground was slippery and that Ferreira did not tackle Ribéry at all. He slipped and fell, or that Ribéry dived and missed the penalty. But their doubts and even their protests could not change the current result.
Just eleven minutes into the game, the right back, Paulo Ferreira, was sent off with a red card by the referee for a tackle from behind. Nottingham Forest was also awarded a penalty.
Ribéry, who was tackled, lay on the sidelines and was being treated by the team doctor. It did not look serious. Ferreira stood up and looked at the red card that the referee raised high at him with a confused look in his eyes. His mind was a mess. Not only was he sent off with a red card, but he also gave the opponent a penalty, putting Chelsea at a disadvantage in terms of numbers and score.
Mourinho, who saw the scene off the field, pursed his lips. He brought Ferreira from Porto and was one of his most trusted players at the new club. After all, he was an old subordinate. Therefore, he did not use William Gallas and Glen Johnson and insisted on using Ferreira in the hope that his own player would occupy the main position of Chelsea's First Team and secure his position as the manager. But he did not expect that Ferreira, who performed so well and so eye-catching at Porto, could not adapt to the style of English football when he came to London. He played worse and worse with each game, and in the end, he simply lost confidence.
Maybe it was time to give up on Ferreira …
※ ※ ※
"Red card! Penalty! Look at this chaotic scene … Paulo Ferreira's performance is a mess! This poor Portuguese can't keep up with Ribéry's rhythm and speed at all. He was played around by the opponent and could only end this failed game with a foul. "
Looking at the referee's stern expression, Ferreira did not even have the strength to defend himself. He bowed his head and turned to walk off the field.
On Nottingham Forest's side, when the team doctor told Twain that Ribéry's ankle was fine, he breathed a sigh of relief. The Frenchman had become the absolute main force of the Forest team with his excellent performance. If anything happened to him, the Forest team's offensive power would be greatly reduced.
Now that Ribéry was fine and Chelsea was not only one player short, but also given a penalty, the situation was very favorable for the Forest team.
Eastwood put the ball on the penalty spot and then stepped back to shoot.
Standing in front of him was the talented goalkeeper of the Czech Republic, Petr Cech. Standing at 1.97m, he was agile and quick. When he opened his arms and stood in front of the goal, the goal seemed to be completely sealed.
The Chelsea people still had a glimmer of hope in their hearts — the penalty shot was not a hundred percent goal scoring rate. Coupled with the slippery ground on the rainy day, maybe Eastwood did not stand firm on his supporting foot, slipped, and shot away?
But Eastwood soon burst their bubble with his own hands.
After the referee blew the whistle, he ran up quickly and powerfully, then shot the ball!
Čech misjudged the direction. He tried to dive to the right of the goal, but the football flew to the middle.
"The ball's in! 1: 0! Nottingham Forest, playing at home, leads Chelsea! "
There was a huge roar in the stands of the City Ground stadium. Just a moment ago, they were shouting Brian Clough's name. Now, they were stomping their feet and clapping their hands as they cheered for Freddy Eastwood.
While the Forest team was celebrating the goal, Mourinho pestered the fourth official, protesting the referee's unfair decision. The fourth official warned Mourinho to be careful and not speak blindly without concrete evidence. Besides, the referee was the rule on the field, and his decision could not be changed.
Twain did not care what Mourinho's intentions were. After celebrating the goal with the members of the coaching staff, he simply stood on the sidelines to supervise the battle. Now that his team was leading by a goal and the opponent was down a player, the situation was favorable to him. What he needed to be wary of was Mourinho's counterattack and remind the players to maintain a normal mindset.
When the players stood on the field again and prepared to kick off, Twain shouted on the sidelines to attract the attention of the Forest players. Then he pressed his hands down and made a "calm down" gesture.
The most dangerous moment was often after one's team had just taken the lead. It was easy to let the opponent seize the opportunity to equalize the score because of a lack of unity of thought and concentration. That would be a huge blow to the team's morale.
Other than letting his players calm down, Twain did not need to do anything else. The team was currently in good condition. He only needed to quietly wait on the sidelines for Mourinho to make adjustments first.
Mourinho quickly made his own adjustments. He replaced the forward Keirman with William Gallas. Now, the first thing he needed to consider was whether they could continue to concede goals, and not how many goals they had won against the Forest team.
Chelsea's midfield core was Lampard, but his main role was not to organize and distribute the ball, but to score himself. It could even be said that Lampard had become successful and famous because of Mourinho's tactical arrangements.
Twain let Albertini defend against Lampard in this match, mainly to prevent Lampard from shooting and scoring after he plugged in. Lampard was not a playmaking midfielder. His threat value would be reduced if he was asked to pass the ball or something.
Originally, Twain was worried that Albertini could not handle it alone, but now he had no such worries. Chelsea was down a player and forced to replace a forward and a defender. The pressure on the Forest team's defense was much less. As a result, he adjusted his strategy. George Wood and Piqué still assisted in defending against Drogba, while Lampard was handed over to Albertini and Matthew Upson.
With one less player, Chelsea resolutely played the strategy of long passes from the back to find Drogba. After conceding the goal, the Forest team's defensive pressure suddenly increased.
What was the saying again?
There was no technical content, but it was very effective. In England, the strategy of using long passes to charge and hang was like that.
Drogba's physique and ability to head the ball made him a very qualified center forward. Because Kezman was replaced, Lampard plugged in more frequently, almost equivalent to a forward. Drogba would always take the ball and find Lampard. Piqué did not have the upper hand in a head-on confrontation with him. The difference in experience was too great, and he was slightly at a disadvantage in terms of his body. Moreover, if Wood and Piqué defended together, they would also face a problem of coordination.
Terry kicked the ball from the back and looked for Drogba again.
The African leaned against Piqué, not letting him go around to him, and then jumped to receive the ball. Squeezed behind him, Piqué could only watch helplessly as the African jumped to head the ball out.
Lampard received the ball under Albertini's interference. He did not go through the middle, but diagonally to the right flank. Drogba, who had just passed the ball to Lampard, turned and ran toward the goal, ready to receive Lampard's pass.
George Wood looked at the situation and decided to listen to Tang En's instructions and follow Drogba into the penalty area.
The Forest team's defensive attention was focused on Drogba and Lampard, and the front of the penalty area was empty. Lampard sent a very timely cross pass. His target was not Drogba in front of the goal, but Joe Cole outside the penalty area!
"Chelsea's chance!"
Joe Cole suddenly appeared in the middle, catching Nottingham Forest off guard. Upson turned and pounced on him, but the distance was too far, and he would not be able to block Joe Cole's shot in time.
Seeing Joe Cole raise his right leg in the face of the football, Mourinho suddenly stood up from the technical area and stared at Nottingham Forest's goal with wide eyes.
"Straight … volley —!!"
Joe Cole's long shot was like a crazy knife. It worked sometimes and sometimes not. When it worked, it was definitely a world-class attack, and when it did not work, it was not a threat. So, did it work this time or not?
The football flew over the head of Matthew Upson, who blocked the shot, flew over the fingertips of the leaping Darren Ward, and flew over the crossbar of the goal … The shot was too high!
The City Ground stadium let out a loud gasp. The shot only brushed the crossbar and flew out. It was indeed thrilling.
"Damn it! We've missed someone again! "Tang En grumbled in the technical area. It was a blessing that they did not concede a goal. "The energy of the rear defensive line is always not enough, David. This is our old problem."
"Tony, I don't think this problem can be solved through training, but there are two ways that might be very effective. First, constantly accumulate game experience and know when to maintain focus. Second, use your roar and saliva during the halftime interval to wake that bunch of kids up. "Kerslake laughed.
Tang En scratched his head. "I'm afraid it'll be too late if we wait for the halftime interval."
He got up and walked to the sidelines, then took a deep breath and roared at the field, "Keep a close eye on your men! Don't let them disappear from your sight! Keep a close eye on them! Get rid of them! "
He smashed his fist into his palm.
When Joe Cole shot the ball out, Mourinho thought the ball was in the bag. He did not expect it to fly out against the crossbar in the end. He slammed against the back of his chair and stomped his feet hard. He even tilted his head and swore silently.
He happened to see Tang En standing on the sidelines and roaring loudly.
Get rid of us?
He glanced sideways at Tang En, frowning and pursing his lips.
Don't think that you can win the game just because you're ahead by one goal and have one more player than us.
He also got up and walked to the sidelines. Then, he extended two fingers to the two full backs and pointed in the direction of Forest's goal, indicating for them to actively plug in. Don't worry that the gap behind will be used by the opponent. If Forest dares to launch another attack from the side, use our offense to push them back!
※ ※ ※
For most of the rest of the first half, it was Chelsea, with one less player, who had the advantage. They pressed down on Forest's half of the field and bombarded indiscriminately. The Blue Team, who were behind and one less player, seemed to be agitated.
Tang En firmly believed that the kind of manager the team had, the kind of character the team had. Although the Chelsea team during Ranieri's era had a lion in the team emblem, it was as soft as a cat. Since Mourinho took over the current Chelsea team, the personality of the Portuguese had gradually been engraved. Wild and unruly, supercilious, arrogant and conceited. Such a team was more able to explode with powerful combat power in a difficult situation because they would never allow themselves to be defeated by a newly promoted team.
Tang En knew this. That was why he loudly reminded the players to pay attention after Joe Cole's shot. This was a sign of Chelsea's counterattack.
The current Forest team had angered a ferocious beast. It was the most dangerous moment. Chelsea's offense came wave after wave. Drogba created a lot of trouble for Forest's rear defensive line. It was really difficult for this inexperienced defensive line to completely defend against Drogba and Lampard.
"Lampard's long shot! Darren Ward pounced with all his might! "
"Drogba's header into the goal! The angle is tricky, and it's within reach! Darren Ward has already given up … Ah! But the goalpost helped him! "
"Joe Cole … Beautiful technique. He's over! Facing Matthew Upson, a backheel pass! Franck Lampard — this time it's Piqué! The Spanish youngster used his body to block Lampard's powerful shot! He's lying on the ground and can't get up. The referee, Frank, is signaling for the team doctor to go over. It's really a fierce game. Chelsea's shots came one after another, leaving the Forest team completely breathless! George Wood and Albertini's midfield also lost control under the Blues' powerful offensive. Chelsea's offense was almost unimpeded! Nottingham Forest has lost their most important piece of ground. It looks like the situation is not good. "
While Piqué was being examined by the team doctor on the field, Tang En called Albertini over. He used very simple English words and hand gestures to tell him, "After intercepting the ball, try to drive forward with big feet. Don't think about controlling the ball from the back and passing it up layer by layer. Chelsea's front field is pressing hard and snatching fiercely. The more the football stays at our feet for a second, the more it's a threat to our goal. Play simply. Do you see Tall Crouch? Send the ball to him! "
Albertini nodded to show that he understood. So, Tang En patted him on the shoulder and sent him back.
With the help of the team doctor, Piqué stood up, clutching his chest. He walked off the field with his back bent, possibly to receive further treatment. Perhaps it was just a ritual — even if the injured player was fine, he still had to be accompanied off the field by the team doctor. Then, he would stand on the sidelines and wait for the referee's permission to enter.
Chelsea's Joe Cole ran to the corner, ready to take the corner kick.
Tang En stood on the sidelines, nervously watching the crowded and chaotic front of the goal. Piqué's departure would definitely be used by Chelsea. As expected, he saw Mourinho also vigorously waving to Carvalho and Terry, who were behind him, to go up.
"This bastard …" Tang En muttered in a low voice. Then, he also shouted, "Crouch! Go back, go back and defend! "
(To be continued, if you want to know what happened next, please log on to WWW. CMFU. COM. More chapters. Support the author. Support original reading!)
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