Since George Wood's debut in professional football, the impression he gave was that he was excellent in defense and useless in offense. Previously, when everyone played against Nottingham Forest, they would not consider defending against George Wood. He almost never went forward to cross the field to participate in the offense. There used to be a football critic who joked that Nottingham Forest had "twelve players when defending, but only ten players when attacking" to illustrate how little Wood contributed to the team's offense.
But three and a half seasons had passed, and now everyone found that the other half of the talent in the "defensive genius and offensive waste" was slowly awakening. His defensive performance in this game was relatively average, but his participation in the offense left a deep impression.
How much more potential could this kid have to be unearthed …
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"George Wood's shot! Unfortunately, there was no goal. But the attack left Makelele in a very sorry state … We rarely see Makelele like this. He was completely at a disadvantage in terms of physical confrontation. "
Terry ran over to support, but he did not make it in time and only had time to pull Makelele up. "Do you need help?" He did it out of kindness, but it made Makelele feel belittled. He shook his head hard and said, "It won't be like this next time, I promise."
He had to admit that he had underestimated his opponent when defending against Wood, because his previous impression of the man made him feel that Wood would not be much of a threat.
He looked at Wood's back and clenched his fists.
This humiliation must be paid back double!
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George Wood's shot on the left flank did not make Chelsea adjust their defensive strategy. They still focused heavily on Ashley Cole's side and seemed to deliberately indulge George Wood.
The commentator was looking for a reason for this arrangement. Of course, it was a reason he came up with himself … Some commentators wanted to do this kind of thing, relying on their own specious understanding to make judgments about the form of the game and using their own brains to replace the managers of both sides. It seemed that they were more professional than the managers who directed the game, which could deceive some of the audience to support their point of view. If they guessed right, it was good luck. If they guessed wrong, they would laugh it off and divert the topic.
"Chelsea did not make any defensive adjustments against Wood's flank … It's actually normal. Although Wood's offensive performance was very active in the game, he was not a professional offensive player. His offensive threat was not as great as that of Ribery, Lennon, and the others. Chelsea can't rush to adjust their defensive focus just because of his brief outburst. Ashley Cole is obviously under more pressure … "
In fact, it had nothing to do with which side was the bigger threat. Chelsea did not adjust out of trust in the veteran Makelele.
Makelele had faced all kinds of offensive players in his career, and many of them were world-class masters. He was experienced and had experienced all kinds of storms. How could he not deal with George Wood?
After van der Vaart tasted the sweetness, he did not hesitate to move the football to the left flank this time. Compared to the last time, his passing this time was just right in terms of power, speed, and accuracy. George Wood could park the car effortlessly.
Wood stopped, and Makelele caught up.
Everyone was looking forward to another unreasonable breakthrough from Wood, but they did not know that Wood was in a very difficult situation on the field.
The football stopped at his feet, and less than three meters opposite him stood Makelele, who was ready for battle. He did not step forward to grab his ball, but he did not know what to do.
As a defensive player, Wood could feel the pressure emanating from Makelele, the kind of pressure that he had the confidence to stop no matter which side he broke through to.
From a professional point of view, Makelele's position was well blocked. Moreover, once Wood stopped the football, he was not good at doing the next move.
He was more suitable for the kind of work that kept the football in motion, such as the successful breakthrough just now. He made the next move under unconventional circumstances without using his brain to think. He just had to follow his body's instinctive reaction.
Once the body stopped and the brain had a chance to think, the thoughts would be stuck.
What to do?
Makelele quietly looked at the man in front of him and the ball at his feet. He did not intend to poke it. He was waiting for Wood to make a move. Does he not know what to do? As I thought, this kid has too little experience in offense. His stunning performance just now was just his body's instincts.
As long as he blocked the position, he would not be able to do anything.
Van der Vaart did not wait for another beautiful attack to appear. He looked at Wood strangely.
There was clearly a gap behind. As long as he could break through, he could pose a threat again. Wood decided to force a breakthrough. In the last confrontation, he knew that his physical advantage and speed advantage were very obvious. Since he could do it that time, he should be able to do it this time.
Wood kicked the football at his feet forward and was ready to start. At the same time, Makelele quickly turned around and separated him from the football. Wood had not sped up. He had just started running when he hit Makelele's back. He wanted to knock the Frenchman away. He did knock Makelele, but he did not lean to one side to clear the way for him. Instead, he pushed Makelele toward the football in front of him.
The opponent took advantage of the situation to catch up with the football and intercepted the football that originally belonged to him.
The defense was successful.
Wood was just a little stunned and quickly launched a counterattack on the spot. He pounced on Makelele like a cheetah, and the two men were entangled.
Essien came up to support and allowed Makelele to get out of the predicament. Otherwise, he was likely to snatch Wood's ball and have it snatched back by Wood. That would be even more humiliating.
After the football was passed to Essien, Wood also changed his target and turned to pounce on Essien.
Makelele looked at his opponent's back and shook his head gently. What an interesting guy. After the ball was intercepted, he changed his role so quickly. He did not seem to be affected by losing the ball at all. Or was he always ready to lose the ball and always ready to counterattack on the spot?
Thinking of this, Makelele suddenly wanted to laugh. It was indeed like the mind of a defensive player.
Although they were now enemies, Makelele kind of liked the quiet young man. Perhaps it was because there were fewer and fewer players who specialized in defense nowadays.
On the field, they were all blue-collar workers who did not receive much attention, but they were also indispensable and important figures in every team. It was really contradictory.
But boy, I know you have a good body and you are fast. Defense is not a job that you can dominate the world with just your body alone.
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"Makelele and Wood are going up against each other," Tang En murmured off the field. "This must be that bastard Mourinho's idea." He turned his head to look at the Chelsea technical area next door. Mourinho was staring intently at the field.
Tang En did not expect Mourinho to be willing to use Makelele to mark George Wood. He thought Makelele would always follow van der Vaart.
Now van der Vaart was followed by Essien, George Wood was entangled by Makelele, and the flank where he assisted Ashley Cole was heavily guarded by Chelsea.
The scene once again fell into a stalemate. The Forest team's offense did not improve for a long time.
Tang En glanced at the big screen, which showed the game time. It was now the 68th minute of the game.
He decided to make a substitution adjustment.
There was no one on the substitutes' bench. The players had gone out to warm up. Every once in a while, they would be called out by the assistant manager, Kerslake, to warm up to ensure that they could play at any time when needed.
"Go get the little monkey," Tang En said to Dunn. Dunn obeyed and left.
Soon, Gareth Bale ran back excitedly. When he saw Tang En, he asked, "Boss, is it my turn to play?"
Tang En nodded, took the tactical board from Dunn, and pulled Bale to the sidelines.
"You go up to support the attack. Do you see where Wood is now? "he asked, pointing to the field. Wood was taking the ball on the sidelines when Makelele pressed up. This time, Wood did not choose to force a breakthrough. Instead, he passed the football to van der Vaart. The move was a little helpless, because it was van der Vaart who had just passed the football to him.
"I see it." Bale nodded.
"Our attack on the right side is blocked. Now Wood on the left side lacks support. If you can cover from the back, Makelele will have a hard time."
Leighton Baines' defense was indeed stronger than Bale's, but what Tang En needed now was offense, not defense. He wanted to take down Chelsea in the away game and not just be satisfied with a draw.
"If you want to cover from the back, you must be firm. You can't be hesitant. Otherwise, you won't be able to pull Makelele away. Just charge forward. Don't think about defense when you attack, and don't think too much about what happens if you lose the ball. In short, remember, when you rush up, there's still George Wood behind you. "
When Tang En said that, Bale smiled even more happily.
"All right, get ready to go on the field. Go take off this vest."
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"Nottingham Forest makes a substitution. No. 2 Gareth Bale replaces No. 22 Leighton Baines."
The stadium broadcast broadcasted Nottingham Forest's latest adjustment.
Mourinho looked at Bale, who ran onto the field. The figure evoked unpleasant memories in him. The battle that made the kid famous was when he scored the winning free kick in the last minute of the game against his own team.
Gareth Bale was a full back who was stronger in offense than defense. Tang En's intention for bringing him on was obvious: to strengthen the offense.
Mourinho was not afraid of Tang En strengthening the offense. On the contrary, he was afraid that Tang En would strengthen the defense and hide. Now, as long as Tang En had the will to attack, Chelsea would have a chance to score.
With 20 minutes left in the game, let's see who scores first!
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After Bale came on, the Forest team's offense on the left flank was strengthened. Makelele immediately felt the pressure of a one-on-two.
When he kept an eye on Wood, Bale would always rush up from behind. Should he abandon Wood or ignore Bale at this time?
It was a dilemma.
When he decided to keep an eye on Wood, Wood passed the ball to Bale, who plugged in from behind. Bale easily broke through and passed the ball. If not for Terry, van Nistelrooy would have headed the ball again.
Tang En's move broke the original balance on the field. If Chelsea did not adjust their defensive strategy, their right flank would be beaten into a sieve.
Mourinho had to give up the idea of heavily defending the left flank and restore the defensive line to a normal state. Now, the best defense was not to work on the rear defensive line, but to seize the time to launch an attack and use a powerful offensive to push back the Forest team's formation and beat down the Forest team's arrogance.
As Mourinho had previously said in his heart, in the final moments of the game, it was not about whose defense was more stable, but whose offense was sharper.
"After Gareth Bale came on, he effectively strengthened the Forest team's offense on the left flank. But there are also disadvantages. As a result, their defensive strength is even weaker. Wood needs to balance offense and defense, and the two full backs frequently assist. I think the opportunity Chelsea has been waiting for has finally come. "
The Chelsea players thought so too.
They stepped up their offense, and Drogba, Shevchenko and Robben all got the chance to shoot. It was different from the first half. There were a lot of spaces in the Forest team's defensive line in front of them that could be exploited, and the defense around them was not as tight as before.
After Edwin van der Sar saved the opponent's two threatening shots in a row, he anxiously shouted at his teammates who pressed up, "Pay a little attention to the defense! Come back when you go up. If you can't come back, don't go up! "
Tang En certainly saw the current situation. Chelsea's offensive was fierce, which was a countermeasure to the Forest team's adjustment.
He got up from the technical area, walked to the sidelines, and roared inside, "Chimbonda, go back to defend!" After Bale went up, it was too risky for the two full backs to assist. He let Chimbonda, who was better at defending, go back to strengthen the defense and contain Chelsea's offense.
"Wood! Come back to the middle! "
Now that both sides' formations had returned to normal, it was meaningless to let Wood go to the left flank again. It also hindered Bale and Ribéry's movement routes. It was a good choice to let him go back to stabilize the defense.
After Wood and Chimbonda both returned to the defensive line, the Forest team's difficulties were alleviated. Chelsea was still looking for offensive opportunities and did not retreat just because the Forest team had strengthened their defensive strength.
There was little time left in the game, and they were more anxious than Nottingham Forest. If they ended up with a 1: 1 draw with the opponent at home, it would be a big blow to their confidence in going to the away game in the second leg.
If they won, even if it was only 2: 1, it would be fine!
George Wood's brief performance on offense was over, and he returned to his best defensive work. He built a wall in front of the penalty area and in the middle of the field for his teammates behind him.
Chelsea's offense grew fiercer, and the Forest team's formation was pressed back. Slowly, it became what it was shortly after the start of the game — the Forest team played the defensive counterattack that they were most comfortable with.
In fact, Tang En did not yell on the sidelines to let them defend and counterattack. It was purely a decision made by the players themselves according to the situation on the field. Or it could be said that it was a result of inertia. When the opponent attacked fiercely, they would unconsciously retreat to lure the opponent out, and then suddenly hit the opponent's back to settle the battle in one go.
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Mourinho replaced Ballack with Joe Cole, intending to strengthen the midfield's ball control. He could tell. Now everyone was in a hurry to attack and played impatiently. Some were anxious for results, but the effect was not very good. There were too many mistakes in the midfield, which could only waste time and opportunities.
After Joe Cole went up, he could slow down the pace by taking more of the ball, and then his skills could help Chelsea sort out the midfield again.
Let's hope so …
Joe Cole's first pass went straight to the sideline. The commentator explained that it was because he had just come on and had not warmed up yet. He was not quite used to the atmosphere of the game. After all, the game had entered a white-hot stage.
Everyone believed it. Another minute later, Joe Cole took the ball, but because he held the ball for too long and hesitated, he was knocked to the ground by George Wood. Although he earned a free kick in the front field for Chelsea, he wasted a better opportunity.
"Joe Cole hasn't gotten into the game yet." The commentary was too weak.
The quality of Chelsea's free kick was not high. The pass was headed out by Piqué after it entered. Wood relied on his body to grab the header again in the scramble with Makelele, and he continued to head the football forward.
Due to the defensive return for the set piece, there were not many Forest players in front at the moment. There was only one player.
Van Nistelrooy came back to be the human wall because he was tall.
The player who received the ball that Wood headed out was Eastwood.
"This is Nottingham Forest's chance to fight back! But Eastwood lacks support. He doesn't have a teammate wearing a red shirt around him. He dribbles the ball diagonally. Carvalho is closely following him. "
Wood looked at the situation and hesitated a little before he ran forward.
He had just run two steps when he was overtaken.
Franck Ribéry and Gareth Bale seemed to be in a hundred-meter race. The two desperately rushed forward and swept past Wood like a gust of wind.
Wood looked at the backs of the two men desperately and slowed down. But it was only for a moment. He changed his mind again and sped up again to chase the two men.
"Four against three!"
Chelsea's backfield was three defenders, not counting the goalkeeper. Nottingham Forest put in four players to attack in the shortest time possible. The situation was not good for Chelsea.
Mourinho stood up nervously from his seat.
Carvalho did not know what was going on behind him. He only knew that he could not let Eastwood dribble the football out. He had to continue to pressure him and force him toward the corner flag area. In this way, his defense would be considered successful.
"Good idea, Wood!" Terry roared.
George Wood's active performance in the offense in this game had successfully attracted enough attention for him. The Chelsea players were thinking about what kind of terrifying shot this monster was going to shoot.
When Eastwood dribbled the ball close to the end line, he made a feint to break through and shook open a moment of space. He did not hesitate to pass the ball into the middle!
It was not a common ball in the air, but a fast ground ball that rolled along the turf!
Terry was preparing to defend against George Wood. Almost everyone focused their attention on this eye-catching guy. Ribéry stabbed out from the side and almost scared all the Chelsea people out of their wits.
"Franck Ribéry … didn't kick!" Ribéry swung his leg to shoot at the football, but he did not kick the football at high speed. The football slipped through between his legs.
The commentator wanted to say that it was an amateur's mistake, but he did not have time to make such a sigh. He saw that behind the most crowded crowd, in the back corner of the goal, a red figure appeared on the trajectory of the football …
Čech had been shaken to the ground because of Ribéry's first shot. He made a save, but he did not wait for the football. Instead, he let the goal behind him open wide.
This was Gareth Bale's chance …
Bale, who was running, crossed his foot. The football hit the inside of his foot, changed direction, and easily flew into the goal in front of him.
This was his first Champions League goal.
"Nottingham Forest's counterattack has finally paid off! Gareth Bale! Nottingham Forest leads Chelsea by 2: 1 in the away game! "
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