"A series of beautiful coordination in the middle, a continuous two-versus-one! George Wood — — a powerful volley! The football hit the crossbar and bounced back, hit Casillas's back, and bounced into the goal … Nottingham Forest took the lead at the Bernabéu Stadium! "
"The subtitles counted the goal as Casillas' own goal, but we must remember George Wood's excellent performance in this attack. It was his long shot that caught Casillas off guard … In fact, after the goal, the Forest players also surrounded Wood to congratulate him."
George Wood was indeed surrounded by his teammates in the center. To be able to be the first to score in the final, it would be much easier to play in the later games. Therefore, they did not care whether it was an own goal or not. The important thing was that they were now leading Real Madrid by 1: 0.
There was a burst of boos in the stands. It was not known whether the boos were aimed at the Nottingham Forest players or the Real Madrid team that was scored.
Poor Casillas got up from the ground, turned around to fish out the ball in the goal, and kicked a big kick towards the center circle, his mouth still muttering. He must be complaining about his bad luck. When he pounced, the football just bounced back, bounced back, hit him, hit him, hit him, hit him, hit him, hit him and just happened to fly into the goal …
He did not even know why all this happened. When he performed valiantly in front of the goal and saved those shots that were impossible to save, the fans called him "Saint Igor". He seemed to be possessed by God. But at this moment, God and the holy light had left him.
Fortunately, he was a goalkeeper. A goalkeeper's psychological quality had always been strong. After he muttered for a while, he tightly pursed his lips and did not say anything about it anymore.
Míchel was a little unhappy with the fact that Real Madrid lost the goal first. After seeing the goal, he jumped out of his seat, waved his arms and complained incessantly. He complained about Real Madrid's defense in the middle and also about their bad luck …
The Nottingham Forest players were still celebrating the goal. They acted as if there was no one else around them amid the overwhelming boos. Míchel pulled Ribéry to the sidelines and told him what to pay attention to in the following game.
"… After they take the lead, they will defend and counterattack and shrink the defensive line. We must press up and attack."
Ribéry nodded in agreement. In fact, he did not have any ideas. Whatever the manager said was what he would do.
"Be more resolute when you're charging forward. If you lack support from your teammates, just shoot from afar!" Michels pointed to the Forest team's goal and said, "George Wood is marking you. You can pull him out from the middle and tell Lars to get forward more actively."
Ribéry knew that Diarra wanted to use him as bait. Diarra's attacking standard was also good. His passing and dribbling were both good.
"They know how to suppress our flanks, and we do the same. Suppress their flanks so that they can't counterattack. Tell Ronaldo and Higuaín to be more determined. Don't be afraid. If they want to break through, then break through! Go! "
Ribéry accepted the order and left.
Tang En sneered when he saw Michelle calling Ribéry back to discuss the strategy alone. This kid is now a core player at Real Madrid and he's doing pretty well.
※ ※ ※
"Conceding a goal in the 23rd minute may be a good thing from another point of view. This way, at least Real Madrid has 67 minutes to equalize and overtake."
The game resumed, and the trailing Real Madrid launched a frenzied counterattack against the Forest team. Their momentum forced Nottingham Forest to shrink their defensive line and switch to a defensive position.
The commentator was a little proud because what he said before had come true. "I said that if Nottingham Forest is in the lead, they will defend and counterattack. I was right, Tony Twain really did withdraw. The excitement of the next game depends on when Real Madrid can blast open the Forest goal … "
Ribéry became the core of Real Madrid's offense. He was responsible for organizing the attack, and occasionally he would use long shots to test Akinfeev's concentration during the game.
Pepe was unusually excited today. There were a few times when Wood had already stuck close to Ribéry, but he still rushed up to defend the same target.
Tang En only thought that it was Pepe's excitement and did not take it to heart. Anyway, his and Wood's two-man defense did make Ribéry a little flustered. He was tired of defending and did not have much energy to organize the attack.
Until the 31st minute, when Pepe took down Ribéry at the front of the penalty area, the referee gave Real Madrid a direct free kick. Tang En slapped his thigh in the technical area and complained, "Is he trying to break Ribéry's leg? This bastard! Watch your movements! "
Because of this foul, he received a yellow card. It was a foul from behind, and it directly swept down Ribéry who was protecting the ball.
The Real Madrid fans turned their boos to Pepe. Ribéry fell to the ground, clutching his ankle in pain. Míchel stood up angrily and reprimanded the Forest team's atrocity. Tang En did not say anything after he scolded Pepe in private.
Ribéry finally stood up from the ground, still a little limping. He did not glare at Pepe like the other players, and he moved to the side.
Pep didn't let him go. She continued to stare at him unrelentingly.
Bale pulled his hand beside him and said, "Relax, Pepe!"
"I just can't stand the sight of him." Pepe stared fiercely at Ribéry and said.
"Look at where you committed the foul." At this time, Wood also walked back and said to Pepe, his face serious.
Pepe glanced at it and curled his lips.
The place where he committed the foul was a little in front of the penalty area.
"It's nothing, it's too close, not a good distance for a free kick." It seemed like what he said was reasonable.
"It better be so." Wood expressionlessly turned to form the human wall.
There were many people who thought the same as Pepe. The Forest players all thought that the distance was too close, not a good position for a free kick.
The commentator also thought so, "Eighteen meters from the goal … This distance is too close, it will either directly hit the human wall or go over the crossbar."
Cristiano Ronaldo stood in front of the ball, and it looked like he would be the one to take the free kick.
Ronaldo was good at taking long distance free kicks, which seemed to confirm everyone's point of view.
Pepe's foul looked dangerous, but in fact, it might be the safest?
The Real Madrid players did not try to squeeze into the Nottingham Forest human wall, and they did not seem to have any expectations for the free kick.
Aaron Mitchell saw this and wanted to wait in front to prepare to counterattack, but he was called back by Wood to form the human wall. His height of 2.02m was very eye-catching in the human wall. Wood arranged for him to be in the most dangerous position, guarding the far corner of the goal, which was the furthest away from Akinfeev.
After the human wall was in place, the referee signaled for Real Madrid to kick off.
Ronaldo stood behind the football, his legs apart, took a deep breath, and then ran up.
His running up was a little long, and he might do a strong volley, hoping to penetrate the Forest human wall. But when he ran behind the football, he lifted the tip of his foot up!
His calf moved quickly, but the movement of his thigh was very small.
The football flew over the top of the human wall, not to the far corner, but to the near corner!
Akinfeev did not expect Ronaldo to kick like this. He had originally chosen to pounce towards the far corner, and his body's center of gravity followed. Only then did he realize that the football was flying towards the near post. But it was too late for him to adjust his center of gravity. For a moment, his body froze on the spot, and he watched the football fly over the human wall at the lowest height, straight into the goal.
This …
It was as if Akinfeev was hit by the football, and he instantly lost his center of gravity and all his strength, falling backwards into the goal.
Pepe also looked like he could not believe it, and he stared at the football in the goal. Behind him were the cheering Real Madrid players.
"Damn it!" Tang En scolded from below.
Michels excitedly rushed back to the technical area from the sidelines and hugged the assistant managers.
"Ronaldo's direct free kick broke the goal!" The commentator roared excitedly. This time, he was happy for Real Madrid's goal from the bottom of his heart. Nottingham Forest's defensive counterattack failed, and the game was even more interesting to watch!
If Tang En knew what the commentator was thinking, he would have felt very wronged, because he had never thought of playing defensive counterattack after taking the lead …
"A beautiful direct free kick! Originally, this was not a particularly good chance to score, but Ronaldo's unique free kick curved around the human wall and flew into the goal! Akinfeev was completely deceived, and he did not react at all! "
This time, the Bernabéu stands finally erupted in huge cheers. The white fans finally had the moment to hold their heads high.
Tang En was still chattering, "Such a goal … such a foul … and even a yellow card! I really can't figure out what's so good about that foul! "
Eastwood smiled bitterly at the side. He thought he knew why. Some words would only be said between players. No matter how close the Boss was to them, or how high his prestige was, he would not completely understand the thoughts of every player.
For example, Pepe had said more than once in private in the locker room that he looked down on Ribéry. He looked down on him not because he had defected to Real Madrid for money. Pepe was not a saint, and he knew that playing professional football was to earn money. The reason he looked down on Ribéry was because Ribéry chose to leave when the Boss and the team were in trouble. He had always wanted to find a chance to take revenge on Ribéry, and this final finally gave him a great opportunity.
※ ※ ※
After the equalizer, Real Madrid became even more energetic. Their two flanks were completely active, and they suppressed the momentum of Forest's counterattack. With wave after wave of cheers from the home fans, they launched a series of attacks on the Forest team's hinterland. Several times, they had already hit the Forest team's front of the goal, causing the Forest team's defenders to be flustered.
After Real Madrid's goal, Tang En left the technical area and stood on the sidelines, making different body language according to the situation on the field. When Real Madrid's attack forced into the goal, he would clench his fists, straighten his back, and lean forward, as if all the muscles in his body were taut. When Forest took the ball and counterattacked, he would cross his arms to give the players the feeling that their coach had a card up his sleeve to stabilize the team's morale.
The television cameras also frequently visited Tang En. Sometimes, his performance on the sidelines was even more exciting than the game on the field.
In fact, Tang En was not doing it for the television close-up. He was nervous.
No matter how nonchalant and condescending he acted before the game, he could not deny that Real Madrid had a big advantage in the game at the Bernabéu. This advantage could sometimes be decisive in the final. So, he had to deal with it carefully. Scoring first was a good signal to reduce the pressure, but he did not expect Real Madrid to equalize the score in less than ten minutes. Now, Real Madrid's morale was high, and Forest was inevitably hit. Under this situation, if they were not careful, the situation on the field could be reversed.
Currently, Forest was trying hard not to let Real Madrid completely suppress them. Once again, George Wood became the Forest team's brightest star. His tireless running and fierce but clean defense in the rear defensive line helped the team to a draw with Real Madrid.
In the eyes of most people, Real Madrid had the advantage. Especially with the home ground atmosphere, it gave people a feeling that Real Madrid could break into Forest's goal at any time. Real Madrid's coordination was pleasing to the eye. They seemed to be able to receive any pass and play any attack. On the other hand, Nottingham Forest was in a bit of a mess. After Şahin was restricted by Diarra, Nottingham Forest's midfield almost became a pure engineering midfield. Their role was not to organize the offense and connect the front and back fields, but to think of ways to destroy Real Madrid's offense … How could it work if there was only destruction and no construction?
Evan Doughty, who was watching the game on the rostrum, looked more and more upset. He only smiled when Forest scored. After that, he watched the game with a straight face. Ever since Real Madrid equalized the score, the league became even uglier. Florentino, who was beside him, always had a smile on his face. Even when Forest took the lead, he did not frown.
He was indeed a cunning big shot. His self-restraint and shrewdness were not something Evan Doughty could compare with.
※ ※ ※
At the end of the first half, the score was still 1: 1. Although Real Madrid had the advantage, they could not break into Forest's goal again. Forest's defensive system had withstood the test. Tang En was not worried about his own defense. What he was worried about was that if he put too much energy into defense, his offense would inevitably suffer. The key to victory in this game was not defense, but offense.
Tang En took the lead and walked into the tunnel, thinking about how to salvage the situation in the second half.
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