Chapter 497: Chapter 496: Matthaus’s Sixth World Cup
Huang Jianxiang noticed something during the pre-match warm-up, "Ronaldo simply cannot afford to have an off day, as he has always been the most potent firepower for Lisbon Athletic! If he goes quiet, then Lisbon Athletic would really struggle to play."
"The camera cuts to Deng Kai, and cheers from the fans can be heard at the scene. It’s not hard to see how popular Deng Kai is at Old Trafford Stadium."
"Even though he hasn’t played a single game for Manchester United so far, the fans also express that Deng Kai should be inducted into the Manchester United Official Club Hall of Fame."
"That’s because the most eye-catching item in the Manchester United Official Club right now, the match ball from the 1999 Champions League final covered with the whole team’s signatures, belongs to Deng Kai! It was him who entrusted it to Manchester United for the fans to admire for free."
"Alright, both teams have now returned to the dressing room to prepare, and the match is about to start."
On-site, Manchester United even prepared a pre-match performance, setting the stage with all the flair.
The camera then moved to the stands, where numerous English stars had arrived at the scene.
The Lisbon Athletic executives were all out in force to cheer for their team.
However, seated next to the chairman of Manchester United and Lisbon Athletic was Mansour, who was even wearing Deng Kai’s jersey, solidifying the rumors that he was a fan of Deng Kai.
"Alright, the players are entering the field..."
"With the referee’s whistle, the first half of the game officially ended!" Han Qiaosheng made his usual gaffe at the start of the match, terrifyingly stable in his performance.
Known for his verbal slips, ahem... famed actually for his loose tongue.
Huang Jianxiang was startled and hurriedly followed up, "Now let me introduce the starting lineups for both sides."
"Manchester United are using a 4411 formation, the fruit of Ferguson’s efforts to internationalize his tactics. Currently, the results don’t seem particularly good, but this is Ferguson’s anticipatory response to the aging problem that the team will soon face."
"It’s a forward-looking tactical reform!"
"Many fans don’t understand, but Ferguson doesn’t need anyone’s understanding; when he took over this team, the team was not as great as it is now, so he has the right to stick to the things he wants to stick with."
Ruud van Nistelrooy is playing as the center forward."
"Scholes is lurking behind him, playing as a shadow striker."
"Giggs, Veron, Keane, and Beckham make up the golden midfield quartet."
"Phil Neville, Blanco, Silvestre, and John O’Shea are the defenders for this team."
"Goalkeeper Barthez."
"Among them, Veron’s performance at Manchester United has not lived up to Ferguson’s expectations, and this transfer is considered one of the biggest flops in the Premier League this year."
"The young O’Shea was originally a substitute right-back, but Manchester United’s first-choice right-back, Gary Neville, caught a cold before the game and did not appear on the team sheet."
"But don’t underestimate John O’Shea because of this; Manchester United fans have even composed a song for him: ’John flutters down the wing, O’Shea! O’Shea!’
Huang Jianxiang’s singing nearly made the director faint.
Han Qiaosheng also suggested, as a colleague, please don’t sing.
"Lisbon Athletic stick to their regular lineup."
"Ronaldo and Drogba as the strikers."
"Kaka, Deng Kai, and Ronaldinho are the three attacking midfielders. It’s worth noting that their positions often interchange, as was the case in their match against Leverkusen, where such changes completely disrupted Leverkusen’s midfield and defense."
"Matthaus and Guardiola act as the defensive midfielders. These veterans play a crucial role for Lisbon Athletic, with the former still a formidable defender and the latter ensuring the team’s fluidity when they have the ball at the back."
"There are rumors that the German team is in talks with Matthaus, hoping he will participate in this summer’s World Cup in Korea and Japan."
"If the already retired Matthaus rejoins the German team, this would be his sixth World Cup appearance."
"Similarly, Guardiola’s performances this season are top-notch, and there is no doubt he will be selected for the Spanish team."
"The three centre-backs, from left to right, are Pepe, Vidic, and Barzagli."
"This is the golden trio of central defenders for Lisbon Athletic; all three are very good and each has distinct characteristics,"
"Barzagli’s one-on-one defensive ability is the strongest among Lisbon Athletic’s players. If you can get past him, then you can get past anyone on this team."
"Vidic is terrifyingly comprehensive, with defense, anticipation, tackling, aerial ability – apart from a slightly slower turn of speed, this player has no weaknesses!"
"Pepe is incredibly fast, with a wide coverage and fierce fighting spirit! He also has a rare skill for a central defender, which is his accurate long passes. The only issue is he gets easily agitated and is prone to receive cards. Trigella has always wanted to mould him into a Matthaus-style midfielder, but that requires Pepe to be calmer."
"The starting goalkeeper for Lisbon Athletic, Reina."
"Schmeichel has recovered, but on one hand, he himself does not want to stand against Manchester United. On the other hand, Reina has performed very well since Schmeichel’s injury, so Schmeichel is happy to rest."
Huang Jianxiang had just finished speaking.
On the field, Lisbon Athletic took the initiative to launch the first attack.
Deng Kai passed the ball through Manchester United’s midfield, delivering it to Ronaldo’s feet on the right side.
Ronaldo took on Phil Neville, cutting inside with a flick of his tail.
But Phil’s heel touched the ball, disrupting Ronaldo’s rhythm.
Bang!
Ronaldo completed the cross, but it was a bit late.
Drogba had already overrun it.
"Move away!"
Deng Kai shouted at Drogba.
Drogba immediately gave up the idea of forcing the reception and let the ball go through.
Bang!
On the edge of the large penalty area on the left, Kaka, who was pushing forward, met the ball and unleashed a powerful shot.
Manchester United’s central defender, Silvestre, blocked the shot with his back turned, sending the ball out for a corner kick.
Silvestre went down afterward.
Thankfully, he was just in pain and not injured.
The Old Trafford Stadium then gave Silvestre a warm round of applause.
In the season following Stam’s departure, Silvestre performed exceptionally well, proving capable of playing both left-back and central defender.
Even though his ’extra striker’ trait made him prone to losing position during the attack, his imperfections couldn’t overshadow his brightness, and everyone acknowledged his hard work.
His passes were lethal, and if the team weren’t short on central defenders, Phil Neville’s starting position would be in jeopardy.
During the ensuing corner kick, Deng Kai took the corner.
Vidic, with the force of pulling up mountains and the spirit to overshadow the world, successfully got his head to the ball.
Sadly, the ball was just over the crossbar.
The Manchester United fans quickly inhaled a breath of cold air.
This central defender... so diao!
Quite a few Manchester United fans thought that Ferguson could bring this ’second team’ central defender to the Old Trafford Stadium.
Of course, it was just a fleeting thought.
