Chapter 578: Chapter 577: Born Fighter, Inferiority Manchester City
Ronaldo’s acceleration was too fast, even Maicon, one of the top three fastest on the team, couldn’t catch up after a delayed reaction.
This was different from Deng Kai’s sneaky head start.
Ronaldo purely relied on his explosive strength to overpower Maicon.
A few years back, Ronaldo’s explosiveness was not this scary. His speed could only be considered very fast among his peers, but not the fastest.
But in recent years, Ronaldo’s speed has undergone a transformation, becoming faster and faster.
This is what baffles people the most.
You can say your shooting skills have improved against all odds, but why can your speed also seemingly increase without limit?
Is it because later on your team included speedsters like Maicon, Wu Xudong, and Kaka?
The answer is indeed so.
Ronaldo is that kind of player. Put him in any environment, and he’ll climb to the top step by step within it.
If that environment is the Chinese Super League, then he’d be the king of the Chinese Super League.
If the environment is Ligue 1, then he’d be the king of Ligue 1.
If the environment is the world of football, then he would fight to the death to become the king of the world of football.
The greatest luck of this natural "fighter" was to encounter super geniuses during his growth, enabling him to understand early on that his competition was not merely Portugal.
Without the Youth Champions League, the Europa League, the Champions League, and Sporting Lisbon’s incredible signings, Ronaldo might still just be a candidate for the Premier League’s best newcomer.
But now... he’s already one of the best forwards in the Premier League.
After getting past Maicon, Ronaldo constantly adjusted his position, perfectly blocking Maicon’s momentum, so Maicon could never catch up.
Such fine-tuned play is obviously something Ronaldo learned after coming to the Premier League and joining Manchester United.
It was an aggressive cut inside.
Though rough around the edges, it was enough to deal with defenders like Maicon who were not rough enough by English standards.
Ronaldo cut inside towards the penalty area.
"Here!" Giggs inserted from the flank and reached the edge of the box, calling for the ball from Ronaldo.
Chiellini glanced at Giggs immediately.
Maicon, following Ronaldo, knew something was wrong right away.
"Don’t worry about them, he’s not passing..." Maicon shouted.
But it was too late.
In the moment Chiellini was distracted, Ronaldo suddenly tapped the ball closer to the baseline, and then with less than a ten-degree angle for shooting, unleashed a left-footed blast!
Left side of the penalty area, near the baseline, a left-footed blast.
That combination was downright outrageous.
Was this just a wild shot?
Once again, in the middle of the penalty area, standing at the penalty spot and blocking Hierro’s line, Van Nistelrooy was about to explode with anger.
He threw down his hands, which had been raised to call for the ball, infuriated by Ronaldo’s apparent disregard for anyone else.
Bang!
Whoosh!
The football almost grazed the near post as it flew past, striking Lehmann’s leg and rebounding into the goal.
Lehmann lost to his own excellent reflexes.
If he had hesitated, the ball might have slipped past the goal.
"GOAL! Ronaldo! Ronaldo scores again!"
"This is the true King of Manchester!"
"The unparalleled duo of Lisbon, today there must be a showdown!"
"Now, the one in the lead is Ronaldo!"
"With a brace, he helps Manchester United take a two-to-one lead over Manchester City!"
"It turns out that the ’man’ in Manchester is not Ferguson, nor Deng Kai, but Ronaldo!"
"Two shots, each more difficult than the last! Especially this one, that’s an impossible goal!"
"But this is Ronaldo, this is the confidence of a superstar striker!"
Ronaldo rushed to the corner flag area, executing an elegant slide on his knees.
As he slid, he also glanced toward Deng Kai not far away.
Meaning: See how awesome I am!
Deng Kai shook his head: Not impressed.
The Manchester United players all came over to celebrate with Ronaldo.
However, Van Nistelrooy in the small box did not go over.
Although he quickly concealed the discontent on his face, his body language had already shown that his tolerance for Ronaldo had reached its limit.
Who the hell isn’t a top five shooter in the world?
So you’re the only one who can shoot, huh?
Get it straight who the real striker of this team is!
No, wait, Ronaldo is number nine, I’m number ten, this... damn!
Fannie felt infuriated.
In the stands, Manchester United’s fans began to belt out the team’s anthem.
They had already sensed victory beckoning them.
"Oh! The confidence of Manchester United’s fans is not without reason," Huang Jianxiang noted at the sight of the latest data, "This season, whenever Manchester United has fallen behind and then taken the lead, they have won every single game!"
"This showcases their strong offensive capability as well as their tenacious fighting spirit."
"That’s the spirit of the Red Devils! Originating from the 1999 Champions League final, the spirit of the Red Devils!"
"Manchester City is in danger!"
At this moment, Manchester United’s morale was soaring.
Manchester City’s fans in the stands quieted down as well.
No matter how much they acted like they were the "Kings of Manchester" on a normal day, they were all adults, how could they not have a sense of the strong and the weak?
Manchester United was definitely stronger than Manchester City!
Once Manchester United found their rhythm, how could Manchester City stand a chance?
Frankly speaking, the long-time weakened spirit of Manchester City’s fans did not include invincible belief.
It wasn’t that they were poor; it was that circumstances dictated consciousness.
The despondency of Manchester City’s fans also affected the performance of their players.
That sense of "We’re not quite up to it" also emerged among Manchester City’s players.
In the thirtieth minute.
Deng Kai moved to the left flank, extending his arm, asking for the ball from Baggio who was falling back to organize play.
He knew that at times like this, he had to step up.
He enjoyed an unparalleled authority within the team,
And thus, he had to shoulder the most significant responsibility.
Deng Kai deftly touched the ball, following it with quick, short steps.
He and Gary Neville formed a one-on-one situation.
O’Shea subconsciously edged closer to Gary’s side.
Keane was also rushing over from the diagonal rear.
Manchester United prepared to encircle Deng Kai.
Bang!
Deng Kai suddenly flicked the ball, sending it flying forward.
Gary immediately engaged Deng Kai in a sprint.
But he found he couldn’t keep up at all.
Compared to their encounter in the Champions League the previous year, Deng Kai’s breakthrough had become much faster.
With a deft lunge!
Bang!
On his second touch, Deng Kai cut inside forcefully, blocking Gary’s path as he was speeding back to defend.
An aggressive cut inside!
A move learned from Ronaldo, Deng Kai was also practicing it.
In the Premier League, you must master this skill.
Because there are too many speed-type full-backs in the league.
Ashley Cole, Lauren, Wu Xudong... eh, why are they all from Arsenal?
Indeed, cutting inside usually means taking a longer route, with a disadvantage in distance. Unless there’s a huge speed difference, it’s hard to completely get past the opponent.
Bang!
Gary collided with Deng Kai.
Using the motion of swinging his arm, Deng Kai smoothly swung it, causing Gary, who had already lost his balance, to tumble to the ground.
Manchester United fans complained in unison.
But the referee considered it a normal attacking confrontation.
It was Gary who had lost his balance.
Since Deng Kai did not slap Gary’s head, and a mere light touch resulted in a fall, not giving you a yellow card for diving was already lenient.
