Chapter 793: Chapter 50: Stop Dreaming. (2)
In the face of such an intense schedule, Mourinho did not want this outcome.
Actually, Sporting Gijon had certain expectations for this match. After all, Mourinho stated before the game: "Even if we lose tomorrow, we are still the champions."
Yes, for Mourinho and for Real Madrid, the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals after the national team schedule in a few days is more important, as are the subsequent national derby and the King’s Cup encounter with Barcelona.
There are too many things more important than this game.
For a team like Real Madrid, the influence of the national team schedule is much stronger than that of other clubs.
Even if Mourinho loses, he won’t lose his dignity or grace.
After gaining the lead, Sporting Gijon was visibly flustered, and Real Madrid took advantage to have several good opportunities, but the teammates failed to capitalize.
Di Maria’s long shot went high, while Adebayor’s header from close range missed again.
Mourinho hesitated for a moment and made a substitution in the 57th minute.
In the 57th minute, Higuain replaced Adebayor, both to help Higuain find his form after injury and to capitalize on scoring, allowing Mourinho to switch to defense.
"Higuain, ah!"
"The 60th minute of the match."
"A golden opportunity for Real Madrid!"
"Chen Zhong’s pass, Higuain’s shot."
Real Madrid had another great chance. After Chen Zhong got the ball, he suddenly surged forward, pushing aside the defender, then executed a perfect Marseille Turn, and passed the ball to Higuain.
Higuain’s powerful shot from 10 yards on the right side of the box was saved by Juan Pablo.
This Argentine forward missed an excellent opportunity.
If it was him before the injury, he wouldn’t have missed such a chance.
Missing this opportunity was a blow to Higuain internally.
Later, after receiving a teammate’s cross, his header attempt also missed.
Higuain and Adebayor didn’t seem much different, both squandered chances after coming on.
In the 78th minute, Mourinho made another substitution, Ozil replaced Chen Zhong. Mourinho waited on the sideline for Chen Zhong, giving him a hug.
"You’ve worked hard, have a good rest," Mourinho said while patting Chen Zhong’s back. "Now’s the crucial moment, I need you to stay in your best form."
"I understand," Chen Zhong replied, about to say more when he heard the stadium erupt in noise.
Chen Zhong turned to look at the field and saw Sporting Gijon players celebrating wildly.
What happened?
Just one minute off the field, just took a sip of water, and the team’s goal was breached?
"Sporting Gijon has tied the score!"
"Ozil is fully responsible this time."
"Does he think he is Chen Zhong?"
Having been away from the field for so long, Ozil, eager to prove himself, tried to imitate Chen Zhong’s ability to help the team score using individual skills.
Unfortunately, facing Sporting Gijon’s tough defense, he quickly lost the ball.
Then there was a counterattack.
Quivas passed the ball, Casas crossed from the left side of the box, Quivas shot low from 15 yards and the ball hit the inside of the left post and entered the net.
The score returned to 1:1.
Sporting Gijon tied the score.
In the subsequent time, Real Madrid tried to regain the lead, but Sporting Gijon coach Preciado kept shouting from the sideline to solidify defense.
Real Madrid’s shooting attempts were repeatedly denied.
Higuain’s shots, Khedira’s shots, Cavaleiro’s header.
Ozil finally went completely berserk, making several wild shots trying his luck.
In the end, Real Madrid settled for a 1:1 draw with Sporting Gijon.
"1:1"
"The two teams ended in a draw."
"The turning point came after Chen Zhong was replaced by Ozil."
"It wasn’t the correct substitution."
After the game, Mourinho gave an interview. Regarding Sporting Gijon’s performance, he did not criticize but praised, perhaps recalling his days coaching Porto.
Mourinho praised: "Sporting Gijon’s strength lies in their spirit, they fought with all their might, without holding back, which is a great virtue. Despite being less skilled than their opponents, they chose to retract and guard their goal. They ran on the field, united together. They defended their luck, and they succeeded."
Of course, besides that, Mourinho also lamented his team’s bad luck, "Normally football is a kind of game, we had countless opportunities, just 1 meter, 2 meters, 3 meters, 4 meters, 5 meters...away from the goal..."
Throughout the match, Real Madrid had over 30 shots, while the opponent had only 5. Real Madrid had up to 10 corner kicks, the opponent only 1. Real Madrid’s possession reached 67%, the opponent only 33%.
In the last added time, Real Madrid fiercely attacked around Sporting Gijon’s goal, almost all Real Madrid players were in the opponent’s penalty area, their attempts kept being cleared by the opponent. Seeing this, Mourinho could only smile wryly from the sideline.
After the match, Mourinho’s statement felt reminiscent of Xiang Yu’s "This is the heaven’s downfall on me, not a defeat due to warfare," says: "Football is unpredictable, our opponents had the luck we lacked today. They defended, defended, defended, and then scored. We had at least 8 scoring opportunities but lacked luck. That’s football. Before the match, we knew our disadvantages, and luck is also part of football, which our opponents had today."
When asked about the team’s goal conceded after Chen Zhong was replaced by Ozil, Mourinho was silent for a while but eventually said firmly: "I know what role Chen plays on the field, but we have many important matches this month."
"Blaming Ozil for the conceded goal is wrong, he has responsibilities but defense is not a one-person job."
"If possible, I’d love to have Chen on the field all the time, but we have too many matches needing Chen, I need him rested, in best form, to face those strong opponents."
Mourinho hopes his players can be in 100% condition for the Champions Cup match against Tottenham Hotspur.
Not only Chen but the other players as well.
He said: "Players know if they can win or lose."
"I won’t criticize players because of the result, yes, we ended with a draw."
"But we just lacked a little bit of luck."
After the match ended, many began to notice Real Madrid’s weakness, that their performance isn’t that outstanding against weaker teams.
Sporting Gijon restrained Real Madrid’s inefficient attacks with orderliness, and then with one shot, Chen Zhong’s goal was in vain.
Famous journalist Diego Torres stated that if conquering a match is a process, Real Madrid seems to spend an entire season doing just one thing, which is simplifying the process.
Against Sporting Gijon, Mourinho’s economical control of the game reached its peak.
In the game, the fewer passes Real Madrid makes the better; the less time spent controlling the ball in the midfield, the better; the more the ball is delivered from the side, the better. If possible, the ball should travel a straight line, progressing with the same sense.
However, this linear battle tactic of Real Madrid not only failed to ensure the intensity of attacks but also dragged Real Madrid into a quagmire of formulaic play.
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