Chapter 265: The End of the Record
Defeating PSV Eindhoven 3-1 at home and successfully advancing to the semi-finals of the Champions League in the 04-05 season, Tottenham Hotspur's stunning performance in the Champions League has attracted close attention from the entire European football world!
Although Tottenham also attracted a lot of attention when they beat Chelsea and Manchester United to finish runners-up in the Premier League last season, if you compare the scope and shock of these two times, then the former is obviously much smaller than this one. Pen, fun, and www.biquge.info
It is not surprising that this will happen. You know, in the eyes of fans, although Tottenham Hotspur won the Premier League runner-up last season, many people believe that this is mainly due to the fact that several major competitors are in trouble - Manchester United first lost David Beckham as a midfield pillar in the summer, and then defender Rio Ferdinand was banned for a long time due to drug testing problems, coupled with the aging of the main squad; Chelsea was ruined by Ranieri, an overly cautious and conservative guy, with a large number of stars.
What's more, Tottenham are a new force in the Champions League, and they can easily encounter a series of problems in a multi-front situation due to their lack of European experience. This, combined with the fact that rivals such as Arsenal and Chelsea have made changes to their squads in the summer transfer window, is enough to cause a lot of difficulties in their Champions League journey.
However, Tottenham's performance has shattered the glasses of all those who are not optimistic about it - in the face of so many adverse conditions, this new team in the Champions League actually went all the way, and many strong opponents such as Ajax, Bayern, Juventus, Real Madrid and PSV Eindhoven have qualified for the semi-finals of the Champions Cup!
Moreover, in the just-concluded quarter-finals, Jose Mourinho's Chelsea were eliminated by Juventus after two games with a total of 180 minutes. In addition, although the British media have always liked to hype and fear that the world will not be chaotic and famous all over the world, they have always had a keen sense of smell and know very well which people and forces they must not provoke. Therefore, now that they have become the only representative of the Premier League team in the Champions League this season, Tottenham Hotspur has naturally become the target of unanimous praise by the British media!
Tottenham Hotspur qualified for the last four of the Champions League and became the biggest dark horse in this season's Champions Cup, a result that naturally brought them many positive and negative effects. One of the most immediate negative effects is that more and more teams are making transfer offers for Tottenham players, hoping to successfully poach these players from White Hart Lane who have proven their quality!
Real Madrid have their eye on Arjen Robben and Cristiano Ronaldo to make up for the declining midfield strength of superstars such as Zinedine Zidane and Figo, Juventus wants to poach Mascherano and give Emerson a qualified partner in the midfield position, and Manchester United are ready to continue to use Ferguson's connections to acquire some quality assets from Tottenham, such as Nemanja Vidic and Franck Ribery, both of whom are the focus of David Gil's investigation!
"No! reject them all!" When Marotta came to ask what to do with these transfer offers, George's attitude was very clear, "Tell them that Tottenham will not accept any offers now, let alone open any negotiations about the transfer of players!"
At this critical juncture, George must make this tough stance to temporarily dispel all those who covet his own players. If there are players who can't devote themselves to the game because of the transfer at this juncture, then it will not be Tottenham Hotspur who will suffer at that time!
George was relieved that the players did not feel resentful of him or the club because of his statement, or went straight to the showdown and wanted to leave. On the one hand, it is because the salary package offered by Tottenham Hotspur under George is among the best in European football, and it is difficult for them to earn more than they do if they move to other clubs, and on the other hand, Tottenham Hotspur are now quite hopeful of competing for the Champions Cup, the Premier League and FA Cup at the same time. Stimulated by honor, no one wants to disturb the morale of the army at this time, thus affecting themselves and the state of the team!
Therefore, in the eyes of Tottenham players, whether it is a transfer or a contract renewal, it is best to wait until the overall situation is decided. For now, it's better for them to concentrate on the game and try to win one or two trophies by the end of the season!
Since Tottenham basically had to play a game in two or three days on average during this period, in the 32nd round of the Premier League two days later, George only brought the eighteen players who were in the squad to Liverpool, leaving the rest in London to rest!
Although the Reds will have to deal with the UEFA Cup while fighting for the top four in the league, the pressure is obviously much less than that of the Champions League. What's more, Liverpool undoubtedly values a ticket to next season's Champions Cup more than the usual League Cup. Therefore, in this game, Benitez naturally sent the strongest squad without reservation, in order to beat Tottenham, so as to retain the hope of fighting for fourth place in the standings!
Although George rotated his starting line-up to make sure he was in the best possible shape to challenge Liverpool at Anfield, the Champions League match with PSV Eindhoven in midweek and the two-day break made it impossible for the Tottenham players to be in good shape against the Reds.
Under the advantages of the other, Tottenham, who was a guest at Anfield, faced Liverpool, which was much less powerful, and it was natural that it was a difficult battle.
However, despite having the upper hand on the pitch, Liverpool have not been able to penetrate Cech's ten fingers. Whether it is Barosh who started or Cisse who came off the bench, they are doing nothing under the defense of Dawson and Vermaelen, and they can't see their style as the Golden Boot of the European Championship and the former Golden Boot of Ligue 1!
In the 87th minute of the game, the persevering Liverpool finally found the defensive hole in Tottenham's substitute lineup. Gerrard split the ball down the middle, and the inserted Reese sent a through ball on the left touchline, and Colwill in front of him adjusted the ball a little before facing Kompany, who came to block, and crossed with his left foot. At this time, Gerrard, who ran all the way from midfield to Tottenham Hotspur after the ball, jumped high against Dawson's defense and shook his head directly in front of the goal twelve yards out!
Although Cech made a save at the first time, Gerrard's header was too powerful and too fast, and the Czech goalkeeper who just touched the ball with the tip of his glove had no way to prevent the ball from flying into the gate he was guarding!
With Steven Gerrard's lion's head, Liverpool finally won a crucial victory and three valuable points at Anfield Stadium with a hard-fought victory over the league leaders who came on as substitutes!
Tottenham Hotspur, who lost this game, undoubtedly suffered a heavy blow. Because after the defeat, Tottenham not only shrunk their lead over Chelsea to just one point in the table, but also ended their magical record of 47 consecutive league games!
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