If there was one word to describe the mood of a Chelsea player back in the dressing room, it would be the aftermath of the disaster.

They were like a group of survivors who had just escaped the catastrophe, sitting in front of the closet, gasping for breath, looking at their teammates around them, secretly rejoicing in the favor of Lady Luck.

In the first half, Chelsea's performance was indeed a disaster, but it was not how bad the Blues were, but how strong Manchester City were.

The Blues were in control of the game almost from the first minute of the game, leaving little chance for Chelsea, instead attacking Chelsea's penalty area and threatening the goal again and again, leaving the Blues exhausted.

As early as in the league, they had already felt the terrifying strength of Manchester City, but they did not expect that they performed better in this game, playing more fluidly and tacitly than in the league.

The Chelsea players tried very hard to disrupt City's passing, but there was no way, no matter which Manchester City player got the ball, there were endless points of contact around him, and even they were a little suspicious, even if the Manchester City players closed their eyes, they knew where to pass the ball, which made Chelsea feel disarmed.

Losing possession of the ball, they are like a herd of lambs waiting to be slaughtered, and they can only be beaten passively.

The strength of Manchester City's frontcourt offensive players is also quite terrifying, with a total of more than 100 goals in a single season, whether it is personal ability or tacit cooperation, it makes people feel extremely jealous.

Just imagine an attacking combination that even substitute striker Sturridge can score 20 goals in a single season.

As a last resort, in the face of Manchester City's powerful attack, Chelsea could only shrink the defense, but even so, it was still broken through the defense again and again, directly threatening the goal.

But Lady Luck was clearly on Chelsea's side today.

With one misjudgement, two postings and three crossbars, City missed six must-score chances in the first half, much to the amuse of their opponents, Chelsea, who were too unlucky.

Having missed six must-score goals in 45 minutes, this is really no one's luck.

However, after laughing at Manchester City, there was a renewed feeling of deep concern at Chelsea as they only had fifteen minutes to go before the second half was about to begin.

The situation in the first half, Manchester City in the second half will definitely continue to increase their attacking intensity, can they withstand it?

Soon, a faint sense of anxiety filled the air in the locker room.

Scolari pushed the door in and immediately felt the atmosphere, and as a seasoned coach, he immediately understood what was going on and knew that as a manager he had to do something to restore the morale of the team.

I saw him stop at the entrance for a moment, think for a moment, and walk briskly to the players' rest area.

'Guys, the first half was very good and I'm very satisfied. ”

Scolari's first words made all the players look at each other, and even showed puzzled eyes.

Acting like this, being beaten so badly by Manchester City, is this still called outstanding?

Scolari reached out and wiped the bushy mustache on his upper lip, "You may find it strange and even suspect that I said it on purpose, but I want to tell you that you did do a pretty good job. ”

After a pause, Scolari took a deep look at the player before continuing.

'Man City are a very good team and they did dominate in the first half, but our defence put a lot of pressure on them, so their players always make mistakes at crucial moments. ”

"We often say that football needs some luck, but once it's luck, but two, three, four, is that still luck?

Scolari's words are indeed a bit convincing, and as players, no one wants to admit that they are far inferior to their opponents, so after listening to Scolari's words, they feel that it makes sense.

Isn't it?

Five hits on the column beam, is that really luck?

As professional players, they know very well that they don't know how many times they have practiced all the technical moves since they were young, and they can become top stars, and everyone has quite good technical skills and mental quality, and it is absolutely a rare anomaly to hit the post and crossbar five times in a row like the first half.

"So, what is it that causes them to have such a problem?" asked Scolari as everyone wondered.

Soon, the Brazilian coach gave his own answer.

'It was our defensive pressing, it was we who put pressure on them to make a little mistake in their key decisions or a subtle deformation in their technical moves, which led to them hitting the post crossbar five times. ”

Many of the people present nodded slightly, and began to believe Scolari's statement a little.

'That's why I said we were playing really well and our opponents were under a lot of pressure, especially after the first half, and if you don't believe it, you can think of the yellow card from Cristiano Ronaldo just before the end of the first half. ”

The Portuguese's desire to win is very strong, but somewhat impatient, which has been exposed during his time at Inter Milan, but after arriving at Manchester City, under the tutelage of Gao Han, he has become more and more calm, which is also the reason why his goal tally has skyrocketed this season, but at the end of the first half, he obviously reappeared.

Missing six must-score chances would make anyone feel depressed and even discouraged, let alone Cristiano Ronaldo, who is already easily agitated.

"I want to remind everyone that this is our chance. ”

"Unable to attack for a long time is a fatal injury, although Manchester City's performance in the first half was very good, but the psychological pressure is too great, we must continue to adhere to the tactical play of the first half in the second half, and even continue to strengthen the team's defense, wait for the opportunity, and wait for the opponent to show flaws, and then we will launch a surprise counterattack, and break through the Manchester City goal in one fell swoop." ”

Scolari's strategy has been shared by all the players, and it is also the most pragmatic tactical play at this stage.

What's more, Chelsea didn't fight back in the first half.

The Brazilian manager's words rekindled the hope of victory in the eyes of all Chelsea players.

…………

…………

"To be honest, with the way we played in the first half, I believe that any manager in the world would be very satisfied, because we were completely in control of the situation on the pitch, we had absolute dominance, and we even tore apart the opponent's defence again and again, creating chances to score. ”

"Maybe our luck was a little bit worse tonight, one miscalculation, two pillars, three beams, we were completely played with by God, but it had nothing to do with our performance. ”

In the locker room of Manchester City, all the players silently watched the manager Gao Han, listening to his words, but they were confused.

Is this a compliment? or a criticism?

"You don't have to guess, the whole world is satisfied, but I'm not satisfied. Gao Han gave a direct answer.

This made everyone's hearts sink.

'It's not what we should be and it's not what I want to see City, because what I saw from the team's performance in the first half wasn't overwhelming, it was immaturity. ”

When Gao Han said this, he looked at Cristiano Ronaldo, the Portuguese had long known what his problem was, and immediately lowered his head, not daring to look at Gao Han.

"Cristiano, I'm curious to know, are you not confident in me?"

The Portuguese were taken aback, and Hodi jumped up from his seat, "No...... No, Boss, I ......"

Gao Han raised his right hand and motioned to him without saying, "Then why are you so impatient? Do you think that I can't see the situation on the field clearly? I can't adjust the team?"

Everyone in the locker room was silent.

Looking at the whole world, if you dare to question Cristiano Ronaldo like this in person, you can still make the Portuguese a little overwhelmed, and I am afraid that the only one is Gao Han.

"And you, how many times have I shouted from the sidelines, I told you, the pace is fast, slow down, don't worry, but do you hear me?

Gao Han walked over and gently patted Cristiano Ronaldo on the shoulder, motioning for him to sit back.

"If the misjudgment is the referee's reason, it is understandable, then the two posts and the three crossbars, there is a bit of luck, but a very important factor is that there is something wrong with our own mentality. ”

"I don't deny that our attack is sharp, the passing and possession at the back are in place, and the midfielder can organise and plan dangerous attacks, but our mentality is obviously too anxious, we want to eat the opponent in one bite, but often the more we think about it, the more we can't eat it. ”

"We Chinese have an old saying, you can't make a fat man by eating in one bite, and Rome was not built in a day. ”

Everyone, including Cristiano Ronaldo, began to reflect after listening to Gao Han's words.

The Portuguese asked himself if he was in a hurry, especially in the latter part of the first half, which gave him an unnecessary yellow card, which is probably the reason why the boss is most angry.

Two uprights and three crossbars, it seems like luck, but in fact it is not without the psychological factors of the players.

In order to score goals, I deliberately pursued angles when I got up.

As a scorer, he knows very well that scoring goals is a matter of course, and sometimes the more you deliberately pursue it, the more difficult it is to score goals, which is why there is a goal drought.

"I've told you more than once that it's not just about the body and the tactics on the football pitch now, it's about the game. Gao Han poked his temple vigorously, "Only those who play football with their brains can have the last laugh." ”

'What the opposition want most now is to continue the first half, they will defend and counter-attack and we will end up with fatal flaws, but we certainly can't let them do that. ”

"In the second half, we have to slow down the tempo, be patient and control the ball, patiently look for opportunities, don't be in a hurry, focus on stability, as long as we firmly grasp the possession, it is equivalent to handing over the opponent's weapons, and you must know better than me how big the blow will be to the opponent. ”

"So, we have to be more patient and smarter than our opponents, and don't let your emotions control you. ”

Gao Han's words were also recognized by all the players.

When a team fails to touch football for a long time, the psychological blow to the players is very big, even devastating.

It's like a revolver with only one bullet in it, and both sides gamble for their lives.

Originally, he said that he would take turns to shoot at the other party to see who was unlucky, but now the gun is firmly controlled by the other party, and he keeps shooting at himself, who can withstand this pressure?

"You have to believe me, there will only be one winner in this game, and that is Manchester City!"

Gao Han said loudly and powerfully.

(End of chapter)