Chapter Twenty-Five: Against Cardiff
On 24 February, Myburgh played at home against Cardiff City. www.biquge.info Cardiff City Football Club is a professional football team based in Cardiff, Wales, founded in 1899 and now playing in the English Championship. The other team that plays in the English professional league is Swansea City FC, which now plays in the Premier League. Cardiff City FC won the FA Cup in 1927 and were the first non-English team to win one of the three major tournaments. Home Cardiff City Stadium, head coach McKay, owner Malay businessman Tan Chee Yuan. Cardiff City are eighth in the league this season and will need to move up at least two places if they want to play in the play-offs.
With ten minutes to go before the start of the game, commentators Smith and Foster were talking about recent newspaper reports.
"James, do you know what Hull City's Huddlestone said in his post-match interview?" Smith was in high spirits today," he said he lost to a monster, he said Pong was a guy who played football on his body, and Pong should go to a football game...... What a guy who can't afford to lose! ”
"Tom, it's not surprising that this guy said that, in the last game, he was bullied by Pong miserably" Foster said with a smile, "Pong's way of playing is really very European, to be exact, very English, sometimes if I don't look at Pong's skin color, I think Pong is an English player!" ”
"I feel that way, James." Smith nodded, "Every time Pang breaks through, he will use his body, I don't know if this will be good for Pang's future development?" Know that the popular trend in football today is technical football! ”
"I can't tell," Foster thought, "Everyone's talent is different...... Although Pang's foot skills are a little rough, they are already much better than when they first joined the Myburgh team......
Today's attack for Myburgh is still Fat Man and Rhodes, No. 4 central defender Ayala returned to the starting lineup, and Myburgh team faced Cardiff City with the strongest lineup.
The game officially began, and the Myburgh team launched an offensive against the opponent from the beginning. If it was the fat man who was the only one before, Rhodes's goal in the last game made the Myburgh team's attack become a double arrow, and the attack power was more powerful.
Cardiff City chose to shrink the defensive line at the beginning and fought a defensive counterattack, which is also a common tactic for Cardiff City this season. Cardiff City's frontcourt players are generally not tall, the current most goals are the front 13 Pilkington, scored 8 goals, 1.81 meters tall, the second most goals are striker No. 10 Masson, 1.78 meters tall, the third most goals is midfielder No. 7 Wittingham, 1.77 meters tall, such a height in the fierce Championship field, it is indeed more disadvantaged, so the team chooses more defensive counterattack fast attack tactics!
In the face of the opponent's shrinking defense, the strikers of the Myburgh team, No. 29 Fat Man and No. 9 Rhodes, are not afraid, and the two are excellent headers. However, Cardiff City have a good grasp of counter-attacking tactics, and although Myburgh mainly plays two wide attacks, the quality of their crosses is very poor, and almost every cross is interfered with by opposing players. The fat man in the middle and Rhodes have a lot of strength, but they can't use it.
The first half lasted 20 minutes and the score was still 0-0.
"Myburgh are in trouble," Smith commented, "The opposition defended very well, especially against the two wings of Myburgh, and it was very effective!" Pang and Rhodes basically didn't get much chance in the middle! ”
"There are no weak teams in the Championship, every team has something to stand on and every team has its own characteristics." Forster was a little worried, "Although Cardiff City is not ranked high, it is not easy to beat. Myburgh have to play their own characteristics......"
In the middle of the game, coach Karanka asked the players at the back to press the attack, and Myburgh put more troops into the attack. The game came to thirty minutes, and the team suffered a blow after a long attack. In a counterattack by Cardiff City, Cardiff City goalkeeper handed over the ball directly to No. 1 Marshall to midfielder No. 7 Wittingham, who quickly dribbled forward and passed the ball to No. 13 Pilkington on the side before the No. 7 Lydbet block of the Myburgh team, and the defender No. 3 Fred who stepped forward to assist the Myburgh team did not have time to return to the defense, No. 13 Pilkington strode to the bottom line with the ball, and the central defender No. 6 Gibson rushed over to make up for the defense, but the No. 13 Pilkington passed the ball in a timely manner, Rushed to pass the ball to the Myburgh team before Fred blocked the angle, the Myburgh team's central defender 4 Ayala was significantly slower than Cardiff City striker No. 10 Masson, who rushed to the bottom right corner of the goal to score before No. 4 Ayala returned to the defense, and scored in the lower right corner of the goal.
“…… Cardiff City's counter-attacking chances were very fast...... "Smith spoke quickly," Myburgh was empty on the wings...... Pilkington dribbles the ball to the bottom...... Myburgh centre-back No. 6 Gibson is making up for ......"
“…… Pilkington's cross...... Dangerous! The opponent's No. 10 striker was outflanking in the middle...... "Smith was very nervous," ...... Ayala fell to the ground and blocked ...... The opponent shot ......"
"GOAL!" Cardiff City No.10 Masson opens the scoring!" Smith was depressed, "Myburgh centre-back Ayala didn't block the opponent's shot angle, and the latter scored with ease!" ”
'Cardiff City scored with a textbook counter-attack. Foster commented, "It's really a super fast team on the counter-attack, and there is nothing the Myburgh backline can do! Before entering the palace, the Myburgh team should first stabilize the defense of the back line! ”
On the pitch, Myburgh strengthened their defence after conceding the goal. After the goal, Cardiff City's defensive counter-attacking tactics were more resolute. The Myburgh team still resolutely played two wings, but the two wing players of the Myburgh team, No. 19 Downing and No. 27 Adoma, every time they crossed from the side, they would encounter at least two defenders of the Cardiff City team, and the effect of the cross was greatly reduced, and finally the first half ended, and the home team of Myburgh fell behind 0:1.
The fat man followed his teammates into the locker room with his head bowed, and the first half was too depressed. The fat man almost always competed with the opponent's defenders to grab a good position. But every time the fat man struggled to occupy favorable terrain, his teammates' shells never arrived on time. It can be said that the tactics of Cardiff City in the first half not only exerted great power, but also perfectly restrained the tactics of the Myburgh team, which can be called perfect. The fat man also recognized the role of tactics for the first time.
Tactics are really an amazing thing. Good tactics have a tremendous effect on turning decay into magic, and can defeat more with less, and stronger with weak.
At halftime, Myburgh coach Karanka made an adjustment and replaced the veteran Downing with No. 21 Ramirez, and Myburgh was ready to play in the middle in the second half, and then combine with the side!
On the court, after the start of the second half, the fat man took the initiative to retreat to get the ball, and played with No. 21 Ramirez, and No. 9 Rhodes continued to be in front. The fat man's retreat made the Myburgh team's attack no longer dominated by two wings, but biased towards a combination of sides and centers.
With 50 minutes played, the Fat Man was tripped by Cardiff City's No.7 Wittingham in the opposition half, and Myburgh won a well-placed free-kick. This free kick is located 30 meters in front of the goal, and the left and right foot players can take the penalty, and the fat man stands next to the ball, ready to take the penalty.
Now the fat man in the Myburgh team is the first choice for free kicks, and there were teammates who were not convinced before, but after many battles, they had to admit that the fat man's free kick strength was the strongest in the team.
'Just kidding! Brother learned from Mihada Theology! The fat man was full of confidence.
After the Cardiff City team lined up the human wall, the fat man began to observe the human wall and the goalkeeper position. The human wall was very close, and the Cardiff gatekeeper stood on the other side of the human wall, obviously he was more afraid of the fat man's heavy artillery bombardment. In fact, since the fat man trained with Qi Zu, the fat man's control of the ball under his feet has become stronger and stronger, and the number of fat man's heavy bombardments has a tendency to decrease, because the fat man can now kick a banana ball with a strong arc. The referee blew the whistle, and the fat man only ran two steps before kicking the ball, the ball was fast, and did not fall after flying over the human wall, and began to fall rapidly at a distance of about 10 meters from the goal, and finally flew into the goal against the lower edge of the goal crossbar.
'The focus is a little lower, the power is just right, and the ball spins a little weaker. The fat man summed up the gains and losses in his heart.
“goal……! goal……! Pong's free-kick scores! Smith's passionate voice erupted, "A brilliant free-kick that flew into the net against the underside of the crossbar." The Cardiff goalkeeper was powerless against the ball and Myburgh equalized 1:1! ”
"Beautiful free kick score!" Foster is delighted, "Myburgh's tactical change in the second half paid off, and our attack started to skew towards the opposition's weak defensive middle, which was a very good choice......
On the pitch, the fat man was celebrating the goal with his teammates, and everyone was very happy together. In the first half, everyone played very frustratedly, but in the second half the team finally got back on track and played a dangerous attack!
"Pong, your free kick is very beautiful! Who did you learn from? Ramirez asked, putting his arm around the fat man.
"I learned from Mikhailovich, he was my idol! I see a lot of footage of his free kicks! The fat man replied.
"Great, you'll have to teach me. I also want to learn from Mihajlovic's free-kicks. Ramirez said.
"No problem, man!" The fat man agreed.
The fat man knows that Ramirez's long-range shooting skills are good, and he is also a guy with a very hard foot, so it is appropriate to learn Miha's free kicks. The fat man also happened to want to exchange long-range shooting experience with Ramirez.
The fat man's goal made the riverside stadium, which had been silent, suddenly lively again, and the fans shouted to vent the depression of the first half. The clever capture of the cameraman made these lovely fans appear on the big screen of the stadium again. The fat man turned his head and looked at it for a long time, but he didn't see the two familiar figures. The fat man suddenly remembered that Caroline had returned to Manchester, and Emma seemed to be busy with work. 'Isn't my brother a little self-inflicted?' The fat man thought to himself.
On the pitch, the equalizer team of Myburgh gradually gained momentum and played more easily, while the Cardiff City team strengthened the defense of the fat man. Due to the fat man's free kick goal, when the fat man got the ball in the middle, the opponent did not dare to easily get off the foot, and Cardiff City had to strengthen the number of defenders in the middle. This gave Myburgh a chance on the wing.
In the 60th minute of the game, the fat man took the ball in the middle, directly hit the back of the Cardiff City side player, Adoma inserted it in an offside position, got the ball, and comfortably came to a cross, because the fat man attracted most of the Cardiff City team's defensive players, No. 9 Rhodes in the middle easily put the ball into the opponent's goal.
“…… Pang is dribbling the ball in the middle, will he choose to break through" Smith stared at the fat man on the field, "Oh, Pang chose a long pass...... Adoma then plugged in, and Myburgh's chances ......"
“…… Adom hoisted the ball down the middle...... Rhodes' chances ......" Smith nervous, "header ......"
“goal……! goal……! Myburgh's No. 9 Rhodes has scored! Smith's passionate voice erupted again, "He received Adoma's cross and scored with an easy header. Cardiff City's backline was clearly leaking, and Myburgh overtook the score 2:1"
"Nice pass! Pong's long pass was very sudden and accurate," commented Foster, "Adoma's pass was just as brilliant and of course we can't forget Rhodes, who scored the goal, Myburgh made a wonderful team goal!" ”
In the coach's seat, Coach Karanka was very excited, he liked the fat man more and more, he used to like the fat man's lethality on the front line, and now he likes the fat man's passing ability. When a striker can score and pass the ball, his power increases exponentially. Cardiff City coach Mackay stood on the sidelines with a depressed face, shaking his head constantly. He couldn't understand why the Myburgh team just changed one person in the opposite position, why did it suddenly burst out with so much energy? Now he understands that the biggest change in the Myburgh team is not the substitution, but their striker Pang has begun to recycle, playing a role similar to that of a striker, and his deployment has been disrupted.
'Isn't Myburgh's striker Pang a great header? Why is the passing so good? The newspaper deceived me. Coach Karanka is really shit lucky, he can be visa-free for such a newcomer! Coach McKay complained.
On the pitch, Cardiff City, which was behind, began to take the initiative to attack, and his usual defensive counter-attacking tactics had to be temporarily abandoned. The Myburgh team, under the command of coach Karanka, began to actively shrink the defensive line. Cardiff City's forward players could only play faster and faster in the face of Myburgh's Gundam defenders, relying on speed to tear apart Myburgh's defense, and mistakes began to increase.
"Myburgh restrained Cardiff City in the second half" Smith also saw it, "It can be seen that Myburgh's tactical adjustments in the second half were very successful!" ”
"Indeed, Tom! Pon's drop-back played a huge role in the second half," said Foster, "not only to draw Cardiff's central defenders, but also to revitalize Myburgh's wide attack, which was really a tactical victory......
In the 82nd minute of the game, the Myburgh team played a quick counterattack, the No. 3 Fred of the Myburgh team passed the ball to the No. 27 Adoma in the midfield, who handed the ball to the fat man in the front court, the fat man pushed forward with the ball, and the 9 Rhodes on the right had begun to plug in at high speed, but the opponent's fullback had already entangled him, and the fat man had to continue to bring it forward, and the opponent's two central defenders began to retreat rhythmically, ready to block the fat man's shooting angle, the fat man saw that the situation was not good, and began to dribble horizontally, dodging the angle, Near the arc of the opponent's big penalty area is a heavy artillery bombardment. The fat man wanted to make an arc, but he usually made a lot of mistakes in training, mainly under the high-speed dribble, the fat man either couldn't control the direction of the ball, or couldn't make the arc. The ball was not angled, but it was fast, and it flew towards the goal on the turf, and Cardiff City goalkeeper No. 1 Marshall, despite falling to the ground, did not block the ball, and the ball was drilled into the goal against the underside of Marshall's body.
“…… Pang advances with the ball...... Will he split the ball? "Smith keeps an eye on the ball," Rhodes cut forward...... Opportunity! Oh, Rhodes is entangled by his opponent......"
“…… Pang chose to break through, and there were two defenders in front of him...... "Smith tensed up, "Cut inside!" Dodge the angle...... Shot ......"
“goal……! goal……! Pang's brace, brace! "Smith burns with passion," in the counterattack, Pang dodged the angle and hit the goal, the ball was fast, and the Cardiff City goalkeeper did not hold the ball down despite falling to the ground! ”
"Pang made a different choice again, a very smart choice! When everyone thought he was going to break through, he chose to pass; When everyone thought he was going to pass the ball, he chose to break through, and every time he did the opposite, and the effect was surprisingly good. Foster said, "Pong is really a very smart player......
The fat man was replaced by coach Karanka after scoring the goal. For the first time, the fat man enjoyed the standing ovation of the fans at the Riverside Stadium alone, which was the treatment of a hero, and the fat man was very excited at that moment, feeling that no matter how hard he worked in training and how tired he was in the game, it was worth it. Replacing the fat man was No.35 Nugent, who has been training hard and has recovered his form recently, and coach Karanka has chosen to give him a chance to prove himself again.
Caroline, who was watching the fat man game in front of the TV, was also extremely excited to see the fat man go off the field with standing up applause from the fans. Caroline is really glad that she can be the fat man's agent, and she is very glad that she has crossed paths with such a good player. But the sudden appearance of a woman in her mind made her joy suddenly disappear. Caroline suddenly remembered Emma, and the woman's intuition told her that this Emma was dangerous, and that she must have a secret when she approached Pong.
"No, I'm going to find Pang to understand the situation, and I must not let this woman take Pang away from me!" Caroline made another decision in her heart.
With ten minutes left in stoppage time, the drop in stamina slowed down the pace of the game, and Cardiff City was unable to fight back. Myburgh's attack was also sharp, and despite the hard work of Nugent and Rhodes, the scoreline was not changed in the end, and Myburgh won 3-1 at home to Cardiff City.