Chapter 661: Champions League Final Four
On March 12 and 15, Manchester City beat Arsenal 2-1 at home and then drew 1-1 away at Leeds United, with Ding Hongxing scoring one goal in each of the two games and Larsson netting another, bringing Larsson's league goal tally to double figures. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info
These two games Manchester City team is extremely hard, the opponents are strong teams, and the rhythm of the three-day game has lasted for a while, the physical test of Manchester City players is very big, fortunately, the Manchester City team has gritted their teeth and survived, next, the Manchester City team returned to home, the next game will be the second leg of the first knockout round of the Champions League against Rosenborg on the 19th, as long as the Manchester City team does not lose in this game, they will break into the Champions League semi-finals this season.
England teams have not been able to reach the last four of the Champions League for several years, which is why they are only in the fourth league in Europe, so the game attracted many media reporters to watch the game, and Manchester City fans filled the Maine Road stadium, waving all kinds of flags and singing all kinds of fan songs, waiting for the game to start.
The Manchester City team did not let their fans wait too long, back at home they played a flowing attack on the familiar field, Ding Hongxing's shot and two passes helped the Manchester City team lead 3-0 in the first half, in the second half of the game, Manchester City changed three starters, comfortably played the ball control, and finally, the Manchester City team defeated Rosenborg 3-0 without blood, eliminated the opponent with an aggregate score of 5-1, and advanced to the semi-finals, and their opponents in the semi-finals, It happens to be Ding Hongxing's old club Ajax team.
The other group of two teams in the semi-finals is Dortmund and Juventus, in Ding Hongxing's previous life, they were originally opponents in the final of this season's Champions League, but due to the rebirth of Ding Hongxing, Juventus was squeezed into the second place in the group by Manchester City, so they and Dortmund met in the semi-finals in advance.
Manchester City's run to the last four of this season's Champions League has cheered the English media, who see it as a symbol of the revival of English football, which has been held back for a long time, and it is time to raise their eyebrows.
Manchester City fans are even more ecstatic, in the history of Manchester City for more than 100 years, they have the first opportunity to show their faces in the Champions League, this season, for them, it is a fantastic season, but the longer this dream is done, the better, they hope never to wake up.
However, the Manchester City team did not have time to rejoice, their fixtures were in full swing, game after game, and they simply did not even have a chance to catch their breath.
At the end of March, the FA's schedule was not intensive, but Manchester City were non-stop, they first won 3-1 at home to Leicester, with Ding Hongxing, Quinn and Smitchell scoring a goal each.
Next, Manchester City played two make-up games in a row, both away, the first was the FA Cup quarter-final against Middlesbrough, with a free kick by Ding Hongxing, Manchester City narrowly defeated the opponent 1-0 and entered the FA Cup semi-finals, the second was a league match against Chelsea, Manchester City drew 1-1, and a goal from Seedorf took a point away from a strong opponent for Manchester City, and they are getting closer and closer to the league title.
March has passed, and in this crazy March, Manchester City have played a staggering nine games, they have two games a week, such a density of games is almost unprecedented, in these nine games, there are six league games, two Champions League games, one FA Cup, they have five wins and four draws, continue to be unbeaten, and soar on three fronts.
Now, Manchester City are in the last four of both the Champions League and the FA Cup, and their results in the league this month are average, with two wins and four draws, but they are still ten points ahead of second-placed Manchester United, no way, they had too much advantage before, and now there are seven rounds left in the league, for Manchester City, the league title is almost in their pocket.
Due to the average results in the league this month, Mu Shengli did not win the honor of the best coach of the month, and Ding Hongxing was still elected the best player in March, he played all nine games of the Manchester City team in March, scored eight goals, although the goal rate is not comparable with when he was violent at the beginning of the year, but in such a dense schedule, Manchester City's lineup has been unstable, and the performance is also unstable, Ding Hongxing has a large part of his energy on defense, so it is normal for the goal rate to decline, besides, The goal rate of eight goals in these nine games is already at the level of a super-first-class striker.
April is here and it's time for the City squad to make their final sprint, and that's when City finally have a respite as their next game is on 5 April, before they have a week's rest.
Although the rest of the week is not long, but the Manchester City players who learned the news are relieved, last month's schedule is really terrifying, it is like someone is whipping them in the back, so that they don't even have time to breathe, because this month's rotation lineup is used more, the physical fatigue is not particularly bad, but the psychological fatigue is really unbearable.
There is another point, that is, the Manchester City team has not lost in the league this season, although Mu Shengli did not specifically mention this stubble, but the players themselves have a number in their hearts, they are professional players, the biggest pursuit is in addition to money, is honor, if this season in the league can win the championship with an undefeated record, it is of course an achievement worth boasting about, for this reason, they can not give up every game, which has also become a huge burden for them, with the accumulation of unbeaten games one after another, The burden is getting bigger and bigger, and they're playing with such a huge load, which is one of the reasons why they've been mediocre in the league this month.
However, this kind of devil's schedule is still very beneficial, that is, the growth rate of players is very fast, the vast majority of Manchester City team are young players, in this intensive schedule, young players with better physical fitness have more opportunities to play, in the case of every game is a tough game, they play this month's game, it can be said that it can withstand the training value of the usual half a season's game, especially in terms of mental attributes, these players are originally determined and resolute, after so many hard battles, They won't be soft in any kind of games they encounter in the future.