Chelsea are now one of the strongest teams in Europe!

This is something that any media and fans must admit.

Many people call Chelsea 'nouveau riche', disdainful of Chelsea's face, and don't think money can make Chelsea a giant, but Chelsea's performance proves everything, they are not the traditional European giants, but they have more strength than the traditional giants.

Chelsea's rise began in 2003 when Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea, making the Blues his private club.

Many people were not optimistic about the investment and did not think that the Russians would be able to make Chelsea rise, but Roman Abramovich's magnanimity shocked the world.

Abramovich spent €100 million in the first summer when Chelsea were at the helm of the 'tinkerer' Lather, who bought a number of fantastic players – Joe Cole, Veron, Duff, Johnson, Bridge, Geremi, Mutu, Crespo, Smelting, Makelele...... The gorgeous list of transferred players is fully capable of forming an excellent team, and together with Chelsea's original main personnel, Chelsea played third in the league and the last four of the Champions League that season.

The following summer, the arrival of Porto champion coach Jose Mourinho was the biggest news of Chelsea's transfer, followed by Cech, Robben, Ferreira, Kezman, Drogba, Thiago, Carvalho and others, who made up for the shortcomings of Chelsea's squad and made Chelsea's overall squad perfect.

Chelsea have shown great quality this season and have had spectacular results.

Premier League Champions!

English League Cup winner!

Champions League final tickets!

Three competitions, two titles, the Champions League final and Liverpool's competition, Chelsea have a clear advantage.

So a lot of people are bullish on Chelsea.

Compared to the 'declining giants' Liverpool, Chelsea's strength is indeed much stronger.

Mourinho thinks the same way, not because of media reports or public opinion, but from the experience of real games.

Liverpool have a good quality, but they can only say that they can 'threaten' Chelsea, and when the two teams meet, Chelsea will have a high winning rate and an advantage in the situation.

But what's going on now?

Since the start of the game, Chelsea have not played any advantage, and they are still at an absolute disadvantage in terms of the number of times they threaten the goal.

Jose Mourinho felt something was wrong.

If it's Chelsea's poor performance, it's understandable that Chelsea are playing at a normal level, then ...... Why are Liverpool doing so well?

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Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez also saw the problem, he sat upright and kept a position without moving, but he was extremely happy with the situation.

At the beginning of the game, like some media analysis, Benitez was still a little worried, after all, Chelsea's strength is stronger, and if the opening performance is not good to give the opponent a chance, he may lose the championship trophy directly.

But so far, Liverpool have played well.

Every player was alive and well, and the team went head-to-head with Chelsea and had a slight advantage.

"That's what 'state training' does?"

Benitez thought.

Unlike others, Benitez believes that 'condition training' will work, which stems from observations over the past few days.

As the head coach of the team, it is impossible for him not to care about the team's training, and in tactical training it is obvious that the players have become more engaged.

This says a lot about their status.

Benitez has a 'merit that is not a merit', he does not impose his ideas on others, he only speaks on the facts.

For example, David Morse made the decision to cooperate with the 'Sheep Football Training Group', and Benitez was a little disgusted in his heart, but it had nothing to do with tactical training, and he didn't care that the team would have an extra training group without affecting his own work.

In the days that followed, Benitez saw the effect of training.

So he believed that 'state training' would work.

As for why it works, how it works, and how can this kind of training bring results...... These are questions that Benitez will not think about, because the truth is that he sees the effect.

Now that the Liverpool players are doing well on the pitch, Benitez can be understood.

'Conditioning worked' and every player was in good shape, so the team was going to play a little bit better, and it was understandable that they were able to play on par with Chelsea and have a small advantage.

Sami Lee sat next to Benitez.

Normally, a No.1 assistant coach should be very excited and thrilled to see his team perform so well in the Champions League final, but Sami Lee's expression was full of mixed feelings.

On the one hand, Sammy Lee wants to see the team do well; On the other hand, he doesn't want to see the 'state training' of the 'Sheep Football Training Team' effective.

This is a contradictory proposition.

It is certain that Liverpool's overall performance is getting better and better.

Before the start of the game, the Liverpool players felt that they would face a tough battle against Chelsea, so the outcome of the game will be very difficult for the time being.

But now they find it much easier than they thought.

As the whole team played, it brought ease to the situation, and also increased the confidence of the Liverpool players, confidence equals fighting spirit, and having fighting spirit will make the performance better, Liverpool players run more actively, fight more actively, and cooperate more smoothly in attack, which also brings more pressure to Chelsea.

This situation is very uncomfortable for Chelsea.

The game was different than they thought it would be, and when Liverpool played better, they became more passive.

From the 34th minute, all the way to the 41st minute, it was completely Liverpool performing, under Liverpool's steady attack, Chelsea could only defend passively, just a few minutes, Gerrard, Finnan and Smitchell each completed a shot, all three of which were within the range of the goal frame, so that Chelsea's defense was tense for a while, goalkeeper Cech kept shouting at his teammates, but it didn't help for the crisis of the goal, but fortunately he held the door and did not let Liverpool take the lead.

At this point, the media outlets were more certain of the stats - Liverpool played the advantage.

"It's amazing right now!"

After a small mistake by Liverpool full-back Reese and the football flew out of bounds, German National Sports TV commentator Beauville Nicklaus analyzed, "In the past time, Liverpool has launched continuous attacks on Chelsea, Chelsea can almost only defend passively, and the door guarded by Cech is in jeopardy. Liverpool has also been performing well before, and they have suppressed Chelsea in various statistics, which is different from what was imagined. ”

'Jose Mourinho's Chelsea are undoubtedly a strong team, they are unbeaten in three meetings with Liverpool this season, winning two and drawing one, but Chelsea are a bit passive now.

'We can see that Liverpool are doing very well, they don't put in a lot of attacking force, they can work together very well in midfield, they have fewer mistakes, the players are solid defensively and they don't give Chelsea any chances.

"Liverpool are better than the two teams......"

"I don't know if it's because I'm more prepared or because Chelsea aren't in form, but anyway, Liverpool's performance also made the game full of suspense!"

Other media outlets are also praising Liverpool's performance.

Many commentators felt that "Liverpool's excellent performance made the game more exciting, not a one-sided win for Chelsea." ”

It's also a testament to how underpriced Liverpool are.

Liverpool's support media hope that the team can take the lead as soon as possible, the advantage of the situation is of little significance to the victory or defeat, and the goal is decisive.

However, many people are not optimistic about scoring in the first half, as the BBC radio commentator said, "The first half was a great game, but both teams are very defensive, and it is not easy for any team to score!" ”

By the 44th minute, everyone in the stadium was waiting for the first half to end, and the fans were looking forward to the second half.

That's when the game took a turn.

Chelsea organised a steady attack.

They have been suppressed by Liverpool just now, and they need to stabilize the situation and adjust the tempo again.

Chelsea are constantly making passes at the back and are in no hurry to get the ball forward.

The Liverpool fans in the stage let out a disgruntled 'boo' who felt that Chelsea's approach was a complete waste of time.

Chelsea fans will be hoping that the team can get on the ball as soon as possible, and if they can score a goal in the first half, Liverpool's situational advantage will be meaningless.

Chelsea were always looking for chances, but Liverpool were solid defensively.

Before the start of the game, Liverpool has been emphasizing defense for more than a week of preparation, and the confrontation between Liverpool and Chelsea must be based on defense, Liverpool did not press too forward, and they were not in a hurry to grab the ball.

Neither side seems to be in a hurry.

Chelsea kept dipping their feet in central midfield, looking for opportunities to attack, hoping that their opponents would make some mistakes, but in the end they couldn't find the right shot, and finally Frank Lampard couldn't help but kick the ball to Robben after receiving a pass from Claude Makelle.

When the Dutchman was about to catch the ball, a figure suddenly crossed in front of him!

Reese!

Reese and Arjen Robben were in front of each other, and when Lampard passed the ball, he ran over to him and stopped the ball first.

"Nice steal!"

The on-site narrator shouted in surprise.

Liverpool fans also chanted, and the atmosphere became hot.

Liverpool strikes back!

Reese handed the ball to Baros, who took a step forward and passed it to Gerrard.

Chelsea were nervous.

Steven Gerrard was at the heart of Liverpool's attacking playmaker, and when Steven Gerrard received a pass, Chelsea became cautious.

Benitez in the dugout pursed the corners of his mouth, knowing it was a good opportunity.

On the other side, Mourinho's expression was a little unconcerned, but his staring at the figure on the pitch still exposed his inner turmoil.

Shen Yang was watching the game on the periphery of the court, through the fence.

In front of the east stand of the Ataturk Stadium, there is a fence of more than ten meters, which is also the entrance from the spectator seat to the stadium, which will not be open during the game.

Whenever there is a game on the pitch, there are a few staff members and people from both teams who watch the game from this position.

Shen Yang did not enter the stadium with Liverpool, but chose to stay here.

There is a very good view here.

Liverpool performed well throughout the first half, but unfortunately there has been no goal until now, when he saw Gerrard receiving a pass, Shen Yang didn't know much about football, and he knew that it was a rare opportunity.

"If we don't score this time, maybe the first half will be over, right?"

Someone next to him suddenly said.

Shen Yang turned his head to look over, and it was a bald middle-aged man in a straight suit, and the other party was Chelsea's CEO Peter Kenyon.

The two stood here together to watch the game, and had already greeted each other, but they both watched the game by themselves, and did not exchange a few words, hearing Peter Kenyon's words, Shen Yang couldn't help asking, "Do you think it will enter?" ”

"I hope not." Kenyon laughed.

"I hope to get in."

'Of course, you support Liverpool.'

"Yes."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

In a few seemingly indifferent words, Gerrard quickly dribbled forward and shook off Frank Lampard for a tackle.

Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, the heart of both teams, were also the focus of the game, but the tension made the instant clash overlooked.

"Gerald! He's moving on! Almost all the commentators were shouting nervously.

Gerrard wasn't quick but he was solid on the ball and after shaking off Lampard, he started to sweep his eyes forward.

At this point, it was too difficult for Gerrard to continue to break through.

Steven Gerrard is not the type of player with very fancy at his feet, he can break past Frank Lampard with quick movements, but sometimes it can be difficult to shake off a young opponent.

Gerald's eyes swept to Smitchell, who was running forward.

Smitchell is a veteran, he is not Liverpool's main striker, but he can guarantee efficiency in every appearance, which is due to experience and consistency.

Carvalho has been close to defend Smitchell and it looks like Smitchell doesn't have much of a chance.

Gerrard then pushes the ball to the right front. 、

The football seemed to be going towards Smitchell, but it deviated some distance, and the speed seemed a little slow, Carvalho was a little hesitant to run over to stop it, but the next moment he saw a figure appear in front of the ball.

Xavi Alonso!

Alonso stepped forward with a well-timed assist, and he rushed to the ball to the right of the box.

Smitchell ran forward in an instant!

Carvalho was half a beat slower to react, and it was a little difficult to turn around and chase after him, and he almost watched as Smitchell caught up with the ball.

One-step! Two steps!

By the time Smitchell got to the ball, almost all Chelseans were aware of the danger and the only thing left to stop Smitchell was goalkeeper Petr Cech!

"Hula......"

There were earth-shattering shouts from the audience, mixed with some nervous sounds.

Smitchell went it alone!

"Good opportunity! Golden opportunity! Let's take a look at the ball! The voice of the live narrator was full of excitement.

It was the most dangerous goal since the opening!

With the exclamation of the whole stadium, all the people watching the game became energetic, some people had already begun to wait for the end of the first half, but they did not expect to see such a threatening offensive before the end.

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Rafael Benitez, Jose Mourinho, Shen Yang, Peter Kenyon, the fans in the audience, the reporters in the media seat, the staff and the players on the field, the referees, and the fans around the world gathered in front of the TV, almost everyone was watching Smitchell with the ball forward, and he was the absolute protagonist of the Champions League final at this moment.

Smitchell couldn't imagine the pressure on him, and he knew he needed to deal with Cech seriously.

One!

It's a head-to-head showdown!

Cech is not an easy goalkeeper to deal with, he is young but he has a lot of individual ability, and Smitchell is very fast, he is a little out of control.

Past experience has taught him that he must be calm in the face of a single knife!

Thinking about the Champions League final, Smitchell still can't suppress the excitement in his heart.

It's the last minute!

Cech rushed out as soon as the two men got closer and closer, as if a moment had passed, and a century had passed, and Smitchell finally raised his right leg, and he kicked the ball straight behind the ball with a fierce expression.

"Bang ......"

Everyone's eyes widened.

Petr Cech made the save, his textbook-like movements blocking off most of the space, but the ball sprinted under his arm.

Subsequently...... Dive headfirst into the net!