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Metz's run to the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup was the biggest news in French football in a week, and the number one news in Lorraine, so much so that no one cared about the Lorraine derby. Pen, fun, and www.biquge.info

Everyone was basking in the excitement of the team's historic breakthrough. After so many years, Metz has reached the semi-finals of a European competition for the first time.

Chu Zhongtian, Ribery, and Menez, who scored goals in the game, were all sought after by fans. There are also French businesses that see business opportunities, and the number of companies that come to them to endorse advertisements has suddenly increased.

Mr. Merry had worked hard to develop the business of these two people, but the results were mediocre. Now he doesn't need to run, someone comes to the door to deliver the money.

The photos and names of the players frequently appear in major media and become the object of worship for many teenagers. The teenager wearing Chu Zhongtian's jersey even appeared in distant Marseille, which shows how far Met's influence has expanded with the success of the League Cup.

And the team fought in the north and south, exhausted, so that . Fernandes decided to continue abandoning the league.

So in the 32nd round of the league on May 15, Metz lost 0:2 at home to derby rival Nancy, and did not cause any criticism.

While the Nancy media were happy that the team had finally triumphed over their bitter rivals, the fans and media at Metz were forgiving for the first time – we were going after the UEFA Cup, and it didn't matter if we won or lost a league game.

The smell of gunpowder on both sides in the game was not as good as before, Metz was absent-minded in this game, and only half of the main team was sent, and everyone was still immersed in the excitement of reaching the semi-finals of the League Cup. And Nancy, after finding that there was not much pressure, also played as if for a leisurely stroll.

On the following April 22, in the 33rd round of the league, Metz lost 1:2 to Marseille away. Suffered the team's longest losing streak of the season - five in a row - one defeat. The ranking has also slipped from third to ninth. But the whole team of Metz still didn't take this poor result to heart.

Compared to Marseille, they are more concerned about their semi-final opponents, Espanyol.

On the evening of April 26, it was the first leg of the League Cup semi-finals. Metz will travel to take on Espanyol before returning to their home stadium on 3 May.

Whether the team can make it to the final or not, going to Hampton Park in Glasgow, Scotland, depends on these two games.

For the sake of this game, let. Fernandes has hidden all the main players in the league against Marseille, how can Metz, who played as a substitute, be Marseille's opponent? Losing is a no-brainer.

The media didn't care about the fact that Metz had just lost to Marseille and had slipped to ninth in the rankings, and began to make plans for Metz's trip to Barcelona.

"I think let. Fernandes should be looking for stability away from home. The away game against Tottenham is not a reference because it was a game in which Metz was forced to no point out. I don't want the second leg against the Spaniards to be pushed to the ground and then the whole team explodes...... To be honest, I'm tired of games like this, and I'm sure not many Metz fans would be happy to see them like that. A thrilling game that was won in the end wasn't as good as a four-and-done one, but we had the result early on. …… So we should defend and fight back, 0-0 is a good result......"

“…… The most important thing is to score away from home, we have to score away from home, we have to get away goals. So offense comes first. Defend? Even if we concede a goal, it's not a big deal, as long as we score! What's so good about 0:0? We didn't score a single away goal, and back at the Stadio Fortion, the Spaniards only had to score one goal and we had to score two, and that would be a fool – we couldn't afford it. So to attack, you have to attack! Just like against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane, crush your opponents with more goals! It's also let's make. Fernández's usual style ......"

"There are a couple of people in the Espanyol squad to look out for, starting with their captain Raul. Tamudo (raul_tamudo), followed by De la Pena (ivan_de_la_pena), the bald head was once considered Ronaldo's successor. The last man was their goalkeeper Kameni (carlos_idriss_kameni). These three are the best players for Espanyol......"

"It's only a few days before the game and the news from the Holy Mountain Furien training base is that the whole team is in good shape, there are no injuries and there are no fitness problems. Team Metz will be in the best form for Spain! ”

The all-French press was covering the match between Metz and Espanyol.

In previous years, this treatment was only available to teams that participated in the Champions League.

The little Metz is now a big star all over France.

Unlike France, the Spanish media did not pay much attention to this match, as the competition for the domestic league title is heating up now. After the winter break, league leaders Barcelona were as many as six points ahead of Real Madrid, but after the 31st round of the league, the difference between the two teams is now just two points. There are currently six teams in contention for the Spanish Primera Liga title, with Barcelona, Sevilla and Real Madrid topping the top three teams in the league.

The media in Spain are all focused on this fierce chase, and at the end of the season, will Barcelona have the last laugh or Real Madrid will come from behind? Or will Sevilla quietly break the championship monopoly of the two giants?

In contrast, the UEFA Cup between Espanyol and Metz, which was only mentioned in the local media in Barcelona, was only an expression of good wishes - the hope that the Spanish team would meet in the final of the League Cup, and if that was the case, it would also soothe the Spanish fans who were disappointed that the Spanish army had been eliminated from the Champions League.

The French media is because the domestic league is basically out of suspense, and Lyon is far ahead, and there is no news. If Lyon finally lost the league title, that would be the biggest news. In such a situation, they can only focus more on the European stage, and Metz's strong performance in the UEFA Cup is the best subject to attract the attention of French fans.

On 25 April, Metz left for Barcelona early in the morning to prepare for the next night's race.

When it comes to Barcelona, most people think of the name of the same name - FC Barcelona. I didn't know there was another team here. Even if someone knew about such a team, they would think that this team must not be very popular in Barcelona, and that they were all Spaniards who supported them, and judging by the name of the team, it seems that this is indeed the case. But in fact, there are many non-Catalans who support their rival Barcelona, because FC Barcelona's influence is all over the world, so there are many fans in Asia, Europe and America who like this beautiful team.

But in Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia, there are also plenty of fans who support Espanyol, and the vast majority of them are Catalans. It's just that the grievances between the two teams are indeed inseparable from national and political disputes, and the establishment of the Espanyol club is also to compete with Barcelona, because this city that always wants to make trouble must have the imprint of Spain. For example, if there is Plaça Catalunya in the city center, there must be a Plaza de España less than four kilometers away; If there is an Opera House of Catalonia, there must be a Royal Opera House. So it was only natural that a club representing Catalonia and a club representing Espanyol would be founded a year later.

It's just that not all the fans who support both teams are fanatical nationalists or extreme separatists, more often than not, they just like football and support their favorite team, and they can't get used to any other team. As with all local derbys, supporters of sworn enemies are always at odds with each other. But not every local derby is as dangerous as Scotland's Glasgow – if you walk down the street in a Celtic shirt, you're likely to be shot in the back...... Barcelona is a sunny and vibrant tourist destination, with many famous attractions and beaches that attract tourists from all over the world. But none of the players in Metz had the heart to come here for shopping, or to go to the naturist baths to admire the beautiful women.

They just want to compete.

Espanyol's home stadium, the Stade Monjujci, can accommodate more than 50,000 people, but not every game will be full. The city derby against Barcelona will definitely be full, as will the game against Real Madrid. But if you were to throw "your most hated opponent" to Espanyol fans and ask them to choose between Real Madrid and Barcelona, all Espanyol fans would not hesitate to choose Barcelona.

So when Metz came out, Espanyol fans didn't boo the team very much. In their opinion, Metz is not as good as Barcelona and not as good as Real Madrid. An opponent like Metz will soon let them know how terrible the Montjuic Stadium is! Barcelona and Real Madrid are going to bow down here!

At present, the team has no hope of winning the championship, and there is no doubt about relegation, even if the possibility of continuing to participate in European competitions next season is not high. So they're putting all their energy into this season's UEFA Cup, which is similar to Metz.

The Spaniards, who put all their energy into the UEFA Cup, fielded the best squad they could field.

The same goes for Metz.

Just eleven minutes into the game, the Spaniards scored the goal. The man who scored the goal was none other than their captain Raul. Tamudo.

He was offside and received a pass from De la Pena, slotted the ball from a tight angle, and the ball slid under the armpit of the attacking goalkeeper Humby and rolled into the far end of the net.

The moment the ball crossed the line, the entire Montjuic stadium trembled as if it had been shaken.

The Espanyol fans cheered so loudly that the 3,000 Metz fans who came to cheer for the team couldn't make a sound at all.

Then until the end of the first half, the Spaniards took advantage of this momentum to firmly grasp the initiative on the field, and threatened the goal of Metz many times. So Mays played a defensive counterattack and also got two chances, but unfortunately they couldn't take them.

At the end of the first half, Espanyol walked into the lounge with a score of 1-0, a result that delighted Espanyol fans. The team's performance was full of confidence and they were in a good mood at half-time.

But only five minutes into the second half, Metz equalised.

Ribery breaks down the flank and crosses. Espanyol defender Daniel. Halke (daniel_jarque) didn't go far from the ball and the ball fell at the feet of Ibisevic, who stabbed the ball with his outstretched foot and rolled into the net.

Espanyol's goalkeeper Kameni was unhappy with this, and he yelled at his team-mate Halke: "How did you get out of the way? See high but not far! ”

Halke knew that Kameni was a quick temper, so he didn't defend himself, which only drew a louder attack from the Cameroonian international.

He just waved his hand helplessly.

Not far behind him, the players of Metz were hugging each other excitedly.

"It's a pity...... A defensive mistake by the Spaniards led to a goal from Metz, which resulted in an away goal...... The Spaniards will have to score more goals if they want to qualify for the final! ”

"Beautiful! Pretty! It's beautiful! Ibisevic scored again! It's hard to imagine this is a waste center forward who scored only one goal in the last half of last season! He has now scored 14 goals in all competitions for Metz! ”

"Frank. Ribery's breakthrough was really sharp! We kept saying during the game that the Espanyol backline would be a key one. The Spaniard's backline has been inconsistent compared to their attacking line......"

The conceded goal deeply irritated the Espanyol players, who launched a fierce attack on the Metz goal in the ensuing game, wave after wave, as if trying to sieve.

Their efforts paid off in the seventy-third minute of the match.

It was again De la Pena who dribbled the ball past him in midfield, and just as the Metz players were on the lookout for his pass, he suddenly got up and shot from distance, and the ball arced past goalkeeper Humby's ten fingers and crashed into the net.

2：1！

"Oh - the world wave! From de la Pena! ”

“goooooooooooooooooooooooooooool！！ De la Pena - gooooooooo!! golgolgolgolgolgolgolgol！ gol！！！ The Spanish commentator roared with passion. Their commentary style is very different from that of France, England, and Germany, and they like to shout gol in Spanish after a goal, and they pride themselves on shouting it for longer in one breath. Many people think that this is a passionate commentary, but in fact, it is just one of the passionate explanations.

"Damn...... There was also a bit of a problem with the back of the line, where they lacked concentration...... How can this situation allow De la Pena to drive the ball in the middle all the time, instead of going up and pressing, just retreating? 'The French commentator was disappointed with the goal.

Even more disappointed than him was the manager of Metz, Jean. Fernandez. He waved his arms angrily on the sidelines after seeing his team concede a goal.

In this season's UEFA Cup, Metz have not lost a game, which is a remarkable result. But now it seems that it is about to be finished at the Stade de Montjujci.

After conceding the goal, Metz tried to fight back, but this time the Spaniard's backline did not continue to make mistakes, so Metz did not score a goal until the end of the game. They lost their first game of the season in the UEFA Cup.

However, most of the Metz players were happy with the result after the game, as they had an away goal and were only one goal behind.

Only Chu Zhongtian expressed dissatisfaction with this result when he was interviewed by reporters.

"We could have won, just be serious...... he then changed the subject when he realized that it would be better not to say anything that would be detrimental to the team's unity when facing reporters. Back at home we have to give it our all and it's not the time to be happy. ”

With that, he hurried out of the mixing area.

"It seems that losing the game makes Chu feel bad......" The familiar French reporter couldn't do anything about Chu Zhongtian who was so uncooperative with the interview, you must know that such a Chu Zhongtian is not common.

"Maybe it's because Metz has lost too many games in the league lately. When was the last time they won? Other reporters chimed in.

"If I'm not mistaken, it was the twenty-eighth round and they won Valenciennes. It was ...... It's March 10th. Then Metz never picked up a point in the league again. ”

"Let's. Fernandez is gambling...... Putting all their bets on the UEFA Cup, if it weren't for Mez's excellent performance in the first half of the season, they would have slipped into the relegation zone. ”

"Hopefully, at the end of the season, Metz won't ...... empty-handed"

"Who knows? Soccer this thing......"

The Chinese reporter had planned to wait for the French reporter to finish asking a few questions. But after Chu Zhongtian finished answering the questions of the French reporters, he walked straight in front of them, at most waved his hand to a few of the more familiar reporters, and whispered: "I'm sorry, I'm not in the mood right now." ”

Chu Zhongtian walked towards the locker room alone, and Ribery caught up from behind and patted him on the shoulder: "You look very troubled, Chu." Is it because of the result? ”

"What else could it be?" Chu Zhongtian spread his hands and said to his good friend. 'We lost our first game in the UEFA Cup, but we were able not to lose this game......

"Come on, Chu!" Ribery laughed, "It's better to lose here than in the final!" Well, don't be upset, or you'll make your teammates think you're complaining about them. Alright, alright, smile smile! Let's win back in the next game, what's the point of losing a game? ”

(To be continued)