Chapter 4 The Spirit of Football

In the live broadcast room of Sky TV, Eriksen was speechless by Wan Sheng's refutation, he wanted to question Wan Sheng's so-called 'chance', but he didn't expect Wan Sheng to say such a remark.

'Losing is great'!?

It sounds lofty, but as a manager will know, it's complete nonsense!

The goal of each team will be to win, not to hold on to the end for something, otherwise how could this nasty Chinese just now keep squeezing him with 'England always doesn't win'? As a result, now in his mouth, it has become 'as long as you persevere to the end, losing is great'.

This comes and goes, it's all your own fault!

Eriksen doesn't have the mentality of 'losing great', he doesn't know whether Wansheng is right or not, because everyone will have different opinions on this issue, for example, now the big clubs in Europe, there is definitely no club that will say anything nonsense like 'great loss', even if Liverpool is now three goals behind, they will not say so, their goal must only be one, that is, to beat AC Milan, win the game, and get the highest honor on behalf of the European champion - Big Ears Cup!

If they can make it to the end, that's what they do!

It obviously doesn't make sense to achieve greatness just to last the day, but Eriksen can't argue with Wan Sheng about this, this is not the right place, and more importantly, in the hour or so, Eriksen has already understood the gap between himself and these managers who have been in the Premier League - he really has no advantage in verbal battles.

Let's look at this young man who has only been in the top league for a season, and he also said a question, he actually made himself speechless from both positive and negative aspects, as long as this gap exists, it is better for him to talk less, otherwise even if it makes sense, it will become unreasonable after saying it.

Erikson was stunned!

So then Eriksen was very sensible and stopped talking, even if he had any doubts about what Wan Sheng said. He just gritted his teeth and watched, not saying a word at all, as if he had completely become a nodding request, and if he wanted to express his opinion, he also pretended to be unfathomable.

Those who don't know the inside story will definitely be puzzled, but those who know the inside know that this war without gunpowder has ended with Erikson's 'voluntary surrender'

In fact, there are many people who think the same way as Eriksen, especially those who have a deep study of football, and they think that Liverpool has no chance at all.

Although the young former Derby County boss has been thrilling to say something like 'great to lose' and 'respectable to stick to the end'. But reason tells many people that no matter how perseverance Liverpool has, no matter how persevering, will not have a chance.

This is football, it's reality!

AC Milan were so strong that Liverpool couldn't fight back at all, so strong that they scored three goals in a single first half, so strong that everyone could believe that if the opponent made a mistake. They were also able to continue to extend the score.

This is AC Milan, this is the giant club made by modern football!

It is precisely because of this strong strength that AC Milan was able to stand out in the Champions League and reach the final with an overwhelming result. They are the opposite of Liverpool at this point - their path to the final is quite smooth!

So

Despite the young coach's good words, Liverpool still don't have a chance.

But there is also a backing for Wan Sheng, and that is the commentator George Woodgate, who regularly commentates on Derby County games. As early as a year ago, I fell in love with Derby County, led by Wan Sheng.

George Woodgate likes Derby because of the tactics they play and the beautiful football they play. On the other hand, Derby County is also a team that has created a miracle of zĂ o, their results in the past season are a miracle, which is more expressive than the miracle of a game, and the person who created this miracle is in front of him, that is, the victory of the 'football spirit'.

Wansheng itself has created a miracle, and he is naturally very convincing when he talks about the spirit of football.

So he believes Liverpool still have a chance.

In addition, Wansheng also has thousands of fans and supporters!

These fans are not only Liverpool fans, but also many other teams, and the reason why the team supports Wansheng is very simple - they watch the game with passion, if the game does not even have the 'football spirit', and the victory or defeat is long lost because of the strength of the suspense, then what is the point of the game itself?

Does it matter if AC Milan wins, or Liverpool wins?

What they want to watch is a passionate game, a great game, not a show that has no suspense early.

That's why they couldn't be more supportive!

Wan Sheng didn't know that there were so many fans supporting him, he just said what was in his heart.

At halftime, there were a few minutes to comment on the game, and Wan Sheng also continued to talk about his opinion, "Like I said just now, I think Liverpool still has a chance, the difference between three goals is a bit big, and if they want to win, they must play offensive and play form"

'It's not easy to do both of these things in the current situation of the two teams, and it depends on how Benitez adjusts.

"At this time, in fact, the individual performance of the players is more important than the team's tactics and strength, and the most anticipated thing for the Liverpool team is their captain Steven Gerrard, who is a natural leader."

"If Liverpool still have a chance, then I'm sure it will have to do with Gerrard!"

"We should have focused more on Gerrard, even if he didn't have the ball," Wan Sheng joked a little and continued to talk about AC Milan, "AC Milan's first half was perfect, especially their talented midfielder Kaka, the Brazilian youngster has shown unparalleled talent. He's going to be one of the best players in the world for years to come, I'm sure of that. ”

"Shepchenko also doesn't do it, many Italian media have a very high opinion of him, and even say that he is the best striker in the world, and if he doesn't play in Serie A, he might even compete for the European Golden Boot!?"

"Oh no. It's not that I look down on him, but he relies more on his team-mates to score goals. If he changes to a team I mean if, then it is not easy for him to have a good appearance, other teams don't have Kaka, no Seedorf, Pirlo to play for him, Crespo is better than him in this regard, but unfortunately neither Carlo Ancelotti nor Mourinho seems to like Crespo very much"

In fact, about Crespo, Wan Sheng still feels very puzzling.

Crespo moved to Chelsea for €2,600 last season and then made just 17 appearances for Chelsea due to injury problems that lasted all season. But he scored 11 goals, which is definitely quite efficient, but after Mourinho arrived, he actually loaned him directly to AC Milan, about this, Wan Sheng can only be understood as 'Mourinho is creating space for Drogba to play', after all, with Crespo, Drogba's playing time will definitely be affected.

Crespo has been playing for AC Milan this season and will not be able to compete with Shepchenko for a place in the main team. He can only compete with the likes of Inzaghi as a second striker, but he also has 26 appearances and 13 goals.

This efficiency is not low!

You must know that Crespo belongs to AC Milan as a 'second striker', which is not only the second in the position, but also the second in the passing options of his teammates. When Shepchenko has the same chance as him, his teammates will definitely give priority to Shepchenko's pass, and as the second striker, Crespo will often have to create opportunities for Shepchenko. Because of this, his assist count is also a magnificent 7.

Crespo, who is so expressed, is definitely not bad if not the world's top. And Wan Sheng can see more clearly, Crespo's strength assessment is purple, that is, his comprehensive ability as a striker shooter is rated above '90', which is definitely the world's top level.

But perhaps the only explanation for the unlikability of his Chelsea and AC Milan is Crespo's age, which he is already 30 years old after all

At half-time, we talked about the format of the game, we talked about the players of the two teams, and the time passed slowly.

Wan Sheng became the protagonist of the live broadcast room and did not mention it, at the same time, in the dressing room of Liverpool, Gerrard, as the captain, was in a really heavy mood, a first half, let him know the difficulty of AC Milan, and also learned the strength of those opponents, and what impressed him the most was the opponent's young star Kaka.

Kaka's dribbling speed is just too fast!

Gerrard felt like he was running with the opponent throughout the first half, following the shadow of the opponent, and in his memory, he had never encountered a player who dribbled so fast, Gerrard thought that he was fast enough to deal with most dribbling players, but against the lightning-fast Kaka, he felt like he was out of reach.

As for Gattuso, who provoked himself, Gerald didn't feel anything.

Gattuso looks aggressive, but it's not scary at all because he doesn't feel hurt or threatened against Gattuso, and Gattuso doesn't have the ability to score goals.

Gerrard's biggest fear is the kind of midfielder who is very skilled - Riquelme, Kaka, Ronaldo Jr.!

With such a player, their football is 'break-pass-bang-goal'!

At the end of the first half, Gerrard already felt very unhappy, not only the situation of 3-0 down, in fact, as a player he did not need to think about it so much, he was even more angry about the AC Milan players when they left the field, such as Gattuso left the field with a smug smile, that expression was really frustrating.

There were two other Milan players who waved to fans and families as they left the pitch

It's disgusting!

There was silence in the Liverpool dressing room.

Everyone sat there motionless, and after a while, some players began to speak, without reproach, without complaining.

Gerald clenched his fists and stood up and shouted to the group, "Guys, what's wrong with us?" The coach told us to focus and not make mistakes. And the whole first half was one-sided, we didn't even start. ”

"Don't let Milan kick us 5-0, I don't want to be slaughtered." Carragher continued.

Gerrard knows the team needs to be morale-boosted,

Benitez stepped forward, pressed his hands down and began to talk about adjustments, "Everyone be quiet. Finn goes south, Hamann goes up, and three of us are enough. Hamann and Alonso's main task is to defend, and you two have to keep an eye on Kaka. Smitchell is at the back. Steven moved forward and attacked with Garcia and Baroshe. Pirlo doesn't run a lot, watch him and don't let him pass. Took the ball."

Benitez doesn't say much, but it's all to the point, he rarely does anything to boost morale, but it's enough to ask the players to do it, but this time he did some mental work, "Don't hang your head all the time, don't forget." You're fighting for Liverpool. For the sake of the fans, you also have to keep your heads up and don't let them down. Believe that you can do it and give yourself a chance to be a hero! ”

Although it was clearly written on the scoreboard that Liverpool were 3-0 down, the Liverpool fans in attendance still did not give up, singing "You will never walk alone", and expressed their support to the Liverpool players in the dressing room.

No matter how tough it is, the fans will support us through the ups and downs, and we will never go it alone!

Gerald exclaimed excitedly, "They haven't given up yet. We can't give up either! These fans have spent a lot of money and come all the way here to support us, and we must not let the fans down. If we can score a goal, the fans will support us even more. In that case. We'll be able to get another one! ”

"Come on, brothers!"

Liverpool players stepped forward to shake each other's hands and held them tightly.

They can't wait to get back on the pitch and have a try!

"For Liverpool!"

"For the fans!"

Simple slogan, but very effective.

Gerrard knew he was the captain. It is the responsibility of the captain to lead the team on the counter-attack.

Coming to the stadium and listening to the deafening singing of Liverpool fans, the AC Milan players opposite looked confused. Gerrard felt confident again.

Soon as the game progressed, he sensed that the AC Milan players were starting to slacken as if they had done their job, and even if they conceded a goal, Maldini and his teammates would have thought that the outcome would be 3:1.

In that case, let me try it!

Hamann is on the pitch, he's sharing the defensive duties, and Gerrard is freed up to try more offense!

In the 54th minute, Reese won the ball on the left and Gerrard quickly followed up into the Milan penalty area.

"If he can cross, I'll shoot, Reese, get the ball into the box!" Gerrard looked at Reese and shouted in his heart, but unfortunately the ball was intercepted by Cafu, and he looked around, thinking that the ball might be able to pass again.

Reese managed to cross the ball before Cafu could intercept it again!

The ball speed is very fast!

Gerrard was a dozen metres from goal and was not in a good position to shoot, but he used his head to get the ball into the back of the net. AC Milan goalkeeper Dida spread his arms, but the ball flew over his head and into the net.

The ball is in!

Header!

Gerrard's goal!

It was Gerrard's only header of the season, and he ran excitedly towards the stands of the Liverpool fans, waving his arms at them and making them shout a little louder.

With Gerrard's goal, the miracle officially began!

Just two minutes later, the veteran Hamann picked up the ball and passed it to Smitchell, who was 25 yards from goal, and it was clear that Milan did not see any threat to Smitchell's position, and Seedorf did not bother to reach out to intercept him, only for Smitchell to send the ball straight into the net.

It's just one ball away!

After scoring the second goal, Liverpool went completely crazy and many of the players realised that they would definitely score another goal and win in the end, and it was as if God had instilled in them the will, and they were incredibly convinced.

Three minutes later, Jamie Carragher passed the ball to Barosh near the penalty area.

Gerald is not far behind!

Barosche realised Gerrard's good position and opted to pass the ball over, and in a one-on-one situation, Gerrard had a good chance of scoring the ball, only to trip Gattuso as to knock him down.

Penalty kick!

The audience shouted!

Xavi Alonso took the penalty and his low shot was saved by Dida, but the Spaniard reacted quickly and followed up with a left-footed kick into the net!

3:3

Everyone was stunned at this moment!

It is hard to imagine that in this kind of international competition, facing opponents who are much better than the team, facing the situation of falling behind by three goals, Liverpool did not give up, they persevered until now, and successfully caught up with three goals in 6 minutes.

This is the 'spirit of football', a belief, a steadfastness!

"And they did! And it did! ”

Wan Sheng had already shouted excitedly, "It's really beautiful!" Gerrard! Smitchell! Alonso! And Benitez to be honest, I don't think much of this Spaniard, but he really did a good job, such a Liverpool, 3:3 score I believe they will win in the end! ”

"It's going to be a miracle fight!"

At this moment, many people are as excited as Wan Sheng, of course, some people are not, such as Eriksen, although he was surprised by Liverpool's table, but now it is by no means that Liverpool has won, there is still a lot of time, and it is just a draw.

But Eriksen didn't argue with Wan Sheng, because Liverpool are now 'everyone expects'!

Not to mention that Sky TV already supported Liverpool, which belongs to the English team, Liverpool's performance in the last six minutes can definitely be called a miracle!

And what happened next made Eriksen not say a word until the end of the show - Liverpool managed to hold on until 90 minutes, until the end of extra time, and ended the game 3:2 on penalties!

Seeing that on the field, all the Liverpool players rushed to the meritorious goalkeeper Dudek like crazy, and even Carragher, who was lying on the ground and pumped in, ran fast, this scene made many people feel unbelievable and took it for granted!

At this moment, Wan Sheng sighed and said, "Congratulations to Liverpool, congratulations to Benitez"

Erikson was silent.

In fact, the object of his surprise was Wan Sheng, Liverpool and AC Milan originally had a zĂ i strength gap, this young man also talked about this before the game, and when Liverpool fell behind 0:3, how dare he say anything 'football spirit', and think that Liverpool is likely to equalize?

He's a manager, not a Liverpool fan!

That's the kind of thing that only pure Liverpool fans would say, because they just support the team, regardless of whether it makes sense or not!

But the young man said it, and Liverpool did.

Eriksen believes that tomorrow's sports news will belong to Liverpool, but Wan Sheng, as a special guest of this game, will definitely be one of the protagonists, and he, also as a guest, can only be a foiling green leaf. (To be continued......)