Benitez's tactics are very conservative, and if other people knew what the Spaniards were thinking, they would find it incredible, what could Zhang Tiehan do alone? Wouldn't that be the same as giving up the offense altogether?

Actually, no.

Benitez wants to use Zhang Tiehan's impact ability, Zhang Tiehan is almost an all-round striker, his speed is fast, and his foot skills are constantly improving, it can be said that he is constantly becoming exquisite, sure enough, using technology and strong body and speed, few people can really snatch the ball from his feet, plus Zhang Tiehan has a strong ability to protect the ball, especially in the fight for high-altitude balls, so as long as he gets the ball in the Barcelona half, it is a very powerful threat to Barcelona.

Rafa Benitez can be sure that Barcelona will seal off the midfield.

It's not a specific blockade, Barcelona's tactics are to attack and defend all the time, using constant passing to get an advantage and find opportunities to attack, so that they will be very strong in the midfield, and their players have good skills at their feet, much stronger than Liverpool, even if Liverpool attack, it is difficult to break through their midfield, because they are a full-court tight defense, and the midfield has invested more strength, and the whole backfield can take into account the midfield.

So how do you get Zhang Tiehan to get the ball?

Long pass!

The only and best choice!

No matter how hard Barcelona's full-court tight defense is, no matter how solid the midfield is in the face of long passes, they can't do it, the football flies through the sky, and it is useless if you have an advantage on the ground.

And the competition for the ball in the air is perhaps Barcelona's only weakness.

Most of their players are short, unlike Premier League teams like Liverpool and Chelsea, one is tall, Barcelona is different, they are Spanish players. In the style of the Spanish league, short players are easier to mix, and their short bodies will be more flexible, and their skills will naturally be better than those of big ones.

Even Barcelona's central defenders, in order to match the tactics of the whole team, must choose players with excellent skills. The current main central defenders Puyol and Marquez are not good at defending high-altitude balls, Puyol is only 178CM, and Max is only 182CM when he is slightly taller, so high-altitude balls are Barcelona's weakness, Benitez hopes to use this to create something, and let Zhang Tiehan create a threat to Barcelona with high-altitude ball passing, which is also the most basic means.

Obviously, today, in Liverpool's attack, Zhang Tiehan will definitely be an important role.

Benitez told his players a number of times before the game. Especially the midfielders, we must pay attention to the use of long passes to hand over the ball to Zhang Tiehan, even if they don't score, they can relieve the defensive pressure, and tell everyone to pay attention not to pass more in the backfield.

That's why after the game started, Liverpool played very conservatively. The defense was solid.

There are no bright spots, and there are no big mistakes.

It's stable.

That's ten minutes into the game. Everyone in the stadium was in charge of Liverpool, but Barcelona were already in control of the tempo of the game, and Barcelona were in possession most of the time.

"Ten minutes into the game, Barcelona had an astonishing 78 per cent possession, Liverpool gave the ball completely, and they didn't have any intention of counter-attacking at all......," the Spanish commentator said the game with some pride.

The scene is at Anfield Stadium. Liverpudlians' turf.

The result?

Barcelona had a large advantage, and Liverpool could only wait in front of the goal for Barcelona to attack, a situation that made him feel that Barcelona would definitely be the winners, "78%...... That's a staggering number, even in a normal La Liga. Those small clubs are not so passive in the face of Barcelona, and Liverpool, the Premier League powerhouse, has no power to fight back at all......"

"Although there is no goal yet, Barça's table is perfect!"

The England commentator was also worried about the game, and he couldn't help but sarcastically mock Benitez's tactics, "Liverpool looks like they are stubbornly defending, there is only Zhang in the front, and the backfield is fully defended...... Of course, they are also completely passive, I really don't know what they are doing, do Liverpool want to defend until the end of the game? ”

Of course not!

Fifteen minutes into the game, as both teams of players got into shape, Liverpool began to look for counter-attacks while defending solidly, the first threat came in the 16th minute, Gerrard broke the ball in the middle and passed directly to the front, Zhang Tiehan shook off Puyol to run ahead, caught up with the ball and shot directly on the right side.

The soccer ball grabs the goalpost and flies off the baseline.

The kick made the Barcelona people break out in a cold sweat, they didn't expect Liverpool to create such a big threat with just one attack.

"Zhang's shot!"

"It's a shame that the ball grazed the post and flew off the line, it's dangerous. Barcelona have the advantage on the pitch, but they should probably pay more attention to defending against Zhang. The Spanish media reminded.

The English media is very happy, and now he can finally say a word for Liverpool, "Although the game seems to be on the surface, Barcelona has the initiative and the advantage, but Liverpool have Zhang, Zhang is a very good player, he is one of the most efficient strikers in the world, if Barcelona is negligent, Zhang may complete the goal." It's hard to say who will win or lose between the two teams, but what is certain is that Barcelona will definitely suffer a big loss if they don't pay attention to Zhang's defense. ”

But did Barcelona really not pay attention to Zhang Tiehan?

No!

In fact, Barcelona has paid attention to Zhang Tiehan's defense from the beginning, and coach Rijkaard has constantly told the players to pay attention to defense, especially Zhang Tiehan, Liverpool's No. 13 is by no means a soft persimmon, and even he feels that Zhang Tiehan is more capable than Ronaldinho.

Ronaldinho is strong and scary.

Ronaldinho is a Barcelona player, a player under him, and Rijkaard is well aware of Ronaldinho's power, the world's top star player, who at his peak has almost a nuclear deterrent...... Ronaldinho is too good, in this game, Rijkaard is using Ronaldinho at the front of the team to act as a striker, his gorgeous skills and the strong body that the Brazilian rarely has, Ronaldinho is not a little bit of a threat to the opponent.

What about Zhang Tiehan?

In Rijkaard's view, Zhang Tiehan is no worse than Ronaldinho, the two may be good at some opposites, Zhang Tiehan is more focused on the body, even if his particularly outstanding abilities, such as headers and long-range shots, are also based on strong strength and body, Ronaldinho is much worse in this regard.

What excels about Ronaldinho is the technology.

His skills are definitely the best in the world, and opponents are sometimes deceived by Ronaldinho's actions somehow, Brazilian players are already skilled, and Ronaldinho is one of the best, his level can be imagined, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he is a grandmaster.

Compared with the two, Zhang Tiehan is more able to show his ability in a team like Liverpool, because he has a strong impact in the front court, and he hardly needs to cooperate too much with his teammates, if he is in Barcelona, it is not suitable, because it is difficult for him to cooperate with his teammates.

Ronaldinho naturally suits Barca.

In short, both of them are in the right team for themselves now, and when it comes to the game between the two teams, it will be up to them to decide the outcome of the game.

Rijkaard knows that if you want to win against Liverpool, you must try to prevent Zhang Tiehan's play, just like those media said, with Zhang Tiehan and without Zhang Tiehan, Liverpool is simply two teams, as long as Zhang Tiehan is not allowed to play, then the victory must belong to Barcelona.

How can it be stopped?

Rijkaard thought of a way to use the team's full-court pressing defense, create tight protection in the midfield, prevent Liverpool from crossing the halfway line, and prevent them from lightly dribbling the ball over the halfway, so that it is not easy for Zhang Tiehan, who is in front, to get the ball.

But this counterattack just now made Rijkaard feel a little bad premonition.

Soon, the foretaste came true.

Benitez is based on the characteristics of Barcelona's tactics, he knows that Barcelona actually has no more options, so he gives up the ball at his feet and chooses to pass the ball in the air more, so as to ignore Barcelona's blockade in the midfield.

The next 10 minutes were a real test for Barcelona.

"Liverpool! Garcia gets up on the wing...... Not again! ”

In the attack, Garcia broke through the middle line and passed the ball directly to Zhang Tiehan's point, Zhang Tiehan carried Puyol to unload the ball, the football just landed, he knocked the ball back with his back heel, and then suddenly turned around and jumped over Puyol.

"Beautiful! Perfect for turning! The English commentator yelled.

Other media, including the fans at the scene, also shouted that this passing was too perfect just now, they couldn't find the slightest fault, and under the light of the camera, Puyol could only become a background.

"This is Zhang's signature outstanding!" So says the England commentator.

In fact, this is also true.

Many people analyze Zhang Tiehan's ability, focusing on long-range shots and headers, and not paying much attention to other technical aspects, but turning and passing people is definitely a rare focus of attention, because in many games, Zhang Tiehan uses turning and passing people to shake off defenders.

He did this movement so smoothly, coupled with his strong body and speed, it was difficult for the defenders standing behind him to keep up, most of them were directly shaken, and only those experienced defenders who knew Zhang Tiehan well could keep up.

Puyol is clearly not one of the players who knows Zhang Tiehan.

Barcelona also knows very few people about Zhang Tiehan, this is the first time Barcelona have met Zhang Tiehan, and their understanding of Zhang Tiehan is still carried out through the media and head coach Rijkaard.

Puyol didn't react, Zhang Tiehan had already jumped over with the ball. (To be continued......)