May 3rd.

The weather in Manchester didn't give Mansour any face, and when Mansour took to the stands to smile and wave to the fans, a drizzle was falling in the sky.

The drizzle didn't dampen the enthusiasm of the City fans.

Since it is Manchester City's last home game this season, and there is a possibility that Manchester City will win the league title early after this game, Manchester City fans have almost crazy enthusiasm for this game. Manchester City fans who did not buy tickets simply hid at home and waited nervously for the start of the game, some ran to the bar to discuss the start of the game with a group of like-minded people over a beer, and some gathered in the town square to watch the game on the big screen in Guò Square......

The media live-streamed footage captured the excitement inside and outside the stadium and in the words of the game's commentator, Martin Taylor, what would be an extraordinary game for City fans.

Linson certainly knew it was going to be an extraordinary match.

The boss and the boss in front of the screen are sitting in the stands at this time, and all the eyes of the fans who care about Manchester City are turning to this place at this time, and even the fans who have nothing to do with Manchester City will turn their eyes with interest to the other game at Anfield......

After more than an hour, maybe the title suspense will continue, or maybe the title suspense will end, all depending on the performance of Manchester City and Chelsea in Liverpool in the next short period of time.

Standing in the corner of the dressing room, Linson's eyes looked around the group of people in front of him, this is his team, this is Manchester City.

Today's sentiment does not need to be inspired. All of them know that today they have to give it their all.

A smile appeared at the corner of Lin Sen's mouth. He suddenly remembered that when he first came here, remembered that when the season had just begun, he was also facing this group of people, well, maybe there were fewer faces, and there were more faces, but he was calm at the time, with a little caution, from Malaga to Manchester City, from a budget of one million to a budget of two hundred million. I do the same job, but with a different mentality.

"Tired?"

Lin Sen quietly waited for all the players to put on their shoes and change their jerseys, and when they all looked at him, he suddenly asked.

"Of course."

"I'm tired."

……

The atmosphere was good, at least not dignified.

After a season of getting along, the players have long figured out Linsen's temper and know when he can't be provoked, such as when he was drawn by Standard Liege at home last time, but they also know when he can joke. For example, now.

"It's just that tired." Lin Sen grinned, "Today's game is the 37th round of the Premier League, the penultimate round, plus the League Cup, FA Cup, and Europa League. In total, you played no less than sixty games. I'm tired from sitting on the sidelines, let alone you. ”

There was a chuckle in the dressing room.

"Is it worth it?"

Lin Sen asked again, it was still a very simple question.

"Of course!"

"It's worth it!"

……

Of course it's worth it, no team has been more tired this season than Manchester City. But no team is more valuable than Manchester City, who have already won a Carabao Cup this season and are now. They are still chasing the league trophy, the Europa League trophy, and so close.

"Yes." Lin Sen still grinned, but this time he gave a question.

'If we lose this game today, if Chelsea win another game, if we lose the number 13 game...... So, do you still think it's worth it? ”

There was silence in the locker room.

"You know what I'm trying to say, don't you?" Ignoring the silence in the dressing room, Lin Sen smiled, and then his face straightened, "I've heard a lot of rumors, and I'm sure you've heard similar rumors, even if we end up losing to Chelsea in the league, we already have a perfect season, and even if we only finish runners-up in the Europa League, we have already made history......"

"Bullshit!"

Lin Sen's eyes looked directly at all the team members, "I don't want to respond to these words from them, but here, I can tell you what I think, my thoughts are that these words are all bullshit!" No one will remember who the second place in the league is! No one will remember who the Europa League runners-up are! Only champions! Guys! Only champions will be remembered forever! ”

"And now, the championship is in front of our eyes! At this time, any fluke and excuse is bullshit! We just have to believe! If we want to, we can do it! Because we have the ability! Because I believe you have the power! ”

……

Looking at Lin Sen, who was still mild just now and looked fierce now, Brian Kidd was a little stunned, and actually a little excited, his eyes looked at the players. At this time, the team members already had green light in their eyes.

How can a fierce head coach be a group of trembling sheep under his subordinates?

At this moment, Kidd seemed to see the figure he had seen in another part of the city many years ago, and then, he said silently in his heart.

"Be careful, Sir." ――

“…… It's not hard to see why Manchester City fans are so excited today, as Chelsea's opponent in this round is Liverpool, and it's an away game, so it's hard to predict the outcome of the game. If Chelsea lose away to Liverpool and City can beat Aston Villa at home, they will win the league title one round earlier this season, knowing that the last time City won the top flight was in 1968......

Martin Taylor was still analysing the likely outcome of the game for the crowd when players from both sides walked onto the pitch under the guidance of the referee.

O'Neill didn't sit on the bench, facing the drizzle, and from the very beginning he stood on the sidelines with a hoodie on his head and no expression in sight......

The "grievances" between the Northern Ireland coach and Lin Sen are now well known in the entire Premier League, but the pre-match press conference of this game, in the face of the reporter's intentional or unintentional provocation, both of them chose not to mention it, but put more on the topic of the game itself, after the last time Lin Sen angrily reprimanded him for a penalty kick for two months, I don't know if it was intentionally avoided, O'Neill never mentioned that incident, and O'Neill shut up, Lin Sen didn't want to reveal other people's old scars, it was Manchester City who took advantage.

Of course, O'Neill has become low-key, and this also has to do with the record.

In the first half of this season, Aston Villa can be called a giant killer, Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and other teams have suffered from them, and it is not surprising that the high-spirited O'Neill is a little arrogant, but in the second half of the season, Aston Villa is basically paying off its debts, especially when it is washed by Chelsea 7 to 1 away from home, and it is even more shameless, and O'Neill naturally has no proud capital.

However, as Linson thought before the game, in this game, Aston Villa has no way back, facing the only unbeaten home game in the Premier League, O'Neill has to play and not to play.

Unlike O'Neill, who was standing in the rain, Lin Sen shrank to the coach's seat early in the morning, and even shrunk his two hands into his sleeves, leaving only a pair of eyes looking at the court.

In terms of importance, this game means much more to Manchester City than to Aston Villa, but Linson has plenty of reasons to be more confident, his team is better equipped, more classified, more skilled, not to mention that he has just given his team a round of buff in the dressing room.

This season, Manchester City was once restrained by a style of play, that is, the traditional English four-four-two, the first half of the three-to-three with Tottenham, the one-to-one with Aston Villa, and even the one-to-three loss to Bolton, the opponent played this style of play, and in the second half with the improvement of the tacit understanding of the Manchester City team and the familiarity with the opponent's tactics, this gradually improved, and in this game, Aston Villa still maintained this style of play.

Striker: Norwegian striker Kalu plus homegrown striker Abang Laho, one high and one fast. With Ashley Young and Downing on the flanks, two England fringe internationals, and Leo Cook and Barry in the midfield, Aston Villa have played seventh in the league now, and if it weren't for their weak backline, their results could have been better.

Such an Aston Villa, to Linsen, feels that it is the Villarreal team he coached Atletico Madrid before, and the Villarreal team finally played the runner-up position in the league, and the difference between these two teams, in Linsen's view, excluding the gap in the manager's side, from the card, the biggest difference is the lack of an old monster like Pire.

A team like this that seems to be holding its breath in the game, maybe it can start well or even amazing, but it is generally difficult to go to the end, because the league is a long-distance run, not a sprint, and a sprint can be held to the end in one breath, but it is impossible to run a long-distance run without breathing. It is this breath that Pierre has, and with this breath, Villarreal can go further, and without this breath, it becomes a boom, a decline, and a third......

When coaching Malaga, Lin Sen wanted this "breath" very much, but unfortunately there was no such role in the team, and the conditions of Malaga did not allow it, and in the end Malaga rushed to the runner-up position, there was an element of luck, but the biggest reliance was the winning streak at the beginning. When he came to Manchester City, he once thought that he didn't need it, because he had 200 million, and he could have a better choice, but as the league progressed, he felt more and more that if Manchester City this season also had such a "breath", then, perhaps, this game is no longer important for Manchester City. (To be continued......)