Liverpool had a day off in Tokyo before heading to Yokohama early the next morning to prepare for the Club World Cup semi-final against Urawa Red Diamonds. Pen, fun, and www.biquge.info

At 11:30 a.m., Liverpool held their first Club World Cup press conference after arriving in Japan at the Royal Park Hotel in Yokohama, arranged by FIFA representatives. Coach Rafael Benitez, captain Steven Gerrard, striker Chen Yu and defender Carragher were in attendance at the press conference.

Benitez began by speaking: "This is our second visit to Japan, and it's a remarkable thing. Yesterday we said on the plane that there are so many good clubs in Europe, but only one can come to Japan, and we are honored to represent Europe. All Milanese know that the Club World Cup is our number one goal this season and we will do everything we can to win it. ”

Captain Steven Gerrard then took the mic, "The expectations are very high and we have a precise goal: to get back the championship we lost in '05. The teams participating in this tournament come from all continents and are very good. It won't be easy, but we are convinced that we have what it takes to achieve the best results. ”

Carragher then said: "We arrived in Japan early and prepared well, but it wasn't easy to win the title, we had to be prepared for a tough game, the Japanese team is mysterious, Boca is strong. ”

Finally, the host solemnly introduced Chen Yu to the reporters and fans in front of the TV, "I would like to invite Chen Yu to speak, he is the newly released Ballon d'Or winner, and the biggest favorite of the world footballer, the first professional player in Asia to win the Ballon d'Or, he is the pride of Asian football, and the benchmark for all Asian players to catch up and learn." ”

In the face of the praise of the Japanese host, Chen Yu behaved indifferently, took the microphone and said: "The Club World Cup championship is the dream of any player, the last time the team missed the opportunity to win the championship, the last time I was unable to participate due to injury, God gave us another chance, this time we must grasp it, although our goal is to win the championship, but we should not only put our eyes and eyes on the final and Boca Juniors, the opponent in the semi-finals is not easy to deal with, Urawa Red Diamonds have the advantage of home, and it is to wait for work, And they're going to fight us to the death, and if we're too careless, we'll probably capsize in the gutter. ”

Finally, there are questions from reporters, as the new Mr. Golden Ball and Asian players, Chen Yu is naturally the focus of reporters' attention, and he also steals the limelight from his teammates and coaches, and the questions are almost always directed at him alone, Benitez, Gerrard and Carragher are only asked once each.

"Chen Yu, how was the journey?" A reporter asked.

Chen Yudao: Everything went well, we talked and laughed in the first few hours on the plane, and then we didn't talk much, and most of the players chose to sleep and rest.

"Have you ever felt jet lag?" The reporter then asked.

Chen Yu smiled: It's really nothing, I'm used to jet lag, I often go back to China, and China is very close to Japan, but in that case, time has to be turned back. The important thing is that your whole body gradually adjusts to jet lag. Now, we follow the instructions to decide when to eat and when to sleep. ”

"You won Asia's first Ballon d'Or, how do you feel?" Another Chinese reporter asked.

Chen Yu smiled: "Of course it's good, there's nothing better than winning an award, especially the best award in the world." ”

A Japanese journalist asked: "Do you think there will be other players in Asia who will win the Ballon d'Or?" Which country will it be? ”

Chen Yu shrugged his shoulders and said, "There will definitely be, I also hope that there will be, as for which country it will appear in, this is difficult to say, but it will take a little luck and time." ”

An Italian journalist then asked: "What do you think of the move to Liverpool last year?" Is it the right choice? ”

Chen Yu smiled: "When you see me coming here for the Club World Cup, it means that it is the right choice, but Fiorentina is also a great club, and I still miss it. ”

The number of Japanese reporters is the largest here, and after the Italian reporter asked, another Japanese reporter asked: "What do you think of Urawa Red Diamonds, do you know them?" Do you think they have a chance to win against Liverpool? ”

Chen Yu said: "We have a certain understanding of all the teams, we also watched the first game of the Club World Cup against Urawa Red Diamonds, they have experience, individual skills and tactical qualities, but the biggest advantage of the Japanese team is the host, if we can take advantage of this, we are not very good at playing." ”

"Boca Juniors should be your biggest rivals, the Club World Cup has been won by the American team before, do you have the confidence to beat Boca Juniors this time?"

Chen Yu said: "If you don't grasp it, you have a lot of confidence." The Americas are special and don't have many chances against us, but I think we can beat them. “

At this time, a Japanese reporter asked in a slightly provocative tone: "Some time ago, you announced your return to the Chinese team, do you think you can lead the Chinese team to defeat Japan?" ”

Chen Yu smiled slightly and said: "I haven't thought about this problem, I don't think there is any problem in qualifying in Asia, my goal is the World Cup, if I only want to play Asian games, I won't return at such an old age." ”

Chen Yu's remarks drew enthusiastic cheers from Chinese reporters, while Japanese reporters who asked questions had hot faces.

After the press conference, the players rushed to the training ground of the J-League team Yokohama Marina Sports Center for recovery training after lunch and a short rest at the hotel.

Liverpool's training sessions also attracted almost 2,000 fans, half of whom were Chinese, as can be seen from the banners and small flags they held high, the Japanese fans held the banner "Welcome Liverpool" and the Urawa Red Diamonds flag, while the Chinese fans held the "Chen Yu" banner and the five-star red flag.

Coach Benitez divided the team into two groups: the first group of players led by Reese, Pennant, Chen Yu, Kuyt, Wallen, and Colwill conducted a series of shooting exercises; The other players, led by Steven Gerrard, Alonso and Crouch, trained in acceleration runs and jumping over obstacles.

Then the two groups played two more group matches of about ten minutes, but because they had just arrived in Yokohama, the players did not do their best, just a gentle confrontation, but the wonderful cooperation and goals also made the fans continue to cheer.

Chen Yu scored a hat-trick again in the training match, which greatly satisfied the desire of Asian fans who came to watch the star.

The training session lasted almost an hour and a half, and this time the Liverpool superstars did not give any more interviews to reporters or interact with the fans, and went straight back to the hotel to rest.

In the annual Club World Cup, the participating teams are not only chasing trophies, in fact, for South American clubs with limited income such as Boca, the generous prize money of the Club World Cup is the biggest motivation for them to participate. FIFA has set a total of $16 million in prize money for this year's Club World Cup, $1 million more than last year. The winning team will receive $5 million, the runner-up will receive $4 million, the third place team will receive $2.5 million, the fourth place team will receive $2 million, the two fifth-place teams will receive $1 million each, and the seventh-place team will receive $500,000.

For South American teams, in addition to generous prize money, it is also an important goal to promote their players.

The Club World Cup is also a draft in a sense. Back in the days of the Toyota Cup, Tokyo was a good springboard for football, with club officials carrying heavy pockets and contracts to buy up South American football talents to Europe. High wages and incomes are a huge source of lure for South American stars who grew up in the slums, and those who excel in the game often use this springboard to jump from South America to Europe. As a result, European and South American football has slowly changed from the original confrontation relationship to a relationship of hiring and being employed, although the Toyota Cup has been changed to the Club World Cup, the number of participating teams has increased, and the title of champion has become more dazzling, but the essence of this competition as a "talent market" has not changed.

The players of the Boca team are the most attractive among all the players who participate in the competition, and after this Club World Cup, there will definitely be many Boca players who will bid farewell to the club and move to a higher level. At the moment, Boca's favourites with European clubs are midfielder Banega and striker Palacio. Italian media reported that Banega is now being contested by the three giants of Inter, AC Milan and Juventus at the same time, while Spanish media have revealed that Real Madrid are also in the pursuit, and English media believe that if Palacio plays well in the game, Liverpool may also take him in.

This is the strongest desire for Chinese Milan, because Inter owner Moratti has an extraordinary love for Argentine players. As early as during the World Youth Championship in Canada, Inter sent someone to follow Banega, it is reported that Inter's first offer of 10 million euros has been sent to Boca, Moratti believes that Banega is simply a hybrid of Gattuso and Pirlo, a very potential all-round player who can play both at the back and at the front.

There are also many clubs that have taken a fancy to Palacio, Barcelona have been paying attention to him, and now, the Lyon club has also taken a fancy to the pigtailed striker and is ready to bid 15 million euros. In addition, two defenders, Krupowieza and Medana, have also been eyed by Marseille and Lazio respectively, while Cardoso, Vargas and other players are also likely to leave after the Club World Cup. It is worth mentioning that the 34-year-old veteran Palermo is also in demand, and Boca No.9 has now received an offer from the Colombian Mariners of Major League Soccer to reunite with his former Boca striker partner Shelotto.

With so much club attention, the desire for the title is undoubtedly stronger than Liverpool's, with the president of Boca Juniors in Argentina preparing for the Club World Cup in Tokyo, Luiz. Busio said they were ready to beat all opponents and that they could still win their first Club World Cup without Riquelme.

A few days ago, FIFA ruled that Riquelme could not represent Boca in the Club World Cup because he had just transferred from La Liga Villarreal to Boca Juniors and had missed the registration deadline for the Club World Cup. This is undoubtedly a big blow for Boca Juniors. After all, the 29-year-old Riquelme, who had previously been at the heart of the team's midfield, played for Boca Juniors from 1996 to 2002 and led the team to six domestic league and international titles; In the first half of the year, he was loaned back to Boca Juniors by Villarreal and led Boca to the Copa Libertadores.

"I think it's very difficult to find an athlete who can fill Riquelme's place", said Boca coach Russo, "but we still have a lot of good players. We are delighted to be in the Club World Cup, we have been waiting for this day for a long time and we hope to add to the long history of our country's football. ”

And Riquelme's old comrade-in-arms, Martin Palermo, also said, "Roman's absence is very unfortunate and heartbreaking. Because he is our old comrade-in-arms. I believe that he himself is not feeling good in his heart. In the absence of him, we have to find a replacement for him and win the Club World Cup, which is the best consolation for him. ”

According to the Club World Cup schedule, Boca Juniors will go directly to the semi-finals against ****** Sahel Stars; Liverpool are also going directly to the semi-finals, and their opponents are Urawa Red Diamonds, and if nothing else, the two teams will meet in the final in Yokohama, Japan, on the 16th.

And for Boca Juniors, to win without Riquelme, the first problem is how to keep an eye on Chen Yu. In response, midfielder Sebastián Batagria said: "I know Chen Yu is a formidable player, but we also have a lot of good players. With the care of our defenders, he can never get a little bit of freedom. If Chen Yu wants to break through and score, we will definitely be able to stop him, and our defence can play against any good attacker. ”

Striker Palermo, on the other hand, said he was "gearing up" and wanted to relive the glory of the 2000 Toyota Cup, when he scored twice to beat Real Madrid to win the title, "In the Club World Cup, if I can score again, it will be great. Beating Real Madrid seven years ago was a special moment for me that I will never forget. Now, Liverpool are just as strong as Real Madrid back then, and Liverpool's Chen Yu is the best striker in the world, but I want to try to compete with him to see who can score more goals. ”

Head coach Russo said: "The players are eager to take it upon themselves to fight Liverpool. But now the first thing is to beat ****** Sahel Stars in the semi-finals, and I've studied all the sources on this team. We have to be careful, they have a lot of good attacking players and we have to find a way to stop them and then keep the ball and play with our attacking power to win the game. ”

In the face of the provocation of Boca Juniors, Liverpool players appear more calm and confident, except for Pennant and Babel, who are stunned young people who come out and say that Chen Yu can beat Boca Juniors as a striker, others simply disdain to argue with Boca Juniors players, and the current Liverpool players are busy filming advertisements in Japan, participating in various evening banquets and commemorative activities, how can they be in a mood to have a war of words against Boca Juniors that they do not take to heart.