Chapter 074: Back to the top again
Arsenal's winning process was not easy, the Arsenal manager looked ugly after the first half, but after the game Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger was in high spirits, although the victory over Liverpool was not easy to come by, but Arsenal laughed Zuihou.
Liverpool lost, but Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez was still stubborn, "Our goal will not change, we will continue to fight for the top four in the next game." We will continue to move forward and try to improve ourselves and win the game. If we can keep the same momentum as we did in the first half today, I'm sure we're going to win more games. It's hard for me to explain how well Liverpool played in the first half, an own goal in the second half was the turning point, and then they scored the third goal and then the situation on the pitch changed completely and you can see the confidence of our players is dropping. We controlled the game in the second half, but chances were always taken first. Shaw is doing great, Arsenal are impactful and they have reason to be the favourites to win the title. ”
Speaking about the game, Arsene Wenger said: "Liverpool played well and we walked on thin ice. The reason why we were so careful was because Arsenal had lost the previous games against Chelsea and Manchester United and I needed to win a big talk. The players brought their nerves on the pitch and when they equalised, they put all their worries behind them and focused on the game, so we controlled the tempo. I'll admit I didn't expect an own goal, but it was a goal that made Liverpool panic and then we scored the decisive goal. After the opposition were in disarray, we were barely threatened in the second half. It was a very important win and now that we have renewed our confidence in the title, I know we have to win at Anfield to close the gap. We did it! ”
And now Arsenal are once again the league leaders. Because Manchester United and Chelsea both lost in this round. So at this time, Arsenal once again held the initiative to win the championship, "If you want to win the championship, you must maintain a consistent and stable performance, but so far no team has been able to do this. In my opinion, the title race for the Premier League doesn't just revolve around three teams, Aston Villa, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur all have the potential to pull off miracles, and whoever wants to win the title will have to work hard. Chelsea have dropped points now and I'm sure they will drop points again in the future, with many teams of quality going to stop the Blues. With Liverpool, Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard returning, and Aquilani getting better, Anfield will be a nightmare for many teams. Arsenal are in good form at the moment and as long as we can maintain a consistent performance, we will remain the top contenders for the Premier League title. ”
Xiao Qing, the best player of the game, naturally attended the post-match press conference with the head coach, looking at Wenger who was talking eloquently, which did not look like thunder in the locker room at all, and Wenger's current appearance may be the image of Wenger in Xiao Qing's impression.
It is different from Manchester United's sophistication and Chelsea's composure, as well as Liverpool's toughness. Arsenal always come across as too feminine, but this is the kind of team that looks a bit sissy to many Premier League fans. But they can always conjure flowers out of their sleeves without being seen by the outside world, such as at Anfield tonight, when Arsenal took the three points in style.
When was the last time Arsenal picked up all three points at Anfield? 2003-04 Season! Arsenal were unbeaten in the league that season, unable to beat the Reds away from home in the league for six years, and the psychological shadow was palpable. This is especially important, as Liverpool can send out the elite of Steven Gerrard, Torres and Aquilani in this game, while Arsene Wenger can only present a broken squad. So the win in this game is really important for Arsenal, and this may be a game of transformation for Arsenal.
'The boss's rant had a positive effect on Arsenal's win and we wanted to prove we deserved the Arsenal shirt and it was good and we did it.' For the completely different performances of Arsenal in the first and second halves that the media paid attention to, Xiao Qing was very cooperative, and broke the news. "I've never seen a boss like this, it's horrible. We played badly in the first half, but in the second half we passed the pressure on the opposition and the end result was the best proof. The boss said we didn't play at our best in the first half and said we didn't deserve the Arsenal shirt."
Wenger regained his kind smile after the final whistle, and now he has once again become the elegant manager that people are familiar with, and Wenger is a little helpless about Xiao Qing's "careful eye" revelation, and waved his hand with a wry smile, because he knows that Xiao Qing is once again shifting the focus to him.
'I'm not going to tell you what I said to my players at half-time, all I can say is that Liverpool dominated the first half and we took over the second half,' Arsene Wenger said. I'll never say what happened in the dressing room after half-time, I just want to motivate the players and hopefully they play better in the second half. Thirteen years later, I've found myself surprised that I'd still be surprised that my players would do such a thing. ”
Arsenal laughed at Zuihou as they won the game; It's important for Arsenal to overcome the psychological shadows, and for the Gunners, it's exciting to get back to the top of the table.
Manchester United, who sit at Old Trafford at home in this round of games, suffered a 0-1 defeat to Aston Villa because of Abonlajo's 21st-minute header, suffering their first home defeat in the league this season, and also getting their fourth defeat in the league, and losing to Villa at the Theatre of Dreams for the first time in 26 years!
Chelsea and Toffee Everton, also at home, staged a goal shootout at Stamford Bridge; Didier Drogba scored twice and Nicolas Anelka netted three from Chelsea's attack, but Everton's Saha netted in each half, while Yakubu set up Everton's goal just before half-time.
Chelsea drew 3-3 with Everton and went two games without a win in the league, which also cost them the league leader. They can only bitterly now change hands again because they failed to seize the opportunity to regain the top spot because of their own mistakes one after another.
Sixteen rounds of the game were over. Arsenal, with 12 wins, 2 draws and 2 losses, has achieved 38 results. They once again lead the standings after losing the top spot after two rounds of matches, and the Gunners once again set off a heated discussion in the media about Arsenal with their strong performances, the Gunners are not weak, and the title will be the target of Arsenal's pursuit.
Chelsea, who have won 12, drawn 1 and lost three, have lost out on a winless run of two games, and what little advantage they have built up has been wiped out, and they are now one point behind Arsenal on 37 points, once again playing the role of chasers as they failed to keep their mistakes in place. For Chelsea, who had a modest lead, a winless run of two games was the biggest mistake. That will put them on the back foot in the race for the league title, and they will now have to once again try to challenge Arsenal for the top spot.
As for the Manchester United team, which was inferior to Arsenal in the previous two consecutive rounds of games, they also had some bitterness, they missed a great opportunity to go further in the standings, and even because they were upset so that they were once again opened up some gaps, and the league has not been able to stand at the top of the standings since the beginning of the season to 16 rounds, which is also a bitter result for Manchester United, which has won the league three times in a row.
With 11 wins, two draws and three defeats, Manchester United now have 35 points, but they are still three points behind leaders Arsenal, and this one-win gap means that the Red Devils want to put in more effort in the following games.
The fierce and sticky situation in the standings has made fans both nervous and excited, with three teams in this season's league standings tightly entangled. This also means that the battle for the title of the Premier League is fierce. The excitement of the league is certainly more enjoyable for the fans, but it is not pleasant for the fans of Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United. Because of such a sticky situation, they dare not be careless at all, because as long as one is not careful, it is possible to lose the current position, such a tense situation in the standings makes the three teams have no chance to make mistakes at all, because once they make mistakes, they need to pay a heavy price.
Xiao Qing is very happy that Arsenal are back at the top of the table, and he is happy that the team can withstand the pressure and show competitiveness strongly; Although the battle for the league title is becoming more and more intense and fierce, although this situation does make the players need to bear a lot of pressure, Xiao Qing is still very proud, because of the strong performance of the Gunners, because Arsenal is now getting better and better.
Xiao Qing didn't know if Arsenal would encounter more setbacks, and he didn't know if the two main competitors would have a crazy performance in the next game. Now Xiao Qing only needs to know that the team now occupies the top position in the standings, and now they are the league leaders, and Xiao Qing is proud to be able to achieve such a wonderful performance in such a fierce standings.
Xiao Qing, who has scored 16 goals in the league, firmly occupies the first place in the scorer list, although the gap between Drogba and him behind him is not too big, but Xiao Qing is very confident that he can maintain his dominance of the Premier League scorer list. He believes that he can help the team achieve the highest honor while also achieving enough eye-catching individual honors, and now Xiao Qing is gradually used to being the team's single arrow, and he has become accustomed to creating more killing opportunities without a partner to score enough goals.
Arsenal's current results are inseparable from Xiao Qing's wonderful performance, although this season's Arsenal is full of injuries, but Arsenal has always been able to maintain enough competitiveness, among which Xiao Qing's time and time again to break through the opponent's goal to help the team win is naturally what the fans are talking about, Xiao Qing's current outstanding performance also makes fans believe that Xiao Qing can become Arsenal's most trusted and stable link.
Xiao Qing is an efficient goalscorer, he has not encountered a long-term goal drought, and he can quickly make adjustments to get out of the trough, which is an important reason why Arsenal can always remain competitive. Gunners fans believe that Xiao Qing will get better and better, and Xiao Qing also believes that he can get better! (To be continued......)