Stamford Bridge.

Amid the cheers of more than 41,000 fans, this world-renowned Premier League focus game officially began.

United were given the first to serve.

Falcao and Wayne Rooney kicked off in the centre circle but, contrary to their usual practice, they didn't kick off today, but instead Rooney took the ball straight into the Chelsea half.

Marouane Fellaini, Ashley Young, Juan Mata and others all pressed forward at the same time, and centre-forward Falcao rushed behind the Chelsea defence as soon as he drove the ball out.

It was clear that United were looking to open the game against Chelsea.

In Van Gaal's view, Chelsea are playing at home today, and although Manchester United still have to defend steadily, the momentum of the opening game cannot be lost.

If they can press down Chelsea's defence in the opening stages, it may have worked wonders.

However, Chelsea are clearly prepared for it.

Joao Cancelo and Branislav Ivanovic both quickly retreated and protected themselves in front of N'Golo Kante and Nemanja Matic, forcing United to enter the Chelsea half and be hampered before they could reach the 30-metre zone.

In desperation, Rooney could only pass the ball back to the backline.

Chelsea's front court was quick to counter-attack.

Needless to say, Romelu Lukaku and Eden Hazard and Bench B were also actively running up front, while N'Golo Kante and Nemanja Matic immediately followed suit to cut off United's ball at the back.

'The Chelsea players all seemed to be in good form today and it doesn't look like they were affected by the departure of two important players. Zhan Jun couldn't help but praise.

Zhang Lu also said: "Pan Yi's system for Chelsea is very complete, in fact, no player is indispensable. ”

"Take Oscar as an example, although he has contributed amazing statistics of four shots and two passes in the past two rounds of Premier League games, Pan Yi replaced him with a B seat, and the team's attack power will not weaken, and even the overall offensive and defensive rhythm will be improved."

"Now it's up to Pan Yi to buy new people, especially Gnabry, whether they can step up when the team needs to rotate in the later stages......

on the field.

Now Chelsea have pressing in front of them and a barrier in midfield, which makes it difficult for United to get on the ball.

So at this time, the central defender McNair, who had the ball, could only make a long pass to Falcao, but David Luiz took the lead and headed back to the midfield.

Bench B grabbed the first spot and passed it back to Nemanja Matic.

The tall Serbian midfielder kept Rooney at bay with his body, protected the ball and then passed it back to Bench B who ran into space and then to N'Golo Kante, who soon launched an attack on the right.

At this time, the game was just over a minute old.

Bench B drove forward on the right, but Luke Shaw dropped back quickly and didn't give him any chance to break through his defence.

But that defensive strategy also allowed the B to quickly dribble across the halfway line and send the flames into United's 30-metre zone.

However, Manchester United were clearly prepared for such a situation today.

After an unsuccessful start of the game, they retreated very quickly and quickly organised a counter-attack near the halfway line.

Seat B held the ball for a while and couldn't find a particularly good opportunity, so he had to pass back to wing-back Ivanovic on his side.

Ashley Young also pressed over quickly.

Branislav Ivanovic didn't wait for him to get close, and he crossed the ball directly to Nemanja Matic, who was also just past the halfway line.

Nemanja Matic is usually dragged to the back of the midfield, but also the very middle of the field, to facilitate the movement of attacks and defences on either side of Chelsea.

But as soon as he stopped the ball, Rooney was already pressing up and also cutting off Nemanja Matic's pass to the B seat, forcing the Serb to turn and take a few steps to the left to avoid Rooney's tackle.

At this time, left wing-back Joao Cancelo had also crossed the halfway line.

He was standing near the left touchline, and when he saw Nemanja Matic looking at him, he immediately ran two steps forward and raised his hand for the ball.

But Manchester United wing-back Valencia also noticed him, and moved a little to the left, making it difficult for Cancelo to get the ball.

As a result, it is equivalent to saying that Chelsea's two waists and two wing-backs are a little locked on the ball, and Chelsea have a problem with the ball.

Seeing this, Lukaku immediately retreated from the front and prepared to meet Nemanja Matic in the space in front of the penalty area.

Bench B and Eden Hazard also returned from their winger positions on both wings, and even made a cross-run to try to stretch the Reds defensively.

But today, Van Gaal has obviously done a detailed study of Pan Yi's set of frontcourt running tactics.

The Manchester United players were unfazed after seeing the Chelsea trident's move.

They did not let the opposing players run blindly with the opposing striker, nor did they stand in their own positions, but formed a set of on-field rotation mechanisms that cooperated tacitly.

Franny Flanei and Herrera, including McNair and Chris Smalling at the back, will follow the Chelsea players when they see them running to their positions, and will not let them receive the ball comfortably;

When the opposing player runs a certain distance, the player guarding him becomes another Manchester United player.

This is also the strategy of combining area + marking.

'It looks like Chelsea had a hard time attacking today.'

'Manchester United's defence was very well organised today, and Chelsea's unstoppable cross-cutting in the past didn't allow them to leak any holes.

"Louis van Gaal is indeed a master tactician, he must have studied for a long time after the last defeat to Chelsea, and came up with such a tactic to deal with Pan Yi's front trident."

'The attacking players at Chelsea right now, whether it's three strikers, two wing-backs, or a double midfielder who often plugs in the back, feels like they're being looked dead on.

'In that case, I can't figure out how Chelsea are going to attack because we don't know who to pass to.

"Who can break through such a line of defense??"

But just then, Nemanja Matic was able to pass the ball forward.

With the passing lines on both sides and in front of him blocked, he actually sent a ball over the top with his right foot and passed the ball into the penalty area!

It was also at this moment that everyone, including the live camera, noticed it......

At this time, on the left and right sides of Manchester United, there was a blue figure like two lightning bolts, quickly entering the penalty area of Manchester United from the left and right ribs!

And these two people, not Lukaku, Eden Hazard, B, not Joao Cancelo and Branislav Ivanovich.

It's Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta who are in central defence today! ——

When Pan Yi asked Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta to play at centre-back in training, both men were surprised.

But what surprised them even more was that Pan Yi demanded more from them than a normal central defender.

"Pressing harder", "Short passes", "More passes", "Quicker the tempo", "More risky passes", ......

In addition to these basics, they also have instructions such as "increase dribbling" and even "boldly insert into the penalty area".

Even if Marcos Alonso and Azpilicueta have become a little accustomed to Pan Yi's various magical operations in the past half season, it is still difficult to digest such information in a short period of time.

After all, what exactly is the role of a centre-back?

If you watch a modern game or analyze a team's attacking setup, you're likely to find that all but one or two players are involved in the attack.

So, who are the one or two players who weren't involved in the attack? They are usually the centre-backs of the team.

Strikers are naturally an important part of the attack, with midfielders also moving forward into the opposition half, and defensive midfielders – even if they don't press too far forward – often act as a fulcrum to help the team get the ball right and left.

As for the full-backs, they will make the most of the wide flanks and create attacking opportunities for the team.

When team-mates in other positions push forward to create attacking opportunities for the team, the centre-backs will usually stand closer to their own goal as the last barrier in front of the goalkeeper against the opponent's defensive counter-attack.

In other words, except for set-pieces, which require high points and special situations, central defenders are not easily involved in attacking.

Since the latest batch of coaches represented by Pan Yi began to use the concept of the central defender to a large extent, the long pass of the central defender to launch an attack has also become a sharp weapon for the team's attack.

Like Virgil van Dijk, like David Luiz.

They have good performances at both ends of the offensive and defensive ends, so Pan Yi will let the central defenders help the team control the ball, and then organize the team's attack through the backcourt pass.

But the problem is, even if they did, it only increased the number of points at the back, and there was an additional way to launch an attack with long passes, and it didn't make these central defenders suddenly step forward and become strikers.

Pan Yi just asked for it.

In recent training, he has often used Cos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta from the left and right centre-backs until he crossed the halfway line and into the opposition box, before finishing his shot.

It's a bit of a subversion of the perception of a centre-back.

But Pan Yi was quick to explain the benefits of this approach.

"At a time when teams are keen to hoard heavily in the midfield, it would be a valuable strategy to move the centre-backs forward while in possession to further strengthen the numerical advantage in the midfield."

"I've had David Luiz do it a lot in previous fights and I've had good results. It's just that it's not as radical as it is now. ”

"It's mainly a tactic that has been used for a long time, and it will always be studied and cracked by others, so we have to prepare more back-ups. This time, we tried to play two wing-backs at centre-back and cut through the flanks into the opposition box. ”

"The centre-backs pushing forward with the ball or cutting forward without the ball will further extend the numerical advantage of the team in the midfield area. This makes it easier for teams to carry the ball through midfield and into more dangerous areas up front. ”

"And when the opponent is staring at all our attacking players, the forward insertion of the central defenders will make them even more unguardable, because no one will think of marking our defenders who are standing at the back and don't seem to be ready to participate in the attack."

"This kind of play, in fact, someone did it a long time ago, and that person's name was Beckenbauer......"

'Of course, the forward movement of our two centre-backs creates a gap in the defence and gives the opposing attacking players a chance to take advantage of it. The solution to this problem is simple, and that is to fill in with nearby players in time – either as a defensive midfielder or as the nearest wing-back. ”

"This forms a longitudinal, large-scale crossing. It turned out to be a wing-back or midfielder who was preparing to attack, and the centre-back suddenly came in. ”

'In such a system, the centre-backs will have the opportunity to pop up front and surprise the opposing defenders, and all the players will be able to put pressure on the opposition in a more dangerous position.

Pan Yi did not elaborate on why this tactic is rarely widely used in world football, and only the likes of Beckenbauer and Matthaus have been able to execute it in history.

The reason for this is simple: most centre-backs are not skilled enough to make a positive impact in attack.

Not to mention the impact of tactical requirements, let's just say that in the early stage of the selection of football players, players with good skills and strong forward awareness have long been trained as strikers or midfielders, how can they be allowed to play defenders?

The last defender is often a "rough man" who is strong and can head the ball.

But today, it's a little different.

Football has started to produce a lot of highly skilled centre-backs who can contribute in attack if they move forward.

"Coincidentally", Pan Yi's Chelsea team has such a candidate.

Aside from David Luiz, it's Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta.

Of course, Ake has the potential to do so, but for now it is the two wing-backs who are in the best position to execute such aggressive tactics.

Under the premise that the attacking tactics of the front court are gradually studied thoroughly, the managers must make tactical innovations and find ways to improve the team's attacking ability.

In the process, the centre-backs are likely to be a key part of the team's attacking process.

Now, Pan Yi wants to apply this tactic directly and apply it to the game against Manchester United.

Of course, this is also Pan Yi's consistent requirement for players, that is, each player must try to learn skills in multiple positions, rather than a radish and a pit in the traditional sense.

In the best of the best cases, if a player can really play all positions on the pitch, then there really is no formation on the pitch that is not in formation.

The changes on the pitch will be endless, and the coach will be able to make many tactical changes without making substitutions.

Of course, this premise is unlikely to be fully realised at the moment – it would be a bit too outrageous to have Messi play centre-back.

But Pan Yi just tries to let the players lean in this direction, so that he can often show strange tricks on the field and surprise the opponent.

In modern football, where every tactic is meticulously handled, when you surprise your opponent, you are often already strategically ahead and half of the game has already won......

——

Now Manchester United's players, coaches and fans are in a state of surprise.

While Chelsea's attacking duo seemed to be completely restrained by United, Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta had quietly started from the back and headed down the flanks towards the United penalty area.

At the same time, on either side of Chelsea, the two wing-backs Joao Cancelo and Branislav Ivanovic have actually not pressed forward much, and have even slowly stepped back a bit.

They were there to make up for the gaps in the gap between the two centre-backs.

But at this time, Manchester United just felt that it was their own defence that made it difficult for Chelsea's wing-backs to attack, and it was a last resort.

And, with all eyes on Chelsea's trident, two midfielders, two wing-backs and even David Luiz, who often plays in the middle, who will notice Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta?

Therefore, when Nemanja Matic played such a ball into the United penalty area, the United players were a little stunned.

Where did these two generals come from?

In fact, when United were cunning against Chelsea's attack, there was still a centre-back left behind to defend at the back, and that was Chris Smalling.

This is actually Van Gaal's response to the tactics that Pan Yi sometimes uses to insert the central defenders.

But the question is, even if Chelsea had such an insertion in the past, it was the David Luiz in the middle, how did he change to two full-backs today, and two at once?

That left Smolin at a loss as to what to do.

But at this moment of lightning, he didn't think too much, and subconsciously stared at Marcos Alonso, who was closer to him

– and also because Marcos Alonso is taller and Chris Smalling feels he is a bigger threat to his own goal.

And this has caused Azpilicueta on the other side to be completely unguarded.

He slotted into the box as fast as he could, and caught Nemanja Matic's pass.

Nemanja Matic made the pass just right, not too hard, just as he had done in the last few days of training.

When Azpilicueta catches up, the feeling of catching the ball is very familiar, and the desire to shoot becomes very strong at this point!

So, he didn't stop the ball, and directly shot angrily with his right foot against the ball!

The ball took a straight line and shot quickly into the top right corner of the United goal.

Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea reacted quickly, but in the face of such closeness, speed and angle, he could only stand straight and watch as the ball hit the inside of the top right corner and into the United goal.

"The ball went in!!!!!!!!! Beautiful goal!!!!! ”

"At this time, it was less than two minutes before the opening!"

'Chelsea's first attack, Azpilicueta's quick back cut and a stunning right-footed shot opened the scoring for Chelsea!'

“1：0！ Chelsea lead by one goal at home! ”

'It's fair to say that Chelsea's goal came a little suddenly!'

'Just a few seconds ago, it seemed that United's defence was well organised and Chelsea seemed to be completely unable to find gaps in attack.

'But seconds later, two of Chelsea's full-backs burst into the United penalty area, which caught United off guard.

"They were like a god soldier from heaven, and the whole Manchester United defence was stunned."

'Now we can finally see what Chelsea's starting line-up really is.

"Playing centre-back with two wing-backs and making the most of their attacking prowess is something that only heaven can come up with!"

"And it is precisely because of this arrangement that Manchester United's zone + marking defense suddenly loses its effect, because no one would have thought that the opponent's two central defenders would enter their own penalty area at the same time and assume the responsibility of a striker!"

"Almost every game of Pan Yi this season will surprise and bring surprises, and it seems that tonight is no exception!"

——

For the first minute or two of the game, Van Gaal sat calmly in the dugout and watched the game.

Although the layout of Pan Yi's starting lineup on the back line today did surprise the Dutch coach, in his guess, this should be Pan Yi's last resort.

John Terry's suspension was set before the game, and Gary Cahill did not start, perhaps due to some pre-game injury.

This is sometimes unavoidable, and some players get injured in the warm-up before the start of the game after being in the starting line-up.

In the face of such an important game as Manchester United, Pan Yi may not want to let young newcomers like Ake, Zouma, and Christensen play to avoid making mistakes under pressure.

Therefore, in desperation, the three central defenders composed of Alonso and Azpilicueta could only be discharged.

But such a conjecture was shattered two minutes later.

Louis van Gaal was watching with satisfaction as his disciples kept Chelsea's attack out of the danger zone when suddenly he heard the exclamations of the United fans and the cheers of the Chelsea fans.

Then, there was the referee's crisp whistle.

Scored!

Van Gaal was dumbfounded.

Both centre-backs have hit their own penalty area?

Is Pan Yi really playing the tactics of the four wingbacks?

This is really unheard of!

Van Gaal didn't even quite believe his eyes and watched the slow-motion replay a few more times.

It's true.

It was not Romelu Lukaku, not Eden Hazard, not Bench B, but Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta who inserted into their own box.

The name of the scorer is indeed Azpilicueta!

Is this a special effect of the Chelsea players on the pitch who are fooling around and improvising themselves?

Van Gaal couldn't help but think so.

After all, such a tactic is just outrageous!

Whether it's a four-wing-back or a two-centre-back striker, it's outrageous, and it's never been seen in world football.

However, what remains of reason in Van Gaal's mind told him that this was probably really a tactic specially designed by Pan Yi.

It can be seen from Chelsea's starting line-up that Pan Yi would rather not start without Cahill and Ake, and let Alonso and Azpilicueta stand in the central defence position.

This is not the impact of injury, nor is it the fear of young players being nervous, this is what Pan Yi deliberately did!

And think about the last meeting between the two teams......

Pan Yi's 5-1-4 stab, can you find a similar style of play around the world before? (Author's note: Exclude a cloud anchor.) ）

This shows that Pan Yi in this game, he just put out an unexpected lineup, and then directly gave Manchester United a sneak attack with an unexpected style of play!

Thinking of this, Van Gaal is really a little depressed.

He really prepared for this game for a long time.

Pan Yi has studied the various personnel combinations and tactical styles used this season very thoroughly, so today he confidently discharged such a 4-1-4-1 formation to compete with it, and it seems to have worked in the opening minute or so.

But unfortunately, it was only a little more than a minute.

Bang, soon. Chelsea scored.

And it was scored in a way that Van Gaal didn't expect at all.

This is tantamount to saying that Van Gaal's preparation for such a long time has all come to naught.

Is there anything more depressing than this?

Louis van Gaal couldn't help but glance at the home team's dugout.

I saw that Pan Yi was celebrating the goal with the assistant coach and substitute players, and kept pressing forward against the players on the field.

What this action means ......

To continue the onslaught?

Van Gaal felt vaguely uneasy.

After all, the shadow of the 0:5 defeat in the last game still echoes in his heart.

If he loses so badly this time, then he really doesn't know how to calculate the growing shadow area in his heart......

(End of chapter)