"Leon went up with the ball! Cesc Fabregas didn't stop Leon's advance! Gundogan and Fernandinho have a bag clip! Leon pulls the side to continue to push... Shot!! ”

"Oops! This long-range shot Li Ang hit beautifully! Bravo flutters beautifully, too! Bravo looked very focused at the start of the day, with Leon failing to make a surprise move, but Chelsea were given their first corner of the game......

Zhan Jun and Director Zhang applauded and regretted Li Ang's surprise long-range shot in the studio.

But Leon just smiled and shook his head on the field, and then didn't make any more regrettable moves, and poured into the Manchester City penalty area with his teammates who were competing for the top.

The Manchester City fans, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, saw that Chelsea was about to take a corner kick at this moment, and their relieved hearts suddenly rose to their throats again!

Pep Guardiola has been relatively calm, and his team have suffered enough from Chelsea's set-pieces over the past two seasons.

So before the start of the new season this year, he and his coaching team also spent a lot of energy and time developing a training plan for set-piece defence.

Manchester City are not a top team in attack and defence from set-pieces, but they will no longer be embarrassed by Chelsea's high air superiority.

As long as you are willing to spend time and effort on training and build a systematic tactical structure, the improvement reflected in the game is definitely very obvious.

In defending Chelsea's corners, City did a good job of dividing and protecting the dangerous areas in the box.

While they don't have as many tall players on the pitch as Chelsea, their two centre-backs occupy advantageous defensive positions, and the other markers are also a two-to-two for Chelsea's 'dangerous men'.

Manchester City couldn't solve Chelsea's threat in the aerial battle, so they were smart enough to put their main battlefield on the ground.

The Chelsea scrambles, who were being guarded by the bag, struggled to get their full impact even when they were in place.

Maguire was sandwiched back and forth by Mangala and Gundogan this time!

He finally got the ball, but he didn't finish the head-shaking action, he didn't have much power, and the ball was finally confiscated by Bravo.

Li Ang, who was in the middle of the penalty area as a tactical disguise, saw that Bravo won the ball, and immediately rushed forward to throw the ball and counterattack.

So on the one hand, he deliberately blocked the direction of Bravo's throw, and on the other hand, he waved his teammates to quickly return to the defense.

Bravo, who was recognized by Leang's intentions, spread his hands with the ball a little helplessly, and Leang's blatant blocking had interfered with his vision and quick throwing.

Seeing this, the referee on duty also blew the whistle to signal Li Ang to quickly withdraw from the penalty area of Manchester City.

Leon didn't say much, and after exiting the Manchester City penalty area, he quickly retreated to defend.

City's defensive response at the start of the game surprised many neutral fans who had not had time to take a closer look at their tactical changes this season.

This Manchester City team has indeed become very different from the team they remember always likes to play with attacking instead of defending!

At this moment, Mourinho also paced to the sidelines.

He rubbed his chin and looked at a thoughtful look in his eyes, looking at City's new goalkeeper Bravo this season, and then at Gundogan and Fernandinho.

It can only be said that Lao Mu's tactical vision is still as vicious as ever.

When more attention is paid to Raheem Sterling, who has excelled in Manchester City's forward line, or Cesc Fabregas, who has seen a surge in his stats since his position this season.

He has already seen two key positions that have contributed to the transformation of the current Manchester City team.

The arrival of Bravo has finally given Manchester City's backfield a "soul".

The Chilean international, who has a wider range of movement, a more steady ball and better footwork, is already the first player in Manchester City's backline.

Neither Joe Hart, who has better goal-line skills, nor Valdés, whose form has dropped significantly compared to before, has obviously not been able to satisfy Guardiola.

In Pep Guardiola's tactical structure, the goal will be very important.

Such goalkeepers are often able to further free up the movement of their centre-backs and even midfielders.

With this type of goalkeeper, there is no longer a need for central defenders and midfielders to frequently drop back to help other teammates get the ball and get rid of it.

When the key players in the midfield are pressed by the opponent, they only need to pass the ball back with confidence, and then the goalkeeper responds in time and transfers the ball to the feet of the wide players who are out of position.

This is not a risky move for Pep Guardiola's side, but on the contrary, it will further increase their tolerance for possession at the back.

Bravo had already shown his excellent passing skills in the opening few aggressive ball-sharing sessions.

And he's not just good at his feet, he's also good at goal-line skills and save reflexes.

A short goalkeeper like him is very dependent on his reflexes and athleticism, and perhaps as he gets older, his performance will decline rapidly in the next season or two.

But that's also a matter for the upcoming season, at least for now, and he's the obvious choice for City's number one.

And Gundogan, a German international who has made a name for himself in Dortmund, can be regarded as the type of midfielder that Guardiola likes very much.

Outstanding technique, strong tactical understanding, large running area, and good defensive positioning.

Pep Guardiola's side never needed a defensive.

He has high requirements for the midfield, even higher than the definition of the main midfielder by Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti and Alex Ferguson.

When Mourinho doesn't have a big midfield at his disposal, he can use the black and hard tackling machine.

Carlo Ancelotti and Alex Ferguson are even more of a top performer.

One of the two of them can put the front midfielder in the back and play the protective central midfielder style of play.

The other is to maximize the use of a first-class end of the back, and use the first-class role!

But in the case of the 'fussy' Pep Guardiola, he can tweak a midfielder, but he himself requires the midfielder to have the potential to be developed at the top of the game.

This potential is there, and if there is none, there is none.

If you force him to be a first-rate midfielder or even a second-rate midfielder, he can actually use it, but at this point he may choose to be more aggressive and even resign from the management altogether.

Because Gua Shuai never compromises in the construction of the midfield!

People who don't understand him will think that he is paranoid and arrogant and refuses to bow his head.

But those who understand him, such as Jose Mourinho, understand that it is just a manifestation of his dedication to high tactical standards.

Gundogan's arrival made up for Cesc Fabregas's lack of defence, and he and Fernandinho really formed a defensive duo at the back.

Of course, it is more important that the German international is able to communicate with Pep Guardiola at a tactical level.

His arrival freed Cesc Fabregas's attacking lethality and helped Fernandinho relieve the defensive pressure.

The role is actually very similar to the small upgraded version of Leon after returning to Real Madrid from Milan on loan.

Neither Leon then nor Gundogan were at the heart of the team's midfield, but their presence was incomparably important.

Able to quickly understand the tactical intentions of the head coach, further stimulate the tactical role of the front and back court dual-core, attack, retreat and defend, and run very actively.

The goalkeeper and midfield positions have been filled, and the tactical structural flaws of Manchester City's previous two seasons have also been filled.

As for Raheem Sterling, who played explosively up front?

That's another surprise.

For Pep Guardiola, he can do without the explosive Sterling, but he definitely needs the current Gundogan and Bravo.

Jose Mourinho knows his old friend and knows his tactical thinking better, so after seeing the Manchester City squad in person, he inevitably began to hesitate.

After all, what he disliked the most was this kind of uncertainty.

But after a quick thought with a frown, Mourinho quickly furled his brow again......

Two minutes later, Jose Mourinho gave his first tactical command to the Chelsea players on the pitch for today's game!

As soon as Li Ang saw Mu Shuai's tactical adjustment, he also had a bottom in his heart.

At this moment, he and Mu Shuai thought of going together again!

"Continue to shrink the defence and consolidate our defence in the middle!"

Leon yelled at his team-mates and signaled them to be more aggressive in defence to stop City's penetration in the middle.

Of course, it doesn't take Mourinho and Leon to make such a big battle to improve the defense.

Chelsea's back-hand move is still in the rapid advance of the wings when switching from defense to attack!

Such a counterattack arrangement does not look very reliable.

After all, Manchester City has completely transformed, and they have been beaten by Chelsea many times before and lost the game, can't they learn to be guarded?

Jose Mourinho was the first to think the same thing after seeing Manchester City's great progress.

But he soon thought about Pep Guardiola's unique character.

It's okay for his old friend to play a dozen counter-attacks once in a while, just as a change of taste in tactics, but Guardiola will never use anti-counter-tactics as a winning card.

Gua Shuai is a natural talent for attacking tactics, and as long as his opponent dares to give up the initiative in midfield, he will never miss the opportunity to control the pace of the game!

A well-known coach with a track record of great success, he may occasionally switch up his tactical style.

But his temper, his unique personality, his tactical philosophy is very difficult to change!

Mourinho is now trying to use midfield control to provoke Guardiola's attacking desire.

It's a bit risky, but it's well worth it for Mourinho and the whole Chelsea team!

After Leon led his teammates to retreat to consolidate the midfield defense, he was also a little nervous waiting for the Manchester City team's reaction.

When he saw the whole Manchester City team pressing on without hesitation under the command of Guardiola, Leon showed a down-to-earth smile on his face!

It's a testament to Pep Guardiola and the rest of Manchester City's squad who are reluctant to play with Chelsea's dull defence at home stadium.

No matter how "sleek" he has become in terms of tactical adjustment, Guardiola is still the Guardiola who has a persistent pursuit of tactical concepts!

Li Ang sincerely admired Gua Shuai and the players of the whole Manchester City team at this moment!

But Manchester City have Manchester City's way of proving and they have their own way to go for Chelsea!

After letting Manchester City's attacking players cross the halfway line, Leon led his midfield teammates to once again engage in a fierce scramble with the opponent.

His oppressive defense makes no secret of his aggressiveness at the level of confrontation.

Xiaofa and Silva showed no weakness and were brave enough to protect the ball, but in terms of physical fitness, these two Manchester City frontcourt nuclei really couldn't compete with Leon.

As a result, Manchester City's forward press gradually evolved into a tug-of-war at the front of Chelsea's defensive third!

Chelsea has become the most hated "stinky stone" of Manchester City fans at this moment!

The defense is really stinky and hard!

A large wave of players in the middle is not to make Manchester City comfortable to organize the attack!

When I saw that Hazard and Salah had even returned to their own defensive third, I don't know how many neutral fans who watched the game were shaking their heads again and again, lamenting that Mourinho was violent.

The on-field duel between Chelsea and Manchester City has become almost an offensive and defensive drill between two extreme tactics at this moment.

Obviously, both teams can attack and defend well, and they will not go such an extreme way when playing against other Premier League teams.

But as soon as they meet each other, they always play like this!

If you don't score a goal, anyway, the scene is always exciting and beautiful, and the rhythm is intense.

Leon spearheaded a devastating defensive tactic, but his mind remained clear-headed, and he didn't just focus on splitting City's attacking rhythm.

The two teams fought for almost 15 minutes at the expense of physical fitness, and in the 24th minute of the first half, Li Ang seized the opportunity to shovel and destroy the ball at Sterling's feet!

Hazard, who retreated to receive the second penalty, had to turn and accelerate along the sideline after grabbing the second penalty for the first time.

However, Gundogan's timely defense made Hazard have to dispel the idea of riding alone.

At the critical moment, it was Leon's shouting that made Hazard choose to knock the ball back.

Leon, who got up from the turf after tackling the ball, didn't have time to breathe a sigh of relief, so he stabbed Hazard's return pass to Kroos, who had already begun to cut forward, despite Fabregas's defensive interference!

The German midfielder didn't rush forward after winning the ball, knowing his pace was not enough to have the upper hand against City's defenders.

So after he calmly received the ball, he even took a second to observe the movement of his surroundings and teammates in front of him at the moment.

In the next moment, he sent a precise and fast long ball directly in the middle of the midfield!

This pass was not passed to Salah on the other side, but to Trippier, who was very clever after borrowing Hazard to attract the attention of the opponent's defense!

Trippier didn't choose to stop Kroos' long ball on the touchline, but he boldly stopped and slammed the ball straight into the heart of Manchester City's middle, and he cut inside himself!

Kolarov was still waiting to intercept Trippier in the middle of the way, but Trippier's unconventional push operation immediately made him dumbfounded!

When Kieran Trippier sprinted down the middle and forced Fernandinho to intercept him, he shoehorned the ball back in front of Mohamed Salah, who started on the left side of the day!

Keylor Navas was involved in the attack before, and he didn't have to return to the defense at this time, and Kompany didn't dare to easily lose the position in the penalty area to attack, so Salah can push down very calmly at this time!

He can have some trouble shooting on the left flank, but he is very comfortable to pass!

So when the entire Manchester City back line was not in place in time, Salah decisively sent a big arc sweep to the Manchester City penalty area on the left side!

The ball quickly swept past the front of the Manchester City penalty area, Bravo yelled at Mangala to pounce on the back post, and he himself blocked the near corner on the other side of the goal in the first place!

Leon plugged in at high speed at this moment, but under Bravo's confident gaze, he decisively passed the ball in the inverted triangle to the middle of the penalty area at the back of the goal!

The air at the Etihad Stadium seems to have condensed at this moment!

It seemed that he was slowly stepping forward, but at this moment, Kroos, who happened to have no defenders around, met the return pass sent by Leon, and still calmly hit the putt shot!

The ball cleverly pressed against the turf and then almost hit the Manchester City goalpost and went straight into the net!

Bravo was dumbfounded, he still couldn't believe that Leon could choose to concede generously in the face of such a good opportunity!

And Leon was already laughing and hugging Kroos at the moment, and beckoning the rest of his teammates to run to the corner flag area of Manchester City's half to celebrate!

The commentator of Sky Sports England once again sang the praises to Leon at this moment!

Countless Premier League fans watched Li Ang, who was celebrating with his teammates in the live broadcast camera, and they were not convinced!

This guy is a threshold, and he is a special tripping team!

(End of chapter)