I almost helped Manchester United revive, but I chose to run away

Chapter 10 I came here to do only three things: win, win, and win!

"Should we let Fred help defend the left wing? If Cristiano retreats too frequently to make up for the deficit, we won't be able to push forward on the left wing. It's easy to make mistakes if we're pressed too hard..."

Carrick looked at the situation where his left side was suppressed at this time, and made a suggestion to Li Chen with a little concern.

If the defensive space on the wing is severely compressed, it is easy for the opponent to create a passive situation of outnumbering the opponent. Normally, the midfielders closer to this side should assist in defense.

But Li Chen was not in a hurry to mobilize Fred to focus on defense on the left side. He just shook his head with a serious look.

"Arsenal were waiting for us to lean our defensive strength to the left. Once Fred's protection was gone in front of Matic, Odegaard could cooperate with his teammates to go to the flank and break through our midfield's frontal interception.

Even though Arsenal is attacking fiercely on the right side at the moment, Martinelli's personal breakthrough ability is not strong enough to defeat Dalot. It is also a good thing that Chris actively returns to defense. They can withstand it!

In contrast, Arsenal's offensive penetration in the middle of the midfield is what we must focus on limiting. If we suppress Odegaard's performance, Aubameyang can only go to the side more often to receive the ball. This is the defensive effect I want to see."

While explaining in detail to Carrick, Li Chen made tactical gestures to indicate to several midfielders on the field to act according to the pre-match tactical deployment.

As expected, Dalot, who gradually adapted to the intensity of Arsenal's attack on the right, gradually stabilized his performance.

When he doesn't need to worry about running into the sidelines to attack and can only focus on defense, his speed and obviously larger body than other full-backs are his advantages.

Martinelli could clearly feel the increase in Dalot's defensive intensity, and Kenhiro Tomiyasu's several attempts to go down the flank were blocked by Bailly's early positioning.

In order to not lose the ball by forcing a breakthrough, Martinelli could only frequently pass the ball back to Odegaard or his own midfielder Thomas who came forward to receive the ball.

So the central battlefield for Arsenal to solve the offensive problem returned to the center.

Arteta kept stroking his chin on the sidelines, watching the game situation with no progress. There was no depressed expression on his face, but he also sighed in his heart, "Manchester United changed coaches at a really bad time."

If it is still the Manchester United that Solskjaer coached before, then Arteta will definitely have the confidence that he can lead the team to suppress Manchester United's performance in the midfield!
After all, at that time Matic either played as a lone defensive midfielder or had few partners around him who could provide him with support on the defensive end.

Arsenal played high pressure normally and would have put Matic in a difficult position.

Not to mention the high probability of beating Manchester United at Old Trafford, Arteta believes that his team can at least achieve suppression on the field.

If it's hard to get three points, then getting one point and getting out of this unscathed is also an acceptable situation.

But now it seems that Manchester United, which has initially solved the midfield defense problem, is fully qualified to pursue consecutive victories at home.

I'm afraid that Manchester United's main players are now trying their best to show themselves at home...

Arteta felt a little tricky, as the reorganization and perfection of Manchester United's midfield defensive system had exceeded his pre-match expectations.

Without another technical midfielder who can get forward and complete a breakthrough, Arsenal's offensive rhythm will be difficult to change significantly with Odegaard alone advancing.

At this time, don't even think about changing the offensive tactics that combine the wing and the middle, or both wings flying together.

The two wingers that Arsenal started today are not strong enough to take on Manchester United's full-backs in a one-on-one match.

What's more, if you can't break out of the siege in the middle and provide the ability to change the rhythm, how can the side lanes move along?
In the final analysis, the bench is not thick enough...

When Arteta thought of Xhaka's injury, he sighed in his heart again, but he did not show his inner emotional fluctuations on the surface.

With him standing on the sidelines supervising the game with a serious face, the Arsenal players on the field would not lose their composure because of the temporary obstruction of the attack.

Thomas and Elneny were in charge of the midfield and backcourt, and they controlled the tempo of the game very well.

But Arsenal continued to test the forward attack, and at the same time had to face Manchester United's pressing pressure in the middle and low positions, so passing errors were inevitable.

However, after Manchester United seized the ball, they were not in a hurry to launch a quick counterattack. Instead, they moved forward steadily and passed the ball to Sancho who retreated to receive the ball.

The tactical changes reflected in this surprised the entire Arsenal team.

Because in the last league game, Manchester United used two midfield generals, Sancho and B Fee, as tactical cover in the match against Chelsea. In fact, it was Matic who drove the offensive changes after holding the ball.

So in this game, Arsenal naturally made detailed defensive responses to Matic's late runs.

But now it seems that Li Chen does not intend to let Matic participate in the attack too much today. Instead, he clearly wants Sancho to control the offensive ball!

"Could it be that Li Chen really wants Sancho to play as a winger to replace Bruno Fernandes as the offensive dealer?"

Such questions now appeared in the minds of countless fans watching the game.

Arteta originally thought so, until he accidentally saw Li Chen walking to the sidelines and making a tactical gesture of pressing down with one palm!

Manchester United's main players on the field then further expanded their formation.

With Sancho as the core of the ball, Martial and Fred actively approached him one after the other to ensure that he had at least one ball receiving point in front and behind.

Manchester United's left and right backs also began to move forward in a large way, basically crossing the center line.

Ronaldo was not in a hurry to occupy the center position left by Martial after his retreat. He was still lurking in the flank area on both sides of Arsenal's penalty area and moving without the ball.

At this moment, Sancho naturally became the focus of the court.

But he did not dribble the ball and create offensive opportunities as the fans imagined.

He simply controlled the ball steadily, dodging the markings of Arsenal's defenders while safely passing the ball to his teammates on both wings.

This offensive style may seem a bit slow, but it actually avoids many risks of mistakes. And soon, many veteran fans discovered Sancho's excellence in ball route selection.

Like the method Solskjaer used before with Sancho, it actually exposed Sancho's weaknesses of insufficient physical strength and slow dribbling speed to the opponent.

Moreover, Sancho was mostly active on the two flanks at the time. If he wanted to go to the middle to get the ball and cooperate with his teammates, he would inevitably occupy B Fee's tactical space.

So even though he would always suffer a loss in one-on-one attacks, he still had to try, because that was the only tactical authority left to him.

In the Premier League, which advocates physical confrontation and where almost all defenders are muscular men, Sancho's playing style means that it is difficult for him to perform well on the wing.

Now Li Chen has asked B Fee to retreat, leaving a large space in the frontcourt for Sancho and Ronaldo to use. Sancho, who can organize the ball on both the wing and the middle at the same time, is immediately activated!

Rather than positioning Sancho as a traditional wing attacker, it is better to position him as a new-era wing organizer.

Under Li Chen's new tactical system, Sancho no longer needs to use his inferior confrontation and speed abilities to compete with his opponents, but can give full play to his organizational role.

Some people made timely passes to him, and some people actively cooperated with him in off-ball running.

In such a tactical environment where he feels at home, Sancho's superb passing skills and unique passing vision advantage are fully revealed!
No matter how Arsenal's defenders targeted and restricted Sancho, he could always "take" the ball away smoothly with the active cooperation of his teammates.

Moreover, he is not very afraid of the opponent's one-on-one pressing. His ability to hold and protect the ball is excellent. Even if he cannot dribble away smoothly, he can at least complete the back pass and try to ensure that the ball is not lost.

When Arsenal's frontcourt players wanted to press Matic who received the ball, Matic decisively knocked the ball back!

At this time, the entire Arsenal team was surprised to find that B Fee had actually retreated to the backcourt area parallel to their two central defenders!

After receiving the return pass from Matic, B Fee wanted to observe for a while and then send a long diagonal pass to both wings, but Li Chen shouted directly from the sidelines at this time!

After being reminded, B Fee calmed down, and then signaled the two central defenders to move to the left and right. Before Aubameyang pressed, he calmly passed the ball to Lindelof who had moved to the right.

As soon as Lindelof got the ball, Matic in the middle and Wan-Bissaka who was actively retreating came to him to support him.

Lindelof made a feint, seemingly going to pass the ball forward to Wan-Bissaka, but in fact his dunk first avoided Smith Rowe's interception, and then he passed the ball horizontally!
After getting the ball, Matic moved sideways to protect the ball and dribbled horizontally, then passed the ball to B Fee who was pressing up to the left side of the midfield.

Before the Arsenal players who were pressing high in the frontcourt had time to turn around as a whole, B Fee passed the ball diagonally to Sancho who was actively running to this side to receive the ball!
During this wave of Manchester United's quick passes to break through the pressure in the backcourt, there was always someone to receive the ball, and every pass had a clear plan. The Red Devils fans at Old Trafford were so excited that they kept clapping and cheering in surprise!
After a smooth pass that broke through the pressure, Sancho gracefully protected the ball and turned around, then sent a timely and accurate diagonal pass to the right!

Martial, who unknowingly switched positions with Ronaldo and moved to the right, unloaded the ball perfectly. He then used a fake move to change direction and make a strong attack on the right, forcing Arsenal left-back Tavares to retreat quickly!
Martial, who got the space to shoot, observed for a moment, then sent a slightly high cross to the back of Arsenal's penalty area!
The quality of this cross was only average, but fortunately it was high enough, leaving Gabriel, who was standing in front to intercept, helpless!
As the football fell towards the back of Arsenal's penalty area, Ronaldo, who had been silent for more than ten minutes, suddenly made a diagonal run and completed an amazing jump!

Ben White, who was arranged by Arteta to play as the right center back today and was responsible for defense and passing the ball from the backcourt, has now become a fatal flaw in Arsenal's defense!

Ronaldo completed the header almost above Ben White who jumped at the same time!

Ramsdale's reaction to the save in the critical moment was very quick, and he seemed to have touched the football with his fingertips!

But Ronaldo's header was so powerful!
Even though its forward trajectory was slightly disturbed, it eventually hit the inside of the Arsenal goal post and bounced into the net!

In the 16th minute of the first half, Ronaldo used his first shot attempt of the game to help Manchester United take the lead at home!

The entire Old Trafford stadium was shaking wildly like a volcano erupting!
The wild cheers of the Red Devils fans instantly swept across the entire stadium, with the momentum reaching the sky!

The live camera also captured the excited applause of Manchester United executives and Sir Alex Ferguson in the box at this moment!
Sir Ferguson's face was once again filled with joy.

Such joy was not only because his beloved disciple Cristiano Ronaldo once again scored a goal at Old Trafford and turned the tide, but also because he saw an emerging young coach with potential truly leading Manchester United on the right track!
This time, Ronaldo, who ran to the end line to celebrate, did not lead all the Manchester United fans in shouting "SIU!!!"

He was just fully releasing the passion and surging emotions in his heart, beating his chest hard and roaring in a cathartic manner!

He vented his emotions so vigorously this time that under the gaze of the live camera, the veins on his temples were exposed!

This is an aging hall-of-fame superstar's ruthless rebuttal and roar against the years!

It is also a strong proof for him to once again declare to the world that he has top goal-scoring ability!
The group of young Manchester United players who rushed forward and gathered around him were also excited at the moment, their eyes filled with conviction and admiration for Ronaldo!
Sancho excitedly jumped onto Ronaldo's shoulders!

Dalot and Martial excitedly patted Ronaldo's arms!

Matic put his arms around Ronaldo's neck and sincerely congratulated his superstar teammate.

And finally, B Fee, who ran all the way to the front court, grinned and hugged Ronaldo tightly!
What locker room mismatch?

What internal conflict?!

At this moment, Manchester United fans who were watching the whole team celebrate in unity had long forgotten the bullshit news reported by the media!
They prefer to believe what they see.

This is a Manchester United team that has started over and is united!

They have established clear tactical responsibilities on the field and have a strong spiritual core with great leadership charisma!
Of course, off the court, they also have a new captain who can truly lead the team to victory!
Li Chen slightly straightened his collar and tie which had been messed up by Carrick's passionate hug.

Afterwards, he punched the home stands vigorously and passionately to celebrate, as the waves of red people kept rolling in the stands!

He only does three things when he comes here.

Win!

Win!

Still TMD, win the game!
(End of this chapter)