Football: Starting from the Ronaldinho template

Chapter 300: Arsenal's Home Wonder Crushed by Manchester United? Two Consecutive League Wins, League Cup Rematch Against Manchester United!
Emirates Stadium.

Manchester United fans stood proudly with their hands on their hips, singing their team anthem in unison.

On the pitch, the Manchester United players looked the same way, appearing much happier than if they had won the EFL Cup.

For the past two seasons, they have had no outlet for their frustration, watching their arch-rivals Arsenal suddenly rise to prominence and breaking the long-standing dominance of Manchester United over Arsenal.

Among them, Martial, whom they bought for 4500 million, was endlessly ridiculed by other fans, who said he was not even as good as half of Qin Ming.

Manchester United fans have long wanted to beat Arsenal at least once.

Although the process wasn't very pleasant today, and the defensive style of play was a bit ugly, at least we secured the victory.

Moreover, having won away from home, they only need to repeat the same tactic at home, parking the bus and drawing 0-0, to advance to the EFL Cup final.

As for last season's EFL Cup champions, Arsenal, they will be unable to defend their title.

"Oh!!!"

Manchester United fans lingered, reluctant to leave.

As is customary, Qin Ming led his teammates in thanking the fans. They shouldn't feel ashamed just because they lost the game, and thus avoid facing the fans like someone trying to escape.

"Stop looking like it's the end of the world."

Qin Ming comforted him, "Isn't there a second round? I think we still have a chance."

Manchester United's defense was indeed very strong today, but it wasn't completely ineffective; they still created a few good chances.

Unfortunately, it didn't turn into a goal in the end.

"Cup competitions are more unpredictable, so we can use the EFL Cup as a preview of the Champions League and learn how to adjust our form in advance."

Cazorla nodded as well.

They are doing very well in the league, but you can't just apply the same methods you use in the league to cup competitions.

Arsenal still lacks cup experience.

Losing this game isn't necessarily a bad thing; at least it has brought everyone back to their senses and helped them drop their contempt.

"Go! Go!" Morata was full of fighting spirit.

When he was in Real Madrid's youth academy, it was Mourinho who discovered him, so he can be considered to have received some credit for his mentorship.

But that's precisely why he wanted to prove himself to Mourinho.

Seeing that his teammates were not giving up, Qin Ming strode forward.

at the post-match press conference.

"Some people question my conservative tactics? But look at Arsenal today, 67% possession, 12 shots, yet they lost to a boring team!"

"Because football isn't a math problem about possession, it's a war to get the ball into the goal!"

"De Gea's 10 saves? That's just his daily routine!"

"."

Mourinho held up one finger, revealing a long-absent arrogant expression.

He was really holding back.

Arsène Wenger, who once dismissed his opponents without a second glance and lost to them more than ten times in a row, has now achieved the pinnacle of success in the league this season.

He is not satisfied.

So he needs to redeem himself in the cup competition and prove that he is still the same madman.

Reporters in the audience all gave each other a "that's right" look.

The meeting room next door.

"Losing the first round doesn't mean you can't advance. I never like to make philosophical pronouncements before things are settled."

Unlike before, Wenger did not respond with a blank silence.

Because he has the confidence.

"The second leg at Old Trafford at the end of the month will be a great match."

After saying that, he left the scene.

After a lackluster EFL Cup semi-final, an earthquake struck English football, as Arsenal's momentum had left countless fans stunned.

I thought they would sweep through the domestic competitions such as the league, the EFL Cup, and the FA Cup with unstoppable momentum.

However, they were previously held to a draw by Bournemouth and then lost 0-1 to Manchester United.

Is Arsenal about to falter?
Chelsea, Liverpool, and Manchester City fans are full of expectations. If it were the same Arsenal they were in the first half of the season, they wouldn't be able to muster the fighting spirit to compete.

But if Arsenal is in poor form, they feel they can kick anyone away.

The Sun: Arsenal's home myth crushed by the Red Devils! The Spanish goalkeeper, like a wall of sighs, silenced the Gunners' attack!

The Mirror: The magic of the Ballon d'Or and the second-place finisher in the FIFA World Player of the Year award is fading?

Manchester Daily: With the team gradually gelling, Manchester United have risen to prominence, proving to English clubs that Arsenal are not invincible!

Diario Sport: Pogba posted a meaningful photo on social media after the match, asking which is more important, £9500 million or £9600 million.

"."

Arsenal is not well-liked, either in England or globally.

This is related to their team spirit, history, and so on.

In the past, when they lost a match, there was a torrent of public opinion, with people trying to overwhelm them.
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Public opinion is shifting too quickly!
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Qin Ming is also getting better; he's enjoying the same treatment as Messi and Ronaldo, getting mocked every time he loses.
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If Arsenal truly disappears forever, they will become a laughingstock worldwide.
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[Actually, we only lost to Manchester United by one goal, and De Gea played exceptionally well, so it's not fair to say that.]
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It all depends on whether they can turn things around away from home.
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【.】

Just after defeating Arsenal, Manchester United made headlines with a massive transfer, signing Victor Lindelof for £3800 million.

Qin Ming thought about the news for a while after seeing it.

O is a former Benfica center-back, and the two have faced each other in the Champions League.

As January progresses into the middle of the month, the winter transfer window gradually becomes busier.

Barcelona are reportedly set to ruthlessly offload five players, including Mascherano, Rafinha, Deulofeu, and others.

Real Madrid, due to the FIFA ban, was originally scheduled to make transfers in the winter transfer window next year. However, after an appeal, the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned the original decision, shortening the two-window period to the end of January, meaning they can make signings normally in the summer transfer window this year.

Manchester City did nothing else but bring back goalkeeper Rulli, who was on loan to Real Sociedad, and then spent over 20 million to sign Palmeiras striker Jesus.

Liverpool made almost no moves, while Chelsea recalled several players whose loan spells had ended, including Ake, who plays for Bournemouth.

Arsenal loaned out Matt Messi.

They had already made several signings during the summer transfer window, including Morata, Van Dijk, and Kanté, leaving them with limited funds. In addition, the squad was already stable, so they didn't make any major moves.

Before I knew it, it was September 1th.

Amidst external doubts, Arsenal thrashed Swansea 5-0 and defeated Burnley 3-1, securing their second consecutive league win.

Today they will play the second leg of the EFL Cup semi-final at Old Trafford.

"In the first leg of the EFL Cup semi-final, Manchester United secured a 1-0 victory over Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium thanks to their solid defense!"

"They'll definitely be in better form back at home!"

"But Arsenal, who had previously been questioned about their declining form, silenced the doubters with two resounding victories, with Qin Ming scoring three goals in those two games!"

"He's already 11 goals ahead of second-placed Harry Kane in the Premier League top scorer standings!"

"What is this concept?"

"I think he can definitely break his own record this season and reach 40 goals, a record that has never been set before!"

"Can he break through Manchester United's solid defense?"

Sky Sports reporters analyzed the recent form of both teams.

Arsenal have won two consecutive league matches, while Manchester United have drawn two consecutive matches.

First a 1-1 draw with Liverpool, then a 1-1 draw with Stoke City, leaving people puzzled.

So the Red Devils don't care about the strength of their opponents?
Arsenal fans are quite happy about this, as their rivals Liverpool have dropped points again, widening the gap between them.

Manchester United fans looked miserable.

Is this league really that difficult to play in? But since things are already like this, they can only put all their hopes on the cup competition.

"Glory, Glory, Man United!"

Manchester United fans marched into Old Trafford in droves.

In the North Stand, a giant tifo was hung before the start of the match, depicting the Little Devil holding a trident and forcefully pinning down Gunner Dragon.

"Let these proud Manchesters see what a true Gunner is!"

"Kick them back to reality!"

"Qin! Qin! Qin!"

"."

The scoreboard stands, also known as the East Stand and the away stands, saw Arsenal fans respond with equal ferocity. Before them stood bronze statues of the Manchester United trio: George Best, Dennis Law, and Bobby Charlton.

In the away locker room.

Qin Ming bent down and put the shin guards in. This was Puma's latest product, the KING 1.8 series, which included an impact-resistant fabric layer and an integrated shin guard structure, supposedly to reduce muscle loss.

His experience was indeed quite good.

Most importantly, it is made of titanium fiber, which is both lightweight and strong.

It's more suitable for agile players like him.

"We've explained the specific tactics many times. What we need to do is forget about the score and do everything we can to score at Old Trafford!"

"They will definitely play a tight defense in the midfield and backfield, just like in the first leg!"

"Therefore, the pass needs to be faster!"

"Alright, everyone stand up! Three, two, one! What are we fighting for!"

Qin Ming called his teammates to form a circle and build a small tower with their hands. After a brief moment of silence,

"Gunman! Gunman! Gunman!"

The sound shattered the silence. Qin Ming looked up and glanced around. There was no hesitation in his teammates' eyes, only burning fighting spirit.

"gone!"

Qin Ming straightened his back with satisfaction, pushed open the locker room door, and led his teammates out in single file.

The Manchester United players on the opposite side were already in position. They heard the cheers of the Arsenal players. Herrera, Fellaini and others looked serious, but Pogba seemed unconcerned.

Qin Ming saw it but ignored it and went to stand at the front.

"call!"

It's impossible to say he wasn't under pressure today. Manchester United's ironclad defense and De Gea's invincible performance earlier in the game certainly left a deep impression on him.

But pressure can sometimes be turned into motivation.

"CCTV! CCTV!"

"This is a live broadcast of the 2016-17 EFL Cup semi-final!"

Previously, domestic broadcasting rights for events such as the English League Cup and the FA Cup were generally not purchased.

But since Qin Ming transferred to the Premier League, he has taken all the matches with him and made them available for free.

After all, official TV stations are different from Migu Sports, Tencent Sports, and others.

It has the responsibility of promoting football and spreading the spirit of sports.

After He Wei finished introducing the basic situation on the screen, the players from both teams were already in place.

Beep! ! !
The whistle blew to start the match.

The lineups of both teams were not much different from the first leg. Arsenal did not rush after kickoff and followed their usual practice of controlling the ball and finding their rhythm first.

As soon as the ball crossed the midfield line, Manchester United intensified their pressing.

The strangulation of the five fields has begun again.

Seeing that he was about to be surrounded, Cazorla deftly passed the ball diagonally with his left foot.

Qin Ming looked up before receiving the ball.

Today he was matched up against Valencia, and because his agent advised him to leave Manchester United, he fired the agent.

Moreover, he found a second spring after being converted into a full-back by Van Gaal.

Continuous shaking followed by acceleration and sudden stop!

A few consecutive movements made Valencia hold his breath.

He was afraid that if he took a breath, he would lose his rhythm.

"Phew!" Noticing Valencia's struggle, Qin Ming added fuel to the fire, changing direction by keeping close to the ground.

Their formidable physical abilities were on full display at this moment.

"Oh!!!"

The gasps from Old Trafford had barely begun when Manchester United fans watched in alarm as Herre, who had dropped back to cover, stretched out his leg and seized the opportunity to steal the ball during the transition between actions.

That steal was timed perfectly.

Qin Ming pushed off the ground with his left foot, then slightly altered the trajectory of the football.

Swish!
Herrera, whose recent stats are comparable to Kanté's, must be feeling a chill down his spine.

"This is fucking difficult!"

The Spanish midfielder secretly grumbled, thinking to himself that it was truly impossible to defend against.

He had made all the preparations, but Qin Ming still managed to get past him, and in a groin-crossing manner.

"Qin Ming has broken through Manchester United's flank defense!"

"Phil Jones, who came up, didn't extend his foot. Oh, Morata cut in from behind him and took Rojo away!"

"Sanchez has found an open space!"

"Pass the ball!"

He Wei was pleasantly surprised to see Qin Ming make a hidden through pass, finding Sanchez on the right side of the penalty area.

Chile's star player receives the ball and faces De Gea one-on-one.

Everyone in the stadium held their breath, and Qin Ming nervously looked towards the goal, only to find that De Gea had adopted a K-sign.

boom!
Sanchez opted for a powerful, high-speed shot into the near corner!

However, De Gea did not use his hands, but instead used his lower leg to block the ball out of bounds.

"De Gea!"

"His knees and shinbones formed a wall of sighs!"

"He seems to be telling Arsenal's players in this way that this path is blocked!"

Seeing De Gea's performance, He Wei couldn't help but shout.

Old Trafford.

De Gea's save left Qin Ming speechless, exclaiming, "He's fucking strong!"

He has seen many excellent goalkeepers, such as Neuer, Sommer, and Cech.

But in terms of one-on-one blocking and goal-line skills, De Gea is currently the strongest.

"Damn it, again!"

Qin Ming was also spurred on by a fierce determination. He patted the somewhat bewildered Sanchez and signaled Cazorla to take the corner kick.

Courtside.

Mourinho clapped his hands loudly, "Push them out of the attacking third!"

He figured out Arsenal's tactics, which had been slightly adjusted compared to the last time, and were specifically designed to counter their defensive setup.

Therefore, this match must be played aggressively to get Arsenal back into their rhythm.

"Manchester United were somewhat affected by the two draws."

Wenger, standing next door, crossed his arms and spoke in a confident tone.

"Qin is in very good condition too!"

Pat Rice added with a hint of concern, "It's the Manchester United goalkeeper."

"It's okay, I believe we can score, and more than one."

Wenger looked toward the pitch.

Arsenal's corner kick has been taken. Sanchez receives the ball, feigns cutting inside, attracts Herrera, and then passes the ball to the center.

Qin Ming made a bold forward run and took a shot.

He had deliberately moved a few steps back just to make room for this space.

boom!
A powerful, straightened shot sent the ball hurtling towards De Gea in the blink of an eye.

*Thud!* With a lightning-fast, one-handed overhead flick, the soccer ball struck the underside of the crossbar.

With a crisp sound, the ball bounced up and was caught by De Gea, but the referee indicated that it did not go in.

"Again! Get back on defense!"

Qin Ming said expressionlessly.

He still doesn't believe it.

(End of this chapter)