Starting with saving Manchester United

Chapter 83: Vowing to Win the Triple Crown!

"This guy is really brave."

When Manchester United narrowly defeated Everton in the final moments of the match thanks to Welbeck's goal, somewhere in the stands above Yang Fan, Bayern Munich assistant coach Domenech Torrent was pointing at his back and speaking to Guardiola.

"With such a large rotation, they still managed to win; they're really lucky."

Torrent seemed to have little interest in a rookie like Yang Fan.

This is Bayern's next opponent!

"Luck is also a part of strength," Guardiola said casually.

"I think that besides being bold, his most important quality is his keen eye."

Before his assistant could figure it out, Guardiola revealed the answer himself.

"For Manchester United to finish in the top four of the league, they not only need to win, but they also need to see how Arsenal and Everton perform. Going all out against Everton is not necessary for Manchester United; they should conserve their energy and prepare for the Champions League."

"This is a great business opportunity that allows you to make a big profit with a small investment!"

Upon hearing Guardiola's words, Torrent immediately understood.

indeed.

Given Manchester United's current situation, they have absolutely no initiative in their quest for a top-four finish in the league.

Even if we win all the remaining league matches, what will change?

However, if they defeat Bayern Munich at home in the Champions League semi-final, the situation will be quite different.

A double victory against Barcelona could make Yang Fan a household name!

"He's quite lucid, though."

After smiling, Torrent immediately thought of something else.

"With their rotation now, next Wednesday's game is likely to be very troublesome."

Guardiola nodded; he had already thought of that.

Those who are close to him and know him well know that he has always been the kind of person who thinks things through a lot.

Manchester United had a full ten days to prepare.

In contrast, Bayern Munich has been playing two matches a week for a period of time recently.

"Actually, we should also rotate players appropriately." Torrent looked at Guardiola and sighed.

This is also a concern expressed by the German media regarding Bayern Munich, and they also question Guardiola's match strategy.

Because recently, Bayern Munich has been playing two matches a week and has been fielding almost their full-strength lineup.

Alternatively, Guardiola may be rotating players in a very small way.

Guardiola had naturally heard the voices from the outside world, especially some concerns from the German media. Looking at his assistant, he couldn't help but sigh, "Have you forgotten the two consecutive defeats at the beginning of the month?"

Torrent was speechless.

By the end of March, after the 27th round of Bundesliga matches, Bayern Munich had a 25-point lead, practically securing the Bundesliga title in advance, especially considering their qualification for the Champions League quarterfinals and the German Cup.

Therefore, in the subsequent 28th round, in the home game against Hoffenheim, Guardiola made significant rotations.

The results of it?

3比1逆转霍芬海姆后，被对方连扳2球，3比3逼平。

They almost suffered a home defeat.

After playing Paris Saint-Germain midweek, Guardiola rotated the squad again for the away game against Augsburg in the 29th round.

As a result, they lost 0-1 to Augsburg away from home.

After eliminating Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich returned to their home ground and fielded a full-strength lineup against Borussia Dortmund in the 30th round of the Bundesliga. However, they suffered a crushing 0-3 defeat against Klopp's team!

Because of this, in the German Cup semi-final three days later, even though it was a home game and the opponent was only Kaiserslautern from the second division, Guardiola still fielded his full-strength lineup.

They ultimately defeated Kaiserslautern 5-1.

Over the weekend, which was yesterday, Bayern Munich rotated four players in an away game against bottom-ranked Bundesliga side Eintracht Braunschweig.

As a result, they were unable to defeat their opponent on the road.

Bayern's attack finally picked up in the 73rd minute after bringing on Thomas Müller and Mandzukic, ultimately securing a narrow 2-0 victory over Braunschweig.

从3月22日开始到4月19日，短短29天的时间，拜仁总共踢了9场比赛。

This includes two Champions League quarter-final matches against Paris Saint-Germain, as well as matches against opponents such as Borussia Dortmund and Hoffenheim.

For the past two weeks, Bayern Munich has been using its strongest lineup to compete on all three fronts.

Guardiola was well aware that with the starting lineup playing continuously, many players were physically and mentally exhausted.

There was no other way.

Every time the rotation is slightly more intense, the performance immediately suffers a significant drop.

Torrent, sitting to the side, noticed Guardiola's expression and couldn't help but mutter to himself.

You're really going against a retired old man!

As a friend of Guardiola, Torrent naturally knew that Guardiola was aiming for a treble this season.

He wants to prove to the world that if Heynckes could lead Bayern to a treble, Guardiola can too.

Not only can they play, but they must also play beautiful and attacking football!

It's better than Heynckes!

This seemingly polite and refined gentleman is actually more competitive than anyone else at heart!

The thought of Manchester United rotating such a large number of players made Torrent worried about the Old Trafford game next Wednesday.

"I always felt that the rookie was full of bad intentions and not as simple as he seemed."

After hearing his assistant's reminder, Guardiola's eyes flashed with a strange light, and he replied calmly.

"I am not Martino!"

I will prove to everyone that I can win even without Xavi, Iniesta, and Messi!

Whether in the Bundesliga or the Premier League, I can succeed!

It wasn't Messi, it wasn't Xavi, Iniesta, or Busquets, it wasn't Barcelona that made me Guardiola!

It was Guardiola who created Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, and Busquets, and created Barcelona!

"Did Guardiola come to Liverpool to spy on our game?"

On the bus back to Manchester from Liverpool, Yang Fan received a message from Mike Phelan.

Intelligence from Everton.

Guardiola obtained the tickets through Everton's official channels.

"Peeking?" Mike Phelan was both amused and exasperated.

"Have you forgotten that you tried to sneak into the Allianz Arena on the 12th? —"

By the end, Mike Phelan himself couldn't help but laugh.

If we're talking about peeping, Yang Fan's peeping is what you call peeping, isn't it?

-

If it weren't for the need to keep it a secret from Bayern Munich and the fact that they couldn't get tickets, Yang Fan would have actually gone to Munich to spy.

"It's not as exaggerated as you say. We just went to watch a game. As it turns out, we missed a great opportunity to assess our opponents. Bayern were beaten 3-0 by Klopp's Dortmund."

Wasn't the 34th round of the Premier League postponed?

Manchester United did not play last weekend.

That's why Yang Fan brought Mike Phelan, Steve Lund, and Paul Brand to Allianz Arena to watch the game.

He knew in his past life that Bayern would suffer a crushing defeat in this match.

That's when I took the opportunity to go and learn from their experience.

Unable to buy tickets and unwilling to ask Bayern Munich for them, he ended up watching the live stream from Carrington.

How so?

In Mike Phelan's words, Bayern Munich in this match was like Barcelona last season, and Borussia Dortmund was like Bayern Munich last season.

Bayern Munich had an extremely high possession rate, exceeding 8% even in the first 15 minutes.

Note that it is over 8%.

As a result, the attack posed little threat.

Dortmund's counter-attacks were much sharper than Manchester United's.

Especially their speed.

At least from the former Manchester United team, there isn't a single counter-attacking weapon like Reus and Aubameyang.

On the defensive end, Manchester United focused on studying how Hummels and Sokratis combined to contain Mandzukic, and how Dortmund set up their defense.

All of these factors greatly help Manchester United's team selection and formation.

"Tell me, what did Guardiola see today?"

"Look at our strong bench!"

Yang Fan laughed after he finished speaking.

He could actually accept a draw in this match against Everton.

The reason is simple: he doesn't have much hope of finishing in the top four of the league.

Arsenal's upcoming opponents are not strong, and given Wenger's coaching ability, Arsenal is unlikely to make mistakes.

In this situation, Manchester United only has one way to qualify for next season's Champions League.

They won the Champions League and, as the defending champions, squeezed out the top four in the league.

But Yang Fan couldn't say these things to anyone.

So he adopted a rotation system and encouraged everyone, including Welbeck, Juan Mata, and Chicharito, to do their best to win.

It seems the result is not bad.

The home game against Bayern Munich next Wednesday is the match that Yang Fan values ​​most!

With the weekend league matches over, the world's attention is now focused on the upcoming Champions League semi-final on Wednesday.

All four participating powerhouse teams have begun their preparations in earnest.

Unlike the Madrid rivals who clash in their own city, Bayern Munich will be traveling all the way to Manchester.

To German and British fans, this is not just a clash between Bayern Munich and Manchester United, old rivals, but also a battle between Germany and England, bitter rivals.

However, Bayern Munich received a series of good news before the match even started.

-

Following Borussia Dortmund's Robert Lewandowski, Bayern Munich has officially announced that they will sign young German defensive midfielder Sebastian Rode from Eintracht Frankfurt this summer.

Bayern Munich's sporting director, Matthias Sammer, later expressed his satisfaction with the club's transfer activity this summer in an interview with the media.

The additions of Lewandowski and Rode will greatly enhance Bayern's overall level.

"Their arrival will enable the team to better meet future challenges!"

Sammer also expressed his optimism regarding the upcoming Champions League semi-final.

"Without a doubt, Manchester United's run to the Champions League semi-finals was a surprise to everyone."

"Losing Ferguson is an irreparable loss. Any team that suffers such a thing will inevitably fall into a slump for a period of time, and that is the case for Manchester United right now."

In contrast, Bayern Munich has a strong squad and high morale this season.

"I just spoke with the players, and everyone is full of confidence in reaching the final."

"Currently, the team has essentially secured the Bundesliga title. Our opponent in the German Cup final will be Borussia Dortmund, which will be a tough battle, but before that, we will definitely reach the Champions League final!"

"Yes, we will definitely win the treble this season!"

"This will be an unprecedented feat in European football, and even in world football!"

Sammer's bold statement undoubtedly sparked a frenzy among German media and fans.

With two consecutive seasons of treble wins, Bayern Munich is poised for a meteoric rise!

More importantly, Bayern Munich is not just talking.

The Sun revealed that Bayern Munich has been working diligently to prepare a fan squad for their trip to Manchester.

To better equip their fans, Bayern Munich even specially made a T-shirt for them to cheer on the team.

The front of the T-shirt features the Bayern Munich crest, and below it, in bold German, is the message: Let's head to Lisbon!

Below were two lines of thick, black characters: Transform into a wild beast!

At the bottom are the team names of Bayern Munich and Manchester United.

This T-shirt showcases Bayern Munich's ambition!

They are telling the fans that the club is determined to defeat Manchester United, advance to the final, head to Lisbon, and win the treble!

German media also have great confidence in Bayern Munich.

The two clubs have played a total of 9 matches in the Champions League so far.

Manchester United's record is 2 wins, 4 draws and 3 losses.

But in reality, Manchester United's only real victory over Bayern Munich was in the 1999 Champions League final.

09/10赛季的欧冠8强淘汰赛，曼联虽说在老特拉福德球场3比2击败了拜仁，但在首回合比赛里，曼联是1比2在安联球场输球。

In other words, although Manchester United won 3-2, Bayern Munich eliminated them on away goals, advancing to the Champions League semi-finals and eventually reaching the Champions League final that season.

This marks the first time in history that the two teams have met in the Champions League semi-finals.

German media believe that Bayern Munich's overall strength is almost overwhelming compared to Manchester United.

As one of the world's top managers, Guardiola will certainly give Manchester United's rookie manager a good lesson at Old Trafford, letting him know the brutality of the Champions League competition!

"Whether it's tactics, player fitness adjustments, or even off-field preparations, Guardiola and his team are fully prepared!"

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