Ferguson felt he was in control, but it was Nottingham Forest who scored first.

Ten minutes into the game, Nottingham Forest's formation was slightly retracted, and United thought it was a signal that Forest would give up on the defensive counter-attack, so they began to press the attack and seize the initiative.

When they just pressed into the midfield, they encountered more resistance than expected. Nottingham Forest didn't return to the entire half-time in one go, just didn't overwhelm the halfway line as they did in the previous ten minutes.

Cristiano. Ronaldo's dribbling was caught between Raphinha and Abonraho, and he was about to force his way through, but when he looked up, he caught a glimpse of George, who was standing not far away. Wood, he changed his mind on the fly.

The ball was passed to Carrick in the middle, and Ronaldo ran forward to make a one-two with Carrick. However, Carrick's posture is not very good for receiving the ball, and to pass the ball to Ronaldo, he will have to adjust a little more. It was this moment that made him entangled by Wood.

If he forcibly turns around and passes, he can be cut off. So Carrick passed the ball back.

After Rio Ferdinand received the ball, Ruud van Nistelrooy tried hard to get up and forward, he wanted to pass forward, but found that there was no suitable target, and almost everyone had Forest players nearby. He couldn't hold the ball for long periods of time, so his space would only be forced smaller and smaller by the Forest players and eventually the ball would be cut off. In desperation, he passed the ball to his partner Vidic next to him.

Vidic also met his opponent - Eastwood.

Nottingham Forest did not recycle as Ferguson thought, but instead they pressed aggressively around the pitch.

This is something that the whole Manchester United team did not expect.

After a few minutes of careful observation, Ferguson found that Nottingham Forest's overall formation had not actually been recycled, and it was still an attacking stance. But the old man was hesitating, he wasn't sure if this was Tang En's trick to lure the enemy, or something else......

He intends to continue to observe.

After another five minutes of observation, Nottingham Forest scored.

※※※

In the twentieth minute, Rio Ferdinand received a return pass from his team-mates at the back, which he wanted to pass to his nearest team-mate. Hargreaves retreated to answer. But with him was Shaheen from Nottingham Forest......

He couldn't pass the ball to a player who was pressed close by the opposing player and had his back to the attack. So he opted for a long ball forward with a big foot, allowing Berbatov and the Forest defenders to compete for the top.

Berbatov managed to get in front of Woodgate and take the ball down. He was going to pass the ball directly to Tewiz in the air, but the ball was lost to George. Wood cut it off diagonally.

Seeing the captain cut off the ball, Abang Lajo and Lennon, who were still helping to defend in the second half just now, changed their roles in an instant, switched from defense to offense, and instantly inserted into the opponent's half.

And Shahin, who had just followed Hargreaves into the opposing half, withdrew back to pick up George. Wood. After Wood passed the football to him, he didn't rush after it, but stayed where he was. Since it is necessary to play against Manchester United at Old Trafford, only Wood is responsible for the midfield defense, so the requirements for defense are relatively higher. Generally, there are no special requirements, and he will not step forward to participate in the attack.

After receiving the ball, Shaheen turned and brought two forwards and distributed the ball to Abang Lajo on the right.

Abang Lajo relied on his speed to slam Evra hard, and the two men tangled up on the flanks.

Donn stood up from the dugout and shouted Abonlaho's name, reminding him not to stick to the ball too much.

Maybe he heard Donn's shouts, maybe he just found it difficult to break through Evra so simply and roughly. Anyway, Abang Lajo passed the ball.

He sent the ball straight to the other side of the pitch and Lennon received it.

The Forest team didn't pass the ball into the box as simply and crudely as Ferguson thought, and if there was no suitable opportunity, they preferred to pass it back and forth from the outside, looking for space.

Home. Neville's defence was impeccable and Lennon didn't force a cross, he played the ball back to Leighton. Under the feet of Barnes!

Even the full-back Barnes, who has very few assists, has come up, where is this defensive counterattack posture?

Barnes came up, but Wood didn't.

Barnes crosses the ball to Shahin, who pulls him back to pick it up, and Shaheen looks down the wing, with Raphinha also on the side. When Barnes and Raphinha both rushed up, United's defensive attention was naturally drawn to the flanks. After all, they all know that Nottingham Forest's wide attacks are world-famous.

Shaheen turned to the right and made a gesture to pass the ball to Raphinha, and Ronaldo had to follow up to prepare for the defence. Several other United players, including Patrice Evra, turned their bodies to that side, as if they were following the sun......

But Shahin's body was only halfway turned, but he suddenly passed the football straight to Eastwood in front of him!

Hargreaves pounced on Eastwood, feeling the situation was still under his control. Because Eastwood received the ball with his back to the attack. As long as he is not allowed to turn, he can only pass the ball back again.

Hargreaves pounced, intending to stick to Eastwood from behind. Unexpectedly, Eastwood didn't mean to stop the ball at all, he leaned sideways and put one hand on Hargreaves, and then with a flick of his left ankle, he sent the ball directly to Van Nistelrooy in the back!

Hargreaves' attention was drawn to the pass, and he didn't notice that Eastwood had turned and smeared inside after the pass.

Ruud van Nistelrooy is the leading centre-forward, and although he is old and has suffered serious injuries, he is still a danger in the eyes of his opponents. Because he is a center forward who can still control the football at his feet in the midst of heavy siege, with such an attacking fulcrum up front, the attacking possibilities of the Forest team are endless. He can shoot on his own and draw the attention of opposition defences and create opportunities for his team-mates. Like this one......

Before he received the ball, Vidic and Leo. Ferdinand had already lunged at him at the same time, one left and one right, intending to trap him.

But Ruud van Nistelrooy didn't want to take the ball himself and score. He made the same choice as Eastwood – with a flick of his ankle and a straight ball out of the air.

Eastwood slaps the horse to kill!

He picked up his left leg, which he was not very good at, and volleyed directly without stopping the ball!

The ball was a little off, but it was just right to fool Ben. Foster, the ball scraped on the inside of the post, made a weird crunch, and flew into the goal!

And for this close and powerful shot, Ben. Foster didn't react, he just twisted his head and watched the ball go in......

"Beautiful one-time fit! Nottingham Forest lead Manchester United 1-0 away! Eastwood is in perfect shape! ”

Old Trafford, which had been noisy just a moment ago, suddenly fell silent, followed by a loud boo.

In the midst of the boos, Eastwood slid down on his knees and rushed to the corner flag. His passionate celebration also ignited the enthusiasm of Nottingham Forest fans, who sang a song written for Eastwood: "You have Rooney, we have too!" He's a gypsy! He lived in a caravan and rode his horse to warm up. If you look down on him, he will make you beautiful. With a goal! With a goal! Our Gypsy Rooney! Oh lala, oh lala! ”

With Manchester United fans booing on one side and Nottingham Forest fans singing on the other, Old Trafford has truly become a "theater".

※※※

Seeing Eastwood pump the ball into the goal, Donn jumped on the sidelines as excited as if the man who shot the goal was himself. He shook his fists vigorously and demonstrated to the United fans in the stands, and he was naturally responded to by another louder boo......

"Ha, looks like Tony. Done doesn't want to please Manchester United fans. He really doesn't want to coach Manchester United at all. ”

Ferguson was a little annoyed by the goal conceded. He kept muttering, but instead of chewing gum, he cursed viciously.

"Our central defence is nothing but a no-brainer! Are they all wooden stakes? Just watching the opponent play a one-two in the middle of our penalty area! And a goal! Why didn't Hargreaves foul? What was he thinking? ”

In fact, what annoyed Ferguson more than the goal itself was that he found that the situation was not in his control, but in the hands of the young man next door......

He felt a sense of frustration.

Although he has a good personal relationship with Donne, he also hopes that Donn will come to coach Manchester United. But when it comes to the game, he's a stubborn old man who doesn't want to lose, he wants to be the master of the whole world, the best manager in the sport, smarter than anyone else, always ahead of the curve, and keep everything firmly in his hands. No one can defeat him unless he doesn't want to do it himself.

For more than two decades, he has enjoyed a war of words with Arsene Wenger because most of the time he has the upper hand. He also enjoyed and Kevin. Keegan fights, because this poor good old man was almost driven crazy by himself. Jose Mourinho's arrival did not shake his position in the Premier League, because in the end, Mourinho's departure proved that he was not qualified to be a "strong man" in the Premier League.

He was the manager of Manchester United before the establishment of the Premier League, and he has probably experienced as many storms as other managers combined. He fought with countless famous coaches, but he always had the last laugh. Mark. Hughes, George. Graham, Kenny. Dalglish, Souness, Kevin. Keegan, Asena. Arsene Wenger, Jose Mourinho, Rafael Benitez, Scolari, Eriksen, Rijkaard...... But he was the one who was voted the Premier League's Manager of the Decade, not any of the above.

He enjoyed it equally with Tony. Don's-for-tat. But this coach, who is nearly thirty years younger than him, makes him feel really old.

He should have seen through Donn's tricks sooner......

Ferguson finished scolding Hargreaves and got up from his seat, he was about to go off the sidelines to direct the game.

Tonne noticed that Ferguson got out of the dugout for the first time in the game, turned his head to look at the boss and smiled at him as he did.

Ferguson's face was not very good-looking, he ignored Donn, and reached out to call Neville while the Forest players were still celebrating their goals, and gave him a good time.

After clapping on the sidelines, Don turned around and walked back with a smile.

According to past management, the Forest team would shrink the defence after taking the lead and then play the opponent's counter-attack. If Alex Ferguson still thinks so in this game, then Manchester United will be even more unlucky.

※※※

But it's clear that Ferguson is much smarter than Donn thinks.

It was through this goal that he discovered Donn's true intentions - Nottingham Forest did not want to play defensive counter-attacks at Old Trafford at all, but played attacking football uncharacteristically. It looks like they intend to beat Manchester United with their attack.

Alex Ferguson fought bravely.

Since you want to attack, then attack hard!

Alex Ferguson adjusted the team's tactics, strengthened the defense and interception in the midfield, and tried to control the midfield. In this game, whoever controls the midfield has a much better chance of winning.

When the game resumed, the most seen scene by the fans was a fierce battle between the two sides in the midfield.

Don also strengthened his midfield defence after discovering what Ferguson meant, with Shaheen dropping back and staying on the same line as Wood's position, making the Forest's middle look less empty. The diamond 442 became a parallel 442 again. Under pressure from Alex Ferguson, Donne was forced to temporarily abandon his intention to continue attacking on the road.

Anyway, with a one-goal lead, he is not in a hurry, and slowly grinds with Manchester United in the midfield.

For the remainder of the second half, United gradually gained the upper hand, but they had too few dangerous shots on target. Dimitar Berbatov and Teviz were trapped by Forest's strong overall defence, and after Manchester United pressed up, it objectively caused the Nottingham Forest defence to shrink, and Berbatov and others were greatly reduced in space, and many times, they could only fight Forest's strong central defenders near the penalty area.

It can't open up in the middle, but the two wings are very active.

Wayne Rooney and Ronaldo frequently broke down the flanks and caused a lot of problems for Forest's defence. A large part of the reason why Nottingham Forest were forced to shrink their defence was also due to the two of them.

Raphinha was weak in attack and defense, and Abang Lajo was not a defensive player, so Wood had to go over to fill in many times, which was considered to limit Ronaldo's sharp attack.

In the case of Manchester United's onslaught, Nottingham Forest's defensive tradition played an important role. Whoever is facing such a strong line of defense will have a headache. Even if it's Ronaldo and Rooney.

As a result, until the end of the first half, United did not score. The score remained 1-0 with Nottingham Forest leading.

Ferguson left the dugout with a gloomy face, and the staff around him knew that the players were going to be out of luck in the dressing room at half-time. Don't look at him at the age of sixty-nine, he will never show mercy when it is time to scold.

And Tony, who is leading the side. When Don left, his face didn't look much better. He wasn't unhappy with the performance of the players on the pitch, but he was worried about the second half. Ferguson will certainly not accept the score and the result, and he has seen what the Forest want to play, so he will definitely adjust to that at half-time. How do you deal with it?

He had planned to score two goals in the first half, but the situation is very dangerous for Forest. 1:0, that's not a good score......

(To be continued)