Chapter Eighty-Nine: A Little Episode from the Last Game of the Christmas Schedule
"This is the happiest thing of my career!" The words, accompanied by a photo of the elder Ray slapping Gerrard in anger, made the front page of major newspapers the day after the Chelsea-Liverpool match. This 6-0 victory is not only a wonderful goal, a hot scene, but also a lively clash and a red card, it can be said that this is the favorite game of all football journalists, and there are endless eye-catching news materials in the game for them to dig into and use their imagination.
So, of course, for a while, this game has become a hot topic in the entire English football world, and even in European football. All the qiē that happened in this game was put under a magnifying glass by the outside world to talk about and judge. The most striking of these was the exaggerated 6-0 final score and the violent clash that erupted between the two sides in the final stages of the first half. In addition, even if the old thunder slapped Gerard angrily, the matter of talking about it is the hottest.
For these, the outside world is divided into two camps, each insisting on its own word, and arguing happily. Among them, Ferguson, for example, became a loyal supporter of Old Ray. He said: "I don't think it's such an unforgivable thing, you know that sometimes on the court, you just can't control your feelings." If it were one of my players who had been fouled like that, there would have been no way for that player to leave Old Trafford without anything. ”
Of course, no one knows if he really supports Ray or just to disgust Liverpool. After all, given Manchester United's situation in the Premier League this year, they have already withdrawn from the Premier League title race, as long as they can guarantee a Champions League place. Whatever happens to Chelsea, it doesn't really have anything to do with them. So. Even at this time, Ferguson is looking for trouble with Lao Lei. There is no substantial interest in Manchester United, but it will cheapen his old enemy Arsene Wenger. Judging from this situation, there is no doubt that the latter is willing to do more.
However, none of this has affected Lao Lei, for him, he has long been accustomed to becoming a hot topic in the news, and he can already face it very calmly. After the game, the biggest criticism of Lao Lei was nothing more than his slap Gerrard and his post-match interview. The phrase "This is the happiest thing in my career", these two things.
There are high-profile praises and fierce criticisms, but now Lao Lei can automatically ignore these things. For him, it's better to care about that than to prepare for the final game of the Christmas schedule. In this game, Chelsea's opponents will be Middlesbrough. This is a match opponent that is neither easy nor difficult. However, Chelsea have just experienced this war of attrition with Liverpool. So to this game is to add more variables.
Thankfully, Chelsea can continue to play at home and don't have to travel long distances to play away from home. So. It was to reduce the problems for Chelsea and Mourinho. But after all, the team has reached the tipping point of exhaustion, so in this game, Mourinho had to put out a more conservative formation of 4-4-1-1. Also in terms of lineups. There was also a large rotation, and even Lao Lei was only put on the bench. And didn't start.
Because according to the results of the Chelsea team doctor's physical examination of Lao Lei after the game, it shows that Lao Lei's physical condition has reached a very dangerous point. There is a possibility of injury at any time. After this report came out, it was a big surprise to Mourinho, because Lao Lei was always insulated from the word injury in his impression, but he didn't expect such a problem to occur this time. However, when you think about it, it makes sense.
Because throughout 04 years, Lao Lei has experienced a busy schedule and has not had much time to rest. After moving to Chelsea, he is also the second-highest attendance player in the team. In addition, after Lao Lei became famous, more and more opponents began to make targeted defensive arrangements for him, and most of them would use tough defensive strategies and foul tactics to limit his play. The ultra-high attendance rate and the increasing violent physical contact with the opponent's players, both in terms of amplitude and quantity, would be a miracle if Lao Lei's body had no problems. If it weren't for the devil's muscles, maybe Lao Lei would have been injured a long time ago and wouldn't be able to hold on now.
Lao Lei's efficient performance as always, is based on his body, and is much stricter than he imagined. When Lao Lei himself saw this report, he was also taken aback. Although during this time, he already felt that his body was a little tired, but he didn't expect that he had reached this point. For this reason, he immediately redeemed several recuperation cards in the system to relieve his body. Before, he was a little reluctant to spend these soul points in this area, but when he saw that this was already endangering his body, he couldn't care about it. After all, for a professional athlete, the world is big, and the body is the biggest.
However, this was a step too late, as Mourinho had already made up his mind to put him on the bench to recuperate. Even if he strongly explained that he was no longer in good health, it was already a reluctant explanation for Mourinho. He wouldn't believe the "nonsense" that Lao Lei's body was not tired all of a sudden. However, given the team doctor's advice that he could play for a maximum of 30 minutes, Mourinho put Lao Lei in the squad for the sake of safety. After all, at such a moment, no one knows that this tired Chelsea team can play a few percent of their strength, and it is not impossible to lose to Middlesbrough in the gutter at home.
Jose Mourinho was right to be apprehensive, as the well-prepared Middlesbrough dominated the game at Stamford Bridge and launched a fierce assault on a tired Chelsea. This situation left the Chelsea fans helpless, knowing that it was not the reason why the players were not serious, but because they were too tired. However, this did not prevent them from booing those they did not like. And this person is. Mr. McLaren, who actively commanded the team on the sidelines.
The England manager, who was beaten down by Ray and Chelsea last time, seems to have seen an opportunity to make a comeback in this game. So before the game started, he was speaking out to reporters. On the one hand. He was once again emphasizing his opinion of Lao Lei, "that rough, unprofessional player". In addition to this, he also criticised the Chelsea squad as a high-profile commentator, saying: "There is no doubt about the quality of this team. But a great team needs not only invincible strength, but also high professionalism and ethics. However, in their match against Liverpool. They have shown what kind of team they are. It's a team full of thugs that doesn't deserve the word great. ”
In response to the words of the big-mouthed gentleman, Mourinho not only banned his own players from speaking, but even he seemed to be a little too lazy to respond. "I'm busy, I don't have this kind of time every day to deal with such idiots." After leaving this sentence in front of the reporters who were chasing and blocking him, he never spoke anything about McLaren's words. For journalists, though. That's enough for them to add to McClaren and Mourinho's feud history.
Of course, Mr. McLaren was still complacent at this point. Because of his team. At Stamford Bridge, the devil's field, it was on the pitch that temporarily suppressed Chelsea. But fortunately, although there is some weakness on the offensive end. However, Chelsea's solid defence allowed them to defend their own door. Several of Middlesbrough's shots were blocked by Chelsea defenders. There was no real threat to Cech.
For the team's slightly poor performance, Mourinho is also rare not to be angry. Instead, it was a bit of encouragement for the players. However, at this time, he is a clever woman after all, and he has no rice to cook. Despite the substitutions and tactical changes, Chelsea's attacking performance has not improved. However, as the game progressed, McClaren, who was standing in front of the Middlesbrough bench, was getting more and more excited. The shiny-haired manager, jumping up and down with excitement, commanded his disciples in the hope that his players would seize their chances and deliver the fatal blow to Chelsea.
Naturally, he can't be liked by Chelsea fans like this. The game has been played so far, and Mr. McLaren is getting more boos than his players. I have to say that from a certain point of view, he can be regarded as a big thing, which is a bit difficult for the average head coach.
This situation lasted until the 70th minute of the second half. Unable to satisfy Mourinho, who had only one point, he played his last card, and he finally replaced Thiago with Lao Lei. "Reima, after you get on the field, I only have two requirements for you, one is to lead the team to win the game, and the other is to protect your body, do you hear?" While Lao Lei was waiting on the sidelines for a substitution to come on, Mourinho whispered in his ear.
"Head, this is not an easy task, and the requirements are not low." Knowing Mourinho's worries, Lao Lei was moved in his heart and replied with some amusement. "Don't be wordy, protect yourself, boy! There's a bigger stage waiting for us, and it's not worth it to get hurt here. Mourinho replied in a muffled voice, and then turned around and walked back to his coach's box, I don't know if he was afraid that Lao Lei would be embarrassed to see the concern in his eyes.
"Huh." Looking at his back, Lao Lei smiled lightly. Then he retracted his gaze and did the final warm-up while observing the unoptimistic game situation on the field. At this time, a loud voice drilled into Old Ray's ears, "Hey, Quake, keep pressing and impact them!" … Where is Reed's playmaking and passing?! He turned his head to look, and sure enough, he saw an excited McLaren "sir". "I need to let him calm down quickly, it's too noisy." Lao Lei said secretly in his heart, and then a mocking smile hung on the corner of his mouth.
Old Ray's arrival caused a cheer, and he quickly proved that he deserved it. As soon as he came on the pitch, Chelsea's difficult situation was immediately changed and the results were immediate. He not only supported the team's performance, but also greatly calmed the impatience and helplessness of the Chelsea players. As long as Lao Lei is on the field, the psychology of Chelsea players is stable, and they firmly believe that they can defeat any opponent.
Chelsea, whose spirit and spirit have changed greatly, under the organization of Lao Lei, began to launch a counteroffensive against Middlesbrough to vent the depression accumulated in the hearts of himself and others. Soon, the dominance of the pitch was back in Chelsea's hands. In the midst of McClaren's angry roar, Chelsea were firmly on their way to victory. In the 75th minute of the second half, Gudjohnson's brilliant breakthrough at the edge of the Middlesbrough penalty area resulted in a foul at the back and awarded Chelsea a well-placed free-kick.
A moment later, as the referee's whistle blew, Ray fired a powerful low volley that deflected past the Middlesbrough wall, grazed the tips of their goalkeeper's fingers and into the net. As Chelsea fans and players alike were busy celebrating, Ray turned around his team-mates and sprinted quickly towards the Middlesbrough bench.
By the time he reached his destination, McLaren had quieted down, pulling on a face, no longer as positive as before. Staring at the old Ray standing in front of him, McLaren's eyes were filled with anger, as if he had foreseen the predicament he was about to encounter.
In front of him, Lao Lei directly set up the posture of a boxer, and against him, it was directly a gorgeous combination punch, and the fast fist even brought a gentle wind.
Then, Lao Lei directly took the posture of Mr. Bodybuilder, and in front of McLaren, he showed his strong biceps.
In the end, he sent a kiss to each of the two mountain bags bulging on his arm.
"Hey, sir, be careful, I'm a thug!"
Lao Lei said as he twitched the corners of his mouth.
showed his disdain clearly in front of McLaren.
In McLaren's eyes, the smile was so glaring.
Pierced into his heart. (To be continued......)