Chapter 147: Advance to the semifinals
As the big game approached, referee Friske's report was against UEFA, with the Swede pointing out that Rijkaard did have contact with him during the Chelsea-Barcelona clash with him, much to the embarrassment of UEFA, who had suspended Mourinho for two matches.
In the pre-match press conference, Mourinho slapped UEFA again, which further exacerbated the friction between the two sides.
At the press conference, Bayern sent coach Magath and captain Kahn to give the host enough face, and Chelsea came to the scene with only a physical coach Faria, and Finnish striker Ferssel, who has not played much this season, Mourinho simply continued to fight with his absence, which made UEFA unhappy.
'Of course we can't force them to do anything, and there's no punishment,' UEFA official Eichel said, 'but you look at the difference between Chelsea and Bayern Munich, who sent their manager and captain Kahn and Hargreaves and Chelsea didn't even tell us who they were going to send before, it's not satisfactory and I'll report it to UEFA. ”
Jose Mourinho's hostility was soon met with retaliation from UEFA, and in this match against Bayern, the Portuguese had booked a seat in the VIP seat in the main stand to watch the game, but when Mourinho arrived at his seat, he found that the UEFA people had already arrived there, and even set up a camera next to the seat, and the camera was focused on the position where Mourinho was about to be seated.
It seems that UEFA, who felt scorned before the game, had made up their minds to embarrass Mourinho and intended to monitor his actions for the rest of the 90 minutes.
Where can a madman swallow this breath. To endure such humiliation?
Mourinho only stayed in his seat for a moment, then got up and left the table with a grim face, and walked all the way down the podium. The photographer who was left ready to capture the close-up was empty and set up the machine there. Soon after, Mourinho was seen walking out of the stadium, raising his hand to hail a taxi and rushing back to the hotel where Chelsea was staying, where he watched the telecast.
After the game, Chelsea asked UEFA for an explanation for the move, saying that Mourinho did not allow quiet to watch the game. 'I didn't talk to Jose in the game,' said Chelsea's fitness coach Falla, 'and I think he was in the hotel to watch the game. He was ready to watch from the stands. But I think he thought his personal space had been violated and went back to the hotel. ”
The animosity between Mourinho and UEFA has now escalated to unprecedented heights. However, the madman didn't care about this, and still went his own way, and in his opinion, the most important thing was for his team to win. As for those who lash out at him for being disgusting. He chose to fight back with disdain.
"The football connoisseurs who say they hate me all day long has become an almost daily headline," Mourinho said before the game, "but let's see if these people have the courage to reflect and self-criticize after our victory." ”
'I can say in all seriousness that all I care about is holding the trophy in my hands and I can win at home. It's no problem to win in the hostel! ”
Jose Mourinho continues his maverick style, and UEFA cannot afford to continue to be scorned. The most interesting thing at the moment is whether UEFA officials will be able to hand the trophy into the hands of the 'thorn in the side' with a smile on their faces once Chelsea do win the final in Istanbul, which could be the biggest satirical comedy of the season in European football.
By the time the curtain comes down on this season's Champions League, the two sides will eventually decide the winner, but Mourinho's opponents will not only be on the pitch this time.
Not to mention the second leg of the Champions League semi-finals, the back and forth between Mourinho and UEFA before the game alone was already exciting.
Returning to the game, Magath said before the game that Bayern could score two goals in the first half of Chelsea, and later changed his words to say that he was confident that he would score one goal in each half; Beckenbauer's prediction was even more miraculous, saying that Bayern were capable of scoring twice in five minutes in the second half, and that Sauer and Guerreiro would be the winning aces...... Both men were right, Magath watched his team score more than two goals, and the Emperor of Football scored both aces, validating his "five-minute magic theory", but unfortunately they ignored the fact that Chelsea are not an opponent who has no knife in his hand and can count how many goals you need to score.
The suspense was actually out of the game in the 80th minute, and with Didier Drogba's powerful header costing Bayern's life, the Germans might be able to take solace with the two goals in extra time.
But the comfort came in a bit of a blunt, as Chelsea replaced the main team with a long-lost Graemi and reserve boy Moraes at the 2-1 lead, and at this moment, the Blues were already haughtily looking beyond the heads of their opponents, Bayern were thinking about face and dignity, and Chelsea were already thinking about Arsenal next.
What did Chelsea rely on to render Magath and Beckenbauer's success predictions meaningless?
The answer is offense, not the legendary defense. It is customary to transfer the image of the Blues as unbreakable in the Premier League to the Champions League, but the truth is far from the same.
After two knockout rounds, Chelsea have conceded eight goals in four games, and if you add the group stage, they have conceded 12 goals in 10 games, an average of 1.2 goals per game, and the second-highest goal conceded rate in the quarter-finals, just better than Bayern Munich, who are already out.
So, is it possible that Chelsea will be a defensively weak team when it comes to the Champions League?
Of course not, it is worth noting that when conceding another goal is a desperate situation, the Blues are always able to grit their teeth and carry it, and it will be even more difficult for any opponent to score another 'crucial goal'.
Barcelona had two great chances, 2-1 at home and 11 to 10, no matter what kind of fury they set off, it was difficult to break the third goal that could have led to everything, and when the away score was 3-2, Chelsea stubbornly survived several of Barcelona's almost successful attacks, and finally ushered in the moment of Junker's comeback.
It was a similar situation at Munich, where Chelsea withstood Bayern's 79-minute onslaught to take the lead. And to put off the goal that the opponent has been hungry for for 90 minutes to a moment when it no longer works, you can find the Chelsea goal, so to speak. But it was not easy to score the goal that put the Blues in a desperate situation.
Chelsea have two faces, and in the Premier League and Champions League group stages, they are known for their fortifications, but when it comes to playing against the masters, the team that is billed as defensive always shows a terrible sharpness.
Knocking down Barcelona and Bayern Munich, Chelsea scored a frantic 11 goals in four games. The rate of scoring almost three goals per game is terrifying, and when it comes to scoring more goals against their opponents, the Blues show another 'hideous' face. This is exactly what Magath did not expect when his pre-match predictions were frequent.
So far, Chelsea have scored 21 goals in 10 Champions League games, an average of 2.1 goals per game, second only to Lyon, who have gone crazy with Bremen. Magath ushered in his expected goal from Bayern. But in 90 minutes, there was no hope of even getting close to the goal. The reason for this was his team's failure to defend against the Blues' attack, and they were a little caught off guard when their opponents showed another unfamiliar face.
It's also interesting to note that Chelsea have always been able to kill their opponents when they seem to be under beating.
Barcelona's artists scoffed at the Blues' collective contraction, deriding the words "boring" and "boring", but it was surprising that Chelsea were able to storm three holes in the first 19 minutes at Stamford Bridge with less than 30 per cent of the ball. In Munich, Bayern's two goals were identical. The hosts pressed on the opening kick but it was the Blues who had rarely scored into the box before, and when there was a glimmer of chance at 1-1, Bayern were inadvertently conceded by a rare counter-attack.
Chelsea's average possession rate of just 46 per cent in the Champions League statistics is the lowest in the quarter-finals, and the average number of shots on target per game is 4.47, just more than PSV Eindhoven.
In this way, Chelsea are really a bit maverick, they are willing to give up the midfield, shrink the back to let the opponent get the ball comfortably, in the eyes of a control team like Barcelona, this may be an incompetent concession, or even a powerless fight before the rout, but when anyone is confused by Chelsea's "weakness" and "benevolence", they will find that the seemingly indisputable opponent in front of them is capable of scoring in any situation, so to speak, when Chelsea put up, in fact, he is ready to shoot.
Bayern eventually won 3-2, but could not change their fate.
What they overlook is that if they can score two at Stamford, it is entirely possible for Chelsea to score two at the Olympic Games, just as they did.
It turned out that it was these two, or even just a goal, that wiped out their last glimmer of hope. Bayern will eventually figure this out, and Chelsea, who have conceded three goals in defence this game, will have plenty of time to stay in the Champions League and move forward in reflection......
Looking at his record of conceding goals in the last seven Champions League games, perhaps even the unbeatable Kahn would have to give Czech's Petr Cech a thumbs up.
Kahn had given a clear signal to Chelsea before the game: 'We all know that Chelsea are very brave and we need to be more courageous to respond well and show with our actions that we are the real winners. Jose Mourinho was clearly aware of this, starting Hut as a right wing-back and bringing the inconsistently Johnson back to the bench with the same clear signal ———We are ready.
For several days, there has been a lot of debate around Ballack's late penalty kick, but there is really only one focus——— how that penalty will affect the second leg. Is it really a bluff, or is it really a little bit of a lack of confidence in your defense?
At the very least, Hutter's arrival has shown that Chelsea have largely given up on assists from their full-backs, and they care more about not conceding goals. In particular, the return of Mackay and Pizarro keeps the suspense alive...... Because before that, Barcelona's second leg was the attacking side that was Chelsea, and they didn't hold Barcelona's counter-attack in the second half of the first half, this time. It was the more resilient Germanic people.
Bayern were really tough enough to stomp on Drogba's ankle just eight minutes into the opening eight minutes. At this time, Drogba has passed the ball, if it is not deliberately done by the Croatians, it can only mean that he is indeed old, and the lame Drogba continues to stay on the field, but his high point can no longer be dominant.
The two single chances were also wasted by him one by one.
In the 26th minute of the first half, when Kovac brought down Drogba again. The referee finally showed him a yellow card. But in attack, Bayern are more than fierce and less dexterous.
Pizarro had just opened the scoring and made a brilliant save from Cech. But after that. Bayern have not been able to find an effective means of attacking. Schweinsteiger burst in once with his delicate technique, but the youngster's shot from the edge of the box was shot high again.
Chelsea's highly effective counter-attacks are always reminding Bayern to be careful. Bayern are impatient and hesitant in contradictions. Even Ballack, who has always been steady, failed to make good use of the ball that Hutt held at his feet. A shot shot shot into the sky. If. Bayern could have put more pressure on Chelsea in the first half, and perhaps that won't be the case anymore.
Because Chelsea didn't play well, but they were united, as long as Bayern got the ball, Chelsea teams except for Drogba almost all retreated to half-time, and Gudjohnsen retreated to the edge of the penalty area several times to tackle. The advantages of attacking well cannot be brought into play, but the disadvantages of not being good at tackling and grabbing are exposed.
UEFA made a penalty mystery after the last round. This time, Chelsea barely put Bayern players in the box. Only once. Hutter made a much more serious tugging move in the penalty area defending Pizarro than in the previous game, and the referee signalled for Pizarro to foul first. Chelsea have had another reassurance.
Finally, Bayern Munich woke up in the second half, thanks to the signal given to them by Chelsea, they are ready to win this game completely on defense, Bayern is more powerful than Chelsea'———s defense, unreasonable attack, Premier League header John Terry lost in the battle with Ballack, this time he saw not a weak German who faked a fall, but a strong and unstoppable, the ball hit the post and bounced off Pizarro's follow-up shot.
Five minutes later, he had a header on goal that was instantly blocked by Gudjohnsen on the goal line. Didier Drogba's goal was really just the result of the German's frenzied attack, which is exactly what Chelsea are known for in terms of efficiency.
Bayern, who needed three goals to hold on to a glimmer of hope, were completely out of hope. The fans at the Stadio Olimpico began to leave the stadium in droves, and even two goals, a victory could not change their disappointment.
Once again, Mourinho's team is in danger, there will be no one suspended for the next game, Mourinho will be back in the next game, and the Portuguese will not be satisfied with Chelsea who defend so much, so he has enough opportunities to improve.
Bayern fell in the same place twice, and it was the same people and the same way that killed them, and Magath could sigh after the game that Frank Lampard's long-range shot was due to luck, but he had nothing to say about Drogba.
'You could see the quality of Chelsea in their second goal and after that it was over. Magath said that when he sat on the sidelines in the 79th minute and watched Drogba jump and shake his head in front of Kovac again, he may have known that something was wrong. 'We know that Dorrogba can run for 90 minutes to find chances, he has the desire to score and it's hard to stop, he's good at finding the right moment, he's very good in the air, I can't find anyone better than him.'
Magath had to take it. After two rounds, Bayern went from coach to player, and one of the most talked about names was Drogba.
"He fought for everything with his head!" Hargreaves said in awe after the first leg and Magath was "hopeful Kovac will find a way to deal with him in the second leg", but when the Ivorian header hit the net in the 79th minute, they both lost, leaving Kahn stunned in front of goal and Bayern once again being topped over by the big black man.
Unlike his ups and downs in the Premier League, Drogba has been imposing in the Champions League, with Barca's red card cutting back his appearances, but he still has five goals in seven games he has played, surpassing Frank Lampard and John Terry as top scorers in the Champions League charts, and in those five goals, Drogba has scored in a variety of ways, from breaking through in the box to direct free-kicks, and of course, most commendably for his domineering aerial duels and headers.
Before the game against Bayern, Drogba had said that Chelsea would never just defend in the half, and they would use the attack to destroy Bayern's hopes. 'If we play the way we play, we're going to get the chances to score,' said Drogba, 'and we want to score one or two goals. Bayern have to be afraid of us, we scored four goals against them, four against Barcelona and we were just as good in attack. ”
The end result was six goals for Chelsea against Barcelona and Bayern Munich and Didier Drogba's role in both meetings changed from a culprit to a hero, and when he summed up his performances so far this season, Drogba was satisfied but felt there was room for improvement. 'I'm satisfied, it's not easy to leave Marseille and start adapting to a new club and a new life, but I think even if I only play 60 or 70 per cent of my true potential, I can contribute to the team.'
Perhaps no one has noticed the deeper problem, but Mourinho's arrangement allows two different types of strikers to play as strikers in different matches, activating the potential of each of the two strikers.
In the domestic arena, Jonk scored every game, and Drogba scored again in the Champions League.
What made Bayern most angry was that the whole team was full of Jonker, who thought he would play, sat on the bench from beginning to end, what else could he say, Bayern could only knock out his teeth and swallow it in his stomach, no matter what the pit was, he jumped and jumped, just keep quiet. (To be continued......)