Chapter 349 Conquest

After winning against Chelsea at home, Manchester United's point gap with Chelsea in the league standings has changed from 7 points to 4 points, rekindling the hope of winning the league. ＊ＷWＷ.suimeng.lā

If Manchester United lose this game, the gap between them and Chelsea will widen to 10 points, and Manchester United will basically bid farewell to this season's league championship.

Chelsea had been unbeaten in 40 league games before this, which was finally ended by Manchester United, just like Arsenal's 49-game unbeaten season ended last season.

When they needed victory most, Ferguson's team did it.

"It's unbelievable. Chelsea had at least 20 good scoring opportunities in this game, right? They didn't even score a single kick. The goddess of victory has always been on Manchester United's side. Even if it's a draw, Mourinho and his players Their faces are not so ugly. Now, they can only watch the young players of Manchester United celebrating their victory."

"Smith held the champagne award for the best player of the game..."

"Although he only played sixty minutes."

Before the game against Chelsea, when Manchester United was at an all-time low, the media bombarded Smith: "What on earth can Smith do? He only knows how to run up and down, as if he is lost. He doesn't know what he is doing!"

This is the media's evaluation of Alan Smith. I don't understand how this young boy is positioned as Keane's successor. However, in the 1-0 victory over Chelsea, Smith surprised people. It was not Dong Fangzhuo who stole the limelight. Smith stood up for Manchester United and was the well-deserved man of the match.

One move has been widely used. Beckham became Manchester United's signature star with his curve ball. Smith is far inferior to Beckham in terms of strength, status and influence, but he still relies on his best move - Tackle has become an alternative protagonist today. Speaking of which, Ferguson asked him to switch to midfield. The inspiration also came from a tackle. When playing Fulham away from home last season, Smith, a forward, scored after intercepting the ball in the opponent's penalty area. Ferguson was amazed and moved from then on. The idea of ​​developing Smith into another Keane.

Manchester United made 25 tackles in the game, and Smith accounted for 11 of them! You can imagine how much trouble this Manchester United man is in the eyes of Lampard and others. Only 10 minutes into the game, Smith used a behind-the-back tackle to tell Lampard, "I'm with you today." After his 11 personal tackles, A large proportion of the ball and 5 fouls were given to Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard. In a sense, Smith became a tactical offset card for Ferguson. The instruction he received was to destroy the opponent's midfield. the organizational center.

In the second half, Manchester United's city was in turmoil. Smith and his teammates fought hard to hold on for a while. In the 50th minute, he blocked Lampard's volley in front of the goal. In the 60th minute,

He missed Del Horno's shot in front of an empty goal, and was later forced to replace him because Ferguson was worried that he would get a red card.

After the game, Sky Sports gave Smith a game-high 9 points...

When receiving the champagne that symbolized the best in the audience, Smith said with emotion: "I think everyone knows where the motivation comes from,"

"As a player, you can't just enjoy praise, but you also have to accept criticism. I think the best place for you to defend yourself is on the pitch, and everyone at Manchester United should do that. But today's victory is obviously not just for me. The whole team is trying their best. If the captain at the front is defending desperately, what reason do I have for not rushing? And Park and Fletcher around me, each of them is the same as me. …”

Smith is not stupid enough to take all the credit.

However, at the press conference after the game, Ferguson still praised Smith. When Keane was far away from the main lineup, Ballack could not be hired, and others were not enough to play as a defensive midfielder, Smith like this was what he needed most. of.

Regarding Smith's outstanding performance, Ferguson believes that this is the epitome of Manchester United's spirit. Today, the team performed very well as a whole: "There is nothing wrong with giving Smith the best of the game, but there are three or four people who are worthy of it. So many people Playing well makes it hard to pick one.”

A slump was followed by a flash. Smith gave Ferguson hope and confusion: "That's what young players are like. What they need is more stable performance. In the past few weeks, young people have been taking the lead. Today they The desire and passion are outstanding and have a fantastic attitude and they need to continue that."

"Smith is a typical example of young people at Manchester United. Under the stimulation of a certain environment, they can rise up in one game, but they still lack the stability to sustain a high level for a season. In a tough game like defeating Chelsea, Smith He has shown what high level he can reach, but what is more difficult is to strive to maintain it at this level. For Smith and the young people of Manchester United, this is a question and a challenge. In the end, time will reveal the answer."

No matter how many unsatisfactory aspects Manchester United showed in this game, Ferguson could no longer find fault.

Just like Mourinho said at the press conference later: "Today Chelsea lost to luck, but they also lost to a group of energetic children. They are young, have the desire to win, and have a championship heart. . I think Sir Alex Ferguson’s transformation of the team is rapidly reaping rewards.”

"He succeeded, at least today."

"We all know that we have to seize opportunities to score goals in the game, but none of our 25 shots were scored. I really want to consider talking to Sir Alex during the winter transfer period about whether the Chinese director should be Sell ​​it to us..."

Mourinho has said before that he needs strikers like Dong Fangzhuo who can score goals. Before the game, he made quite strict arrangements for the defense, but Dong Fangzhuo still seized a chance that was not a chance and scored a goal.

The ball had no technical content and was completely tricked, but it was also the only goal in the game...

"Then how much do you plan to quote?"

Although Mourinho lost the game, his mood was not extremely bad. He raised his eyebrows: "If it was before the start of the season, I think Dong's worth should be around 15 million pounds to 20 million pounds, but now Dong? Excluding factors other than household registration, I think it shouldn't be lower than Rooney at least, right?"

"Actually, if I were the one, I would award this game to Dong. He is a competent captain. If you don't watch the whole game, you won't know what position he plays."

Mourinho's evaluation of Dong Fangzhuo is getting higher and higher. He started looking down on him last year, then expressed surprise at him, then felt helpless towards him, and now, he not only recognizes him, but also seems to be conquered.