novelraw Chapter 580 - 396: This is not Mauro, this is Mao Biao! Facing the open goal, Icardi scores on cue!
Chapter 580 - 396: This is not Mauro, this is Mao Biao! Facing the open goal, Icardi scores on cue!
After the start of the match, Manchester City dominated possession while Manchester United focused on counterattacks.
This matched the tactical play of both teams and Manchester City’s home advantage.
Unexpectedly, only 6 minutes in, Manchester City’s players hadn’t warmed up yet, and the opponent delivered a stunning attack!
Agüero’s shot was blocked by Rojo, earning a corner kick for the team in the front field.
Kolarov took a short corner kick, intending to surprise through ground infiltration, disrupting Manchester City’s defensive positioning.
But Gundogan, positioned as a defensive midfielder, hesitated after receiving the ball, seeing the crowded players in the penalty area, and forcibly made a direct pass!
The corner wasn’t well handled, although it bypassed the gap between Manchester United’s two defensive midfielders, it was intercepted steadily by Manchester United’s center-back Blind midway.
"Press forward, charge ahead!"
Seizing a rare defensive counterattack opportunity, Manchester United’s defense line quickly pressed forward, leaving Agüero, Sterling, Navas, and others behind the offside line.
Icardi was charging forward quickly, reaching out for the ball;
Rooney was also advancing forward!
Blind, however, passed the ball to De Bruyne among several passing options.
Gundogan was also in pursuit.
The loss of the ball was from his feet, the responsible German midfielder wanted to redeem himself, and immediately closed in on De Bruyne.
Tang Long, who was retreating, quickly warned Gundogan upon seeing his aggressive approach:
"Don’t try to tackle, just hold your position!"
But Tang Long’s warning ultimately came a step too late.
De Bruyne faced the charging Gundogan and remained exceptionally calm.
With a flick of his right foot to the right, pretending to break through the right flank, he deceived Gundogan’s center of gravity and then countered with a swift "snap"—
With such a simple flick and switch, Gundogan was completely fooled.
De Bruyne’s handling this time was extremely smooth, both in timing selection and action coordination, causing Gundogan to secretly admire and be amazed.
Tang Long, Gundogan, Sterling, Navas, and Agüero, all the front-line players were chasing!
The young De Bruyne had exceptionally strong forward-driving ability, his dribbling and speed were top-notch.
Facing Manchester City, who once treated him as a backup during the transfer market only to abandon him mercilessly, De Bruyne’s desire to win and sense of revenge was intensely high!
His dribbling was extremely simple, without flashy moves, but he always timed his steps perfectly, charging towards open spaces.
Only six or seven seconds.
De Bruyne drove the ball on a long-distance run for 50 meters from the backfield, continuously bypassing Gundogan, Toure, and Sagna, reaching Manchester City’s penalty arc!
Especially with Gundogan being bypassed once, though actively pursuing back, De Bruyne once again dribbled past him at the penalty arc.
De Bruyne shot!
De Bruyne was a master in passing, his signature Ground Strike made him shine for a season in the Bundesliga.
After coming to the Premier League, De Bruyne diligently studied and under Manchester United’s coaching staff’s guidance, combined kick and pass in shooting; his long shot this time was also a Ground Strike, albeit faster and extremely sudden!
The tall full-back Kolarov had already repositioned defensively, clearly blocking De Bruyne from the front;
But De Bruyne’s grounded curved strike seemed perfectly calculated, just bypassed Kolarov’s toes, surging towards the goal!
Caballero’s sight was obstructed by Kolarov, and he only heard the ball sound without seeing its path.
Fortunately, the subsequent "clang" sound was heard, the ball hit the outside of the post and bounced out to the baseline, making Caballero break out in a cold sweat.
"So close!" Kolarov’s heart raced.
In the studio, Tevez also watched excitedly.
As a star who had played for both Manchester City and Manchester United, Tevez was now away from the Top Five Leagues, living a semi-retired life.
For this match, Sky Sports specifically invited him to comment, taking advantage of his dual-team affiliation to stir some conversation.
"Very unfortunate, Dilata! De Bruyne’s shot had high quality, Caballero was just watching, Manchester City narrowly escaped a scare."
"Not just this shot, the previous dribbling by the Belgian midfielder was also extremely brilliant, he moved through the midfield like there was no one. If that shot went in, it would definitely be a strong contender for Premier League Goal of the Season." Dilata added.
Live studio.
-[That shot was amazing, if not for the goalpost, it would have definitely gone in!]
-[De Bruyne’s midfield long-distance run just now was even better compared to Tang Long!]
-[I heard previously, Manchester City gave up De Bruyne for Tang Long?]
-[I say, Manchester City should have taken both of them in; then they could have dominated Europe for five or six years!]
-[But then it wouldn’t be exciting, nor would we have this season’s intense Premier League title contest between the Manchester Giants.]
-[That last ball was mishandled by Gundogan, he wanted too much to intercept, seems like his mentality was a bit anxious]
-[Exactly, if Tang Long was in that spot, he would have surely blocked and retreated to delay De Bruyne’s pass. The primary rule of defense: let him pass, but don’t let him through!]
De Bruyne’s long-distance run and brilliant shot earned cheers from Manchester United fans at the venue.
However, Icardi was not pleased.
He showed some emotion.
Although even Icardi admitted that De Bruyne’s shot was very beautiful;