Football: My AI System Provides Max-Level Predictions

Chapter 614 - 421: A Thrilling Goal Feast! Coach Guardiola "Letting Go" of Tang Long but with a Hidden Trick!

Guardiola was stunned!

What left him speechless wasn’t Tang Long’s brilliant performance.

Tang Long’s abilities had been tracked almost the entire season by Guardiola and his trusted scout, Raymond.

They knew Tang Long’s level better than anyone!

In this position and at this moment, given a chance like this to dribble into the box, Tang Long would definitely shoot!

And a shot from him is almost certain to score.

What left Guardiola baffled was Vidal.

What’s this guy thinking, just charging like that, crashing around like a madman as if he was hitting a bell.

Guardiola was furious, if this had happened in training, Vidal would have been immediately whistled off and expelled from the field.

But now, Guardiola didn’t need to expel Vidal himself, as Vidal took himself off!

When he fell just now, his wrist hit the ground, and Vidal’s wrist quickly swelled up and deformed, the medical team diagnosed it as a fracture, so Vidal had to be taken off.

Guardiola suppressed his anger, comforted Vidal a bit, and then substituted Muller.

Guardiola can tolerate a lack of ability in a player, but he cannot tolerate playing against his tactical arrangements, so he immediately ruled out Vidal from starting in all the remaining matches of the season.

With Muller on, there was a slight adjustment to the three midfield positions; Alonso and Diego dropped back, with Muller slightly ahead.

The German star had been at Bayern for many years, known as a utility player in the attack, with his greatest trait being his high football IQ. Guardiola was very fond of him, even considering bringing him along to Manchester City next season to extend their teacher-student relationship, though it’s unclear if Muller would agree.

Tang Long killed two birds with one stone, scoring a goal and forcing an opposing key player to leave the field due to an injury at the start of the game;

Pellegrini was also all smiles~

He looked at Guardiola smugly, thinking, so you want to coach Manchester City next season? First, get past this hurdle with your Bayern team!

Pellegrini initially thought Vidal’s unexpected injury and departure would disrupt Bayern’s pre-match plan and weaken their midfield.

However, unexpectedly, Bayern benefited from this, with notable improvement in transitioning the ball from the middle and backfields!

It mainly manifested in smoother ball distribution in the backfield when facing pressure from Tang Long, Agüero, Sterling, Navas, and others.

"With Muller’s entry, Bayern’s distribution became more composed!"

"He almost always uses a single touch and even after physical contact, he quickly finds his teammates!"

"He’s capable of playing forward or midfield, and if you let Muller play center-back, I guess he wouldn’t do too badly either!"

"No wonder for so many years, despite numerous coaching changes at Bayern, Muller’s position has remained unshaken, which shows his strength!"

Manchester City continued their high pressing.

The time quickly reached the 31st minute of the first half.

After half an hour of high pressing, the players of Manchester City started to lose concentration.

Alonso received the ball deep in the backfield, almost standing on the edge of his own penalty arc.

Tang Long pressed forward, successfully blocking Alonso’s ball advancement route.

Tang Long moved flawlessly, but this high press failed because of Sterling!

Alonso’s pass should go to the right back Lahm;

This position was supposed to be covered by Sterling, just as Alonso played the ball, Sterling should have immediately closed in on Lahm.

But Sterling was a step slow!

He was distracted, looking at a blonde girl in the front row.

This moment of lapse left Lahm open, with ample room to push forward with the ball.

An enraged Agüero shouted, and Sterling snapped to his senses, hurriedly pursuing Lahm, but the nimble Lahm had already advanced several steps with the ball, and how could Sterling catch up?

Guardiola nodded slightly.

He studied the traits of every Manchester City player.

Discipline is Sterling’s biggest weakness.

Lahm laid the ball sideways for the oncoming Diego, who continued with a massive switch, and Ribery got the ball!

The Robbery duo have been dominant in football, but whether it’s Robben or Ribery, they’ve been injured frequently over the years, so it’s not one injured, it’s the other sick. They’ve both played only a dozen times for Bayern this season, and appearances together have been rare.

In this match, Robben was absent due to injury, so the responsibility for breaking through on the flank was inevitably handed to the French star Ribery.

"Diego’s long switch was incredibly precise!"

"Ribery closed in on Sagna swiftly after receiving the ball!"

"Other Bayern players are still moving forward, Ribery has no good passing options, what will he do?"

"...Wow!!!"

"Ribery feigned a back pass, but at the last second, he flicked and turned to dribble past!"

"Is this the legendary Cruyff turn?"

"Sagna was tricked and fell, it’s unbelievable how easily he was outmaneuvered!"

"Ribery cut inside with the ball!"

Ribery’s inside run was like a flash, not only past Sagna but also attracting both defensive midfielders Delph and Toure, before making a through pass that tore apart Manchester City’s defense, and suddenly Lewandowski appeared, slotting it home with a push shot!

1-1, Bayern had equalized in the first half!

Guardiola and his assistant enthusiastically high-fived, echoing the cheer!

If Sagna being easily tricked was just an accident, then the gap exposed by Delph and Toure partnering in midfield, appearing in Guardiola’s pre-match expectations, was precisely taught to Ribery.

Gundogan, having represented Dortmund in the European War in the first half of the season, could only play in the league after joining Manchester City in the winter transfer window.

At this moment, he sat at home, watching on TV as the ball easily slipped through between Delph and Toure, helplessly stomping his foot in frustration!

"Alas! If I were in that position, I definitely wouldn’t have passed it to Ribery!"

...

The two teams entered the second half with a 1-1 draw.

Manchester City had a very clear tactic. Since Bayern already scored an away goal, our side had to score as many as possible, at least to secure a victory to accomplish the basic task.

To this end, the whole team resolutely implemented Pellegrini’s pre-match strategy, passing the ball to Tang Long at the first opportunity once in possession, allowing him to orchestrate.

"Bayern’s players can’t stop Tang, even if he is double-teamed, give him the ball decisively!" said Pellegrini.

But after playing for ten minutes in the second half, Pellegrini found Bayern’s counter-strategy very perplexing.

Whether it was midfielders Muller, Alonso, and Diego or the two fullbacks, none effectively marked Tang Long when he received the ball and moved.

They shrunk tightly, almost allowing Tang Long to organize freely in the attacking midfielder’s position.

In the 58th minute of the second half, Tang Long received the ball in the middle and without any delay, delivered a through ball that instantly penetrated Bayern’s defense. Agüero made a decisive diagonal run and shot the ball under Neuer’s armpit!

2-1!

Manchester City takes the lead!

Pellegrini did not look towards the celebrating players on the pitch, but rather curiously glanced at Guardiola nearby.

He initially thought Guardiola would be furious for not marking Tang Long—after all, earlier, when Vidal was dispossessed by Tang Long leading directly to a goal, Pellegrini could hear Guardiola’s roars.

But to the Chilean’s bewilderment, Guardiola seemed unfazed, even clapping and encouraging the Bayern players with a smile.

"This bald Spaniard, leaving Tang unchecked, is he crazy?" Pellegrini was filled with doubt, unsure of what Guardiola’s strategy was.

Little did he know, Guardiola’s thinking was very bold. Since they couldn’t stop Tang Long, he decided not to defend him, to avoid pulling two or three players into marking, which could disrupt their formation and give Tang Long more opportunities!

In the 65th minute, Bayern quickly equalized the score.

Bayern showcased exquisite passing coordination in the middle.

Alonso, facing the pressing of Tang Long and Sterling, immediately passed the ball to the oncoming Lahm, who without hesitation used his left foot to pass to the advancing Diego;

Diego also took a one-touch pass, gently nudging the ball, while Muller accelerated past Toure!

Spreading wide!

This time, Ribery did not choose to go one-on-one with Sagna but instead quickly moved inward with a dash towards the penalty area center under the distraction of Lewandowski and Costa!

Pa! Pa!

Ribery did a one-two with Lewandowski, facing Ranocchia.

Ribery’s body balance subtly shifted and brushed past Ranocchia!

Ranocchia could only resort to his famous "bow-step retreat," attempting to use his long legs to intercept the ball.

But missed the ball and tripped Ribery, causing the referee to whistle and point to the penalty spot!

Guardiola and his assistant high-fived, grinning from ear to ear.

He had specifically studied Ranocchia before the match, saying in the meeting, "Ranocchia is full of weaknesses," and specially highlighted his "bow-step retreat."

Guardiola’s video analysis suggested that while Ranocchia’s retreat covered a wide range and had precise defensive direction, he had a significant weakness — too slow!

This slowness might not seem slow for ordinary Premier League forwards;

But against Ribery with his quick footwork, it’s genuinely slow!

Lewandowski calmly converted the penalty, 2-2!

Tang Long consoled Ranocchia, encouraging him not to lose heart, and immediately organized a new wave of attacks.

In the 78th minute, Tang Long took the ball in the middle, maneuvering with dexterity, weaving past Muller and Diego. When he tried to get past Alonso, he realized Alonso wasn’t falling for the trick but was just retreating;

"Agüero!"

Tang Long executed a No-Looking Pass and, while watching and calling for Agüero on the right, at the last moment flicked his ankle to split the ball to the advancing Sterling on the left!

Sterling’s shot was indeed blocked!

As Bayern’s defenders were still stunned, a light blue figure darted out from the crowd and swiftly sent the rebound into the net!

3-2!

Manchester City retakes the lead!

Tang Long delivered two goals and an assist, with the Etihad Stadium echoing his name!

However, Bayern’s momentum showed no signs of waning.

Although Pellegrini, in the 81st minute, made an adjustment, substituting the exhausted Toure for Fernando to boost the midfield’s mobility and coverage;

But it was Fernando’s rare mistake that allowed Muller to intercept the ball, setting up a pass for the advancing Lahm.

And again a series of passes in the middle led to Alaba on the left wing receiving the ball and crossing!

The football passed over Ranocchia’s head and flew behind Kompany!

Kompany is used to defending conventional crossing routes, but for long-range, high-arc crossed passes that land in areas he struggles to cover, he’s often a beat slow—a detail Guardiola had pointed out to Alba in a pre-match briefing with footage.

Alaba’s pass cleverly aimed between center-back Kompany and full-back Kolarov.

Kolarov thought Kompany would retreat and head the ball away, while Kompany assumed Kolarov would cover his back;

The outcome was neither got to the ball, and Lewandowski headed it in from that spot!

3-3!

The two sides delivered a thrilling goal fest, thrilling the neutral fans thoroughly.

Because of the time constraints, the final score remained unchanged.

Ultimately, this highly anticipated first leg of the Champions League semi-final ended in a draw for Manchester City at home.

During the post-match press conference, Guardiola’s intriguingly cryptic remarks left the attending reporters in astonishment...