novelraw Chapter 638 - 442: After a Headshot on Icardi, Tang Long Faces His First Penalty Shootout in His Career!_2
Chapter 638 - 442: After a Headshot on Icardi, Tang Long Faces His First Penalty Shootout in His Career!_2
Bony felt a pang of regret...
Such amazing moves, why didn’t I take the opportunity to learn from Tang Long last season;
But then again, with my footwork, even if Tang Long taught me hand-in-hand, could I really learn it? Impossible.
Thinking this, Bony couldn’t help but feel dazed again.
No chance anymore, I’m not Tang Long’s teammate now, I’m his opponent, and the rival of his city, he won’t teach me anything anymore.
Strangely, perhaps because both teams have undergone considerable changes and are still in a period of adjustment;
Even though both sides had good offensive plays in the subsequent match, the score remained 1:0 until the final whistle.
After Ranocchia’s stunning dribble at the start, bypassing Icardi, he made mistakes in his next few dribbles and passes.
However, facing Ranocchia’s first career match as a midfielder, Guardiola still gave him a lot of encouragement and a hug:
"Keep it up, Andrei, I believe in you!"
Meanwhile, in the Manchester United locker room, it wasn’t as harmonious.
Zlatan, who spent 45 minutes on the bench, directly accused Icardi loudly in the locker room in front of everyone.
"Rooney asked you to press Ranocchia, not to tackle the ball away from him. Just maintain your position! Ranocchia is the main player for the Italian national team, do you think he’s dumb enough to let you tackle so easily? Instead, you got easily bypassed, lost your position, and let him push forward. This goal, the blame’s on you!"
Icardi, of course, looked defiant.
Especially since these words came from Zlatan!
"Zlatan, open your eyes and see clearly, it was clearly Tang who, amidst a triple team, miraculously dribbled and scored, leading to our goal loss. If you want to criticize, criticize the defenders, how can my mistake on Ranocchia be blamed? I’m telling you, don’t stir up trouble for no reason!"
Faced with Icardi’s confrontation, Zlatan surprisingly didn’t get angry, but instead smiled.
"Let me tell you, Mauro, you’re really ignorant. What’s this so-called miraculous dribbling?"
"Over twenty years ago, when I played in the Eredivisie for Ajax, I did three stepovers just in front of the penalty area, not only leaving my opponents spinning, but even confusing the broadcaster’s camera. Don’t you know that event? It’s not a big deal; if I were Tang’s age, I could do even better!"
Coach Pellegrini stopped their argument.
In reality, the Chilean engineer also felt that Icardi didn’t perform well in the first half!
The key isn’t about his interception mistake against Ranocchia, because for a forward, getting bypassed by the opponent’s midfielder is not surprising, it’s quite normal.
The issue lies in the point Pellegrini clearly noticed during summer training, which is Icardi’s technical traits are too one-dimensional.
He relies heavily on the midfield feeding him the ball, especially De Bruyne, always wanting to comfortably stay in the box and enjoy the service.
But Manchester City’s defense was strong in pressure and aggression, maintaining complete spacing between the lines;
No matter how broad De Bruyne’s vision is, or how exquisite his technique is, facing an Icardi who only stays in the box, it’s like cooking without rice.
Pellegrini thought to overturn Manchester City in the second half, he had to sub in a forward who can pull out from the box, just like Agüero did for Manchester City in the first half.
So, during halftime, he decisively subbed on Zlatan, a direct swap for Icardi.
And he specifically reminded Pogba to run and intersperse more around Zlatan, especially when Zlatan pulled back to midfield to get the ball.
This substitution was immediately effective.
After Zlatan came on, although at 35 years old, his range wasn’t as large as Manchester City’s Agüero;
But his feature is he can play both as a forward and a midfielder, often pulling out from the box to receive the ball.
This was hard on the Manchester City central defender young Stones!
Stones stands 1.88 meters, not short among Premier League defenders, but meeting Zlatan at 1.95 meters, he was still half a head shorter.
Moreover, Zlatan is also heavy, yet his footwork is agile.
Young Stones, where had he encountered such a robust center forward on the England stage, frequently bullied by Zlatan, it was unbearable~
58th minute in the second half.
Zlatan pulled out of the box again, drawing Stones out;
Pogba passed the ball to him and then sprinted forward.
After Zlatan got the ball, he didn’t rush, his massive frame like a mountain, held off Stones, leaving him unable to reach the ball!
When Pogba reached a certain distance, Zlatan flicked it lightly with the outside of his foot, aligning perfectly with Pogba’s run.
Pogba rushed up and shot!
The ball drew a fierce arc straight for the goal’s corner.
The trailing shot is a strong suit of the French star, often a deadly weapon at Juventus.
With power and momentum, Manchester City’s goalkeeper Bravo couldn’t hold onto the ball!
By lucky accident, the ball rolled precisely to Bony’s feet, and the Ivorian gently nudged it in, accepting the gift.
Bony was still gracious and righteous, scoring the equalizer against his former team without excessive celebration, merely smiling and nodding at his rushing teammates.
And his gesture of sportsmanship even earned him applause from a small section of Manchester City fans.