green star

Chapter 428 Penalty Shootout!

"Li Rui! Li Rui! Li Rui!!"

Before Li Rui scored, Ancelotti was still sitting comfortably on the chair. He tried his best to hide his excitement. He was ready to wait for the whistle to end the game half a minute later, celebrating the team. After a lapse of two years, he reached the Champions League final again.

However, Li Rui's goal stunned everyone. Ancelotti jumped up from the coach's bench and rushed to the sidelines. He saw Manchester United celebrating their goal wildly. In the net behind Dida.

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And the AC Milan players on the field couldn't believe that all this was true. They looked at each other in blank dismay. They were already waiting for the whistle at the end of the game, cheering for victory. Who would have thought that Manchester United scored a goal at this time!

The mentality of the Manchester United team before the end of the first half, from great joy to great sorrow, is a portrayal of the Milanese now, even worse, because Milan is only half a minute away from the Champions League final.

But now they have to face possible overtime.

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When Li Rui saw the football going in, he turned around and ran towards the stands, but his foot slipped and fell. He just got up from the ground, and before he could run a few steps, he was thrown to the ground by Cristiano Ronaldo. Shouting loudly in the ear, this time the two of them definitely embrace each other sincerely!
Then more people rushed up and they hugged each other!
The Manchester United fans in the stands are completely crazy, everyone is hugging the people around them, whether they know each other or not, at this moment, cheering is the only reason!
The moment Li Rui scored a goal, Ferguson jumped up from his seat, raised his arms high, and cheered uncontrollably. The old Scottish man couldn't hide his inner ecstasy. Sure enough, he was right.

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Milan fans at the San Siro, after a brief silence, cheered again for one man's actions.

It was Inzaghi, he rushed into the goal, took the football from Dida, and then ran towards the middle circle with the football in his arms. Although Inzaghi also knew that time was running out, he was not reconciled, Not reconciled to being equalized by Manchester United at the last moment, his spirit of never giving up fighter is the favorite of Milan fans!
Inzaghi had just placed the football in the middle circle, but the referee Thomason blew the whistle for the end of the game. In the 90 minutes of the game, AC Milan 3:2 Manchester United, and the total score of the two sides was 5:5.The same goes for away goals, so the game will go into 30 minutes of extra time.

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"At the end of the 90-minute game, the total score of the two sides is the same, and the number of away goals is also the same. The game will enter 30 minutes of overtime. If the overtime is still tied, then the only way to decide the winner gone."

"The players will also take a short break and enter the overtime game. The game was actually dragged into overtime. It was indeed very intense. Now the physical strength of the players on both sides has dropped a lot. Overtime is also a test of the players' perseverance. showdown."

Overtime is about to start, and the players are also replenishing water on the sidelines while listening to the head coach's tactical arrangements.

At this time, AC Milan had already used up three substitutions ahead of schedule, so it was impossible to blame Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti. No one thought that Manchester United would seize the last-minute opportunity to equalize the total score.

In this case, what is more beneficial to Manchester United is that Ferguson only replaced Giggs with Cassano at the last moment, and only used one substitution. Now, Manchester United still has two substitutions that can be used to adjust .

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Ferguson used the second substitution, and before the first half of extra time, Manchester United made a substitution, Carrick came off the bench, he replaced Wayne Rooney.

When the little fat man was replaced, he was a little unhappy, but he could also understand the head coach's substitution. Cassano was replaced at the end of the first half to strengthen the offense. At the same time, Ferguson also used a trick to replace him. On Cassano is also to interfere with Milan's defense.

Now, the game has entered overtime. Manchester United counts Cassano on the field. There are four attackers. They are serious about offense and light defense. In order to maintain the balance of offense and defense, an attacker must be replaced. Cassano has just been replaced. Come up, naturally he will not be replaced. Cristiano Ronaldo's breakthrough is an important weapon for Manchester United, and Li Rui is even more impossible to be replaced. Naturally, he can only 'sacrifice' the little fat man at this time.

Ferguson patted Rooney on the shoulder on the sidelines and praised the little fat man. In fact, Rooney's performance today is also remarkable, scoring the first goal for Manchester United.

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The overtime game was uneventful, and neither side had any good chances. On the one hand, it was because the game was so fierce that it was time for overtime. The physical fitness of the players on both sides was exhausted very quickly. The will is supporting it, and it is difficult for the players to make any wonderful moves or play wonderful cooperation.

Manchester United's last substitution was also used in the second half of overtime. Solskjaer came off the bench and replaced Fletcher, who could not run, and replaced the midfielder with an attacker. In fact, this is not a reinforcement The signal of offense is that Ferguson is already preparing for the penalty shootout. Although Solskjaer does not have many opportunities to play this season, the Norwegian star has rich experience and good psychological support.You know, in the Champions League final where Manchester United won the Triple Crown, it was Solskjaer's magical performance that helped Manchester United reverse and beat Bayern Munich.

At this time, Ferguson still chose to believe in the veteran.

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In the 119th minute of the game, Li Rui took two steps after receiving Cassano's back kick in the frontcourt. Under Gattuso's still desperate press, he pretended to break through to the left, but knocked the football It was given to Cristiano Ronaldo, who opted for the drop goal, with the ball slightly over the bar.

Ten seconds later, the referee Thomason from Denmark even blew the whistle for the end of the game when it was only 20 seconds to 120 minutes. We are all waiting for a penalty shootout, and no one has the ability to score in overtime.

Sure enough, Thomasson blew the whistle for the end of the game in advance, which did not cause any protest from any players or coaches on both sides——

The game is about to enter a penalty shootout.

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"I didn't expect it! I didn't expect it! This semi-final will be dragged to the final penalty shootout!" The commentator shouted. "Whether it is Manchester United fans or AC Milan fans, they are unwilling to see the final match in such a cruel way. However, the game must be won and lost. Now is the time to test the mental ability of the players."

Indeed, as the commentator said, even for a defender, facing a goal or a goalkeeper, there is no problem in usually kicking the football in. In a penalty shootout, it is more about the will and psychology of both sides. competition! !

Li Rui sat on the ground panting heavily. He took the water bottle handed over by Giggs and took two sips slowly to calm down his nervous mood.

Li Rui turned his head and looked at AC Milan. The Milan players were also gathered together, and they seemed to be discussing the list of penalty players.

And Milan goalkeeper Dida kept crossing himself on his chest, chanting words, as if he was praying, and looked over here, Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar was walking up and down the field with a bottle of water in his hand , I don’t know what he was thinking about, and none of his teammates came up to bother Van der Sar, leaving him alone for a while.

This kind of duel between the player and the goalkeeper is a great pressure for the free throw player after 120 minutes of hard work, and it is also a severe psychological test for the goalkeeper.

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Soon, the list of penalty kicks from both sides was handed in. Cristiano Ronaldo was the first to take the penalty. The Portuguese is Manchester United's number one penalty shooter. Cassano, Solskjaer, Carrick, and Li Rui made the last free throw.

The last kicker is as important as the first kicker. Maybe this is the most critical one. Li Rui took the initiative to find Ferguson and asked to take the last kick. As the team's current captain, He must take responsibility.

Ferguson was also hesitant about whether to let Li Rui take the last goal or Solskjaer took the penalty. Seeing that Li Rui took the initiative to stand up, he did not hesitate and nodded in agreement. At this time, the head coach cannot have A moment of hesitation, otherwise it will cause Li Rui to have psychological fluctuations. Does the head coach not trust me?
So Ferguson was very relieved and decisively agreed to Li Rui's request, and let him take the last free throw!
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For AC Milan, the first player to play is the team's current captain Pirlo. He is Milan's number one penalty shooter. There is no accident in the first game, and in the 2006 World Cup final, the penalty shootout between Italy and France At the time, Pirlo was also the first to stand up and take the penalty and withstood the pressure to score a penalty kick, which shows his psychological quality.

Milan's next free throwers are Gilardino, Seedorf, Brocchi and Kaka;
The penalty shootout is about to start, and both the fans and the commentator are starting to get nervous. Of course, the fans at the scene are the ones who feel the pressure of tension the most. At this time, the fans have also calmed down, and no one has said anything. Boos or any sound, for fear of affecting their own players.

"Thanks to Milan and Manchester United for giving us two classic games, two true champions against each other, it's a pity that we have to witness the departure of one of them in such a brutal way, it's really true It's cruel, but this is the charm of football, let's pray for them!!" Lineker's speech was flat, but everyone could feel the tension and excitement.

There is also a sense of depression.

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The result of guessing the coin is that the home team AC Milan kicks first, which is a good thing for Manchester United, because the pressure of the first goal is all on AC Milan's side, to be exact, the pressure is all on the first goal. Pirlo took the penalty kick.

Pirlo walked into the penalty area with the football in his arms. He patted the football first, and then put it on the penalty spot seriously. The camera followed Pirlo, trying to see a trace of hesitation on the face of the 'Milan Brain' , However, what everyone saw was Pirlo with a dignified face.

Van der Sar is in front of the goal, with his arms open, expanding the defensive area as much as possible, and at the same time staring at the football in front of Pirlo, like an eagle ready to pounce on food at any time!
All AC Milan players stood in the middle circle, hugging each other, looking nervously at the goal ahead.The Manchester United players also stood in a row, but they didn't hug each other. Some were praying, and some were looking in the direction of the goal with their hands folded.

The entire stadium was also unusually quiet, waiting for——

"Beep!" The referee Thomason whistled.

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Pirlo ran up and shot, the ball hit the upper left corner of the goal, he shot very resolutely, although van der Sar judged the right direction, but the speed of the ball was too fast... the ball hit the net! ! !
The camera was aimed at the sidelines, Ancelotti clenched his fists, his face flushed with blood from extreme excitement! ! !
AC Milan 6:5 Manchester United - Penalty AC Milan 1:0 Manchester United!

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Cristiano Ronaldo stood at the penalty spot. In the eyes of the Portuguese, his face was serious. Cristiano Ronaldo gritted his teeth, looked at Dida standing in front of the goal, and waited for the whistle.

Thomason's whistle sounded...

Cristiano Ronaldo makes a running run...slows down...his right foot and shoots to the right of the goal...Dida goes to the left...

Bang! ! !
The Milan fans just cheered, and then they saw clearly that the football hit the inside of the column and rolled into the net!

This goal is very thrilling, but still scored!

Manchester United thunderous cheers! ! ! !
Li Rui even waved his arms vigorously towards the sky. He looked at the night sky of San Siro, the starlight was shining, very deep...

AC Milan 6:6 Manchester United - Penalty AC Milan 1:1 Manchester United! ! !

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After the goal, Cristiano Ronaldo waved his fist lightly. His heart was completely released after the extreme tension. The crisp sound of the football hitting the post just now almost made Cristiano Ronaldo despair. , Let it be seen clearly that when the football hits the inside of the post or into the net, Cristiano Ronaldo feels that his feet are about to stand unsteadily, and his feet are numb due to extreme tension and congestion!
Gilardino made the sign of the cross on his chest and walked to the penalty spot. The whole court was so oppressive that it was almost breathless.

(End of this chapter)