There is a dream called football

Chapter 498 Lyon with Benzema
Throughout the Christmas season, Manchester United can be described as triumphant. Ferguson once again staged his best Christmas run. Taking advantage of Manchester United's bench, Ferguson has done this N times in the past, but this time is just another one of them.

When facing the interview, Ferguson was grinning from ear to ear. He had to lay a good foundation before February, because after February, he was about to face the cruel Champions League schedule, and Manchester United's opponent in the quarter-finals was the difficult Lyon.

Alan Perrin.

Yes, it was the Frenchman who later coached the Chinese team, and at this time he was the head coach of Lyon.

At this time, Lyon was a strong team in Europe. Not to mention the consecutive Ligue [-] championships, the most important thing was a strong team.

Look at Govou and Benzema on the front line, both are French international players.

The midfielder is Brazil's free kick master - Juninho.

On the back line, there are Italian international Grosso and French fringe international Boumsson, both of whom are very practical players.

The goalkeeper is the French national goal - Coupe.

This lineup is at least the strength of the Champions League quarter-finals. Unfortunately, they must meet Manchester United on a narrow road.

In fact, Ferguson remembered the Champions League 4 years ago, when he was defeated by Porto from Portugal.

In fact, Porto and Lyon are very similar. They are the overlords of their respective countries, but at the same time they are second-rate Europeans. In this case, they may be seen clearly, but once such an opponent is underestimated, punishment is inevitable.

Ferguson would not make another mistake, so he took Queiroz to France to watch the Lyon game in person.

Ferguson is most interested in several small players in the Lyon team, such as Govou and Benzema, especially Benzema.

This is very popular now. It is said that he is a rare talented player in France and has been selected for the French national team.

"I'm interested in Benzema."

"Me too."

Queiroz laughed. In fact, European coaches are still doing a good job of intelligence work. If Queiroz doesn't even know how good Benzema is, then he doesn't have to be at Manchester United.

However, Queiroz was a little disappointed after watching the half-court, because Benzema's ability to move and seize opportunities was far below expectations.

"If this is his real strength, then I can only say that the Frenchman is really joking."

But Ferguson smiled and said nothing, and Queiroz didn't know what the old man meant, as if he had discovered something.

But at the end of the second half, Queiroz was a big convincing word in his heart, because Benzema went on a killing spree in the second half, scoring 3 goals in a row and performing a hat-trick.

Queiroz was a little surprised, not that Benzema's performance surprised him, but how Ferguson saw it.

Ferguson was also candid.

"It's actually very simple. Benzema's running position in the first half was specially arranged. He often ran to an offside position, which made the opponent think that this person does not need to defend. This is like boiling a frog in warm water. The opponent has been cooked in 45 minutes. When Benzema really showed his strength in the second half, the opponent could only watch and could do nothing."

Queiroz admired it. It turned out that running around was also carefully designed.

Ferguson patted Queiroz on the shoulder, "Don't be surprised, the football field is like fighting, never believe what you see with your eyes, see what you can't see, that is the key to winning the game."

Ferguson glanced at Benzema, and he realized that this might be his greatest threat.

*****
Recently, Perrin has paid great attention to increasing the team's training volume. There are still two training sessions a day, but the physical training has increased significantly.

This is actually prepared to deal with Manchester United. Lyon is inferior to Manchester United, so it is necessary to run a little more. The truth is that hard work can make up for one's weakness, and Perrin also studied the game between Porto and Manchester United 4 years ago.

In fact, the most critical factor for Mourinho to overthrow the Red Devils is physical fitness, which means that Porto has won a greater advantage by running all over the field.

In addition, in terms of tactical choices, Perrin is also hesitant.

In the midfield, apart from Juninho, Lyon is unstoppable, and other midfield options may have to be carefully considered, such as Ben Arfa or Toulalang.

If it is Ben Alpha, then Lyon will be in an attacking formation at home, and if they choose Tulalang, then Lyon will defend in the midfield and then go to Old Trafford for a decisive battle, so the difference in personnel is actually the difference in tactics of the head coach.

Is it risky and radical or conservative and pragmatic?This is the responsibility of the head coach and the hardest part of the job.

Perrin thought about it, and finally he chose Tulalan, which would be more stable, but Ben Arfa is also ready to play at any time. This master of dribbling is called a French genius, but his performance is not so stable.

*****
When Manchester United chartered a flight to Lyon, many media began to act, and this time Manchester United was also very generous. Ferguson was very willing to accept everyone's questions, especially about the game, he was willing to answer.

"What do you think of your opponent?"

Ferguson chuckled, "The opponent's strength is good, and it will be difficult to deal with such an opponent in the quarter-finals."

"The last time you came to Lyon to inspect your opponents, did you find anything?"

"Lyon's offense is very fast, their forward ability is outstanding, and their defense seems to be good. We need to strengthen the midfield confrontation."

"What is the key to victory?"

Ferguson said with a smile: "I think the answer to this question is obvious. It must be the midfielder. Whoever can do a better connection in the midfield will be the final winner."

In fact, everyone knows this truth, and Perrin also knows it, and Manchester United's strongest lies in the midfield.

However, Perrin also has his own secret weapon, which is Juninho. This can be said to be one of the best organizational midfielders in Europe in this era, especially his free kick. Later, when many people talked about elevator free kicks, he was the first thing that came to mind.

Juninho's elevator ball is the weirdest and most beautiful, which even the later Ronaldo cannot surpass.

Perrin knew that defense mainly relied on the team, but in terms of offense, it may often rely on Juninho's sudden inspiration.

The Gerland Stadium is ready, waiting quietly for the arrival of Manchester United from the away game, and Manchester United also has its own goals when they come here. The minimum goal set by Ferguson is to score an away goal in the away game. This is the bottom line, because it seems to be very important for two rounds of games.

Manchester United fans crossed the channel and came to France, and a big battle was about to start.

(End of this chapter)