Reborn Liverpool

Chapter 440 The 37th round of the Champions League aftermath

On May 5, in the first round of another UEFA Champions League semi-final held one day earlier, Tottenham Hotspur unexpectedly lost 1 to 0 at home to Ajax.

For the first time in his career, Van de Beek scored in two consecutive Champions League games. Vertonghen was off the field due to injury. In the second half, Neres hit the post.

Ajax has remained unbeaten in away games in the Champions League this season, and has won three consecutive away games in the knockout rounds, restarting the revival of Dutch football.

In the first round of the semi-finals, the top two teams in the Premier League were defeated by their opponents one after another, which caused a lot of mourning from the top and bottom of the Premier League.

Having eliminated Real Madrid and Juventus one after another and reached the semi-finals, Ajax has shown amazing combat effectiveness in this season's Champions League knockout round, and the team's exquisite and smooth passing is even more breathtaking.

In the away game against Tottenham in the first leg of the semi-final, they once again scored goals through wonderful teamwork.

At that time, Tottenham's five defenders and three midfielders were already back in place, but Ajax took their time to organize the attack:

Neres cut in from the left and made an oblique pass to Schone in front of the penalty area. The Danish midfielder quickly transferred to Ziyech next to him. Van der Beek easily succeeded single-handedly.

Cut inside, pass quickly across, find space to send a deadly pass, finish calmly - it all looks like a typical goal in a football game.

And the Ajax players were able to complete such a clear and organized offensive routine in the Champions League semi-finals.

If you look back at the whole process of this goal, you will find more shining points:
The attack originated from Ajax's throw-in. After Tadic protected the ball, he suddenly tapped his heel. Then Van der Beek made another movement of catching the ball with his heel and turning around, and handed the ball to Ziye behind him. Huh...

Without hesitation, the Moroccan midfielder played a long diagonal pass to the left, unraveling the complicated situation and allowing Neres to get a one-on-one chance.

Without these wonderful handlings, it would be impossible to talk about the continuous cooperation and scoring.

The famous reporter Palmeri praised loudly after the game:
"Ajax's goal was beautiful, with two heel tackles, a brilliant deflected pass and a brilliant assist into the box. They played the best football of 2019, The way they play makes you feel heavenly sexy, heavenly, and criminal." You must know that after scoring this goal, Ajax's total number of goals in all competitions this season has reached an astonishing 161 of them!
In the first leg of the Champions League semi-final against Ajax, Tottenham's performance was not good, but it was not to the extent that the "Sun" said after the game that they were completely "educated" by Ajax.

In the absence of a major general, Pochettino's team tried their best and improved in the second half. As the "Daily Mirror" said after the game, this night was the best for Tottenham. The thing is, they're still in this matchup.

Kane was injured, Sun Xingmin was suspended, and Tottenham could only use Llorente and Lucas Jr. to take on the heavy responsibility of the striker.

From a physical point of view, it is also a huge challenge for Tottenham, which has less rest time, to face Ajax, which is already known for its amazing vitality.

So for most of the first half, Ajax could be described as picturesque. Tottenham, who couldn't keep up with the rhythm, were exhausted and couldn't make a clearance. They were always led by their opponents. Three central defenders The team's formation effect is not good, and the kick is very embarrassing.

To make matters worse, Vertonghen was injured and left the field during the scramble. "The house leaked and it rained overnight", and Tottenham lost another defensive general.

In terms of personnel reserves, Vertonghen's injury is of course bad news, but it was this passive substitution that allowed Pochettino's four-back plan to be implemented ahead of schedule.

In the first half, Lineker said to Tottenham's embarrassing performance:
"Ajax is playing well, but Tottenham are doing too badly so far. I think it's only a matter of time before we change to a back four."

Sissoko, who came off the bench, was one of the best Tottenham players in the game. His ball protection and confrontation in the midfield played a very key role.

After increasing the intensity of the confrontation in the second half, Tottenham gradually regained the initiative, while Ajax's pressing effect became smaller, and the quality of the counterattack and the ball was also declining.

Tottenham's Llorente and Lucas Jr. are very hardworking, and there are also bright moments on the field. Tottenham also used set-piece opportunities to find Ajax's flaws, but overall, their offense in this field The quality is still relatively average, lacking a real threat to the goal.

The two starting full-backs are not in good condition, but when the substitute strengthens the offense, they can only replace the other two full-backs.

So this is not the best version of Tottenham, but it is not easy to adjust to this when there is a shortage of major generals.

As the "Daily Mail" said after the game, at this time, no one will say that Tottenham are dead.

0-1 at home in the first round, this is not a big disadvantage, the opponent only has 1 away goal, which is considered lucky in the case of losing.

In the away game, Tottenham still have the ability to drag the game into a fierce strangling battle, but the team must improve its offense.

The "Daily Telegraph" stated that Tottenham will have Sun Xingmin in the next game, and he will make a difference to the team that only has one shot on goal in this game.

Sun Xingmin's outstanding performance in the Champions League this season, as well as his speed and finishing ability, naturally deserve such expectations.

Compared with Liverpool, which is 3 goals behind, Tottenham are still expected to reach the final, and Sun Xingmin is undoubtedly the key figure if they want to make a comeback in the second round.

In the first round of the UEFA Champions League semi-final, Tottenham lost 0-1 at home to Ajax. After the game, Tottenham coach Pochettino took the initiative to admit that "Tottenham's loss lies with me. The five-back strategy has failed."

In an interview with BT Sport after the game, Pochettino said:
"After the game started, we didn't play well. Ajax showed more energy and it was difficult for us. Because we lacked energy."

"After conceding a goal, from the 25th minute to the 30th minute, we started to gradually enter the game. Moussa Sissoko brought life to the team."

"In the second half we tried to press and created chances. The game was close in the second half. We were 'alive', just 0-1 down. We need to believe we can (reach the final) and then win the next leg .”

"Now it seems that I admit that it was a mistake to play with a back five. But we didn't have many options. I'm not happy. You can't guess what would happen if we played differently. But we lacked energy and played a little perfunctory. We The ball shouldn't be conceded in that way and the strategy of the game was not good. I'm the coach so I have the responsibility."

Speaking about Vertonghen's head injury, Pochettino said:

"We will assess his injury in the next few days and we will see."

A small defeat that everyone expected, but it aroused the contradiction between the ecstatic Ajax fans and the slightly disappointed Tottenham, which led to a conflict between the fans of the two teams.

Before and after Tottenham's Champions League semi-final first leg against Ajax, clashes and brawls broke out between fans of both sides. Nine fans were arrested and three police officers were injured in the clashes.

According to the "Daily Mirror" news, the Metropolitan Police Service confirmed that at about 7:15 pm, a group of fans threw debris outside the stadium to attack, and then the police intervened in the matter and four people were arrested.

According to the "Sun", it was in this incident that three policemen were injured, but fortunately the injuries were not serious.

Five more fans were arrested in several separate incidents ahead of kickoff.

After the game, fans from both sides clashed again near the stadium.

Live video showed that glass bottles and other debris were thrown between fans of both sides, and some fans kicked other fans.

Judging from the video footage, however, it appears no one was seriously injured and the conflict did not turn into a massive fistfight, although there was plenty of bickering on both sides.

Another video showed a group of Ajax fans marching on Tottenham fans, who first retreated and later tried to confront the challengers.

"The Sun" said that although the field staff kept the Ajax fans in the stadium for a period of time after the final whistle, the conflict still occurred.

随后在5月4日举行的英超第37轮争夺中，热刺客场0比1不敌伯恩茅斯，孙兴慜和弗伊斯均被罚下。

Although Tottenham's top four status in the Premier League has not been affected by this defeat, it also reflects the impetuous psychology of Tottenham players to a certain extent.

……

On May 5, Liverpool's 5th round of the Premier League is an away game, challenging the home team Newcastle at St. James' Park.

This campaign is a key battle for Liverpool's championship this season. If they win, the Red Army will be one step closer to the unprecedented three consecutive Premier League titles.

利物浦近23个主场对阵纽卡斯尔取得19胜4平保持不败。但近12次客战纽卡斯尔6次告负。

The two sides have never played 47-0 in 0 Premier League matches, and the winner will always be determined. The Red Army has the upper hand at the home court of the Magpies.

For the next round of the Champions League semi-finals, Klopp not only hid Zhang Mai, who had just recovered from his injury, but also let the team rest normally. Sturridge, Henderson, Lovren and Arnold played in rotation.

After more than 90 minutes of fierce fighting, Liverpool finally narrowly beat Newcastle 3-2 in the away game, safely passing the penultimate hurdle before the three consecutive championships.

The game was full of twists and turns, Van Dijk and Salah scored goals, Atsu and Rongdong equalized twice.After Salah left the field with a serious injury, Origi, who came off the bench, scored a lore in the 86th minute.

After Liverpool's 7-game winning streak in the league, they temporarily lead Manchester City, which has one round less, by 6 points, and then they can wait for the last game of this round between Manchester City and Leicester City.

Liverpool defeated Newcastle 3-2, retaining the hope of winning the championship, but a key penalty in this game caused huge controversy after the game.

In the 20th minute of the game, Liverpool led 1-0 at the time, but before being attacked by Newcastle into the penalty area, Matt Ritchie seemed to pass the ball and swept the ball to the goal. At this time, Rong Dong, who was ambushing in the small penalty area, shot from close range , but was blocked by Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold on the goal line...

The slow-motion replay shows that Arnold, who made a key clearance, blocked the ball with his hands!
This move also aroused the dissatisfaction of Rong Dong and other Newcastle players. They opened their arms and signaled loudly to the referee: Handball!Handball!

However, the ball then fell near the small penalty area, and Newcastle player Atsu, who was plugged in, scored with a supplementary shot.

The referee Marina announced that the goal was valid based on favorable principles. The famous post did not punish Arnold after scoring. After that, Arnold sent another assist to help Salah score beyond the score.

This penalty caused great controversy. After the game, Newcastle player Matt Ritchie accused the referee and Arnold:

"Arnold's handball! I know we scored, but he did it on purpose. We're disappointed we didn't win the game."

On the other side, Arnold also defended himself:

"The ball came so fast, I just reacted instinctively, I didn't open my arms to touch the ball. The ball just landed on me. Look at our second goal, Newcastle in us There was a foul before the goal, the referee didn't see it, and it was evened out in the end."

And the media is also arguing about the ball. "Mirror" believes that while the goal is valid, Arnold should be shown a yellow card as a warning.

But the "Post" columnist and former Premier League whistler Chris Foy agreed with Marina's penalty:
"Marriner deserves huge credit for the call, he got it so right. Odd blocked the ball with his hand on the penalty line, but he was only given a red card when he stopped Newcastle from scoring, but he didn't. The goal was blocked and Atsu made it in. According to the rules, if the referee thinks that Alexander-Arnold handballed on purpose, he can be given a yellow card (maximum yellow card), but I don't think Alexander-Arnold did it on purpose."

Compared with this insignificant post-match controversy, what really hurt Liverpool was that Salah was injured in this campaign and was carried off by a stretcher, and may miss the second round.

In the game against Newcastle, Liverpool won a thrilling 3-2, allowing them to maintain their advantage over Manchester City in the Premier League standings, but Salah's injury in this game cast a shadow over Liverpool's Champions League prospects.

In the 69th minute of the game, Liverpool threw a long pass into the penalty area. Salah, who was trying to grab a shot in the penalty area, collided with the goalkeeper who was attacking...

Salah then fell to the ground in pain, and the Liverpool team doctor also rushed into the field to check on Salah. Salah, who fell on the ground, looked very painful, and it seemed that the injury was not serious.

After the team doctor checked Salah, he was fixed on a stretcher, and then he was carried out of the field.

Salah, who was lying on a stretcher, covered his face and cried, unable to believe that all this was true. It is currently unknown whether he can play in the second round of the Champions League against Barcelona.

At present, Liverpool still has 1 game to play in the Premier League. Considering Manchester City's recent stable state, Liverpool can only ensure the Premier League championship if they continue to win.

In the Champions League, Liverpool lost 0-3 to Barcelona in the first round. Without Salah in the second round, the difficulty of making a comeback will undoubtedly increase greatly.

5月7日，2018/19赛季英超第37轮最后一场比赛在伊蒂哈德球场展开争夺。

In the end, Manchester City beat Leicester City 1-0 at home, Kompany's world wave lore, Manchester City is still 13 points behind Liverpool after 3 consecutive victories.

In view of the fact that Manchester City has more goal difference than Liverpool this season, Blue Moon's small victory in this battle has kept the suspense of this season's Premier League championship until the final round.

Manchester City will play away against Brighton in the last round of the Premier League. It is not difficult to get all three points. This requires Liverpool not to lose in the last round of home games against Wolves.

Liverpool's final match is scheduled for the third day of the second round of the Champions League, which puts strict requirements on the Red Army soldiers who have been engaged in continuous life-and-death battles.

(End of this chapter)