our champion dream

Chapter 79 Community Shield Cup
On the second day after the game ended, the Manchester United team flew back to Manchester.

After ten or so days of rest, they will usher in their first game of the new season-the Community Shield Cup. As the league champions, their opponent is the FA Cup champion Chelsea.

The England Community Shield is an annual tournament hosted by the Football Association of England between the champions of the Premier League and the owners of the FA Cup.If the team wins the double championship (scheduled for the Super League and FA Cup champions), the opposing team will be changed to the Super League runner-up.The game is used as the opening game before the start of the season every year. It is traditionally held at Wembley Stadium. During the reconstruction of Wembley, it was staged at the Millennium Stadium.
Chelsea and Manchester United are old enemies with deep grievances. The strength of the two sides is equal. With Abramovich's generous investment in recent years, he has already become a wealthy family. The root of Mourinho's dominance in the Premier League in the past It is still there, and the joining of Italian coach Ancelotti has brought Chelsea's strength to a higher level. This is an opponent that can never be underestimated.

The English media were unanimously optimistic about the results of the Community Shield Cup. The big prizes in the team left one after another, and the arrival of several newcomers greatly weakened the strength of Manchester United. The fear is that they sit on the bench and become handsome Ferguson.The outside media and the fans of both sides made a fuss, but the players of both sides were very low-key and nervously preparing for the game. What they were looking forward to was not just this Community Shield match, but a greater honor.

At the pre-match press conference the day before the game, both Ferguson and Ancelotti announced their starting roster and 18-man roster.The starting players of both sides have formed their own strongest lineups. On the contrary, in the 18-man roster, the name of Manchester United's new No. [-] Li Xiaoming is impressively listed.

After a commotion in the media present, they immediately quieted down. Everyone knows that since Ferguson handed over the number seven to that Chinese boy, it means that this Chinese boy can become Manchester United's main player, and this topic has already been hyped It has been a long time, and this is not the news they want, so they frequently raised some very embarrassing topics in the following media questioning session, trying to provoke the media on both sides, but such topics were used by the two veteran coaches with skill The official cliché is coping with it.

After the press conference was over and the two coaches left, some reporters even gritted their teeth and cursed. After all, journalists use digging insider gossip as their professional skill, so fans are not interested in watching such innocuous speeches.However, a reporter immediately said: "There will be a game tomorrow. Manchester United and Chelsea games have always been super hot scenes. I am afraid that there will be no gimmicks in the news when the time comes."

But the Chinese media felt excited because they saw Li Xiaoming's name!
Li Xiaoming entered the 18-man squad!

This is the first time he can appear on the official game scene.

This means that he has the possibility of coming off the bench in the game!
Although it was only a possibility, it also made Chinese reporters very excited.

After the press conference ended, they called back to China immediately and told the domestic editorial department the latest news!
In this regard, the website reflects the superiority of the information explosion era. Penguin.com immediately announced Manchester United's 18-man squad.

You can quickly see the situation in England on the website.

The timeliness of traditional media in this regard is much worse.

However, they themselves cannot compete with online media for timeliness. Their specialty lies in the deep digging behind the news.

For fans in China, it has been a long time to wait for this day.

Since Manchester United officially announced the signing of Li Xiaoming, they have been dreaming of a Chinese player wearing a Manchester United jersey in the Premier League.And what they are most looking forward to is Li Xiaoming's good performance in the warm-up match, but they will also be afraid that the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment. After all, for Chinese fans, Dongfang Zhuo is a bad lesson.

So when they saw Li Xiaoming entered Manchester United's 18-man squad on the Internet, they were taken aback for a moment, then read the news several times and found that they read it right, Li Xiaoming's name was indeed in the squad!
That was the first battle of the Premier League. Although the reputation of the Community Shield is not good. After all, there is a curse that whoever wins the championship will lose the Premier League championship. But for Chinese fans, as long as they see Li Xiaoming standing on the field, what is the difference Champions matter.

Although no one knows whether Li Xiaoming will have a chance to play, or will sit on the bench for 10 minutes, many Chinese journalists have come to England Wembley Stadium.

Wembley Stadium is the home of the England national team and the largest football stadium in England.The newly built Wembley Stadium has lost the iconic twin towers and replaced it with the Rainbow Bridge. Today's Wembley Stadium is still full of seats, just like the FA Cup final a few months ago.

In this Community Shield match, Ferguson's starting lineup is not much different from last season. Although Cristiano's departure has caused a certain impact, Manchester United's lineup is still full of talents.Starting center Berbatov, followed by Rooney and Giggs.In the deep position is Scholes, followed by two defensive midfielders, Carrick and Park Ji-sung.On the back line, the main lineup of last season is still maintained, with Neville, Ferdinand and Vidic all appearing.

The goalkeeper is Ferguson's most trusted van der Sar.

This lineup is the strongest lineup that Ferguson can currently arrange, which shows that he attaches great importance to this game.In any case, this is also a championship, and it will be counted in his honor.

As for Chelsea, they also have their strongest lineup. This is Ancelotti's first game in office. He also needs a victory to establish himself in the hearts of fans and players.

Before the game started, fans of Manchester United and Chelsea fans simply sang songs in the stands.The fans of Manchester United seemed very relaxed. After all, they won the league championship last season and reached the Champions League final, so in their presence, Manchester United will definitely be able to beat Chelsea.

But the media and experts are not as optimistic as they are.

In terms of transfer introduction, Manchester United has no exciting news.Although Cristiano Ronaldo and Tevez were sold, Ferguson couldn't find a suitable candidate for a while with the [-] million euros they got in exchange.

In terms of attack, he added Valencia, which was transferred from Wigan Athletic and cost Manchester United 700 million pounds. This is already the most expensive transfer for Manchester United this summer. .

In addition, Michael Owen joined Manchester United freely from Newcastle United, which is somewhat unexpected.

There is also a player from China named Li Xiaoming.

In addition, Manchester United's investment in the transfer market is pitifully small.

They introduced the French player Obertin from Bordeaux for 300 million pounds, and also freely introduced the young French midfielder Pogba from the French team Loew Arles.

"To be honest, I am more optimistic about Chelsea. They are strong and strong, and many players are at the pinnacle of their careers. Looking at Manchester United, it is a period of transition between the old and the new. With Cristiano's departure, most of the main players in the team are veterans. I don't disrespect players like Ryan Giggs, but I still have to question whether they can withstand the impact of Chelsea. As for whether the new Manchester United No. [-] can be worthy of his jersey, his performance in the warm-up match is indeed amazing , but the level of the team is questionable."

When the game was about to start, Sky TV was ready to broadcast live, and commentator Martin Taylor and guest commentator Alan Hansen were previewing the game.

Everyone thinks that this game should be a close game,

The outcome of this game is hard to say now.

In the locker room, the head coaches of both sides are also doing the final mobilization.

Ferguson was yelling at his players: "This summer, we sold Cristiano Ronaldo, so the whole world is saying that Manchester United is over! I can hear the calluses in my ears! Manchester United will die because of one person. No, we wouldn't be Manchester United if that were the case! This game is the first chance to show those who look down on us who is boss in England!"

The Ferguson hair dryer was on full blast.

At the same time, in another dressing room, the good-natured coach, who is not good at long-winded Ancelotti, is also encouraging his teammates: "They are Manchester United, gentlemen, I don't think I need to say more Right? Take them, this is our first step in conquering the Premier League."

With that said, he let the players out.

Li Xiaoming sat on the bench and quietly felt the atmosphere of the stadium. This is the charm of the professional league.

The captains of both sides led their respective players into the stadium, and deafening cheers echoed in the stadium.game starts soon

In the 2nd minute, Lampard passed the ball, Drogba shot with his right foot from 25 yards, Foster got the ball.

In the 4th minute, Berbatov received a yellow card for obstructing a free kick.

In the 6th minute, Lampard took a left corner kick, which was missed by both sides. Then Ivanovic hit a rebound ball with his right foot pad from 6 yards, and Evra by the goalpost made a rescue.

In the 10th minute, Fletcher shifted to the midfield. Giggs took the ball from the left and cut in from 22 yards to the far corner with his right foot. The ball went straight to the lower right corner, Manchester United 1-0.

In the 14th minute, Ivanovic uprooted Afra and received a yellow card.

In the 16th minute, Berbataba made a cross from the right, and Rooney nodded the ball to ferry. Park Ji-sung shot with his left foot from 6 yards under the interference of Mikel, and Petr Cech struggled to save it.In the 17th minute, Malouda went straight, and Drogba shot with his left foot from 10 yards from the left rib, and Foster got the ball.Then Berbatov and Scholes broke into the restricted area single-handedly after 2-2 cooperation. The right-footed shot from 10 yards on the right rib was blocked by Petr Cech, and Scholes was half a step slower to keep up with the supplementary shot.

In the 21st minute, Rooney tried a long shot and was blocked by the defender.

In the 27th minute, A-Cole made a long pass from the left, and Drogba made a direct pass from the right side of the penalty area without stopping the ball. Afterwards, the unguarded Malouda volleyed from 6 yards and missed.

In the 28th minute, Scholes shot wide of the right post.

In the 31st minute, A-Cole made a cross from the left, and Essien inserted a header from 8 yards to the top of the goal.

In the 36th minute, Anelka cut into the penalty area from the left and shot with his right foot from 12 yards was blocked by Ferdinand.

In the 43rd minute, Ryan Giggs took a tactical corner kick on the left. Fletcher hung his right foot 18 yards from the left rib to the rear corner, and Cech struggled to support the crossbar.

At the end of the first half, Manchester United led 1-0.

At the beginning of the second half, Bosingwa replaced Ivanovic.In the 49th minute, Rooney's right-footed shot from the front of the penalty area was blocked by A-Cole.

In the 52nd minute, Lampard scored the ball and Malouda made a cross from the left side of the penalty area. Van der Sar missed the shot and then Carvalho headed the goal from 6 yards to equalize the score, 1-1.In the 56th minute, Anelka's shot from the front of the restricted area was blocked by Foster.

In the 63rd minute, Nani replaced Ryan Giggs.In the 65th minute, Ballack replaced Mikel.

In the 71st minute, Scholes collided with Ballack in the front court and fell to the ground painfully, but the referee signaled the game to continue. Chelsea counterattacked 3 on 2, Drogba crossed from the left side of the penalty area, and the unguarded Lampard 12 yards Right-footed shot, van der Sar saved the ball, the ball rolled into the goal, Chelsea 2-1.

Ferguson kicked and a piece of turf flew up.Li Xiaoming looked at the field. The Manchester United players looked depressed, and all of them looked ugly.After all, at the end of the first half, Manchester United was still leading, and everything seemed so close to success. Lampard was running wildly on the field, and Chelsea were celebrating crazily!Wembley roared with cheers!Chelsea fans cheered loudly.

The team doctor saw that Scholes was injured and rushed to the field.Ferguson said a few words to Mullenstein with a livid face, and Mullenstein yelled at the bench: "Li, warm up."

The chaos on the court ended quickly. Scholes' injury was not serious, but some bruises and bruises. However, to be conservative, Ferguson decided to replace Scholes.Ferguson pulled the hot Li Xiaoming to his side and said, "Li, are you ready?"

Li Xiaoming smiled at Ferguson and said, "I can do it, don't worry."

After 1 minute, take advantage of the opportunity of a dead ball.The fourth official outside the court raised his hand to signal to the audience: No. 18 Scholes is off, and No. 7 Li Xiaoming is on.

Scholes ran down the field quickly, and after Li Xiaoming clapped his hands and hugged him, Scholes patted Li Xiaoming on the back and said, "Come on."

Li Xiaoming played with high ambitions. After all, this was his first game. Although the atmosphere is not very good now, the team is behind, and it is not a particularly good time to play, but he still shouted loudly at the players on the field: "Hey brother Guys, cheer up, we are Manchester United, we are the Red Devils, and Manchester United will not give up every game." Because Li Xiaoming shouted in English, the Chelsea players also looked at this black-haired, black-eyed, yellow-skinned player seriously. Manchester United's new No. [-], after all, the media hype is enough to make every player in the Premier League recognize his name.

When the ball was kicked off again, Li Xiaoming stood in the front midfielder position.

(End of this chapter)