Aston Villa was indeed going to have bad luck.

When the Liverpool reserve team players adjusted their mentality and rediscovered their fighting spirit, they were full of confidence for the upcoming game. What about Aston Villa? What about a Premier League team? Weren't they beaten 5-0 at home by our first team? Even if we are not as strong as the first team, isn't it reasonable for us to win 2-1 at home?

But Aston Villa's players were still looking at their opponents with old eyes, thinking that Chen Hero's goal was just an accident.

Some Aston Villa players even ran to the referee to complain after the goal, believing that Chen Hero fouled by hitting Pieters first when breaking through.

Seeing this scene, the Chinese reporters in the media section laughed, a sense of intellectual superiority rising within them.

These reporters, who had been following Chen Hero since his debut, traveling with him from Russia to Italy to England, knew very well that Chen Hero's move to get rid of close marking was something he already had when he was playing for Zenit Saint Petersburg. It wasn't a foul at all, it was a reasonable use of the rules, a reasonable physical collision!

It's just that over the years, as Chen Hero's foot skills have gradually improved, and as he has more and more ways to turn and get rid of defenders, he has rarely used this purely physical move, because it doesn't require much skill.

But rarely using it doesn't mean he never uses it at all, or that he doesn't know how to use it. Some weapons are always there, but they are not used most of the time. The greatest role of this kind of weapon is deterrence, deterring the opponent, deterring the enemy.

Chen Hero's body is actually a kind of deterrent force!

He rarely uses it now, but everyone should know that his body is actually his most terrifying weapon. It's a pity that many people have forgotten now, as if Chen Hero, who has improved his skills, should abandon his body.

The reaction of Aston Villa's players is a good illustration of this.

The referee, of course, ignored the protests and appeals of Aston Villa's players. He upheld the original judgment and insisted that Chen Hero's goal was valid.

※※※

When the game restarted, the Aston Villa players had not yet recovered from the surprise of the goal, and the Liverpool players had already taken advantage of the situation to launch an even more violent attack.

At this time, everyone realized that this Liverpool team was completely different from their previous performance!

They were like ten different people suddenly...

No one knew why the Liverpool reserve team, which had seemed to lack fighting spirit before, had changed so much.

Was it just because of Chen Hero's goal?

Martin O'Neill probably knew best why these players had changed so much. He saw Chen Hero gather all the players together in a circle after the goal. Chen Hero must have said something to them to make them change like this, right?

What would he say?

Martin O'Neill couldn't figure it out.

But now, judging from this momentum, Liverpool might win the game in one go...

He knew his team best, even if it was the reserve team, some things were the same.

Once they got their momentum up, it would be unstoppable.

And this was Liverpool playing at home, their fighting power could be doubled.

※※※

Everything was as Martin O'Neill expected. In the following game, the Liverpool reserve team, with greatly boosted morale, firmly controlled the situation on the field, and their attacks came one after another.

Aston Villa's goal was in turmoil, as if they might concede another goal at any time.

The Aston Villa players were frightened, not knowing why it had become like this.

During the halftime break, they were relaxed and happy, thinking that winning this game was no problem, and they were dreaming of giving Liverpool a two-game losing streak.

Who would have thought that it would be completely reversed now...

In Liverpool's offensive, they could only barely support themselves, and they couldn't even think about counterattacks.

In fact, they were completely stunned by Liverpool's swift offensive, coupled with being too careless, which led to such embarrassment. As long as they were given a little time to recover and calm down, they could still suppress the Liverpool reserve team with their strength.

But God...no, Chen Hero didn't give them time to calm down.

Just four minutes after he scored, Chen Hero scored again.

※※※

"Hero—scores a brace! Beautiful!"

Harry Livi stood up from his seat and shouted with his arms raised.

"Liverpool takes the lead! Liverpool completes the逆转 [nì zhuǎn, reversal]!"

"This time it was Hero's header. The Aston Villa defenders are like a group of dwarves in front of him. They are simply unable to stop Liverpool's air raid!"

Chen Hero, who landed on the ground, could finally celebrate this time. He opened his arms and rushed directly to Jack Robinson, the left back who assisted him, and gave this young teammate a strong hug.

The other players also swarmed up and surrounded the two of them, celebrating the goal.

At this time, everyone didn't think about whether they would have a share if Liverpool entered the semi-finals, but simply enjoyed the game.

※※※

"It looks like Aston Villa is doomed...I see the shadow of Liverpool's first team..." Some commentators had already sentenced Aston Villa to death in advance.

"Aston Villa was too careless in the first half. They thought they could easily defeat a reserve team. They did have a chance. They had many opportunities in the first half to end the game early. But they all squandered them, and now it's their turn to accept the punishment!"

The Aston Villa players in the TV screen were all hanging their heads, looking very helpless and frustrated.

"In fact, being led by Liverpool is far from the end of the world for Aston Villa, and it's not the end of the game. But if Hero is allowed to fully unleash his potential, Aston Villa will be unlucky... Now it's obvious that Hero's potential has been completely activated! He alone can handle the entire Aston Villa!"

Martin O'Neill saw Chen Hero and his reserve teammates celebrating the goal on the sidelines, and he knew that he should perhaps consider preparing for how to play in the FA Cup semi-finals, then enter the final, and lift the championship trophy...

※※※

In the end, Liverpool defeated Aston Villa 2-1 at their home stadium and entered the semi-finals.

Liverpool relied on the method of using the reserve team plus one Chen Hero to advance all the way, killing into the semi-finals.

This approach not only exercised the reserve team players, but also allowed the first team players to get enough rest.

But this approach does not have the conditions for dissemination and promotion. Everyone has a reserve team, and the reserve team of some teams may be stronger than the reserve team of Liverpool.

But the problem is that these teams don't have Chen Hero...

Chen Hero is the biggest contributor to this team's ability to kill into the semi-finals in both cup competitions, and is the key to the problem.

If Liverpool didn't have Chen Hero, their reserve team tactics would not be able to work.

So other teams cannot copy Martin O'Neill's tactics.

At the post-match press conference, reporters also asked Martin O'Neill about the reserve team tactics.

"Did you think at the beginning that this team could kill into the semi-finals in both cup competitions, Mr. O'Neill?"

Martin O'Neill nodded honestly: "To be honest, I was really surprised..."

"Then do you agree with the statement that the main reason why this team can kill into the semi-finals in both cup competitions is because you have Chen Hero?"

This time Martin O'Neill did not nod and agree honestly.

He was not stupid, how could he say what the other party meant on this kind of question that was obviously provoking discord and destroying team unity? Although deep down he actually agreed with the reporter's view—without Chen Hero, there would be no these victories, and this game was a typical example. Of course, he and the reporter should still have differences. For example, the reporter believed that Chen Hero's role was mainly reflected in scoring goals, but Martin O'Neill did not agree. The support and help Chen Hero provided to the team was all-round, not just scoring goals. He was also a very qualified and excellent captain in the reserve team...

But he couldn't say that, he shook his head and said: "No, it's not like that. Our reserve team lads are all very good. Being able to reach the final is the victory of Liverpool as a whole, whether it's the reserve team or the first team, they all have a common name—Liverpool!"

How hypocritical!

A reporter snorted disdainfully in his heart.

If he really thought the reserve team players were also very good, why didn't he let the reserve team players continue to start in the League Cup semi-finals, but instead transferred more than half of the first team players to play? You know, in the league rankings, their League Cup semi-final opponent Blackburn is not as high as Aston Villa today...

To put it bluntly, he is still not at ease with the reserve team players, has no confidence, and feels that these people are not capable enough, and is unwilling to continue to trust them in important games.

In fact, this is the role of Chen Hero! If there was no Chen Hero, this team might not even reach the fifth round of the FA Cup. Without Chen Hero, what would be the result of this group of reserve team players? Everyone knew this last season. Last season, Chen Hero and the reserve team were originally participating in the FA Cup together. Later, the schedule was intensive, and Liverpool was under great pressure. O'Neill did not let Chen Hero participate in the FA Cup to waste his energy. As a result, Liverpool, with all the reserve team players playing, was eliminated.

Without Chen Hero, it should be Tony Pulis, the coach of Aston Villa, sitting here with a smile on his face today!