Chapter 176 Zhao Gang's Header

Tottenham's quick counter-attack went directly to Son Heung-min, who tried to use his speed to break free. However, Tottenham's left flank was exactly where Manchester City's right flank was, guarded by Kyle Walker.

Walker's speed was top-notch among full-backs, and he was also strong and knew Son Heung-min very well.

So this time, Son Heung-min didn't get everything he wanted like the first time they met.

Their first head-to-head confrontation ended with Kyle Walker's victory.

Walker swept the ball away with one kick, and Son Heung-min helplessly closed his eyes and looked up.

After a few rounds of fast offensive and defensive transitions at the beginning, the rhythm of the two teams slowed down.

For about ten minutes, there were no particularly brilliant threatening attacks.

Although Manchester City's players vowed to kick Tottenham to pieces at the Etihad, they were not too anxious. Sane's two problematic passes slowed down Manchester City's attack.

Tottenham's Alli, on the other hand, kept trying to prove himself, taking the ball several times and wanting to speed up and sprint, but he always fell into Manchester City's encirclement. He looked like he was running wildly in the midfield, but there was no shot in the dangerous area at all.

Although the scene was not exciting enough, the shouts of the fans in the Etihad stands were definitely louder than the last.

There was even a large-scale Mexican wave, magnificent and grand.

This game, it wasn't just the Manchester City players who were holding their breath, the Manchester City fans were even more indignant than the players.

In the first leg, football commentators, experts, and celebrities came out to accuse the referee of unprofessionalism and Tottenham of immorality.

Many people felt injustice for Manchester City, and the most angry, of course, were the Manchester City fans. Seeing their team suffer injustice, they were the most uncomfortable.

Their feelings for the team even exceeded those of the players, coaches, and management.

After all, players can transfer, coaches can leave, and even the management and bosses can be replaced, but the fans have always been watching and guarding the team!

They were cheering for the Manchester City players and putting pressure on the Tottenham players.

The fans eagerly wanted to see Manchester City press Tottenham and kick them until their noses were bruised and their faces were swollen, and they were running away with their tails between their legs!

"You see, although this Zhao Gang is standing in the defensive midfielder position, his responsibility is not defense. He used to retreat to the frontcourt to get the ball, but now he directly gets the ball in the backcourt and breaks into the frontcourt."

Zhao Gang's position was behind, which allowed him to get the ball faster and more stably when switching from defense to attack. After he got the ball, he could choose to pass it directly to his teammates in the frontcourt, or he could quickly advance with the ball.

This time, Zhao Gang didn't choose to find Sane, but instead dribbled the ball all the way past the midfield line himself.

Sane could break through, pass, and shoot when facing some relatively weak teams, but when facing teams like Tottenham with strong defensive midfielders, he showed some unsuitability.

His own ability, as well as the tacit understanding of cooperation with his teammates, became some shortcomings.

He still needed time to adapt to the rhythm.

Alli tried to intercept Zhao Gang, but his defensive level was not high, and it was difficult to take the ball from Zhao Gang's feet.

Zhao Gang easily got rid of Alli's entanglement and cooperated with Sane, reaching Tottenham's hinterland.

Sane didn't hesitate and passed the ball to Zhao Gang with one kick.

He was new here and didn't know the specific situation within the team, but on the field, giving the ball to Zhao Gang would definitely not be criticized by his teammates.

After receiving the ball, Zhao Gang kicked the ball into Tottenham's penalty area.

This was a common cooperation between him and Aguero. Jesus's running position was quite good, and he was able to receive Zhao Gang's pass.

It was a pity that he couldn't turn around in the penalty area, let alone shoot.

If it were Aguero, he would have been in a half-turned state when Zhao Gang passed the ball. As soon as the ball arrived, he could sweep it with one foot. Whether it went in or not, this attack would definitely be successful.

Vertonghen kicked the ball out to destroy it.

Jesus covered his head, annoyed.

This was the Premier League, not the Brazilian Serie A.

Some of his habits still hadn't changed.

There was absolutely no problem with handling this kind of ball in the Brazilian Serie A, but the defensive level of the center-backs in the Premier League was much stronger than in the Brazilian Serie A.

A fleeting opportunity, if you don't seize it, you will miss it.

Especially Tottenham's two center-backs, who almost created the best central defense in the Premier League.

Jesus's adjustment definitely wouldn't have a chance to complete the shot.

Zhao Gang shook his head. The three new signings were expensive, but only Kyle Walker was reliable when it came to fighting tough battles.

The other two still needed to grow.

After Tottenham gained possession of the ball, goalkeeper Lloris directly found Son Heung-min on the left with a big kick.

Since Son Heung-min came to Tottenham, Lloris didn't like this winger very much. The reason was simple: Son Heung-min was Asian, and Asian football was too backward. Lloris believed that Asian players' level was not worthy of Tottenham.

However, Son Heung-min proved his ability in more than one season, so now Lloris was willing to directly find Son Heung-min to launch a quick attack.

"Oppa!! Son Heung-min oppa!!"

"Charge, kill, the time has come to prove ourselves!!"

"Tottenham is the strongest, Asia is number one!!"

The Korean fans were going crazy.

"Captain Lloris directly found Son Heung-min. How much trust is this? Getting the recognition of top European players, this is Son Heung-min's strength! He represents the strongest level in Asia!"

After receiving the ball, Son Heung-min dribbled the ball forward all the way. This time, he didn't choose to break through the baseline because Kyle Walker defended too well.

This time, Son Heung-min directly chose to cut inside!

And in the blink of an eye, Son Heung-min flashed a space and directly shot with a powerful shot!

"Son Heung-min!! Aiyo, it's a pity that this shot went high, but this can also reflect Son Heung-min's confidence and his status in the team!

Even though the team has a super shooter like Kane, Son Heung-min can still be the team's second attacking point. This kind of tactical status is almost non-existent among Asian players. Other Asian players are almost all role players, doing some defense, doing some support. They can’t possibly shoot when faced with this kind of opportunity.”

"Yes, that's right, they can't run out of this kind of opportunity either. This is Son Heung-min!"

"Hahaha..."

Kane ran all the way from the center to the penalty area to meet him. Seeing Son Heung-min's choice, he didn't show anything.

He was a little depressed. Today's Son Heung-min and Alli were a little abnormal, and the choices they made were extremely abnormal.

The two sides were different from their first match. The first time they played, it was dark and chaotic, and they had been attacking each other all the time.

This time, Tottenham changed their tactics, focusing on defense.

Especially in the midfield, Zhao Gang was positioned relatively behind, so his advancing time would be longer.

It gave Tottenham players plenty of time to prepare.

Alli, Eriksen, and even Dier took turns, especially Alli. As soon as Zhao Gang got the ball, he would go over to interfere. If he couldn't defend it, he would even directly commit a tactical foul, pulling, pushing, and even knocking him to the ground.

The referee stopped the game several times.

But he didn't give a card.

In the referee's opinion, these fouls were not enough for a yellow card warning.

This was the brilliance of professional players. They were prone to getting cards for fouls in dangerous areas, but in the midfield, they could control their scale well and prevent the referee from taking out a card.

Zhao Gang was also secretly learning these things, preparing to be a sneaky player who could not only interrupt the opponent's attack but also mess with their mentality.

He had already learned a lot from Fernandinho. In this game, he was treated like this, and he was already preparing to try it.

Zhao Gang would not easily foul a gentlemanly midfielder like Modric. Even if he was beaten very badly, he would not deliberately pull or trip him.

This was a tacit understanding of respect on the field.

As for Alli, Zhao Gang didn't intend to play gentlemanly football.

Repay kindness with kindness, and repay grievances with justice.

When Alli got the ball and wanted to break through again, it was not so easy for Zhao Gang.

As long as he turned his back, Zhao Gang would grab his clothes from behind, poke Alli's waist secretly, or even pull his arm directly, making it extremely difficult for Alli to get the ball smoothly.

These small movements, not to mention a yellow card, the referee would not even consider it a foul.

"You only know these things, huh?? Is that all you can do, huh?" Alli was very annoyed by the harassment and kept talking trash to Zhao Gang.

Zhao Gang ignored him at all. He even directly knocked him to the ground when Alli was holding the ball and breaking through head-on.

Unable to bear it anymore, Alli stood up and was about to argue with Zhao Gang, but this was the Blue Moon's home stadium. The fans were whistling wildly, and Fernandinho and Otamendi also rushed over quickly.

Alli straightened his neck, his eyes full of anger. The two of them were head to head.

Alli's physical fitness was good, but Zhao Gang's physical confrontation was even stronger. In terms of momentum, Alli was more like an incompetent and furious child. Zhao Gang tilted his head, not taking him seriously at all.

The referee hurried over, pulled the two of them apart, and then warned Zhao Gang that if there was another foul like this, he would get a card!

Alli was taken away by his teammates in a huff. Fernandinho muttered in a low voice, "You can't do this. You have to give him an elbow hard in the confrontation! That way, the damage will be greater, and it will be difficult for the referee to judge whether you did it intentionally or unintentionally, and it will be difficult to give a card..."

"I understand." Zhao Gang nodded.

These things had to be learned.

It wasn't about not learning good things, but about learning how to protect yourself and not be bullied by others.

When Tottenham's attack failed again, Zhao Gang received the ball and moved forward quickly.

This time, he didn't give Alli any chance and directly甩 (shuai) him behind with a change of direction.

If Alli dared to tackle from behind now, he would most likely get a red card, so he could only quickly catch up with Zhao Gang.

Tottenham's two defensive midfielders, Dier, usually met in advance, while Wanyama almost never left his defensive area.

Wanyama's strongest point was defense and interception.

He was Tottenham's first strong defensive line in the backcourt.

Zhao Gang then faces Wanyama

His interceptions, interceptions, and blocking positions were all top-notch.

Wanyama deserves a lot of credit for Tottenham's stable defense.

He likes to intercept and likes to tackle. Perhaps the only thing that prevents him from becoming a top player is his attacking ability.

Long passes, or even short passes, were not his strengths. His offensive participation was too low.

It was precisely because of this reason that he focused more on defense.

So when Zhao Gang faced this kind of pure defensive midfielder, the first thing he thought about was to observe his teammates' positions, instead of directly attacking without thinking.

Like Alli, once he couldn't break through, he would be surrounded from all directions, and the situation would be very embarrassing.

However, his teammates' positions were not very good. De Bruyne and Sterling had almost no receiving points, and Sane's running position was not tacit enough. It was difficult to pass this ball to the right position.

Zhao Gang didn't think about passing it backwards either, as that would miss this opportunity.

When he continued to break through, he would attract more defense, so his teammates could have better running space.

However, breaking through head-on would obviously waste a lot of time.

Zhao Gang directly pushed the ball to the extremely active Kyle Walker.

Walker's defense was very strong, and his offensive support ability was also excellent.

The key was that his offensive willingness and running awareness were very good.

This was one of the reasons why Guardiola valued him.

After passing the ball, Zhao Gang continued to run forward.

Wanyama saw through Zhao Gang's intention. He was going to cooperate with Kyle Walker, so Wanyama didn't give up marking Zhao Gang.

Wanyama even saw Kyle Walker's passing intention and route, and wanted to intercept it in the first place.

But when Kyle Walker passed the ball, Zhao Gang blocked in front of Wanyama in advance.

Directly resisting him!

This interception monster, who was strong and sturdy, was not afraid of physical confrontation.

This time, this top defensive midfielder met his match and felt that this young man was even stronger than him!

Wanyama pushed against Zhao Gang with force, as if he had bumped into a wall!

Not only did it not make Zhao Gang lose his balance, but he was passively moved away from Zhao Gang's position.

Wanyama was directly pushed away…

"Wanyama! He is probably the strongest player in Tottenham in terms of physical confrontation. He didn't push Zhao away! He is even a little weaker in terms of physical confrontation!

Zhao's physical confrontation now seems to be even stronger!

This time, the direct physical confrontation reminds me of Zhao's confrontation with Casemiro in the Champions League. Although Zhao succeeded at that time, it was still a little difficult. This time, facing Wanyama, he doesn't seem to be using all his strength at all!"

After pushing Wanyama away, Zhao Gang took a touch of the ball. Tottenham's players surrounded him. At this time, Zhao Gang had a very good offensive choice!

"Wanyama! It seems like he is still a little lacking. Compared with Casemiro, he is not good enough. It is indeed unrealistic to want to defend Zhao Gang alone!"

After being passed by Zhao Gang, Wanyama was a little annoyed. He didn't expect that this young man, a Dragon Countryman from Asia, would be so strong in physical confrontation.

So he turned around and quickly followed, directly making a flying tackle from the side and behind!

This action was a little reckless. Once he tackled the person first, it would be at least a yellow card, and he might be sent off with a red card!

Zhao Gang, on the other hand, took a big step forward!

His speed was already fast, and Wanyama still needed to turn around. This time, Wanyama miscalculated. What was even more terrifying was that Alli, who was retreating, wanted to interfere with Zhao Gang. This time, Wanyama directly knocked Alli to the ground!

"Wanyama knocked Alli, who was chasing back, to the ground. Zhao Gang has a very good offensive opportunity! There is a very big problem with Tottenham's defense this time! Let's see this attack!"

Tottenham's two center-backs quickly took their positions to defend. They didn't expect that Wanyama would be so easily resisted, pushed away, and even tackled Alli, who was covering!

In this way, Zhao Gang was directly facing the center-back!

Alderweireld was the first to cover.

While Zhao Gang was moving forward, he kept looking at Jesus's position. Vertonghen's defensive experience was sufficient, and it was difficult to pass this ball to Jesus.

Zhao Gang made a second choice.

He flicked the ball with his right foot, and then pulled the ball back!

Alderweireld's center of gravity shifted quickly. Wanyama's tackle had affected the center-back's emotions.

His judgment had some problems. When Zhao Gang quickly pulled the ball back, Alderweireld had already lost his position!

He realized that Zhao Gang was going to break through from the left.

If Zhao Gang got past this ball, the threat would be very great.

Choose the lesser of two evils!

Alderweireld directly stretched out his leg and tripped Zhao Gang to the ground in a position that lost his positioning.

The referee blew his whistle without hesitation and gave a yellow card directly.

Alderweireld was a little annoyed and waved his hand at his two teammates!

What the hell are you guys defending?

You can run into each other?

The teammates can tackle their own teammates?

It even blocked the route and speed of the wing teammates to return to defense.

Alli was now highly valued by Pochettino and might become the rising star of England. He had a high status and was arrogant. He was previously annoyed by Zhao Gang's small actions. This time, he was tackled by his teammates first, and he was full of anger. Now he was being taught a lesson by Alderweireld, and his anger rose.

He stood up from the ground with a brush and shouted loudly at Alderweireld.

Fernandinho and Zhao Gang, who were pulling Zhao Gang up, looked over at the same time with question marks on their faces.

What's wrong?

The teammates started fighting first?

Vertonghen quickly went over to pull his compatriot, and Alli was also blocked by Kane.

What are you doing?

In such a crucial battle, the teammates started making a fuss first?

Loud applause and cheers rang out from the stands of the Etihad.

It was both for Zhao Gang's wonderful breakthrough and for influencing Alli and Alderweireld.

Fight!

The two of them are about to fight!

Alli has such a temper, can you bear it?

You are Tottenham's future core. You worked so hard to return to defense, but you were scolded by your teammates. Can you bear this?

Pochettino shook his head on the sidelines. Why are so many players making mistakes today?

Manchester City has a free kick in the frontcourt. The ball is not too far or too close.

They can shoot directly, but it is a little far.

The players on both sides took their positions. The Manchester City fans looked at Zhao Gang and De Bruyne standing in front of the ball, their hearts full of expectations.

Zhao Gang's free kicks always brought surprises.

The success rate of direct and indirect goals is the highest in the five major leagues!

Even Iniesta and Messi can't compare to this.

Of course, Zhao Gang has just come to the top league, and this goal rate will definitely drop.

But now, the Manchester City fans are really looking forward to this kind of free kick in the frontcourt.

Every time is a tense and exciting wait.

Zhao Gang looked at the height and position of his teammates in the penalty area and shook his head.

It was a little difficult to score directly. Let's play a cooperative move. Manchester City's height was too poor in front of Tottenham.

The center-backs were not even taller than Alli, so what were they fighting for?

Zhao Gang lowered his head and said to De Bruyne, "You take the penalty. I'll go for the header to increase the height and impact."

De Bruyne nodded with his hands on his hips.

He was no longer surprised.

Zhao Gang had asked to head the ball in the penalty area before, and made a lot of jokes, such as heading the ball more accurately than the defenders to clear the ball, and jumping so high that he hit the air with his head.

At that time, Guardiola almost had a heart attack.

He even joked that Zhao Gang was trying to 웃기다 (ukida - Korean for "make the defenders laugh to death").

However, Zhao Gang's heading ability has now improved to a very good level.

During training, Zhao Gang would appear in the penalty area to compete for headers.

"Zhao Gang is not going to take this free kick! Is he going to抢点 (qiang dian - Chinese for "fight for a point") in the penalty area?" Although Zhao Gang has scored a header before, the commentator has always had a bad impression of his heading level.

That time, Aguero, as the atmosphere group, also led the audience to拍脑瓜壳 (pai nao gua ke - Chinese for "pat their heads"), creating a very funny show effect.

"Yes, he really went to the penalty area. De Bruyne's footwork is also very strong, so there is no need to worry too much."

The Tottenham players looked at Zhao Gang and were a little surprised.

Before the game, they had targeted Zhao Gang's free kicks and made arrangements.

Now, he ran into the penalty area?

Guardiola likes to play tricks, and it is well-deserved.

The Tottenham players thought that Guardiola had arranged this to disrupt their defensive rhythm.

In fact, this was Zhao Gang's temporary idea.

Guardiola stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed, with nothing to indicate what he thought.

He would not have any objections to the players on the field wanting to make changes to such small things.

"De Bruyne accelerates, doesn't shoot directly..."

The ball speed was good, but it was not towards the goal, but directly towards the middle.

That was where the players on both sides were most concentrated, and it was also the place where they could create the most chaos.

At the same time, it was also where Zhao Gang was!

Obviously, De Bruyne intended to find Zhao Gang this time, and he found him quite accurately.

Under the attention of tens of thousands of fans at the scene, and the attention of hundreds of millions of people in various regions around the world, Zhao Gang did not accelerate, but jumped high on the spot during the confrontation!

At the same time, Alli, who was responsible for marking Zhao Gang, also jumped up at the same time.

He and Zhao Gang were almost the same height, a little taller than Zhao Gang, 1.88 meters.

But when the two jumped up almost at the same time, they saw a clear difference.

Zhao Gang was a head taller than Alli.

Bang!

Zhao Gang headed the ball towards the goal with his head.

The ball speed was very fast.

Tottenham's goalkeeper, Hugo Lloris, a top goalkeeper in the world, used all his strength at this moment and threw himself into the air.

The ball was not only fast but also spinning. Lloris's fingertips touched the ball, changing the direction of the ball, but it did not go out of the goal!

It hit the post directly and smashed into the goal!

Wow!

The ball went in!

Zhao Gang ran to the sidelines, and the fans at the Etihad Stadium raised their arms and cheered.

Zhao Gang's header was very rare.

Getting one was like celebrating Christmas.

Cheers rang out. Fernandinho ran to Zhao Gang, grinning happily, and patted his shiny head at the stands.

Zhao Gang waved his fist, his face full of excitement. Scoring a header was indeed more exciting for him than a world wave.

Zhao Gang, in his excitement, had not yet realized the seriousness of the problem.

Fernandinho patted his big head. Almost a second later, the roar of the Etihad Stadium stopped.

Zhao Gang looked up at the stands, opened his mouth, and was about to go crazy.

Almost all the fans in the stands had stood up. They stopped cheering and stopped celebrating.