Chapter 54: Pepe the God of War, the Seagulls who were beaten badly

Chapter 54: Pepe the God of War, the Seagulls who were beaten badly

Chapter 54: Pepe the God of War, the Seagulls who were beaten badly

9000 million euros is an absolutely huge sum of money, even in this era of huge bubbles in the football transfer market.

You may not be able to buy a top superstar, but it is not a problem to spend money on a first-rate star in his prime.

For example, Gnabry of Bayern, Rafinha of Barcelona, ​​and Chiesa of Juventus.

If Manchester United spent 9000 million euros on these wingers, they could easily get one of them.

Regardless of whether these first-class wingers are worth the price of 9000 million euros, they are at least better than Anthony, who has never achieved dominant data in the Eredivisie, right?

It would be fine if you said you were buying young talents with great potential, just like when Real Madrid bought Vinicius and Rodrygo, betting on the future.

But did Anthony have any great fame before?
Have you ever been noticed by any top clubs?

Using such a large transfer fund on such a player is simply irresponsible behavior towards the entire club!
If Anthony fails to make a name for himself in the future, Ten Hag, who was the main force in bringing him in, and the Manchester United executives who approved the deal, should apologize to all Manchester United fans!

Li Chen was nostalgic and gave face to the current Manchester United executives and Ten Hag by not openly questioning their recruitment strategy.

As for the sentence "I wish Ten Hag all the best", it was just a polite remark.

In contrast, he hopes that Manchester United supporters will not get too angry and hurt themselves because of the team's fluctuating performance in the next few seasons.

When he received the invitation from Newcastle, he also planned to recommend Eddie Howe, who was currently unemployed, to Manchester United's new senior management.

But before he could use his connections to say this, Manchester United officials hastily appointed Ten Hag as the team's new head coach.

I can only say that many things are destined.

Manchester United is doomed to fail due to Ten Hag...

Li Chen, who had calmed down, met the high-spirited Porter at the American Express Community Stadium in the afternoon.

Brighton, which did not suffer much loss of combat power in the past summer window, will definitely make a big effort in the new season.

The 3-1 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford in the opening game of the new season also gave Potter full confidence in the team.

He shook hands with Li Chen with a smile before the game, but Li Chen could see clearly that Porter's smile was filled with a strong desire for revenge.

It is obvious that Porter is still upset about the two defeats he led his team to at the hands of Li Chen last season.

Even if Li Chen took over and rebuilt a Newcastle team that is stronger on paper in the new season.

But Porter, who is playing at home today, still wants to defeat Li Chen, the top young coach of the new generation who has received so much praise from the public!

"Okay, the game is about to start, so let's take this opportunity to introduce today's starting lineups of both teams to our fans!"

"The home team Brighton still lined up the 343 formation they used in the first round of the league against Manchester United.

On the front line, today it is Lallana and Gross who partner with Welbeck.

In midfield, Caicedo and McAllister partnered up in the middle, Trossard played as the left wingback, and Solymarchi played as the right wingback.

The three central defenders consisted of Webster, Dunk and Feltman.

Roberto Sanchez is the starting goalkeeper. ”

"The visiting team Newcastle played 433 today.

The forward trident consists of Ronaldo, Havertz and Maddison.

Joelinton and Guimaraes still partnered as central midfielders, with Paninha as the lone defensive midfielder.

On the defensive line, Marcelo started today, with Gvardiol and Pepe forming a double central defender, and Trippier as right back.

The starting goalkeeper is Swiss international goalkeeper Sommer. ”

Accompanied by the introductions from commentators from various countries, the players from both teams quickly took their positions.

And with the referee's order, the focus battle of the second round of the Premier League officially started!

Newcastle, who kicked off first, was not in a hurry to launch an active attack on Brighton, but controlled the ball all the way back, and Madison also retreated directly to the central midfielder position.

Brighton naturally quickly occupied the midfield position left by Newcastle, pressing forward as a whole and doing a good job of high pressure.

Li Chen looked at Joelinton and Guimarães standing almost parallel to Parinha, forming a midfield barrier in front of the back line, and nodded silently.

With such a midfield defense line, Li Chen feels very confident no matter what tactics he uses.

On this point, he and his mentor Mourinho have no disagreement.

The all-around midfielder who is good at both confrontation and technique has always been the favorite of this master and apprentice duo.

The active participation of Maddison and Havertz made Newcastle's midfield and backcourt possession more stable.

Brighton, who found it difficult to seize the ball, could only invest more energy and manpower in the frontcourt to try to disrupt Newcastle's transmission control.

What surprised the Seagull fans at the scene was that

Newcastle's young central defender Gvardiol, who was introduced in the summer window, did not panic in clearing the ball under pressure.

He didn't even seem nervous, and his passing ability was quite good, taking on the responsibility of passing the ball from the backcourt that Ramos had to shoulder in the league opener.

Porter seemed a little surprised as well. He quickly made adjustments, signaling Brighton's frontcourt players to press more on the left side in front of Gvardiol, forcing him to pass the ball with his right foot.

But soon, Gvardiol used the same smooth right-foot passing level to break the pressure cage set by Brighton for him.

Although his dominant foot is his left foot, his right foot technique is much better than that of ordinary left-footed players.

In addition, after the pre-season training began, Li Chen deliberately let him practice more on right-foot passing, dribbling and shooting.

So now there is basically no problem for Gvardiol to pass the ball with his right foot.

As long as he is not asked to use his right foot to perform difficult tricks such as passing the ball over the top with the outside of his foot, he will be able to complete the passing tasks assigned to him by the coaching staff normally.

As soon as Porter saw Gvardiol's skillful passing of the ball with both feet, he immediately realized that the pressure defense strategy he had arranged against the young player today had failed.

There is no other way. Since the goal of breaking through the surface with a single point cannot be achieved, the only thing we can do is to use force to suppress Newcastle's overall defense!
Brighton's young players in the frontcourt finally worked with their tireless running and pressure.

At least from the perspective of the game, their high pressure did help them regain possession of the ball and the initiative in attack.

Just as many neutral fans who were watching the game were looking forward to Gvardiol's next defensive performance.

The "old" Pepe was the first to step forward and became the most dazzling star on Newcastle's defense.

Brighton did not choose to play a simple and fast long pass. They didn't even try it. They decisively chose a ground penetration attack.

Their first threatening attack of the game also came from McAllister's straight pass to the front of Newcastle's penalty area after he got the ball forward.

Welbeck's active forward movement took away Gvardiol. Under normal circumstances, Pepe would also choose a safe retreat position at this time.

So McAllister's through ball was very clever, and it was easy for Trossard, who started to make a diagonal run, to get an open opportunity to receive the ball.

At that time, Trossard, who has penetrated the flank area of ​​Newcastle's defense, will be quite threatening whether he chooses to break through or shoot directly!

But in McAllister's very reasonable offensive organization this time, Pepe used his extremely rich defensive experience to break Brighton's passing connection!

Not to mention creating a threat by catching the ball, before Trossard even ran to the route to receive the ball, the football was intercepted and taken away by Pepe who decisively rushed forward!
However, facing Brighton's timely double-teaming, Pepe chose the more stable method of protecting the ball and passing it back.

Newcastle, who failed to launch a counterattack, continued to control the ball in the backcourt and drained the energy of the entire Brighton team.

Four minutes later, Marcelo's forward pass was successfully intercepted by Caicedo, and Brighton got another chance to continue organizing the attack.

This time, Welbeck, who had formed a tacit passing and running cooperation with Solymarchi, had just started to receive the ball when he crashed into a "wall"!

"Pepe! It's Pepe again! The ball has changed hands! A very beautiful frontal interception! Welbeck failed to keep his position, and Newcastle once again regained the ball in defense!"

At this moment, I don’t know how many Premier League commentators around the world are cheering for Pepe’s direct interception!
Excellent positioning, decisive tackle, and clean kick!
It can be said that Pepe made all perfect choices in this frontal defense.

Only the accumulation of years can allow these older star guards to show their unique defensive charm on the court.

This was the case with Thiago Silva before, and it is the same with Pepe now.

While Welbeck was still lying on the grass in a daze, Palinha had already passed the ball to Guimarães who had been waiting for a long time!
The Brazilian midfielder took the ball and ran forward at full speed. Before Caicedo could catch up with him, he passed the ball diagonally to Joelinton who was running further forward on the other side.

McAllister wanted to intercept the ball, but Joelinton directly knocked him away with the ball!
Joelinton, like a tank, rushed straight towards Brighton's defense, causing Potter on the sidelines to change his face and repeatedly call on Brighton players in the midfield to return to defense!
Joelinton successfully completed the breakthrough mission and finally passed the ball to Marcelo who made a timely run on the left.

The experienced attacker Ma Pengpeng went down to the bottom and sent a reverse triangle pass.

The full-on pressure from Ronaldo and Havertz left Brighton's three central defenders with no time to pay attention to the situation outside the defense line.

At this time, Maddison, who was lurking on the edge of Brighton's penalty area, adjusted his pace and calmly shot the ball in response to Marcelo's pass!

The football turned and flew towards the upper left corner of Brighton's goal!
Robert Sanchez seemed to be distracted by several players from the two teams fighting in front of him, which distracted his view of the save.

By the time he saw the direction of Madison's shot, it was too late for him to burst out and make a save.

The football bypassed Sanchez's diving figure and went straight into the upper left corner of the goal behind him!
Watching this scene, Porter cursed angrily on the sidelines, and seemed dissatisfied with the performance of his guards in this defense.

Li Chen stood up from the coaching seat with his fists clenched, an unstoppable smile of satisfaction on his face.

Maddison, who had scored in consecutive games, had not yet reached the end line to celebrate before he was hugged by the quick-eyed and quick-handed Joelinton.

"That was a crazy shot, James! You're going to be a celebrity!"

"Nice shot, James! Great job!"

"I knew you could score this goal, haha! Brighton will definitely not let you score easily this time!"

"Perfect shot, James, you're in for a treat after the game."

Madison couldn't stop smiling as she was hugged and patted by her teammates.

Amid the enthusiastic cheers of more than 1000 Newcastle fans at the scene, Maddison ended the collective celebration and turned his head to look at the sidelines.

Li Chen clapped his hands vigorously at him and then gave him a thumbs up.

"Are you ready to be a big celebrity now, James?"

The words that Li Chen said to him in the pre-season warm-up match seemed to echo in his ears again. Madison, with a fiery heart, nodded slightly but firmly to his head coach, making a belated response.

"I'm ready, Boss!"

Maddison's valuable goal in the 14th minute of the first half helped Newcastle to greatly advance the time of the decisive victory.

Brighton, who always likes to take the initiative in attacking, now has even less tactical room for error.

However, Li Chen, who had the tactical initiative, did not signal the Newcastle players on the field to increase their counterattack efforts.

On the contrary, he pointed at his head and reminded his disciples to keep their heads clear and ensure the stability of their defense first.

Newcastle's goal did put Brighton, who were playing at home, into a difficult situation, but at the same time, it also helped Brighton break free from the tactical shackles.

Brighton should not be underestimated when they attack with all their might.

When they let go further and no longer care about the threats faced by the defense line, they will soon be able to burst out with huge offensive energy!
Therefore, Li Chen chose to consolidate the defense first and seek change in stability at this point in time.

Newcastle, which had unified its tactical thinking, soon faced a torrential and continuous attack from the opponent.

Just as Li Chen said before the game, Brighton, freed from tactical and ideological shackles, truly possesses the offensive firepower to be among the top four in the Premier League this season.

They don't have a star forward with high finishing efficiency.

But they have good tactical fulcrums and the ability of the offensive line to blossom across the board.

This style of attacking with dispersed firepower has both advantages and disadvantages.

The biggest advantage is naturally that it makes it difficult for opponents to carry out targeted double-teaming.

Every Brighton forward has the desire and possibility to score a goal.

No matter how solid Newcastle's defense is, it is difficult to protect everything, and they will always be given opportunities to shoot by Brighton who are firing on all cylinders.

This is also the biggest feature of wolf pack tactics.

You can say that players in other positions of Brighton are not as threatening in shooting as Welbeck and Trossard, but they are threatening after all.

Fortunately, Sommer still maintains the top goal-line technology in football.

With the dangerous area in front of him well protected, he was able to make stable and excellent saves in the face of Brighton's multi-angle shots.

In the 24th minute of the first half, Brighton finally got their best offensive opportunity of the game after a long attack.

Lallana retreated to act as the axis and completed a quick two-pass short pass with McAllister.

McAllister, who got rid of Joelinton in a small space, then unexpectedly made a lob pass towards Newcastle's penalty area!
This time, Gvardiol did not expect that Brighton, which did not have an advantage in aerial attack, would play like this, and he failed to get in position and head the ball out in the first place.

Welbeck, who finally got the opportunity to perform, did not seek credit for himself. He headed the ball towards the back of Newcastle's goal before Gvardiol completed his remedial measures!
Trossard made a high-speed volley without waiting for the ball to fall completely!

This is a very clever shot choice!

Sommer moved quickly to the ground, but did not touch the football that was flying towards the other end of the goal.

Trossard's eyes were full of anticipation after completing the shot. If he could score this goal, he would become a superhero for the entire team and more than 20,000 Brighton fans at the scene!
The sound spreads everywhere at this moment!

If his teammate Cucurella can go to Chelsea, then why can't he go to a big team like Liverpool or Arsenal?

Trossard, who was full of ambition, seemed to have already seen the scene where the ball went into the net and more than 20,000 Brighton fans cheered his name wildly.

But the next moment, a long leg appeared on the Newcastle goal line in time and shattered Trossard's dream on the spot!

The football hit the inside of the long leg's calf and flew into the penalty area, and was finally cleared by Gvardiol who reacted immediately.

At this time, the surprised fans had time to look at the player who fell to the grass after completing the clearance.

The live camera quickly zoomed in, and a bald head first appeared, followed by a ferocious and roaring face!

Who else could it be but Pepe?!
Pepe, who saved the entire team, inspired the morale of his teammates in his own way.

Gwadior and Sommer also excitedly came forward and high-fived him to celebrate!

At this moment, Ronaldo also rushed back to his own half, waving his arms and shouting, so that his young teammates could maintain their focus and fighting spirit.

The Brighton players were very depressed and upset as their hopes of scoring were once again shattered by Pepe.

No one would question the strength of Pepe at his peak, especially in 2016, when Pepe, who helped Portugal win the European Cup, was undoubtedly the strongest contender for the world's top defender that year!
But now Pepe has been away from the four major leagues for many years.

He is 39 years old, not 29!

Being thwarted in attack by a 39-year-old veteran really dealt a heavy blow to the morale of the Brighton players on the field.

Li Chen was now also congratulating Pepe for his superb performance, while continuing to applaud loudly towards the field, indicating that his disciples played very well and should continue such performance.

It is inappropriate to criticize any defensive player for not doing well enough, which led to this critical defensive situation.

When a team implements an overall defensive tactic, if they can defend, then it is the credit of the entire team. If they cannot, then the head coach will have to take the blame, and the entire defensive players will have to take a smaller blame.

So Li Chen wants to give encouragement and confidence to all his defenders!
You guys just did a great job, I'm proud of you, just go for it!
If anything happens, I will take charge first and will never let you get scolded. Just play the game with all your heart!

Li Chen's encouragement gave the Newcastle players on the field full of confidence.

Joelinton and Guimaraes were running hard on the defensive end to make up for the defense!
Brighton's offensive was frustrated again. Seeing that the situation on the field was becoming unstable again, Porter had no choice but to slow down the pace of attack.

Then it was the turn of Brighton's players to control the ball and get out of the line.

At this time, Newcastle, with its morale boosted, chose to press forward aggressively under Li Chen's timely tactical adjustment!
All Newcastle frontcourt players, including Ronaldo, implemented high-pressure pressing tactics against Brighton.

Brighton, who had not yet gained a firm foothold and was unable to control the game, was not Manchester City after all and was unable to maintain its position in such a sudden tactical change.

The ball was quickly driven forward by Brighton's centre-back.

Parinha overpowered Lallana and headed the ball down, Joelinton received the ball and passed it to the side, and Marcelo, who came on the side, immediately passed the ball to Madison who had run over on his own initiative.

At this time, Ronaldo had already completed a smooth position change with Madison and went to the right, while Havertz pulled out of the penalty area to make a move to connect with Madison.

Brighton's three central defenders expanded their defensive zone appropriately.

But the next second, Madison, who had just cut inside and taken two steps with the ball, knocked the ball back to the wing again!

Joelinton and Guimaraes decisively advanced into Brighton's penalty area!

After stopping the ball passed by Madison with one foot on the wing, Marcelo, who had completed observation in advance, directly made a long arc pass!
The Brighton central defenders, who had previously moved slightly forward because of Havertz's retreating movement, could only anxiously return to the penalty area!
Joelinton and Guimaraes, who formed a flanking formation at the front and back points, ultimately failed to touch the ball.

But Dunk, who retreated hastily, failed to clear the ball successfully. He just barely headed the ball out of the penalty area!
The diligently running Havertz saw his chance and chested the ball before Casemiro, and then it seemed that he was going to try a volley in the Brighton penalty area!
Brighton's left center back Webster and Caicedo attacked Havertz from the front and back, trying to interfere with his shot.

But Havertz, with his broad vision, attracted Webster's attack and passed the ball to the right side of Brighton's penalty area.

At this moment, Ronaldo started half a step ahead and just got rid of Trossard's defense and successfully received the pass from Havertz!

The Portuguese superstar only made one adjustment, and then decisively kicked the ball towards the far corner of the Brighton goal!
Robert Sanchez, like Sommer before, tried his best to move down the ground at the critical moment, but he was unable to catch the football that quickly passed by him!

This time, Brighton did not have a key figure like Pepe to block Ronaldo's shot!

The football stuck to the grass and hit the inside of the far corner post of Brighton's goal, and finally bounced into the net!

C Ronaldo, who helped the team successfully expand its leading advantage, raised his head, curled his lips, pointed his index fingers downward, and then made his symbolic celebration gesture on the away field!

When Ronaldo jumped high in the air and turned around, countless of his supporters around the world cheered "SIU!"

C Ronaldo, who is already 37 years old, is still scoring goals in the new season of the Premier League.

Seeing his hot state, many Manchester United fans couldn't help but criticize Ten Hag, who took the initiative to provoke him and wanted to drive him away before the start of the pre-season training!
Ten Hag, who always claimed that he wanted to help the team become younger, persuaded the management to sell Matic and Mata and drive away Ronaldo in the summer window.

But the result was that they were defeated by Brighton in their first home game of the new season!
His so-called high-pressure tactics lasted only for the first 20 minutes of the game. After their physical strength declined, Manchester United kept playing in a sloppy manner, and there was no systematic offensive or defensive performance at all!
On the other hand, Newcastle’s big win over the newly promoted team in the first round is not worth mentioning for now.

Many fans said after the game that the gap in strength between Newcastle and Nottingham Forest was too big, so it was normal to end up with a big score.

But how do we explain the result that in the second round of the league, Newcastle is currently leading Brighton 2-0?
No one would think that Brighton is not strong in the new season, especially after they beat Manchester United 3-1 in the first round.

But Brighton, which was hyped by the media as having a high chance of entering the top six of the league this season, has now been beaten into a state of frustration by Newcastle.

The 39-year-old Pepe and the 37-year-old Ronaldo also gave excellent performances in this game.

Doesn’t this further illustrate Li Chen’s excellent ability in employing people and Ten Hag’s problems in employing people?
In more than an hour, Manchester United's away game against Brentford will start.

If Ten Hag leads the team to defeat again, he will surely be greeted with the fury of Manchester United fans.

At this time, Newcastle, after changing the score to 2-0, continued to maintain offensive pressure on Brighton away from home.

It seemed as if they were not going to give up and wanted to press on and score the third goal in the first half.

Brighton, who suffered another heavy blow, fell into tactical confusion for a few minutes, but with Potter's continued adjustments, they decided to launch a continuous offensive against Newcastle at all costs!
But when they were ready to fight Newcastle and engage in a crucial offensive confrontation.

Newcastle, who were so aggressive just a minute ago and seemed determined to attack to the end, quickly contracted their defense line at Li Chen's command.

Newcastle's unethical tactical adjustment made Brighton's players on the field very angry.

There was no need for Porter to mobilize them anymore. They gritted their teeth and launched a fierce attack on Newcastle.

But Newcastle, who were already accustomed to their offensive style of play, did not panic. They blocked the middle and slightly opened up the flanks, giving Brighton the opportunity to kick the ball from the bottom of the flanks.

Trossard and Solymarchi took turns to move forward from the left and right.

But the football that flew into Newcastle's penalty area could not escape the sanctions of three defensive players: Pepe, Gvardiol and Parinha.

Welbeck was like a small boat in the sea, being pushed and shaken by several tall opponents and unable to hold on.

The first half of the game finally came to an end with Pepe's successful header.

The Brighton players, who looked worried and were obviously breathing hard to recover their strength, walked towards the player tunnel.

Many old Premier League fans who understand football couldn't help but shake their heads.

Brighton was beaten badly by the experienced Newcastle today...

(End of this chapter)