Football King Bale

Perhaps seeing Bell's fatigue in the match against Swansea, Ferguson arranged for Bell to rest in the fifth round of the Champions League against Benfica.

Bell has played too many games recently. Since the start of the new season in mid-August, in more than three months, Bell has played 17 games for Manchester United. In addition, he has played 6 group matches for the Welsh national team in the European Cup qualifiers and In the play-offs, he also participated in all games without missing a beat, and played the entire game as the main force. In ninety days, participating in 23 high-intensity games, an average of one game every four days, is a huge test for any player.

Of course, Ferguson decided to arrange for Bale to take a rest because Manchester United's current situation in the Champions League group stage is relatively favorable. As long as Manchester United scores 1 point in the fifth round of the home game against Benfica, they can ensure that they qualify. But if you want to ensure first place in the group, you have to win Benfica at home.

In fact, it was not just Bell who got a rest this time. Three other Manchester United generals also got a chance to rest. Rooney, Sneijder and Giggs, but their situations were different. Bell was directly arranged by Ferguson. , but Rooney suffered a minor injury in the last game against Swansea. Although it did not affect his appearance, Rooney also stayed at home for insurance reasons. Giggs and Sneijder were on the bench.

In the end, Ferguson arranged a starting lineup of 4231, with goalkeeper De Gea, the four backs being Fabio, Ferdinand, Phil Jones and Evra, the double midfielder being partnered by Fletcher and Carrick, and the forward line being Nani, Ashley Young and Valencia, Berbatov served as a single arrow.

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At the beginning of the first half, although Manchester United had possession of the ball, they conceded the first goal due to an own goal. In the 3rd minute, Benfica played a wonderful teamwork. Gaitan received a pass from Pereira and hit it with his left foot on the right side of the penalty area. Phil Jones stretched his leg from the edge of the penalty area to block the ball. The ball hit Jones' left calf and bounced into his own goal. Net, Benfica took the lead thanks to an own goal, which also means that Benfica scored goals in all 4 visits to Dream Theater.

After falling behind, Manchester United fought back aggressively and equalized the score in the 30th minute. Ashley Young's tactical free kick crossed, Evra directly separated the side, Nani made a cross from the left, Berbatov shook his head from 8 meters and hit the goalkeeper with the ball into the lower right corner of the goal. The handsome brother broke through 37 months. There has been a goal drought in the Champions League since then, and this is also the 50th goal scored by Berbatov for Manchester United.

In the first half of the game, Manchester United and Benfica drew 1:1 and entered the halftime break.

After entering the second half, Manchester United, playing at home, took the lead and scored a goal in the 59th minute. Berbatov received a pass from Valencia and was destroyed. Evra got the ball from the left and made a precise pass. Fletcher's shot was blocked by Arthur. Fletcher then shot in from close range and bounced with his right foot. The empty goal gave Manchester United the lead.

However, Manchester United's defense played with fire and was immediately tied by Benfica. In the 60th minute, Phil Jones passed back to the goalkeeper from the right side of the backcourt. De Gea's big kick was directly intercepted by Cesar. Cesar's cross hit Ferdinand in front of the goal. Aimar shot in front of the goal. The score was rewritten to 2:2.

When the full-time whistle blew, Manchester United had to accept the result of being tied at home.

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Although the Red Devils, who scored 1 point, advanced to the knockout round one round ahead of schedule, the first place in the group was still not locked in, because in another game in the same group, Basel defeated Galati Steel 3:2 as a guest, and the points were also Reached 8 points. If Manchester United loses in Switzerland in the last round, they will be squeezed into second place in the group by Basel. Because in the first round of the clash between the two sides, Basel drew with Manchester United at Old Trafford. If the points are the same, they will rank first in the group by virtue of their superior records.

Of course, that is based on the fact that Benfica cannot defeat Galati Steel in the final round.

Once Benfica successfully wins Galati Steel, the situation in Group C will be very complicated.

After the 5 rounds of the group stage, the situation in Group C is as follows:

Manchester United has 3 wins, 2 draws and 0 losses, scored 12 goals and conceded 6 goals with a goal difference of 6, ranking first with 11 points;

Benfica has 2 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss, scored 7 goals, conceded 5 goals and had a goal difference of 2, ranking second with 8 points;

Basel has 2 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss, scoring 9 goals and conceding 9 goals with a goal difference of 0, ranking third with 8 points;

Galati Steel lost 5 games in a row, scored 3 goals and conceded 11 goals, with a goal difference of -8, ranking fourth with 0 points.

Once Manchester United loses to Basel in the final round and Benfica wins Galati Steel at home, then Manchester United, Basel and Benfica all have a record of 3 wins, 2 draws, 1 loss and 11 points. , Manchester United has the advantage with 1 win and 1 draw against Benfica, but is at a disadvantage against Basel with 1 draw and 1 loss. However, Basel's mutual record against Benfica is also at a disadvantage with 1 draw and 1 loss, which forms a cycle or a deadlock.

As a result, there will be a situation where the right to qualify must be determined by the qualifying rules!

Currently, Manchester United has 1 win, 1 draw, scored 4 goals, conceded 3 goals, and a goal difference against Benfica. Benfica has 1 win, 1 draw, scored 3 goals, conceded 1 goal, and has a goal difference of 2 against Basel. Manchester United's current record against Basel is It was a draw, with each team scoring 3 goals.

As a result, Benfica's goal difference in the three-team cycle has been determined, which is 1.

If in the last round of the game against Basel, Manchester United loses by 1 goal away from home, then fortunately, Manchester United's goal difference in the three-team cycle is 0, Basel is -1, Manchester United can still advance, and even rely on the victory over Benfica The mutual record advantage can also rank first in the group.

However, if Manchester United loses 2 goals or more on the road, they will be eliminated directly with a goal difference disadvantage!

Moreover, if we lose, who can guarantee whether we lose 1 goal or 2 or more?

Therefore, no matter what, as long as Manchester United loses in the final round, it will be a very dangerous situation!

In other words, in the away game against Basel in the final round of the group stage, Manchester United will face a situation that they cannot lose? Or is it a life and death battle?

Emmmmm... Something seems to be wrong, right?

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Soon, the Manchester United people discovered that they were happy too early!

Although they are currently ranked first in the group and are 3 points ahead of the second place in the group, they still failed to qualify for the group!

Even, when they visited Switzerland half a month later, they had to face a life-and-death battle to qualify!

Ferguson regretted not bringing Bell on, even if it was on the bench, so that he could choose to replace Bell in the second half.

Even if you don't bring Bale, you can just put Rooney on the roster. Although the little fat guy is a little injured, it doesn't affect his performance. And although that guy is not as reliable as Bell, he is the team's second shooter after all, and is still more reliable than others in the lineup.

Bell was a little dumbfounded when he heard the news. Is the current situation facing Manchester United any different from that of another time and space?

Indeed, in terms of points, it is 2 points more, but it is of no use. Manchester United still has to face a bloody battle in Basel.

But the Manchester United fans almost rioted. What the hell are the players doing? Facing almost the three worst opponents, he was reduced to the final round of the decisive battle?

Where are Manchester United, which advanced two rounds early last season?

Then, the Manchester United players suffered, especially the defensive players.

After all, in terms of offense, Manchester United has not regressed this season. Manchester United scored 11 goals in the first 5 rounds of the group stage last year, and has already scored 12 goals in the first 5 rounds of this year, so the defensive players must bear the blame.

Last season, Manchester United almost made Champions League history. If not for a goal scored by Valencia in the last round of the group stage, they would have created a magical record of keeping clean sheets in all six group stages.

Just one year later, the Red Devils' iron wall continued to collapse. Except for the two rounds against the bottom Galati Steel, which did not concede a goal, they lost points in the remaining three games. In the three games at Old Trafford, they lost 5 points. ball.

How could Manchester United's defense suddenly leak like a dam bursting?

Sinners are easy to find, the most obvious being Phil Jones.

Ferguson insisted on letting Fabio play in the Champions League, even if it was to switch to the right. Jones, whose position was "robbed", was moved to the middle. However, the local Red Star made a mistake at the beginning. Gaitan shot from a small angle on the right rib of the penalty area, and the ball hit Evra. Reflecting on the situation, Jones, who seemed to be mentally ill-prepared, looked extremely amateurish in his clearance. He didn't control his center of gravity well at all, so he blindly used his left foot to make a clearance. It was easy to make mistakes with his feet, and he hit the ball directly into his team's goal.

Perhaps it was an own goal that affected his mood, but Jones was also beaten by his opponents again and again. In the 25th minute, Real Madrid's old player Javi Garcia got a header before him, but it was a pity that it was slightly higher. Five minutes later, Jones missed Aimar who suddenly stepped in. If De Gea hadn't saved the single chance for him, Jones' nightmare score would have increased by a few points.

Ferdinand was not much better. The second goal conceded was when Manchester United's two central defenders made mistakes in turns. Jones took the ball from the wing and failed to clear it. He was pressed and passed it back to De Gea, which resulted in a poor ball delivery with his feet. The Spanish goalkeeper passed the ball directly to Bruno Cesar. The Brazilian international broke through the penalty area and passed the ball. Ferdinand chased back to block the ball, but it didn't go far at all. Aimar then scored from close range.

Of course, De Gea has a lot of responsibility for this ball, but if Jones kicks the ball away, there will be no problem. Ferdinand was not focused enough. He retreated all the way and was unprepared for the opponent's cross. He almost blocked it with his crotch. Hit the ball.

Facts have proved that Vidic and Jones cannot be used in rotation. Jones and Ferdinand are not in sync with each other at all. Once they pair up in the middle, it will be Ferguson's own fault. Basel had previously scored three goals at home, and the two of them were the central defenders. In the five rounds of the group stage, the two of them matched up in these two games, but they almost ruined the top spot in the group.