From the man behind the football king to the football king.

Chapter 1040 Mourinho's Decision

Diallo's goal was replayed over and over again on TV. That volley was so beautiful and inspiring.

Gary Lineker said excitedly: "Nineteen-year-old Amad Diallo is another talented player who has emerged in Manchester United's team in recent years. Although he did not come from Manchester United's youth training camp, Manchester United had been paying attention to him very early on and spent more than 1 million euros to bring the -year-old Diallo to Manchester in January last year."

"In a Manchester United team full of superstars, Diallo has never been able to establish himself as a starter, but Mourinho has always given the Ivorian a chance. Diallo has lived up to Mourinho's trust and has performed well in the limited opportunities he has had."

"In this final, Amad Diallo didn't get a chance to start, but he scored the crucial first goal at the most crucial moment. I dare say this is definitely the most beautiful and important goal in his career!"

"Diallo's goal has brought back hope to Manchester United! After equalizing the score, Manchester United's morale will be greatly boosted, while Liverpool will be hit. As a result, even if the game is dragged to a penalty shootout, the morale of Manchester United players will definitely be higher than that of Liverpool players!"

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The TV broadcast ended with the replay of Diallo's goal and showed the Manchester United players celebrating the goal.

During the celebration, Bruno and Diallo were head to head, with Bruno holding his head and saying something to him.

"Well done, Amad, this is a beautiful goal!" Bruno praised Diallo loudly in his ear.

Although he passed the ball, he had no idea whether Diallo could score a goal. This was definitely not a "nanny assist" and it was still quite difficult to score a goal.

You know, before Diallo shot, he was not facing a huge open goal, but someone was blocking him. But Diallo's shot was of very high quality.

Diallo played an indispensable role in Manchester United's equalization.

Bruno is happy to have such a good teammate. He is no longer the kind of "BABY" who wants others to do everything for him and then feed him the meat.

Diallo was embarrassed by Bruno's praise and said, "I was just thinking about what you said to me just now, Bruno. It was you who told me to be smarter in my positioning in the second half... I just saw an open space near the penalty spot, so I ran over. I didn't expect you to actually pass the ball to me..."

Hearing this, Bruno smiled and said, "What are you thinking, Amad? Of course I will pass the ball to you. You are a real striker!"

Diallo knew in his heart that 80% of the credit for his goal should go to Bruno.

His pass was so great, it was beyond the opponent's expectations. He seemed like a stupid guy with extremely good luck!

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The TV broadcast began to replay the scene where Bruno just passed the ball to Diallo. We have all seen assists from fake shots and real passes, but it is very rare to see a volley shot that can be turned into an assist.

This requires not only imagination, but also precise control of the body and, of course, a bit of luck.

Bruno simply used the movement of his ankle to bounce the ball to Diallo. It was not deliberate, but very natural, just like flowing water.

If it weren't for the slow motion replay over and over again, not many people would have noticed Bruno's ankle skills!

This action was broadcast repeatedly by the TV station, and people were fascinated by it.

"Bruno is probably one of the most creative players in football today..." Faced with such an unimaginable pass, Zhan Jun couldn't help but praise Bruno.

Although he is a Liverpool fan, he also likes Bruno. In his opinion, the best result of today's game is that Liverpool wins the championship, but Bruno also has an outstanding individual performance.

In Zhan Jun's impression, Bruno rarely showed off his skills, but that didn't mean he wasn't skilled. During matches, he consistently pulled off seemingly impossible passes. Other passes, while extremely difficult, were executed with such ease that they were as simple as eating and breathing.

………………

Diallo equalized the score with ten minutes left in the game, which immediately made the game full of suspense again.

After Liverpool took the lead, most people thought it was only a matter of time before Liverpool won, but now it is not a matter of time.

Manchester United equalized the score and their morale was high. Even if the game went to a penalty shootout, it would be them, not Liverpool, who would have the upper hand.

After the game resumed, Manchester United, with their morale boosted, did launch a fierce attack on Liverpool's goal. At this time, they did not seem to worry that the space behind them would be exploited by Liverpool.

They knew that the opponent actually had little physical strength left, so how could it be so easy to counterattack?
There are some goals that I would definitely have caught up to in a 90-minute game, but now I can't run anymore and my speed has slowed down.

Of course, Manchester United was not much better, but they were in a defensive state in the first half of extra time, which gave them some breathing space.

Liverpool is also very clear where their current disadvantage lies, so they don’t think about attacking and just focus on defending the goal first.

If we concede another goal in the final moments, Manchester United could come back and snatch a last-minute defeat. We've experienced this before in the League Cup final and the second leg of our league encounter; there's no need to go through it a third time in the Champions League.

As long as they don't concede a goal, they can drag the game into a penalty shootout. By then, it will be fair to both sides. Manchester United has a chance to win, and so does Liverpool.

Both teams have prepared for a possible penalty shootout, so they are not very opposed to it.

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In order to avoid losing the ball, Liverpool tightened their defense and retreated back to their own penalty area, within the 30-meter area, trying not to give Manchester United too much space.

Facing Liverpool's dense defense, Manchester United's offensive tactics are still to cross the ball from the flanks, compete for the ball in the middle, or take long shots outside the penalty area.

However, Liverpool also made targeted arrangements. While continuing to strengthen the defense against tall players such as Maguire, Van Dijk and Harry Kane, they also sent more people to defend Diallo and Bruno. It became very difficult for Bruno and Diallo to get the opportunity of being unguarded in the penalty area like the goal they just scored.

Under such circumstances, Manchester United's offensive effect was not very good.

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Time passes minute by minute.

Bruno now rarely retreats to the midfield to receive the ball, he just stays in the frontcourt. This is not because he is lazy, but because he can no longer run.

Even though he has always been known for his indefatigable running ability, he still couldn't handle playing such a high-intensity 120-minute game after fighting for a whole season.

Many times he didn't even run, but just walked slowly, breathing heavily.

Bruno himself rarely experienced this feeling of exhaustion. When was the last time he felt like this in a game?
In today's game, if he fights to exhaustion and can win a Champions League title, he will be willing to do it even if he is exhausted.

"Bruno is basically walking around the field now. Fortunately, the game is basically taking place in Liverpool's half, otherwise he would be offside..." Lineker said with some concern.

Mourinho now has one substitution slot. After replacing Diallo and Bellingham, he replaced Mahrez and McTominay in succession during overtime. Greenwood and Gundogan were replaced. Lineker was always worried that Bruno would be replaced.

Although it is normal and even reasonable for Bruno to be substituted, Zhan Jun still feels it is a pity.

He hopes Bruno can stay on the court all the time. He still has a little fantasy about Bruno, fantasizing that Bruno can once again show his amazing creativity and help Manchester United win.

If he had been substituted, none of this would have happened.

Out of selfishness, Lineker hopes that Bruno will stay on the field, even if he can't run anymore, but he still has hope for Bruno.

………………

Mourinho seemed a little hesitant. He thought it would be great if they could equalize the score. If that didn't work out, he would be completely open to a penalty kick.

He hesitated and couldn't make a decision.

It now seems that Bruno is the Manchester United player in the worst physical condition on the field. Many times, he cannot play his role normally, and Manchester United is equivalent to playing ten against eleven.

If he is substituted, no matter who replaces him, at least the physical fitness can be guaranteed, and at least we will no longer be at a disadvantage in terms of numbers.

But if Bruno is really substituted, it seems there is no hope, and the game will most likely go into a penalty shootout.

In the end, Mourinho decided to keep Bruno on the field. Whether it was for the tiny hope of solving the opponent in extra time or the subsequent penalty shootout, Bruno's presence was a more reassuring situation.

While Mourinho was hesitating, Manchester United was still besieging Liverpool's goal.

Bruno occasionally passes the ball outside the penalty area, but he will also run into the penalty area to look for opportunities. He is not confined to a certain position.

Although he can't run now, it doesn't mean that he can just stand there like a scarecrow. Even when he paces, he is constantly changing his position.

This time, he moved to the edge of the penalty area, and the football was passed horizontally outside the penalty area. Bruno did not raise his hand to ask for the ball.

He knew that even if he asked for the ball and it was passed to him, it would be useless and he might even lose the ball.

So he watched his teammates passing the ball outside, looking for opportunities.

(End of this chapter)