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

Chapter 964 Dilemma
De Gea just saved a very threatening shot from Luis Dias, but the ball did not fly directly out of the baseline, but was blocked back into the penalty area.

Salah wanted to repeat the same trick, but this time his follow-up shot was blocked by Van Dijk and flew out of the baseline.

Although the ball did not go in, the Manchester United fans in the stands and in front of the TV had their hearts pounding and were scared to death.

Because Liverpool's attack was too fierce, Bruno's idea of ​​letting Harry Kane or Greenwood and others stay in front to counterattack was difficult to achieve.

Manchester United is already under a lot of pressure in defense, and how can they keep the forwards in the front and not come back?

Not to mention Greenwood and Rashford, even the main center forward Harry Kane had to retreat to the center circle to participate in the defense.

Even if Bruno had the ball at his feet, he couldn't just kick it.

It is right for Manchester United to launch a counterattack, but not this kind of simple and crude counterattack.

But if we keep waiting, it would be too negative. What if the opponent scores a goal before we get the chance?
Although the game had only started for more than ten minutes, Bruno and Manchester United did not have much time left. So instead of passively waiting for opportunities, it was better to actively create opportunities.

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Bruno just got the ball, which was a chance for Manchester United to counterattack, but before he turned around, he was pushed to the ground from behind by Liverpool player Arnold.

Manchester United's counterattack failed.

Referee Atwell blew the whistle and ruled that Arnold had committed a foul, but he did not show him a yellow card, just a verbal warning.

This caused dissatisfaction among Manchester United players, who surrounded Atwell and argued: "This is not the first time they have done this!"

Bruno got up from the ground, but did not participate.

He patted the grass debris on himself. He was not angry about Arnold's foul. He was also not dissatisfied with the fact that the referee Atwell only gave Arnold a verbal warning.

His teammates were right. This was not the first time that a Liverpool player had fouled him, and it was not just Arnold. In the past ten minutes of the game, Bruno had been targeted four times.

Sometimes it was just one Liverpool player, other times it was two or three people trying to get Bruno.

As the core of the team, it is normal for the opponent to focus on him during the game. But today, the Liverpool players made bigger moves than usual when defending Bruno.

Bruno certainly knew why. It must be his bet with Salah that angered the Liverpool players.

He really didn't mean to do that. He only made a bet with Salah. Did he make a bet with the entire Liverpool team?

But this is also good. Obviously, Liverpool values ​​themselves more than their teammates. This is Manchester United's opportunity.

Bruno used himself as a magnet, attracting as much attention from Liverpool players as possible and providing space for his teammates.

Although you put yourself in dangerous situations, opportunities lie in these dangerous situations.

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When the game continued, Manchester United had lost the chance to counterattack, but the pressure on Bruno did not ease. No matter where he got the ball, a player wearing a Liverpool jersey would quickly appear beside him.

Klopp's team really put a lot of effort into marking Bruno, trying not to give Bruno any chance at all.

So in fact, even if Bruno did not make a bet with Salah, or his direct bet with Salah was not known to Liverpool players, the pressure on Bruno would not be reduced at all.

When Klopp was assigning his players the task of marking Bruno before the game, he repeatedly stressed that Bruno must not be allowed to turn around, as Bruno who turned around and faced the goal would pose the greatest threat.

That's why Arnold pushed Bruno to the ground without even waiting for Bruno to turn around.

Manchester United's counterattack failed and naturally failed to threaten the goal guarded by Alisson.

After Liverpool regained possession of the ball, they continued to launch fierce attacks on Manchester United's goal, still hoping to score another goal in the shortest time possible.

Manchester United could only retreat to defend again.

This shows how effective Liverpool's key defensive focus on Bruno is.

But the ball cannot always be in the hands of Liverpool players, it will always change hands.

Two minutes later, Manchester United regained possession of the ball.

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Liverpool players did not run back directly to their own half, but instead adopted a high-pressure approach.

On the one hand, this defensive strategy can make it more difficult for Manchester United to control the ball in the midfield and backcourt, making it impossible for Manchester United to organize a counterattack calmly. On the other hand, if they can intercept the ball directly in the frontcourt, then they can counterattack directly on the spot and catch Manchester United off guard.

High-pressure pressing requires players to keep running and rushing up. And it's not just one person rushing up, but everyone in the team rushing up together.

Only in this way can we form a wave of pressing momentum like a tide, causing the opponent to be flustered and make mistakes.

This is Klopp's best move, and it can be called his trump card in the football world. This requires a lot of physical fitness, but Klopp's Liverpool are very fit, so they don't have to worry at all.

Liverpool's high pressing did cause a lot of trouble for Manchester United's players, making them not know how to pass the ball when they switched from defense to offense and counterattacked.

If you hesitate for a moment, the perfect opportunity to counterattack may be lost.

At this time, you need to give the ball to Bruno and let Bruno decide what to do.

In response to Manchester United's strategy, Liverpool made defensive arrangements to keep a close eye on Bruno.

Liverpool players almost came to Bruno with the ball, making it difficult for Bruno to handle the ball.

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Gary Lineker was very dissatisfied with the referee Atwell for not showing Arnold a yellow card just now: "Atwell's behavior is a kind of connivance. He sent a signal to Liverpool players - you can play however you want, as long as no one is killed... Atwell's appeasement is the fundamental reason why Liverpool is so rampant in the game!"

As a famous football gentleman, Lineker really dislikes Liverpool's almost rough and barbaric way of playing.

But no one can change the referee Atwell's officiating style. If you just complain that referee Atwell's penalties are too lenient, it will not help win the game.

Despite being surrounded, Bruno still made a gesture to Maguire who had the ball to ask for the ball.

But after Maguire passed the ball to him, he had no chance to turn around. He could only pass the ball back to Maguire and continue to run forward.

While running, he continued to ask Maguire for the ball.

Maguire wanted to kick the ball directly, but he couldn't catch the ball. It was meaningless. In desperation, he had to pass the ball to Bruno again.

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This time, there were as many as four Liverpool players around Bruno. They were at different distances from Bruno, but overall, they formed an encirclement around Bruno.

As soon as Bruno stops the ball, someone will stick to him.

But this time Bruno did not choose to stop the ball. He ran towards the ball, and when the ball rolled over, he used his heel to knock the ball to Gundogan who was behind him, and then he ran forward.

But as he ran, Liverpool's defensive players also retreated collectively, forming a human wall of four defensive players in front of him, which not only prevented him from rushing forward easily, but also made it impossible for Gundogan to pass the ball forward.

Gundogan was at a loss when he saw this. He couldn't force the ball forward, right?

In that case, possession of the ball is likely to change hands.

In desperation, he had no choice but to pass the ball back to right-back Cancelo.

After continuous back passes, Manchester United's counterattack was about to fail. He Wei felt sorry for Manchester United: "Liverpool's high-pressure defense was very good, and Manchester United couldn't find a good outlet... If they continue to play like this, it will be difficult for Manchester United to reverse the situation of being suppressed by Liverpool..."

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Bruno had been rushing forward, but when he looked back, he saw that Gundogan had passed the ball back. He turned around and ran back, and made a gesture for the ball again.

Cancelo knew that Bruno was being closely guarded by the opposing players, but apart from Bruno, was there anything else anyone else could do?

It's times like this that require more faith in Bruno's ability, so he passed the ball.

Bruno received the ball with his back to the attack direction. Arnold immediately rushed up again, intending to stick to Bruno and prevent him from turning around.

But before he could get close, Bruno passed the ball with his heel again.

The football rolled past the feet of Arnold who was rushing towards him, and fell into the feet of Harry Kane who was retreating to receive the ball.

"Good shot!" He Wei cheered for Bruno's wonderful heel pass.

After passing the ball, Bruno turned and rushed forward.

Harry Kane, with his back to the direction of attack, used his body to withstand the pressure from the Liverpool players behind him. After waiting for Bruno to rush up, he passed the ball horizontally to him, and then turned around and ran forward.

This was the first time in this attack that Bruno was able to receive the ball while facing the direction of attack, and there was a huge cheer from the stands.

Amidst huge cheers, Liverpool's defenders rushed towards Bruno.

This is based on the principle that "whoever has the ball is the biggest threat", and also because of the bet made between Bruno and Salah before the game, Liverpool players made Bruno their top priority.

Almost in the blink of an eye, two deep and layered defense lines were formed in front of Bruno, making it extremely difficult for Bruno to shoot or break through.

Pass the ball? Then he can only choose to pass it back with his heel, because within his field of vision, there will be no Manchester United players to meet him and no space to exploit.

(End of this chapter)