The perfect midfield: It starts with never passing the ball to Ronaldo.

The camera panned to the VIP boxes in the stands.

Gerrard leaned against the railing, staring blankly at the field.

On the pitch, Liverpool players surrounded the referee.

Henderson gestured excitedly, believing that Mario made a pressing motion with his hands when he jumped.

Milner rushed over and loudly protested.

But referee Brych did not hesitate and blew the whistle; the goal was valid.

Slow-motion replay shows that Mario's jump was perfectly clean.

It was a pure display of talent that overwhelmed the other; there was a clear gap between their bodies as they took to the air.

Klopp gave a wry smile on the sidelines, then turned around and waved vigorously toward the stands, encouraging the fans to keep chanting.

Anfield finally made its voice heard again, though not as deafening as at the start, but still tenacious.

For the remainder of the first half, Liverpool regrouped and attempted to equalize before halftime.

Firmino dropped deeper, trying to open up passing lanes for Van Dijk and Lovren.

Mane moved to the left wing, while Salah continued to attack behind Laporte.

But Manchester City's defense clearly stabilized after the goal, with Kompany's commands even drowning out the singing in the stadium.

Ederson made a decisive run and dispossessed Salah, giving Manchester City a 2-1 lead as they went into the dressing room.

During the fifteen-minute halftime break, the stands at Anfield were never quiet.

Fifty thousand people created a continuous wave of sound with their singing, stomping, and clapping, trying to vent all the frustration of being overtaken in the final moments of the first half.

In the players' tunnel, the players from both teams lined up again.

Most of the Liverpool players looked tense. Henderson's lips were moving, as if he were talking to himself.

Van Dijk stood at the front of the line, hands on his hips, his eyes fixed on the light at the end of the passage.

The atmosphere was much more relaxed in Manchester.

De Bruyne was even whispering and laughing with Walker.

Kompany patted Otamendi on the back, muttering about defensive positioning.

Mario is ready to face Kop's furious boos once again!

The whistle blows.

Liverpool pressed forward from the very first second.

Klopp made clear instructions at halftime.

He substituted Chamberlain, who had a lackluster performance in the first half, with Wijnaldum, and readjusted the midfield trio to a configuration of Henderson dropping deep, Milner and Wijnaldum sweeping on the flanks.

This means Liverpool sacrificed some of their playmaking creativity in exchange for a more physical midfield.

Meanwhile, Firmino dropped even deeper, almost forming a double pivot with Henderson.

Liverpool's formation shifted to 4-4-2 when they were off the ball, with the distance between the two midfield lines compressed to the extreme.

"Klopp is gambling."

"He abandoned midfield organization and increased physicality and running. He wanted to use his stamina and intensity to directly strangle Manchester City's passing network."

For the first five minutes, the strategy seemed to work.

Liverpool's relentless high-intensity pressing forced Manchester City into two passing errors.

In the 49th minute, Firmino intercepted Fernandinho at the edge of the penalty area and immediately fired a low shot, which grazed the post and went wide.

Anfield let out a huge sigh, followed by thunderous applause.

"Liverpool are on fire!"

"If they can equalize at this stage, the game will be completely different." The tense situation made the commentator restless.

In the 52nd minute, Salah created another dangerous opportunity on the right wing.

He dribbled past Laporte and crossed the ball into the middle, but unfortunately Mane's shot was blocked by Kompany's body.

Liverpool's corner kick.

Van Dijk and Lovren both rushed into the penalty area.

Robertson took the corner kick, and the ball curved towards the far post. Van Dijk leaped high, outjumping Otamendi, and unleashed a powerful header!

Ederson made a diving save, tipping the ball over the crossbar with his fingertips.

"Ederson makes a miraculous save from the Dutchman's header! Liverpool were just a hair's breadth away from scoring!"

The anthem at Anfield reached its climax in the second half.

However, in an instant, a bucket of cold water from Portugal extinguished Liverpool's attacking flames.

Liverpool's corner kick was caught by Ederson.

Instead of launching a long ball, the Brazilian goalkeeper threw the ball to Mario, who had dropped back to the edge of the penalty area.

Mr. Golden Ball had already memorized the opponent's positioning; Liverpool had pushed too far forward.

Henderson and Wijnaldum were both above the halfway line, leaving large gaps on the flanks of the two center-backs.

As long as Manchester City can execute even one cross-court pass, Liverpool's backline will be completely open.

Firmino was the first to pounce and try to interfere.

The Brazilian striker is fast, but Mario's touch is even faster.

He gently flicked the ball past Firmino's outstretched left leg with the outside of his right foot, while simultaneously turning his body halfway to the right, leaving Firmino behind him.

Henderson charged in from the side.

Milner approached from the front.

Wijnaldum chased back from behind.

The three Liverpool midfielders surrounded them like three hounds, forming a triangular encirclement.

In that instant, Mario's rhythm suddenly slowed down.

He could have accelerated, he could have used his speed to break through, but he chose another way.

He pulled the ball sideways with his left foot, then made a slow, seemingly harmless lateral flick.

The whole action looked like a delaying tactic.

Henderson hesitated for half a second; Mario's slow pace made it impossible for him to judge the next direction.

Milner paused for a moment, waiting for Mario to make the first move.

In that brief pause, Mario saw the line.

The only gap in a red defensive line.

The gap between Henderson and Wijnaldum, like a thin line shining in the darkness, stretched from his feet to behind Liverpool's defense.

Mr. Golden Globe moved!

With a flick of his ankle, the ball skimmed across the grass between Henderson and Wijnaldum.

It was an extremely narrow passage, with less than a meter of space between the two players. But Mario's pass seemed to have been precisely measured, slipping through that gap.

"Mario delivers a through ball from midfield!"

Jesus has already started moving forward.

The Brazilian made a diagonal run past Van Dijk, successfully beating the offside trap, and received a through pass from Mario.

One-on-one!

Van Dijk tried desperately to catch up, but he was a half-beat slower than Jesus.

Jesus dribbled into the penalty area, and facing the onrushing Karius, he didn't try to score himself, but calmly passed the ball across to the far post.

De Bruyne arrived in time, faced an empty goal, and easily slotted the ball into the net.

3 is better than 1!

"Manchester City scores again! Mario's pass was like a scalpel, completely dissecting Liverpool's midfield defense!"

"That was a perfect assist!"

De Bruyne sprinted towards the corner flag and slid on his knees in celebration. His teammates rushed over to hug him.

The Belgian peeked out from the crowd, pointed towards the center circle at Mario, and gave a thumbs up.

After the score was 3-1, Liverpool's defense became even more stretched, as they had focused the majority of their resources on the attack.

Klopp was waving his hands frantically on the sidelines, signaling the team to press forward.

This is his only option; if he concedes another goal, his chances of winning the second leg back at Al-Ittihad will be completely over.

Liverpool's formation pushed forward by at least fifteen meters.

Manchester City gained a lot of space to fight back.

In the 64th minute, Walker intercepted Robertson's pass on the right wing and quickly passed it to Mario in the middle.

Mario received the ball near the center circle, with a wide-open space in front of him.

Liverpool's two defenders, Van Dijk and Lovren, were left unprotected, while Henderson and Wijnaldum were desperately chasing back from 30 meters away.

This is an excellent opportunity to counterattack.

Mario dribbles forward, his speed increasing.

When that 89-kilogram body is sprinting at full speed, the pressure it exerts on its opponents is suffocating.

Lovren lunged at Mario from the side, trying to use his body to break Mario's balance.

The two collided while running at high speed.

With a bang, a cloud of debris flew up from the turf.

Lovren felt like he had run into a moving wall.

He staggered a couple of steps and almost fell.

Mario, on the other hand, hardly slowed down at all; in fact, his pace even increased.

"Mr. Ballon d'Or winner has a very solid lower body!"

"Lovren can't even bump into him!"

Mario dribbled the ball to the edge of the penalty area.

Van Dijk had to abandon Jesus and rush out to block him himself.

The Dutchman lowered his center of gravity, spread his arms, and stared intently at the ball at Mario's feet.

Thirty yards from the goal.

Mario swung his right foot directly.

Van Dijk's block was a fraction of a second too late; the ball flew past him at high speed and headed straight for the top left corner of the goal.

Karius jumped with all his might, his fingertips touching the ball.

But the ball was too fast and too powerful.

The ball struck his fingertips, changed its trajectory slightly, and then, due to inertia, slammed heavily into the top corner of the goal.

4 is better than 1!

Liverpool are down by three goals!

Tens of thousands of Liverpool fans at Anfield watched the ball in the net as if it were an incomprehensible disaster.

Mario stood outside the penalty area, watching the ball go into the net.

He didn't run, he didn't shout, he just raised his arm and made an innocent expression.

This caused an uproar at the scene!

The home team fans had only one reaction!

Sure enough, the guys from Manchester are all annoying!

The boos that spread wildly excited the Manchester City players even more. Mario's teammates rushed over from all directions. De Bruyne jumped on his back, Jesus hugged his waist, and Sane frantically patted Mario's chest from the side.

Seventy minutes into the game, Liverpool's players began to show a noticeable decline in physical condition.

Klopp's high-pressing system is extremely physically demanding.

Manchester City's passing was like a dull knife, each pass wearing down the last bit of energy from the red jersey.

In the 75th minute, Liverpool's defense made its biggest mistake of the match.

Henderson's back pass was too weak and was intercepted by Jesus from behind.

Jesus dribbled towards the penalty area, forcing Van Dijk to cover again.

The Brazilian calmly passed the ball to the right wing, and Sterling followed up with a cross.

Inside the penalty area, Mario is vying for position with Lovren.

The Croatian center-back knew how dangerous Mario's headers were, and he used all his strength to try to keep Mario out.

But Mr. Golden Ball's starting point came too early!

In the blink of an eye, Manchester City's number 10 leaped high into the air, his body leaning slightly back, his waist and abdomen exerting force at the highest point, and he headed the ball towards the far corner of the goal.

Karius had no time to adjust his center of gravity.

He could only watch as the ball crossed the goal line!

5 is better than 1!

Lovren was the same; the Croatian stared blankly at the goal, his face filled with helplessness.

"Goal!!!"

"hat trick!!!"

"José Mario Pereira completes his hat-trick at Anfield!"

"One long-range shot, two headers!"

"The Ballon d'Or winner will never disappear in a high-stakes match!!"

After scoring, Mario ran towards the corner where the away fans were.

He ran to the corner flag area, stopped, put his hands on his hips, and tilted his head slightly back.

In that corner, three thousand Manchester City fans were jumping around like madmen.

Blue flags waved in the air, and the singing completely drowned out the red cheers from Anfield.

"Super Mario!!"

"Super Mario!!"

They chanted the name of the Blue Moon King.

In the last ten minutes of the match, Liverpool actually played better than before.

Perhaps there's nothing left to lose.

Perhaps they didn't want to continue embarrassing themselves in front of their home fans.

Liverpool's players reorganized a few decent attacks.

In the 83rd minute, Salah broke through on the right wing and crossed into the penalty area, where Firmino's shot was blocked by Ederson.

In the 87th minute, substitute Ings won a free kick just outside the penalty area.

Milner stands in front of the ball.

The veteran took a deep breath and unleashed a high-quality, curved shot.

The ball went around the wall of players and headed straight for the top right corner of the goal.

Ederson dove to make the save, but this time it was too late!

Liverpool pulled one back.

The songs finally rang out again at Anfield.

The Liverpool fans who stayed until the very end sang "You'll Never Walk Alone" in hoarse voices, their voices filled with both sorrow and defiance.

The referee blew the final whistle.

Liverpool 2-5 Manchester City.

On the giant screen at Anfield, the score was glaringly bright.

For the fans who came to the event, there was both good news and bad news.

The bad news, of course, was the heavy defeat.

The good news is that they are down by three goals, which is a number Liverpool likes.

.....

In the media room at Anfield, Klopp sat down, and some water droplets could still be seen on his beard.

"Jurgen, how would you rate José Mario's performance tonight?"

Klopp was silent for two seconds, then gave a wry smile.

"In a sense, tonight we didn't lose to Manchester City, we lost to José Mario!"

"He's the kind of genius who can single-handedly destroy a team!"

"Unfortunately, we've run into Mario, who's in top form, tonight!"

The reporter pressed further: "After a 2-5 score, is there any hope for the second leg?"

Klopp tapped his fingers on the table.

"Liverpool never surrenders prematurely. We've created miracles at Anfield, and we'll fight at the Etihad."

"You substituted Chamberlain for Wijnaldum, were you trying to overwhelm him with sheer intensity?"

Klopp nodded. "I tried to use physicality and duels to break up Manchester City's passing network, but one lateral pass and one pause from him tore my plans apart."

"You can't defend against all three at the same time: a Xavi-like mind, a Lampard-like goal-scoring style, and a Drogba-like physique."