Chapter 1

June 4th, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales.

The annual, highly anticipated Champions League final is about to be staged.

Manchester City and Bayern Munich players have changed into their match gear and are waiting to officially enter the field.

Compared to Bayern, Manchester City players have never participated in a Champions League final, so they are at a disadvantage in terms of mentality.

For Manchester City players, nervousness is inevitable.

Fully armed security personnel, passionately cheering fans.

The final, with its unparalleled broadcast scale, is about to begin.

Tonight will be a carnival for football fans all over the world.

In the field of football, the Champions League final should be second only to the World Cup in terms of attention.

In the eyes of Dragon Country fans, this will be a different Champions League final from the past.

Because of Zhao Gang's existence, this Champions League final has gained a terrifying viewership and related discussion in Dragon Country.

A large number of Dragon Country fans have been discussing it enthusiastically in various forums, and the heat has continued from the evening to the early hours of the morning, without any sign of weakening.

There are also a larger number of fans waiting quietly, not participating in the discussion.

They are guarding in front of their TVs and computer screens.

Of course, there are also those watching on their mobile phones.

Wednesday, and it's after 3 a.m., which is very inconvenient for Dragon Country fans.

But this cannot stop them from cheering for their own countrymen.

As long as they can see Zhao Gang in the final, they feel a sense of pride.

"Well, in this game, Bayern is still fielding a relatively traditional formation, a 4-3-3.

Since Heynckes left Bayern and Ancelotti took over the coaching baton of the Bundesliga giants, the pressure has been great. He is very eager to prove himself, and this final is undoubtedly the best proof!

After Guardiola left Barca, he never entered the Champions League final during his time coaching Bayern. A large number of fans believe that Guardiola became a world-class coach because of Barcelona, and he also urgently needs to win this Champions League title to prove his strength.

For Manchester City, in the history of more than a hundred years since the team was founded, they have never entered the Champions League final. In this game, in terms of the desire for victory, Manchester City is obviously higher than Bayern.

Guardiola faced his old club in the Champions League semi-final, eliminating Barcelona, and in the Champions League final he faced another team he had coached before, which is also a very exciting highlight."

"We just talked about Bayern's 4-3-3 formation, the front three, Douglas Costa, a forward from Brazil, whose data is not eye-catching, but his role in this Bayern lineup is very significant.

The reason why his data is not eye-catching is because of his frontline partner, the Polish striker, Lewandowski. Lewandowski is in full swing this season, scoring thirty-two goals in the league, and he also showed his killer qualities in the Champions League, scoring twelve goals.

Whether Bayern Munich can take the Champions League trophy away from the Millennium Stadium, Lewandowski's performance is absolutely crucial!

On the left wing is the old and strong Ribéry, which will be his last season playing for Bayern Munich.

He very much hopes that his last game in his last season for Bayern can end perfectly.

The three midfielders are also very famous, Xabi Alonso, who performed very strongly after transferring from Real Madrid to Bayern.

Vidal, a defensive midfielder, intercepts fiercely and covers a very large area. He is the last barrier in Bayern's midfield.

Thomas Müller, Bayern Munich's second scorer after Lewandowski, not only has a very strong nose for goal, top-notch running, but also excellent physical fitness, and outstanding defensive contribution.

It can be said that he is good in both offense and defense, and his contribution in the Bayern lineup can be said to be no less than Lewandowski.

On the back line, the two full-backs Lahm and Alaba are very experienced and have very good speed and confrontation. In the Champions League knockout match against Real Madrid, their restriction of Bale and C Ronaldo was very exciting!

The two center-backs Martinez and Boateng!"

"In the goalkeeper position is the German goalkeeper Neuer. At this stage, he and Buffon should be the two best goalkeepers in the world. His defensive area is very large and he often runs to near the center circle.

His ball-playing ability is extremely outstanding, his attacking ability is very strong, and he has almost no weaknesses."

"On the Manchester City side, Guardiola still fields a 3-4-3 formation. This offensive formation was only used by Guardiola in the second half of the season. According to what he once said in an interview, the inspiration came from the scene of Zhao Gang retreating to center-back in the game.

In his vision, Stones should be the midfielder who can retreat at any time during the game, but given that the current Manchester City defenders, Zabaleta, Kolarov, Clichy and Sagna, are not trusted by Guardiola, Stones cannot stand in midfield as he envisioned.

I believe that next season, after Manchester City's lineup is strengthened, Stones will be promoted to the midfield position.

The shortcoming of this lineup is the defense. De Bruyne cannot retreat in time, resulting in a very empty left wing for Manchester City.

This requires Fernandinho to cover Manchester City's left-wing defense. In previous games, Manchester City players have adapted to the new formation very well.

Otamendi, Stones, and Kompany partner as three center-backs, with four midfielders, De Bruyne, Fernandinho, David Silva, and Zhao Gang.

The three front-line players are Jesus, Aguero, and Sterling.

After a brief struggle, Jesus is now increasingly adapting to this tactical system.

Okay, the players from both sides have walked out of the player tunnel!"

The players of the two teams greeted each other and walked out of the player tunnel.

The fans at the scene are shouting frantically, and waves of sound are coming one after another. The Manchester City players are very calm on the surface, but their hearts are already very nervous.

They are under great pressure. Even though Guardiola arranged for professionals to conduct psychological counseling for them before the game, they still cannot help themselves when they get here.

This game is not only a carnival for ordinary fans, but also attracts many retired superstars, suspected stars, and many crossover stars.

Beckham, Ronaldo, Zidane, C Ronaldo, Messi, Suarez, Kobe, James...

Many rap giants have also come to the scene.

Zhao Gang stood on the court, he did not have much pressure, only excitement and anticipation.

The biggest pressure he felt on the court was when he represented the Dragon Country national team for the first time in the World Cup qualifiers. After that time, there was not much pressure in any game.

Both sides stood in position, and the captains tossed a coin.

Manchester City got the ball.

When the referee blew the whistle to start the game, there was a loud cheering sound from the scene.

At the same time, broadcast commentators from all over the world also began their official commentary on the game.

At this moment, a large number of fans around the world began to watch the game.

A tense mood spread among the fans of both sides.

They all hope that their team can win the game and become the new king of Europe.

If Manchester City can win the Champions League title, they will take off their "nouveau riche" hat and become a new European powerhouse.

If Bayern wins the game, they will continue the rule of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern.

When Zhao Gang got the ball, Manchester City's front line began to run forward.

Jesus, Aguero, and Sterling are all top-notch in their ability to run.

This is a simple tactic. Manchester City often grabs a good start, and they have succeeded more than once in the Premier League.

However, Bayern's defense is very good, and they have not left much space for Manchester City.

Zhao Gang slowly advanced with the ball himself. Müller began to approach Zhao Gang, preparing to interfere.

Müller is a bit silly in life, and likes to be funny, but he will not laugh on the court.

The two entangled in the midfield for a while, and Alonso also rushed to help. Zhao Gang did not choose to pass to David Silva, who was responding next to him, but gave it to De Bruyne on the wing with one kick.

De Bruyne withstood Vidal's defense and quickly passed the ball with one kick!

Jesus, who runs very flexibly, appeared behind Lahm.

Without waiting for Lahm to keep up, Jesus directly swept across with one kick!

Inside Bayern's penalty area, Aguero and Sterling fiercely fought for a point!

Unfortunately, the attacking Neuer accurately judged and directly pressed the ball under his body in advance.

Jesus' pass was too close to the goalkeeper. His passing level is still a bit worse than the top passers.

However, Manchester City's tactic was a success.

Manchester City does not have many wing cross tactics, mainly because the midfielders have very strong ball-passing ability.

Now, at the beginning of the game, they are crossing from the wing, which is indeed beyond Bayern's expectations.

If this ball had been passed with a slightly higher quality, and Aguero had grabbed the point, it was very likely that it would have been scored.

Ancelotti realized that there was something wrong with his team's defense. They may not have been concentrating at the beginning of the game.

Guardiola spread his hands. If Zhao Gang was in that position, like in the FA Cup, the passing threat would have been greater.

Jesus is still a bit lacking.

But there is no need to worry, there is still plenty of time.

Neuer kicked the ball near the midfield, and Müller headed the ball to Alonso.

Alonso held the ball to organize the attack, and Zhao Gang was not idle. While letting Silva go up to press, he leaned towards Müller, and at the same time directed all his teammates to put pressure on the frontline players, so that they could not get the ball comfortably.

Full-court press.

Alonso, a very experienced midfielder, is long past the age of fighting spirit, so he will not show off in front of Silva. He got rid of Silva with a big step. Silva was still following him, and he directly passed back to Vidal, who was running. Vidal's long passing ability is not good, so he immediately passed back to Alonso.

Alonso had space, and seeing Fernandinho's defense against Ribéry, he directly found Costa on the left wing.

This Costa is not the beautiful Costa. As a wing突击手 (tū jī shǒu, striker), Douglas Costa's first choice after getting the ball must be to break through and look for opportunities.

The offensive and defensive transitions of both sides are very fast. Bayern may not have wanted to play so compactly after the start of the game. It was Manchester City's pressing that forced them to speed up.

But Bayern is also very good at this rhythm.

Strong teams are able to adapt to various rhythms on the field, positional warfare, defensive counterattacks, and full-court pressing.

Costa's impact on the left wing is good, but it is difficult to break through Kompany's defense. He has no chance to cut inside, and he is not prepared to pass back to waste this opportunity.

Then…

Find Lewandowski!

Lewandowski's fiercest scene was five goals in nine minutes. As a center, his scoring ability is definitely world-class!

His physical confrontation is also extremely outstanding.

This diagonal pass directly found the Polish striker.

Stones's confrontational growth is also very large. He has become more and more fierce in this season with Manchester City.

Although Lewandowski got the ball, Stones did not lose his position and has been blocking Lewandowski's turning route.

Otamendi rushed to support quickly, which forced Lewandowski in the penalty area to only be able to turn halfway and shoot hard.

Neither the power nor the angle was good.

It did hit the target, but any normal person can save the ball, let alone a professional goalkeeper?

Bravo hugged the ball securely in his arms.

Although this attack was not sharp, it is obvious that Bayern Munich's tactics were also successful.

Manchester City usually does not kick long balls after getting the ball.

This is the difference in tactical play. Manchester City needs to control the ball.

Stones or Kompany can hold the ball to attack.

Bayern Munich did not press up across the board. Their three lines are very stable and move forward in an orderly manner, and will not leave Manchester City with any opportunities.

The tactics of the Bundesliga are very professional. Even in a very small space, they will always maintain their formation, and Bayern is the best of them, and of course even stronger.

This makes it difficult for Manchester City's offense to find opportunities.

Müller and Alonso's restriction on Zhao Gang is also good, making it impossible for Zhao Gang to pass the ball forward.

This requires looking for another passing point, De Bruyne or David Silva.

This is also the strength of Manchester City. The midfield has multiple passing points, and even Stones can temporarily rush up to organize the attack.

Even if Zhao Gang is temporarily restricted, other players can also break the deadlock.

Costa and Ribéry can only be forced to retreat and participate in the midfield defense of Manchester City, otherwise De Bruyne and Silva may seize the opportunity.

For a while, it was difficult for Bayern to launch an attack, and it seemed that Manchester City's ball was also locked in the midfield.

After Zhao Gang and Silva's continuous cooperation, they encountered the double-teaming of Alonso and Müller.

Zhao Gang turned continuously and continued to protect the ball. The two surrounded Zhao Gang there and kept tackling, but they did not steal the ball!

Zhao Gang's last wonderful turn threw both of them behind him and quickly dribbled the ball forward.

Manchester City fans applauded and cheered vigorously.

"Zhao Gang's breakthrough is very strong! Can Manchester City's offense be successful this time??"

Although the two were thrown off and were quite embarrassed, they quickly caught up with Zhao Gang.

Zhao Gang was intercepted by Vidal. Because his speed did not pick up, he did not form a breakthrough in the first time. Ribéry also quickly reinforced, making it impossible for Zhao Gang to continuously threaten Bayern's defense.

At this time, De Bruyne had another opening.

But Zhao Gang did not pass the ball to De Bruyne.

He saw Lahm wanting to rush towards De Bruyne to intercept the ball.

Zhao Gang directly made a through pass with extremely strong penetration!

Behind Lahm!

This time it was not Jesus, but Aguero who rushed out from the middle!

Aguero took a touch!

Then he shot without hesitation!

Small angle!

This is Aguero's most skilled offensive method!

Bang!

Neuer's huge body spread out, tilted backwards, and the ball brushed his fingers, changed course, and hit the crossbar!

Boateng rushed out with an arrow step, and hurriedly kicked the ball towards Manchester City's half of the field with great effort.

It was high and floating.

Aguero covered his head and squatted down halfway.

This ball was actually saved!

It was only one centimeter away, a little higher and it would have gone in!!

"Aguero's blast!!! Neuer is worthy of being the world's number one goalkeeper! This reaction speed, this coverage area!

He miraculously blocked the ball on the crossbar, and after it bounced, Boateng's alert clearance!!"

Boateng and Neuer bumped fists with each other to cheer each other up!

Manchester City fans sighed, what a pity.

Too bad luck!

Not only did it graze Neuer's hand, change course, but it also hit the crossbar and bounced to the ground.

If there was a mistake in any of the links, the ball would have gone in!

Zhao Gang looked at Bayern's lineup. This lineup has excellent defensive experience, but unfortunately it is old. If they attack frantically in the first half, they are likely to have big problems in the second half.

Aguero is in his prime, and Jesus and Sterling are both in their prime, wouldn't they just wear these old bones out?

So Zhao Gang clenched his fists and waved his fists fiercely at the frontcourt players.

The three understood.

Guardiola said that on the court, Zhao Gang is half a coach. As long as it is within the big framework, whatever he asks you to do, you do!

Next, as long as Manchester City holds the ball and attacks, De Bruyne and David Silva will keep pulling space for Zhao Gang.

The three players in the frontcourt are all doing one thing, constantly running without the ball. Even if Zhao Gang does not pass the ball, they are still running.

Then Bayern's defense must run with them, otherwise a deadly pass is likely to be dangerous!

In the eyes of some people, Manchester City's running seems to have no effect, and they are just wasting their physical strength frequently, but Manchester City players don't think so.

De Bruyne and Zhao Gang also began to frequently advance along the two wing roads. Zhao Gang, who used to habitually roam to the middle, also gave up the middle this time and completely handed it over to David Silva, and Stones, who can come up at any time.

In this way, Manchester City's defense is a bit empty, but they have launched a frantic attack on Bayern's two wings!

Lahm and Alaba are very experienced and will basically not lose their positions. Their speed can also keep up, and with the retreat of the midfielders, they have really blocked Manchester City's attack.

But if this continues, these people will not be able to hold on at all, and problems are likely to occur.

Müller's on-field reading ability is very strong. He also discovered Manchester City's offensive methods. Whether they can score a goal or not, their purpose is to consume the physical strength of their teammates.

Ribéry and Costa have to keep retreating to defend. Before long, Ribéry will not have had time to show his offensive talent, and his physical strength will be exhausted first.

That won't work!

They must strengthen the attack, so that Manchester City's mid-frontcourt also has pressure, so that they can run back and forth, and reduce the pressure on Bayern's mid-backcourt!

The rhythm of both sides is terrifyingly fast. Manchester City is constantly attacking, and Bayern cannot give Manchester City a chance to breathe after getting the ball.

After Sterling broke through, Boateng forcibly intercepted the ball in the penalty area, and then quickly passed the ball. Xabi Alonso received the ball.

This former Real Madrid metronome is best at midfield scheduling and has very accurate long passes!

As soon as he got the ball, Bayern's attacking players quickly rushed forward.

Manchester City's frontcourt players also desperately retreated to defend, with full attack and full defense.

De Bruyne also entangled Alonso a bit. After Alonso moved horizontally, he made an over-the-top long pass and found Ribéry!

Ribéry is old, but his technique is still there, and his speed has not dropped much, but he cannot sprint for a long time.

Now it's only been twenty minutes since the game started, and he still has the energy to sprint.

Ribéry got the ball and had a chance to face Fernandinho who had retreated.

There was almost no suspense. Fernandinho alone could not defend Ribéry at all.

Ribéry quickly moved along the wing, touched the ball with the outside of his foot, all the way down. After a sudden stop, he cut inside. Just as Fernandinho was about to block, the ball had already gone straight to the penalty area!

At this time, Lewandowski, who ran to the position, was entangled by Otamendi.

Stones had not quickly returned because he had participated in the attack, so Otamendi could only fill in.

Facing Otamendi, Lewandowski still had a certain advantage!

He withstood Otamendi and turned successfully!

A shot!

Bravo was well prepared, quickly went to ground and saved the ball!

Manchester City fans were relieved. Bravo's performance in the Champions League is really remarkable!

Just as Bayern fans were regretting, a red figure rushed over from outside the penalty area!

Before Kompany had time to clear the ball, Müller blasted a shot!

Bravo had already fallen to the ground and reached out with a struggle, but he could not touch the shot that was close at hand.

Whoosh…

The ball smashed into the net, making a sound that broke the hearts of Manchester City fans.

And this sound was like the sound of nature in the ears of Bayern fans!

Thomas Müller!

A follow-up shot to break the deadlock!

In the twenty-seventh minute of the game, Bayern took the lead!

After Manchester City launched a fierce attack on Bayern's two wings, Bayern's efficient counterattack hit the target with one blow!

Bayern fans shouted like crazy, and the entire Millennium Stadium was filled with the slogans of Bayern fans.

Müller rushed out of the field passionately, clenched his fists and jumped high!

Humph!

Manchester City has been attacking for so long, but we are still leading!

This is also Müller's characteristic, his running position is strange and flexible.

The opponent has no idea where he will appear.

Sometimes even his teammates don't know.

Many people believe that Müller's goals are largely due to luck, and they are all opportunities that he picked up.

But this just shows his keen sense of smell in front of the goal and his very accurate judgment of the landing point of the ball!

This is a player who plays football with his brain.

Bayern players ran over to celebrate together.

Bravo squatted on the goal line with a very ugly face.

Kompany shook his head with his hands on his hips.

He was a little careless.

He didn't realize Müller was rushing over at all.

He should have kicked the ball out directly like Boateng, but he wanted to control the ball and observe it again.

Finally, he paid a heavy price for his self-confidence.

Ancelotti waved his hand hard, well done!

Guardiola hugged his chest. His tactics are to slowly penetrate and control the ball.

Zhao Gang suddenly changed his style of play on the field, causing all the frontcourt players to move and keep attacking.

If this style of play takes effect in a short period of time, it can indeed bring goals and lead the opponent, so that the pressure on Manchester City players will be much less.

But once they can't attack and are hit by a counterattack, with the defense empty, there will be big problems.

Now there is a problem.

It will be difficult for Manchester City to slowly penetrate and control the rhythm again.