ALL NOVEL
Chapter 786: Nothing Here
There aren't many teams left in the Premier League now that can stop Manchester City's progress, and Liverpool is one of them.
In the first encounter, the Blue Moon narrowly lost. Whether from the perspective of the title race or revenge, they need to secure a victory.
Of course, before that, Manchester City must complete the second leg of the Champions League Round of 16 against Paris Saint-Germain.
Compared to the first leg's offensive battle, this match was somewhat dull. After 80 minutes, neither side managed to score.
In the 84th minute, Di Maria cut inside from the flank and shot a cold arrow to help the away team break the deadlock.
The home team quickly responded. Wang Feng broke into the penalty area, attracting double coverage, then cleverly back-heeled a pass to the edge of the arc. Yaya Toure followed up with a long shot that pierced through the defense of the Ligue 1 powerhouse.
In the end, the two teams shook hands with a 1-1 draw. Manchester City eliminated Paris Saint-Germain with a total score of 6-4 and advanced to the next round!
The next day, all the matches concluded, and the quarterfinalists of the Champions League were determined. Leicester City narrowly advanced past Sevilla, while unfortunately, Arsenal suffered a humiliating 10-2 defeat against Bayern Munich, with both legs ending 5-1.
The world was in an uproar. Arsenal suffered their largest defeat at the Emirates Stadium.
Tactical mastermind Ancelotti, who took over after leaving Real Madrid, unexpectedly placed Muller on the bench and moved Thiago forward, fully unleashing his attacking capabilities.
Thiago didn't disappoint Ancelotti's trust, scoring three goals and providing two assists in two matches, a perfect performance.
Vidal also scored twice, along with goals from Robben, Lewandowski, Muller, Costa, and Kimmich, Bayern ruthlessly crushed Arsenal.
German publication "Kicker" described it as a "stunning match" by Bayern Munich. Their offense was extremely efficient, and their defensive performance was also excellent, completely dominating Arsenal.
"The Arsenal players on the field lacked any rhythm. They couldn't even build effective attacking routes and could only watch as their opponents repeatedly breached their defense."
The British newspaper "The Times" stated that the process and scoreline of the two legs were identical. In the first half, both sides could barely hold their own, but in the second half, Arsenal completely collapsed.
"So far, Arsenal has conceded over 200 goals in the Champions League. Once they fall behind, the mentality of all players becomes extremely fragile, making it almost impossible to achieve a comeback miracle."
Apart from the two remaining Premier League teams, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid all successfully defeated their opponents to advance.
Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund secured two spots for the Bundesliga, while Juventus was the sole survivor from Serie A.
After the draw, Manchester City's opponent was Juventus. Both teams were evenly matched, and an intense battle was about to unfold.
It's worth mentioning that Real Madrid and Bayern Munich were fated to meet, setting up a peak showdown between former teammates Ancelotti and Zidane.
The Galacticos had repeatedly trampled over Bayern Munich to conquer Europe. After the departure of the Chinese superstar and the renowned coach, can they continue to maintain their dominance against Bayern Munich? How much has Zidane learned from Ancelotti? This became the focus of attention in the world of football.
On March 19th, in the 29th round of the Premier League, Manchester City visited Anfield to challenge Liverpool.
In this match, Guardiola used a 4-2-3-1 formation with full attacking and defending capabilities. Fernando and Delph served as double defensive midfielders, while Wang Feng dropped back in the attacking position, and Aguero played up front.
While waiting in the player tunnel to enter the field, young players led by De Bruyne looked at the words "This is Anfield!" carved on the doorframe, feeling a bit nervous and timid.
Captain Kompany seemed to see through their thoughts and asked with a smile, "You guys must have watched Wang's growth in the matches. Do you remember when he first made a name for himself in Europe?"
Everyone's attention was drawn by his words, expressing their thoughts one after another. Some said it was when he first won the Serie A championship, while others said it was when he first won the Ballon d'Or. Even many Liverpool players on the opposite side were curious and perked up their ears.
The Chinese superstar smiled and glanced at the Belgian defender, instantly understanding why Kompany brought up old stories at this moment.
"No, no, it was even earlier than what you guys said."
Everyone was puzzled. The Manchester City captain continued, "The first time Wang made a name for himself in the world was here, at Anfield!"
"At the age of 17, he led Genk against the Reds, scoring four goals alone and shocking the entire stadium. He single-handedly ended Liverpool's aspirations for the quintuple and shattered Michael Owen's Ballon d'Or dream."
"This is Anfield? Nothing here!"
The young teammates couldn't help but feel excited at his words. A 17-year-old scoring four goals, single-handedly saving the team, what could be more thrilling than this?
The seemingly invisible pressure brought by Liverpool's home ground immediately dissipated. Now, they just wanted to run freely, just like Wang Feng, to achieve success in the face of giants.
On the contrary, the Liverpool players felt extremely embarrassed. That defeat could be said to be one of the most painful memories they didn't want to mention.
After that, the Chinese superstar repeatedly inflicted failures on Liverpool. Could they really stabilize Wang Feng this time?
After the match started, Guardiola was surprised to find that the players' state was even better than he had expected. Each of them was as excited as if they had been injected with chicken blood, seizing the initiative on the field.
Meanwhile, Klopp was puzzled. It shouldn't be like this. Weren't the players in high spirits in the locker room before the match? Why did some of them seem lacking in confidence after coming on the field?
The cheers from the home fans in the stands weren't loud enough? Listen to the passionate cheers and shouts, the atmosphere at Anfield Stadium would never lag behind.
The German coach could only clap his hands and cheer everyone on loudly, urging them to press forward more actively and raise their momentum.
In the 17th minute, David Silva sent a direct pass to Wang Feng in midfield. The Chinese superstar stopped the ball with his back to the goal, then lightly tapped it with his left foot, giving the impression that he was going to move towards the sideline.
Behind him, Wijnaldum quickly moved to block his path, trying to obstruct him, but Wang Feng just feigned a step, and his center of gravity quickly shifted to the other side. He flicked the ball with his left foot to the right, then turned and accelerated, easily bypassing them.
"A beautiful turn to get past! Wang is through!" accompanied by the commentator's shout, the fans in the Anfield stands couldn't help but feel anxious, "Stop him! Damn it, foul!"
Clyne and Milner quickly closed in, trying to block Wang Feng from advancing further into the penalty area, but without much thought, he simply shifted the ball to the right, attempting to force his way out from the side with his speed.
Milner was determined not to let Wang Feng succeed, immediately stepping forward to block him. However, the Chinese superstar suddenly stopped and turned back, flicking the ball to his left foot, then pushed it forward, weaving through the narrow gap between the two defenders.
He evaded all the defensive players and entered the penalty area in an instant!
Seeing the situation was not good, goalkeeper Mignolet decisively rushed out to block, while Clyne chased closely from behind. But Wang Feng remained calm, protecting the ball steadily, and as soon as the Belgian approached, he sent a lob shot over him.
The ball flew over Liverpool's goalkeeper and into the net behind him, Manchester City led 1-0!