Soccer: I have the attributes of Messi in his Prime

Chapter 483: Guardiola: My Son is Amazing!

Manchester City quickly equalized, changing the dynamics of the game once more. Manchester United's advantage vanished, and their morale took a hit. On the other hand, Manchester City, realizing that United's defense was not as strong as expected, gained even more confidence in their offense.

As the first half progressed, the situation on the field gradually tilted in favor of Manchester City. They began to dominate, continuously attacking Manchester United's goal. Lin Quan, always one to return favors, repaid Son Heung-min's assist with one of his own.

In the 39th minute, Lin Quan received a through ball from De Bruyne, successfully evaded the offside trap, and had a clear chance to score. Instead of taking the shot himself, he unselfishly passed the ball to Son Heung-min, who easily slotted it into the empty net, making the score 2-1.

Seeing Son Heung-min score, Guardiola finally relaxed. Defensive counter-attacking tactics are most vulnerable when behind. If United continued to sit back and defend, it would be meaningless; they needed to come out and attack to level the score. However, Mourinho had chosen many defensive players, limiting their offensive potential. To equalize, United needed to make substitutions, which would weaken their defense. If their defense weakened, City would find it even easier to score.

City didn't mind playing a direct attacking game, but the question was, would United dare? Mourinho, known as "The Special One" for his bold tactics and confrontations with journalists and other managers, took a significant risk. Seeing the unfavorable situation, he boldly made two attacking substitutions before halftime to strengthen United's offense.

Impressed by Mourinho's boldness, Guardiola couldn't help but feel a bit of admiration. With two key central defenders missing, it was clear to everyone that City's defense had issues. However, thinking they could gain an advantage in a direct attacking game underestimated City's offensive power.

After Mourinho's adjustments, Guardiola also made his move, signaling his team to increase their pace and engage in a direct confrontation. With their managers' encouragement, both teams launched fierce attacks, making the game thrilling and exciting for the spectators.

The game's tempo increased dramatically, with quick transitions between attacks from both sides. Inevitably, players made mistakes during their rapid advances, creating perfect opportunities for counterattacks. Both Guardiola and Mourinho excelled at exploiting such situations, leading to intense midfield battles and aggressive pressing on the opponents' playmakers.

For Manchester United, Pogba and Mata were the main targets of City's pressing. Conversely, Kroos and De Bruyne faced intense pressure from United. However, there was a significant difference between the two teams. Besides De Bruyne and Kroos, City had Lin Quan, who could drop back and act as a playmaker. United lacked such a versatile player, making City's attacks more threatening and higher quality.

Mourinho knew about Lin Quan's playmaking abilities but couldn't allocate more resources to mark him while focusing on De Bruyne and Kroos. Compared to the other two, stopping Lin Quan was much more challenging due to his exceptional dribbling, passing, and decision-making skills. His high football IQ and wide vision allowed him to either rely on his individual skills or make precise passes when double-teamed.

With limited players on the field, double-teaming one player inevitably left gaps elsewhere. If Lin Quan exploited these gaps with his passing, it would be deadly. Therefore, Mourinho wasn't ignoring Lin Quan; he simply couldn't effectively counter him. At Inter, he had Zanetti to limit Messi, but at United, he had no such player. If he had, he would have used him long ago.

Failing to limit Lin Quan put United at a significant disadvantage in the attacking game. Though they managed to hold off City in the first half, they couldn't prevent Lin Quan from assisting Jesus early in the second half, changing the score to 3-1.

At Etihad Stadium, a two-goal lead for City practically sealed United's fate. Despite Mourinho using his third substitution to bring on Lingard and bolster the attack, it was futile. City's substitute Sane scored in the 85th minute, setting the final score at 4-1.

City won another Manchester Derby, their seventh consecutive victory over United, leaving the Red Devils' fans in despair. If this continued, United might develop a psychological block against City.

Disheartened by the heavy defeat, Mourinho left the field before Guardiola could shake his hand. He faced a barrage of tough questions in the post-match press conference, a situation worsened by his penchant for making enemies with journalists.

Post-match images of Mourinho looking helpless on the sidelines and struggling to respond to reporters sparked widespread discussion among fans.

"Sigh, Mourinho seems different now, not like before," some fans lamented, noticing his graying hair and lack of the fiery spirit he had at Inter and Real Madrid.

Back then, Mourinho was on top of the world. He led an underdog Porto to Champions League glory, challenged the Manchester United dynasty with Chelsea, and won two Premier League titles. Even after falling out with Abramovich, he resurrected Inter, achieving an incredible treble with a group of veterans. With two Champions League titles, Mourinho joined the ranks of top-tier managers like Guardiola.

But everything changed when he took the helm at Real Madrid. His failure there seemed to break him, and since then, Mourinho's magic appeared to fade.

During his second tenure at Chelsea, Mourinho's coaching achievements were lackluster, suffering defeats in the league, cup competitions, and the Champions League. After joining Manchester United, he only shone briefly at the beginning of the season before continually declining.

Now, Manchester United had long fallen out of the title race in the league standings, and even their spot in next season's Champions League was uncertain. They needed to fiercely compete with Tottenham, Arsenal, and Liverpool. If United ended up with nothing and failed to secure a Champions League spot, would Mourinho be sacked and move to another club?

Frequent changes of clubs are never good for players or coaches. To perfectly integrate one's tactical philosophy into a team takes time, but in today's increasingly impatient football world, many clubs won't give coaches that time. If the results don't meet their expectations, they will quickly act and make the coach, who is easiest to blame, leave.

Being frequently sacked leads to worsening performance, creating a vicious cycle, eventually resulting in losing their job or even disappearing from the football scene. Seeing Mourinho in such a difficult position, people naturally thought of another coach who used to be on par with him—Guardiola.

Compared to Mourinho, Guardiola's career after leaving Barcelona was also not smooth. His one and a half years at Bayern Munich were not particularly successful. However, Guardiola had long overcome his struggles. Under his leadership, Manchester City was thriving, not only giving him a second peak in his career but also potentially surpassing the glory of his time at Barcelona, creating an even more illustrious era.

In contrast, people couldn't help but feel sorry for Mourinho. "It's a pity Mourinho didn't have the luck of having a player as outstanding as Lin Quan. If he did, things might have been completely different."

...

Regarding the external comments that he succeeded thanks to his players, Guardiola didn't refute it; instead, he responded with a smile: "I'm very fortunate to have encountered geniuses like Messi and Lin."

Guardiola started at the peak of his career, coaching the likes of Messi and other La Masia talents to create the legendary Barcelona team. Guardiola was undoubtedly strong, but without Messi, his success at Barcelona might not have been as significant. According to Guardiola, Messi brought him to an unimaginable height, making success seem simple. Only after leaving Barcelona and Messi did a series of failures gradually make him realize that such success was merely accidental. Without Messi, many of his tactics and philosophies couldn't be perfectly executed; only true geniuses could complete his assignments.

But Guardiola was incredibly lucky. Lin Quan's rise quickly relieved him of those worries. Although Manchester City hadn't reached the perfect state Guardiola envisioned, having Lin Quan was enough. His task was to build the team around Lin Quan, a cornerstone for the team.

So, when outsiders said he was lucky and relied on his players, he wasn't angry but rather proud. "My son is just that good! If you have the ability, you can have such a great player too!"

...

Apart from Manchester United fans, the most disappointed by United's loss to City were Leicester City fans. They had placed high hopes on United, only to see them easily defeated. Now, with only seven rounds left in the league and still nine points behind, their chances of winning the title were very slim.

However, the situation worsened for Leicester City. In the 32nd round of the league, City visited Bournemouth. Lin Quan scored twice within fifteen minutes in the first half, setting the game's tone. De Bruyne scored a direct free-kick, and Demichelis headed in a goal before the final whistle, leading City to a clean 4-0 victory and their third consecutive win.

Despite Leicester's efforts to secure a 1-0 victory at home against Southampton, the gap between them and City remained unchanged. With only six rounds left and a nine-point gap, Leicester City's hope of winning the title was now just theoretical. Their last chance hinged on City potentially losing points due to their involvement in the Champions League quarter-finals.

...

On April 4th, after their league match, Manchester City immediately traveled to Paris to prepare for their Champions League match against Paris Saint-Germain three days later. City was fortunate to have drawn a schedule with the away match first and the home match second. This was advantageous because they didn't need to win away, just scoring away goals and avoiding a big loss would give them a good chance of progressing when they returned home.

Of course, winning the away game would naturally ease the pressure for the next leg. However, with Guardiola's prior warning, the players were not overconfident. Although PSG is a Ligue 1 team, their strength was undeniable. Playing away would be challenging, and they prepared for the worst.

As two-time Champions League winners, City was now famous across Europe and the world. Their squad was filled with star players, especially the superstar Lin Quan. This popularity was evident when they arrived at the airport to a crowd of fans, including many Chinese fans. Some were students studying in France, while others were tourists. Upon hearing about City's arrival, they came specifically to welcome the team.

Their goal was clear—they were there for Lin Quan, as shown by the various banners and signs welcoming him. Lin Quan was surprised and moved by this reception. He took the initiative to take photos with the fans, sign autographs, and even gave away a few jerseys.

Lin Quan's warmth exceeded the fans' expectations. They didn't anticipate that such a superstar would be so approachable. Overwhelmed with excitement, they immediately shared their experiences online, making those who couldn't come regret missing the chance to meet him. They realized that next time, they wouldn't miss such an opportunity.

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