Twain stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed over his chest . The camera lenses were focused on his profile gazing into the distance at the top of the grandstand, where the electronic scoreboard clearly showed the score of 2:1 . The home team, Nottingham Forest, was ahead of Chelsea .
Mourinho also stood on the sidelines . Unlike Twain, he had put his hands into his pockets .
Taking advantage of the loss of ball possession, Mourinho grabbed hold of Lampard . He told him to cancel that plan and devote all his energy to finding the Forest team's defensive weaknesses .
The expressions on both managers' faces were very serious . The game was not over . Being in the lead, Twain did not want Mourinho to catch up . He did not want to repeat Mourinho's mistake . He knew that Chelsea was a tough nut to crack . There was nothing to be delighted about with a one-goal lead . Who knew what would happen next in the game?
Chelsea did not give up . There was still half an hour left in the second half of the game . They had time to equalize the score . They had not reached the end of the road yet .
What had they relied on to be unbeaten for forty-one rounds? It was not just Roman Abramovich's ruble . Strictly speaking, this Chelsea team did not have any players recognized as international superstars . Although their values were not low, it was Abramovich who hyped the prices up . The team had been able to win the league last season with its absolute advantage because Manager Mourinho had united the team's standard of fighting strength . He instilled an unyielding fighting spirit and a desire for victory in the "mercenary squad" put together by money . This point was very similar to Twain's Forest team . Therefore, they won several times in face of adversity and managed to get out of danger repeatedly .
Today's game was just one of those times to them .
Mourinho's team never knew the meaning of concession .
After Chelsea lost the ball, they launched a frenetic counterattack against the Forest team, so much so that the leading Forest team had a hard time playing .
Mourinho let his team press forward to pressure the Forest team's defensive line . At the same time, they created offside tactics to trap Anelka and Mark Viduka .
In that way, Chelsea's formation was more compact, pressing and attacking layer by layer . Even if the Forest team used long passes to advance, the probability of the ball ending up at the feet of the Chelsea players was high . Then they would organize two, three, four strikes . This would give the Forest players the impression that Chelsea's offense was relentless . For the defenders, as the pressure increased until they could not withstand the pressure and crumbled, the specific phenomenon would result in them committing errors on their own .
George Wood was so tangled up by Lampard that he was too occupied to attend to the other attacks from Chelsea .
In turn, Chelsea looked for a point to assail and repeatedly struck the ball in that direction, which was their right flank and the Forest team's left flank .
Duff and Robben would occasionally switch positions in the game . They were not fixed to the left or right and the two players switched even more frequently . Leighton Baines was the weakest among the Forest team's four starting fullbacks . Mourinho knew that, and so did the Chelsea players . They constantly struck Baines' defensive zone to make him crack earlier than the other points in the Forest team .
"Push them out! Push them out!" Twain yelled on the sidelines and waved his arms vigorously, but no one noticed . Even if someone noticed him, it was of no use . It was not as if the Forest team's front line could push out the opponents just because he shouted, "push them out . "
Chelsea pressed on too hard . The Forest team had completely fallen into their tempo . What good could come out of following the opponents' pace?
In spite of the critical situation, Twain did not intend to adjust by substitution . He did not have a suitable substitute player for the current situation .
Any game could face a situation whereby the opponents suddenly exerted force to form an absolute advantage and lay siege to a goal . But still, one should not panic at those times . Blindly making hasty adjustments would only give the opponents opportunities to take advantage .
Twain did not make any adjustments . He believed that the eleven Forest players on the field could withstand the waves of Chelsea's offense .
As long as they resisted, Chelsea would be dampened . Mental frustration would bring on physical exhaustion . At that time, it would be the Forest team's turn to counterattack .
As long as they resisted, Chelsea would be dampened . Mental frustration would bring on physical exhaustion . At that time, it would be the Forest team's turn to counterattack .
The crux of the matter only had one point, which was to withstand Chelsea's tornado of attacks .
But the more crucial question was, could the Forest team withstand it?
They were not facing a team that was in the lower ranks of the league, but the top-ranked team, Chelsea, with the highest number of goals scored at twenty-four and the least number of conceded goals at only four in ten rounds of the league .
This was truly a tough challenge .
※※※
Leighton Baines felt exhausted . Even though the game had been going for sixty-five minutes, he was not a player who was physically weak . In fact, he had good stamina and could run very well . However, if he had to face a team's offense, he would be worn down no matter how well he could run .
He had started out at Wigan Athletic, and he even received Wigan Athletic's greeting before the season's opening game with his former club . As one of the most successful players to debut at Wigan Athletic, he had become a standard brand name for Wigan Athletic's youth training, that a football star could also come from a rugby-obsessed town .
Although he had joined the Forest team, his favorite team was still Wigan Athletic .
At that time, Twain had used the "main position" to attract him to the Forest team and he quickly became the main left back . Although he was only twenty years old, he already had a complete Premier League season experience . Now he was not considered an inexperienced rookie anymore . He was currently Nottingham Forest's main left back and England's under-21 youth team's main left back . He was rumored to be a future star whom Ferguson was interested in .
Still, he played appallingly in this game .
Still, he played appallingly in this game .
He certainly knew who he was facing: Ireland national footballer Damien Duff and the Netherlands' national footballer, Arjen Robben . They were the top players in European football . His ability was still far beneath theirs . But despite his opponents' strength surpassing his, he was not willing to accept that it was natural for him to play so appallingly .
None of Twain's players were willing to admit that they were inferior to others .
They were as competitive as their boss and did not like to lose .
Ribéry came back to help him defend, but the Frenchman was not good at doing that kind of thing . Not to mention, the Forest team was now overwhelmed by the pressure . They were most in need of using offense to turn the tides . If he came back again, who was going to counterattack?
Anelka and Viduka continued to fall into Chelsea's offside trap . With Ribéry's fast speed, the side midfielder could plug in to have more opportunities to break through the trap .
He did not want Ribéry to come back . Otherwise, even if he intercepted the ball, the ball would still be trapped in a tight loop and be unable to break through because the two players were too close . It could only be intercepted by Chelsea, and then he would have to repeat everything that had been done before .
It was too tiring!
Wood usually would support the defense on both flanks because he had good stamina and was fast . Twain also asked him to expand his defensive zone . But today, he was entangled with Lampard .
Just now, when he rushed over to help with the defense, Duff immediately passed the ball to Lampard in the middle . Chelsea's number 8 kicked a long shot that forced Edwin van der Sar to make a wonderful save, which also made the Forest fans scream .
The defensive barrier in the middle had hit an impasse . All offense on the flanks were done to find opportunities in the middle . If Wood ran to support Baines, what about Lampard? What about Tiago?
This time Robben exchanged positions with Duff . He came to face Baines' defense, and Duff went to the other side .
The defensive barrier in the middle had hit an impasse . All offense on the flanks were done to find opportunities in the middle . If Wood ran to support Baines, what about Lampard? What about Tiago?
This time Robben exchanged positions with Duff . He came to face Baines' defense, and Duff went to the other side .
Robben's characteristics were small running steps with a fast pace and straight upper body . He almost relied on his two legs rapidly alternating and zigzagging to shake off his opponents .
Baines put all his focus to mark Robben, who dribbled the ball in front of him . He knew Robben was fast . Half a second of negligence and distraction could lead to his opponent's breakthrough .
Ribéry moved closer to Baines, but Baines had eyes for Robben alone .
"Mark him! Don't make a move lightly! Stick to the inside line!" Even Albertini anxiously yelled on the sidelines .
Twain glanced at the Italian . Demetrio had said on more than one occasion that he wanted to be a manager after retirement . His favorite games which he was the best at were the CM and FM series . It looked like he had to cultivate his ability on the training field .
※※※
The Chelsea fans were excited by the continuous bombardment . The massive amount of adrenaline pumping through their veins made them cheer their team with flushed faces . The Forest fans jeered at Chelsea .
In such a noisy environment, Baines could not hear Albertini's roar . But it was the basic requirement of a defensive player to know what the seasoned captain was shouting .
Robben's speed did not look fast, but Baines did not dare not take it lightly . This was not the first time he had encountered the "Flying Dutchman" in this game . He knew that this seemingly slow dribbling of the ball contained a very strong explosive power .
Robben moved the football to his instep and Baines moved ahead to block . The Dutchman suddenly pulled back the football . The inside cut was only a feint . The purpose was to deceive Baines into shifting his center of gravity inward . His real purpose was still to get to the byline and deliver a cross .
Twain stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed over his chest . The camera lenses were focused on his profile gazing into the distance at the top of the grandstand, where the electronic scoreboard clearly showed the score of 2:1 . The home team, Nottingham Forest, was ahead of Chelsea . Mourinho also stood on the sidelines . Unlike Twain, he had put his hands into his pockets . Taking advantage of the loss of ball possession, Mourinho grabbed hold of Lampard . He told him to cancel that plan and devote all his energy to finding the Forest teams defensive weaknesses . The expressions on both managers faces were very serious . The game was not over . Being in the lead, Twain did not want Mourinho to catch up . He did not want to repeat Mourinhos mistake . He knew that Chelsea was a tough nut to crack . There was nothing to be delighted about with a one-goal lead . Who knew what would happen next in the game? Chelsea did not give up . There was still half an hour left in the second half of the game . They had time to equalize the score . They had not reached the end of the road yet . What had they relied on to be unbeaten for forty-one rounds? It was not just Roman Abramovichs ruble . Strictly speaking, this Chelsea team did not have any players recognized as international superstars . Although their values were not low, it was Abramovich who hyped the prices up . The team had been able to win the league last season with its absolute advantage because Manager Mourinho had united the teams standard of fighting strength . He instilled an unyielding fighting spirit and a desire for victory in the mercenary squad put together by money . This point was very similar to Twains Forest team . Therefore, they won several times in face of adversity and managed to get out of danger repeatedly . Todays game was just one of those times to them . Mourinhos team never knew the meaning of concession . After Chelsea lost the ball, they launched a frenetic counterattack against the Forest team, so much so that the leading Forest team had a hard time playing . Mourinho let his team press forward to pressure the Forest teams defensive line . At the same time, they created offside tactics to trap Anelka and Mark Viduka . In that way, Chelseas formation was more compact, pressing and attacking layer by layer . Even if the Forest team used long passes to advance, the probability of the ball ending up at the feet of the Chelsea players was high . Then they would organize two, three, four strikes . This would give the Forest players the impression that Chelseas offense was relentless . For the defenders, as the pressure increased until they could not withstand the pressure and crumbled, the specific phenomenon would result in them committing errors on their own . George Wood was so tangled up by Lampard that he was too occupied to attend to the other attacks from Chelsea . In turn, Chelsea looked for a point to assail and repeatedly struck the ball in that direction, which was their right flank and the Forest teams left flank . Duff and Robben would occasionally switch positions in the game . They were not fixed to the left or right and the two players switched even more frequently . Leighton Baines was the weakest among the Forest teams four starting fullbacks . Mourinho knew that, and so did the Chelsea players . They constantly struck Baines defensive zone to make him crack earlier than the other points in the Forest team . Push them out! Push them out! Twain yelled on the sidelines and waved his arms vigorously, but no one noticed . Even if someone noticed him, it was of no use . It was not as if the Forest teams front line could push out the opponents just because he shouted, push them out . Chelsea pressed on too hard . The Forest team had completely fallen into their tempo . What good could come out of following the opponents pace? In spite of the critical situation, Twain did not intend to adjust by substitution . He did not have a suitable substitute player for the current situation . Any game could face a situation whereby the opponents suddenly exerted force to form an absolute advantage and lay siege to a goal . But still, one should not panic at those times . Blindly making hasty adjustments would only give the opponents opportunities to take advantage . Twain did not make any adjustments . He believed that the eleven Forest players on the field could withstand the waves of Chelseas offense . As long as they resisted, Chelsea would be dampened . Mental frustration would bring on physical exhaustion . At that time, it would be the Forest teams turn to counterattack . The crux of the matter only had one point, which was to withstand Chelseas tornado of attacks . But the more crucial question was, could the Forest team withstand it? They were not facing a team that was in the lower ranks of the league, but the top-ranked team, Chelsea, with the highest number of goals scored at twenty-four and the least number of conceded goals at only four in ten rounds of the league . This was truly a tough challenge . ※※※ Leighton Baines felt exhausted . Even though the game had been going for sixty-five minutes, he was not a player who was physically weak . In fact, he had good stamina and could run very well . However, if he had to face a teams offense, he would be worn down no matter how well he could run . He had started out at Wigan Athletic, and he even received Wigan Athletics greeting before the seasons opening game with his former club . As one of the most successful players to debut at Wigan Athletic, he had become a standard brand name for Wigan Athletics youth training, that a football star could also come from a rugby-obsessed town . Although he had joined the Forest team, his favorite team was still Wigan Athletic . At that time, Twain had used the main position to attract him to the Forest team and he quickly became the main left back . Although he was only twenty years old, he already had a complete Premier League season experience . Now he was not considered an inexperienced rookie anymore . He was currently Nottingham Forests main left back and Englands under-21 youth teams main left back . He was rumored to be a future star whom Ferguson was interested in . Still, he played appallingly in this game . He certainly knew who he was facing: Ireland national footballer Damien Duff and the Netherlands national footballer, Arjen Robben . They were the top players in European football . His ability was still far beneath theirs . But despite his opponents strength surpassing his, he was not willing to accept that it was natural for him to play so appallingly . None of Twains players were willing to admit that they were inferior to others . They were as competitive as their boss and did not like to lose . Ribéry came back to help him defend, but the Frenchman was not good at doing that kind of thing . Not to mention, the Forest team was now overwhelmed by the pressure . They were most in need of using offense to turn the tides . If he came back again, who was going to counterattack? Anelka and Viduka continued to fall into Chelseas offside trap . With Ribérys fast speed, the side midfielder could plug in to have more opportunities to break through the trap . He did not want Ribéry to come back . Otherwise, even if he intercepted the ball, the ball would still be trapped in a tight loop and be unable to break through because the two players were too close . It could only be intercepted by Chelsea, and then he would have to repeat everything that had been done before . It was too tiring! Wood usually would support the defense on both flanks because he had good stamina and was fast . Twain also asked him to expand his defensive zone . But today, he was entangled with Lampard . Just now, when he rushed over to help with the defense, Duff immediately passed the ball to Lampard in the middle . Chelseas number 8 kicked a long shot that forced Edwin van der Sar to make a wonderful save, which also made the Forest fans scream . The defensive barrier in the middle had hit an impasse . All offense on the flanks were done to find opportunities in the middle . If Wood ran to support Baines, what about Lampard? What about Tiago? This time Robben exchanged positions with Duff . He came to face Baines defense, and Duff went to the other side . Robbens characteristics were small running steps with a fast pace and straight upper body . He almost relied on his two legs rapidly alternating and zigzagging to shake off his opponents . Baines put all his focus to mark Robben, who dribbled the ball in front of him . He knew Robben was fast . Half a second of negligence and distraction could lead to his opponents breakthrough . Ribéry moved closer to Baines, but Baines had eyes for Robben alone . Mark him! Dont make a move lightly! Stick to the inside line! Even Albertini anxiously yelled on the sidelines . Twain glanced at the Italian . Demetrio had said on more than one occasion that he wanted to be a manager after retirement . His favorite games which he was the best at were the CM and FM series . It looked like he had to cultivate his ability on the training field . ※※※ The Chelsea fans were excited by the continuous bombardment . The massive amount of adrenaline pumping through their veins made them cheer their team with flushed faces . The Forest fans jeered at Chelsea . In such a noisy environment, Baines could not hear Albertinis roar . But it was the basic requirement of a defensive player to know what the seasoned captain was shouting . Robbens speed did not look fast, but Baines did not dare not take it lightly . This was not the first time he had encountered the Flying Dutchman in this game . He knew that this seemingly slow dribbling of the ball contained a very strong explosive power . Robben moved the football to his instep and Baines moved ahead to block . The Dutchman suddenly pulled back the football . The inside cut was only a feint . The purpose was to deceive Baines into shifting his center of gravity inward . His real purpose was still to get to the byline and deliver a cross .
Chapter end
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