Chapter 211: Attacking Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium? That's asking for trouble!
"As expected, as soon as the Ballon d'Or shortlist was announced, the performances of the players changed completely!"
"Yeah, Lin scored four goals, Benzema, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Bale each scored twice in the same game. It's insane, they're all going crazy!"
At the same time, in another La Liga match, Real Madrid slaughtered Sevilla 7-2 at home.
Sevilla isn't weak; they've been a regular in European competitions. But against the mighty Real Madrid, they were utterly powerless.
In this match, Real Madrid's BBC trio demonstrated their power, showing how terrifying a well-coordinated BBC trio can be!
"Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 10 goals in the league, right? Almost a goal per game, CR7's performance this year feels even better than last year!"
"Yeah, the key is that his momentum in both the league and the Champions League is very strong now. At this rate, he might just stage a comeback for the Ballon d'Or this year!"
"It's impossible, absolutely impossible. Ribery at least has a Champions League title, but Cristiano Ronaldo doesn't have any honors, how can he compete?"
"I'm curious, is the Ballon d'Or really that attractive? Why do the players care so much about it?"
"The Ballon d'Or is currently the highest individual honor for a player in football, apart from the title of the best player. Becoming the best player is difficult, but winning the Ballon d'Or is relatively easier. It also more directly reflects a player's overall performance in a season, so almost every top player in football has thoughts about it!"
"That's right, and there's another point. This is the award that combines the FIFA World Player of the Year and the Ballon d'Or, which makes it more prestigious than a single award. Winning one trophy is like winning two trophies, so naturally everyone is eager for it!"
"Hehe, these small and medium-sized teams in the top five leagues are in for a tough time these days!"
"Norwich was slaughtered 7-0, Real Madrid beat Sevilla 7-2 at home, Barcelona defeated Celta 3-0 away, and PSG won 4-0 against Lyon at home. Not a single game had fewer than three goals!"
"It's a good thing it's not the relegation stage yet, otherwise these small teams would be in trouble!"
"They're already in trouble. Losing so many goals all at once, how can they make up for it?"
...
For fans, this kind of thing is a good thing.
Top superstars give their all in matches to compete for the Ballon d'Or, frequently scoring spectacular goals, allowing them to enjoy even more exciting matches.
However, this is from the perspective of neutral fans. For fans of a particular player, the closer it gets to the Ballon d'Or ceremony, the more nervous they become.
Until the final answer is revealed, no one knows whose home the Ballon d'Or will go to this year.
However, a certain player with the last name Lin is very calm about this.
After the game, he declined interviews from on-site reporters, rushed back to the locker room to take a quick shower, changed clothes, and hurriedly left.
"What's up with Lin today? Why did he leave in such a hurry?"
Aguero had just come in from outside, hadn't even started showering yet, and Lin had already slipped away.
"It seems like Lin's girlfriend came. He probably went to meet her for a date!"
Negredo is closer to Lin and knows some inside information.
"No wonder this kid's in such good shape. Turns out his girlfriend came!"
Aguero joked, but deep down, he was a little envious.
He's already a divorced old man once, and love is getting further and further away from him.
Now, after the game, he likes to stay at home and play games live on Twitch.
For a homebody, games are true love!
...
Lily Collins's outfit today exudes a girlish vibe. A beige cartoon T-shirt, soft brown curly hair falling naturally in waves, and bright big eyes that seem to speak.
Just standing there, it's hard for people to take their eyes off her, her attractiveness is off the charts.
Passing fans couldn't help but take a glance, but no one went up to strike up a conversation.
They obviously knew the girl was waiting for someone!
Fifteen minutes later, Lin appeared in the girl's line of sight.
"Over here!"
The girl's eyes lit up, she stood on tiptoe and waved her arms, trying to catch his attention.
Lin quickly spotted her in the crowd. There was no way not to notice her with her looks that stood out from the rest.
"Waited long?"
"Not really, you shower faster than I imagined!"
Lily Collins covered her mouth and chuckled. She thought she would have to wait half an hour, but he came out in less than twenty minutes.
"Shall we go eat? I know a nice restaurant!"
With many fans leaving the stadium, Lin didn't want to stand here and chat with Lily Collins.
"Sure!"
Lily Collins nodded obediently, looking like she was listening to Lin's arrangements.
Having just finished a game, Lin was quite exhausted and hungry by now.
After the waiter brought the dishes, he dug in heartily.
Compared to his devouring, Lily Collins ate very delicately, but her speed was not slow at all.
With an elegant posture, she efficiently finished all the food in front of her in no time.
Lin couldn't help but think of a certain character named Ruan from a novel he had read before, who was also a big eater. Surprisingly, their backgrounds were quite similar.
"So, what's the surprise? Is it this big meal?"
After finishing their meal, Lily Collins blinked curiously, waiting for him to reveal the answer.
This question had been bothering her for a long time. If it weren't for the fact that you couldn't talk while eating, she would have asked earlier.
"Have you done any commercials?"
Lin asked.
Lily Collins nodded. She had indeed done a few commercials, but why did Lin bring this up? Did he want her to shoot an ad?
"Do you play the piano?"
"Yeah, I play the piano, violin, cello, guitar, and a few others. Why?"
Lily Collins said nonchalantly, but her words were quite extraordinary.
What a talented girl! To be able to play so many instruments, it would be a waste not to pursue music.
But it wasn't surprising. Lily Collins's father was a famous musician, and she had received musical training since she was young.
Originally, under her father's arrangement, she should have pursued a career in music when she grew up.
But she was more interested in acting and somewhat resistant to her parents' arrangements.
If she really agreed to change her mind and inherit her father's business, her father would definitely be very happy.
Since she could play the piano, there was no problem.
So Lin explained his idea of shooting a music ad and introduced his creative idea.
"Did you compose this song?"
After listening to Lin's score and demo, Lily Collins widened her eyes, looking at Lin incredulously, as if she were meeting him for the first time.
"I wrote the score and lyrics, and the demo was produced by a music studio."
"Amazing!"
After listening, Lily Collins clasped her hands under her chin and gently applauded.
"So, do you like this song?"
"Yeah, I do!"
The song "Dreams Come True" not only had a nice title, but the lyrics and the story of the music girl chasing her dreams described by Lin were also very touching.
Whenever Lily Collins listened to it, she couldn't help but think of herself. Could it be that this was a song specially created for her by him?
Once this idea took root in her heart, it grew stronger and stronger, and the more she thought about it, the more it seemed true.
In this story, the challenges faced by the music girl were exactly the challenges she was facing now.
After fighting for a leading role, the box office of the movie was not satisfactory.
Her acting career was plummeting before it even took off.
During this time, Lily Collins had hesitated whether she should continue on this path.
But now, after listening to the song Lin composed for her, the flame of determination reignited in Lily Collins's heart.
"Thank you, I really like this gift!"
"Good to hear. Although this is just an ad, I have a feeling it will be a hit!"
"Then I'll borrow your good words. If it really becomes popular, I'll treat you to dinner!"
"Okay, but this time I want to eat the meal you cook yourself!"
"Hehe, my cooking skills are not good at all, you have to be prepared to taste some experimental dishes!"
...
Shortly after the end of the tenth round of the Premier League, the group stage of the Champions League reignited.
In the fourth round of the group stage, Manchester City hosted the challenge of CSKA Moscow at home.
Before this match, Manchester City had won all three matches, accumulating 9 points and ranking first in the group.
While CSKA Moscow had won one game and lost two, trailing second-placed Bayern Munich by 3 points.
Considering that Bayern Munich's opponent in this match was the weakest team in the group, Bielefeld, the outside world had already assumed that Bayern would secure these three points.
As a result, CSKA Moscow would be at least 6 points behind the second place.
With only three rounds left in the Champions League group stage, it would be very difficult to catch up with this gap.
So this game is a do-or-die battle for CSKA Moscow. If they lose this game, their chance of advancing will only exist theoretically.
"I and my team are here for victory. We won't sit and wait for death to come; we will firmly grasp our own destiny!"
At the pre-match press conference, CSKA Moscow's head coach Slutzky spoke with determination, saying they would fight to the end against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
However, his bold words seemed not to be appreciated by the journalists present, except for the Russian journalists who applauded Slutzky.
British journalists reacted indifferently because Manchester City's home record this season was terrifying.
So far, they still maintained a perfect record at home.
In this situation, for a team from the Russian Premier League to boast about conquering the Etihad Stadium, British media naturally scoffed at it.
If the Etihad Stadium were so easy to conquer, the defending champions Bayern Munich wouldn't have been defeated.
Compared to the match between CSKA Moscow and Manchester City, journalists were more concerned about whether the Premier League newcomers Manchester City could top the group.
The first and second places in the group would face completely different opponents in the knockout stage.
Manchester City lacked experience in the Champions League and had never reached the knockout stage before.
So if they didn't want to stop at the round of 16, they had to find a way to grab the top spot in the group.
This way, they could avoid most of the top clubs when the draw was made.
Although there were no weak teams in the Champions League, the second-placed teams in each group still had decent strength.
But they were at least slightly easier to deal with than the group winners.
If Manchester City could perform well at home, they had a chance to eliminate their opponents and reach the quarterfinals.
But the race for the top spot in the group was still uncertain. Although Manchester City temporarily topped the group, their lead was not significant, only three points.
This meant that even if Manchester City won against CSKA Moscow, they couldn't secure the top spot in the group.
In the last round of the group stage, they needed to face Bayern Munich, the biggest rival in the group, away from home.
If Manchester City could conquer the Allianz Arena, they would secure the top spot.
But if they lost, they would have to rely on goal difference, as both teams had the same number of points.
In this case, Manchester City needed to score at least four goals to ensure they weren't left behind by Bayern Munich.
If they lost to Bayern Munich in the last round, their goal difference would actually be at least two goals behind Bayern!
Therefore, in addition to Bayern Munich's goals, Manchester City needed to score at least two more goals!
In this context, CSKA Moscow's head coach's tough talk seemed like a joke.
If they played conservatively and parked the bus at the Etihad Stadium, maybe they wouldn't lose so badly.
But if they dared to go all-out attack against Manchester City, then they really didn't know what the word "defeat" meant!
Pellegrini initially thought CSKA Moscow was just bluffing before the match, deliberately saying such things, actually to deceive them and then quietly change tactics.
But when the game started and he saw the attacking stance of the opponents, Pellegrini couldn't help but admire in his heart:
"So brave, they really dare to attack us at the Etihad Stadium!"
Slutzky, I salute you as a man.
But sorry, this is the Etihad!
(End of this chapter)