Chapter 252: Reversing Victory Against Barcelona, Leaving Camp Nou with Triumph!
The scene erupted into chaos; fans from both sides couldn't help but worry, standing on their tiptoes to see what was happening on the field.
Both players were seriously injured, with Pique's injuries being more severe. He lay unconscious on the ground, while Kompany had obvious blood stains on his head and struggled to get up, looking a bit unstable.
The head referee quickly called for medical staff to treat them. Barcelona's team doctor used a flashlight to check Pique's pupils. After calling his name loudly a few times without any response, he solemnly called for an ambulance. Pique was immediately transferred to the ambulance and taken off the field, prepared to be transported to a major hospital for treatment.
This unexpected incident caught everyone at the scene off guard. Seeing their teammates being seriously injured and taken away in ambulances, Barcelona's players couldn't help but feel uneasy, and their mentality was inevitably affected.
Pique's injury worried Barcelona's fans greatly. The camera then panned to Vicente del Bosque, the head coach of the Spanish national team, who was present at Camp Nou.
Del Bosque looked very serious; the World Cup was about to start, and Pique was a key central defender for Spain.
His injury was also a major blow to Spain.
Barcelona quickly made substitutions; Marc Bartra replaced the injured Pique.
Pellegrini also prepared to make a substitution; Kompany was diagnosed with a concussion, and the team doctor believed he was not fit to continue playing.
However, after resting on the sidelines for a while, Kompany indicated that he could still persevere!
In such an important match, as the captain, he didn't want to leave the field.
"Vincent, are you sure you want to continue?"
Pellegrini asked again, as the outcome of the match against Barcelona was not yet determined.
Even if they lost this match, they still had a chance when they returned home.
But if Kompany played with an injury and aggravated it, he might miss the next match.
"Yes, coach, I don't want to return to Manchester with regrets!"
Kompany's attitude was very resolute; he was worried that if he left the field, the team would lose.
"Captain, you can rest assured. With us here, your efforts will not be in vain!"
At this moment, Lin Quan and others appeared on the sidelines, persuading Kompany.
"Captain, do you not trust us?"
De Bruyne, seeing Kompany still hesitating, posed a soul-searching question that silenced Kompany completely.
If Kompany persisted, it would be a lack of trust in his teammates.
So after hearing De Bruyne's words, he finally stopped insisting.
Lin Quan gave a thumbs-up to De Bruyne; indeed, Belgians knew how to persuade Belgians!
Manchester City substituted Lescott for the injured Kompany.
The match continued, and Pique's injury made both teams' players more cautious; physical confrontations were not as intense as before.
Both sides reduced the intensity of physical confrontations and the frequency of fouls, which was good news for technical players like Messi and Neymar from Barcelona.
Seeing Kolarov receive a yellow card, Barcelona deliberately strengthened their attack on Manchester City's left side.
With the support of his teammates, Neymar became more active on the field.
In the 71st minute, Neymar used a dazzling dribble to toy with Manchester City's left-back Kolarov and entered the penalty area.
Unfortunately, before he could shoot, Lescott destroyed the ball out of bounds.
Barcelona took a tactical corner kick and again played the ball to the right, passing it to Neymar.
Realizing Neymar's threat, Kolarov hurried over to help defend.
However, Neymar, as if performing, under the pressure from both Kolarov and Lescott, used his foot to touch the ball, dodging Kolarov's pressure. He then stepped back slightly, shifting the ball from his right foot to his left, seemingly intending to move towards the center.
This fake move deceived Kolarov, who began moving towards the center.
However, Neymar used his left foot to pass the ball back to his right foot and then turned around.
This series of actions was completed in an instant, flowing like acrobatics.
Manchester City's two defensive players had completely lost their positions, leaving a clear path for Neymar.
However, just as Neymar was about to accelerate into the penalty area, a blue figure rushed over from the side and tackled him to the ground.
Neymar immediately dove towards the penalty area, still clutching his foot and rolling on the ground.
After the tackle, Lin Quan did not leave; he stood aside and watched Neymar rolling on the ground.
When he tackled, he had pulled back his foot, so there was absolutely no way he could have kicked Neymar. This guy was clearly acting.
However, Kuipers was deceived by Neymar's performance. His whistle sounded immediately, and he ran over to show Lin Quan a yellow card and awarded Barcelona a free kick.
Lin Quan had no objections to this decision; he went for the foul.
Although Neymar was acting, Lin Quan did indeed touch him with his foot.
If Neymar had been allowed to enter the penalty area just now, it would have been a very dangerous one-on-one situation.
Barcelona's players rushed up one after another; they didn't come to surround Lin Quan but to protest to the referee, believing it should have been a penalty kick.
Kuipers ignored Barcelona players' protests and stuck to his decision. Even though Neymar fell in the penalty area, he saw clearly that Lin Quan's foul occurred outside the penalty area, so it wasn't a penalty.
Barcelona's protests were futile, and they gave up continuing to surround the referee. After all, everyone could see the referee's standards, and if they annoyed him and got a yellow card, it would be counterproductive.
Messi stood in front of the free kick. After checking the goalkeeper's position, he took a run-up and shot directly.
Unfortunately, the shot couldn't pass the wall; the ball hit the wall and bounced out.
Barcelona players from the back rushed to the ball's landing spot, but someone was faster than them!
Because of his height, Lin Quan didn't join the wall but roamed outside the penalty area, looking for a chance to counterattack.
Now, the opportunity arose!
Before Xavi, Lin Quan intercepted the ball.
He flicked the ball to the left, separating himself from Xavi's interception.
Aguero and David Silva saw Lin Quan grab the ball and began sprinting towards Barcelona's half.
Manchester City's counterattack was on again!
"Stop him!"
In the moment Lin Quan intercepted the ball, Martino jumped from his seat in fright.
Manchester City's counterattacks today were very threatening. With such quick counterattacks, they had already scored two goals.
If they scored again this time, Barcelona would be in deep trouble!
Busquets quickly retreated to defend while also thinking about the best defensive strategy.
"Help me stop Lin!"
He quickly made a decision and called Mascherano to join him in intercepting Lin Quan.
One-on-one defense had already been tried, and they couldn't stop Lin Quan. So this time, he called for a helper to double-team Lin Quan.
Even if they couldn't stop him, as long as they could delay Manchester City's counterattack, giving their teammates time to get into defensive positions, it would be considered a success!
Mascherano and Busquets' double-team left Barcelona's right side completely empty.
This wasn't a mistake but a strategic decision. The threat posed by the wingers to the goal was far less than that of the midfielders.
If Lin Quan was allowed to break through the middle, he could shoot directly.
But if they forced him to move the ball to the wings, Manchester City's players could only cross from the bottom or cut inside to threaten Barcelona's goal.
This would extend their attacking time, giving Barcelona more time to organize their defense.
And as long as Lin Quan was marked tightly, not giving him the chance to make the final pass, the threat from other Manchester City players would be much smaller.
Seeing Mascherano and Busquets both rushing towards him, Lin Quan immediately guessed their intention.
They wanted to force him to pass the ball, then mark him tightly to prevent him from receiving the ball or shooting, right?
On Barcelona's backline, there were also left-back Alba and recently substituted center-back Bartra.
If Lin Quan wanted to pass, he could only pass to left winger David Silva because Alves had previously assisted in the attack and hadn't had time to come back yet, leaving this side empty.
If he really passed the ball to Silva, wouldn't that be playing into their hands?
With Alves' speed, even if he hadn't caught up to Silva yet, he probably wasn't far behind.
Even if Alves didn't catch up to him, with Busquets, Mascherano, and Bartra in the middle, he wouldn't be able to cut inside to shoot, leaving him only the option of dribbling to the bottom.
If David Silva dribbled to the bottom and crossed, there would be at least three Barcelona defenders in the penalty area, while Manchester City only had two, clearly at a disadvantage.
Busquets, is this your choice?
What if I don't follow the path you expect me to take?
Lin Quan didn't try to dribble past them. The success rate of one-on-one dribbling was high, but against two defenders, it would be much lower.
This counterattack opportunity was very precious; it might not occur more than a few times in the entire game. If he failed to dribble past them, the opportunity would be wasted.
Lin Quan chose to pass!
Seeing Lin Quan's choice, Busquets breathed a sigh of relief!
Sure enough, he passed the ball. So this ball should... what? Lin actually passed back?
Busquets thought Lin Quan would pass the ball forward according to his speculation, but unexpectedly, Lin Quan didn't choose to pass forward but passed back.
Was he giving up this attack?
No, absolutely not!
Busquets looked towards the direction Lin Quan passed the ball and saw a young player with golden hair, a slightly youthful face, and a shy demeanor receiving the ball.
The number on the opponent's jersey was 17. Seeing this number, Professor Busquets immediately flashed through the player's information in his mind:
De Bruyne, Belgian, born in 1991, good at passing and assisting, former Bundesliga assist king, broke the Bundesliga assist record, an attacking midfielder that Manchester City spent 20 million euros to sign during the winter transfer window.
Could it be that Lin Quan passed the ball to De Bruyne, intending to use De Bruyne's passing to penetrate Barcelona's defense?
How could this be possible?
Busquets didn't move to intercept De Bruyne; he left that task to his teammates and continued to focus on Lin Quan, consciously blocking Lin Quan's passing lanes.
Lin Quan didn't pay attention to Busquets. After passing the ball, he quickly dashed towards Barcelona's penalty area through the middle, believing that De Bruyne would find a way to deliver the ball to him!
The reason was simple: his name was De Bruyne!
At this point, although De Bruyne wasn't the world's top midfielder who dominated the field in later years, Lin Quan knew that he lacked only experience, not ability.
Because sitting on the bench for half a season at Chelsea in the first half of the season caused him to be underestimated by the outside world, unaware of how terrifying De Bruyne's passing truly was.
So when everyone saw the scene on the field, they were all puzzled.
Lin Quan was surrounded by Mascherano and Busquets, with Bartra intercepting in front of him.
He was trapped by Barcelona players; could he still pass the ball?
"Ah, Lin Quan's choice for this pass is questionable; it seems like passing to David Silva on the left would have been a better choice!"
"Yes, if Lin Quan had passed to Silva, David Silva could have dribbled to the bottom, and Lin Quan and Aguero in the middle could have formed a threatening duo."
"At that time, David Silva could have passed to the middle, and both of them would have had a chance to shoot. But he passed the ball back to De Bruyne. If De Bruyne passes to Silva now, it would waste too much time, and Barcelona's defense would surely have settled by then!"
"That's right, at this point, for Manchester City's attack to succeed, they can only hope that De Bruyne can deliver the ball to Lin Quan or Aguero, but under the interception of Barcelona's three defenders, this kind of pass, I'm afraid only God can complete it!"
In the commentator's box, after seeing Lin Quan's choice, He Wei and Xu Yang both felt regretful.
This ball wasn't handled well; it was a bit of a waste of this counterattack opportunity.
Barcelona fans breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Lin Quan pass back.
When Manchester City's players launched a major attack just now, their momentum really startled them!
Fortunately, the threat of the opponent's attack was resolved, and it was time for Barcelona to launch an attack.
On the sidelines, Martino patted his chest lightly.
It was fortunate to have players like Busquets in the team; if he hadn't made the right choice, it would have been quite dangerous this time.
Although Lin Quan and Aguero had already reached the edge of Barcelona's penalty area, the closer they got to the penalty area, the smaller their threat became because the space to maneuver was reduced!
Give up; your attack this time won't break through our defense!
Barcelona players and fans were confident, even starting to mock.
However, Lin Quan seemed not to have given up yet; he didn't slow down but continued to accelerate forward.
It's now!
Although Lin Quan didn't look back, he was sure that De Bruyne would pass the ball at this moment!
Sure enough, when everyone didn't favor Manchester City's counterattack, De Bruyne passed the ball.
"Heh, Busquets has taken a favorable position; how could the ball reach Lin Quan's feet?"
"Manchester City is just giving the ball to us, Barcelona!"
"After we regain possession, we can immediately launch a counterattack!"
"Hehe, Manchester City's players have rushed out; their defense is much emptier now. If we counterattack quickly at this time, it's like hitting a target!"
With Messi and Neymar, Barcelona wasn't only good at positional play; they could also launch extremely fast counterattacks.
Barcelona fans were already fantasizing; Messi would dribble through the opposition, enter the penalty area, and score!
However, they soon couldn't laugh anymore!
Because the ball passed by De Bruyne actually curved along the turf, bypassing Busquets' interception perfectly and landed right in front of Lin Quan!
Could this really be possible?
Barcelona fans were scared pale, dumbfoundedly staring at the field.
Meanwhile, Manchester City fans were hugging each other excitedly!
Here it comes, De Bruyne's signature 45-degree diagonal pass!
Lin Quan easily received the ball, dodged Bartra, and then bypassed the oncoming goalkeeper, putting the ball into Barcelona's net.
3:2!
Manchester City overturned Barcelona away!
After scoring, Lin Quan pointed at De Bruyne and then rushed towards him.
De Bruyne smiled, opened his arms, waiting to embrace Lin Quan in celebration.
But Lin Quan unexpectedly jumped onto him.
De Bruyne was caught off guard and was instantly overwhelmed, and both of them fell to the ground!
"Nice pass, De Bruyne!"
"Heh heh, I think so too!"
The two only managed to exchange a couple of words before being surrounded by their teammates rushing in.
The players of Manchester City were ecstatic, shouting and rushing over, celebrating wildly by piling onto each other!
If the opening goal was just a morale booster for them, then now, as the game reached the 75th minute mark, Lin Quan's goal showed them the dawn of victory.
With injury time included, there were still 20 minutes left in the game. As long as they held on for these final twenty minutes, they could leave Camp Nou with their heads held high in victory!
On the substitutes' bench, the coaching staff and substitutes of Manchester City also erupted in excitement at the moment Lin Quan scored.
Pellegrini clenched his fists in excitement, waving them in the air, then hugged each of his colleagues one by one in celebration.
So caught up in the moment, he even mistook the fourth official for a Manchester City staff member and almost hugged him too.
In contrast, on Barcelona's side, including Martino, everyone on the substitutes' bench fell into silence at the moment Lin Quan scored.
Falling behind again!
Barcelona, on their own turf, were once again trailing behind Manchester City, who they had underestimated before the match!
What powerhouse, what heritage, at this moment, they all seemed like clouds!
The opponent had neither heritage nor was a powerhouse, yet they were about to defeat them?
This result was unacceptable to them!
"Pedro, warm up!"
Martino was preparing to make a substitution. In these last 20 minutes, Barcelona had to attack aggressively.
Regardless, they had to hold onto their home ground!
After the restart, Barcelona launched another fierce attack against Manchester City.
However, the already spirited Manchester City showed no fear at this moment.
With active running and determined defense, they repeatedly thwarted Barcelona's attacks.
They even launched several counterattacks after winning back the ball.
In the 82nd minute, Manchester City won back possession again. Seeing Manchester City's thunderous counterattack about to come again, Barcelona, having learned from their experience, immediately resorted to fouling.
Lin Quan was just about to receive the ball when Xavi brought him down in the middle, and Kurzawa promptly showed Xavi the yellow card.
This was the eighth yellow card of the match, Kurzawa truly was a master of cards, seemingly enjoying issuing them.
Lin Quan paid it no mind. After being helped up by his teammates, he patted his backside and ran towards the frontcourt.
De Bruyne took the free-kick, passing the ball to Kroos, who switched it to the flank. Manchester City's players organized an attack in Barcelona's half.
Barcelona's players seemed to be running out of steam; they wanted to press high like before but clearly felt their steps were heavy, unable to run anymore!
Seeing this result, Pellegrini completely relaxed.
Barcelona's physical condition indeed had hidden dangers. They didn't have a lead advantage in the league, so they couldn't afford to give up any league matches.
Before Manchester City's visit, they had just finished playing a Barcelona derby and hadn't had time to rest before facing Manchester City.
While Manchester City had arrived in Barcelona several days earlier, they had been resting and preparing for a long time, so their physical condition was at its peak.
Although they had been in a sorry state due to Barcelona's possession play, their physical exertion was not insignificant.
But possession-based football also required constant high-pressure pressing, which also consumed a lot of physical energy.
At this moment, the physical condition of both teams was about the same, with Manchester City even slightly better.
In this situation, Barcelona could no longer press high like before.
Without the press, they naturally couldn't play their possession game.
On the field, Manchester City's players also sensed this.
Barcelona wanted to end the suspense of the tie in one leg, and so did Manchester City.
So they seized on the weakness of the opponent's declining physical condition and began to launch a fierce attack against Barcelona!
Manchester City's strength lay not in defense but in attack!
Once they let loose and attacked with all their might, even Barcelona would tremble under their offensive firepower.
In the final stages of the match, Manchester City's attack became smoother and smoother.
The players' passing and movement were no less than the first half of that Barcelona team, which made the Camp Nou fans somewhat feel as if: perhaps the team wearing blue jerseys was Barcelona!
Under the formidable attacking threat of Manchester City, Barcelona could only defend passively.
Substitute Pedro, who had just come on, failed to make any impact and had to retreat to the penalty area as a defensive player.
In the final stages of the match, there was a scene of Manchester City besieging Barcelona's goal.
Unfortunately, luck was slightly against them. In injury time, Lin Quan's shot hit the crossbar and missed the chance to complete a hat-trick at Camp Nou.
In the end, the full-time whistle blew, and Manchester City, with goals from Lin Quan and David Silva, overturned the mighty Barcelona 3-2 away, leaving Camp Nou with their heads held high in victory.
In the two-legged contest, holding one away goal advantage and three away goals, Manchester City had clearly seized the initiative!
(End of this chapter)
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