Chapter 274: Two Champions, the Different Fates of Manchester City and Barcelona!
As May arrived, the top five leagues were all entering their final stages.
Except for La Liga, the title races in other major leagues had already been settled.
Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus, and others had all secured their championships several rounds in advance.
Meanwhile, in La Liga, the title race remained undecided until the final round.
In La Liga's 37th round, Celta Vigo, coached by Enrique, secured a 2-0 victory at home against Real Madrid, shattering Real Madrid's hopes of winning the title and eliminating them from the championship race.
In the same round, Atletico Madrid, playing at home, were held to a draw by 10-man Malaga, causing a major upset.
With Atletico unexpectedly drawing, Barcelona failed to capitalize on the opportunity to catch up; they were held to a 0-0 draw away against relegation-threatened Elche.
Therefore, the suspense for the La Liga title was all set for the final showdown between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in the last round.
The difference in points between the two teams was only 3, with Barcelona leading by 16 in goal difference. As long as they could defeat Atletico Madrid at home, they could overturn Atletico and successfully defend their La Liga title.
But if they were defeated or held to a draw, they would miss out on the championship and watch their opponents lift the trophy at the Camp Nou.
For Barcelona's coach, Martino, this was a battle of life and death.
If he couldn't keep the championship at Camp Nou, then this season would be a total loss for them, with nothing achieved in the Champions League, league, or Copa del Rey.
And this would inevitably lead Barcelona to completely lose patience with him.
Losing the Champions League didn't prompt him to resign immediately because there was still hope for the league title. But if they messed up in the league as well, Barcelona wouldn't find any reason to keep him.
On May 17th, the final of the FA Cup and the last round of La Liga were played simultaneously.
These two matches would decide the fate of the last two champions of the top five leagues, apart from the Champions League.
However, Manchester City's prospects of winning the title were much better than Barcelona's!
This season marked Manchester City's third time stepping onto the Wembley Stadium pitch. Two months ago, they lifted the League Cup trophy here.
And now, they were aiming for their first-ever domestic treble in their club's history.
Manchester City faced Hull City, who were 16th in the Premier League standings. They weren't a traditional strong team, so almost everyone predicted that Manchester City would win the title.
But Hull City clearly didn't intend to give up their hard-won chance to compete for the title easily. This was Hull City's first-ever appearance in the FA Cup final in their club's history.
If they could win, it would be the most prestigious championship trophy in their club's history.
They had been lucky in the FA Cup this season, not encountering any strong teams along the way. Even in the semifinals, their opponent was a League One team.
With excellent luck and the effort of the entire team, they had reached this stage.
And they clearly hoped to continue this good fortune in the final!
Facing the newly crowned Premier League champions Manchester City, Hull City pragmatically chose to adopt a defensive strategy.
Manchester City's attacking firepower was evident, and without a defensive strategy, they risked being completely overrun.
Faced with Hull City's defensive strategy, Manchester City directly employed a possession-based approach to counter it.
The essence of possession-based tactics lies in pressing, and Manchester City executed this tactic very effectively in this match.
Pellegrini didn't choose to start with crosses; instead, he paired Fernandinho and Yaya Toure in midfield.
The sweeping capabilities of these two players made it nearly impossible for Hull City's midfield to retain possession.
In the first fifteen minutes of the game, Manchester City's possession rate reached 80% at one point!
Hull City found themselves repeatedly pressed by Manchester City within their own half, almost as if they were participating in a half-field attacking and defending drill.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in Barcelona, Barcelona were also using possession-based tactics against Simeone's Atletico Madrid.
However, their authentic possession-based tactics seemed ineffective against Atletico.
Despite enjoying possession superiority, Barcelona struggled to threaten Atletico's goal.
Fifteen minutes into the match, their number of shots on goal was even fewer than Atletico's.
At Wembley Stadium, in the 17th minute, the numbers on the scoreboard finally changed.
After a cut inside from the flank by David Silva, Aguero finished first with an assist inside the penalty area, rewriting the score to 1-0.
This goal ignited the atmosphere at Wembley Stadium, and countless Manchester City fans in attendance erupted in cheers.
This goal made them feel that the FA Cup trophy was beckoning to them!
After Aguero scored, he celebrated passionately with a slide, and his teammates followed suit, sliding along the sidelines.
Even Pellegrini, in a restrained manner, clapped his hands, resisting the urge to celebrate in excitement.
It was just the FA Cup; he couldn't afford to get too excited. What would happen in the Champions League final if he did?
At least now he was a champion coach; he had to maintain his image.
The head coach of Hull City didn't have so much on his mind. Seeing his team concede a goal, he sat dejectedly with his head in his hands, leaning against the back of his seat.
The best way for a defensive strategy to win with a parked bus is to steal a goal. After scoring, the opponent's mentality would become increasingly desperate, and the loopholes in their attacks would grow.
However, the worst-case scenario had now occurred:
They were behind!
Being behind meant that parking the bus was useless at this point because the opponent could choose not to attack and simply control the ball in their own half.
As long as they consumed time, they would win in the end; the opponent wasn't in a hurry!
Therefore, they couldn't continue to park the bus in their own half; they had to actively attack.
But the coach of Hull City had some understanding of his team's capabilities.
They could still compete against Manchester City with a parked bus and strict defense. Once they dared to actively attack, they would be courting disaster.
Not attacking meant waiting to die; attacking meant seeking death.
Two dead ends; choose one!
There was no choice but to choose the latter!
After falling behind, Hull City began to attack actively.
At first, they were cautious and didn't invest too many forces, but as they saw Manchester City calmly controlling the ball, their courage gradually grew, and they began to commit more forces in their attacks.
And this choice fell into Manchester City's trap.
In the 23rd minute, Manchester City suddenly accelerated, completely changing their previously slow and relaxed style of play.
Football passed from Manchester City's central defender, after two or three passes between Yaya Toure and De Bruyne, swiftly reached Lin Quan's feet.
After receiving the ball, Lin Quan showcased his specialty on the wing—dribbling past defenders!
With the attack initiated, Hull City's defense in the backline was insufficient in numbers, appearing somewhat disorganized against Manchester City's rapid offense.
By the time Lin Quan dribbled into the penalty area from the wing, the defensive players inside the box hadn't even completely regrouped.
Hull City's defender Chester rushed towards Lin Quan in panic, forgetting his coach's pre-match advice:
"When facing Lin Quan, remember not to rashly challenge, because that only helps him pass you!"
Without any suspense, Lin Quan effortlessly evaded Chester with a change of pace, gaining a one-on-one opportunity with Hull City's goalkeeper.
McGregor widened his eyes, closely watching Lin Quan's every move, preparing for a save.
Lin Quan adjusted his posture, aimed at the right side of the goal, and shot.
McGregor didn't doubt, forcefully diving towards the right side.
However, only after diving did he realize that Lin Quan's previous move was just a feint.
Now was the real shot!
However, by now, the goal in front of Lin Quan was already empty.
Without any suspense, Lin Quan helped Manchester City score again, leading 2-0 against Hull City.
McGregor angrily pounded the turf, feeling deceived!
"Heh, the opponent's goalkeeper got fooled so easily!"
"Probably because facing Lin Quan puts too much pressure, so he made a quick judgment to try to save it!"
"That makes sense, but this misjudgment was way off!"
"This move seems to be called a consecutive feint shot, used less by Lin Quan, but Messi uses it more!"
"Lin Quan's shooting decisions are always very decisive, either aiming at the far corner or dribbling past you to shoot at an empty net, aiming for high success rates!"
"Indeed, Lin Quan's missed opportunities in one-on-one situations are extremely rare, with a very high success rate!"
"This game seems to be without suspense, 2-0 in 23 minutes. What will the final score be after 90 minutes? I can't even imagine!"
"How's the situation with Barcelona? Any goals? Who's leading?"
"Not yet, neither team has been able to breach the other's goal. At this rate, it might end in a draw!"
"Really? If Barcelona gets a draw, they'll hand over the championship. Does Martino still want to continue? Why aren't they aggressively attacking?"
"Barcelona is already pushing hard, but Atletico Madrid's defense is like an impenetrable fortress, hard to break through!"
"Moving Atletico Madrid is harder than moving a mountain!"
...
Seeing Lin Quan score a second goal, Pellegrini applauded from the sidelines once again.
After this goal, his spirit completely relaxed.
His mind wasn't on this match anymore; Pellegrini began contemplating the team's tactics for next season.
Manchester City has been highly successful this season and will undoubtedly face targeted attacks from all Premier League teams next season.
The other five teams in the Premier League's BIG6 will definitely aim to snipe Manchester City.
Whether in the league or cup competitions against them, it will be tough.
Because there are so many strong teams and giants, they will face these five teams more than ten times in a season.
If they lose a few games or draw several, they might have nothing to do with the championship.
Manchester City is strong, but they can't guarantee a win against top teams.
So, when encountering weaker teams, they must firmly secure the points and not easily drop a single point.
And when it comes to the most stable tactics for earning league points, Guardiola's possession play is the most appropriate.
From the current situation of this match, Manchester City's possession play is not as strong as Barcelona's, but with Manchester City's players' abilities, executing this tactic effectively isn't difficult.
Using such half-hearted tactics against strong teams may be caught by the opponent's weaknesses and end up in a disastrous situation.
But if it's only used against some mid-to-lower-tier teams, it seems quite suitable?
Moreover, possession play has one great advantage—it saves the players' physical energy, allowing them to preserve their energy to cope with multi-line operations such as the Champions League and other cups.
This season, Manchester City has suffered too much from multi-line operations. To solve this problem, apart from buying more players during the transfer window to increase squad depth, the main focus will be on improving players' physical endurance next season.
And this will be the key focus of next season's work.
Thousands of miles away at Camp Nou, Barcelona's coach Martino also stood on the sidelines.
However, he was far from as relaxed as his South American compatriot.
Thirty minutes had passed in the game, and the score was still 0-0 on the field.
This result was unfavorable for Barcelona because Atletico Madrid had lost two key players to injury in just 20 minutes into the game.
Diego Costa and midfield core Turan were both substituted due to injury, dealing a devastating blow to Atletico's forward line.
However, Simeone, Atletico Madrid's soul figure, remained calm even under unexpected adversity.
He quickly made adjustments, altering his pre-match tactical strategy, swiftly stabilizing Atletico from a disadvantageous position, making it difficult for Barcelona to gain any advantage in their attacks.
Although Atletico seemed to have lost two absolute key players, it appeared that as long as Simeone, the soul figure of this team, was present, they wouldn't be easily defeated.
On the other hand, Barcelona, since losing to Manchester City, seemed to have developed a mental block.
In this game, he was almost invisible in the frontcourt, completely overwhelmed by Atletico Madrid's defensive steel wall.
There were very few instances of him actively receiving the ball, which raised doubts about Messi's form.
However, in the few times he did receive the ball, Messi's state and competitive level were evident.
The problem seemed to lie in his mentality; Messi seemed to have lost his desire for the championship.
You should be all set now!