Chapter 355: Mourinho's Shock
"14 days, 6 matches: The reigning champions face a grueling schedule!"
"Club World Cup & League? What will Guardiola choose?"
"Premier League scheduling controversy: Club World Cup may become a nightmare for top clubs!"
News about Manchester City's grueling schedule quickly grabbed media attention and was widely reported. As the most high-profile team recently, any news about City drew significant attention and sparked heated discussions. When the media reported City's predicament, it immediately trended online, leading to widespread debate.
"City's luck is really bad!"
"It's Guardiola's bad luck. He just joined and is already facing such a brutal schedule!"
"Who made this schedule? It's inhumane!"
"Even without the two Club World Cup matches, City's schedule during this period is still tough!"
"At least City, as Champions League winners, only start from the semifinals in the Club World Cup, needing to play just two matches. Otherwise, their situation would be even more dire!"
"Even though it's just two matches, adding them to an already brutal schedule makes it worse. I think City will have to make a choice."
"Winning the Club World Cup would give them the prestigious sextuple. Maybe they should go for the Club World Cup first!"
"Yes, the sextuple is prestigious and has a high reputation. They should secure it first!"
"No English team has won the sextuple before. If City achieves this, it would significantly enhance their status as a top club!"
"But if they choose the Club World Cup, what about the league and FA Cup?"
"City is currently three points behind Chelsea. If they abandon two league matches, the gap could widen to nine points. Given Mourinho's discipline and Chelsea's current strength, it would be nearly impossible for City to close that gap in the second half of the season!"
"It's a tough choice. You can't have your cake and eat it too. Let's see what City decides!"
"It's all the Premier League's fault. Other leagues have winter breaks, but the Premier League doesn't. They even have a congested schedule around Christmas to attract viewers."
"Yes, the Premier League's winter period is often when the top contenders start to separate and widen the gap. Many teams with good first-half performances start to fall behind during this time!"
"For example, a certain team that's always fourth!"
"Arsenal: Please don't mention it, thanks!"
"Sigh, Arsenal is having a tough season, trailing the top team by 13 points. No hope for the title again!"
"Forget the title. Focus on securing fourth place first. Five teams are threatening their Champions League spot. One slip-up and they could miss out on the Champions League!"
"What does Arsenal have left? No major trophies in ten years, not particularly high wages. The only attractions for star players are the annual Champions League spot and Wenger's personality!"
"The Professor is getting old. He might not coach for many more years. It's hard to imagine what Arsenal will do once he retires. Sigh, it's tough!"
"This season, besides the two title contenders, which other big clubs aren't having a tough time? They're all struggling!"
"Yes, Chelsea, City, United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Spurs—so many teams competing for Champions League spots. Even if you exclude Spurs, with City's rise, one of the traditional Big Four will definitely be pushed out!"
"From the standings, Liverpool seems the most likely to be pushed out. They're currently eighth with 28 points!"
"Suarez's departure significantly impacted Liverpool's strength!"
"I choose to believe in the Professor. Since Wenger took over, Arsenal has never missed the Champions League!"
Choosing between the league and the Club World Cup was a tough decision for City. Ultimately, Guardiola decided to go all out for the sextuple!
The sextuple was an opportunity City had worked hard for over the past year and was the last step Pellegrini hadn't completed. With only two matches left to achieve this, Guardiola didn't want to let the chance slip away. If they missed this opportunity, he would feel guilty for a long time.
The league title was important, but there was always next season if they missed it this year. He could afford to lose this time!
Upon hearing Guardiola's decision, everyone admired his resolve. Guardiola was willing to take on the responsibility and risk, earning everyone's respect. In an era of self-interest, such sacrifices were rare.
Pellegrini's assistant coach, Brian, was deeply moved and informed Pellegrini of Guardiola's decision. Pellegrini was shocked and speechless for a long time before sighing deeply.
Guardiola was a good person. Though he and Guardiola didn't know each other well, he was deeply moved by Guardiola's actions. Feeling undeserving of such kindness, Pellegrini called City's chairman, Fahim, to explain the situation and request him to persuade Guardiola.
As the new coach, Guardiola needed results to stabilize the team and build his authority. Sacrificing the league could severely damage his career, potentially becoming a significant setback. Pellegrini didn't want his legacy to negatively impact Guardiola's future.
Fahim was shocked when he received Pellegrini's call. He didn't expect Guardiola to make such a bold decision, willingly giving up the league despite still having a chance to win it. Fahim was unsure whether to persuade Guardiola, so he reported the matter to the club's owner, Mansour.
Mansour was equally surprised. After contemplating, he said, "Respect Guardiola's decision. If he decides to go for the sextuple, I'll provide my private jet for the team to reduce travel fatigue."
Mansour admired Guardiola's character. Even if City didn't win the league this season, he wouldn't blame Guardiola. Originally impressed by Guardiola's ability and coaching style, Mansour now felt even more confident in his choice, seeing Guardiola's high moral character as the ideal fit for City.
After making the decision, City fielded a lineup of mostly substitutes and youth players in the 19th-round home game. This lineup was even bolder than the one against West Bromwich Albion, with hardly any first-team players on the field. The main squad had already left early for Morocco to participate in the 2014 Club World Cup.
Burnley's coach was delighted to see City's lineup. Struggling in the relegation zone, they desperately needed points to escape their predicament.
Burnley originally had little hope of gaining points in their away game against Manchester City, but with City strategically abandoning this match, their chance had come!
Burnley's coach waved his hand and signaled his players to charge and attack. After all, they were just facing a bunch of substitutes and youth players.
A relegation-threatened team dominating at Etihad Stadium was a scene hard to imagine. Yet, it was happening!
However, Burnley didn't expect the defensive resilience of City's lineup. Despite their lack of strength, City's substitutes were particularly tenacious in defense. Their aggressive pressing and running limited Burnley's offense, resulting in numerous unsuccessful attempts.
The City fans present were thrilled to see their substitutes performing so well, loudly cheering and encouraging them.
While cheering for their team, City fans were also closely following another match: Southampton vs. Chelsea.
Southampton was having a good season, currently two points ahead of Arsenal and sitting in fourth place. If they could maintain this performance, they had a chance at securing a Champions League spot for the next season.
Despite the disparity in paper strength between Southampton and Chelsea, given Southampton's form and their position in the standings, City fans and many other Premier League fans who didn't want Chelsea to win the title were hopeful. They wanted Southampton to slow Chelsea's progress or, better yet, defeat them.
This seemingly impossible hope started to look achievable. In the 17th minute of the first half, Southampton's summer signing Sadio Mané, bought for 15 million euros, opened the scoring, giving Southampton a 1-0 lead over Chelsea.
Southampton's surprising goal had City fans and Chelsea's rivals celebrating. The Etihad Stadium was buzzing with excitement.
The players on the pitch were puzzled by the commotion in the stands.
Realizing this, the City fans shouted, "Chelsea is losing to Southampton!"
Burnley's players were still unfazed. Chelsea losing didn't concern them. But the next shout sent chills down their spines: "Beat Burnley, and we can catch up with Chelsea!"
Upon hearing this, Burnley's players noticed a significant change in City's players. They were suddenly more energized and aggressive.
"Not good!" Burnley's coach quickly tried to calm his players down, but it was too late. City launched a powerful counterattack.
Sinclair intercepted the ball in defense and passed it to Milner, who sprinted down the wing. Cutting inside near the penalty area and drawing defenders, he passed the ball to the center. Iheanacho smartly stepped aside, allowing the ball to reach the oncoming Lampard.
Lampard fired a trademark long-range shot, scoring and giving City a 1-0 lead.
After scoring, Lampard shook his head and smiled wryly. The last time he scored for City, it was a crucial goal to beat Chelsea. This time, his goal again threatened Chelsea's position at the top of the table. He hoped Chelsea fans wouldn't hold a grudge against him for these goals.
City fans, however, didn't care. Seeing Lampard score, they celebrated wildly. No one expected that with this lineup, they could take the lead and even have a chance to win!
Now, if Southampton could hold on and City could maintain their lead, they could surpass Chelsea on goal difference and top the standings!
At St. Mary's Stadium in Southampton, Mourinho watched as Southampton's young forward Mané scored, beating Chelsea's goalkeeper.
"Dammit!" Mourinho cursed under his breath. He admitted he had underestimated Southampton's fighting spirit. On paper, Southampton was far weaker than Chelsea, so he, like other Chelsea fans, had expected an easy win.
But once the match started, he realized the situation wasn't as simple. Southampton had adopted a defensive counter-attacking strategy at home, which wasn't surprising. Most teams used this tactic against Chelsea.
The problem was Southampton had Mané, a lightning-fast winger. At 22, Mané possessed exceptional speed and explosive power. Southampton clearly knew this and repeatedly used his speed to counter Chelsea.
This tactic made Chelsea's defense nervous and cautious. Finally, in the 17th minute of the first half, they conceded.
For a team like Chelsea, conceding a goal at this point wasn't too troubling. They had plenty of time to equalize. But now, with Southampton scoring, they would firmly stick to their defensive counter-attacking strategy.
With Mané's speed, this strategy posed a significant threat to Chelsea. Pushing forward to attack would leave gaps in their defense, giving Southampton plenty of space to exploit.
This worried Mourinho the most. However, he took solace in the fact that City's lineup was full of substitutes, so they were likely to lose at home to Burnley, giving Chelsea a buffer.
Feeling somewhat relieved, Mourinho casually asked his assistant, "What's the situation in the other match?"
Knowing which match Mourinho was referring to, the assistant quickly searched on his phone. When the results appeared, the assistant was stunned.
"Huh? What's wrong?" Seeing his assistant's surprised expression, Mourinho frowned. Could it be something unexpected? Surely Guardiola's team of substitutes hadn't managed to win?
"Uh, latest update, City just scored. They are currently leading 1-0!" the assistant stammered. "And it was Lampard who scored again!"
Mourinho felt his mind go blank.