Chapter 466: The Ideal Midfield Trio: Kroos, Kante, and De Bruyne!
Seeing that Leicester City had strengthened their defense on the wings, Manchester City immediately adapted. Lin Quan began moving towards the center while dribbling, seeking to combine with teammates through passing and movement to pull apart the opponent's defense and create opportunities. Leicester City's Drinkwater had dropped from his defensive midfielder role into the defensive line, which significantly weakened the protective force in front of the back line.
The consequence of this weakening was that Leicester's overall formation had to retreat, requiring other players to fill the void left by Drinkwater. This retreat led to Manchester City's comprehensive siege, turning the match into a half-field offensive and defensive exercise between the two teams. Although this was Leicester's home ground, the situation on the field made the home fans extremely nervous. They knew there was a gap between their team and Manchester City, but they didn't realize it was this large. Leicester was completely suppressed and unable to pose any threat to their opponents, whereas every Manchester City attack and pass made Leicester fans hold their breath, fearing another goal.
Fortunately, their fears did not materialize. Due to Leicester's players' tenacious defense, Manchester City did not widen the score. However, because Leicester had committed most of their forces to defense, their counterattacks were rarely threatening. Without midfield support, their forwards had to rely on individual efforts, which Virgil van Dijk effectively neutralized.
The 0-1 score remained until halftime. Both teams returned to their locker rooms for a fifteen-minute break before resuming the match.
In the visitors' locker room, Guardiola looked relaxed. He praised his players for their first-half performance and made some tactical adjustments for the second half. Manchester City was in the lead, and although their advantage was not substantial, Leicester's attacks posed no threat. Even if City didn't score more goals, they could still secure a pragmatic 1-0 win and claim three points.
With this victory, Manchester City's lead would extend to 12 points. Leading by such a margin at the halfway point of the season made a second-half collapse unlikely, allowing them to focus more on European competitions. Due to the collective underperformance of traditional Premier League giants, Manchester City faced little domestic competition, but the situation in Europe remained uncertain. Traditional powerhouses were still strong, and new forces were emerging. Guardiola saw five or six teams as significant threats: the three Spanish giants, the German giant Bayern Munich, and the French powerhouse Paris Saint-Germain. Facing any of these teams in the knockout stages would be a tough challenge.
First, they had to face Dynamo Kyiv in the round of 16. Although Kyiv wasn't particularly strong, playing at their home ground in February could be challenging due to the cold weather. If it snowed, the match would be even harder. Artificial turf combined with icy conditions could easily lead to player injuries. It wouldn't be worth it if key players got injured against a relatively weaker opponent.
Guardiola was already thinking about the game two months ahead, contemplating how to play the first leg to avoid injuries without compromising their chances of advancing. He considered strategically giving up the first game, but that would be risky. If it backfired, he'd become a laughingstock.
While Guardiola's mind drifted to future matches, Ranieri was deep in thought. Leicester needed to score; defense alone wouldn't help them equalize or overturn the score. Thus, his focus had to be on the offense.
"Vardy, don't drop back to defend in the second half. Stay up front. We need your goals." Vardy nodded resolutely. As Leicester's main striker, the burden on him was heavy. If he couldn't step up, the team would likely lose.
"Mahrez, you have two main tasks in the second half: mark their number 12, don't let him organize and pass freely. Once you intercept the ball, pass it forward immediately to Vardy. Our counterattacks need speed; we can't give them time to set up their defense."
Mahrez nodded expressionlessly, grabbed a water bottle, and took a sip. He was one of the hardest-working players on the field. His motivation came from wanting to prove himself to Guardiola. Manchester City had offered to buy him during the summer, but their bid was too low and was rejected. Like many midfielders, Mahrez aspired to play under Guardiola but felt disrespected by the low offer. He wanted to use this match to show Guardiola his true worth, proving that he was worth more than the 30 million euros offered.
During the fifteen-minute halftime break, both teams made their adjustments and returned to the pitch.
Five minutes into the second half, Guardiola noticed Leicester's adjustment: "Leicester has someone marking Kroos. It seems they've realized how much of a threat he is." The commentators also noted that Mahrez was sticking to Kroos like glue, hardly giving him any space.
"This seems to be working. Kroos looks uncomfortable, with fewer touches and passes compared to before."
Guardiola, stroking his chin, pondered: "Marking Kroos, huh? He's already playing deep. If they're willing to disrupt their formation to mark him, they must be really afraid of him."
Kroos's positioning was already deep in their half. Leicester's drastic move to mark him showed how much damage Kroos had inflicted on them.
Guardiola admitted that this approach was indeed effective, but the cost of it was evident: their formation became disjointed, giving Manchester City more opportunities.
Sure enough, while Kroos was being marked, Manchester City's playmakers were not limited to just one. With Kroos restricted, De Bruyne quickly stepped up. His position was closer to the front, making his passes even more threatening. In a short period, De Bruyne delivered two passes that penetrated Leicester City's defense. One was timely intercepted by an advancing Schmeichel, and another led to a goal that was disallowed for offside.
On the sidelines, Ranieri broke out in a cold sweat. The opponent's midfield configuration was enviable: Kroos, Kante, and De Bruyne formed the strongest midfield trio in contemporary football. It wasn't enough to mark one player; they had to mark all three. Even if they managed to shut down these three, there was still Lin Quan up front. Lin Quan could also act as a playmaker, providing assists for teammates to score. In essence, trying to limit Manchester City's midfield was nearly an impossible task.
"Damn, why does Manchester City have so much talent? If I had such a configuration… well, I'd probably get fired." Ranieri felt a mix of envy, jealousy, and frustration. He was not good at socializing and found it difficult to manage relationships with big stars. Big clubs were full of star players and had chaotic locker rooms. A coach who couldn't control the locker room would inevitably get sacked.
Ranieri had managed big clubs before but never for long. He was better suited for mid to lower-tier teams, where there were fewer big stars and more stability in the locker room, allowing him to focus on what he did best. However, he had no time to dwell on this now. His immediate concern was the ongoing match. He worried if Guardiola had figured out his strategy.
So far, it seemed Guardiola hadn't, meaning Leicester City still had a chance.
...
"This is strange," remarked Martin Tyler from the Sky Sports commentary booth after watching the game for a while. "What's strange?" his partner Andy Gray asked.
"Don't you think Mahrez is playing a bit rigidly?"
"Why do you say that? Isn't his task to limit Kroos? From his performance in the second half, he's doing a great job. Haven't you noticed that Kroos is touching the ball less?"
"That's true, but when Manchester City shifted their playmaker, shouldn't he have adjusted his position a bit to help maintain the balance of the midfield?"
"It seems you're right. Kroos's teammates are not even passing to him anymore. Continuing to tightly mark Kroos when he doesn't have the ball seems pointless."
After listening to Tyler, Gray also found it odd. "Haha, Ranieri is trying to pull a fast one!" From the stands, Zidane immediately saw through Ranieri's plan. Why was Mahrez still marking Kroos so tightly? On the surface, it seemed like he was just following the coach's orders. But in reality, marking Kroos was just a facade. Mahrez positioned himself strategically so that during a counterattack, he could provide the most effective passes to the forwards, especially Vardy.
In the first half, Leicester's counterattacks lacked threat because their forwards were isolated without support, forced to rely on individual efforts. With top-class defenders like Van Dijk, Manchester City wasn't worried about solo attacks. Naturally, those counterattacks failed.
Now, with Mahrez positioned behind Vardy, he could pass to Vardy or use his own dribbling skills to mount an attack. Manchester City's high pressing left their defense vulnerable. If only one player counterattacked, it wouldn't be too dangerous. But if Leicester sent two or more players forward, Manchester City's defense would face a severe test. This would make it much easier for Leicester to score.
Ranieri's chance soon came. In the 65th minute, after a Manchester City attack ended, Schmeichel made a save, quickly getting up to throw the ball far downfield. Mahrez headed the ball, and Vardy, like a speeding car, raced towards Manchester City's goal. Unfortunately, he couldn't shake off Van Dijk. Van Dijk, with excellent awareness, had started retreating as soon as Schmeichel got the ball. Seeing his teammate lose the header, he charged towards Vardy. Vardy had barely controlled the ball when Van Dijk was already in front of him. As before, Van Dijk didn't rush in blindly but watched Vardy's feet, retreating while blocking his path, forcing Vardy to slow down.
This defensive style frustrated Vardy, slowing him down inevitably. As he lost speed, Manchester City's defenders closed in on him, forming a pincer. With nowhere to go, Vardy took a hurried shot, easily saved by Navas. Navas passed to Zabaleta and bumped fists with Van Dijk. They had performed this drill countless times in training and matches and were highly synchronized.
Seeing Vardy's shot fail, Leicester's fans sighed in disappointment. When Mahrez had headed the ball, they thought they had a chance. But in the end, it came to nothing. The most disappointed was Ranieri. He feared this attack might have revealed his strategy to Guardiola.
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