bookbashuk Chapter 36 is no less difficult than the Istanbul Miracle.
Chapter 36 is no less difficult than the Istanbul Miracle.
The moment the ball was kicked off, a bizarre situation instantly unfolded on the field.
The attacking players from both sides simultaneously crossed the midfield line and plunged into the opponent's half!
"Wow! Tottenham aren't going to play defensively at the start! They're going straight for Monaco to get off to a winning start?" Zhan Jun couldn't help but exclaim as he looked at the screen.
"So, the tone of this match isn't set from the very beginning? Are we going to see a spectacular goal-fest today?"
No sooner had he said that than the situation on the field confirmed his guess.
This completely baffled Monaco's starting players.
In their plan, Tottenham had a three-point lead and a draw would secure qualification, so they would definitely play it safe and play defensively.
Who would have thought that Pochettino would actually dare to go out and fight them head-on?
The Monaco team's rhythm was instantly disrupted, and they were all somewhat at a loss.
The game had only been going on for two minutes when Tottenham launched their attack!
Danny Rose charged down the left flank, and Dele Alli moved to the wing to support him.
Bernardo Silva saw that the flank was about to be breached, so he quickly tracked back to try and intercept the ball.
Unexpectedly, the two of them completely disregarded him and treated him like a stake in their ball-stealing game.
He passed and cut the ball back and forth, making it so difficult for him to even touch it.
The two players combined well just outside Monaco's penalty area, successfully pushing their line forward.
In one of his brief moments with the ball, Alli delivered a through pass down the wing.
Danny Rose made a forward run to receive the ball, and before the ball had even come to a complete stop, he immediately passed it back to the middle in a triangular cut!
Lamela was already lurking near the penalty spot, and followed up with a low shot!
The ball swished and nestled into the corner of the goal!
"YEAHHHHHHH!!"
White Hart Lane was silent for less than half a second before erupting in deafening shouts that shook the entire stands.
The Monaco players on the field were still in shock. Many of them didn't even touch the ball before it rolled into their own goal, leaving them completely stunned.
"What! Tottenham blitzed! They breached Monaco's defense in just two minutes!" Zhan Jun exclaimed in surprise.
"That goal came so quickly! Tottenham's high pressing completely disrupted Monaco's pre-match strategy!"
"In the end, this goal was due to a tactical blunder by Jardim," Zhang Lu immediately chimed in with his analysis.
"For a typical three-center-back team to play an attacking formation, the most crucial player is never the center-back, but the wing-back."
"The key to a three-center-back team is a wing-back who can attack and defend, and can run up and down the field."
"He rashly put Bernardo Silva, who has been playing as an attacking midfielder and right winger all season, in a makeshift position as a right wing-back. While this created an attacking threat on the flank, it also created a huge gaping hole in the defense!"
As Zhang Lu was speaking, the director tactfully switched the camera to Yaldin on the sidelines.
Jardine truly didn't expect that Pochettino would actually dare to fight him to the death.
He had it all figured out: Tottenham had a three-point advantage, a draw would be enough to qualify, there was no need to risk everything against them.
Moreover, Tottenham has had a good start to the Premier League season and is still in the title race, so the league is much more important than the Europa League.
Moreover, Ligue 1 has a winter break, while the Premier League does not.
He originally thought that Tottenham would at least rotate some key players to conserve their energy, and wouldn't risk overexertion by going all out against him in the Europa League.
So they're treating their players like donkeys?
Suppressing his agitation, Yardin shouted to the field, "Don't rush! Maintain formation! Don't let them lead you into their rhythm!"
……
After scoring, Tottenham's attack intensified, relentlessly pressing Monaco's half.
In the 14th minute, Moussa Dembélé and Dele Alli exchanged passes in the middle, and the ball eventually fell to Son Heung-min's feet.
Son Heung-min dribbled the ball, feinting left and right, and then used his speed to get past Bakayoko.
He dribbled the ball to the edge of the penalty area and unleashed a long-range shot from 25 meters out!
At this moment, it started to drizzle. Subasic jumped up to make a save, but almost slipped.
Fortunately, the ball eventually went over the crossbar and grazed the crossbar before flying away.
"call……"
Subasic breathed a sigh of relief, took the ball from the caddie, and launched a quick counter-attack with a long kick.
The ball was intended for Moutinho in the middle, but Dier at the far post anticipated the landing point and intercepted it with a header!
Tottenham launched another quick counter-attack based on this goal!
Dier made a long pass to the frontcourt, Son Heung-min got to the ball first and headed it forward.
Lamela made a run and received the ball smoothly. He suddenly accelerated and charged into the penalty area with the ball.
Monaco's center-backs Toulalan and Wallace quickly moved up to double-team him, trying to block his path to the basket.
As a result, Lamela unleashed a powerful shot from the edge of the penalty area before the two players could close in!
Subasic quickly jumped to the ground to try and save the situation, but the rain made his gloves too slippery.
He couldn't catch it properly, and the ball slipped under his arm and rolled into the goal!
"2-0!!" Zhan Jun shouted excitedly.
"Tottenham's counter-attack was so smooth! Dier's clever interception, Son Heung-min's header, Lamela's long-range shot from the edge of the box, Subasic's butterfingers! It was all connected!"
"15th minute! Tottenham scores again! White Hart Lane leads by two goals! Can Monaco hold on?!"
"hey-hey."
Zhang Lu smiled and began to analyze: "The first problem with this play is that Moutinho didn't look behind him when he was challenging for the header, which allowed Dier to find an opening."
"The second point is what we mentioned before: Monaco's three center-backs were too loose and slow to double-team, giving Lamela perfect space to shoot."
He paused, then changed the subject, saying with a hint of sarcasm, "The third question might have something to do with Professor Zhan Jun."
"Huh? What does Zhang Zhi mean by that?"
"It was the goalkeeper's mistake. It was slippery in the rain, and Subasic made a blunder."
"Mr. Zhan Jun is famously bad at catching goalkeepers!"
Zhan Jun: "?"
Yardin was completely unable to stand still. He paced back and forth on the sidelines, biting his lip, his mind racing as he tried to think of a way to salvage the situation.
Could it be that my tactics are really flawed?
This was the first time he had doubts about his own plans.
If they don't find a way to adjust, they're basically out of the running in this game.
After thinking for a long time, he finally gritted his teeth and changed the formation on the field.
Dillard pulled back to play left-back, and Wallace moved to the right to cover the right-back position.
Bernardo Silva moved up to his familiar right wing position, while El Shaarawy dropped back to the left wing.
Moutinho pulled back to midfield, forming a three-man midfield.
就这幺几下，他赛前打的那套3-4-1-2，当场就被改成了常规的4-3-3。
"Hopefully it will be of some use..." Yaldin muttered to himself.
……
Jardim's formation adjustments finally had some effect.
For the next twenty minutes, Monaco finally didn't concede another goal.
Even in the 33rd minute, they launched their most threatening attack of the first half.
Pasalic took a shot inside Tottenham's penalty area, but Alderweireld intercepted and blocked the ball out of bounds.
Zhan Jun finally breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Wow, Yaldin's adjustments finally worked! Any later and this match would have been a complete disaster!"
Just three minutes after he said that, Tottenham's high press took effect again!
Moussa Dembélé successfully intercepted the ball in Monaco's own half and passed it to Son Heung-min, who had already started his run.
Son Heung-min glanced up and his gaze met Lamela's high-speed run. Without stopping the ball, he delivered a precise diagonal pass!
Lamela instantly got a one-on-one opportunity!
Facing the onrushing Subasic, Lamela remained calm and composed, pushing the ball towards the bottom right corner.
The ball rolled into the goal without any doubt!
"GOOOOOOALLLLLLLL!!!" The DJ at Tottenham's home stadium shouted out in a drawn-out tone.
The Tottenham fans in the stadium went wild, crowding around each other and cheering loudly.
At the same time, Zhan Jun excitedly shouted, "My God! Lamela! Only 37 minutes! He's already completed a hat trick!!"
"Wallace plays risky in his own half and loses possession! Tottenham intercepts and launches a counter-attack! Son Heung-min delivers a brilliant through ball! Lamela calmly slots it home to complete his hat-trick!"
"Congratulations Lamela! This is the first hat trick of his professional career!"
Tottenham Hotspur lead Monaco 3-0 at home!
"Now, Monaco's chances of a comeback are no less difficult than the Istanbul miracle of 2005!"