World First Church started from the 02 World Cup

Chapter 77, First Goal Conceded

August 24, one week later.

Elland Road Stadium, which can hold 37,000 fans, was already packed.

The referee glanced at his watch and decisively blew the whistle to start the match.

"CCTV, CCTV, good evening, viewers. Welcome to the second round of the 2002-2003 Premier League season, Leeds United hosting Everton."

The match was still scheduled by the FA for 2 p.m. UK time, which is 9 p.m. Beijing time.

So Chinese fans can once again comfortably sit in front of the TV and watch the game.

Inviting three or five close friends to eat and watch Ye Xian and Li Tie's performance is truly a happy and joyful time!

"Several upsets occurred in the Premier League matches played yesterday."

"First, Manchester City, where Sun Jihai plays, defeated Newcastle United, one of the title favorites, 1-0 at home."

"And the other two title favorites, Manchester United and Arsenal, also failed to win!"

"They were held to draws away from home by Chelsea and West Ham United respectively."

"Only Liverpool managed to beat Southampton 3-0 at home, which barely saved face for a strong team."

"These results also demonstrate that the Premier League is indeed very difficult to play in, and so-called weak teams often produce unexpected results."

"In today's match, Everton remains the weaker side. I wonder if Coach Ye Xian can pull off another comeback like in the first round?"

"It's worth mentioning that both teams played an attacking style today, with a very fast pace, and both of them won their first-round matches by a three-goal margin."

"So, will Ye Xian and Venables engage in a fierce battle today, and who will emerge victorious?"

"No matter what, today's match is sure to be exciting..."

Everton's starting lineup today is exactly the same as in the first round.

With a resounding 3-0 victory in the first round, the players are in high spirits, and there's no need to make any changes.

Moreover, this main lineup has been working together throughout the summer training period, and their teamwork is at its highest level.

In addition, these young players are in good physical condition and have a lot of drive. They need playing time to develop, so of course we should let them play whenever possible.

On the other side, the home team, Leeds United, indeed adopted a 4-3-3 formation.

Moreover, Venables's idea was clearly similar to Ye Xian's, which was that the winning lineup did not need any changes.

Therefore, their starting eleven is the same as in the first round.

Goalkeeper: Paul Robinson.

Defenders: Ian Hart, Woodgate, Matteo, Danny Mills.

Midfielders: Buck, Bowyer, Bamba.

Forwards: Kewell, Viduka, Alan Smith.

However, it is clear that Venables must have done a thorough study of the previous Everton match.

Instead of going toe-to-toe with Everton, he instructed his players to tighten their defensive line, maintain distance between the three lines, and then look for opportunities to counter-attack Everton.

Everton, on the other hand, implemented a high-pressing tactic, and their two full-backs frequently pushed forward to assist in the attack.

It could be said that they've turned the tables and taken the lead.

But Everton made a mistake in the 8th minute.

After center-back Will received the ball, Alves on the right wing made a forward run to receive a pass from his teammate.

Will's long pass was not accurate enough and was intercepted by Leeds United's defensive midfielder Barker near the halfway line.

Buck quickly passed the ball to left winger Kewell, and Alves didn't have time to get back to defend!

Kewell dribbled straight into the penalty area, but was blocked by Everton's center-back Stubbs who came to cover. Kewell quickly stopped to protect the ball.

He then passed the ball back to Bambi, who was making a run from the back, and rushed into the penalty area at top speed.

After a brief adjustment, Bambi immediately launched a diagonal pass to the center of the six-yard box to find Viduka.

The Australian center forward leaped high, won the header, and headed the ball into the goal.

Although the distance was very close, Everton goalkeeper Petr Cech reacted quickly, making a diving save to block the ball.

The ball landed on the other side of the goal, right in front of Kewell who was chasing after it!

This 24-year-old Australian legend caught up and unleashed a powerful shot!

At this moment, Kewell was unobstructed, and Cech was unable to get up and react after his save.

The ball went in easily!

1: 0!

Less than ten minutes into the game, Leeds United took the lead at home!

Cech lay on the grass, looking helplessly at the ball in the net, feeling extremely frustrated.

This was Everton's first goal conceded in the new season.

The Everton players were a little stunned as they watched Kewell sprint out to celebrate the goal with the Leeds United players and fans.

The opponent's attack was too fast, and we lost possession too quickly!

Many players didn't even seem to have reacted yet.

"Stay calm! Everyone, perk up! The game has only just begun. What's the big deal about conceding a goal? If you keep looking so dejected, I'll kick your asses with my boots!"

Ye Xian shouted loudly from the sidelines.

There are many young players on the field, and as a coach, I must constantly remind them, otherwise they may really get stuck in the disappointment of conceding a goal and be unable to get out of it.

However, this ball did indeed serve as a wake-up call for Ye Xian.

This Leeds United team from Venables is definitely something special.

Just a year or two ago, they shocked all of Europe by reaching the Champions League semi-finals and earned the nickname "Young Guard".

Although his rise to fame inevitably attracted the attention of top clubs, defensive stalwart Rio Ferdinand was sold to Manchester United.

But at this point, the main framework is still intact, and the impact is indeed strong.

Especially their forward line, which is absolutely top-tier in the Premier League.

Fortunately, the Australian national team wasn't playing in the Asian qualifiers at that time; otherwise, with players of Kewell's caliber like Viduka, it's likely that the Asian teams would have had a hard time holding their own.

After thinking for a moment, Ye Xian called Will and Alves to his side and gave them instructions in person.

"Pass the ball whenever you have the chance, don't push forward too much, and don't dribble too much!"

This allows Alves to slightly reduce his attacking frequency and focus more on defense.

Even if the Brazilian becomes a world-class full-back during his future time at Barcelona, ​​he will still prefer attacking to defending.

Today he will be facing Leeds United's main attacker, Kewell, so it would be best for him to play it safe.

Then, we need to stop Will from organizing the attack himself by making long passes.

Just as Ye Xian said to Li Weifeng at the dinner, Will is a traditional English center-back, and his passing accuracy is indeed quite average.

While Leeds United certainly played well, the root cause of this goal was Will's misplaced pass.

"When you have the ball, prioritize passing it safely to the defensive midfielder who is receiving it back. If they are marked, then kick it long, understand?"

Will could only nod in agreement.

In fact, Ye Xian's pre-match tactical plan did not include having him organize the attack.

But when he saw Alves make a forward run, he got itchy and, like Alonso, took a long-range shot.

Unfortunately, they went too far.

However, the Scottish international was grateful to see that Ye Xian did not criticize him harshly.

In the upcoming matches, we really need to play according to the coach's instructions!

……