Just like many teams that boast about how much they look down on Cambridge United and claim they will crush them, their actual performance in matches is often poor because they are too prone to underestimating opponents and too easily swayed by emotions during the game.
Conversely, those mid-to-lower-table teams that show great respect to Manchester United and Arsenal actually unite to fight against the Premier League giants in matches. Why? Because if they win, the sense of accomplishment is immense!
Therefore, Huang Hao is most worried about teams like Birmingham, who remain very low-key in front of Cambridge United. They are the teams that rationally view Cambridge United as an opponent!
“Hello, everyone, welcome to the Premier League Matchday 13 game between Birmingham and Cambridge United, which is about to kick off at St. Andrew’s Stadium.
First, let’s introduce Birmingham’s starting lineup. Birmingham starts in a 4-4-2 formation.
Goalkeeper: Hart.
Defenders: Casley, Upson, Purse, Clapham.
Midfielders: Johnson, Savage, Clements, Dunn.
Forwards: Zigic, McFadden.
Cambridge United’s starting lineup is a 3-5-2 formation.
Goalkeeper: Oblak.
Defenders: Lovren, Van Dijk, De Vrij.
Midfielders: Kante, Golonas, Tadić, Mahrez, Ayu.
Forwards: Lewandowski, Vardy.
It’s worth noting that De Vrij, who is starting at right-back for Cambridge United today, is only 16 years old. He is a promising star Cambridge United signed from the Netherlands this summer. It seems that with the team fatigued, Huang Hao has decided to give this young player a chance.”
Huang Hao looked at Birmingham’s lineup on the field. There weren’t many well-known players, but it could be interpreted differently: most of them were unsung workhorse-type players!
So, they don’t stand out and can’t leave a deep impression, but when combined, they can unleash a formidable power.
The referee blew his whistle, and the match began.
Huang Hao calmly and carefully observed the game, while McLeish also closely monitored the match’s progression from the sidelines.
In the first 5 minutes, Birmingham’s overall play was noticeably smoother.
The characteristic of Birmingham’s entire lineup is their ability to fight and run. In defense, teammates help each other. In wide defense, the wingers track back extremely quickly and tackle fiercely, while the full-backs primarily guard against being broken through by opponents, waiting for the wingers to come back and press, after which the full-backs make corresponding defensive movements.
As a result, it was difficult for Mahrez and Tadić to complete breakthroughs, as they had to consider what was behind them.
Cambridge United’s attack wasn’t going smoothly, while Birmingham, through more active running and clean play, threatened Cambridge United’s goal.
The match between Cambridge United and Birmingham seemed lukewarm for the first 30 minutes. Cambridge United struggled to create threatening chances, and the fluidity of their preferred ground passing and build-up play severely declined.
On one hand, Ayu was tightly marked by the fierce Savage, and on the other hand, the young Golonas was also performing somewhat poorly on the field.
Birmingham’s biggest summer signing, Dunn, acquired from Blackburn for 5.5 million pounds, performed well on the field, especially in containing Golonas and organizing attacks.
Golonas was disoriented on the right flank. After two failed attempts at dribbling forward, he became cautious, and his lack of chemistry with teammates was a significant weakness.
Birmingham’s attack was decent, while Cambridge United encountered significant resistance in their build-up. McLeish wasn’t overly worried because Birmingham had only scored two goals in their previous four matches, winning two 0-0 draws and two 1-0 victories. So, Birmingham’s lukewarm attack was perfectly normal.
However, Cambridge United didn’t even have a single threatening shot in the first 30 minutes, which easily led to anxiety among the players.
Therefore, to make the attack more impactful, the players from the back naturally became more actively involved in the forward attack.
In the 33rd minute of the match, Tadić pushed forward from the flank to assist. Ayu was overwhelmed by the double-teaming defense of Casley and Johnson, so he was delighted to have Tadić’s support.
The two of them executed a series of one-two passes on the flank, showcasing Cambridge United’s wide attacking power to their opponents.
Outside the box, Tadić overlapped and went to the byline. After Ayu passed the ball to him, he ran towards the left side of the box, creating an outside receiving point. Tadić saw Lewandowski and Vardy in the box, so he crossed the ball before Casley could block him.
The cross was decent. In the middle of the box, Lewandowski jumped for a header, but the ball grazed over his head, and then goalkeeper Hart rushed out and caught the ball. Vardy, lurking at the far post, had no impact.
McLeish’s eyes flickered on the sideline, and he thought to himself, “Cambridge United can’t hold back anymore! The opportunity is now!”
Goalkeeper Hart rushed forward and threw the ball with an underhand toss to the front of where defensive midfielder Savage was running.
Kante was slow to track back, allowing Savage to initiate his run first to receive the pass and orchestrate an attack. Savage dribbled the ball close to the midfield, and without giving Kante a chance to press, he played a diagonal pass to Dunn on the left side of the attacking third.
As soon as Dunn successfully received the ball, Mahrez and De Vrij double-teamed him from front and back.
Dunn passed the ball horizontally to Clements, who had surged forward in the middle, then he himself ran towards the center. When Golonas moved to confront Clements, ready to tackle, Clements short-passed the ball to Dunn, who had moved closer to receive it.
Mahrez and De Vrij did not give up the chase after Dunn released the ball. They continued to move and double-team Dunn.
However, after Clements released the ball, he ran behind De Vrij. Dunn then played another diagonal pass, and the ball rolled behind De Vrij. Clements made an offside-beating run, creating attacking depth and forming a highly threatening attack.
Throughout the entire sequence, Dunn and Clements executed an attacking cross-run combination.
Huang Hao secretly gritted his teeth on the sideline. Although McLeish didn’t use any fancy tricks in coaching his team, he understood some basic tactical routines.
The secret hidden in Birmingham’s starting lineup and tactics today lay between Dunn and Clements!
Clements is a player who can play in midfield and also as a left winger, while Dunn performs better in the central area.
But in previous attacks, Dunn mostly performed supporting and defensive duties on the flank, ensuring that the flank wouldn’t be exploited by Cambridge United.
And in attack, the positional interchange between Clements and Dunn, reflected in their attacking runs and combinations, confused Cambridge United’s defense. It was simple, yet very effective when applied in certain situations!
This time, Dunn’s pass from the central attacking area reflected his 5.5 million pound value. Clements, unmarked on the flank, took a touch after going to the byline, then without wasting time, he immediately crossed the ball!
It was a half-volley cross. Lovren was slow to turn. After he turned to try and block the cross, the tall and strong player, despite his best efforts to clear the cross with a sliding tackle, could only watch the ball fly past him.
The ball bounced off the six-yard box line and then rapidly flew towards the goal. Van Dijk tracked and marked Birmingham’s striker Zigic, but McFadden surged towards the goal. As the ball bounced and flew in front of him, he lifted his right foot and volleyed it with the instep of his foot.
It was too close to the goal. Oblak instinctively made a blocking motion but it was futile, the ball flew rapidly past his hand and into the net!
St. Andrew’s Stadium erupted in a frenzy!
Birmingham fans watched ecstatically as McFadden celebrated wildly after scoring against Cambridge United!
McLeish also jumped up on the sidelines, clapped his hands, then touched his nose. He immediately controlled his emotions, trying not to get too excited, and doing his best to calm his players down so they could patiently face the rest of the match.
“McFadden scores! Birmingham with an incredibly fluid quick counter-attack, breaking through Cambridge United’s defense from the left flank!
Birmingham’s performance today is very solid, while Cambridge United’s performance is below par.”
Huang Hao, uncharacteristically, appeared somewhat “irritable” on the sidelines. He shouted at his players on the field, his expression angry as he yelled:
“Defend harder, damn it! It’s ridiculous, three men marking one, yet you let the opponent deliver a good pass! Damn it, you’re not facing Zidane of Real Madrid, not Ronaldinho of Barcelona! Show some fighting spirit and grit! Press, challenge, be tough, be tough!”
The previous defensive lapse clearly indicated problems in both the midfield and defense, but Huang Hao found it intolerable that Dunn and Clements were able to execute such fluid consecutive combinations.
Whether it was Tadić, or De Vrij, including Kante, all had opportunities to foul and prevent the opponent from developing the attack to its final stage!
Cambridge United ultimately appeared somewhat “gentle” on the field, which was certainly unacceptable.
Lewandowski, wearing the captain’s armband, also reminded his teammates to compress space in defense and not give the opponents more room to control the ball.
The match restarted, and Huang Hao directed the game even more actively from the sidelines, reminding De Vrij to provide more support to Tadić on the flank, to attack more aggressively, and even encouraging Golonas to participate in the attacking third as much as possible.
After conceding, Cambridge United clearly intensified their attack. Central attacks were difficult, and even with the forwards dropping deep, it was still tough because Savage was like a wild beast, relentlessly sweeping through the midfield and defense. Ayu simply couldn’t function as the hub for fluid attacking play in the forward areas against him.
In the 36th minute of the match, Tadić pushed forward from the right flank. He received a pass from Kante and then impressed with a strong burst of speed past Dunn. He then played a through ball forward before Clements could close him down.
Tadić stopped the ball facing the penalty area in front of full-back Clapham. Clapham immediately stepped forward to press and tackle, but he didn’t expect Tadić to suddenly push the ball to the outside, dribbling past him!
This move, stopping the ball then suddenly accelerating and changing direction to beat the opponent, was indeed good. However, Tadić’s subsequent cross from outside the box was a huge disappointment, sending the ball directly out of play over the byline.
Birmingham did not retreat into a defensive counter-attacking shell after taking the lead. On the contrary, they engaged even more actively with Cambridge United.
In the 39th minute of the match, Clapham pushed forward from the flank, and once again, Cambridge United’s wide defense was put on alert.
After successfully advancing into the attacking third, Clapham played a diagonal pass to Clements in the middle.
This time, Birmingham opted not to attack down the flanks. Dunn cut inside and combined with Clements in the center. When Clements played a diagonal pass to the surging Dunn, Kante, having no choice, tackled too forcefully and brought Dunn down.
As Dunn fell to the ground, McLeish excitedly signaled for a foul from the sidelines!
Referee Dune blew his whistle to stop the play, then walked over to Kante and showed him a yellow card.
Kante stood with his hands on his hips, looking somewhat helpless.
Dunn himself took the direct free-kick. His direct shot hit Golonas in the wall and rebounded away.
The ball fell to the feet of the retreating Vardy. Under Savage’s fierce pressure, Vardy immediately accelerated and dribbled the ball two steps towards the flank, using his speed to shake off the opponent’s entanglement, then, seeing Tadić’s run, he played a through ball.
Tadić advanced along the right flank. He was quite fast, but when Birmingham midfielder Clements rushed towards him, he immediately played a diagonal pass forward.
Lewandowski was sprinting forward, but Tadić’s pass was to his feet, so he had to stand still and wait. By the time he controlled the ball, he was surrounded by two defenders, Upson and Casley, who were Birmingham’s last two defensive players in the backline.
Lewandowski nudged the ball to his left with his right foot, evading Casley’s tackle, and tried to accelerate forward to continue his breakthrough, but Upson engaged him in a physical challenge, entangling him.
Amidst the jostling, Lewandowski could only manage a hurried shot with his left foot from the edge of the box. As soon as the ball left his foot, Lewandowski knew it was no good because he had miskicked it.
The ball bounced slowly towards the goal, and goalkeeper Hart easily gathered it into his arms.
Some Cambridge United fans in the stands applauded, encouraging Portillo. At the very least, his performance of beating Kenna, then holding off Upson and finally getting a shot off was commendable; it was just that the final shot was not ideal.
With the first half nearing its end, Birmingham wanted to score again and launched a fierce attack in the 43rd minute.
This time, Casley and Johnson combined on the right flank to push the attack forward. When Ayu couldn’t effectively defend Johnson, Casley sprinted forward with long strides, then, after receiving Johnson’s pass, he advanced all the way towards the byline.
Huang Hao watched from the sidelines, sweating profusely.
The long-term fatigue and exhaustion suddenly exposed too many problems! The players were generally not excited enough. Especially on the flanks, when neither Tadić nor Mahrez could put strong pressure on the opponents, the opponents’ wide attacks were able to create chances that put the defense on alert.
Originally, the Johnson and Casley flank hadn’t been very active in the first half, at least in terms of attack, they had never made Cambridge United feel nervous.
However, they were clearly preparing and holding back their strength, waiting for the opportunity to suddenly unleash their power!
Casley dribbled the ball to Golonas. He played a horizontal pass, and Johnson made a forward run, bursting through the gap in the ribs. Cambridge United’s entire line retreated towards the goal. While Van Dijk hesitated to close down Johnson, Johnson didn’t shoot directly. Instead, he played a cut-back pass to the top of the box.
There were two opposing strikers in the box, Zigic and McFadden. Cambridge United definitely couldn’t rely on just two center-backs, so Kante simply dropped back to the defensive line to help double-team.
However, the protection in front of the box was clearly insufficient.
Dunn received Johnson’s cut-back pass at the top of the box. After a touch to adjust, he unleashed a powerful long-range shot.
The ball flew directly towards the bottom right corner of the goal. Goalkeeper Oblak’s save this time was a gamble; he bet that Dunn’s shot would aim for the near post, so he moved towards that side beforehand.
He gambled correctly!
After a horizontal dive, he palmed the ball out for a corner with his left hand!
“Wow! Wow! Unbelievable! Oblak with a world-class save that could contend for save of the round!
Dunn looked incredibly surprised, holding his head, feeling as if everything was unreal!
If that goal had gone in, Birmingham would be leading Cambridge United 2-0 at home, which would make the second half much easier for Birmingham!”