Birmingham's corner kick attack didn't pose a threat. Lovren firmly controlled the aerial advantage in the box, heading the ball clear. Ayu, on the wing in the midfield, received Lewandowski's header. The moment he touched the ball, he powerfully kicked it forward, then quickly ran past Johnson.
This was a very good counter-attack for Cambridge United.
Ayu dribbled quickly down the wing, clearly having reached top speed from the start.
As he rapidly advanced, Vardy was the only Cambridge United player in the central area who could keep up with him.
On Birmingham's defensive line, there were only three defenders.
The two full-backs, Casley and Clapham, and center-back Upson. Savage, the defensive midfielder, had just rushed into the box to contest a header and couldn't return to his defensive position immediately.
Ayu made a long run to the wing, about forty yards from the goal, then began to cut inside.
Casley stood in front of him. Ayu, dribbling at high speed, pushed the ball towards the center, intending to get past Casley. He believed that if he could just beat Casley, it would create a 2-on-2 situation, and he could deliver a brilliant pass to Vardy.
But just as the ball rolled towards the center and he changed direction, Casley stepped forward and stretched out his leg to intercept, and the two collided!
Ayu fell to the ground!
Everyone saw Vardy gain control of the ball that had rolled to the center first.
Referee Dune hesitated for a second before signaling for play to continue.
Vardy restarted from a static position, feinting a dribble and change of direction to the right. Defender Upson was momentarily fooled. Vardy immediately dribbled and broke through in the opposite direction, but Clapham, the full-back who had moved into the center, still blocked his path. At this point, Vardy knew that Birmingham players, Casley and Upson, were about to close in on him from both sides and behind to press!
Clapham, however, remained extremely calm and didn't rush to tackle, instead retreating step by step. Vardy couldn't pick up speed, so he pushed the ball sideways and immediately took a shot!
Taking a difficult shot from 25 yards outside the box, Vardy looked up as the ball sailed wide of the goal and into the stands. He shook his head helplessly.
At this moment, the referee walked over and called Casley to him, showing him a yellow card.
His foul on Ayu earlier deserved that yellow card.
Huang Hao was in a terrible mood on the sidelines.
Because Ayu was lying on the ground clutching the back of his thigh, which wasn't the part of his body that collided with Casley, yet he was clutching it now. For Huang Hao, who had four years of experience with player injuries, he could roughly guess without a team doctor's diagnosis: a strain!
After all, Ayu's change of direction just now was too fast! It's very easy to get a strain after being fouled!
Huang Hao's expression was very grim, feeling like God was playing a joke on him!
He had been trying his best to avoid fielding fatigued players to reduce the chance of injury, but now Ayu had fallen on the field.
As the team doctor ran onto the field, the referee also blew the whistle for the end of the first half.
Huang Hao stood on the sidelines, waiting for the team doctor's diagnosis. To be safe, he turned and called Gotze, who was about to return to the locker room, saying, "Wait a moment."
Gotze nodded and stood silently beside Huang Hao.
Birmingham's coaches and players had already entered the player tunnel. The Cambridge United players remaining on the field were concerned about Ayu's injury. The team doctor signaled to Huang Hao before helping Ayu walk to the sideline.
He couldn't continue the match.
Huang Hao turned to Gotze and said, "Stay on the field and warm up. Make sure you warm up thoroughly. Neither you nor I want you to miss next weekend's League match."
Gotze seriously acknowledged the order and went to warm up. After returning to the locker room, Huang Hao first emphasized that they needed to play with a more aggressive attitude in the second half.
Undoubtedly, this was a tough match, tougher than Cambridge United's previous few rounds. Although in terms of opponent strength, Liverpool, Aston Villa, and Tottenham were all stronger than Birmingham on paper, various factors, coupled with the characteristics of the Premier League itself, meant that Cambridge United was facing its biggest League challenge in this match.
Then, tactically, he made a slight adjustment. Golonas dropped back. He had little use on the forward line, but by dropping back to defensive midfield, he could at least play a transitional role in the midfield.
The main attacking direction was still the wings!
In the second half, both teams switched sides, and Cambridge United made their first substitution.
Gotze came on to replace Ayu.
Before Gotze came on, Huang Hao gave him a special privilege: he could reduce his defensive effort and focus his main energy on offense!
This was to prevent him from being exhausted by trying to do too much and thus physically breaking down.
Birmingham started the second half just as they had the beginning of the first half, playing lukewarm and focusing on defense, setting up a solid wall.
Gotze's first touch after coming on was average. He tried to break through Casley on the wing but the opponent poked the ball out of bounds.
In the 54th minute, Birmingham attacked through the middle. Dunn moved from the wing to the center, receiving a pass from Savage and playing a one-two with Clements.
As he passed the ball to Clements and ran forward, Golonas followed him like a shadow. Clements passed the ball into Dunn's path. Golonas delayed Dunn, and Kante successfully made a tackle.
After winning the ball, Cambridge United immediately launched an attack. Kante passed the ball to Tadić on the right side of the midfield. The latter controlled the ball and dribbled forward, advancing the attack. When Savage had no central defensive pressure, he naturally moved to the wing to assist in defense.
Facing Casley and the assisting Savage, Tadić passed the ball back to Golonas, who had surged forward in the center. The latter then released the ball with one touch, passing it to the right wing, closer to the touchline. A beautiful two-on-two, Tadić turned and sprinted to receive the ball successfully, continuing to advance the attack.
Clapham rushed up and kicked Tadić's right foot as Tadić attempted to cross.
Fortunately, Tadić was prepared and didn't take the full impact, otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable.
Referee Dune blew his whistle, trotted over, and pulled out another yellow card to warn Clapham.
Huang Hao shook his head slightly on the sidelines. This was the Premier League; opponents would never be soft-hearted or show mercy.
At critical moments, they would basically not hesitate to foul, and because the Premier League advocates "fair collisions" and "traditional confrontation," it has led to frequent, highly aggressive, and extremely damaging fouls.
"Cambridge United has been awarded a free-kick in the attacking third. This ball is in a wide area, I think Cambridge United will likely attempt a cross here."
Gotze walked up to the ball. Cambridge United's players from the backfield all came forward, preparing for this attack. Birmingham set up a wall and man-to-man marking in the box.
Gotze calmly scrutinized Birmingham's man-to-man marking in the box. He suddenly saw Mahrez moving from the center of the box towards the wing. So, after the referee blew his whistle, he immediately stepped forward and threaded the ball past the wall.
Mahrez's run was very sudden. He ran from inside the box to behind the wall, away from the dangerous area, but no one marked him, allowing him to control the ball as it rolled over and then, from the byline, right on the line, deliver another cross.
Birmingham's defense in the box became disorganized after being caught off guard by Gotze's through ball. Mahrez's cross was floated towards the far post. In the chaotic crowd, Van Dijk leaped high at the far post and powerfully headed the ball forward with his forehead!
Everyone in front of Birmingham's goal was helpless. Goalkeeper Hart stood in the center and didn't even make a save.
Van Dijk roared after landing!
Cambridge United's players excitedly grabbed Van Dijk, surrounding him and roaring with excitement, celebrating the goal!
"Van Dijk with a header! It's in! Truly unexpected, at a crucial moment, it was he who stepped up to equalize for Cambridge United!
But credit must also go to Gotze and Mahrez for their clever and brilliant free-kick combination.
1:1
Cambridge United equalized right at the start of the second half. Although they haven't created many threatening attacks so far, and one could say they aren't in form today, even out of form, they haven't bowed to Birmingham, which is even more commendable!
There's still a lot of time left in the match. Let's see how both teams perform now that the game is back to square one!"
Huang Hao also clenched his fists and waved them on the sidelines. For Cambridge United to score an equalizer while not in good form was crucial. This was both a test and a tempering of Cambridge United's team will!
It would all contribute to the team's growth.
After equalizing, Huang Hao continuously waved on the sidelines, signaling the players to intensify their attack.
McLeish, on the other hand, gestured to his players on the field, telling them to stay calm and not be affected by the conceded goal.
The match continued, and Cambridge United's momentum surged after the goal. The team gradually became overwhelming in attack.
In the 57th minute, Gotze beat Casley on the left wing, broke to the byline, and then, surrounded by multiple defenders, skillfully controlled the ball. As he turned, he back-heeled the ball to the rear, and Golonas surged forward to deliver a cross from the edge of the box.
Lewandowski, who had already made a diagonal run into the box, finding space, headed the ball towards the goal at the near post!
His header made all spectators' hearts tighten. Hart, standing in front of him, flailed his arms to block. Lewandowski's header struck Hart's shoulder, deflecting the ball upwards. The terrified Hart immediately took two steps, jumped, and cradled the falling ball in his arms.
Lewandowski stared in astonishment at Hart holding the ball. He ran his hand through his hair in disbelief, seemingly unable to comprehend missing what seemed like a certain goal opportunity.
Birmingham was under immense offensive pressure, and for a moment, they also made mistakes in their attacking play.
In the 60th minute, Johnson tried to deliver a through ball to the box from the right wing, but it was easily intercepted by Lovren. Cambridge United then immediately launched a quick counter-attack.
The ball rolled to De Vrij's feet on the right wing, and De Vrij quickly dribbled up the right flank.
His performance today was very good, with many highlights in his attacking contributions on the right wing.
After advancing the attack into the final third, facing Clements, who was pressing diagonally, he passed the ball to Tadić, then made a forward run himself, hoping to receive a return pass from Tadić.
However, Tadić took an extra touch after receiving the ball. As he adjusted his control and turned to face Birmingham's penalty area, he saw Robbie Savage's long leg stretch out in front of him, powerfully dispossessing him of the ball!
And the poked ball rolled right to Clements' feet. This was bad!
Clements kicked the ball forward, and Dunn, after controlling the ball in the attacking third, turned and charged towards Cambridge United's penalty area.
Cambridge United's counter-attack failed, and now, Birmingham was at their gates!
This Birmingham attack came too suddenly. Kante, defending in the central area in front of Cambridge United's box, had to stop Dunn. As the opponent came straight at him, he immediately ran diagonally to prepare for a press,
But when the two were less than two meters apart, Dunn suddenly dribbled and changed direction. Kante saw the opponent about to slip past him, and once he did, it would be truly dangerous. After a sudden stop, he realized he couldn't make an effective interception. In the nick of time,
He reached out and pulled Dunn's arm. Dunn, dribbling at high speed and changing direction, had his body interfered with and instantly lost his balance, falling to the ground.
After falling, Dunn excitedly raised his hand to the referee, signaling a foul.
McLeish on the sidelines also excitedly waved, complaining about Cambridge United's foul.
As Referee Dune blew his whistle, Lovren quickly ran to the referee to plead for Kante.
Kante felt his scalp tingle because as the referee walked towards him, he realized a dangerous signal: the referee was going to pull out a card!
And he already had a yellow card!
"Oh no! Cambridge United's defensive midfielder Kante's foul this time might result in a yellow card from the referee, and he already picked up a yellow card in the first half. If he gets another card, he'll be sent off!
Cambridge United's captain on the field today, Lewandowski, pleaded with the referee, but it was no use. The referee walked up to Kante and showed him a yellow card, then pulled out a red card!
Cambridge United had just gained momentum in the second half, and now they've suffered another heavy blow!"