“Playing at home, being suppressed by others, don’t you feel it’s a disgrace?!”
McLeish angrily tapped the tactical board in front of him, constantly provoking the Birmingham players with his words.
“Phillips! You are the core of the team’s offense, why couldn’t I find you in the first half?!”
“And Larsson, your performance in the first half was even like a girl’s!”
A somewhat agitated McLeish directly targeted Birmingham’s forward.
“Coach, I’m sorry, Cambridge United marked a bit tightly in the first half, I will adjust myself in the second half.”
As a veteran, Phillips still bravely took responsibility.
Apparently, Suxi and Kante followed him almost inseparable, which was indeed a bit difficult for Phillips, who was not originally a speed-type forward.
Larsson, however, looked up at McLeish once, then quickly lowered his head, without offering any explanation.
For him, who had already been selected for the Swedish national team at 19, Birmingham was just a small stop on his football career. He had joined Arsenal with full confidence, firmly believing that he would become the new king of Emirates Stadium in the future.
Today, Cambridge United showed no understanding of protecting such a promising star, revealing their shoe soles at the slightest disagreement, which truly terrified him.
After all, he was set to return to Arsenal in just over two months, and getting injured here would directly affect his joint training with Arsenal’s first team this summer.
Not worth it, not worth it.
Larsson had made up his mind; he had to prioritize his safety and not let his career be ruined by a hooligan team like Cambridge United!
McLeish saw Larsson remain silent, his eyes filled with disappointment and helplessness. His tone subsequently softened a little.
“I know, the opposing team is charging at you today like a pack of mad dogs. But, don’t worry, they are humans, not machines, and they will eventually run out of stamina.”
McLeish still firmly believed in this point of view.
“When their stamina is insufficient for full-field pressing in the second half, your chance will come!”
“At that time, hit them hard! Kick through their net!!!” With that, Birmingham’s Head Coach once again slammed his fist heavily on the tactical board!
As a result, the tactical board, unable to withstand the pressure, directly collapsed backwards with a clatter, scattering on the ground.
McLeish’s expression was slightly awkward, but he still forced himself to say, “Go! Victory definitely belongs to us!”
At this moment, the away team’s locker room was filled with joy.
Huang Hao praised everyone’s performance one by one, especially commending Pasc’s final goal!
“Josh, I have to say, your second reaction surprised me greatly. I’m even considering making you a center forward next season!”
Josh Pasque scratched his head a bit sheepishly, then said:
“Boss, I’m still more suited for center back.”
Huang Hao nodded, indicating approval.
“That’s right, a wooden head who doesn’t understand jokes is naturally suited to be a center back.”
Everyone once again mercilessly mocked Pasc, which made the somewhat shy young man even more embarrassed.
“Alright, back to business.”
Huang Hao cleared his throat. “I guess the old fox next door must be betting that you will run out of energy in the second half, and then they’ll counterattack.”
As Cambridge United’s Head Coach, Huang Hao naturally knew the team’s physical limits.
“His judgment is not wrong. So, for the first 15 minutes after the start of the second half, you must find a way to score another goal.”
“This way, we can conserve our energy and, by the way, let Birmingham see that our defense is actually not bad.”
Huang Hao felt that his plan should have no flaws. After two minutes of silence, Huang Hao looked at Lovren and Kante again. “Lovren and Kante, you must continue your performance from the first half. I like the feeling of not seeing Phillips.”
Receiving affirmation from their boss, both of them were naturally very happy and immediately nodded vigorously.
“After 60 minutes in the second half, slightly retract the defensive line and pull the first line of pressing back to the midfield.”
“However, this does not mean we are going to play defensively. The wings must seize the opportunity and use your best methods to tear open Birmingham’s defense.”
“Birmingham currently has three defensive midfielders on the field, so their offensive organization won’t be very smooth. Therefore, counterattacks from the flanks are very important, remember that!”
“Alright, let’s go!”
The players had just chanted their slogan and were about to leave when Huang Hao suddenly called them back.
“Oh, right, I especially liked your brutal appearance in the first half, keep it up!”
This time, the Cambridge United players all had Huang Hao’s signature mischievous smile on their faces.
“Yes! That’s the feeling, I love you guys hahahaha!”
Seeing the players’ expressions, Huang Hao felt they were a perfect match for him. A somewhat honest Darren shook his head from behind, thinking that four years ago, he would never have imagined that Cambridge United would become such a team!
After the change of ends, Larsson looked at the fierce-looking opponents, and his head throbbed!
But sometimes, what you fear most comes true.
Just 2 minutes into the second half, Fah successfully intercepted Cambridge United’s pass in midfield.
Seeing the Cambridge United player charging towards him, Fah directly passed the ball to Larsson on his front right.
Mahrez, who was originally charging towards Fah, slammed on the brakes, then turned around and headed straight for Larsson!
Larsson had just turned around after receiving the ball when he suddenly fell to the ground!
Pain and annoyance instantly intertwined in Larsson’s mind!
He looked back resentfully, and it was indeed Mahrez, who had just made a sudden return!
The most infuriating thing was that Cambridge United players’ tackles were almost demonic! Most of the time, they managed to touch the ball first and avoid fouling!
Helpless, Larsson could only slam his fist heavily on the turf!
At this moment, Mahrez had no time to comfort this poor guy. Having dispossessed the ball, he passed it to Sun Jihai behind him, while he himself moved to his preferred left wing.
Seeing Mahrez return to his position, Sun Jihai immediately passed the ball back.
Mahrez, without a word, delivered a direct over-the-top long pass!
Vardy instantly accelerated, and Birmingham’s defense was breached again!
Leigh Will quickly chased from behind, directly sliding in from behind, attempting to trip Vardy!
However, he misjudged the distance of the tackle and only kicked air! An embarrassed Leigh Will quickly got up and continued to chase!
At this moment, Vardy had successfully entered the left side of the penalty area!
Facing Hart, Vardy did not see O’Connor, who had surged forward in the middle, but instead chose a powerful shot!
As a result, the ball grazed the left post and flew out of bounds!
Cambridge United was just a hair’s breadth away from scoring!
The Birmingham players had just breathed a sigh of relief, but unexpectedly, 2 minutes later, Cambridge United came back with a vengeance!
It was originally a corner kick opportunity for Birmingham, but due to some apprehension about Cambridge United’s rough fouls, Larsson kept retreating, trying to shake off the Cambridge United players’ entanglement.
The corner kick taken by Birmingham slowly moved from the penalty area to the frontfield, and McLeish’s face was turning green with anger!
But looking back, he only had the 21-year-old Lowe left on his bench, who hadn’t scored a goal this season, so he forcibly suppressed the desire to make a substitution!
When Fah once again passed the ball to Casley, Kante suddenly surged forward and directly intercepted the ball at the top of the penalty area!
Kante passed forward to Vardy, who had retreated to midfield. Vardy immediately passed to Smith near the left touchline. Smith immediately lofted the ball towards the front left of the field!
Mahrez was accelerating to chase the ball!
It looked like Mahrez and Murphy would reach the ball at the same time!
Mahrez gritted his teeth and sprinted, getting to the ball first, and directly chipped it into the penalty area!
Lewandowski, moving between Birmingham’s two center backs, successfully jumped and headed the ball towards the goal!
The ball was safely caught by Hart!
Hart, having successfully defended Cambridge United’s quick attack, let out an excited roar! He was trying to tell his Birmingham teammates to attack confidently, that he was behind them!!
A confident Hart directly kicked the ball with a big boot towards Cambridge United’s half!
Larsson kept adjusting his position, watching the incoming ball.
Suddenly! He caught a glimpse of Sun Jihai rushing over from the corner of his eye!
Larsson didn’t hesitate, he directly jumped up and flicked the ball with his head, sending it towards Cambridge United’s penalty area!
The awkward thing was that Phillips was a full 3 meters away from this landing spot!
Suxi, who was marking Phillips closely, saw this, took three steps in two, and directly caught up with the ball, calmly passing it to Pantilimon!
Pantilimon then kicked the ball to the right side of midfield!
The power of the ball was slightly too much, and it was about to go out of bounds!
At this moment, Tadić, like a swift horse, galloped towards the ball!
Finally, just as the ball was about to cross the touchline, Tadić blocked it back with his right leg!
Then Tadić directly changed direction, shaking off Hanke, who was marking him in front!
Arriving at the right side of the top of the penalty area, Tadić looked closely. At this moment, Vardy and Lewandowski had all surged into the penalty area!
Tadić smiled slightly, this goal was secured!
He just lightly flicked it with the tip of his foot! The ball directly flew over Johnson’s head, comfortably landing at Lewandowski’s feet!
Lewandowski shot powerfully as he met the ball, and it went like a gust of wind under Hart’s armpit and straight into the goal!!!
In the 53rd minute of the second half, the Cambridge United boys successfully completed their mission, scoring their second goal!!!
Hart felt a burning sensation on his face. That phrase, “Go ahead and attack, I’m behind you!” seemed to have been spoken less than 3 minutes ago!
0:2! Birmingham was completely suppressed by Cambridge United on their home ground!
Seeing the celebrating Cambridge United players, Phillips spat on the grass, then turned and ran towards midfield.
Unlike other newly joined Birmingham players, this veteran had an unyielding spirit. For this, his self-discipline led him to put in several times more effort than others. It was precisely this that allowed him, at 35 years old, to maintain excellent form.
Although two Premier League clubs had already contacted Phillips through his agent, this Sunderland legend still hoped to lead Birmingham directly into the Premier League by his own strength. This was Phillips’s pursuit!
Unbeknownst to them, the second half had already reached the 70th minute. Apart from a long-range shot from Captain Fah that almost breached Cambridge United’s goal, Birmingham had not had many good opportunities.
As Cambridge United players’ stamina declined, they had, according to Huang Hao’s deployment, slowly withdrawn their first line of pressing to near midfield. According to McLeish’s idea, this was the time for Birmingham to launch a full-scale attack!
However, in reality, Birmingham’s three defensive midfielders setup greatly limited the team’s offense.