Breath of The Interferer - Chapter 137



Only Noblemtl

#137 – Breath of the Interferer_Key – 1703991

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Barcelona without Messi

Notts County had one win and one draw in the league. They beat Reading 1-0 in the FA Cup. They lost 0-1 to PSG in the Champions League, but managed to advance to the quarterfinals. And they met Barcelona, ​​where Messi had retired.

This season, the Champions League quarterfinals were all filled with the three black spots. Porto, Monaco, and Notts County stopped selling players as if they had made a promise and showed good performances in the league and Champions League. However, some critics criticized it as a strategy to make players fatter and sell them at higher prices.

Notts County, who won 1-0 away to QPR on April 12, maintained their top spot in the league with 73 points, having played one game less. Arsenal came in second with 66 points, and Manchester United, who have the stamina to back up, came in third. Manchester City, with the contradictions between Guardiola and the club management surfacing, came in fourth with 61 points.

In the last five games, Notts County has scored a total of six goals, winning four and drawing one. There were concerns about a decline in attack power. Although Kishin tried hard in many ways, the team’s condition declined. Even though the starting lineup consisted of players in good condition, the attack power of the beginning of the season did not come out.

Still, it was a great consolation that they only conceded 2 goals in 5 games. Cha Beom-soo maintained good condition without being influenced by other players. Hunter also maintained good condition, but failed to score a goal due to the opponent’s concentrated defense.

On April 16, Notts County host Barcelona at home. Messi, who retired after the World Cup, is currently resting. It is said that he is engrossed in football games every day. Ambitious clubs are trying to recruit Messi. There are many young players who idolize Messi. Including Messi in the club management or appointing him as an ambassador can be a great help in persuading young prospects.

To face Barcelona, ​​Notts County lined up in a 3-4-3 formation. Thomas, Nice and Matias were in the central defense. Cha Bum-soo, Kim Si-woong and Gray were in the defensive midfield. Grujic was in the midfield, with Garcia and Hector on either side. Hunter, who wore the captain’s armband, was in the central attack.

Barcelona used a 4-1-4-1 formation. This is the formation that Barcelona has been using the most recently, as their attacking power has been lacking since Messi retired. And the midfielder 1 was played by Jose, who transferred from Notts County.

The game was not as flashy as fans expected. Barcelona’s attack flowed naturally like water, but Notts County’s defense embraced all the water like the sea. On the other hand, Notts County’s attack was simple. Garcia and Hector crossed, and Hunter, Grujic, and sometimes even Gray joined in to try to score with a header.

After the first half ended 0:0, the second half began with a series of substitutions. Barcelona, ​​who had come up after beating Manchester City, could not be underestimated, but when they actually faced each other, it seemed that Barcelona was simply taking advantage of Manchester City, who were in a state of self-restraint.

Kishin took off Kim Si-woong and put Juan in. Juan moved to the right wing and Hector moved to the central striker position to form a two-top with Hunter. Grujic moved up a bit from the midfield and moved like an attacking midfielder.

Notts County started the substitution first, but Barcelona could not respond. They could not decide whether to strengthen their attack and fight back or strengthen their defense and try for an away draw. Objectively, a draw would be a good choice, but Barcelona’s reputation, which they have built up over a long period of time, made it difficult to make a choice that was practical.

In the 60th minute of the second half, Kishin raised Ward and lowered Grujic. Kishin thought he had rated Cha Beom-soo very highly. However, through today’s game, Kishin keenly felt that he had underrated Cha Beom-soo. Cha Beom-soo displayed excellent defense as if he had read the minds of the Barcelona players.

As Ward went up, the cohesion of the attacking line became much stronger. Bonavich moves cleverly and connects several players, while Ward gathers other players around him. Cha Beom-soo also joined in, showing off a passing work that was not lacking in Barcelona.

Hector, who did not miss Ward’s penetrating pass, scored with ease. Cha Bum-soo can bet his salary that Ward’s pass, even if it is gray, will succeed in scoring. Cha Bum-soo has been intensively learning passes and free kicks from Ward recently. That is why he knows very well how friendly Ward’s pass is.

Barcelona, ​​who had conceded a goal, strengthened their attack. However, they could not raise their defense high because of the speed of Juan and Hunter. Notts County relied on Hunter’s supply and pulled their defense line deep back. When they won possession, they found Hunter with a long pass.

Ward, who received Hunter’s header, dribbled past the defender and took a long-range shot. The shot, which had a similar trajectory to the free kick he scored against PSG, went beyond the keeper’s reach and into the goal.

Barcelona, ​​who had raised their defense in haste, conceded another goal due to Juan’s speed. After scoring a goal, Juan celebrated with Hunter like a horny calf. The celebration between the two, who are 24 centimeters taller, was quite comical.

After taking off Garcia, Gisin brought up Sanches. Juan moved to the left wing and Hector returned to the right wing. Sanches ran nonstop with Gray and harassed the Barcelona players.

Barcelona scored a goal around the 80th minute, but it was ruled offside. It was an ambiguous goal that was difficult to judge even in slow motion.

“I saw some interesting players at Notts County today. They are much better than they look on film. Ward reminded me of Messi and his kick reminded me of Mascherano. Sanches was great, Juan reminded me of Eto’o and Hector reminded me of Neymar when he first came to Barcelona.”

Notts County won the match 3-0, but he was defeated in the interview. The old Barcelona manager did not say a word about his team in the losing match. And he shook the opponents by saying that he was interested in the Notts County players.

‘I learned another trick today.’

This season is Barcelona’s first season after Messi’s retirement. So the reporters also focused on Barcelona’s defeat rather than Notts County’s victory. Kishin, who was left out, spent his time watching the Barcelona manager’s interview skills.

Atletico Madrid beat Real Madrid 1-0 at home. Juventus won 1-0 away at Monaco. Porto beat Bayern Munich, considered the best team this season, 1-0 at home.

The 33rd round match was postponed due to the FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal on the 19th. Notts County, who drew 1-1 with Arsenal, won the penalty shootout with Turner. In another match played a day later, Aston Villa won 4-0 against Liverpool and entered the final. The press gradually began to mention the possibility of Notts County winning the treble.

The League Cup is rarely awarded, and winning the League, FA Cup, and Europa League or Champions League is called a treble. Some call the Europa League treble a mini treble. Currently, Notts County in the Premier League, Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, Juventus in Serie A, and Real Madrid in La Liga are the teams that seem likely to win the treble.

Apart from Real Madrid, all the other teams are currently favourites to win the league. Notts County are seven points ahead of Arsenal, who have played one game less, having played two games less. Bayern Munich are already 16 points ahead of second place, while Juventus are nine points ahead, having played one game less.

Real Madrid are five points behind Barcelona and six points behind Atletico Madrid. However, they lost 1:0 to their arch-rivals Atletico in their first match. Experts predict that Bayern Munich has the highest chance of winning the treble, with Juventus in second and Notts County in third.

On the 22nd, Notts County lost 2-0 away to Barcelona. The defense that showed a stable defense in the first game was torn apart several times by Barcelona. If it weren’t for Turner’s steam-packed saves, Kishin’s quest would have been declared a failure early on April 22nd.

In a short seven days, Barcelona have figured out how to break through Notts County’s defence and how to defend Notts County’s attack. This is an achievement that would not have been possible without the players’ excellent tactical understanding and tactical execution skills.

‘A manager with a high level of tactical understanding, not me, should develop the team. Only then can the team itself become a strong team like Barcelona.’

Barcelona didn’t win everything when Messi was there. Barcelona is not weaker because Messi retired. Barcelona may just be suffering from the aftereffects of the World Cup.

‘If the final quest is not related to Notts County, I will leave after winning the Champions League. My presence is a wall that is blocking the team’s progress.’

The match against Barcelona gave Kishin a lot of insight. Barcelona, ​​with its sophisticated team defense and team attack tactics, is a strong team even after Messi retired. Although they are temporarily reeling from the void left by Messi, it is not the case that they are no longer a strong team because Messi is gone.

Notts County’s 1-0 win over Crystal Palace on May 3 put them 12 points ahead of second-placed Arsenal on 83 points. With three rounds remaining, Notts County have won their first Premier League title.

In the Champions League semi-finals, Notts County will face Atletico Madrid. Atletico Madrid, who beat Real Madrid 1-0 at home, held the score to 0-0 on the road after receiving eight yellow cards. Although two players were ruled out due to the accumulation of cards, it did not have a significant impact on Atletico’s performance.

Bayern Munich, who lost 1:0 in the first match, took revenge against Porto with a 7:2 win at home. Juventus drew 0:0 at home against Monaco, drawing a lot of criticism. Juventus recorded a goal difference of 7 goals and 0 goals conceded in the group matches, finishing second in the group with 3 wins, 3 draws, and 12 points.

Juventus, who met Dortmund in the round of 16, advanced to the quarterfinals with a 1:0 home win and a 0:0 away win. In the quarterfinals, they also recorded 1 win and 1 draw against Monaco, scoring 1 goal and conceding 0 goals. They showed high efficiency with 9 goals scored and 0 goals conceded up to the Champions League semifinals.

In the match played six days ago, Juventus conceded their first goal in this season’s Champions League. After Juventus won 2-1 at home, most experts predicted that Juventus would advance to the final. Juventus is expected to show a tight defense away from home, and Juventus’ defense is currently the best in Europe.

And on May 7, Notts County will face Atletico Madrid away. Taking the lesson from the last game against Barcelona, ​​Kishin prepared for both games at the same time. He plans to use different formations and tactics away and at home. Otherwise, he will likely suffer a big defeat at home against Atletico Madrid.

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