Soccer: I have the attributes of Messi in his Prime

Chapter 556: The Manchester Derby Returns, Ibrahimović's Challenge

It turned out that Liverpool's strength had indeed been overestimated.

After losing to Burnley in the second round, Liverpool were held to a draw by Tottenham in the third. After three matches, Liverpool had only one win, one draw, and one loss, sitting in 11th place with just 4 points.

This start was even worse than last year.

The two-match winless streak led to growing criticism, particularly aimed at Liverpool's weak defense.

Experts all agreed on one point: if Liverpool didn't strengthen their defense, it would be difficult for them to improve their results this season.

Liverpool's manager, Jürgen Klopp, understood this, so he raised his bid for Van Dijk, offering 75 million pounds!

Honestly, spending this much on a defender seemed crazy—Van Dijk was good, but was he really worth 75 million pounds?

What was even more shocking was that Manchester City remained unmoved by this staggering offer, rejecting it once again.

Fans were left baffled by these developments—what was happening to the world of football?

In contrast to Liverpool's struggles, Chelsea delivered an impressive performance.

In this round, Chelsea hosted Burnley, the team that had defeated Liverpool in the previous match, and won decisively 3-0.

The comparison was clear—Chelsea's superiority over Liverpool was undeniable, especially when using Burnley as a benchmark.

Leicester City, last season's surprise team, had gone two rounds without a win but finally earned their first victory of the season. They edged out Swansea 2-1 at home.

Similarly, Arsenal, who had also failed to win in the first two rounds, secured their first win with a 3-1 away victory over Watford.

Manchester United also won, snatching a dramatic last-minute victory thanks to Rashford's stoppage-time goal, keeping their winning streak alive.

Manchester City, playing last, easily defeated West Ham 3-1 at home, with Lin Quan scoring a goal in each half, and Fernandinho adding another after coming off the bench.

After three rounds, the Premier League standings were still led by Manchester City, Chelsea, and Manchester United.

Chelsea, thanks to their superior goal difference, had overtaken United and climbed to the top of the table. Manchester City was in second place, while United dropped to third.

However, all three clubs had the same number of points, so the gaps were minimal.

...

After the third round of matches, the draw for the 2016-2017 Champions League group stage was revealed.

Manchester City had good luck, landing in Group C with two relatively weak teams that posed little challenge. Their chances of advancing looked promising.

However, besides these two weaker teams, there was also a powerful old rival in the group—Lin Quan and Guardiola's former club, Barcelona.

It seemed fate had brought them together again, as Manchester City and Barcelona had faced each other several times in past Champions League campaigns!

Other than last season, when they didn't meet, the two teams had clashed in the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 seasons, with one of those encounters being in the final. Manchester City had stepped over Barcelona to claim their throne!

Given this history, it was clear that the group stage would be a fierce battle between the two sides, with no one holding back.

The draw for the other three Premier League teams wasn't too bad either, although Tottenham's group was slightly tougher.

In Group E, Tottenham faced no top-tier giants, but they also didn't have any weak teams. Bayer Leverkusen, AS Monaco, and CSKA Moscow were all strong teams in their respective leagues, making them difficult opponents.

Tottenham hadn't participated in the Champions League for five or six years, so they lacked experience in the competition. With the added pressure of the Premier League, it remained to be seen how far they could go.

After all, Tottenham's squad depth wasn't strong enough.

While Tottenham had a tough draw, their North London rivals, Arsenal, were more fortunate.

Arsenal's group included Paris Saint-Germain, but the other two teams were relatively weak and posed no real threat. Advancing to the next round should be easy, and with good performances at home, Arsenal could even top the group.

Champions League newcomers Leicester City also had a favorable draw. The only stronger team in their group was Portuguese powerhouse FC Porto. The other two teams, from Belgium and Denmark, weren't very strong, so Leicester had a good chance of advancing.

Overall, the four Premier League teams had decent draws, and all had a shot at making it to the knockout stages.

However, on the other hand, two of these teams were Champions League rookies, especially Leicester City.

Given Leicester's poor start to the season, there was reason to worry about their Champions League journey.

After the third round of Premier League matches, the international break arrived.

With World Cup qualifiers approaching, Spain's coach, Vicente del Bosque, scheduled a friendly against Belgium.

Although Belgium's European Championship performance had been disappointing, their FIFA ranking had actually risen to 5th place, just behind Spain, Argentina, France, and Germany.

Belgium's reputation was strong, and Spain remained a global powerhouse. Since they hadn't faced each other during the Euros, both teams saw this friendly as an opportunity to test their strength.

It would be the highest-intensity match both teams could play before the World Cup qualifiers began.

Learning from their mistakes in the Euros, Del Bosque called up Diego Costa and decisively put him in the starting lineup alongside Morata, forming a two-striker partnership to address Spain's long-standing issue with goal-scoring.

This decision paid off, as the two strikers combined well in the first half, putting heavy pressure on Belgium's defense. They even successfully connected on a cross, with Diego Costa scoring the opener.

In the second half, Del Bosque substituted Morata, switching to a lone striker and focusing more on wing play. This tactic also worked, with David Silva and Lin Quan both scoring to make it 3-0.

Belgium was left flustered and disorganized under Spain's pressure, but Eden Hazard managed to score a consolation goal with a solo effort.

Belgium's loss was comprehensive, and not just in terms of the scoreline. Statistically, they were outclassed in every way.

Belgium had just 37% possession, only three shots, and 448 passes—compared to Spain's 828, almost double.

Anyone watching the match would have felt that these two teams weren't even in the same league.

Spain's number-one ranking was well-deserved, but many questioned how Belgium had managed to reach the top five.

Was FIFA's ranking system flawed?

Of course, this was just a friendly, not an official match, so the result didn't mean much.

It would be too hasty to dismiss Belgium's strength entirely, especially since they had several top-tier players in their squad. The problem lay with their coach, who had failed to mold the team into a cohesive unit capable of utilizing the talents of its stars.

...

On September 6, Spain hosted their first World Cup qualifier against Liechtenstein.

Liechtenstein was a very, very, very weak team, with almost no professional players on their squad—most were amateurs.

Facing such an opponent was practically a guaranteed win for Spain.

The match turned out exactly as expected. Fielding a mix of starters and substitutes, Spain scored five goals in the first half, slicing through the opposition with ease.

Liechtenstein's defense was so poor that any time Spain entered the final third, a goal seemed inevitable.

Even though the Spanish players tried to go easy on them as instructed by their coach, they still couldn't help scoring.

In fact, the Spanish fans in the stands began to cheer for Liechtenstein, joining the handful of traveling fans who had come to support one of FIFA's lowest-ranked teams.

At halftime, Del Bosque took it a step further, using all three substitutions to replace the remaining first-team players.

Now Spain was essentially playing with a full reserve squad. "I'm giving you a chance," Del Bosque seemed to say, "let's see if you can take it!"

However, even with their reserves, the gap in quality was still massive.

The substitutes added four more goals, bringing the final score to 9-0.

It was too brutal—Del Bosque couldn't bear to watch anymore and ordered his team to stop attacking, slow the pace, and avoid scoring any more goals.

After all, thrashing a bottom-ranked team 10-0 wasn't something to be proud of.

On the contrary, it would look more like Spain was humiliating itself.

Despite their relentless effort, Liechtenstein couldn't even muster a single goal. Scoring against the world champions would have been a point of pride for them, something to talk about for years to come.

Unfortunately, Spain's players had no interest in becoming part of that story and worked hard to keep a clean sheet.

The match ended 9-0, with Liechtenstein managing just one shot, which didn't even hit the target.

Spain, on the other hand, took 16 shots and scored nine goals, an astonishing level of efficiency.

Morata was particularly happy after the match, having scored four goals—the first time in his career he had done so. He couldn't stop grinning.

Lin Quan, embarrassed by Morata's smugness, tried to avoid him, not wanting to be associated with such an overwhelming victory.

After the game, the Liechtenstein players turned into fans, asking for autographs, swapping shirts, and taking pictures with Spain's players.

Spain's team had won by such a large margin that they felt bad declining these requests, so they eagerly swapped shirts and posed for pictures.

Normally, a team losing by such a wide margin would be deeply ashamed, but Liechtenstein was used to heavy defeats. Nearly every game they played ended in a thrashing, so they weren't too bothered by it.

If even the world's strongest teams couldn't beat Spain, how could anyone expect a group of amateurs to do so?

What a joke!

After the World Cup qualifier, Spain's national team disbanded, with the players returning to their clubs.

On September 10, the Premier League resumed with the fourth round of matches.

The highlight of the round was the Manchester Derby between City and United, which was also a battle for the top of the table.

This was a six-point match: whoever won would gain a crucial advantage in the title race.

Moreover, it was a fierce local rivalry, so both teams took it very seriously, fielding their strongest lineups and preparing for an all-out battle!

United set up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, while City lined up in a 4-3-3.

Although they were playing away, Guardiola's City showed a clear intent to attack aggressively.

At Old Trafford, City took the initiative and launched an early assault on United.

In the 15th minute of the first half, De Bruyne unleashed a long-range strike from outside the box, beating De Gea and giving City the lead.

Twenty minutes later, Lin Quan received an assist from De Bruyne, broke into the penalty area, and scored another goal, extending the lead to 2-0.

Old Trafford fell silent. United fans were left speechless.

Why was it that every time, City seemed to wreak havoc in their stadium?

This was Old Trafford, home of Manchester United—how could they allow their rivals to act so arrogantly?

The fans began to shout angrily, chanting and singing to rally their team and push the atmosphere to fever pitch.

Inspired by the crowd, United's players, their eyes burning with determination, launched wave after wave of attacks under Mourinho's furious orders.

Rooney, Ibrahimović, Lingard, Martial, Pogba, and others took turns attacking City's box, applying relentless pressure.

Finally, in the 42nd minute, Ibrahimović seized an opportunity in a chaotic scramble and scored a stunning scorpion kick, pulling one back and making it 2-1.

Ibrahimović's goal was not only spectacular but also crucial, instantly reigniting the Old Trafford crowd.

The fans roared his name, applauding and cheering for him.

"Zlatan!"

"Zlatan!"

"Zlatan!"

Ibrahimović basked in the adulation, smiling and waving to the supporters.

He hadn't been at United for long, but he had already won the hearts of the Red Devils faithful.

The scorpion kick was one of his signature moves, something no one else could pull off.

To score such an amazing goal in a Manchester Derby, of all matches, gave Ibrahimović immense satisfaction.

Now, all he needed to do was build on this momentum and lead United to victory over City!

Ibrahimović's eyes scanned the field until they locked onto Lin Quan, filled with a fiery determination for the battle ahead.

(End of Chapter)

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