Football: My AI System Provides Max-Level Predictions-Chapter 696 488: Playing with Fire in Front of the Penalty Area and Self-Destruction! Tang Long Steals the Ball and Shoots Violently to Score! Pique is Instantly Dumbfounded!
On the day of the match, the sky over Barcelona was exceptionally blue, with the sunshine pouring unreservedly over the city brimming with artistic atmosphere.
Even as night fell, the blue sky lingered like a child reluctant to go home.
The Camp Nou was already enveloped in an atmosphere as passionate as fire.
The streets and alleys of Barcelona were submerged in a wave of red and blue, with fans dressed in red and blue striped shirts flooding towards Camp Nou in groups of three or five.
The air was filled with a sense of excitement and anticipation on this Champions League night;
This feeling acted like a catalyst, making every fan present feel their blood boiling.
A grey-haired old fan, leaning on a cane, walked towards the ticket gate of Camp Nou with his son supporting him.
The ticketing staff saw him and, surprised, said, "Old Victor, you're here! It's the first time I've seen you this season, welcome back."
He nodded, his eyes twinkling kindly, "Pep is back. He's a good kid, and I came to see him today."
Guardiola sat in the Manchester City bus as it slowly drove into Camp Nou.
Through the window, he saw those enthusiastic faces and felt the overwhelming passion of Barça fans.
"Pep! Pep!"
"Welcome back, Pep!"
"We all love you!"
Though this was Guardiola's second return to Camp Nou since leaving Barça;
hearing the fans' chants, a warm current surged in his heart, as if he had returned to those passionate years at Barça.
He slowly rolled down the car window, smiling and gently waving to the fans,
Despite now being Manchester City's head coach, the respect Barça fans held for him hadn't diminished in the least; this respect transcended team boundaries and was a high acknowledgment of his past contributions to Barça.
In the players' tunnel.
Both teams' starting players lined up neatly, waiting to enter the field.
Champions League group stage, third round.
Home team Barça: 433
Neymar/Suarez/Messi
Iniesta/Busquets/Rakitic
Alba/Umtiti/Pique/Mascherano
Ter Stegen
Away team Manchester City: 433
Tang Long/Agüero/Sane
Gundogan/Ranocchia/Diego
Kolarov/Stones/Kompany/Navas
Bravo
Tang Long stood in the Manchester City lineup.
This was his first time stepping onto the Camp Nou pitch and his first direct confrontation with the formidable Barça.
Before even stepping into the players' tunnel, when changing gear in the locker room, the Manchester City players could constantly hear the buzzing sounds, which were the home fans' cheers.
Captain Kompany patted Tang Long's shoulder, "Noisy, right? That's how noisy Camp Nou is, Tang, tonight is your stage, make sure to perform well!"
Tang Long nodded with a hum.
For this match, Manchester City had already paid the price of a league draw, allowing Chelsea to level the scores.
The expectation for this match?
Without a doubt, take away the three points!
Tang Long looked at the Barça players on the other side of the lineup, focusing his gaze on the MSN trio.
Suarez, with his iconic buck teeth especially noticeable under the lights, looked burly and exuded a natural strength, yet his expression was solemn and unsmiling.
Neymar, on the other hand, seemed like a mischievous spirit, with a cunning look in his eyes, constantly glancing around as if searching for something, joking with teammates and making funny gestures, laughing to himself.
When Tang Long saw Messi, he felt Messi was actually not that striking, looking even smaller than on TV.
He stood quietly with his hands on his hips, looking down at his shoes, showing no sign of the domineering aura of Barça's all-time top scorer.
"Hello, Messi!" Tang Long took the initiative to greet.
"Hello, oh, hello," Messi smiled and shook Tang Long's hand.
Tang Long was surprised that Messi showed a hint of shyness when greeted,
a shyness Tang Long had only seen in young players, never in a player of Messi's age.
[Ding!]
[Test task released]
[Observe Messi's dribbling closely and generate deep training material]
Without much small talk before the game, a crisp whistle sounded, and the match officially began!
Barça kicked off first, trained like a group of soldiers, swiftly deploying their possession tactics.
The passing between players was precise and fluid, with each pass perfectly timed, and every run perfectly coordinated, like a tightly operated machine, each part fitting seamlessly.
On Manchester City's side, Guardiola had instructed his players before the game to press high in the first 15 minutes to apply intense pressure on Barça.
"Push forward without fear, I'll take the blame if you lose the ball!"
With the manager's assurance, Manchester City's players were undaunted, like a pack of hungry wolves, fiercely pressing every ball.
Their steps were quick and strong, with every press carrying immense momentum, attempting to disrupt Barça's rhythm.
This season, Guardiola returned to Camp Nou, needing to show his presence; he was determined to snatch an early initiative, even if not scoring, applying bold pressure on Barça's players.
He knew that Barça's midfield strength remained strong, but after Harvey left the team, the replacement Rakitic could not match Harvey's peak passing and control level. The current Barça was more reliant on the individual abilities of the MSN on the forward line, so in Guardiola's view, pressing Barça's midfield was not an overly risky decision.
Under Gundogan's fierce close pressing, Rakitic dared not be careless, passing the ball back to defender Pique.
As soon as Pique got the ball, Tang Long charged forward!
Pique had never faced Tang Long before, seeing this Asian player coming aggressively, he thought:
"Let me toy with you a bit, to dampen your spirits."
Pique feigned a pass back to keeper Ter Stegen, drawing Tang Long in close before suddenly making an outside-foot fake turn, aiming to spin around in place and leave Tang Long behind.
This required both technique and courage.
If the opponent was not close enough, no matter how perfect the spin, it couldn't get past;
If too close and intercepted, it was over, as behind Pique was the keeper!
But this move, high-skilled and daring Pique had used with great success in La Liga matches countless times, having toyed with many young opponents.
Young forwards were not short on vigor, but unstable in mindset, many lost morale after being outplayed once or twice by Pique, and their spirit fell below normal levels, always dejectedly thinking: "Even Barça's defenders dribble past me like this, am I not useless then?"
Yet what Pique didn't know was that his so-called "Pique-read-through" had long been seen through?
Back in his Inter days, Tang Long had watched a significant amount of Iniesta's video feeds of in-place spins, mastering this technique proficiently.
Pique's height of 194 wasn't suited for in-place dribbling moves, but he leveraged his solid training at La Masia to cover his height disadvantage, though he could still toy with an average La Liga striker;
But to Tang Long, it looked like slow motion, highlighting awkwardness.
So as soon as Pique pivoted his hips, Tang Long sidestepped, flicking the ball away!
Pique took a heavy fall!
Tang Long didn't wait for Umtiti to come for support, striking a long shot from the edge of the penalty area!
With a "bang", Ter Stegen stretched his long arm, tipping the ball to the underside of the crossbar, with a loud "thud" it bounced into the net!
Pique still lay there, perplexed, while Iniesta angrily shouted at him:
"Pique, your moves were seen through! Stop playing with fire!"
Pique's grandfather served as Barça's vice-chairman for over twenty years, and being a La Masia product himself, if anyone else on the field had yelled at him like that, he'd certainly retort, but facing Iniesta, Pique had to show respect.
He climbed up awkwardly, watching Tang Long celebrating the goal with teammates, his eyes filled with confusion.
"Have I really been seen through?"
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