My light shines on Arsenal

Chapter 137 Cleansed Faith

Jamie Vardy feels a little tired.

He wiped the sweat from his face and his hands were wet.

The London rain was pouring on his head, mixing with his sweat, warmed by the temperature of his body, and then carried away by more rain and the breeze.

I don't know if this will cause a cold?

Vardy knows not, because a lot of running and non-stop confrontation allow him to generate heat all the time.

However, his physical strength was also being consumed rapidly.

Vardy thought of his mood two days ago when the coach told him that he would start the next game.

two days ago.

Kearney base.

"Jamie." Before the training session started, Chen Yao threw him a vest symbolizing the main players, "You will start the next game."

"what?"

Vardy stood there blankly, thinking he heard wrongly.

The main player's vest hung on his shoulders, and Vardy didn't even dare to take it and put it on.

He knows what level his consciousness and skills are, and from any point of view, he should not be the starting forward.

"Coach, did you make a mistake..."

Vardy's voice was as quiet as a mosquito's, and he glanced nervously back at Olivier Giroud, the tall Frenchman who had always been a member of the starting lineup.

"Don't look at me." Giroud smiled charmingly at him, "I completely understand the coaches' arrangement."

He came over and patted Vardy, "Jamie, since the coaching staff chose you, they have their reasons...don't let down your status as a starting player."

Lillo took the other members of the coaching staff to direct the players to train, while Chen Yao left Vardy alone.

"Jamie, you are the starter for the next game. But your mission will be different."

"Coach, just follow orders."

Chen Yao took out his iPad and the screen lit up, showing a team's backcourt formation distribution map.

"Jamie, what I want you to do is maybe be more like a defender than a forward."

Chen Yao dragged the signs symbolizing the player positions on the electronic screen, and the team's formation distribution changed.

"This is what we expect Manchester City to do. What I ask of you is that when the goalkeeper has the ball, immediately step forward and press the goalkeeper. Oh, and don't forget the route... We have to force him to only choose one possible exit. Ball line…”

Chen Yao kept fiddling with the signs on the tactical board, while Vardy concentrated on memorizing his tasks in various situations.

"So, your task is actually not difficult, it is to press, keep running, pressing, and if possible, intercept the ball."

Chen Yao looked at Vardy, "Manchester City's current ball-playing structure is not complicated enough to exceed our design. Jamie, remember your pressing objects and running routes when they rotate the ball, just like we did in previous training. That’s how it went.”

Vardy nodded, "I understand, coach... what about the offense?"

"Offensive..." Chen Yao smiled apologetically, "I'm sorry, Jamie, there are no offensive tactics surrounding you. Please understand."

Vardy lowered his head, "It's okay, coach...so I just need to do my pressing job."

"Correct."

Vardy now understands that his tactical role is that of a chess piece, a chess piece that burns his own energy to destroy his opponent.

He doesn't know if there is a role in world football whose main task is to press from the front, which requires tireless running, bravery and resolute confrontation.

And when the team launches an attack, he is just an ordinary counterattack point and will not receive any tactical resource tilt.

Is it fair?
unfair.

This is the existence of exchanging pieces with the opponent, and its tactical value is that the more thoroughly you burn yourself, the more pieces you can exchange.

"I will complete the task, coach." Vardy raised his head with firm eyes.Fair or unfair, it is a miracle that I can get the opportunity to play at Arsenal.

Do I want anything else?

Let the defending champion see how powerful a forward who came out of the amateur league can be.

……

Gareth Barry is already afraid of Vardy.

It is now the 301st minute. He discovered that Arsenal's pressing system is very structured. Every round of pressing forces his teammates to give the ball to him.

Then, when the ball is at his feet, Jamie Vardy will pounce from behind.

Is he really not tired?
Barry is going crazy. Vardy has been running at high intensity for nearly half an hour. Even a track and field athlete should feel tired!
But Vardy didn't. He still gritted his teeth and rushed toward him expressionlessly.

Except for Vardy, other Arsenal players felt that the physical exertion was not as great as expected.

The rain in London intensified the physical exertion on one's own side, but it was even more torture for Manchester City who held the ball.

This means that their passing accuracy has decreased. In order to compensate for this decrease, each of their technical actions must expend more effort.

Arsenal's pressing system is becoming more and more sophisticated, and Manchester City only has a few routes to deliver the ball. At this time, world football has not yet formed a situation where every strong team has a systematic structure for delivering the ball.

Roberto Mancini did not allow his players to take big shots at will, and being one goal behind meant that if City gave up the ball again, it would be more difficult to regain the score.

"Why haven't they lost their physical strength yet..."

Mancini has been waiting for the moment when Arsenal's physical strength reaches the critical point, but he waits and waits, and there is a rumble of being robbed in front of the goal, but he has not yet waited for that moment.

why?

Mancini frowned and carefully observed the situation on the field. He finally locked his eyes on the figure running like a mad dog.

Vardy.

This forward, whom I had never paid much attention to, was more aggressive than I imagined.

Vardy used his running and consumption to bear more than one person's press.

His presence has reduced the amount of movement of other Arsenal players.

Arsenal's other players only need to come to the predetermined position according to the predetermined plan, and the initiator of the pressing system is Vardy.

Mancini looked at Chen Yao not far away. He didn't use Vardy as a traditional center at all.

This kind of player...maybe needs a new definition.

But Mancini had no time to think about this problem. Before Vardy was exhausted, Manchester City finally made a mistake.

Barry, who was being pressed heavily, after receiving a pass from the back line, knocked back to Kolo Toure in a daze.

This time the pass back played into Vardy's hands. He intercepted the ball halfway and turned around and handed it to Cazorla who was like the wind.

Santi Cazorla dribbled the ball straight into the Manchester City penalty area, and Walcott and Griezmann on both wings were also pressing quickly.

Cazorla dribbled the ball to the right, and Nastasic winked at Kolo Toure and pressed forward to defend.

The Spanish attacking midfielder magically pulled to the right, deceiving Nastasic's center of gravity, then turned his center of gravity to the left and accelerated, passing him.

Then, the ball was passed to his left foot, making an angled arc without any hesitation.

Griezmann arrived and fired a volley at the near post.

Joe Hart was unprepared for the ball that came roaring towards him.

He didn't know how he was shot in the blink of an eye.

Obviously it was Manchester City who had the ball a few seconds ago, and the ball was obviously still near the center circle.

Hart watched blankly as the ball hit the goal and the score became [-]-[-].

(End of this chapter)