Chapter 615 - 317: Barça's Heart is Also Moved

In the away team's locker room at the Camp Nou, Klopp was talking endlessly about tactics.

He was already prepared to make substitutions at any time in the second half.

As for what he said before the match about not making substitutions unless necessary?

He had already forgotten.

The high-press tactic has many advantages, but it also has disadvantages.

The biggest disadvantage is, naturally, that it is extremely draining on the players' stamina.

Therefore, substitutions in the second half are a must.

Even though he knew that no player would be willing to be substituted off midway through such a crucial battle.

After finishing the tactics, he first praised the performance of Arnold and the others, and then singled out Tendou.

"TJ, your performance in the first half was flawless!"

"Continue to use your ability to help the team! We will go all the way and lift that damn trophy!"

"Don't forget, you're still two goals away from your promise to the fans!"

"..."

Applause echoed through the locker room.

Henderson started it, and the others followed suit.

Without Salah, without Firmino, at this moment, Tendou had clearly become the leader carrying Liverpool forward.

Even players like Wijnaldum, Keïta, and Fabinho, who had a positional conflict with Tendou, were convinced by the strength he displayed.

Tendou nodded in response.

The atmosphere in the Liverpool locker room was perfectly arranged by Klopp.

The German also nodded in satisfaction.

Now, Liverpool was united as one. Only such a team could go all the way.

...

15 minutes passed.

The second half of the match began quickly.

Liverpool and Barça did not make any substitutions, maintaining their starting lineups. The smell of gunpowder was thick.

"Liverpool kicks off! They continue to maintain their strong momentum, actively stepping into Barça's half!"

In the broadcast room, Zhan Jun secretly pumped his fist.

Against a team like Barça, the more you retreat, the more dangerous it becomes.

Because if you retreat, they will press forward, surrounding your goal and bombarding it.

The best defense is a good offense.

Of course, the premise is that you must be on the same level as Barça. If it were a bottom-of-the-league team like Cardiff City, then it would be better to honestly sit back in your own box.

On the screen, Tendou's forward runs had clearly increased.

He was eager to equalize the score as soon as possible and get the match back on the starting line.

On the field, Tendou had not yet received a pass from a teammate, but he was already being constantly followed by a Barça player.

And when a teammate sent the ball over, two people would immediately come up to press him, not letting him play comfortably and disrupting his rhythm.

This was one of Valverde's targeted defensive tactics at halftime.

Tendou, without stopping the ball, flicked it with his instep and turned.

Then he dodged the defender and sprinted forward.

On the left, Mané was in a standoff with Coutinho.

"Sadio!"

Tendou shouted for the ball, at the same time subtly pointing forward.

Mané understood, immediately made a diagonal back pass, and accelerated forward.

Tendou followed, caught up to the ball, and without stopping, poked it forward. The ball immediately changed its course and shot straight towards the space he had pointed to.

Man and ball arrived at the same time.

Mané regained control of the ball and broke through on the wing.

A classic one-two!

Liverpool had broken through Barça's defense.

Just before Alba could close him down, Mané sent a cross from the wing.

Tendou quickly made a forward run into the Barça box. With his heaven-defying physical resistance and hang time, he once again beat Piqué.

He met the ball with his head!

BANG!

The ball smashed against the crossbar and bounced back.

Before Liverpool could make their next move, Lenglet booted the ball out of the Barça box.

Barça had escaped.

"Ah~"

A chorus of sighs came from the Liverpool fans' stand.

Barça had escaped.

On the sidelines, Valverde also breathed a sigh of relief.

Barça had become much more honest at the start of the second half.

However, this was to feign weakness.

Valverde's 4-4-2, many people said it was not suitable for Barça.

Especially at the start of the season, Barça, who was used to playing a 4-3-3, could not adapt to this tactic at all.

The results were also unsatisfactory.

Valverde was not rigid and did not insist on using the 4-4-2 formation.

But without a good holding midfielder, a 4-3-3 formation cannot be supported.

With Xavi and Iniesta gone, and a lack of explosive players on the wings, for Barça to play a 4-3-3 was to seek their own doom.

And in modern football, the midfield is a battleground.

Playing a 4-4-2 could make Barça's midfield more competitive.

So Barça played better and better. Now, after a season, the players had gotten used to the 4-4-2 and had passed the painful transition period.

The match continued.

The halftime break had allowed the Barça players to calm down.

In the forty-ninth minute, Messi cut inside horizontally and took a powerful shot with his left foot. But his shot was too straight, and Alisson easily collected the ball.

"We can see that Barça has become more proactive in the second half!"

"Valverde, as he said before the match, did not choose a conservative strategy!"

"Yes, but I feel that this probably wasn't Barça's initial plan. Valverde probably feels that if he sits deep, he will still concede goals."

Zhang Hehe chimed in.

Liverpool had set-piece tactics.

Placing Tendou at the forefront of the team would make Liverpool's set pieces even more threatening.

Although Salah was absent, and Liverpool couldn't fly with both wings, Mané was still there.

Every time Liverpool gets a set piece, Barça is in danger.

Valverde was very wary of Tendou playing as a center forward.

In the last match, Klopp had moved Tendou's position back, thinking of having him do the defensive work, while the front line was charged by the two wingers, with Wijnaldum as the attacking midfielder organizing the attack.

At that time, Valverde hadn't thought this kid was that amazing.

Now, Klopp had moved his position to the very front of the team, letting Tendou go all out on the attack. That destructive power made Valverde's blood run cold.

He can head the ball, he can kick the ball.

Such a big center forward is too perfect!

"What is the probability that we can get him in the summer window?"

In a private box, the then-president of Barça, Bartomeu, stared at Tendou without blinking.

"His release clause with Liverpool is 200 million Euros. To get him, we would need to spend at least 150 million."

The person next to him spoke, telling him to give up on this idea.

Although they had received over 200 million Euros after selling Neymar, Barça's finances had not been particularly healthy in recent years.

With Messi on the team, they simply couldn't afford Tendou.

One had to know, Messi's current contract was signed in 2017 and would last until the end of 2020.

This 4-year contract had shocked all of Europe at the time because its maximum value could reach 550 million Euros.

Although there were many floating clauses, to keep Messi, Barça had to bleed a lot.

Now, it would be difficult for them to afford a second superstar.

So, it was impossible for them to get Tendou from Liverpool.

As far as he knew, many giant clubs in Europe were eyeing this kid, including their mortal enemies, Real Madrid.