From the very first minute, Paris Saint-Germain sent a clear message:
No one was going to stop them. They had come for all three points.
Liverpool, however, did not act rashly. They first dropped their shape deeper and gave Paris Saint-Germain space.
In the eleventh minute.
"Paris Saint-Germain's midfield trio is positioned very clearly. Their spacing is obviously based on each player's role."
"Rabiot is slightly higher on the right, deliberately avoiding Leo Lin, who is also positioned toward Liverpool's right."
"They're both on the right side, but because they're facing different directions, Rabiot can just about avoid Leo Lin on the pitch."
"Marquinhos is on Leo Lin's side, while Di María is pushed higher up, staying close to Henderson. This makes Paris's midfield progression much smoother."
"As long as Rabiot can get past Wijnaldum, he can complete the midfield carry."
Rabiot's role in midfield was mainly about transition. Whenever space appeared, he would immediately drive forward with the ball without the slightest pause.
In the sixteenth minute.
"Rabiot's dribbling through the middle is still excellent. Long legs, big strides. Every step forward takes him nearly half a meter up the pitch."
"Facing Wijnaldum, he doesn't try to beat him. He plays it right instead. Meunier gets the ball and sends it back in."
"Wijnaldum can't defend two players by himself. The ball returns to Rabiot, and Di María is calling for it."
Rabiot immediately played a straight pass to Di María. Di María controlled it lightly, then turned and pressed forward.
Di María laid the ball off to Cavani as he dropped back. Cavani took two steps back, received Di María's touch, then pushed the ball forward again into the penalty area.
"Di María! A brilliant decoy run!"
Cavani's pass went straight into Di María's path. The moment Di María got the ball, he adjusted with one step and was about to shoot, but Lovren stretched out a leg in time to block him.
Van Dijk followed up to double-team him. The two of them closed around the relatively slender Di María and completed the defensive stop.
Although Liverpool's defensive success rate was high, Paris Saint-Germain were clearly the side controlling the match.
"Liverpool have been taking pressure ever since the match began. This may be part of their tactical plan, but they can't keep doing this for too long."
"If they stay passive for too long, sooner or later cracks will appear in their back line, and that will give the opponent a chance to score."
Scholes found it strange, because in his memory, Liverpool did not play this kind of football. This style simply should not appear on Liverpool.
As Paris Saint-Germain's attack came to an end, Liverpool's shape began to push higher. The familiar mad pressing returned.
Leo Lin was in the middle, driving his teammates forward. The opening spell had only been Liverpool's time to adapt to Paris's tactical system.
Now they were used to it, and Leo Lin had already found Paris's weak point.
"Diagonal. We need to use diagonal passing, especially through the middle."
"To make their progression easier, they'll stagger the positions of Rabiot, Marquinhos, and Di María. On the surface, it looks like they can defend both vertical and horizontal space, but if we can play straight passes at forty-five or sixty-degree angles, we can create one-on-one space."
This was the countermeasure Klopp's coaching staff had developed before the match.
As Paris Saint-Germain's tactical approach revealed itself over the first dozen minutes, it proved that Klopp's plan was workable.
Next, it was Liverpool's turn to strike.
In the twenty-seventh minute.
Liverpool's players ran at high speed. They were not chasing the ball, but locking onto Paris players. Man-to-man defending, staying close, constantly engaging physically, and disrupting the space for Paris players to receive the ball.
Wijnaldum kept close to Rabiot, preventing him from receiving possession.
To take on the responsibility of playing the ball out, Marquinhos was forced to drop back again and again to help the back line.
But that meant he could not form a timely defensive screen against Leo Lin in midfield. Liverpool's tactical plan had worked.
This was more like a test, or perhaps a kind of torment.
Liverpool first used that tormenting movement and pressure to force Marquinhos to take on the responsibility of building from the back.
Leo Lin then began searching for opportunities in the central-right area, using the space Marquinhos had left behind.
In the thirty-seventh minute.
"After their early advantage, Paris are now finding it very difficult to play out."
"Liverpool have once again driven the Paris players back into their own half."
"Kimpembe has the ball at the back and is looking for a passing lane. Rabiot is being marked too tightly, so he can only give it to Marquinhos."
Marquinhos had only just received the ball when Solanke charged at him like a madman. If this were not a football pitch, Marquinhos would have every reason to suspect the man in front of him was insane.
The Brazilian Defensive Midfielder panicked and launched a long ball forward to avoid making a mistake at the back. Wijnaldum outmuscled Rabiot and headed it on to the left.
Robertson received the ball and immediately made a wide switch. On the right, Arnold did not take a touch. He met Robertson's pass and calmly knocked it sideways.
The instant Leo Lin received the ball in the middle, he pushed it forward by about a meter, then exploded into motion.
Leo Lin began to drive forward, faster than Rabiot and with a clearer direction.
In two or three strides, he reached the edge of the Paris penalty area, advancing like an army pressing down on the border.
Marquinhos arrived late and tried to make an Interception.
Leo Lin gave the ball a gentle push toward the right, then played a forward through ball just like Di María, finding Salah waiting on the right.
Salah started his run the moment Leo Lin passed, faster than Bernat.
On the right side of the penalty area, Salah was already almost one-on-one when he received the ball. He then stopped sharply, cut inside, beat Kimpembe again, and lifted his foot to shoot in front of the goalkeeper.
"Bang!"
"Thiago Silva makes the block!"
"There's still space!"
The ball struck Thiago Silva and bounced back to the top of the penalty arc. Leo Lin, who had just made the pass, got the ball again and lashed a shot.
Kimpembe still wanted to block it, but the ball kept rising toward the top-left corner, flying over Kimpembe's outstretched left foot and continuing upward.
Just when it looked as if it was about to fly into the stands, it struck the crossbar and bounced into the net.
"OOOOOOOOOOO!"
"Lin!"
"The opening goal!"
"We all thought Paris Saint-Germain were pinning Liverpool back after the opening whistle. We were wrong."
"Liverpool weren't being pinned back. They did it on purpose."
"The moment they hit back, Liverpool immediately reclaimed the rhythm of the match and found the gap in Paris Saint-Germain's back line."
"Perfectly timed movement and passing, a Fast Break / Quick Transition, a precise through ball, and sharp instincts."
"Leo Lin can do the work of three Paris Saint-Germain players all by himself."
"He can carry the ball forward, play forward through balls, and drop back to protect the defense."
"This is an all-around Midfielder."
"A true all-around Midfielder!"
...
If you'd like to support my work and unlock advanced chapters, you can follow me on p-@-treon.
p-@-treon/GhostParser (65 Chapters Ahead)
You can also follow as a free member to read a few advanced chapters.