"5:1!"
"Bayern is 4 goals down. If they want to advance, they need to score at least 4 goals in this match to have a chance of dragging it to extra time!"
"That's very difficult!"
"This season, Liverpool is the best defensive team in the entire Premier League, bar none!"
"Their average goals conceded per game is only 0.76!"
"And, while thinking about scoring, Bayern also has to be wary of Liverpool's counter-attacks!"
Less than 15 minutes into the match, Tendou had already dealt a critical blow to Bayern.
The difference between a 3-goal and a 4-goal deficit is huge.
They needed to score 4 goals, and not let Liverpool score again, just to have a chance of taking the match to extra time.
This meant that Bayern had to go on an all-out attack.
But once they did, it would surely give Liverpool many counter-attacking opportunities.
If they were caught once more, then they would truly have no hope left.
The match restarted.
Tendou continued his trick of popping up here and there. When he got the ball with an opportunity, he immediately burst through the center, putting great defensive pressure on Bayern.
Bayern did not dare to easily push their formation into Liverpool's half.
The opponent's trident and Tendou were all too threatening.
In the 20th minute, Tendou, with his back to goal, pulled the ball back, changed direction, and successively broke through Martínez and Thiago before sending a through pass to Firmino in the center.
The latter feinted past Süle and shot directly. Neuer charged out in advance and blocked the shooting lane, neutralizing the crisis.
It's hard to say if this strongest goalkeeper in German history is the strongest in all of history.
But Neuer's defensive range is definitely the largest of any goalkeeper in history.
Neuer launched a long ball to Noel in the attacking third.
The world's number one advanced with the ball and once again encountered Van Dijk's ruthless blockade.
Bayern now discovered another problem.
In the last match, Van Dijk was absent due to injury, and Liverpool's defensive line was not as suffocating as it is now.
Now that Van Dijk had returned, not to mention his one-on-one defending ability, just his ability to command and organize the defense had caused Bayern a lot of trouble.
Van Dijk.
The world's number one defender, often compared to Real Madrid's rival, Ramos.
And guess what?
Even the Real Madrid fans admit that Van Dijk's defensive ability is unparalleled.
The only advantage Ramos has over Van Dijk is his "sword-wielding" attribute.
The two world's number ones in different positions were engaged in a fierce battle.
It wasn't just a physical contest; the mental battle of wits was enough to fill an entire episode.
Thwack~
Tendou once again went for a slide tackle from behind.
His freakish Six Eyes gave the referee no chance. Even the opponent couldn't help but want to praise his clean but fierce tackles.
Liverpool won the ball in their own half.
Arnold received the ball and immediately sent it forward.
On the right wing, Salah immediately picked up speed and broke through, putting on a show of beating three players.
The Bayern fans, seeing this, felt like crying.
Just a moment ago it was Tendou beating multiple players, and now it was Salah. This Liverpool front line's individual ability was really too strong.
Salah went all the way to the byline and then crossed.
Firmino won the header and flicked it to the back post. Mané followed up with a volley and scored.
The score became 2:0!
The aggregate score was 6:1!
It's over!
The Bayern fans were already holding their heads in despair.
A 5-goal deficit. It could basically be said that there was no more suspense in this match.
Even the resilient Bayern players, facing this suffocating scoreline, felt a wave of helplessness.
In the 37th minute, Bayern still pressed forward. Ribéry cut inside from the wing and shot.
Matip hurriedly stuck out his foot to clear the ball, but the ball deflected off his leg, flew over Alisson, and into the goal.
An own goal!
Bayern had pulled one back. The score was 2:1!
Alisson spread his hands, speechless. Matip also raised his hand in frustration, signaling that it was his fault.
The Bayern fans gave some applause, but it was limited.
After all, Bayern now needed to rely on an own goal to score. How could they possibly come back against Liverpool like this?
They felt that getting a draw in this match would be a good result.
It turns out the Bayern fans were thinking too much.
In the 41st minute of the match, the Liverpool players were completely unaffected by the own goal.
With the boost of morale and resilience, their offense was unstoppable.
On a counter-attacking opportunity, Tendou hit the ball into the Bayern penalty area.
After a series of small-scale, rapid passes, Arnold swept the ball with force from the center of the box through a crowd of players.
There were too many people, and it was too chaotic. Neuer couldn't judge where the ball would fly out from.
Arnold had scored another goal.
The score was 3:1. The aggregate score was 7:2. The gap was back to 5 goals!
The first half ended.
In the second half, Liverpool began to sit back in their own half, defending their lead.
With a 5-goal lead, they no longer needed to attack.
People also saw why Liverpool was the team with the fewest goals conceded in the Premier League.
In the second half, the entire Bayern army pressed forward, taking 9 frantic shots, 2 on target, but not a single goal was scored.
With Liverpool defending with all their might, the Southern Kings felt as if they were facing the Wailing Wall.
3:1!
This was the final score of the match.
Liverpool had thrashed Bayern Munich 7:2 on aggregate and advanced to the quarterfinals!
This result left many Bayern fans dumbfounded.
The Liverpool fans didn't care.
They were singing and dancing, celebrating the victory at the Allianz Arena.
Zhang Hehe was completely stunned.
"Director Zhang, what do you have to say?"
Zhan Jun raised his eyebrows triumphantly, his joy from a moment ago overflowing.
"Uh, I must admit, this year's Liverpool is the biggest favorite to win the Champions League."
What to say?
What else could be said?
This was Bayern, and they had been invited for a "7-Up" by Liverpool. Who could beat them now?
Probably only teams like Manchester City, Barcelona, and Real Madrid.
But, just as Zhang Hehe was thinking this, another match was being played at the same time.
Real Madrid versus Ajax.
Real Madrid, who had won the first leg 2:1 away from home, in the second leg, back at their home ground, the Bernabéu, they were actually thrashed 4:1 by Ajax. With an aggregate score of 5:3, Ajax advanced to the next round.
And Real Madrid, after achieving the Champions League three-peat, had tragically earned the "Round of 16 specialists" achievement!
The only thing that could comfort the Real Madrid fans was that the CR7 who had left them, his Juventus team, had also been beaten 2:0 by Atlético Madrid, and had even been humiliated by Simeone's gesture after the match.
They were likely to hold hands and leave the Champions League together.
Of course, the Liverpool players didn't know about these things.
They were still celebrating the victory.
Kovač refused to shake Klopp's hand after the match and walked directly into the players' tunnel without any sportsmanship.
And Müller, he proactively walked up to Tendou and exchanged jerseys with him.
"Interested in playing in the Bundesliga?"
"Thank you, but I'm very happy playing at Liverpool."
Tendou declined Müller's invitation.
Liverpool's current lineup was very mature and could still play well for another few years.
In contrast, Bayern had many positions in their squad that needed to be updated. It was unknown how many years it would take to complete the rebuild.
"Don't be in a hurry to refuse me. Think about it more."
Tendou's refusal did not surprise Müller.
But he still wanted to try.
Now, he had also entered the twilight of his career. He had won most of the honors. Now, only his old club and the future of the national team were worth his concern.
However, his good intentions would probably not be accepted by Tendou.
Bayern's luck in the Ballon d'Or was not strong enough.
If Tendou were to leave Liverpool in the future, his next stop would most likely be Real Madrid or Barcelona.
The dominance of the duo of superstars was not only related to the strength of Messi and Ronaldo but also had a lot to do with the strategies that Barcelona and Real Madrid chose at the time.
Back then, whether it was Real Madrid or Barcelona, the super-luxurious lineups they built were all to serve Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi.
To be able to win and also get great stats, that is the dream of a star player.
...
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