Chapter 95 - Manchester City

The official match in England was begun with the Community Shield, which will feature Liverpool against Manchester United. In that match, Liverpool defeated Manchester United with a score of 2-0. Red Devils fans started the season with a loss. The disappointing thing was Manchester United playing so badly, every player seemed confused about what they should do.

People judged that the impact of losing Sir Alex was deeper than they thought. Will the Manchester United players who were always with Sir Alex accept Moyes' presence? It could only be answered when the season had run. However, it is too early to judge Moyes' work.

In London there, the Blues Chelsea also won the European Super Cup against Sevilla. Mourinho's team was now one of the favorites to win the Premier League besides Liverpool and Manchester City.

The first Premier League match will be preceded by a match between Chelsea and Tottenham. The Blues who claim to be the king of London will face the challenge from the Lilywhite. This match will be broadcast live by Sky Sports.

In that match, Tottenham surprisingly won. The match was so hot. There were 6 yellow cards and one red card that came out of the referee's pocket. Mourinho was very angry with the referee's decision, he issued accusations that some people didn't want to see Chelsea triumph in England. His words immediately brought sanctions from the FA. The final score of the match was 1-0, the goal was scored by Luminaire from the penalty spot.

The match between Southampton and Manchester City had arrived.

"Welcome everyone, back again with me, Jim Kaglin, in the first round of the Premier League between Southampton who will host their visitors Manchester City. This will be the first match between Manchester City and Southampton at the start of the season.

At the start of this season, Southampton had stirred up a youth storm. There were a lot of lads who did well last season, we'll see how they do this season. Despite being left out by a few main players, I think Southampton this season was stronger than last season.

Manchester City this season is not as vicious in summer transfers as in previous seasons. However, the quality of the players they had should not be underestimated.

It's hard to predict the outcome of this game, but I think Manchester City had the advantage over Southampton. Last season, City had beaten Southampton, could they repeat that result today? Or even Southampton, who can overthrow Manchester City in this first round? Let's look at the starting line-up of the two teams.

Goalkeepers: Dean Smith;

Defenders: Freddy, Okhalo, Hilton, Benson;

Defensive midfielders: Simone, Rudolf;

Attacking midfielders: Rustan, Ryan, Kounde;

Forward: Kazuki.

Meanwhile, Manchester City returned to using the 4-3-3 formation they often used last season.

Goalkeeper; Joe Hart

Defenders: Zabaleta, Kompany, Lescott, Kolarov

Midfielders: Yaya Toure, David Silva, Samir Nasri

Forwards: Aguero, Dzeko, Milner

With these two formations, which team will win? Let's see how the first half goes."

At the stadium, Southampton fans, filled the stadium to support Southampton. Many of them wore jersey number 9, Kazuki's new number. This season Southampton supporters were more optimistic about the club than last season, the good results Southampton achieved in pre-season games had also added to the confidence of Southampton fans.

On the pitch, Southampton started the first half kick-off. Kazuki exchanged passes with Ryan. Then Ryan kicked the ball back. Players on both teams move to adapt to the strategies they apply. Manchester City was not in a hurry to put pressure on Southampton. They let Southampton control the ball in the early game.

Over time, Manchester City had changed from a team that only relied on the individual skills of players to a team that was able to build good tactics. Their tactical abilities and execution were quite high. That's why many media believe this season Manchester City will be a Premier League challenger.

Back in the game, the attack that Southampton was trying to build failed when Kompany managed to intercept the ball. He cut Ryan's pass to Kazuki well. Manchester City was controlling the ball now. They did not rush to attack, under the control of Yaya Toure and David Silva, Manchester City took over the match.

In the 9th minute, Yaya Toure made an individual action and broke through Rudolf alone. Then he passed Dzeko, Hilton kept Dzeko well so the Manchester City player could only bounce the ball to David Silva who was preparing to break into the Southampton penalty box.

Silva took the ball into the Southampton penalty box. The Southampton players were careful with Silva's action, the Spaniard suddenly gave the ball to the right. Aguero slipped under Benson's watch, he then kicked the ball hard. But unfortunately, the ball flew over the post. The first chance that Manchester City had, failed to convert into a goal.

After these opportunities, the intensity of the match became higher. Manchester City had taken the opportunity again. In the 14th minute, David Silva made a long pass from far to the left. On the left-wing, Milner tried to get rid of Freddy's guard. Too bad Freddy could defend well, so Milner provided a pass back to Yaya Toure.

The former Barcelona player sent a cross from the left side to the middle of the penalty box. The ball curled into the middle of the penalty box. Edin Dzeko attempted to head the ball but failed. No player had managed to head the ball, so the ball spins towards the right side. Benson grabbed the ball as Aguero chased him, then he kicked the ball forward.

Simone received the ball with his chest, then he passed the ball to Ryan. Nasri rushed to Ryan and made a tackle, he dropped Ryan who was about to receive the ball. The referee blew the whistle and then gave a warning to Nasri. Southampton failed to launch a counter-attack.

In the 18th minute, Southampton launched the first threat. Rudolf managed to steal the ball from Yaya Toure's feet, he then sent the ball to Simone. The Southampton captain received the ball then avoided David Silva who was aiming for it, soon, he gave Rustan a pass. On the right, Rustan who received the ball immediately gave Ryan a pass and then ran fast-forward. Ryan adjusted his position and gave Rustan a through ball.

Rustan made it past Kolarov. But Lescott came and closed Rustan's space. At that time, Kazuki moved closer to the right. Rustan passed the ball to Kazuki. The Japanese player is now surrounded by Manchester City players. He defended the ball well and gave a straight pass to the right. Kounde appears Manchester City defenders turn to focus on Kounde. Manchester City's right-winger provided a pass to the center. Ryan, who had entered the penalty box, immediately kicked the ball strongly.. Too bad, Joe Hart caught the ball well.