Football: My AI System Provides Max-Level Predictions

So the differences in the forwards on the field also brought a disparity in ball possession between the two teams.

"Mauro, if you can't get the ball up front, come back to receive it!"

Van Gaal gestured for Icardi to drop back a little.

In a football match, it's very dangerous for a center forward not to touch the ball for a long time, as it means their feel and focus will keep diminishing.

In this situation, the center forward will consciously drop back to receive the ball.

Despite this, the first 30 minutes saw Manchester United and Manchester City locked in a stalemate.

However, in some individual battles, Icardi was really tormented by Ranocchia!

Tang Long's pre-match comment wasn't wrong; the two people in this world who know Icardi best are now at Manchester City.

As a passer, Tang Long knows Icardi's positioning and receiving habits best;

And as a defender, former Inter captain Ranocchia knows all of Icardi's tricks inside out.

In previous intra-team training matches, the two often faced off, and back then, Icardi would proactively share his insights on battling defenders with Ranocchia.

So when Icardi played the ball with the outside of his foot, Ranocchia behind him immediately knew he was going to turn, and with a lean of his body, he knocked him over!

When Icardi swung his arm, Ranocchia knew this guy surely intended to jump early, so Ranocchia followed suit and jumped too, not letting Icardi get even a touch on the ball.

In the moment of a one-on-one, Icardi lightly poked the ball to the right, and without even thinking, Ranocchia knew this move was just a feint.

Sure enough, in the last step, Icardi used his right foot to pull the ball to the left;

Before he even had a chance to shoot with his left foot, Ranocchia made a sliding tackle, his long legs taking out both the ball and Icardi!

In summary, when Icardi sticks out his butt, Ranocchia knows exactly what he's up to.

"Damn, how can I not get past him!"

Laying on the ground, Icardi complained.

In just 30 minutes, there wasn't a clean spot on his jersey, all covered with the fresh mud of Old Trafford.

Ranocchia slipped his hands under Icardi's armpits and gently lifted him up from the ground as if he were picking up a small teddy bear at home.

"Keep going, Mauro, show me all you got, don't let me look down on you!"

Originally wanting to argue with Ranocchia, Icardi turned and saw his former captain, taller than him by a whole head, looking at him with a sinister smile;

Muttering to himself, Icardi simply ran off, away from Ranocchia, and sought to find some presence against another central defender, Kompany.

In the 36th minute of the match, De Bruyne delivered a precise curved through ball from the midfield, with Icardi and Kompany racing for speed!

After finally securing the ball, he was faced with Kompany standing in front of him like a towering mountain.

Icardi suddenly felt smothered, while the dark-skinned Kompany stared at him like a fierce gorilla.

Icardi executed a "Mauro Rainbow Flick"!

This move was self-made, practiced many times in his own garden, and he believed it to be particularly effective against tall defenders like Kompany.

But Icardi was inherently a goal poacher, and despite being raised in La Masia, his footwork was average.

Yet, this slow-moving rainbow flick fortuitously nutmegged Kompany!

Just as he was about to rejoice, Kompany, unperturbed, stretched his long leg to hook the ball back, turning smoothly, and his hip pressed right against Icardi's waist, making him cry out in pain.

Kompany passed the ball to Fernando, and after an exchange with Yaya Toure, Fernando immediately passed the ball on to Tang Long.

At this moment, a cheer erupted from the south stand of Old Trafford!

Of course, this cheer wasn't for Manchester City's attack, but rather the Red Devils' fans saw number 7, Icardi, sprinting back from the front, closing in on Tang Long!

"Catch him, catch him, Mauro!"

"Well done, tracking back after losing the ball, you're as responsible as Rooney!"

"This is the Manchester United spirit, the never-give-up Manchester United spirit!"

"Go, Icardi!"

Icardi knew his tracking back from the front had won the fans' applause. He was a bit carried away and, while closing in on Tang Long, didn't look where the ball was, going after his ankle with a swing.

Tang Long stumbled, glanced at Icardi out of the corner of his eye, and chose to keep his balance.

If he had taken a dive, it would have been a free kick in the attacking third, but he didn't, just to toy with this lad.

Icardi was originally a forward, aggressive in defense but insufficient in technique;

How could he guard against Tang Long's dazzling array of moves to come?

A Matthews' move followed by a spin, Tang Long dazzled, and Icardi lost his balance, landing on his butt with a thud, like a dog eating dirt!

After being knocked over by Kompany and Tang Long consecutively, Icardi was instantly infuriated.

Are you both doing this to me on purpose?

One uses his body, the other uses skills, determined to knock me over, right?

I'll bite you!

So after Tang Long completed the dribble, while going down the sideline inside the box, Icardi chased after Tang Long like a mad dog, relentlessly.

Tang Long seemed to have eyes on his back, flicked the ball with his heel and passed it to the advancing Kolarov.

"Mauro, watch Sterling at the front post, I'll cover him!"

Right-back Valencia noticed Icardi's struggles in defense and told him to head into the box to keep Sterling in check with Smolin, instead of causing confusion here, and he himself went out to single-handedly defend Kolarov.

Kolarov had faced Manchester United many times.

He knew Valencia was a full-back known for his speed, and against such a defender, forceful play wasn't an option.

So after Valencia drew out of position, Kolarov immediately knocked the ball back to Tang Long.

By this time, after a few passes, Tang Long had found a gap at the top corner of the penalty area;

After receiving the ball steadily, he gently looked up and took a quick glance into the box~

That look sent chills down the spines of all Manchester United players!

Bang!

Tang Long swung his leg up, using the instep of his left foot to sweep the ball toward the near post — targeting Sterling!

This kind of sweeping ball into the box doesn't necessarily have to go directly on goal but flies towards the goal;

During this process, whether it's a player from our side or the opponent's, if a foot touches it and causes deflection, it poses a threat.

"Mine!"

Icardi saw through Tang Long's intention, reached out a foot just before Sterling could touch the ball, and steadily cushioned it into the goal!

Icardi scored!

The assist came from Tang Long!

Seeing Tang Long and Icardi reconnect after days, the former Inter sweet bomb combination reappearing in the Premier League, the live broadcast chat was filled with emotion.

- [Tang Long assists Icardi to score! It's back, that familiar feeling is all back!]

- [It's like I'm back to the days of watching Serie A at 3:30 in the morning!]

- [Apart from Icardi, there's no one in the Premier League who can score such an enchanting goal!]

- [I knew Icardi would seize the near post; he used to love catching Tang Long's near post passes when at Inter!]

- [That near-post cushion shot was beautiful, whether in terms of angle or strength, it was perfect, De Gea had no reaction at all!]

- [Ha ha, what kind of reaction was De Gea supposed to have, punch Icardi?]

- [Icardi is still trying hard, but his efforts are just a bit off target.]

Icardi, exasperated, knelt on the ground, pounding the turf heavily with his hand.

"I, I actually scored an own goal..."

And damn it, it was passed by Tang Long...

He's pissed!

Ah, ah, ah, ah!

He pounded a hollow in the ground, and looked up to find the Manchester United fans, who were cheering enthusiastically for his defensive effort just seconds ago, now looking at him with furrowed brows, like they were staring at an idiot.

Icardi, scoring his first career own goal, achieved a milestone in his life.

He just didn't expect this milestone to happen during a match against Manchester City.

He felt so down that even the comfort from his teammates elicited only a wave of his hand.

As a former teammate and ex-captain, Manchester City's main center-back Ranocchia felt somewhat responsible, and decided to comfort this former locker room junior.

Ranocchia came over, put an arm around Icardi's shoulder, and said:

"Mauro, I know you intended to clear the ball, but your foot position was off. When clearing, your foot arch should definitely angle outward. You cushioned it inward just now, so if you didn't score, who would?"