Chapter 566: Eriksen
On the evening of April 18th, in a Premier League match for Round 35, Manchester United faced Bournemouth away. Eddie Howe, hailed as one of the best English football managers over the past decade, saw his team put up a strong fight at home, but it only lasted an hour.
In the 63rd minute, Harry Kane scored the opening goal for United, assisted by a selfless pass from Bruno. Despite being in a good position to shoot himself, Bruno chose to pass to Kane, who was in a better position, helping the England striker net his 30th Premier League goal of the season. This marked a new career-high for Kane, surpassing his previous record of 29 goals from last season. After scoring, Kane was the first to run towards Bruno in celebration.
Ten minutes later, Herrera's tactical corner led to Lingard crossing from the right side of the box, allowing Smalling to score with a close-range tap-in. Towards the end of the match, Mbappé sealed the victory with another goal for Manchester United.
The game ended 3-0 in favor of Manchester United. Despite being tightly marked by Bournemouth, Bruno's unselfish play and assist were widely praised by the media, fans, and teammates, especially in the dressing room.
With this win and an extra match played, Manchester United temporarily extended their lead at the top of the table to nine points.
On the weekend, while other Premier League teams played their Round 35 matches, Manchester United faced Tottenham Hotspur at the new Wembley Stadium in the FA Cup semi-finals. Under Mauricio Pochettino, Tottenham had performed exceptionally well in recent seasons, finishing third last season behind Manchester United and Chelsea. This season, after 34 rounds and one game less, they were fourth in the league, trailing only the Manchester clubs and Liverpool.
Tottenham had impressive results at the new Wembley Stadium this season, with only two home losses: the first league match against Chelsea (1-2) and a recent defeat to Manchester City (1-3). Even Manchester United only managed a 2-2 draw here. Liverpool and Arsenal both lost, 1-4 and 0-1 respectively. In Europe, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund both suffered 1-3 defeats, and APOEL lost 0-3. The only other loss was 1-2 to Juventus, which knocked them out of the Champions League.
Given their strong home record and the close call in their previous visit, Manchester United approached the new Wembley with caution. Mourinho deployed a 4-3-3 formation, with Herrera and Kante as the defensive midfielders, ready for a tough match.
Despite United's cautious approach, Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen broke the deadlock in the 11th minute. After a midfield dribble, he executed a one-two with a teammate, sending a cross from the right for Dele Alli to score.
"GOOOOOOOOOOOOOALLLLL!"
The entire Wembley erupted in celebration, with countless fans chanting Eriksen's name. In their first season using Wembley as their home ground and with their excellent form, Tottenham attracted crowds of over 80,000 for matches against fellow top-six teams. Today's FA Cup semi-final saw nearly a full house, with an attendance of 87,532, including about 5,000 United fans.
As he walked to the center circle, Bruno glanced at the stands, seeing a sea of white. He then looked at Eriksen, surrounded by his teammates in celebration, and remarked, "What a great opponent!"
Bruno was familiar with Eriksen. The Danish midfielder was affectionately known by Chinese Tottenham fans as "Love God." "Love" came from his name and the fact that he was born on Valentine's Day; "God" symbolized his extraordinary talent, often rescuing the team in critical moments.
Since joining Tottenham five years ago, Eriksen quickly established himself, taking over from his predecessor Modric as the team's midfield commander. Under Pochettino, his offensive talents flourished, consistently producing double figures in goals and assists each season, making him one of the Premier League's hottest midfielders.
Many media outlets compared him to Bruno, Manchester City's De Bruyne, and Arsenal's Özil, calling them the Premier League's top four midfielders. Eriksen's consistent performance attracted interest from top clubs across Europe. Despite big-name players like Harry Kane and Kyle Walker being sold, Tottenham and Pochettino refused to let go of Eriksen, showing how much they valued him.
In addition to Eriksen, Tottenham's attack featured former Real Madrid talent Alvaro Morata, English prodigy Dele Alli, and South Korean star Son Heung-min. Tottenham's style was aggressive, their players highly skilled, and Pochettino's four-year tenure had molded them into a formidable team.
Pochettino's preferred formations were 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3, with Eriksen's connection to the front three being crucial. This was something the United coach emphasized, but in the early minutes, United's defensive midfielders failed to execute, allowing Eriksen to create the assist for the opening goal.
This left Ander Herrera, responsible for marking Eriksen, feeling awkward. Bruno noticed this and, while walking back, clapped vigorously and shouted, "It's only eleven minutes, let's stay calm and defend well. We'll have our chances."
As the team captain and undisputed star, Bruno's words carried significant weight in the dressing room. Herrera nodded in appreciation.
Seeing the players return to their positions, the United coach called Herrera and Kante over, instructing them to tightly mark Eriksen and cut off his connections with the front three. This defensive adjustment aimed to minimize Tottenham's attacking threat, allowing United to regain control.
Sometimes, football tactics can be straightforward. Effective adjustments can change the game's flow. After the restart, Tottenham maintained their momentum but slowed their attack. United's defensive midfielders tightened their marking on Eriksen, wary of United's counterattacks.
Bruno's exceptional individual skills and vision were well-known across Europe. This season, he had become United's backbone, their key player. Pochettino understood the danger of leaving space for Bruno's counterattacks, so after scoring early, he smartly had his team slow the pace and play steadily.
Pochettino also focused on defending against Bruno. Similar to how United targeted Eriksen, Tottenham knew Bruno was United's core. Whenever Bruno had the ball, Tottenham players, usually Dembele or Dier, immediately pressed him, limiting his impact. Bruno responded by increasing his movement, trying to create space for his teammates, but with limited success.
Bruno remained patient, continuing to move actively and seek opportunities. After Mourinho's adjustments and with Tottenham easing their attack, the next twenty minutes saw few chances for either side, and Eriksen's threat temporarily waned.
United intercepted a ball in defense, launching a long pass to the right side. Ibrahimović reached the ball but was tightly marked by Tottenham's Vertonghen, forcing him to pass back to the advancing Bruno. As soon as Bruno received the ball, Dembele and left-back Ben Davies abandoned Ibrahimović and closed in on him.
With two players forming a wall in front of him, Bruno turned to shield the ball, but they kept pressing in a fan formation. Seeing Gündoğan in the middle and Ibrahimović behind him, Bruno realized he couldn't pass forward and began to retreat, knowing the defenders wouldn't follow him too far. Eriksen rarely defended, so once the two opponents moved out, Gündoğan would have a chance.
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