Supposedly, it should have been Martin OâNeill managing Leicester City, but since he was currently managing Manchester City, Richard thought the manager would be some unknown name. He never imagined that the one in charge would be David Moyes.
Richard began reviewing Leicester Cityâs first seven matches of the season under Moyes, reading the analysis with great interest. Although Moyesâs tactics were also conservative, they werenât "park the bus" footballârather, they were pragmatic.
This season, Leicester had not only climbed the table but had also beaten Chelsea and Tottenham at home!
And now, they had defeated Liverpool at Anfield. On top of that, they had managed to draw with both Manchester United and Arsenal at home. In the latest round, they comfortably defeated Leeds United at Elland Road.
After seven matches, Leicester held four wins and three drawsâan unbeaten recordâmatching Manchester Unitedâs five wins and two draws. In terms of results, Moyesâs side had drawn three times against top-tier teams as clear underdogs, which was already a remarkable achievement. For a club like current Leicester, taking points off traditional giants was no small feat.
Richard deemed Moyesâ tactical approach reasonable, believing there was nothing wrong with a weaker side adopting a defensive posture. Fundamentally, Leicester still aimed to win from that defensive baseâsimilar to ArsĂšne Wengerâs Arsenal, who relied heavily on structured counter-attacking.
In fact in their match, had Arsenal not scored a late equalizer, Leicesterâs list of top teams they had frustrated would have included the Gunners as well.
"Hmmm..." Richard rubbed his chin.
In conclusion, he felt that this seasonâs lucrative Premier League broadcasting contracts and the expanded Champions League qualification had directly encouraged teams to approach matches with less pure attacking intent.
Or because of Manchester United?
Everyone knew Manchester United were treated like UEFAâs golden child this season. Even though they finished third last year, they were still allowed into the Champions League. If that wasnât favoritism, then what was?
Richard suspected that Rupert Murdoch was behind it. Since he wanted to buy Manchester United, he might have pulled some strings so that once he became the clubâs owner, he could immediately see his team compete in Europeâs top tournament.
Too bad the deal was blocked.
Richard shook his head,
âNo, itâs not like that...â
In the past, only the league champions could enter the Champions League, so when the points gap widened, only one or two teams would push themselves to keep up, which encouraged attacking football. But now, even the second-placed team could qualify. And perhaps clubs in third place believed they might receive the same treatment United did.
That was one of Richardâs hypothesesâespecially in head-to-head clashes between giants, as everyone feared losing these points could create a dangerous gap in the standings. Another hypothesis was simple: staying in the Premier League had become extremely profitable.
In the past, mid-table and lower-table sides had virtually no chance of reaching Europe, and the prize money from domestic competitions was barely enough. Because of that, clubs could afford to play in the style fans lovedâwhether it was attacking football or a rough, physical approach.
They played freely because the financial stakes were much lower. But now, under the revamped Premier League system, the financial reward for simply remaining in the top flight was enormous.
Broadcast revenue alone offered over six million pounds per seasonâmore than double what it had been before. Because of this, even a single point earned against a top team wasnât just a draw; it could be the difference between survival and relegation at the end of the season.
For that reason, competition among the top clubs grew more cautious. So it wasnât only Champions League qualification that made teams desperateârelegation avoidance became just as critical. Every point mattered, turning even the dullest stalemate into a small victory for survival.
Richard closed the information he had just read and paid little mind to the current external noise.
What use was any of that? Would it earn City more points?
At present, Manchester City had become a target of the FA in the Premier League, inadvertently benefiting the big four and other teams that preferred to win through less honorable means.
This situation once again pushed the club back into the spotlight.
Richard felt irritated by the FA, but he chose not to engage with those opportunistic reporters who relished stirring the pot.
Phew, he exhaled before picking up a calendar.
To be honest, Cityâs schedule for the 38 league matches wasnât entirely filled with tough fixturesâespecially considering last seasonâs results. Only conceding fewer than 15 goals across four competitions was no joke.
This season, with the Premier League filled with managers like ArsĂšne Wenger, Gianluca Vialli, and GĂ©rard Houllier among the big fourâasking them to park the bus? What a joke. Ferguson was even less likely to resort to such tactics. As for the other teams, whether they parked the bus or not, that was because many simply couldnât match Cityâs strength or didnât bother trying. Losing was part of the game; there was no need to make themselves look utterly helpless.
At the heart of the matter was Cityâs squad depth. If Ronaldo, Okocha, Pirlo, and Larsson were all in peak form, they could easily beat Tottenham away from home.
"Letâs move on," Richard said to himself.
Before the third round of the Champions League began, City had three league matches and one League Cup game scheduled.
City seemed to be simmering with anger as they prepared to face newly promoted Charlton Athletic.
This time, OâNeill brought out all his rested first-team players for the weekend. The promoted side also tried to park the bus, hoping to steal an easy result from City, but they severely overestimated themselves. Even with everyone pulled back to defend, City took a commanding three-goal lead by halftime.
Henry completed a hat-trickâtwo with his left foot and one with his rightâbefore the first half ended.
Richard nodded at the display. Henryâs dribbling was truly impressive. Sure, Charlton had parked the bus, but they didnât have the depth of Arsenal or Liverpool, nor the tactical discipline of Grahamâs Spurs. Structurally, they appeared to have built a solid wall, with lines of defenders, midfielders, and even a forward layered across the pitch.
Yet their defenders only understood man-marking. Their focus stuck on Zidane and Trezeguet. Even if Richard criticized OâNeill for playing Zidane as a striker and putting Henry in the wide-left midfield role, he had to applaud how Trezeguet and Zidane sacrificed themselves as decoysâusing coordinated movement, passing, and support runs to create chance after chance for Henry, shattering Charltonâs supposed "bus."
In the second half, facing a three-goal deficit, Charlton pushed forward, which allowed City to play with even more freedom. They scored two more goals: this time, with defenders focusing on Henry, and Zidane - Trezeguet slipped free and each scored.
PHWEEEEE~
Full time: Charlton Athletic 0 â 5 Manchester City
Next came Everton, which ended in a draw. Cityâs players seemed confused after facing so many parked-bus tactics, almost expecting every team to play that way.
They were caught off-guard when Everton launched a surprise attack, scoring two quick goals at Maine Road. Still, City fought back with a Trezeguet brace and salvaged a hard-earned draw.
PHWEEEEE~
Full time: Manchester City 2 â 2 Everton
Richard wasnât discouraged. Even with the strongest lineup, victory was never guaranteedâthat was football. Moreover, although Everton struggled, they had invested in quality players before Joe Royle left. Their poor results were caused by mismanagement, not lack of ability. A team capable of scoring two away goals but failing to hold the lead was bound to flirt with relegation every season.
In late October, City traveled to Ewood Park to face Blackburn Rovers.
Four years earlier, Blackburn had been Premier League champions. Just one year earlier, they had qualified for the UEFA Cup. Some people even considered them dark horses for a title challenge.
But everything fell apart for the Rovers. They soon found themselves in a relegation battle.
Rumors spread that Roy Hodgson would lose his job by November. After being sacked by Inter Milan last year, many believed Hodgson was destined to return to the clubâespecially after Richardâs meeting with Moratti.
Some even, unbelievably, claimed that it was Richard Maddox who pushed Hodgson back into Interâs plans during that meeting.
Richard was speechless. First Zanetti and Zambrotta, and now his name was on their radar too?
Hodgsonâs Blackburn adopted a more free-spirited tactical approach. Like in Inter, he seemed to believe that the more aggressively they played, the better their chances of surviving the Premier League. This approach helped them avoid an early crisis.
In a thrilling attacking match, Manchester City claimed a 4â1 victory.
After the match against Blackburn, City recorded two wins and a draw in their next three league fixtures.
Meanwhile, league leaders Manchester United managed only one win, one draw, and one loss. This narrowed the gap to two points with Arsenalâgiving Ferguson a small sigh of relief, for Wenger was always breathing down his neck. At least they were keeping pace instead of falling into the role of early-season underdogs.
Cityâs League Cup draw also looked promising: Lincoln City first, then Notts County at home.
With a major Champions League battle approaching, Richard pushed OâNeill to use the League Cup to develop younger players, regardless of the result.
In defense, the focus was on LĂșcio, John Terry, Ledley King, and Wes Brown.
In midfield, the focus was on Wayne Bridge, Xabi Alonso, Joe Cole, Michael Carrick, Owen Hargreaves, Scott Parker, and Gareth Barry.
In front, focus on Etoâo and Ronaldinho.
For Richard, City no longer needed to prioritize domestic cups. They had several young talents who needed match time, and the senior players were focused on the league and Champions League. If the youngsters reached the final, he would also certainly push OâNeill to field the main squad for a shot at the trophy.
Although Notts County played conservatively away from home, they still dared to attack at timesâproviding valuable experience for Cityâs youth players.
Managing the reserves proved more demanding than directing the first team. Richard constantly reminded OâNeill and Mourinho from the sidelines to keep the youngsters moving and adjusting their tactics based on the opponentâs play.
In the end, thanks to Ronaldinhoâs brace and Etoâoâs goal, City earned a 3â0 home win over Notts County, advancing to the next round.
Now, it was time for the Champions League... but before that, Richard took OâNeillâs place and traveled to Paris, France.
It was time for the first Ballon dâOr ceremony.