Capítulo 26: A Tactical Gamble
Louis was warming up. The coaching staff had a tactic ready: when the situation couldn't be opened up, bringing Louis on was their ace in the hole. The only problem was deciding whom to replace.
Typically, Louis didn't have much ability to hold the ball in the front court. His strength lay in his movement off the ball—an opportunistic forward. It made sense to have Giroud cover for him. Replacing either of the wingers, Podolski on the left or Walcott on the right, would be a logical choice, just like in the last game, which had worked well.
But Wenger had other ideas.
"Substitute Diaby!" he instructed.
"Are you sure? If we replace Diaby, we'll have no dedicated defensive midfielder," an assistant cautioned.
"I'm sure," Wenger affirmed. "The opponent's strength isn't as formidable as we anticipated."
Initially, Wenger was wary of Montpellier, the defending champions of Ligue 1. But during the game, he realized their strength lay more in their defense than their offense. With this in mind, Wenger decided to take a risk: keep the wingers on both sides and replace the defensive midfielder.
"Maybe we should consider the two-center tactic more in the future," Wenger mused. If Louis continued to perform well in training and games, it would only be a matter of time before he earned a spot in the starting lineup. This made the idea of a two-center system logical—Wenger was no stranger to the 4-4-2 formation. During Arsenal's undefeated season, Henry and Bergkamp formed a lethal duo up front, supported by the solid midfield pairing of Vieira and Gilberto.
Now, however, Arsenal's biggest problem was their thin squad. Not only was the roster shallow, but the core players were also injury-prone. Cazorla, for instance, had frequent injury issues, and Wilshere was even more brittle. Diaby was crucial as the only full-time defensive midfielder, but keeping him healthy was a challenge. Wenger needed to rotate players to ensure their availability throughout the season.
"Louis is standing on the sidelines, preparing to come on. Arsenal is about to replace Diaby!" Sky Sports commentator Andy Gray exclaimed.
"Wenger is making a very bold and risky substitution! Forward Louis is replacing defensive midfielder Diaby!" The commentators were both puzzled and excited. Arsenal was setting up for an all-out attack in the final stage of the game.
When Louis stepped onto the pitch, Arsenal dominated the game with continuous attacks, putting Montpellier's defense under immense pressure. Montpellier responded by increasing the intensity of their physical play, trying to disrupt Arsenal's rhythm. The whistle blew frequently as Montpellier committed fouls, targeting Louis for his lack of experience.
"Pulling! Mbiwa pulled Louis to the ground!"
"Another foul! Mbiwa knocked Louis over!"
"Louis fell again. Montpellier's defense is focusing on him," Lineker commented on Sky Sports, shaking his head. "He should stay in the box more."
Louis, however, didn't heed Lineker's advice. He needed to keep running, finding opportunities to score. When Mbiwa knocked him over and taunted him, Louis snorted inwardly. He would find a way to outsmart him.
As Louis pulled to the edge of the penalty area, Cazorla passed the ball to him for a one-two. Mbiwa arrived, but Louis jumped slightly, causing Mbiwa to lose balance. Mbiwa was about to taunt Louis again, but Louis quickly got up, held the ball, and pushed it with the arch of his foot. Cazorla, seeing this, accelerated and received the pass.
The referee, with the whistle to his lips, allowed play to continue as Cazorla drove into the penalty area. Montpellier's defense was caught off guard, and Cazorla swept the ball past them with his left foot.
"Cazorla crosses the ball! Louis with a shovel shot from behind! Beautiful! Beautiful! One to two!!! Arsenal takes the lead!!"
Louis, who had entered the penalty area, slid in and shoveled the ball into the goal. He stood up quickly, looked at Mbiwa, spread his hands, and shrugged. "Hey, brother, where's that more violent collision you promised?" Infuriated, Mbiwa pushed Louis to the ground, feeling his pride had been wounded.
"Huh? What is Louis doing? Mbiwa. God! Mbiwa is losing it?! He pushed Louis to the ground!!"
"Chokehold! That's a red card move!!"
In the commentary box, the commentators were shocked.
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