Florent Malouda's impact on the season continues unabated and the creator of the first goal against Manchester United adds to the match analysis by discussing the strategy at the start of the game.
The left winger's strong run, shrugging off challenges from Antonio Valencia and Darren Fletcher before he crossed for Joe Cole's crafty finish, was the culmination of 20 minutes of good possession football by the visitors, but it was possession football played at a high tempo as Malouda explains:
'When a team is playing in a Champions League game it gives a lot of energy. That is why we started the game against Manchester United quickly because we knew that if we played with high intensity, they could have some problems having played midweek.
'We tried to control the game when we had the ball and with the runs and the problems we caused them, I think they were more tired than us in the first half.
'It was more difficult in the second half,' he admits. 'It was a really tough game but we played really well and for us it means a lot after the bad week we had 10 days ago. We reacted in the best way.
'After the game everybody was really tired but if we can play the same way until the end of the season there will be no problem.'
It has been unusual for Malouda not to be looking for Didier Drogba's runs inside and ahead of him at the start of the past two games. He was not surprised to see the big striker make an instant impact when he was eventually called from the bench.
'Didier reacted in the perfect way,' Malouda says. 'We have a strong squad and we know we are at the top because we have scored a lot of goals with and without Didier. Last week we won against Villa so the manager gave starts to the same team and Didier fully understands that.'
Malouda and Drogba have known each other well since they were team-mates at Guingamp seven years ago and Drogba is delighted England is seeing the football from Malouda that gave him such a big reputation in France.
'Everybody recognises his talent now,' Drogba says. 'It has been difficult for him to change leagues and also he had quite a few injuries at first but every time he has played this season he was good.
'He is not the type of player who will do many skills but he is really efficient, with simple touches, passes, assists, and he is clever. He reads the game well and that is the kind of player we need in our squad.'
The left winger's strong run, shrugging off challenges from Antonio Valencia and Darren Fletcher before he crossed for Joe Cole's crafty finish, was the culmination of 20 minutes of good possession football by the visitors, but it was possession football played at a high tempo as Malouda explains:
'When a team is playing in a Champions League game it gives a lot of energy. That is why we started the game against Manchester United quickly because we knew that if we played with high intensity, they could have some problems having played midweek.
'We tried to control the game when we had the ball and with the runs and the problems we caused them, I think they were more tired than us in the first half.
'It was more difficult in the second half,' he admits. 'It was a really tough game but we played really well and for us it means a lot after the bad week we had 10 days ago. We reacted in the best way.
'After the game everybody was really tired but if we can play the same way until the end of the season there will be no problem.'
It has been unusual for Malouda not to be looking for Didier Drogba's runs inside and ahead of him at the start of the past two games. He was not surprised to see the big striker make an instant impact when he was eventually called from the bench.
'Didier reacted in the perfect way,' Malouda says. 'We have a strong squad and we know we are at the top because we have scored a lot of goals with and without Didier. Last week we won against Villa so the manager gave starts to the same team and Didier fully understands that.'
Malouda and Drogba have known each other well since they were team-mates at Guingamp seven years ago and Drogba is delighted England is seeing the football from Malouda that gave him such a big reputation in France.
'Everybody recognises his talent now,' Drogba says. 'It has been difficult for him to change leagues and also he had quite a few injuries at first but every time he has played this season he was good.
'He is not the type of player who will do many skills but he is really efficient, with simple touches, passes, assists, and he is clever. He reads the game well and that is the kind of player we need in our squad.'
No comments:
Post a Comment