Genius - Chapter 515: Your Nickname Is “The Tireless One”? (Patreon)

“Beating Crystal Palace in the Premier League hasn’t been easy lately.”

Gullit had seen just how capable Crystal Palace had become over the past few seasons. They had managed to beat practically every major team.

“Their results might be inconsistent from season to season, but Crystal Palace always seem capable of producing a brilliant performance. They’ve beaten Arsenal 4-1, Chelsea 2-0, and Manchester City 2-1!”

“And in all of those matches, Palace scored from very few shots and still came away with the win.”

“Olise is always creating chances for Édouard from the right, while Eze is an excellent dribbler in midfield.”

On February 2, Liverpool faced Crystal Palace in Matchday 22 of the Premier League.

Looking back over the previous six seasons, Crystal Palace had faced Liverpool twelve times in the league, winning only once, losing nine times, and drawing twice.

Both of those draws had come last season.

Liverpool had also managed only a draw in their first meeting with Palace this season. This was now Liverpool’s fourteenth match against Crystal Palace in seven seasons, and there was no doubt they wanted all three points.

“When you play Crystal Palace, there’s always something strange about it. You never know exactly how they’re going to score, but somehow, they always find a way.”

“First, don’t give Schlupp or Eze room to shoot from distance. Second, don’t let Olise get past you.”

“If you feel like Olise is about to beat you, call for help early. Once he breaks down the right and gets closer to the penalty area, stopping him becomes much harder. That’s where he’s at his best.”

Klopp’s defensive instructions focused primarily on Eze and Olise.

Crystal Palace, meanwhile, had one main defensive priority.

Leo.

The player chiefly responsible for marking him was Gallagher, the young English midfielder whose relentless running had earned him a reputation among fans as a tireless midfield talent.

Plenty of clubs wanted Gallagher. Arsenal, Atlético de Madrid, and several others were keeping a close eye on him.

“Gallagher’s work rate is incredibly important. Sometimes I think he even runs more than Kanté. It feels like he could just keep going forever.”

Gallagher had marked Leo before, but back then he had not been nearly as good a player. This season at Crystal Palace, however, he had grown stronger with every match.

Gullit and Rivaldo were commentating on the game, while Scholes was absent because of another commitment.

“Crystal Palace have fielded their strongest lineup!”

“Goalkeeper: Guaita.”

“Defenders: Mitchell, Guéhi, Joachim Andersen, Ward.”

“Midfielders: Schlupp, Eze, Gallagher!”

“Forwards: Mateta, Édouard, Olise!”

As soon as Crystal Palace kicked off, Liverpool immediately pushed forward, refusing to give them any room to attack.

Schlupp was mainly responsible for keeping possession in midfield, while Eze’s dribbling was a major headache for Liverpool’s midfielders.

Except Leo.

Eze deliberately targeted Mac Allister.

Everyone knew how difficult it was to dribble past Leo, so going after Mac Allister was obviously the better option.

16th minute!

“Liverpool haven’t fully committed forward yet. Crystal Palace have possession, and Eze is carrying the ball. Vieira likes his Palace side to have more of the ball.”

“And this is the same Vieira who became an Arsenal legend. Palace supporters believe he can make their defense even stronger.”

Eze was an excellent dribbler, and Mac Allister was never going to stop him alone.

Rodri had no choice but to come over and help.

The moment Eze saw Rodri closing in, he passed the ball out to Olise, leaving Olise one-on-one with Robertson on the wing.

At least, Olise thought he had Robertson one-on-one.

Then Leo arrived.

Olise gritted his teeth and tried to take Leo on anyway.

The outcome was exactly what you would expect.

Leo took the ball away.

No matter how Olise shifted, Leo barely moved.

Olise was known for the speed of his footwork. He could manipulate the ball rapidly with both feet, changing direction again and again.

Once a defender lost the rhythm of those changes, Olise would suddenly accelerate and dribble straight past him.

But as Olise repeatedly shifted the ball from side to side in front of him, Leo could almost feel his confidence fading with every move.

Then, when Olise finally committed to cutting left, Leo simply stepped in and took the ball.

He gave him no chance at all.

Leo immediately surged forward with the ball, leaving Schlupp with no choice but to foul him.

“Schlupp commits the foul. Well, Olise doesn’t look capable of getting past Leo at all.”

After Schlupp pulled him down, Leo quickly took the free kick and played it to Rodri.

Rodri sent a beautiful long pass out to Salah on the right, and Liverpool immediately launched another attack.

Salah faced Mitchell, beat him with a single cut inside, then fired from a tight angle on the right.

“Shot!”

“Guaita keeps Salah out!”

“Liverpool are becoming more and more dangerous. Crystal Palace need to be careful now!”

Leo was the main organizer of Liverpool’s attacks, while Gallagher began putting his seemingly endless stamina to use by following him everywhere.

This was the first time Leo had encountered a player who actually dared to keep running with him.

Their battle in midfield started looking less like football and more like a long-distance running contest.

Leo would sprint, stop abruptly, then accelerate again.

Repeating those sudden stops and explosive bursts drained enormous amounts of energy and placed a huge strain on a player’s endurance.

Gallagher managed to keep up at first.

But after more than twenty minutes, he began to fall behind.

Vieira could only tell Gallagher to keep following him.

If even Gallagher could not stay with Leo, then Crystal Palace certainly did not have anyone else who could.

Hearing Gallagher’s breathing grow heavier and more ragged, Leo deliberately increased the pace and expanded the area he covered.

Sometimes he even sprinted all the way back to his own penalty area.

If Gallagher failed to follow, Alisson would simply pass the ball to Leo, and Leo’s long passes would repeatedly find Salah with pinpoint accuracy.

Watching Salah continually beat Mitchell, Gallagher had no choice but to keep chasing Leo.

37th minute!

“Leo is still moving through the middle looking for the ball. Gallagher has stayed with him.”

At first, Gullit thought Gallagher really had managed to keep up.

Then Leo, who had been dropping deeper, suddenly turned and sprinted forward.

Gallagher turned with him.

But after yet another abrupt stop and change of direction, Gallagher’s lungs were clearly struggling to keep up.

Leo, meanwhile, had not slowed down at all.

Rodri slipped a reverse through ball into Leo’s path.

Gallagher was finished.

He could not even stay close enough to foul him.

Leo had already left him far behind.

After receiving the ball, Leo continued charging forward.

Instead of slowing down, he only got faster.

Guéhi and Joachim Andersen stared at Leo, almost needing to confirm that the figure charging at them with the ball was actually human and not some terrifying creature.

There was no longer anyone in Crystal Palace’s midfield close enough to pressure him.

Leo entered shooting range, glanced at Guéhi’s position, and pulled the trigger.