Chapter 149 FA Cup Final After Five Years

Atkinson, the famous blind whistle of the Premier League, blew his whistle and pointed at the penalty spot. The enthusiastic atmosphere over the White Hart Lane Stadium instantly dropped to the lowest point, and there was a brief silence.

"aoaoaooaooooooo——"

After a while, the Liverpool fans who came with the team made a deafening and huge cheer to cheer for Atkinson.

Son Heung-min, who committed the foul, is an honest man. He knew that he kicked Li Qing. He lay on the ground depressed, covering his face with his hands, and felt ashamed to face all the Tottenham fans.

In the second half of this season, he became the sinner of Tottenham's loss at Anfield. Unexpectedly... he still became the sinner in this FA Cup semi-final held at White Hart Lane.

You know, Tottenham had a chance to equalize the score, but... his reckless foul ruined the team's good situation.

Captain Lloris didn't see whether Son Heung-min committed a foul, but as a captain, he had to benefit the team. He walked towards the referee Atkinson excitedly.

Other Tottenham players also surrounded Atkinson, saying that Son Heung-min did not kick Li Qing, it was Li Qing who was diving.

Although Atkinson was known for being blind, he was still very firm in his judgment. He ignored the appeals of Tottenham players, insisted on the penalty, and drove away the Tottenham players who complained.

At the same time, the on-site director gave a slow-motion replay, starting from Li Qing's stop and pass to Vertonghen, until he broke through Son Heung-min. Based on the replay from several angles, Leshi Sports commentator Zhan Jun firmly believed: "Referee Atkinson did not make a mistake in the penalty. Son Heung-min did kick Li Qing. The penalty is undisputed!"

South Korea's SBS Sports TV commentator Park Kehao also tried to defend: "Referee Atkinson's penalty was too harsh. This kind of confrontation is too common in the Premier League. This physical contact can be judged or not. Under normal circumstances, Premier League referees are unlikely to give a penalty! Son Heung-min is very wronged..."

People studying and working in South Korea sneered at this. Such an obvious foul can be judged or not. No wonder this inferior nation is still complacent about the World Cup fifteen years ago.

Shameless!

Spurs head coach Pochettino spread his hands and expressed helplessness.

In the absence of VAR in the English league, it is basically impossible to cancel the penalty awarded by the referee, unless the assistant referee sees it more clearly from his perspective. However, it is obvious that the assistant referee agrees with the referee's decision and immediately raised the flag in his hand to indicate that Son Heung-min had committed a foul.

In this case, it is impossible to change the decision.

Pochettino is now more concerned about goalkeeper Lloris, hoping that the captain can turn the tide.

Facts have proved that prayer is useless. Milner, Liverpool's top penalty taker this season, has never missed a goal. Facing Lloris, he chose to violently volley the ball and the ball hit the upper right corner of the goal.

1:3

The score on the scoreboard changed again.

Liverpool coach Klopp's face was full of confidence again, and he celebrated with his assistants Buvac and Kara by clapping hands.

The cheers made by Liverpool fans at White Hart Lane once again surpassed Tottenham fans, one wave after another.

Spurs players, who had the advantage of kick-off, were very active in the offensive end, but Liverpool players were very good at tactical execution and did not give Son Heung-min, Eriksen and Harry Kane any chance.

A few minutes later, Spurs began to make substitutions.

No. 2 came on, No. 7 came off.

Park Ke-ho, the commentator of SBS Sports TV in South Korea, had an incredible light in his eyes: "What is Pochettino thinking? Son Heung-min is in good shape and running actively. It is incomprehensible to replace him when the results are coming out! Kyle Walker is indeed faster than Son Heung-min, but Son Heung-min has a stronger scoring ability..."

Leshi Sports commentator Zhan Jun said in a deep voice: "Son Heung-min's condition has obviously declined recently. There are certain mistakes in dribbling and passing. Obviously, he was affected by the penalty. Pochettino made a decisive substitution and stopped the loss early. Kyle Walker's scoring ability is certainly not comparable to Son Heung-min, but Kyle Walker is fast and has strong assists. He has a greater inhibitory effect on Liverpool's left attack..."

Three minutes later, Liverpool also made adjustments.

Lucas replaced Coutinho, who is also a Brazilian compatriot, to strengthen the central defense.

There were about 20 minutes left in the game. The two-goal lead was already very obvious for Liverpool. As long as they didn't make any mistakes, they would have no problem maintaining the current score until the end of the game.

Four days later, there will be another make-up match against Burnley at home. In order to ensure the success of the league, the FA Cup semi-finals should naturally reduce the loss if the victory is confirmed.

The FA Cup is different from the league. Li Qing did not skimp on the physical potion. He used the physical potion when he felt that his physical energy was seriously depleted. Suddenly, he felt comfortable like a spring breeze.

Another 20 minutes will definitely be no problem.

The situation of Tottenham is almost the same as that of Liverpool. The bench depth is not enough, and there is a big gap between the substitutes and the starting players. For Pochettino, it is better to trust the players on the field instead of using substitutes.

The main reason for replacing Son Heung-min was that his condition declined. Replacing him would do more harm than good to both Son Heung-min and the team.

In a blink of an eye, the game came to the 80th minute. The physical fitness of the players on both sides had greatly declined, and the offensive rhythm dropped to a very low level, so that the Tottenham fans in the audience lost confidence in the home team.

Li Qing, who used the physical potion, recovered his physical fitness. Vertonghen and Wanyama, who always defended him, had no plug-ins. It became increasingly difficult for them to defend Li Qing with their physical fitness close to exhaustion.

Just as Pochettino was about to replace Vertonghen, who had a yellow card, a huge change occurred on the field.

Li Qing, who received the ball, faced Vertonghen's defense directly. He did not drag his feet at all and changed direction directly with speed. Vertonghen, who was tall and long-legged, slipped while retreating. Dissatisfied, he stretched out his foot and tripped Li Qing who had completed the breakthrough.

The assistant referee waved his flag excitedly, and the referee Atkinson blew the whistle. He ran to the scene and thought of Vertonghen's many fouls against Li Qing. He counted 1, 2, 3 and took out a yellow card from his trouser pocket, and then a red card.

Two yellow cards turned into one red card!

At the critical moment, Tottenham was one man short!

"This... is a fatal blow to Tottenham!"

The broadcast screen showed Tottenham coach Pochettino. He shook his head in disappointment, walked straight back to the coaching seat, and sat down. It was not known whether he was dissatisfied with Vertonghen or the referee.

Falling behind by two goals and one man short, for Tottenham... basically means that there is no way to turn the tide.

The score on the scoreboard did not change until the full-time whistle sounded. Liverpool defeated Tottenham 3:1 at White Hart Lane with Li Qing's two goals and a penalty kick, and reached the FA Cup final again after five years.