The eighth round of the Premier League.
Tottenham Hotspur drew 2-2 away at Bolton.
Manchester United, playing at home, fell behind twice and equalized twice, ultimately drawing 2-2 with Sunderland.
Arsenal delivered an impressive performance at home, defeating Blackburn Rovers 6-2.
The Gunners' six goals came from six different players, showing how widespread their attacking threat was.
Chelsea hosted Liverpool at Stamford Bridge, with the two sides drawing 1-1.
This was also Liverpool's first draw of the season, ending their seven-match winning streak.
Aside from Arsenal, the other title contenders all dropped points in this round.
This was mainly due to the fact that these teams were fighting on three fronts,Premier League, League Cup, and European competitions, making it difficult to manage everything effectively.
However, this also created an excellent opportunity for Manchester City to widen the gap.
On the evening of October 4th, Manchester City traveled to Villa Park to face Aston Villa away.
Gao Shen's fiancée, Su Qing, attended a Premier League match in the stands for the first time and was immediately picked up by Sky Sports' live broadcast cameras, prompting surprised reactions from commentators Andy Gray and Martin Tyler.
On the pitch, Manchester City took the initiative from the outset and firmly controlled the game. In the 15th minute, David Luiz opened the scoring with a header from a corner.
In the 67th minute of the second half, Suárez assisted Hazard to score, sealing the 2-0 victory.
In the end, Gao Shen's team defeated Aston Villa 2-0 away.
Villa's manager Martin O'Neill publicly stated after the match that his team had given their best effort but still couldn't stop Manchester City. He believed City were now the top favourites for the Premier League title.
After the game, Gao Shen publicly dedicated the win to his fiancée Su Qing.
"This is my gift to her!"
…
After the match against Aston Villa, the Premier League paused once again for a two-week international break.
Su Qing had accumulated enough vacation days in China to take time off, and Gao Shen also granted himself an extended leave. The two traveled together around the UK, with their first stop being London.
During Gao Shen's time off, all club responsibilities were handed over to Brian Kidd, and team affairs were fully managed by Carlo. Gao Shen had complete trust in these two assistants.
Over the two weeks, Manchester City closely monitored the status of their international players and also received more good news.
Back in early September, Gao Shen and Suárez were awarded the Manager and Player of the Month awards, respectively. In the October awards, Gao Shen was once again named Manager of the Month.
This achievement was extremely rare in Premier League history.
The league stated that Gao Shen's Manchester City had won eight consecutive matches, making them the only undefeated team in the Premier League so far this season. Gao Shen being named Manager of the Month for two straight months was fully deserved.
It was a rare feat in Premier League history for a manager to win the award in consecutive months.
Sir Alex Ferguson achieved it twice, once in 1996 and again in 2000. Arsène Wenger did it once in 1998, and Rafa Benítez also achieved it once in 2005.
Considering the fierce competition in the Premier League, winning Manager of the Month twice in a row was already enough to prove a manager's capability and form. What was even more remarkable was that this was only Gao Shen's debut season in the league.
"There's no doubt, he's become the most successful head coach in the Premier League!"
The media gave widespread coverage to the story, believing that Gao Shen's winning the award was mainly due to the shocking 8-0 away victory over Manchester United, which stunned not just the Premier League but all of European football. So, his winning the award came as no surprise.
However, some media outlets also pointed out that Manchester City would not face any truly strong opponents in the upcoming league fixtures, with the toughest challenge being the away game against Liverpool in late November.
In other words, throughout October, Manchester City's schedule looked manageable, making it entirely possible for Gao Shen to continue their winning streak.
If that happened, it wasn't out of the question for Gao Shen to win the Manager of the Month award again for October.
"In Premier League history, not many managers have won the Manager of the Month award in consecutive months, though it has happened several times. But no manager has ever won it three times in a row not even Sir Alex Ferguson at his peak," one report noted.
The general consensus among the media was that if Gao Shen could win the award for October, he would make Premier League history.
But to win it, Manchester City would have to keep winning throughout October.
Alongside the Manager of the Month, the Player of the Month award went to Manchester City winger Gareth Bale, who beat out Liverpool's star striker Fernando Torres.
Torres had performed brilliantly in September, scoring twice against West Ham United and netting a hat-trick against Hull City.
But Gareth Bale's hat-trick of goals and assists against Manchester United earned him rapturous applause. His performances afterward were just as eye-catching and impressive.
In the end, the Welshman edged out Torres to win the September Player of the Month award.
Having won both the Manager and Player of the Month awards last month, Manchester City repeated the feat again this month. Their momentum this season was simply unstoppable.
The only question now was: when would Manchester City's winning streak end?
The Daily Mirror analyzed that, based on Manchester City's current form, consistency, and increasingly dominant performances, the only teams with a real chance of stopping them were Liverpool and Chelsea.
At the very least, with just one match per week, it was unlikely that Manchester City would drop points against mid- and lower-table teams.
After winning September's Player of the Month award, and ahead of the ninth round of the Premier League, Gao Shen personally accompanied Su Qing to Heathrow Airport and saw her off as she boarded her flight home.
The two had spent a brief yet inseparable half-month together. Parting again, they were understandably saddened.
…
The ninth round of the Premier League.
In the first match after the international break, Chelsea suffered a 1-2 away defeat to Aston Villa.
Drogba opened the scoring for the Blues, but Martin O'Neill's side responded with two goals to complete the comeback.
A 2-1 defeat—Chelsea dropped points on the road.
Arsenal continued their good form from the previous round, defeating Birmingham 3-1.
Manchester United beat Bolton 2-1 at Old Trafford, thanks to two goals from Valencia.
Liverpool edged Sunderland 1-0 away from home.
It was evident that after the two-week international break, most of the Premier League matches lacked spark.
But no one expected that, in the final match of the second matchday of the ninth round, Manchester City would once again unleash a shocking and dominant performance, this time away against Wigan Athletic.
Just six minutes into the match, Giroud assisted Robben to score the opening goal.
After that, Gareth Bale linked up superbly with Hazard on the left, repeatedly launching aggressive attacks down Wigan's right flank. In the 31st minute, Hazard dribbled into the penalty area from the inside-left channel and drew a foul from former Chelsea veteran Mario Melchiot.
Referee Alan Wiley issued a red card and awarded a penalty.
Rakitic converted calmly from the spot to double Manchester City's lead.
With two goals and a one-man advantage, Manchester City unleashed a relentless wave of attacks and went into halftime leading 4-0.
In the second half, Wigan made substitutions and attempted to dig in, but it didn't last.
From the 63rd minute onward, Manchester City completely took control. Gareth Bale and Hazard on the left, Robben on the right, their dazzling attacking play overwhelmed the hosts. Manchester City scored four more goals through a mix of headers and close-range finishes.
In the end, Manchester City crushed Wigan Athletic 8-0 away from home.
This match once again stunned the Premier League and the wider European football world.
After just nine rounds of the season, Manchester City had already recorded two 8-0 victories. Their offensive firepower was terrifying. More importantly, their attacking coordination on the left flank was becoming increasingly effective.
After the match, when Gao Shen met Wigan manager Roberto Martinez, the future head coach of Belgium's national team appeared helpless.
"If it hadn't been for that red card, I believe we could have held on!" said Martinez.
Gao Shen just smiled and said nothing.
What, you win the match and still won't let people indulge in 'what ifs'?
But the truth was, even without the red card, it would have been extremely difficult for Wigan to stop Manchester City.
In this match, Roberto Martinez used a 5-3-2 formation, which left far too much space on the flanks, especially for Gareth Bale to exploit.
Gao Shen deployed Bale and Hazard as his left-wing pairing.
Hazard was excellent at cutting inside with the ball, while Bale made runs outside. Conversely, if Hazard stayed wide to draw defenders, Bale would cut diagonally into the inside channel and surge into the box.
This pattern of attack completely dismantled Wigan's defense.
Even without the red card, Gao Shen believed the scoreline would've still been a blowout.
But what pleased Gao Shen most wasn't the score, it was how the left-flank attacking system had matured.
According to his tactical vision, the left wing was to become the team's primary attacking avenue. Gareth Bale's speed was absolutely essential to executing this style of play.
By contrast, on the right flank, Zabaleta was doing fine. But Micah Richards couldn't provide enough support behind Robben, meaning the right wing was overly dependent on Zabaleta for now.
As for the center...
Well, Giroud really wasn't suited to being a goal scorer.
He started as the lone striker and played the full 90 minutes. Manchester City had 27 total shots and scored eight goals but Giroud only managed three shots and didn't score at all.
What could Gao Shen even say?
Giroud... what exactly is your strong point?
(To be continued.)
***
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