Football: The butcher in the midfield at the start, the magic bird stunned

Chapter 304 The Italian Super Cup strikes, Chen Xiaoliang's transformation

At half-time, AC Milan coach Pioli replaced three players who he felt dissatisfied him in the first half, especially two players who both received yellow cards but missed one after the other in set-piece defense. All midfielders were replaced.

As a result, relying on the home court advantage, AC Milan played a resolute defensive counterattack.

First, in the 69th minute, the young central defender Kalulu also scored a goal with a corner kick.

Then in a counterattack in the 82nd minute, Leo dribbled the ball all the way from the left and advanced at high speed, throwing away Celik and Ibanez successively. Chen Xiaoliang had to chase back from the frontcourt at full speed.

Before being overtaken by Chen Xiaoliang, Leo slid the ball diagonally to the right into the penalty area. Another young AC Milan player, Pobega, shot the ball from the right side of the penalty spot. .

Roma did not have a chance in the second half, but Dybala, Enzo and Gwadiol were all in a sluggish state in this game. Obviously, they have not recovered from the fatigue of the World Cup and back and forth.

However, Celik and others have been out of battle for a long time. As soon as the offseason ended, they faced the impact of Leo and Special Olympics.

Both offensive and defensive ends are not in the state, even if Chen Xiaoliang is struggling to support it alone, it will not help. In the end, the two sides drew 2-2 in the first game of the second round.

In this round of 10 league games, including this one in Rome, 5 of them were tied. Inter Milan was even tied 2-2 by the newly promoted Monza in the away game.

Naples defeated Sampdoria with 2 goals in an away game, accumulating 41 points, narrowing the gap to Roma to 3 points.

The next day, Rome departed from the airport early in the morning to Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Since there is only one flight a day from Milan to Riyadh, AC Milan chose to leave on another day.

Originally, Maldini, the legendary and current director of AC Milan, sent a consultation to Pinto, hoping that the two teams could take the same flight, but Pinto had to reject Maldini's "good intentions" after asking Mourinho's opinion. ".

The conversation between the two was like this.

Pinto: "Jose, Maldini hopes that our two teams can charter a flight to Riyadh together, because there is only one flight a day from Milan, so we can save tens of thousands of euros."

Mourinho: "I have no problem, but I want to ask you a question."

Pinto: "Huh? Excuse me."

Mourinho: "If your wife leaves with someone else, does that mean you are green?"

Pinto was stunned. He knew that Mourinho was digging a hole for him again, but he nodded reluctantly: "Yes... yes."

Mourinho: "Now that green guy is playing with your wife and invited you to join their... um... happy game, and he can pick you up in a car to save you gas Money and a meal, how would you answer?"

Pinto looked to the left and right helplessly: "I see, I will reject them."

Mourinho: "We are about to usher in a championship trophy, and I am trying to get the players to create a confrontational, competitive mentality, and the opponent has just blocked us from taking all 3 points in the league. You want us to travel with them like an outing? How about me and Pioli holding hands, shoulder to shoulder?"

Pinto did not speak, waved his hand and left Mourinho's room.

Chen Xiaoliang on the side did not speak, he was discussing the status of the players with Mourinho.

He knew that Mourinho was very unhappy that the lead was equalized, but he didn't like the way Mourinho treated Pinto.

But the reason why he didn't speak out was not only because of the need to maintain respect for the head coach, but also because the suggestions given by Pinto were too ridiculous in his opinion, as if all the starting points of the club's general manager were In terms of money, the competitive factor is never the primary factor.

After Pinto left, Chen Xiaoliang did not immediately continue the topic of the locker room, but asked Mourinho: "Coach, after the end of this season, you only have the last year of your contract in Rome. What are you doing here?" What you have done has far exceeded their expectations, and they will definitely ask you to renew your contract in advance, will you agree to them?"

Mourinho immediately heard that there was something in Chen Xiaoliang's words, but he knew that this conversation would happen between the two of them sooner or later: "It was indeed far beyond their expectations, and in fact it was far beyond my own expectations. "

"The original plan for the boss was to secure the European Championship in the first year, strive for the Champions League qualification in the second year, and compete for the Serie A championship in the third year. I didn't expect everything to come much earlier and faster than expected."

Mourinho paused for a while, obviously hesitating whether to say that he is not a person who likes to share his heart with others. In the past, his heart-to-heart conversations with players were more like a topic tailored for the other party. Talk less about yourself.

Suddenly, he sighed and said, "Since I left Porto, I have never thought of leaving the Premier League. Of course, Real Madrid is an exception."

"At that time, Abramovich was very ambitious. Although he was indeed a good boss, he was too impatient. He hoped that Chelsea could also have his own Ferguson, but he couldn't accept a season without any trophy. contradictory."

"When I left Chelsea for the first time, I didn't have any other Premier League teams to go to. Manchester United had Sir Alex Ferguson. As long as he doesn't retire, no coach in the world can take over at Old Trafford. Wenger is still at Arsenal. Although their status is not firm, they are obviously used to confronting me and they will not take the initiative to come to me."

"Manchester City has not yet risen, and Tottenham is still the old Redknapp's team that was bullied by the giants at will."

"As for Liverpool, the Fenway Group hadn't bought them at that time. The whole club was even more chaotic than Manchester United in recent years. They have been spending money to buy some players like Andy Carroll and Stuart Downing. player of."

"As for Bayern, this club has their own set of close relatives rules. Ancelotti and Guardiola have a hard time there. They pay great attention to the brand image of the club. The media is regarded as the person responsible for traffic.”

"You know what happened later, Inter Milan, and then Real Madrid. In fact, I promised Moratti that the first choice before going to Inter Milan was to return to Barcelona to coach. There was my former home team. They have already asked me to prepare for the new season. It was planned, but in the end, they suddenly decided to choose Guardiola."

"Later I returned to the Premier League, but the Premier League changed at that time. Sir Alex Ferguson and Wenger were gone, and Manchester City and Liverpool became the main contenders for the championship."

"Under the stimulation of money, everyone has become very radical. It seems that the boards of directors of big teams think that their lineup can win the league championship, but if the plan deviates, the head coach will have to get out of class."

"But you know, the transformation and adjustment of the team requires not only money, but also time. The person left by the previous coach may not be suitable for the next coach to take over."

"And I didn't get enough space and time at Manchester United or Tottenham to do what I wanted to do, and I didn't want to stay at home for too long, because I was 58 years old, so I promised Roma. ask."

"To be honest, after working in the football field for so long, I am no longer the kind of person who would believe what other people say. The reason why the current boss invests in football is too complicated, but no matter what, I can't escape a word of money. "

"If you dig into his heart and ask him whether he hopes to spend 5-10 years building Roma into the next Juventus, or into the Benfica of Serie A, believe me, what he said to the fans must be The former, but the latter is definitely on my mind.”

"There are so many excellent managers in Europe, why did he choose Pinto?"

Chen Xiaoliang couldn't help laughing: "So coach, you have said so much, what is the final answer?"

Mourinho also knew that he had come full circle, and that the foreshadowing had been laid out, and it was time to express his final thoughts: "Look at Real Madrid, even if they keep winning the Champions League, they are constantly making up for it. Adjustment. Regardless of the performance of Rome this year, I will see how much ambition the board of directors has for this team in the summer."

"It's useless to talk too much. In the end, it depends on the actual actions. If they really start to encourage you to leave the team after the end of the season, then I will look at the opportunities in the Premier League."

Chen Xiaoliang: "So you still want to prove yourself again in the Premier League?"

Mourinho raised his eyebrows, raised his neck proudly and shook his head: "Is there anything else I need to prove?"

Chen Xiaoliang: "Then let's see what happens together then."

Chen Xiaoliang didn't say anything more, in fact, both of them knew each other's thoughts in their hearts.

However, compared to Chen Xiaoliang, Mourinho, who is too personalized, has very few options in the Premier League, or there is only one.

The boards of Manchester United and Tottenham have turned against him, and the cooperation experience is not pleasant. It is impossible to hire him for a second time.

It is absolutely impossible for fans of Arsenal and Liverpool to accept Mourinho, who has long been regarded as an enemy in the past, and Arteta and Klopp have no possibility of dismissing get out of class in a short time.

Manchester City has long been marked with a deep mark of Guardiola, and the club will not accept a former Manchester United coach to coach a rival in the same city.

Many people think that Newcastle may be, but Eddie Howe's performance in leading the team is not bad. Only after his collapse will Mourinho have a chance.

The only possibility left is Chelsea, which has changed its boss and management, and its current record has plummeted. There is a big question mark about the possibility of Rinho's harmonious coexistence.

But compared to these, the more important thing right now is to win the Italian Super Cup and find a way to find a replacement for Enzo, even if it is a short-term rental, you must find it.

After coming to Riyadh, the strong football atmosphere here surprised the two Serie A clubs.

Victory in Riyadh, which has just signed Ronaldo, hangs posters with the club LOGO and a bust of Ronaldo all over the streets, and the people there seem to have not recovered from the enthusiasm of the World Cup that just ended in neighboring Qatar.

Compared with the two more famous Persian Gulf coastal cities, Doha, Qatar, and Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Riyadh, which is inland on the Arabian Peninsula, is much less famous in terms of reputation.

However, the country of Saudi Arabia is far superior to its two neighbors in terms of land area and comprehensive national strength.

In recent years, in order to promote national influence and develop other industries headed by tourism, Saudi Arabia has also begun to focus on the football industry.

The acquisition of Newcastle is only the first step, and the purchase of Ronaldo is only to add a world-renowned business card. It seems that blindly spending money and over-developing the sports industry is actually to divert the national economy from relying on the oil and gas industry.

Of course, hosting the Italian Super Cup and the Spanish Super Cup is only a small part of this grand plan.

The two teams were settled in different luxury hotels.

Although they are all written as five-star hotels, many five-star hotels in Italy instantly become like guest houses compared to here.

Few people use the huge gymnasium at all, but the facilities are complete and advanced, even the Trigolia base can't compare.

It was the first time for Chen Xiaoliang to come here, and it was only then that he realized that it was no wonder that the Italian Football Association put the game here, not only received sponsorship fees from the Saudis, but also had an extra legal and compliant luxury vacation every winter.

The temperature in Riyadh, 20°C during the day and 10°C at night, is almost the same as that of Rome in winter, except that it is a little drier, and there is no other discomfort.

One victory and one draw, plus four days of training that were slightly fragmented outside of two games, gave Chen Xiaoliang a total of 4 training points (22 → 50) and 72 physical recovery cards, deducting the match against AC Milan and extra training 3 used up, 2 left in total.

On the evening of January 1, local time, the 12-seat King Fahd International Stadium was full. The moment Chen Xiaoliang led the team into the stadium from the player tunnel, Chen Xiaoliang only saw the crowd cheering restlessly in the stands. On one side of the rostrum, there are many nobles wearing red, blue, and yellow turbans, which are colors that only the royal family can use.

The famous whistle Maresca was once again appointed by the Italian Football Association as the referee of the game. Mourinho felt a natural disgust when he saw him.

Last season, Maresca whistled the match between Roma and AC Milan. As a result, he escaped a suspected offside goal by AC Milan, but then sent Special Olympics to a penalty. The successful group mocked both sides and received unanimous scolding. Voice.

It may be precisely because of this offending both sides that the Italian Football Association sent him to enforce the law.

Compared with the league 3 days ago, both teams have made some adjustments.

AC Milan's goalkeeper is still Tartarusanu;
Defenders Calabria, Kjaer, Tomori and Special Olympics, Pioli replaced Kalulu, who scored a header in the previous game, with veteran Kjaer;
The double midfielders are still Tonali and Ben Nasser, but it is worth noting that the positions of the two have been reversed, Tonali has become the right midfielder, and Ben Nasser is on the left;

The 3200-year-old Decaturray, who was bought from Brugge for 21 million euros, will serve as the starting midfielder;

Leo and Giroud remain unchanged, while the Brazilian Mesias is replaced on the right.

Roma's Viña and Malaysia returned to the starting full-backs, and Gwadiol partnered with Smalling again;

The defensive midfielder was also replaced by Christante and the teenager Bove;

The starting positions of Chen Xiaoliang and Kwa are unshakable, while Dybala was rested and replaced by Zalewski, Cesco is still at the front.

After Chen Xiaoliang and Calabria exchanged team flags, the two sides chose sides and stood on both sides. Maresca blew his whistle, and the game started on time!
Soon, AC Milan, who kicked off the ball first after the opening, controlled about 65% of the ball possession rate, pressing Roma in the defensive third area, and the situation seemed to be very good.

Before the game, many media analyzed that AC Milan scored two consecutive goals in the second half of the last league game, which must have had a huge impact on Roma's morale, making AC Milan win this game psychologically before the game.

But Pioli and his disciples never expected that the equalizer in the last game did deal a blow to Rome, but the consequence was not the turmoil after the grass and trees were all soldiers, but the united will of revenge!

Maybe he also forgot that the most terrifying form of Mourinho's team is not to press up and attack, but to retreat to defend.

That 65% possession is a trap dug for AC Milan.

In the 10th minute, Mesias dribbled the ball from the left and crossed the middle with too much power and was cut off by Bove.

In an instant, Kwa, Cesko, Chen Xiaoliang, and Zalewski all fired four arrows, rushing toward the frontcourt like a catapult.

Bove passed to Viña, who was advancing from the right, and Viña dribbled the ball all the way. AC Milan left back Theo was retreating with all his strength to stare at Zalewski, and had no time to defend against Viña behind.

As a result, Viña just led the midfielder without defensive pressure.

At the front right now, Chen Xiaoliang was the fastest walking on the right side of the center, followed by Kwa on the left. Cesko was sprinted at full speed by two people due to his height of 195 and his legs being too long and his swing frequency limited. Opened the distance, but began to play the role of a trailing forward.

Viña passed a diagonal pass to Cesco from the right. Cesco turned his back to the right to meet the ball. He rubbed his right foot without stopping the ball. The ball flew up and went directly into the penalty area.

Special Olympics, the fastest of AC Milan's back four, was all focused on Zalewski on the wing. When he saw the ball hanging inside and was about to turn around and steal the ball, Chen Xiaoliang had already turned offside from him rushed over.

Special Olympics exerted strength on his legs and tried his best to increase the speed, but Chen Xiaoliang told him mercilessly that the instant burst speed of the two was obviously a grade behind.

Special Olympics was shocked. When they played against each other last season, Chen Xiaoliang was continuously overwhelmed by Chen Xiaoliang in the final stage of the second half because of the excessive running volume, which caused a serious decline in physical strength. In the next match, although the limit speed was exceeded by him, there was no difference in starting speed.

How come this meeting, not only can't keep up with the limit speed, but also can't keep up with the first few steps of the sudden speed increase? !
He couldn't help but think of a line: "My combat power is only [-], but he is at least [-]!"

Special Olympics was anxious, and Chen Xiaoliang had easily unloaded Sesco's pass in front of him.

The tacit understanding between him and Sesco is far better than the level of cooperation with Barisic back then. Although the system's tacit understanding value is full, but the two are similar in age, similar in interest, and are buried in the football world. After countless days and nights of training and additional practice, he has long since achieved the state where he can know what the other party is going to do next with just one look and one movement hint.

When each other passes the ball to each other, they also know which angle is the smoothest and which posture is the most comfortable.

After Chen Xiaoliang received the ball, he showed a single-handed posture at the near post on the right, but the position was a bit deep and too close to the baseline, and AC Milan goalkeeper Tartarusanu had already blocked the near post and wanted to directly The success rate of shooting will inevitably be affected.

But it doesn't matter, with his excellent overall view, passing ability and tacit understanding value, he can clearly know where the teammates of several additional training teams are at any time.

Chen Xiaoliang swung his right foot, and Tatarusanu bent down nervously and was ready to make a save, but the ball was kicked by Chen Xiaoliang's right leg, but passed through the goal horizontally!
Zhan Jun: "Back post! Kwa!"

"The goal is scored!"

"A perfect counterattack!"

Zhang Lu: "Hey, today AC Milan followed Roma's lead. Instead of threatening shots, Roma seized the opportunity to score a goal in a counterattack."

"Looking at the replay, the ball was passed from Beauvais to Kwa's final goal. There were five passes in total. Beauvais passed the ball to Binha, Binia to Sesco, Sesco to Chen Xiaoliang, and Chen Xiaoliang An anti-offside pass to Kwa on the other side, what did the AC Milan players do during the whole process? Except running and watching, as if they were like the audience, there was no chance to stop the attack.”

After the goal, Chen Xiaoliang and Kewa celebrated briefly, and then urged their teammates to return to their positions quickly.

1-0 is not a score enough to report the shame of being drawn last week.

And Pioli did not intend to give up possession of the ball. He kept shouting on the sidelines, reminding the two defensive midfielders and Special Olympics to draw in more, and stop Chen Xiaoliang before he starts or catches the ball. In the counterattack sequence.

Once he is allowed to catch the ball and run in the open area in the counterattack, there may be really no way to stop him except for fouling.

Watching Pioli arranging tactical instructions loudly, although Chen Xiaoliang couldn't understand their unique tactical gestures and code words referring to tactics, he and the coaching staff had already rehearsed this tactic in the tactical meeting before the game.

Or it can be said that after the last round of the group match against Liverpool, facing Bajcetic's stalking defense almost throughout the game, they made a countermeasure.

And this moment is the time to put the plan into practice and completely defeat the opponent.

　Thanks to the executive director of the club [MochizukiウPoet] for the 2 monthly tickets!
　　Thanks to the executive director of the club [half-year old fairy] for the monthly pass!

　　Thanks to the executive director of the club [book friend 20230103222152254] for the monthly pass!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)