I started with Torres, to revive German football

Chapter 348 Southampton is painted on the skin but not on the bones.
"interesting."

Guardiola looked at the Southampton players who implemented the tactics seriously and gave a fairly high evaluation.

Southampton's defense somewhat imitated the shadow of Manchester City, actively pressing, fighting and covering without hesitation. Although the ability to intercept and steal was much worse, it did slow down the process of establishing a connection between the Manchester City midfielder and Zhao Jinge.

But imitation is just imitation after all. Manchester City's active pressure ultimately aims to either launch a quick counterattack on the spot after stealing the ball, or to force the threatening fire as far away from their own half as possible to ensure the safety of their own defensive third zone.

Southampton's defense was only to slow down Manchester City's forward pressure. They could neither launch a threatening counterattack nor force Manchester City's offense back. In essence, they were still passively adjusting their tactics.

There is always a way to deal with a non-aggressive defense. The offensive side just needs to think more about how to break the game.

For Manchester City, this most difficult step can be omitted directly. They only need to find a way to safely deliver the ball to Zhao Jinge.

Whether it's on his head or on his feet, Zhao Jinge always has a way to protect the ball while coming up with at least one reliable offensive plan.

Whether it is Mahrez or De Bruyne, they will start their offensive positioning around Zhao Jinge. As long as they go to the weak side of Southampton's defense, they will always get good offensive opportunities after several times.

It's a simple tactic, isn't it?

But Southampton can't crack it. Let alone Southampton, there is no team in the Premier League now that can hardly crack Manchester City's tactics that are almost rogue.

After all, the current super central defenders in the Premier League are either at the end of their careers or not at all!
Without a superstar central defender who can match up with Zhao Jinge, Manchester City will naturally be able to use this trick to do whatever they want.

And if we expand the scope even further to the entire European football world, there are actually not many central defender combinations from wealthy teams that dare to say that they can definitely beat Zhao Jinge.

Because with the development of the times, the requirements of the major leagues for players are very different from ten years ago.

Super-sized centers are gradually disappearing, and heavy central defenders are naturally no longer popular. No teams want them. Over time, youth training in various countries has turned to cultivating defenders with more mobility and more comprehensive skills.

So when an enhanced all-around center like Zhao Jinge reappeared, it created a situation where almost no defender could defend him one-on-one.

Zhao Jinge not only has all the conditions needed for a top center, but also has the mobility and tactical discipline emphasized by a modern forward.

Therefore, it is very convenient for Guardiola to use him. He can refer to Real Madrid's use of Benzema and let him be a battering ram and fulcrum, or he can be used by other offensive players to cover him to complete the goal grabbing.

When necessary, Guardiola can even let Zhao Jinge make local breakthroughs to tear apart the opponent's defense.

With such a changeable style and the most prominent big center attributes, how do you let other Premier League teams deal with such monsters?

For Manchester City, Zhao Jinge is the master key to solving all their offensive problems. Perhaps this tactic makes the Manchester City team rely too much on Zhao Jinge, but with such an unsolvable killer, wouldn't it look even more stupid not to rely on him?
"Southampton's defensive intensity may not last long. Under the leadership of Koeman, they were, after all, a more technical offensive team.

The establishment of a defensive system takes a lot of time for the players to adapt. Manchester City has increased its passing support for Zhao Jinge, and there is still hope that they can find a scoring opportunity before the end of the first half. "

Andy Gray's support for Manchester City and Zhao Jinge is as unabashed as ever, while Carragher seems a bit more reserved in comparison.

"Pierre's tactical arrangement today is still effective, at least now Manchester City has not really penetrated Southampton's hinterland.

As long as Zhao Jinge is not given a chance to face off against Stephens and Maya Yoshida alone, Southampton's defense on the ground will still be able to prevent Zhao Jinge from scoring. We still have to see how the coaches of both sides will adjust in the next game! "

To understand this sentence from another angle, that is, Manchester City must build a stable passing fort on both wings as soon as possible, and let Zhao Jinge take advantage of his one-on-one or even one-on-two advantage as soon as possible.

Whether it is Mahrez, De Bruyne, or Sterling, these are all good players in passing.

And looking at the inexperienced Stephens who is 1.8 meters 1.8 and the slightly old Maya Yoshida who is [-] meters [-], what do these players need to hesitate?

Explode directly at 45 degrees and let Zhao Jinge rush to the top!

As for the possibility of Southampton arranging multiple defensive players to compete for the top to restrict Zhao Jinge, it cannot be said that there is no possibility, but that is only a temporary restriction.

Zhao Jinge doesn't need to fight for the top to succeed at all. He is a center, and he only needs to seize the one or two opportunities to kill the game.

No matter how many Southampton defensive players try to destroy Manchester City's crosses, their disadvantage in the fight for the top is already doomed. No matter how careful they are, they will always make a few mistakes in the face of Manchester City's non-stop bombing. .

The rest depends on Zhao Jinge's condition today. If the deadlock cannot be broken in the first half, it will not be too late for Guardiola to make adjustments in the second half.

Mane, Yaya Toure and David Silva are all sitting on the bench!
Manchester City never lacks good players when they need to attack hard.

Twenty and ten minutes after the first half, Manchester City, which patiently pushed through the half, also began to try to take the ball from both wings.

The coaches on the sidelines can also see the situation that can be seen by the commentators. The difference is that some coaches always like to watch the development of the situation again, while some coaches directly adjust decisively.

Guardiola naturally falls into the latter category. With a slight adjustment, Manchester City's offensive mode quickly switched to their specialty of wing penetration.

De Bruyne's bold pass caused two threatening attacks belonging to Manchester City in just a few minutes. His sharp through ball allowed Mahrez to almost break into the Southampton penalty area!

Guardiola could praise De Bruyne for his excellent performance and the surprise he brought to the team, but Pierre obviously couldn't stand it.

De Bruyne's successful through pass 2 minutes ago almost made his heart stop beating!
If right back Cedric hadn't rushed down in time to shovel the ball out before Mahrez entered the penalty area, Southampton might have fallen behind by now.The existence of Zhao Jinge has restrained Southampton's defensive energy too much. Mahrez and Sterling frequently change positions in front of Southampton's defense. As long as there is a defensive weak side, De Bruyne doesn't care whether anyone sees it or not. When there is space, his pass will always be delivered immediately.

Under such constant penetration and involvement, Manchester City's forts on both wings are still relatively stable.

Southampton must keep an eye on Manchester City's forward momentum, and the protection of the two wings will inevitably reduce its strength.

Mahrez, who was trying to hit Southampton behind before, has now transformed from an attacker to a passing master. As soon as he gets the ball, he determines Zhao Jinge's running route and then delivers a cross in advance. .

Sterling on the right or De Bruyne, who switched positions, were not to be outdone and showed off their footwork.

For a moment, the air defense alarm sounded directly in Southampton's penalty area. Not only Zhao Jinge pressed Southampton's two central defenders to try to complete the header, Gundogan and De Bruyne also came in from time to time to kick. Southampton's defense is under increasing pressure.

Although only one midfielder, Kante, is left in Manchester City at this time and still maintains a safe position, when players on both sides take the ball, the vacated De Bruyne or Sterling and others will consciously retreat a little. Always be alert to Southampton's possible counterattack.

Their interception ability may be slightly worse, but they can still commit timely fouls. As long as they don't receive cards, it is still cost-effective to receive a few warnings to block Southampton's counterattack opportunities.

Under such comprehensive suppression, although Southampton's players are in good physical condition and have sufficient physical fitness, their tense spirits will inevitably feel a little tired.

The few rare opportunities to counterattack were quickly interrupted by Manchester City. After the restart, they entered into the oppressive rhythm of Manchester City's positional battle. It was difficult to break out despite being beaten blindly. Whichever team you changed to, you would have to face a huge spirit. pressure.

In the final analysis, Southampton follows a Dutch-style ground technology flow, but the technology has not reached a sufficiently good level. The tactical effect may be pretty good against mid-to-lower teams or even general strong teams.

But when they encounter an oppressive team like Manchester City and are unable to get into their own rhythm, the game becomes very ugly.

After all, defense is not their strong point. If you let an offensive team withstand the opponent's attack first, and only after it survives can they have a chance to launch a counterattack, isn't that nonsense.

Not competing with more powerful opponents in the field you are good at is equivalent to a kind of chronic suicide!

Pierre may have believed too much in the tenacity of his players, or the statements of Southampton players before the game gave him a wrong understanding, so that after the game entered the familiar rhythm of Manchester City, he did not play for the first time. Reread the defensive strategy for a while.

Such mistakes quickly put Southampton into a defensive dilemma. Zhao Jinge's jumps again and again made it very difficult for Yoshida Ma to cope with it. He even had to call the taller Romeu back to the penalty area to help assist. Defend.

Southampton's captain Davis mostly assisted Maya Yoshida in double-teaming Zhao Jinge, or interfered with Kanter who entered the penalty area.

He is about to be 34 years old, and he is not a particularly talented player, and his single-defense ability continues to decline as he ages.

Now relying on defensive experience, he can also assist Yoshida Maya to stabilize the team's defense, but if he is asked to face Zhao Jinge directly, it will almost be handing the knife handle to Manchester City.

Fortunately, this veteran has clear self-awareness and has been very smart to avoid a head-on confrontation with Zhao Jinge, which has also allowed Southampton's defense to hold on until now and has not declared its fall.

But things are unpredictable. When you are more afraid of something happening, the probability of it happening will be higher.

Stephens has always believed that he will not have any one-on-one opportunities with Zhao Jinge in this game. Even if Yoshida Maya occasionally loses his position a few times, Romeu and Davis will return to the penalty area in time to assist him in completing Zhao Jinge. of double-teaming.

But fate always likes to play tricks on prudent and honest people.

In the 304th minute of the first half, Sterling's cross from the right was turned back by Stephens. After regaining control of the ball, Sterling chose to pass the ball back to Fernandinho who came up to meet him.

Fernandinho then knocked the ball across to De Bruyne, who was raising his hand to ask for the ball. At this time, Southampton's double midfielders were pressing in front of the penalty area line, and Tadic pounced on De Bruyne's side. To interfere, De Bruyne ignored him and suddenly accelerated the speed of advancing with the ball.

Seeing this, Romeu stepped forward and tried to force De Bruyne to stop his progress.

At this time, almost everyone thought that De Bruyne would knock the ball back to Gundogan under pressure, or pull away from Romeu.

Zhao Jinge was pacing in the Southampton penalty area and looking at De Bruyne dribbling the ball, with no intention of moving.

But De Bruyne chose to harden the defensive pressure at this time!
Romeu's defense was slightly pushed away by his raised left arm, and before his body was forced to tilt, De Bruyne quickly raised his head to observe, and then decisively hit the rib area near the Southampton penalty area. He kicked off the position and sent a long pass!
This is a slightly hasty pass, but no matter in terms of ball speed or arc, it is also a beautiful and sudden enough pass.

Maya Yoshida, who was in front, reacted immediately and moved quickly laterally in the direction of Zhao Jinge.

At this time, he didn't care about Mahrez or Gundogan. He only had Zhao Jinge in his eyes. He also believed that the Belgian midfielder would only pass the ball to Zhao Jinge!
But a sky-blue figure blocked his way even faster.

It's Mahrez!
Mahrez did not rush to make a move, nor did he wait for the header that Zhao Jinge might send over. Instead, after inserting into the penalty area, he rushed straight towards the Xiaori defender!
Maya Yoshida couldn't care about Zhao Jinge at this moment. In desperation, he directly tried to pull away Mahrez who was blocking his path.

Mahrez fell to the ground very quickly after bumping into Maya Yoshida, but this was not to cheat a penalty kick. The referee would not blow the whistle for this level of physical confrontation.

He just wanted to pull Maya Yoshida's jersey one more time before falling to the ground.

This light action, placed in other offensive and defensive scenarios, would at best make the opponent feel a little uncomfortable, and not even close to dirty.

But at this moment, Maya Yoshida felt extremely bad because of the one or two seconds that Mahrez was delayed!
Because in front of him, an extremely bad scene was happening!

(End of this chapter)