Dream Training : The Champions

Someone asked his friend, "Why do we have to watch this game? I think Arsenal against Inter Milan is more entertaining."

He was surprised that his friend really wanted to watch Southampton's match against Bayern Munich because he thought the match was definitely not as exciting as Arsenal against Inter Milan. Southampton's match against Bayern will obviously be dominated by Bayern.

Almost 95% of the people who came to the stadium believed Bayern's victory. They saw how Real Madrid had beaten Southampton 3-1. Of course, Bayern, who was UCL finalists last season, could undoubtedly do better than Real Madrid. Moreover, the German team fielded the entire main team.

"I have a good feeling about this game. You may not pay much attention to Southampton, but I don't think they are a bad club. Of course, their overall performance will be worse than the big clubs. But football is a sport where the smaller clubs have a chance to beat anyone. I really have a feeling Southampton will surprise me in this game."

His friend explained about his hunch. Of course, he did not believe his friend's hunch. But he chose to comply with his friend's wishes and decided to watch this match.

The two of them entered the stadium. After a while, they arrived at the spectator stands. They chose an empty seat. The opening ceremony for the match between Southampton and Bayern was undergone.

"James, are you sure that this game will surprise us? Seeing the star players at Bayern Munich and the faces of some unknown youngsters at Southampton made me doubt your hunch."

"Trust me, John, just watch the game and enjoy the match."

After the ceremony was over, the two teams started shaking hands and after that, they went to their respective posts. The captains of both teams approached the referee. The main referee tosses a coin. Then he appointed Southampton as the team to kick off the first half.

Southampton was getting ready to start the game. The referee's whistle sounded loud. The crowd cheered as Southampton played against Bayern Munich for third place in the International Champions Cup tournament.

Bayern Munich appears with a 4-2-3-1 formation. Their goalkeeper of course was Manuel Neuer. The figure who occupied the right-back position was Phillips Ram. Two central defenders who helped Neuer in defense were Jerome Boateng and Dante. Then, the left-back who will face Rustan was David Alaba.

Switch to defensive midfielders, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Javi Martinez. These two players were the most stable options in maintaining the depth of the Bayern Munich defense. Then on the right side was Arjen Ruben, a Dutch player who was also known for his skills in dribbling, speed, crossing ability, and accurate long-range left-footed shots.

On the left was Frank Trippery, the French player who was described as fast, slick, and had excellent dribbling. Then in the attacking midfielder position, of course, there was Thomas Müller. Finally, in the striker position, Phillips Zico became a mainstay for Bayern.

Compared to Bayern Munich, which uses all its main players. George prefers to use a mixed player, because although other Southampton main players such as Dean Smith, Hilton, Okhalo, Rudolf, and others have arrived, but their condition had not been confirmed. It is better to use the young players he had used during the International Champions Cup.

At the beginning of the match, Bayern Munich immediately had the ball, they played aggressively at the beginning of the first half. In the 5th minute, Bayern immediately got a golden opportunity.

In the formation, Bayern and Southampton were both 4-2-3-1. In general, Bayern's attacking midfielders were facing the defense of two Southampton defensive midfielders. However, Thomas Müller points out the meaning of Raumdeuter.

Instead of playing behind Phillips Zico, he played alongside him. This makes Simone who was in charge of guarding Muller confused, if he follows Muller and backs off to guard him then Southampton's players in midfield will be reduced drastically.

But if he didn't mark Muller then Southampton's two center-backs will have a duel with Bayern's two strikers and that was obviously a dangerous situation. Relying on one player to mark one player in defense can only be done by a team that was really strong in defense.

However, when Simone stepped down to guard Muller, Schweinsteiger stepped up and filled Muller's position in attacking midfielder. Then, Phillips Ram provided a long-range pass to Trippery.

The Bayern Munich left-winger received the ball and flicked it forward. Trippery's movement was seen but the Southampton defenders, so they retreated backward, but Muller had contra movement with Southampton defenders, he stayed in the place. Southampton's defenders were gone backward, but the midfielder didn't mark Müller yet. The space between the Southampton defender and the midfielder was wide open.

Trippery provided a cut-back to Muller. The German player then adjusted his position and kicked the ball firmly. The ball immediately entered the Southampton goalpost because the goalkeeper failed to reach it. This made Bayern one zero lead in the 6th minute.

Simone's mistake was to focus on Trippery's movement rather than Muller's. On the other hand, Wright-Phillips, who became a defensive midfielder be guarded by Schweinsteiger. This attack proved Muller's understanding of space, as well as how other players have adapted to Muller's way.

In the stands, John who saw the goal shook his head and said, "I know I shouldn't have trusted your hunch, James. This match will end in carnage."

"Wait patiently John, it's not over yet," James tried to reassure John.

On the pitch, Southampton, who conceded the first goal started to play more seriously. The focus of the defenders also began to improve. This makes Bayern Munich's aggressiveness at least somewhat submerged. All of Southampton's players were still focused on defending as Bayern's players were to keep trying to attack.

In the 9th minute, Simone made a tackle from the front. He managed to knock Muller and snatch the ball from his feet. The tackle was clean, so the referee didn't blow the whistle. Southampton, who just got the ball, immediately faced Bayern Munich's tight pressing. They clearly want to destroy the counter-attack that Southampton was trying to build.

Simone immediately gave the ball to Wright-Phillips. Martinez ran straight ahead and tried to steal the ball from Wright-Phillips' feet.

The Southampton defensive midfielder used a V technique to change direction and provide a through ball to the right. Rustan immediately ran at full speed. However, David Alaba was no less fast, he managed to catch up with Rustan even at a disadvantage.

As the result, David Alaba managed to throw the ball first. Southampton's counter-attack failed as Rustan lost in a speed duel against David Alaba. Southampton still getting throw-ins. At least the ball was still controlled by Southampton.. They could try to attack Bayern Munich once again.