69novels Chapter 10 Dream Trio
Chapter 10 Dream Trio
The Chinese team's locker room.
All the starting players were covered in sweat and breathing heavily.
When facing a team like Brazil, constant running and defense will inevitably consume a lot of the players' energy.
But this is the only thing a weak team can do when facing a strong team.
By trading movement for space and creating numerical superiority in most areas of the field, you can have a chance to score!
"We weren't focused enough in the final stages of the first half," Milutinovic said first. "To defend against players like Ronaldinho or Ronaldo, you have to maintain 100% focus."
After Ye Xian finished translating, Li Tie stood up from his seat: "My problem. I couldn't stop Ronaldinho's pass. That kid is too agile, his whole body is full of feints! I'll be more careful in the second half."
At this time, Li Tie was only 25 years old, a time when he was full of vigor and had a strong sense of responsibility.
At this moment, there was no trace of the insatiable greed he would later possess, driven by a desire to make money.
Ye Xian also believes that Li Tie should be fully focused on football itself at this time.
Are there few stories in this world of dragon-slaying heroes who end up becoming dragons themselves?
It's just too difficult to stay true to your original aspirations...
Zhao Junzhe also shook his head and said, "Mine, when Ronaldo was breaking through, I should have taken him down immediately."
Ye Xian couldn't help but laugh and said, "Have you forgotten that they have many free-kick experts? And if you commit a foul there, you'll probably get a yellow card, which will be very disadvantageous for the rest of the game."
Li Weifeng also stood up: "I was the last defender, and I also have a problem. I thought Ronaldo would take another touch, but I didn't expect him to shoot directly."
Ye Xian patted Li Weifeng on the shoulder: "It's normal that we can't stop him, otherwise he would have won the FIFA World Player of the Year award three times... uh, twice?"
I almost let it slip.
Ronaldo is currently a two-time FIFA World Player of the Year, and he won the third title after his phenomenal performance in this World Cup.
However, no one would notice Ye Xian's "precognition".
Ye Xian then walked to the tactics board and pointed to the number 9 piece representing Ronaldo:
"His speed, explosiveness, ability to dribble forward, off-the-ball movement, and ability to shoot in various ways are all historic."
"So we can't expect one or even two players to completely contain him; it requires teamwork."
"Besides the defense, our four midfielders need to be mindful of their positions at all times to limit Ronaldo's space to move around."
"For example, when Ronaldo moves to our left flank, Wu Chengying, Ma Mingyu, Li Tie, and Li Weifeng need to quickly form a four-man encirclement, while Du Wei, who is dropping back, needs to be ready to provide support at any time."
"Once Ronaldo enters this area, I require not only someone to go up and mark him closely to prevent him from turning around, but also others to provide coverage and conduct secondary defense."
"Ronaldo is certainly a great player, but this multi-on-one tactic should still allow us to limit his performance and control the game..."
Finally, Ye Xian tapped the tactics board heavily and clenched his fist:
"As Coach Milutinovic said, as long as we stay focused, avoid mistakes, and make our defense impenetrable, we can hold the goal and even create valuable counter-attacking opportunities."
All the players stood up in unison and shouted, "Yes! We can hold on!"
Confidence and determination can be seen in everyone's eyes.
Actually, you can see from how everyone was scrambling to take the blame that this national football team is very united.
A united and determined team truly has a chance to create miracles!
Milutinovic clapped enthusiastically at everyone, but didn't say anything more.
The first half of the game proved that Ye Xian's tactics were flawless, and the players had completely trusted him.
At this time, Ye Xian's communication with the national football players was very smooth, and Milutinovic, who did not speak the language, did not need to say anything more!
-----------------
"The second half has begun. We had a tough first half, but we managed to hold on for a 0-0 score. Coach Zhang, what are your thoughts on the second half?"
"It can be said that the Chinese team played very well in the first half. The players' active running and defense caused a lot of trouble for the Brazilian stars. This makes me look forward to the Chinese team's performance in the second half, hehe."
"But the match is 90 minutes long. If they continue to defend like this, can the Chinese team's stamina hold up?"
"That's what I'm worried about too. But I believe Coach Milutinovic... and Ye Xian should have a solution. The coaching staff must have contingency plans!"
"Okay, hopefully the Chinese team can bring surprises to the hundreds of millions of fans across the country today..."
In the second half, the Brazilian team quickly regained possession and launched attacks on the Chinese team's positions.
However, the Chinese team still strictly followed Ye Xian's instructions and firmly held their positions.
Moreover, the marking of Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, and Rivaldo seems to have become even tighter.
Brazil's midfield operation also appeared very disjointed, with several attacks reaching the Chinese penalty area only to end in hasty long-range shots.
In the 60th minute, Scolari couldn't hold back any longer and started making substitutions.
Youngster Kaká came on, replacing defensive midfielder Anderson Polgar.
This is undoubtedly a signal to intensify the offensive.
At this time, Kaká was only 20 years old and not very famous, but he had already won the titles of Brazilian league best player and South American best newcomer.
Ye Xian turned and whispered a few words to Milu, and then made the decision to replace him.
Qu Bo and Li Xiaopeng came on, replacing Ma Mingyu and Qi Hong.
This was actually part of the planned personnel change.
Ma Mingyu and Qi Hong are not in good physical condition, and their defensive duties in midfield today have been very heavy, which has already exhausted them.
As for Li Tie and Zhao Junzhe, these two young players have no problem with their physical fitness and are still very energetic.
So now we need to bring on two fresh players to maintain the integrity of our defense!
Ye Xian even called Qu Bo aside:
"That Kaká, who just came on as number 23, is incredibly fast with his dribbling, his through balls are sharp, and his long-range shots are decent. You need to keep an eye on him."
"His physical strength is average. Once you get up there, stick close to him and don't give him any space to accelerate."
"If he really gets going, push him to the wing. Remember, as long as he doesn't get the ball at the edge of the box, he won't be able to unleash his full potential..."
Qu Bo came on as a midfielder, using his speed to withstand Kaká's attacks. This strategy was very targeted.
Qu Bo nodded frequently as he listened.
Ye Xian seems to know the characteristics of every player on the Brazilian team like the back of his hand, which everyone admires.
If it were world-class stars like Ronaldo and Rivaldo, that would be one thing, but where did Ye Xian find out about a newcomer like Kaká who had only played one or two seasons of professional league football in Brazil?
After all, the media wasn't as developed back then, so watching a Brazilian league match wasn't so easy.
But that doesn't matter anymore.
Anyway, now everyone should just do whatever Ye Xian says!
After these two players came on, the Chinese team continued to maintain their midfield vitality.
Qu Bo, in particular, kept a close eye on Kaka from the very beginning.
The young Kaka was a bit hesitant after coming on as a substitute, and he was also targeted with specific defensive measures, which made it even harder for him to perform.
As for the other Brazilian players, they became increasingly anxious and lost their rhythm as the game progressed.
Thus, the dream attacking quintet of Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, Kaká, and Juninho, which seems incredibly luxurious in hindsight, proved utterly ineffective against the Chinese team's defense!
Time passed by, second by second.
The match has entered its 80th minute...