Chapter 552: Chapter 551: The First Manchester City Coaches Conference (14th Update)
There was a hidden reason behind Baggio’s transfer: he simply couldn’t withstand Brescia’s overuse.
Starting every match and playing the full game certainly reflected respect for Baggio.
But the problem was, Baggio couldn’t handle it!
And you couldn’t really talk about it, because doing so would inevitably evoke sighs of lament.
Baggio absolutely didn’t believe that there were any players over the age of thirty-five who still wanted to start every game.
Ronaldo: "Cough cough, precisely in..."
If there were, how foolish would they be?
Hierro also raised his hand, "Basically, this tactic is about using wingers as the core and full-backs as wingers. But wouldn’t this put too much pressure on our defense?"
"Especially during an opponent’s counterattack, we only have two men back."
Facing such a question, Deng Kai didn’t even need to respond himself; he simply pointed to Guardiola.
Guardiola: "Essien will act as the third center-back during defense. As long as we delay them a bit, the midfielders like Tu Lei and the players on the flanks will come back."
Hierro obviously had his own understanding of defense: "If Essien often falls back, the two center-backs must also frequently spread to the left and right to give him space to fall back."
"But there’s a fatal flaw here, which is... when we take positions on the left, front, and right of this ’protruding’ shape, the middle is left open! That’s the top of the arc!"
"That’s very dangerous!"
Schmeichel just smiled slightly, "This situation occurs more often during counterattacks, which means that the football that reaches the point you mentioned is a long pass or through ball."
"Hence, Kai emphasizes repeatedly that the goalkeeper must be proactive!"
"The defensive range of our goalkeeper is not just within the small box, but the entire penalty area, and it can even extend beyond the penalty box!"
"Or to not just talk about defensive range, theoretically, he can provide a passing option for his teammates’ possession, and it’s a point that’s seldom targeted."
"This has also been a key focus of my training with Čech; he has quite good footwork, and he’s played ice hockey before; he has the willingness to move."
Hierro had no more questions.
Then elder Harland raised his hand, "Kai, there’s one thing... Based on my observation of Adriano recently, I’m afraid he’ll have a hard time meeting your tactical demands. Um... he’s from Brazil!"
Alf found a precise adjective.
What does it mean to be from Brazil?
Good technique.
Showy dribbling.
An obsession with beating players.
From this perspective, Lukaku shouldn’t play for the Belgium team; he should be playing for Brazil.
Maxa nodded, "I’ll pay special attention to Adriano."
Ibrahimovic has a habit of holding onto the ball, but once you find his real G-spot, he can completely give up on holding the ball.
So this problem has never been difficult to resolve.
It’s just a matter of whether you’ve found the right direction.
...
The next day, Deng Kai found Adriano.
In recent training, a few players have surprised everyone.
One is Ribery.
This amateur player’s technique is incredibly delicate, and he’s fierce at dribbling and breaking through.
Moreover, his time as a paving worker has honed his body, giving him a decent core strength when it comes to confrontation.
The only drawback is that he’s too short, just 1.7 meters tall.
Additionally, his shooting isn’t great.
But he possesses an abnormal ambidexterity, which somewhat compensates for his shortcomings in shooting and makes him look quite good on the field.
Lastly, he’s not that adaptable to tactics and hasn’t yet figured out how to become the dynamo on the right wing in a short time.
But that can be solved over time.
The other player that surprised everyone was Adriano.
His physical strength was immense!
At 1.9 meters tall, he nearly maxed out his ability to confront opponents, and his explosiveness and speed were both excellent.
He even had the ability to move at high speed for long periods, an extremely rare and lacking ability in a big center forward.
His shooting power was tremendous, and, crucially, frighteningly accurate!
Just two days ago, during a friendly match, Adriano managed to send both Caballero and Feng Te off the field with injuries.
"Adriano, why are you so fond of dribbling?" Deng Kai pretended to chat casually with Adriano.
"I want to become the next Ronaldo." Adriano, not the sharpest tool in the shed, no wonder he’d later be scammed into bankruptcy several times.
Deng Kai understood.
It was because he had a dream.
That was troublesome.
Youths with dreams are impossible to persuade.
If you push them, it will only backfire.
Since he wanted to be Ronaldo, as his teammate, you have to help him, right!
"Adriano!" Deng Kai jumped up and patted Adriano’s shoulder, "Even if the whole world doesn’t believe in you, I do! I’ll support you with all my might!"
Adriano: "Uh... but there are still a lot of people in the world who believe in me."
Deng Kai: "They will stop believing."
Adriano: ???
That evening, Feng Te, still using crutches, gathered Essien, Ribery, Chiellini, Grosso, Maicon, Tu Lei, and others, and gave them a masterclass.
"Don’t compare your physique with his, got it? Avoid physical contact."
"Let him dribble and make moves. His frame is large, so his move transitions can’t be fluid, and there will definitely be a noticeable gap."
"That’s the right moment to intercept. Just take the ball, understand!"
"If he uses his upper body to obstruct, then go for a slide tackle. Of course, don’t actually slide into him. We can’t injure him or let him know we’re secretly helping him with special training."
The players kept taking notes, filled with doubts.
Feng Te was so lousy, how could his tactical acumen be so high?
Would these tricks actually work?
The next day.
All doubts were dispelled.
The way the players looked at Feng Te changed.
Especially Ribery and Chiellini, they regarded Feng Te as the Premier League’s top central defender!
They managed to hold him back!
They really did!
Adriano, who had been explosive in previous training sessions, was completely outdone this time!
Whether it was the large-framed Grosso or the smaller Essien, both perfectly froze Adriano in his tracks.
Adriano himself was very confused.
He had thought that no one in this Manchester City team was worth his time.
How did it happen that overnight... everyone became an Adriano killer?
Torres, who was standing by, was quite astonished, "Is it really that difficult? I think it’s fine. With so much space, just dribble and speed up, devour them alive."
Ribery nodded, "You could even nutmeg them."
Fowler: "Actually, passing is also a great option."
Baggio shook his head, "If he’s going to play like that, Adriano is a hundred times worse than Ibrahimovic!"
In fact, is the gap between them that large?
Absolutely not.
But Adriano chose to dribble past opponents, and it’s the kind of technical dribbling at that, so without a doubt, he isn’t even qualified to be compared with Ibrahimovic.
That’s because Ibrahimovic is one of those super large models with the best foot skills, ball sense, rhythm, and dribble control, bar none!
But... even Ibrahimovic, who was in Sporting Lisbon, was transformed by Deng Kai into a refined version of Drogba, significantly reducing the time he held the ball at his feet.
Let alone Adriano?
