Chapter 5: Defensive System Determines Offensive Role The days passed by like this. Gao Qi trained, ate and took tactical classes with the youth team every day. gradually. The coaching staff and young players forgot that he was a substitute for the first team's winter transfer window signing. Gao Qi himself sometimes forgets. The environment changes too quickly, and without basic food anxiety, it is easy for a person to think: Who am I? Where do I come from? Where am I going? "We're going to North London and beat the Arsenal youth team!" "Shame before the snow!" The youth team coach, Ivan, raised his fat hands excitedly. The heroic tone seemed to make his whole body glow.

The clear bald head really glowed under the incandescent light on the ceiling of the tactical room. "Go, go, go!" "rush!" The young Roma players were as excited as if they were injected with chicken blood. Gao Qi also shouted a few words. Feeling the passionate fighting spirit, he suddenly doubted the authenticity of "In a certain historical period, 20,000 Apennine soldiers equipped with breech-loading rifles, gunpowder, and bombs were defeated by hundreds of African natives using slingshots and branches." During the attack, it took half a month to advance only 50 kilometers. When encountering an enemy, they can escape 50 kilometers in a day. Roma's sporting director's office. Sabatini put out his cigarette, held the report handed over by the coaching staff, and said in a surprised tone: "Could it be that Real Madrid and I made a mistake?" "Impossible, absolutely impossible" "Jersey? Who asked you to register him for the first team roster in the halfway season? Oh! The jerseys are selling pretty well! That's good, that's good." His expression relaxed slightly. Anyway, Roma has been terrible this half season. "I'll make some arrangements. I'm going to North London to watch the game. This winter break is really worrying." The next day. Armstrong Stadium, Hertfordshire. Arsenal U19 vs Roma U19. Ivan assigned duties to the young generals step by step. Different from the first team.

In the pre-match layout, the Apennine Youth Training Team focuses more on "what we need to do well" rather than "what to do based on the characteristics of the opponent." Care about winning or losing, but not completely utilitarian. The goal is to allow young players to maintain their own style as they grow. Experts believe that this is also one of the reasons why Apennine football is in a period of transition and unable to mass-produce "modern green engineers". "Gao, hold down the opposing center back and be a good fulcrum. This is your mission. Don't shoot casually!" After all, after observing the training matches for a few days, the shooting accuracy of the young Chinese players is a bit low. Ivan gently brushed off the grass debris that had stuck to Gao Qi's shoulders during his warm-up. The latter nodded seriously. "ESPN! ESPN! Good afternoon, viewers." "Welcome to watch the heavyweight showdown of the UEFA U19 League Round of !" "The two sides are" The director's camera suddenly cut to the stands. Two elderly men in suits and ties were all smiles. The live broadcast room suddenly became lively. - [Arsenal manager Wenger? How can he have time to watch the youth team's games? ] - [He often watches youth team games. The news said that this winter Arsenal is planning to buy Morata from Real Madrid U19 and Pogba from Manchester United U19, two super talents.] - [You can’t buy it, absolutely can’t buy it, the same script every year. 】 - [Many super young players were spotted by Wenger when they were 12 years old, but they could not be bought.] - [Sabatini came to Wenger to copy his homework again. ] - [Gao Qi? How did this guy wear the Roma uniform? Did he sneak to the Apennines?] Beep! Accompanied by the referee's whistle. The game officially begins. Arsenal U19 have the ball. The young Roma players retreated steadily, giving up a 40-meter area and solidly building a double-chain defense line. It’s not the traditional chain defense that became obsolete decades ago. Traditional catenaccio has been dead since the offside rule was revised in the early 90s. Rather, it is the novice version of the Sacchi school: maintain efficient movement, compress space, and force the opponent to change the direction of attack through local numerical advantage. It can greatly save the physical energy consumption of defensive players in "individual matchup games", allowing them to focus more on. In short, Roma U19's defensive system is like a flowing river, which is submerged the moment the opponent raises waves. Of course, this is just the novice version of the Sacchi style applicable to youth teams. Arsenal U19 is not a stone, but a speedboat across the river. When Wenger moved into Highbury in the s, he began a top-down reform. "Beautiful pass and cut cooperation!" "The Gunners' youngster is very good at independent attacking!" “The delivery is very fast!” "He didn't change the direction of attack due to pressure. He didn't pass the ball backwards or sideways. He just passed the ball forward!" “The ball is lost!”

"It doesn't matter, Arsenal U19's defense is very fast, and they are also very good at passing and cutting in defense." "what?" Roma youngster Alessio intercepted the ball and made a long pass. The football flew towards the center circle. The promotion of Sacchi's defensive school is also one of the reasons for the disappearance of "certain midfield and frontcourt roles". The type of defensive system determines the type of offensive system. The landing point near the center circle line. A tall black-haired figure, with his back to the basket, easily took the football off with his chest. Snapped. As soon as the ball landed, it was passed back to the young Roma winger who was making a run. The trajectory of the pass just bypassed the Arsenal U19's defensive team. A refraction trajectory:> The Arsenal youngsters who were rushing back were unable to intercept, and the Arsenal youngsters who were dragged on the high defensive line were unable to determine the direction of attack. Roma's small winger has plenty of time and space to handle the ball. There was no pause. The moment after passing the ball, Gao Qi turned around and rushed forward. He also has ample space to run. There were only a few hundred spectators at Armstrong Stadium, and there were bursts of exclamations. Ivan touched his bald head in confusion. This was completely different from his pre-match plan. In the stands. Wenger unconsciously touched the zipper, his tone full of admiration: "He is very tall and has a very accurate judgment of the landing point." "The timing of the pass was great and he was very imaginative." "A perfect counterattack support point." Sabatini nodded and no longer questioned the coaching staff's evaluation report. Looking at the black-haired boy running on the field, he couldn't help but sigh: "He can really do the work of two positions by himself, but it's a pity that his speed is not very fast!" next moment. Cheers filled Armstrong Stadium. The time it took the two old men to talk was much slower than the changes happening on the field! "The ball is in!" "Just five minutes into the game, Roma U19 scored a goal." "Gao Qi suddenly slowed down, deceived the Arsenal central defender at the top of the arc, received a triangle pass from his teammate, and scored in one fell swoop!"

"Successful push to the far corner!" “The change of pace, running slower, can also create space for shooting.” "Most of Arsenal's defensive strength is still concentrated near the goal post!" "It was an efficient, concise and smart kick!" Gao Qi did not celebrate alone, but instead gave a thumbs up to the young Roma winger who provided the assist. Teammates ran up, high-fived and hugged. The youth team coach Ivan on the sidelines excitedly crushed the mineral water bottle and waved his fat hands excitedly: It’s so comfortable to have a number nine and a half on the court, it makes counterattacks so easy! Time went back a few seconds, and he was still shouting at Gao Qi not to shoot casually! After a while. The bald coach decided to sit quietly in the coaching seat. (End of this chapter)