Chapter 13: The Invisible Boss and the Glass Man
The morning training session started with protests from Real Madrid fans.
Nearly three hundred fans came to Valdebebas, all to protest against Gao Shen.
They made a lot of noise and movement on the sidelines, seriously affecting the training of the players on the field. Raul and Guti both went over to appease the fans, but to no avail.
Since it was a recovery training, Gao Shen still let Maqueda host it, and he stood by and watched silently, paying special attention to Woodgate who was injured again a few days ago.
The England central defender has had intermittent playing time in recent times. Carlo would even rather use Raul Bravo than take the risk of using Woodgate. This is not entirely because of his poor performance. In fact, he has had very good performances, but his fragile body is very worrying.
Gao Shen noticed that when Woodgate participated in team training, his movements were obviously not relaxed, and it was obvious that he was under great psychological pressure and burden.
Gao Shen watched the entire 90-minute training session in silence, which once again surprised the Real Madrid players.
Could it be that this rookie head coach really just wants to be a mascot?
Especially Raul, who knew what he was thinking, was even more puzzled.
The time for the city derby is getting closer and closer. Isn’t it time to start arranging targeted tactical drills?
Unlike yesterday afternoon when he ran away after the training session, Gao Shen remained where he was after the morning training session.
He also called out to Zidane.
…
In the Real Madrid team, the French have always been quiet, but that doesn't mean Zidane's words have no weight.
On the contrary, everyone knows that Zidane's words are often more effective than Ronaldo's.
Sometimes people are like this. Ronaldo is very willful and likes to call Florentino at every turn. It seems that they are in frequent contact, but does Florentino really like this superstar who always complains and even forces him to abdicate?
Zidane usually keeps a low profile and usually doesn't bother Florentino unless it's a big deal. But this makes Florentino value him even more, and he can be called the invisible boss in the Real Madrid locker room.
No matter who he is facing, Zidane always maintains a calm and composed attitude, as if nothing can make him angry.
Gao Shen knew Zidane's character well, so he didn't say anything too much. He waited until there was no one around and then got straight to the point.
"We received a fax calling up the French national team."
When Zidane heard this, he raised his head and looked at Gao Shen, with a hint of mockery in his eyes.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm just following the routine and asking for your opinion. If you want to go, I'll send you a fax later. If you have other ideas, I can also help you." Gao Shen said lightly.
These words fully respected Zidane's personal wishes, and Gao Shen used the word "help" to tell Zidane that he was on Zidane's side. If he didn't want to go, Gao Shen could just come out and play the bad guy.
Zidane was a smart man and he immediately understood Gao Shen's meaning. He raised his head and his eyes changed when he looked at Gao Shen.
He discovered that Gao Shen in front of him was not a rookie or a loser.
"After Domenech took office, he promoted youth reforms in the national team. The average age has dropped a lot and the team is more motivated, but there is a lack of experience. So recently he has re-recruited a group of experienced veterans, which requires running-in," Zidane explained.
As early as after the European Cup in 2004, Zidane had retired from the national team, but later Domenech persuaded him to come back.
Anyone can see that Zidane's goal is the World Cup in Germany.
In the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan, China was eliminated in the group stage, which was a humiliation for a superstar of Zidane's level.
He wants to avenge his previous humiliation!
"From November last year to May, we only had this warm-up match," Zidane said lightly.
Gao Shen nodded, "I understand. I'll send the fax when I get back."
"Thank you." Zidane's tone was still calm.
Just as the French superstar was about to turn and leave, Gao Shen suddenly spoke again.
"You play for France in the World Cup in Germany with the goal of leaving no regrets, but what about Real Madrid?"
Zidane frowned and looked at Gao Shen angrily, "What do you mean? Do you doubt my professional ethics?"
"No, you misunderstood." Gao Shen smiled kindly, "I never doubted your professional ethics. I just wondered, are you willing to end your Real Madrid career like this?"
Zidane was silent.
What level of superstar is he?
In the past decade or so, after Maradona, he and Ronaldo have been the strongest.
It is normal for superstars at their level to be arrogant and even look down on others.
Without this kind of domineering aura, how can you stand up at the crucial moment of the game?
"As you can see, we are currently ten points behind Barcelona and two points behind Valencia, but we have Celta Vigo and Osasuna chasing us closely. If we are not careful, we may lose our top four position. But if we can make an extra effort and push forward, it is not impossible for us to even threaten Barcelona's top position."
After a pause, Gao Shen reminded again: "There are still thirteen rounds of the league and the second round of the Champions League. What do you think?"
Zidane understood what Gao Shen meant and was a little surprised, because he originally thought that Gao Shen would do his best to suppress superstars, including himself, but he did not expect that Gao Shen would take the initiative to tell him this.
"Didn't you just declare war on the superstar yesterday?" Zidane 's tone was still calm.
Gao Shen chuckled, "The media always likes to write articles like this. What I'm saying is that some players don't deserve to wear the Real Madrid jersey, but that doesn't include you, because I know you have deep feelings for this team. You reached the peak of your career here, and this will be a memory for your whole life."
Zidane was silent again, because Gao Shen was absolutely right.
His national team career was brilliant, but Real Madrid was his peak in the club world, where his career underwent a transformation, especially with Florentino.
"I believe that you would not want this memory of yours to end in misery, right?"
The profound question left Zidane speechless.
Why did he choose to retire this summer?
It is because he is extremely disappointed with Real Madrid's current situation. He feels that continuing to play will only repeat the mistakes of the past three years. For him, not only can he not enjoy the fun of playing football, but it is more like a torture and a humiliation .
The profound words touched his heart, but so what?
"What do you think you can change?" Zidane was such an arrogant person that when Gao Shen spoke to his heart directly, he immediately made a strong counterattack.
Gao Shen did not take it as an offense, but rather felt happy because he touched upon Zidane's weak spot.
"I don't know what I can change. Many people say that I won't be in this position for long, but I think I have to do something. And I have always felt that what a team like Real Madrid lacks the most is not an outstanding head coach, but a head coach who can bring the players together and work together for a goal."
After Gao Shen finished speaking, he smiled and said, "Maybe I will be fired after losing to Atletico this week, or maybe I will win. Anyway, as long as I am still here, I will do what I can and not leave any regrets for myself. What do you think?"
Zidane stared at Gao Shen, as if trying to detect something from his eyes. Finally, he left a few words and turned away.
"Let's talk about it when you can hold this position firmly."
Watching the French superstar's leaving figure, Gao Shen smiled slightly.
He saw that Zidane remained neutral.
…
After seeing Zidane off, Gao Shen went straight to the medical room.
Sure enough, the team doctor was there conducting physical examinations on several injured players in the team, which was also a routine procedure after training.
Gao Shen casually asked about the conditions of several injured players with concern, with the focus on Woodgate.
The team doctor is quite satisfied with the physical condition of the England center back and he is basically fine.
He started in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 against Arsenal but was injured and left the field in the ninth minute.
Woodgate joined Real Madrid in August 2004, but he had been recovering from injury since April. The day before signing with Real Madrid, he was still receiving treatment in Munich, but Real Madrid still chose to sign him, which shows how much they value him.
After joining the team, he failed to do recovery training well and was injured in training right after joining. He then suffered injuries again and again. His debut was delayed until September 2005, which was the fourth round of the season, when he started the game against Athletic Bilbao at home. He scored an own goal in the 25th minute, causing the team to fall behind.
Since then, Woodgate's playing time has become intermittent. Even after the head coach changed players, Carlo was very cautious in using him, mainly because he had been out for a long time.
This situation continued until the end of January, when in the 21st round of the league, Real Madrid challenged Celta Vigo away. During the halftime break, Danish midfielder Gravesen was injured and Woodgate came on as a substitute. Elguera was pushed to the back midfield position. As a result, Real Madrid's defense improved greatly in the second half. Not only did they not lose the ball, but they scored a goal and defeated Celta Vigo 2-1.
Immediately afterwards, Real Madrid defeated Espanyol 4-0 at home and Athletic Bilbao 2-0 away, keeping zero goals in two consecutive games. After Woodgate took over as the main player, Real Madrid's defense has made a very obvious leap forward.
The most typical example is the King's Cup, where Real Madrid lost 6-1 to Zaragoza in the first leg. The main central defenders were Helguera and Ramos, but in the second leg, after using the combination of Ramos and Woodgate, Real Madrid returned to their home court and won 4-0 to complete their revenge.
It can be said that these three games in late January and early February proved Woodgate's strength and made everyone believe that he is a trustworthy player in Real Madrid's defense.
Unexpectedly, in the first leg of the Champions League against Arsenal, Woodgate was injured nine minutes into his appearance, and Real Madrid lost 0-1 to the Gunners at home.
In the next two games, Woodgate failed to make the squad, and Carlo even used Raul Bravo as a central defender.
What many people don't know is that, leaving aside the game against Arsenal, Woodgate has played 13 games for Real Madrid this season, 891 minutes, with a record of 11 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss, conceding five goals, three of which were lost in a 1-3 away loss to Deportivo La Coruna. In the remaining 12 games, only two goals were conceded.
One of these was an own goal scored by Woodgate himself.
Again, if he is not injured, Woodgate is a world-class central defender.
Gao Shen also clearly remembers that this glass man who could not play in Real Madrid, after transferring to Middlesbrough, turned into the defensive pillar of Middlesbrough, showed a superb level, and returned to the England national team.
So what caused such a difference in his performances at Real Madrid and Middlesbrough?
