Chapter 17 is here! It’s level!
"Barcelona started the game very well and Van Gaal's team scored after 12 minutes."
"It was a chance created by a free kick from the left frontcourt, and Figo assisted Cocu to score with a header."
"We can see that after the change of coach, Atletico Madrid adopted a double defensive midfielder tactic, but their defense is still as fragile as before, especially the protection of the two flanks."
"Whether it's Rivaldo or Figo, they are both top-tier players with superb individual abilities. Facing such stars, one-on-one defense is not feasible. You have to stack people."
"But Atletico Madrid is still doing very poorly in this regard."
"There are two central defenders who simply can't handle Kluivert. This has been a long-standing problem for Atletico Madrid."
"The game has started again."
"Barcelona still controlled the ball and attacked aggressively."
"Based on the current trend, Atletico Madrid is likely to suffer a crushing defeat at home tonight."
…
"Still no improvement?"
After seeing Barcelona score, they continued to attack Atletico Madrid. Old Hill in the stands looked calm, but asked the question in his heart.
Everyone around him couldn't tell whether he was asking a question or muttering to himself.
Little Hill frowned. After hearing his father's words, he hesitated for a while, and finally said, "I believe him! If he says there is a way, there must be a way!"
At the end of the speech, Xiao Hill's face was full of determination and he could not be questioned.
Paul Futre and Cerezo both knew that Little Hill trusted Yang Hao wholeheartedly, and even seemed a little brainwashed.
God knows why he trusts Yang Hao so much?
Old Hill looked at his son deeply and snorted twice, "I hope he won't disappoint you."
Since taking over Atletico Madrid in 1992, Hill Sr. arranged for Hill Jr. to join Atletico Madrid as general manager.
A young man who had just graduated from school and had little work experience was thrown into the big dye vat of professional football. Old Hill's intention was very clear, which was to let him train and improve in this complex environment.
A few years passed, and he was still very dissatisfied with Little Hill.
This son doesn't look like him at all!
How can you accomplish anything if you are indecisive, lack the courage to make decisive decisions, are hesitant, and follow the rules?
If you think about it carefully, the most outrageous thing Hill has done over the years is to resolutely replace Antic with Yang Hao.
Everyone thought it was crazy and unreasonable, but old Hill felt quite happy about it.
This kid seems to be getting some enlightenment.
This is a world of madmen, and honest people are destined to suffer losses.
Atletico Madrid is important to him, but the family heir is more important.
He is 67 years old.
…
"Puyol, you're pushing too far forward, come back a little."
After a Barcelona attack failed, Van Gaal shouted to Puyol.
In the previous attack, Puyol made a forward run and passed Figo, standing at the front of the right side.
Van Gaal was aware of the danger.
Because Atletico Madrid's left side Capdevila and Solari are also very strong in attack.
In Van Gaal's tactical system, the full-backs must never surpass the wingers. This is a problem with the defensive system.
Figo is not a typical winger. He does not have lightning speed. He relies more on getting the ball on the wing and using his own skills, rhythm and passing to create wing breakthroughs and crosses to create threats.
Puyol was a young guy, but he was very fast. He accidentally got too excited and passed the opponent.
"Atletico Madrid's left side was suppressed and they couldn't pose any threat." Mourinho laughed.
It's been 20 minutes and Atletico Madrid hasn't had a single shot on goal.
Several counterattacks were made on the left, but Puyol was very aware of his defense and was very fast.
There is also Guardiola who is lagging behind. After Puyol comes on, he always stays at the back and on the right side, plugging Puyol's loopholes, which makes it difficult for Atletico Madrid to pose a threat on the left.
As for Atletico Madrid's right side, it was already difficult for Gaspar to defend Rivaldo, so how could he have the mind to move forward?
Aguilera also had to actively return to defense, resulting in Atletico Madrid's right side being unable to pose a threat.
"What was different about Atletico Madrid today was that their players were quite active. Hasselbaink also frequently participated in the pressing in the frontcourt, and Valeron was more diligent than usual, whether he was pulling wide or retreating."
Mourinho couldn't help laughing when he said this, "I think we should have won more than three goals today."
After hearing this, Van Gaal smiled at his assistant and said, "You are just watching the fun and not afraid of trouble."
The good thing about being an assistant coach is that they don’t have to take responsibility for wins or losses.
"However, if we can score another goal before the first half, we will have a chance," Van Gaal analyzed.
The chance he was talking about was winning by more than 3 goals.
…
Whether it was the coach on the sidelines, the fans in the stands, or the audience in front of the TV, what they saw was Barcelona overwhelmingly dominating Atletico Madrid and taking advantage of the field.
But on the court, especially as the team's key connecting point at position 4, Guardiola felt completely different from everyone else.
The attentive Barcelona captain noticed a detail that no one in the stadium noticed, and no one outside the stadium would see, that is, Belleron's running position.
Barcelona adopted the typical 433 tactics, with the midfield forming an inverted triangle, Guardiola falling back, and Gabri and Xavi in the middle.
Atletico Madrid adopted the 4231 tactics, and Belleron was just opposite Guardiola.
So every time Guardiola got the ball, Belleron would press forward.
But every time Atletico Madrid won the ball, Belleron would move to the left behind the line of Gabriel and Xavi.
This is a very obvious signal of wanting to support the attack on the left side.
Belleron must not be allowed to get the ball. This is the requirement Guardiola has set for himself.
He is well aware of Belleron's strength. Once he gets the ball, with his skills and passing ability, he is likely to create a threat.
Atletico Madrid's counterattack was also intended to play on the left, and Capdevila and Solari were also very active on this side.
What is more surprising is that Pablo Garcia is a left-footed player and he also tends to this side.
That is to say, sometimes Atletico will deploy four players on the left.
Is this a signal to counterattack on the left?
Guardiola looked at Puyol, who was completely letting himself go on the wing and kept moving forward, and thought to himself that it was normal to think this way.
So he frequently leaned towards this side, while reminding Cocu and De Boer to pay attention to Atletico's left side.
Guardiola did not need to remind him of this, because Hasselbaink also actively moved to the left, forcing Barcelona's central defender to follow.
Fighting alone, one-on-one, neither Cocu nor De Boer were sure of limiting Hasselbaink.
Twenty minutes into the game, Guardiola discovered that Atletico was no longer in the chaos it had been in at the beginning.
The players seemed to have gradually adapted to the rhythm of the game and the tactics of both sides, and they began to play with some rules.
Especially the offensive coordination on the left began to pose a threat.
This forced Guardiola to frequently call on Puyol and Xavi in front, and at the same time move more actively to this side.
However, he had an intuition in his mind telling him that something was wrong.
But the game was so intense and fast-paced that he had no time to think about what was wrong.
…
“Here I come!”
Yang Hao has been standing on the sidelines, waiting patiently.
When he saw Pablo Garcia and Capdevila teaming up to attack Figo, the Uruguayan midfielder took the lead and kicked the ball to the left. The Portuguese fell to the ground, but the referee Mendes did not blow the whistle.
Yang Hao immediately became excited and clenched his fists with all his strength.
The ball was snatched by Pablo Garcia and was in front of Capdevila.
The Spanish left-back quickly moved forward and kicked the ball along the left sideline, attracting the attention of Puyol and Xavi.
Puyol did not get into position immediately, and Xavi quickly moved to the side because they both knew that Figo would not return to defense.
After Capdevila crossed the center line, he saw Belleron running towards him, just outside the angle between Puyol and Xavi, signaling Capdevila to pass the ball.
The Spanish left-back acted decisively and passed the ball directly.
As soon as Belleron ran over, the ball arrived.
But Guardiola has arrived too.
Belleron stopped, couldn't hold on to the ball, and quickly passed it to the left.
This time I went straight to Solari.
Solari sprinted along the left side and caught up with Belleron's pass. He saw that Cocu had also reacted quickly and rushed over.
The Argentine weighed his own speed and was not sure if he could directly pass Cocu and pass the ball, so he stopped immediately and pretended to dribble the ball into the penalty area to find Hasselbaink for cooperation.
This time, Cocu and Guardiola both came over.
At this moment, Solari passed the ball back to the unguarded Belleron.
When Belleron stopped the ball in the open space, Guardiola in front of him and Xavi and Gabriel Sabri on both sides of him all came towards him at the same time, but the Spanish midfielder adjusted slightly and pretended to pass the ball forward to find Hasselbaink.
After a feint, Belleron passed the ball to the right rib.
Aguilera, who was just on the right side of the center line, suddenly ran over and received the pass from Belleron. Without waiting for Bogarde to get close, the short but very flexible Aguilera moved the ball sideways, just avoiding Bogarde and rushing to the right side of the top of the penalty area.
After seeing Bogarde being dunked by Aguilera, De Boer lost his patience and chose to steal the ball.
Although Aguilera is a right-footed player, his left foot is also very good. Without waiting for De Boer to get close, he sent a straight pass with his left foot.
The ball passed right between De Boer and Bogarde into the right side of the penalty area.
Hasselbaink was always under the close defense of Cocu, but when Aguilera came with the ball, he first ran sideways, pretending to meet Aguilera. After De Boer rushed over, he suddenly changed direction and cut diagonally behind De Boer.
Aguilera's pass just came to the right side of the penalty area. Hasselbaink caught up with the ball, stopped it, adjusted it, and before Cocu could rush over, he shot it directly with his right foot.
This is a typical Hasselbaink shot, full of power and speed, with a unique violent aesthetic!
The football went straight into the goal guarded by Hespu at almost lightning speed.
One to one!
It’s tied!
