Chapter 40: A profound resignation letter
tired!
Really tired!
The locker room was so quiet that the only sound was the players' heavy breathing.
Everyone was sweating profusely, and the jerseys they took off were as wet as if they had just been taken out of the washing machine.
His head, face and body were covered in sweat. He sat there, gasping for breath.
Anyone could see that they were really trying their best.
But the game did not go as planned.
After scoring a goal, Arsenal turned the situation around. Real Madrid struggled for twenty minutes, but was still defeated by the Gunners at the last minute of the game.
Although it was a penalty, it was not really unfair.
Gao Shen was not in a hurry to speak. He gave the players time to catch their breath while also perfecting his own ideas.
Real Madrid certainly cannot sit back and wait for death in the second half. At this point, they must continue to attack.
The key is how to attack? When to start attacking?
Just when the locker room was silent, Ramos suddenly jumped up from his seat.
Everyone was startled by this sudden action. Gao Shen's heart also skipped a beat. He was afraid that Ramos would say something inappropriate at this critical juncture, so he wanted to speak out to stop him.
But unexpectedly, Ramos spoke first.
"I'm sorry!" The Seville boy lowered his head which had always been held high and apologized in public.
"It's my fault. I couldn't stop Henry. He started too fast and I couldn't keep up. I attacked subconsciously, and the result was..."
Elguera also stood up. "Henry started with the ball, hoping to get a penalty, and we were fooled."
It is difficult to say what Henry wanted to do at that time. Maybe he shot after he was broken through, but maybe he was determined from the beginning that even if he couldn't break through, he still wanted to earn a penalty.
At worst, he wanted to get a direct free kick at the edge of the penalty area.
Everyone was surprised, including Gao Shen.
From the time Ramos joined Real Madrid until now, he has given everyone the impression of being a fearless and youthful youngster.
A person who dared to challenge and sing a different tune from the Brazilian gang when he first arrived, now admits his mistake.
Gao Shen secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but at the same time he also felt a sense of confidence in his heart.
Even Ramos is willing to admit his mistake. The team's morale and state tonight are really good!
Gao Shen walked straight over, patted Elguera on the shoulder, motioned him to sit down, then came to Ramos, put his arm around Ramos' shoulders, and the two of them stood shoulder to shoulder, about the same height.
"This is not anyone's fault. If you have to say it's wrong, it's my fault and the fault of the whole team."
Ramos looked at Gao Shen with some surprise.
"You and Ivan have performed well enough. I know you both tried your best."
After Gao Shen pushed Ramos back to his seat, he stood among the players and looked around at the players.
"Not only Sergio and Ivan, but also you, everyone here, I know you all tried your best. I am proud of your performance in the first half, and I believe that Real Madrid fans are the same."
Real Madrid's objective conditions are there: aging, long-term low training levels, and players not being in good shape for various reasons. These are objective facts and cannot be changed overnight.
It's really not easy for these players to play like this now.
"But I know even more clearly that at this moment, every one of you is feeling the same resentment as I am, right?"
Ramos, De La Red, Felipe, Arbeloa... many players nodded, even Raul, Zidane and Beckham, they were all unwilling to give up.
We tried our best and finally scored a goal, but the score was equalized before the end of the first half.
Who would be willing?
"It's very simple. If you don't want to give up, then just fight for the victory in the second half!" Gao Shen clenched his fists and said through gritted teeth.
At this point in the game, Real Madrid had no choice but to fight to the end.
After a pause, Gao Shen continued, "Before the team set out for London, I went to the Ortaleza district to visit Carlo."
"Whether you believe it or not, I really regard him as my teacher, but I am not going there to learn from him. I am going to say goodbye to him because I told him that if we lose at Highbury tonight, I will not go back."
Everyone in the locker room looked up at Gao Shen in disbelief.
Gao Shen reached into his pocket and pulled out a letter. "I had already written a letter of resignation in Madrid. If we can't qualify for the quarterfinals tonight, I will hand it in after the game."
Everyone in the stadium, from players to coaches to staff, all focused their attention on the letter in Gao Shen's right hand. Even his best confidant Lucas didn't know the existence of this letter, let alone others.
The whole world knows that if they lose this game, Gao Shen will most likely be fired, but it is just speculation.
Now, Gao Shen has demonstrated his determination.
I don't need Real Madrid to fire me, I will fire myself!
"I'm not trying to play a sad game in front of you to gain your sympathy. I just want to tell you that my desire to win this game is no less than any of you here, because I'm betting my future on it!"
Everyone in the locker room could feel the weight of Gao Shen's words.
Judging from their performance in the first half, even if they lost the game in the end, everyone would understand and forgive them, but Gao Shen would step down as Real Madrid coach and might even face liquidation. The worst thing would be that he would become infamous and his future would be ruined.
"I also know that many of you, even now, are still dissatisfied and still think that I am not qualified to be the head coach of Real Madrid. I myself do not deny this, but since fate has brought us to this point today, and since we have no choice, let us put aside our past grudges and fight side by side!"
…
Gao Shen's moving mobilization speech boosted the team's morale and fighting spirit, but how to play in the second half was a big problem.
Real Madrid's situation is in front of everyone and there is no way to change it.
“We can only attack at the start of the second half and try to get another away goal.”
Gao Shen said very firmly that there would be no room for any doubt, because Real Madrid's physical fitness could not last until overtime, and even after 70 minutes, they did not have the physical strength to launch an attack. This was all unknown.
Therefore, if you want to score a goal, you can only bet on the start.
"It was still the same style we played in the first half, attacking after the start, stabilizing the position and rhythm, and pressing Arsenal in the half. Negredo was responsible for containing Senderos, and the ball was mostly passed to Zidane, who was responsible for getting the ball in the front court."
"On the right, pay attention to Reyes and Henry, don't press too hard. Felipe on the left can move forward appropriately and participate in the attack in the front court."
"Also, in the first half, I found that when Zidane went forward, Gilberto Silva would also retreat, and there would be gaps in the front of the Arsenal penalty area, which we could exploit."
Gao Shen slid out of the area at the front of the penalty area on the tactical blackboard and tapped heavily several times.
Real Madrid's offensive tactics were almost completely figured out by Arsenal in the first half. Wenger will certainly remind his players to reduce fouls as much as possible to avoid giving Real Madrid free kick opportunities in good positions.
Therefore, Real Madrid must find new attacking points on the offensive end.
When everyone heard Gao Shen say this, they immediately turned their attention to Graveson.
Gravesen is not a traditional engineering player. He is not tall, has a tough and brave style, and looks very strong. He looks like a butcher, but he is very good at organization and passing, and has good long-range shooting ability.
Everyone naturally thought that when Gao Shen talked about long-range shots, he was referring to Gravesen's run-in.
But Gao Shen shook his head. "Thomas is from Everton in the Premier League. Wenger is very familiar with him and has always been on guard against his runs from behind."
Gravesen himself nodded. No one knew Wenger's targeted deployment better than him.
If not Gravesen, then who?
"Reuben!" Gao Shen pointed at Delared, "It's time for us to see your ability to get in from behind and shoot from long range!"
Everyone in the locker room was shocked. It was Delared!
This young player from the second team has only played in one derby match against Atletico Madrid since joining the first team. He has been diligent and hardworking, and was afraid of making mistakes. He rarely made forward runs and completed his tasks well, but there were no surprises.
Gao Shen actually gave him such an important task now?
Not to mention others, even Delared himself was flattered and his face was full of disbelief.
Only Gao Shen himself knew that De La Red became famous because of his volley shot from behind.
In his career, he has scored many goals with long shots.
More importantly, Arsenal and Wenger did not pay much attention to him, and even ignored him somewhat.
"Don't worry, Reuben, I believe you can do it!"
Gao Shen walked up to Delared, patted him on the shoulder confidently and encouraged him.
After saying this, Gao Shen clapped his hands vigorously.
"Okay, let's play the second half as we just said. Everyone, remember, we only have one goal in this game, and that is to win!"
All the players stood up and shouted, "Okay!"
…
…
After the start of the second half, Real Madrid, having caught their breath, decisively launched a high-pressure attack on Arsenal.
Real Madrid's transformation did not surprise Wenger, who made targeted tactical arrangements during the half-time break.
Although Real Madrid successfully regained the ball and suppressed Arsenal again, the situation seemed a bit stalemate.
After two games, especially the running-in after the start of the first half, Real Madrid executed the team pressure tactics advocated by Gao Shen more effectively. Although the players consumed a lot of physical energy, the effect was very good.
After making a few adjustments to the details at the beginning, Gao Shen saw that the team was on the right track, so he patiently waited for a turnaround.
As the head coach, he had no way of replacing the players, and he certainly didn't play as well as the players. The only thing he could do was wait.
The situation was in a stalemate, but everyone knew that Real Madrid's physical strength would not last long.
If Real Madrid fails to win the game at the beginning of the second half, there will be no chance of winning.
