Portugal is certainly not idle these days.
No team will take a final seriously, let alone a team coached by Pan Yi?
Compared with a world-leading coach like Pan Yi, Portuguese head coach Fernando Santos seems too ordinary.
Although he is 61 years old this year, both his playing career and coaching career can only be said to be mediocre.
In the early days, he basically spent time with some teams in Portugal and Greece. It was not until he started coaching the Greek national team in 2010 that he became famous.
He led the team to the 2012 European Cup finals and historically led the team to the knockout rounds of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
Such results attracted the attention of the Portuguese, who succeeded Paul Bento as Portugal's new coach after the World Cup.
In the next two years, the European Cup has of course become the focus of Santos' work. In fact, he has done well. A winning rate of 68.75% allowed them to successfully break through the qualifiers and reach the main draw.
Now, he has led his team to the European Cup finals!
This is also the second time in history that Portugal has reached the final. The last time was the European Cup held in 2004, but they lost to the Greek team in the final, achieving the "Greek myth" of their opponent.
I believe many fans still remember the sad tears shed by the 19-year-old Ronaldo, who was still "Little Ronaldinho" at the time.
This time, both Santos and Ronaldo certainly hope to create history and make up for the regrets of all Portuguese people 12 years ago.
"It's still difficult for us to spy on the Swedish team."
Assistant coach Valle reported: "Similar to the French team before the game, Pan Yi was a little bit mysterious, and all training was closed."
Santos smiled slightly: "Guessed it. He can tinker with something new every time, of course he is afraid of being seen by others. Like the formation when playing against France, it is actually very unexpected, and in the end it is It’s had good results.”
Of course Santos also admires Pan Yi very much.
Of course, in this world, what coach would not appreciate Pan Yi?
Peers know their peers best, and they all naturally know how difficult it is for Pan Yi to lead the team to achieve these results.
Especially this time, he led the mediocre Swedish team to fight all the way out of the group of death and then reach the finals. It can be said that he amazed the whole world!
This can be regarded as an eye-opener for coaches around the world, allowing everyone to see how Pan Yi can make a team with average technical level fully display his tactical qualities and play his own style and level.
They also know how Pan Yi's tactics are ahead of the world's football trends, and how they lead football tactics to make great strides forward.
Even Santos itself can get nourishment from Pan Yi's coaching philosophy and apply it to his own team.
Santos has benefited a lot from the players' triangle and four-corner cooperation, running without the ball, full-backs' support for the waist, switching between center backs and full-backs, contact between center and wingers, etc.
In the games Pan Yi led the team to play, whether it was Milan, Hamburg, Chelsea, or now Sweden, if you take a look at the game videos from time to time, you may get some new insights.
This is to live until you are old and learn until you are old!
The 61-year-old Santos can be inspired by Pan Yi in this way, not to mention those young and rising coaches. Each of them regards Pan Yi as their idol and want to worship him. .
Valais suddenly said: "Tell me, is it possible that those rumors are true, that Pan Yi really has the mysterious power of the Dragon Kingdom? Did he use this power to defeat France?"
Valais is an old man in his fifties, and he believes in these things in his heart.
"As far as I know, young people in the Dragon Kingdom generally don't believe this. I think Pan Yi is just using it to fight psychological warfare." Santos shook his head and said, "We can't be affected by this too, we still have to pay attention. Come to your own preparations."
"Yes." Valais nodded in agreement, but he was still worried, "Then what should we do now? I feel like my eyes are going dark."
Santos pointed to the midfield position on the tactical board and began to express his views:
"Now we can only guess Pan Yi's playing style through Sweden's previous games."
"Although they have a star like Ibrahimovic, they don't rely heavily on him on the court. In other words, Ibrahimovic's fulcrum and finish in the frontcourt are just part of their tactical system."
"And like other players, Forsberg, Isaac, Lindelof, Augustinsson...etc., if this group of players is singled out individually, their strength may not be said to be top-notch. But when combined together, they are definitely all The team has a headache, and this has always been a characteristic of Sweden, with its strong team fighting ability!"
"And we have Cristiano Ronaldo, B seats, including Nani. They are fast, have good skills, have the ability to explode individually, and also have the threat of counterattack. This is our advantage, and it must also be the focus of their prevention."
"So, when they face us, they should also maximize their team football, especially by organizing a strong defensive network in the midfield and strengthening their control over the midfield to block our effective passing. And it stopped us from passing the ball upfield, especially at Ronaldo's feet."
"But we can also prevent them from doing this. Because Sweden's disadvantages are also obvious. Their players are still far behind us in terms of technical ability. Therefore, we must give full play to our ball control skills, speed and flexibility. The features on it increase the speed of passing and receiving as well as the speed of advancement!”
Valais nodded frequently after hearing this.
Santos's words can be said to have struck a vital chord with the Swedish team.
After all, the Swedish team is indeed far behind the Portuguese team in terms of technical sophistication and quick passing and receiving coordination.
Once both sides pick up the pace, Portugal's advantage will become more obvious, while the Swedish team will fall into a situation of frequent mistakes.
"In this game, we must actively attack from the beginning!" Santos said suddenly.
This surprised Valais.
Santos's use of troops has always given people a stable but calm feeling. Pan Yi once said that he is not good at winning by surprise.
In previous games, Portugal has always been in a defensive and counterattack posture and does not often take the initiative.
And now in the final, Santos wants to be uncharacteristic?
"What Pan Yi is best at is dragging the game to their own rhythm. If he succeeds, it may be difficult for us to regain control." Santos explained.
This is also considered based on Portugal’s own characteristics.
In terms of the overall strength of the team, Portugal is actually inferior to France, Germany, and even Spain.
In other words, since Sweden can ultimately win against these teams, it can also do the same against Portugal.
Looking at Pan Yi's past tactical play, it is very common to suddenly exert force to control the situation and then beat up the opponent.
Especially after finding the opponent's weakness, he directly seizes the enemy's loophole and beats him hard. The opponent loses his energy and opportunity, and then the rest of the game will enter Pan Yi's rhythm.
And once Pan Yi enters the rhythm, it will be difficult for the opponent to come back.
"So, we must work out a set of specific steps and details for attacking after the opening. It is best to open the Swedish team's defense as soon as the opening begins and catch him off guard!"
Santos said, and started discussing with Valle.
They all understand that when playing against Pan Yi's team, if they cannot pay enough attention to the tactical details, then they can only rely on God's blessing if they want to win.
For example, if Cristiano Ronaldo scores a hat-trick, will he be a god or a mortal?
——
After more than twenty days of competition, the European Cup has finally reached its most exciting moment.
Only two of the 24 participating teams are now left, and from these two teams, another new champion in the history of the European Cup will be decided!
The whole world has turned its attention to Paris, to Saint-Denis, to the Stade de France.
On the day of the European Cup final, the whole city was like a volcano erupting, with fans and reporters gathering from far and wide.
Coupled with the UEFA officials and staff who have already arranged and prepared everything here, the streets and alleys of Paris are filled with tension, excitement, and joy before the European Cup finals!
Yes, joy.
Whether they are Portuguese fans wearing red jerseys, Swedish fans wearing yellow jerseys, neutral French fans, or even Dragon Country fans coming from afar...
Everyone was singing and dancing together, looking forward to the arrival of this football event.
This is the true meaning of football, which is to bring joy to people all over the world!
In order to welcome these fans from all over the world, Paris Charles de Gaulle International Airport and Saint-Denis Airport both ushered in the busiest day of the year.
Throughout the whole day, planes were almost constantly taking off and landing at various airports in Paris. Some of them were originally in France, but they had gone to watch football in other cities before, and now they were diverted to Paris;
Some come all the way from their respective countries to support their national teams, such as Sweden or Portugal;
There are also Pan Yi fans from all over the world. They come here just to watch Pan Yi. Fans from Dragon Kingdom account for a large part here, and at the same time they have also become supporters of the Swedish team.
The airport staff and the city police department, although they had made preparations early, still underestimated the atmosphere of the finals.
From Saint-Denis to the whole of Paris, the atmosphere of the final soared like a rocket into the sky. The atmosphere of the European Cup final and the passion of the fans can be felt everywhere.
On the day of the final, major European bookmakers also offered the latest odds.
Portugal's winning odds are slightly ahead, reaching 2.75 to 1, but their final opponent Sweden's winning odds are not much lower than them, also reaching 2.8 to 1.
The odds for a draw are 3.0 to 1, and the odds for the winner in overtime are 6.0, and the odds for the penalty shootout are 5.0.
Such close odds prove that in the eyes of bookmakers, this final is a close contest!
This is basically consistent with the views of the media and fans.
In the eyes of most people, the Portuguese team's overall strength still has a slight advantage, and they are playing better and better under the leadership of Ronaldo and B. Their steady playing style is bound to have a great impact on the Swedish team's break. Trouble.
The most important thing is that the superstar Cristiano Ronaldo scored a goal in the semi-finals and showed his good form.
In such a crucial final that determines the outcome, the power of the superstar cannot be ignored!
As for the Swedish team, Pan Yi's formation is obviously still the focus of everyone's attention.
At the same time, the central axis composed of Ibrahimovic, Forsberg, and Lindelof is also functioning better and better.
After successively defeating Spain, Germany, France and other powerful players in the elimination, the Swedish team has become more and more confident.
Therefore, even if Sweden can defeat Portugal in the final and win the cup, I believe many people will not be surprised.
Not to mention that Sweden also has a world-class star Ibrahimovic!
It can be said that the two teams are even somewhat similar in terms of personnel structure, that is, several well-known stars come to fight with a group of younger brothers;
It's just that these "little brothers" in the Portuguese team are generally stronger than the "little brothers" in Sweden in terms of strength and reputation.
After Portugal's first training session after arriving in Saint-Denis, head coach Santos also accepted an interview with reporters and talked about the upcoming final.
He said that Pan Yi's presence makes everything possible for the Swedish team.
"Because Pan Yi is the kind of head coach who can improve a team's combat effectiveness by himself, we will not relax at all against the Swedish team. I believe my players also know this very well!"
"Our tactics? It's already the finals, and the team has no secrets. The players are currently in good condition, and I won't make too many adjustments to the tactics."
"Pan Yi's tactics? In the past few games, the Swedish team has found a very reasonable set of tactics. They have scored a lot of goals and their defense is very strong. I don't think Pan Yi will do anything too unexpected. Variety."
"As for the trend of the game, it is still difficult to predict now, but Pan Yi is the kind of head coach who is born to pursue offensive football. He has always given people the impression of playing proactive offensive football."
"When he was at Chelsea, we often saw beautiful attacks that were like mercury leaking out of the ground. It would be impossible for him to defend."
"So I believe that in the final, we will definitely be able to see a Swedish team that attacks bravely, because their head coach is Pan Yi!"
Santos also believes that both Portugal and Sweden are likely to win the championship. He believes that both sides have the same chance of winning this game, and neither one can take advantage of the other.
"After entering the final, there is no easy game to play, let alone the opponent is Pan Yi?"
"We are now thinking about how to enjoy this game. This is our second time in the European Cup finals. What we want is to play well and show everyone our desire for the championship!"
Santos' remarks were graceful and measured, but without any sign of weakness.
When Pan Yi saw such an interview report, he immediately understood Santos' intention.
Santos seemed to be bragging about Pan Yi, but he seemed to want to put Pan Yi up and grill him between the lines. He felt that if Sweden did not play offensive football, it would be a disgrace to Pan Yi's reputation.
This is because the Portuguese focus on counterattacks, and they are afraid that the Swedish team will also stay behind and not attack!
If everyone defends and counterattacks, with Portugal's current offensive ability, it will definitely be worse than teams like Germany and France, and Santos is not sure.
Once Sweden presses out to play, the Portuguese striker's counterattack speed can increase, and the characteristics of the entire Portuguese team can be brought out.
In other words, Santos's words were motivating Pan Yi to attack him!
If it were another person, such as a highly respected person like Wenger, who would be so praised by him, he might really lose face and start a fight with them...
But who is Pan Yi?
He doesn't do this!
Winning is the truth!
"However, he was right about one thing, and that is that I will not stay in the game."
Looking at Santos talking on the TV screen, Pan Yi smiled and said to himself.
Although a team like Portugal focuses on counterattack, if you give up complete control, it means letting the other party take advantage of you.
After all, the offensive line composed of B-seat, Nani, Cristiano Ronaldo, Quaresma and others can be said to be not inferior to any national team in Europe.
Therefore, what Pan Yi wants is to give up possession of the ball premeditatedly, but he must firmly control the space, then control a certain game situation, and then slowly find opportunities to get it back.
At this time, the TV screen turned to outside the Stade de France.
There, there are already countless fans singing and dancing, preparing for tonight's final.
Especially fans from Portugal and Sweden, who have traveled thousands of miles to come to Paris and Saint-Denis just to support their country’s teams!
And Pan Yi can also guess that at this moment in Sweden, in Stockholm, and around the world, there will be countless fans waiting for the final to start just like these fans who came to Paris.
The difference is that they may be at home, in a bar, in a square, or on various occasions, but their mood is the same.
That is to cheer for the team you love and hope that your team can become the final champion!
Leading the team and satisfying the desires of these fans is undoubtedly the biggest wish of any head coach.
As the head coach of the Swedish team, Pan Yi will of course use the most reasonable way to defeat his opponents and let all Swedish fans get what they want! ——
"Are you all ready?"
When Pan Yi's loud inquiry came from the quiet locker room, all the Swedish players stood up and nodded in agreement towards Pan Yi. Each of them looked very serious.
This is the final after all, and this is their chance to make national history! It is obviously impossible to deal with it completely indifferently.
"Then let's go!"
After saying that, Pan Yi, who was standing at the door of the locker room, opened the door of the locker room.
Everything that needs to be said has been said, it's time for them to really fight!
As the door opened, the sounds of the closing ceremony outside suddenly flooded into the entire locker room, making everyone feel the atmosphere of the finals.
The players, led by captain Ibrahimovic, walked out of the locker room one after another. Pan Yi and his coaching staff followed the team and walked out.
No one communicated at all during the whole process, as if they were all quietly waiting for the finals to come.
Soon, they came to the waiting room of the players' tunnel, where the two sides lined up to prepare to play, and the Portuguese team members were already waiting here.
At the front of the queue was Portuguese team captain Cristiano Ronaldo. He first hugged Ibrahimovic and then said hello to Pan Yi.
He basically had no interaction with the players of the Swedish national team, so he just communicated with the two biggest names.
But Pan Yi is different.
Although only B-seat and Cancelo are his disciples in the Portuguese team now, most of the players have played against Pan Yi and are considered his old rivals.
For example, Cedric and Fonte are both Southampton's Premier League opponents, while Cristiano Ronaldo and Pepe are both Real Madrid's main players, and they have played against Pan Yi many times in the Champions League;
The largest number of people in the Portuguese national team are from the top three Portuguese Super League teams. Sporting CP, Benfica and Porto have all played against Pan Yi's team in recent years.
Even if you have never played against each other, who doesn't know Pan Yi?
Or in other words, which player doesn't want to know Pan Yi and have the opportunity to play for him?
Therefore, when Pan Yi entered the waiting room, there were endless voices greeting him, which shows his popularity.
"You little rabbit, just take it easy and don't fight too hard!"
Pan Yi walked up to Seat B and took the initiative to hug the boy.
After hearing this, Seat B was stunned, then grinned, hugged Pan Yi tightly, and said: "Boss, although I want to win you, I still want to thank you. If it weren't for you, I would How is it possible to stand on the stage of the European Cup final?"
What he said was correct.
Although he was also a young man in the timeline of his previous life, making his first appearance for the Portuguese national team in 2015 when he was 21 years old, he ultimately failed to qualify for this European Cup in the fierce competition - of course, this was different from what he had at the time. It's also relevant to have some injuries on your body.
However, this also shows that he is not indispensable in this national team. After all, if he is a meritorious core player, the head coach will often give him a chance to recover during the competition.
But in this life, not only was Seat B not injured in the league, he also occupied a main position in seven-time champion Chelsea and played a perfect season.
And his all-round characteristics of being able to play in the middle or wide, up or down, have also been demonstrated in the Portuguese national team.
Under Santos, he often exists as a central midfielder, standing in front of William Carvalho with Renato Sanches, who has just joined the Bundesliga giant Bayern Munich for a high price of 35 million euros, as the frontcourt player. Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani deliver cannonballs and can also sweep up the midfield.
His advantage is that he is good at using good body flexibility and balance to complete technical movements. He has a strong ability to control the center of gravity under pressure. He has strong ability to accelerate continuously after starting and to suddenly change speed while traveling.
Although his personal defensive ability is not outstanding, Seat B is better at proactively implementing pressure awareness, attacking defense and grasping the timing of pursuit. This allows him to now firmly occupy one of the Portuguese national team. The main position also appeared in the starting lineup of the final today.
Fighting for the country is always the ultimate goal of a football player, and being able to stand on the final stage of the World Series is what many people dream of!
So of course B is very grateful to Pan Yi for discovering and cultivating him.
"You deserve this." Pan Yi patted seat B on the back, and then exchanged a few words with Cancelo who was standing behind.
Unlike seat B, Cancelo is just a rotation at Chelsea. Although his performance is good, he has not won the main position in the Portuguese national team yet.
Afterwards, Pan Yi returned to his team.
Now that they are about to play the final, of course they cannot communicate for too long, and the referee of this game is already calling the players to come out.
When the players and coaches of the two teams walked out of the tunnel one by one, the entire Stade de France suddenly burst into overwhelming cheers.
They have been waiting for a long time!
As the two teams were preparing to line up to play the national anthem, Pan Yi returned to his visiting team's coaching bench. He turned his head and saw that Santos had already walked out of the court before the players and was standing in front of the home team's coaching bench preparing.
After the national anthem was played, another round of cheers erupted from the audience, and then the players from both teams returned to their own half, spread out their formations, and prepared to start the game.
At this time, Pan Yi took the initiative to walk towards Santos in front of the home team's coaching bench.
"Hello!" Pan Yi and Santos hugged gently.
Pan Yi felt that the old handsome man's body was somewhat stiff, and it was obvious that he was also a little nervous.
This is understandable, after all, there may only be one such event in a lifetime.
Moreover, unlike Pan Yi who often appears on big stages like the Champions League finals, this is really a rare experience for a coach like Santos who could only coach in some teams outside the five major leagues before.
The two were not acquaintances, so they simply said hello and then returned to their respective coaching benches.
Almost at the same time, the two superstar captains Ibrahimovic and Cristiano Ronaldo on the field had already finished guessing the side, and Portugal got the right to kick off first.
The game is about to start!
(End of chapter)
