"Good job, guys!!"
As soon as Pan Yi walked into the home team's locker room, he praised his disciples.
From his expression, everyone can read two words, happy.
Entering the halftime break with a total score of 2:0, the Italian team could be said to have completely controlled the situation on the field.
Especially the goal at the last moment also greatly affected the Swedes' will and fighting spirit. This was undoubtedly a very good first half for the Italian team.
Of course, it's good, but it's not enough. Pan Yi is never satisfied with his team's performance.
In his opinion, the real opponent of the Italian team is not in the qualifying rounds, but in the finals.
Their real opponents should be the powerful teams from Spain, France, and Brazil!
"I'm very satisfied with your performance in the first half!" Pan Yi, leaning against the door of the locker room, praised him again.
This made the players immediately "alert", and the smiles on their faces softened a little, waiting for Pan Yi to say "but".
Then, Pan Yi said as expected: "But... I found that when playing on the field, everyone still didn't observe the position of their teammates enough, and sometimes missed some good opportunities to pass the ball. This needs to be improved."
Observing the position of teammates is actually a manifestation of "vision" on the court.
This is difficult, after all, the perspective of the players on the field is different from that of the fans in the stands, and it is conducted in a fierce confrontation, but if it can be done, it will be of great help to the operation of the entire team.
Players like Messi, De Bruyne, or David Silva often look up when they get the ball in the game, instead of looking down.
Such a small action is actually the difference between them and ordinary players.
Because they raise their heads to catch and release the ball, players can focus their attention on observing the surrounding environment and understanding the game scene. This is why they can catch and release the ball as they please.
They have already seen their teammates' movements!
To achieve this, there is no doubt that the player's consciousness, foot feel and ability to control the ball must reach a certain level.
Many people say that this is talent, a natural sense of the ball that cannot be practiced, but it is not true.
Things like ball feel can be practiced, and the best example is De Bruyne.
In Pan Yi's previous life, he was not appreciated when he was at Chelsea. It was not because Mourinho was not discerning, but because De Bruyne at that time really did not have the vision and passing ability that he later had.
Anyone who has watched De Bruyne play at Chelsea knows that his performance at that time was really a disaster.
But he practiced it.
Especially after arriving at Wolfsburg, he used his extraordinary observation skills on the court to become the core and brain of the team, and finally truly embarked on the road to a wealthy club and became the most powerful competitor in the "World No. 1 Middle School".
And Pan Yi also hopes that his players can practice well in this aspect.
Including during training, he arranged a lot of ball training, and a large part of the training content was designed for ball feel.
As long as you can complete and persist in his training for a period of time, your ball feel can be greatly improved, and you can also slowly develop the good habit of raising your head to catch and release the ball.
Pan Yi does not demand every player to become De Bruyne, which is obviously impossible.
But he requires every player to work hard to improve their sense of the ball and develop good habits to adapt to the offensive tactics he is currently implementing in the Italian team.
This is a habit of playing football, which needs to be accumulated and adjusted slowly over time.
Pan Yi likes to pour some cold water on the players when the team is going well, because he hopes they can stay calm at all times, and he can also supervise the players to some extent and let them know where they want to improve.
——Of course, the players have obviously heard of his habit, so they quietly waited for him to say "but".
"In addition, our running at the front of the opponent's penalty area is not enough, especially the deep running without the ball. You," Pan Yi said, looking at Tonali, "your passing is still very good." Okay, but there are still too few vertical runs into the penalty area, so your threat will be limited to outside the penalty area, and there is still room for improvement."
After hearing this, Tonali kept nodding.
He also understood that in the first half, he supported too many horizontal runs and made too few deep runs into the penalty area. The task Pan Yi gave him was to take care of both at the same time.
Today he plays as a midfielder, and scoring goals is also one of his tasks!
"We need to be smarter when running. Don't always run in a straight line. We need to run more diagonally, even curves, and make more circuitous runs." Pan Yi added, "You can first run slowly and diagonally. After interfering with the judgment of the opponent's defensive players, he suddenly runs vertically and catches them off guard. This kind of running without the ball will be more threatening!"
"There was a sage in our Dragon Kingdom who once...forget it, one of the thirty-six strategies is called east and west. This is a strategy in war, but it is also applicable on the court."
"In fact, the goal we scored in the first half was almost a strategy of attacking in the east and attacking in the west. We pretended to attack the left wing and completed the advance on the left wing. At the same time, we concentrated all our forces on the left wing and forced a breakthrough on the left wing, forcing them to defend. The center of gravity has completely shifted.”
"After attracting all the defensive attention, we suddenly passed the ball to the right, catching them off guard, and the ball went in!"
"This is why I praise you for playing well. This ball not only reflects the results of our training, that is, it gives full play to our awareness of running without the ball and the tacit understanding of passing and receiving, but also reflects the strategy at the tactical level.”
"If every ball can be kicked like this, we can break through any defense!"
"However, we can't be too happy. Sweden will definitely find a way to counterattack in the second half!"
Pan Yi was almost done coaching and started to encourage the boys to play well in the second half of the game.
"We have to be steady at the start of the second half and continue to control the situation. The Swedes have been demoralized by our goal. As long as we don't mess up the start of the second half, we can win this game."
"Control the situation and rhythm of the game and force them to play the way we play. Then we attack slowly and remember to use more brains and confuse the opponent more!"
"Many of you have never participated in the World Cup."
Pan Yi's eyes gradually swept across the players' faces.
Scamacca, Tonali, Barrera, DiMarco, Bastoni, Chiesa, Raspadori, Locatelli, Donnarumma...
Well, there are too many.
There are so many young players, many of whom have never played in a professional league before this season. How can they participate in the World Cup?
So when Pan Yi talked about the World Cup, everyone's face was full of yearning and excitement!
"Then, let's finish this second half of the game well and let's go to Russia!"
——
After the restart in the second half, Sweden, as Pan Yi said, wanted to look for opportunities to counterattack from the beginning.
Barrera and Verratti played very steadily under Pan Yi's frequent shouting and command. In addition, there was Bonucci on the back line who was good at passing, so the Italian team controlled the ball in the midfield and backcourt very well. smoothly.
They did not press actively, forcing Sweden to actively press if they wanted to steal the ball. And Jan Anderson was worried about being counterattacked, so Sweden's attacking tactics were difficult to work.
After defusing the Swedish attack, the Italian team began to control the game steadily, playing according to the rhythm and method they were accustomed to, forcing Sweden to adapt to the Italian team's playing style.
However, the Swedish team has obviously made some targeted changes in response to Italy's style of play.
The first is Tonali, who is still very threatening in the attacking midfielder position, so Jan Anderson directly arranged for Ekdal to take care of Tonali personally, without giving Tonali a chance to turn around and face the goal directly.
As long as this is done, Tonali will not be able to create opportunities for his teammates by passing threatening balls, and the Italian team's frontcourt offense will be weakened.
Jane Anderson's second step was to strengthen the attack on the right, especially letting Lustig pester DiMarco, limiting the offensive advancement of Italy's second echelon.
In his opinion, as long as Tonali and DiMarco are restrained, the Italian team's offense will be weakened by almost half.
Of course, Jane Anderson does not guarantee that the players can suppress the Italian team's offense every time, but will find ways to slow down the Italian team's offensive speed.
As long as the offensive speed does not increase, Sweden will have enough time to organize its defense.
Once the defense is organized, Sweden's defense will be solid and the goal will not be broken by the Italians like it was in the first half.
Only by not being able to expand the score any further can the Swedish team have a chance to recover the two-goal deficit through its own offense.
When attacking, the Swedish team will now be simpler, passing the long pass from the backcourt to the midfield, and then letting Larsson and Ekdal compete for high points, and then give it to the forward players in front.
This trick is still very effective.
In the second half, the Italian team began to control the situation. When Sweden was at a disadvantage, they just did not let the Italian team's offense pose much of a threat.
Their offense resulted in two or three shots, but they either missed or were blocked by Donnarumma.
"Should we make a substitution?" Vialli couldn't help but said, "The offense in the frontcourt seems to be a bit restricted."
Of course he was talking about Tonali.
Although Tonali followed Pan Yi's advice and made more vertical moves in the frontcourt, Ekdal's strengthening of his defense also restricted his performance.
During this period, Tonali struggled a bit on the court, and his threatening passes and shots became fewer.
Although the total score is now 2:0, the Italian team has taken the lead, but if Sweden uses this method to limit the Italian team's offense, if they really score a goal suddenly, the suspense will really be high. Back again.
Therefore, Pan Yi must come up with a solution.
Pan Yi obviously saw the current situation, so he turned to Evani and shouted:
"Let Locatelli warm up!"
A question mark slowly appeared on the heads of Evani and Vialli: "?"
"Loccatelli? Do you want him to play as an attacking midfielder, but he didn't arrange for him to do so during training?" Evani was confused.
Locatelli does have a foundation as an attacking midfielder. He even played as an attacking midfielder in the Milan youth team.
However, as people grew taller and with the trend brought by Pirlo's post-positioning, he was transformed into a central midfielder.
In the 2015-16 season, the 18-year-old Locatelli already had the opportunity to play in the AC Milan first team.
In October 2016, AC Milan reversed Sassuolo 4-3. The 18-year-old Locatelli scored his first goal with a long shot.
In the post-match interview, he almost cried and laughed at the same time, which aroused the love of Milan fans.
Just 2 rounds later in Serie A, Locatelli once again used the world wave to penetrate Juventus.
This goal helped AC Milan defeat a strong enemy 1-0. In the post-match interview, he burst into tears again, making countless AC Milan fans love him even more.
At that time, someone gave him the nickname "The Chosen One". At the age of 19, he had already become AC Milan's main midfielder, replacing captain Montolivo.
But unfortunately, his performance began to be unstable at this time, and it made people feel that he could not truly shoulder the responsibility of reviving Milan. When the team's performance was poor, Locatelli also encountered a lot of criticism and pressure.
In the end, he was also rented out and finally sold to Juventus - of course, this all happened in Pan Yi's previous life.
Now, Pan Yi wants to save Locatelli from his trough period in time and let him continue to rise!
In Pan Yi's view, Locatelli, who can play as an attacking midfielder or a defensive midfielder, is the Italian version of Toni Kroos.
His offensive value is very high, and he is also very good at stealing, with good physical confrontation and efficiency.
In an effective defensive system, his contribution can become huge, and the same is true on offense.
And now that Pan Yi is sending him on the field, he is not asking him to play as an attacking midfielder.
"No, let him play as a defensive midfielder and replace Verratti." Pan Yi said to Evani.
"Huh? Not for Tonali?" Evani obviously didn't understand even more.
He clearly heard Vialli talking to Pan Yi about Tonali's problem, so why did he suddenly change to Verratti.
"Sweden plays more high balls now, and our midfielders suffer a lot due to their height."
After hearing what Pan Yi said, Evani suddenly realized.
Indeed, the defensive midfielder combination of Barrera + Verratti...
How to put it this way, the fighting and enthusiasm are enough, but the height is a little too mediocre.
Now that there is less and less time left, the Swedish team will become more and more inclined to move the ball higher.
At this time, replacing him with a tall and powerful Locatelli was obviously a targeted deployment.
Evani immediately went over and shouted from the bench: "Little Locatelli, you go to warm up and come back in 5 minutes!"
Locatelli immediately jumped up from the bench, quickly took off his training clothes and ran to the sidelines to warm up.
This will be his first appearance for the Italian national team!
And when he returned to Pan Yi excitedly, Pan Yi also began to arrange tactics for him:
"You go up and replace Verratti, let Tonali come back, you and Barella form a midfield three, and the formation also changes to 4-3-3!"
Although it was in the crowded San Siro Stadium, Locatelli heard it clearly and kept nodding.
"After you come up, your main responsibility is to assist Varela, pay attention to protecting him, and let him advance more to participate in the frontcourt attack. In addition, you also have to connect the wings and the center to reduce the pressure on DiMarco. As for DiMarco You yourself have to be brave enough to take the ball and use your strength and creativity, do you understand?"
Locatelli nodded solemnly in agreement.
Soon, he walked to the sidelines and completed the handover of substitutions. Soon, the officials on the sidelines raised the sign.
Exit Verratti, enter Locatelli.
This substitution aroused cheers from the fans in the audience.
That's because Locatelli is a child of Milan!
Now, he is playing his first game for the national team in Milan. Of course, the "family" will be happy for him.
And Verratti ran down, and after the two high-fived and hugged on the sidelines, Pan Yi went over and hugged Verratti's shoulders: "Have a good rest, I have to rely on you to play in the World Cup!"
Verratti was originally in a low mood after being replaced. After hearing Pan Yi's words, his eyes lit up and he nodded immediately: "I understand, boss!"
He immediately became happy because he understood that Pan Yi replaced him not because he was dissatisfied with his performance, but out of tactical considerations.
Not far away, Jane Anderson frowned.
Pan Yi replaced Locatelli and Verratti, allowing Tonali to retreat to the midfielder position. This undoubtedly caused some trouble for his urgent marking.
Because it is certainly impossible for Ekdal to follow Tonali that far behind, right? That would be too easy to lose position.
Moreover, among these three Italian midfielders, which one is in charge of organization? It may not be Tonali.
Jane Anderson couldn't figure it out. In fact, Pan Yi didn't specify it either.
Whether it is Locatelli, Tonali, or Barrera, they are actually all-around midfielders that are relatively standard in modern football. They are both offensive and defensive and can do everything.
At this time, don't limit their performance, don't say who must give the ball to someone's feet, and who must pass the ball.
This is completely different from the combination of Pirlo + Gattuso in Italy.
Only due to height restrictions, Barrera is indeed less capable than the other two midfield partners in dealing with high balls, so Pan Yi specifically asked Locatelli to defend Barrera more to allow Barrera to play more Get involved in the offense.
This can also reduce the pressure on DiMarco and Tonali on the left, and bring a certain improvement to the Italian team's offense.
This is Pan Yi's attempt. He doesn't know if it will work, but he is sure.
Because the Italian team is now leading 2:0, and he still has two substitutions on hand. If it doesn't work, he will change the formation and keep the score until the end. Anyway, as long as he can win.
With this mentality, Pan Yi allowed the players on the court to figure it out and adjust themselves.
At the same time, he is also looking forward to what kind of sparks this three midfield combination, none of which is over 20 years old, will create.
Locatelli appeared on the stage under the watchful eyes and welcome of Milan fans, and his performance was indeed very positive.
His first touch of the ball in this game occurred after Varela made a forward move. An Italian attack suddenly reached the Swedish penalty area, but the pass was intercepted.
The ball from Sweden was given to Forsberg, who was about to counterattack, but Locatelli immediately caught up with Forsberg.
Although the referee finally blew the whistle for a foul and signaled Locatelli for a defensive foul, he did not give a warning or a yellow card. Instead, he signaled Sweden to get a set-piece opportunity in their own half. The threat was very small, but their The counterattack was aborted.
"Good job!" Pan Yi praised Locatelli from the sidelines. This kid knows how to block his position and entangle his opponent to delay the attack, which is good.
Locatelli turned his head happily and glanced at Pan Yi on the sidelines. Such praise made Locatelli feel happy in his heart.
Soon after the 75th minute, it was Varela who started Italy's attack again, but Chiesa was unable to form an effective attack after getting the ball. When he was about to be surrounded, Locatelli appeared at the key point. Position, raise your hand for the ball.
The ball fell to Locatelli's feet. He controlled the ball skillfully, slowed down the attack, and then found an opportunity to pass a precise mid-length pass to DiMarco on the left.
Now the Italian team's left attack has improved a lot. DiMarco has received more support, and Locatelli can often fill in for him, allowing him to devote himself wholeheartedly to the attack and threaten It's even bigger.
After further controlling the game, Locatelli, in addition to being responsible for helping Varela fill positions and provide support, also began to free up his hands and actively look for more offensive contributions.
These midfielders seem to have a good understanding of each other. Varela moves forward, Locatelli fills in for him, and Tonali will also actively move to create more space.
This time, when the ball came to Barrera from DiMarco's feet, Locatelli was on the right side of Barrera. Barrera was restricted and could not turn around after taking the ball with his back. He passed the ball diagonally and knocked it back. Gave it to Locatelli.
Locatelli always raised his head, and he noticed Tonali's movement. The latter was slowly moving from the right to the center, but the Swedish defender seemed not to notice his movement.
Another noteworthy signal is Scamacca. He seemed to be consciously moving a little to the left. This immediately made Locatelli understand that Scamacca was going to create a gap for Tonali.
Thinking of this, Locatelli immediately took the ball and advanced past Barrera.
As soon as he accelerated, Scamacca was the first to move and ran out of the penalty area, diverting the attention of the two central defenders. After all, they were worried about Scamacca taking the ball and making moves in front of the penalty area. This It is the most threatening skill for Italian forwards.
Almost at the same time, Tonali also moved, but he started quickly diagonally to the left in a 45-degree direction.
Locatelli passed the ball past the Swedish center back and into the Swedish penalty area.
Tonali, on the other hand, inserted diagonally behind Sweden. After getting the ball, he formed a single shot. When he met the attacking goalkeeper, he easily sent the ball into the Swedish goal!
"The ball has been scored again!!! An imaginative through ball from Locatelli! Tonali scored a beautiful goal!"
After scoring the goal, Tonali seemed very excited. He rushed out of the penalty area and rushed directly to the corner flagpole to celebrate. Beside him, his teammates rushed up one by one and knocked Tonali down. On the grass on the sidelines.
Pan Yi on the sidelines was of course very happy after seeing Tonali score and hugged the assistant coaches to celebrate.
This is not just because of this goal, but mainly because of the tacit understanding between these young midfielders, which makes Pan Yi's experiment a success!
Barrera moves forward, with Locatelli and Tonali filling in for him, which allows Barrera to have the greatest peace of mind. Barrera's on-the-spot counterattack, as well as his investment in defense and interception, can also Ensure that Locatelli and Tonali get a more relaxed environment to play.
Isn’t that how this goal was scored?
Sometimes, some of the head coach's ideas and inspirations are reflected through some details in the game.
Don't look at the current shortcomings and shortcomings of Locatelli's playing ability, including Barrera and Tonali, who also have shortcomings in some aspects, but it is obvious that they still have a lot of room for growth, and they also We are working hard in this direction.
It will be more than half a year until next year's World Cup.
And such a long time is enough for them to grow up one by one!
