Elite stadium, small conference room.
The Leeds United coaching staff did not leave after the players trained, but gathered in the conference room.
"I said, is this appropriate for us? We almost think of other people's stadiums as Thorpe Arch." Brian Kidd complained.
The conference room is not big, but the members of Leeds United's coaching staff are all crowded inside, including George Lee, Brian Kidd, Colin McGee, Peter Schmeichel, and Jordi - who has returned from Portugal. Cruyff and Alfinger Haaland, a total of 6 people.
There were two whiteboards inside, one with a lineup and the other with filled-in notes. There are also two televisions and a VCR.
At this time, the door of the conference room was opened, and Chris Casper walked in, holding a video recorder in his hand.
"I borrowed it, I borrowed it." As soon as Casper put the video recorder on the table, he kept fanning it with his hand. "Can you open the window? The smell is too strong."
No one paid attention to him. Schmeichel picked up the video recorder on the table and prepared to connect it to a TV. Haaland also got up to help.
"Where did you talk about just now?" George Li continued the meeting.
"Defense, the problem of two full-backs chasing back." Cruyff reminded.
During the training camp in Scotland, Leeds United has played 4 warm-up games and only conceded one goal in 4 games.
The two warm-up matches against Motherwell were 3-0 and 1-0 respectively.
The other two games were St Mirren 6-1 and Partick Thistle 3-0.
The warm-up schedule is relatively intensive. The main reason is that the opponents choose teams near the Glasgow area. They do not have to rush back and forth all the time. Our team trains at the Elite Stadium affiliated with Celtic, which is where they are currently holding meetings. The place.
"I still need to emphasize to the full-backs that they must dare to press when attacking and don't be afraid."
Lee George once again pointed out the lack of pressure from the full-backs, and he continued.
"If you lose the ball in the frontcourt, just grab it back. What's there to be afraid of? If you are in this position where you can't get up or get down, you might as well not come back. No matter how fast you are, can you still pass the ball quickly? ?”
The only goal conceded in the 4 games was because Milner, who was playing as a right back at the time, did not immediately press the ball holder with Smith after the team lost the ball, allowing the opponent to pass the ball out, and the game ended. Fight back.
"Don't ask for too much? It's already good to have played like this. It's not easy for James. You let him play three positions in four games." Kidd excused Milner.
"We still need to implement high pressure in the frontcourt, and everyone on the team must develop this habit."
"Are we going to let those who just came to play in tomorrow's game?" Kidd asked.
"No, just let them go up and kick a few times at the last moment of the second half, and then let them officially play in the game against the Celtics next week."
"Why are you so polite to Queen's Park? They are QP, not QPR. We won't meet them when we return to England." Casper obviously clearly distinguishes between the two clubs Queen's Park and Queen's Park Rangers.
"After all, this is the first club the old man played for, and it was at this club that the old man made his debut."
"Yes, it is said that because Queen's Park Club has always adhered to the principle of building a purely amateur club, the old man was also working as an apprentice in the Clyde shipyard while playing football." McGee obviously knew a little better.
"Anyway, take it easy. I scored six goals against St. Mirren that day. The old man already called me and told me not to run wild in Scotland."
"Haha~" Everyone laughed. Everyone here is familiar with Ferguson. Except for Harland, he not only played for Manchester United's two mortal enemies, Manchester City and Leeds United, but also played for one of the current Manchester United players. The players have deep grudges.
"Even if you want to score more, it's not easy." Kidd said.
"Yes, I watched the videos of the previous warm-up matches. Although we scored a lot of goals, we still had big problems in offense." Cruyff Jr. said.
"First of all, most of our goals come from counterattacks, and our ability to attack tough positions is not enough."
"Yes, the ball stopped or the offense slowed down. How can we describe our offense?" Cruyff couldn't think of it for a moment.
"It's like constipation," Casper reminded him.
"Yes, it's as uncomfortable as constipation." Cruyff agreed.
George Li waved his hand, indicating that he had something to say.
"I can see it too, but after the two Danes come back, our wing attack ability will definitely be improved to a higher level. In the previous warm-up games, I saw that neither Milner nor Pedersen had the ability to attack the wing. With his ability to cut inside, Van Persie can cut inside, but in my plan, he plays as a forward."
"I see that Iceland forward, he is quite suitable to play center. Can he be allowed to start, and the Dutchman will go to the right." Kidd expressed his opinion.
"No, although Oscarson has height and speed, his body is not strong enough. It is okay to face the defenders of these Scottish teams, but it may be difficult to play in the Premier League." George Li objected.
"Your requirements are really high. You need to be tall, fast, and strong. Where can I find a center like this for you?"
"Yes, I think the Ivorian from Marseille is good."
"No chance, he was just bought by Chelsea for 24.5 million pounds." Haaland told Lee, don't think about it.
"And, you know, I don't like using African players."
"Hey, I know," Casper said immediately.
"It's not just about Vanessa. What do you think I should do if the core of the team is an African player, and during the critical period of my league and European competition, he takes leave to go back to play in the African Cup of Nations?"
"Uh~" The group of people couldn't keep up with George Li's thinking, so he continued to talk.
"If the core of my team is an Asian, he often flies halfway around the world to participate in national team games during the league, and then flies halfway around the world to continue playing in the league. Is it tiring?" Li George asked. First example.
"Okay, don't continue talking, we understand."
George Li did not stop, he spoke again.
"Again, if there is a Spanish player in my team, he is the main player of the team, and then one day, he says that his hometown team invites him to join, and he wants to go because he misses home." Li George gave the first choice Two examples. Although this example is ridiculous, a Spanish player later applied for this statement by George Lee. This is something.
"What if?"
"Let me think about it, what if..."
"Okay, okay, that's enough." Kidd interrupted his various "what ifs".
"George, is there a center that meets your nationality requirements, meets your physical fitness requirements, and can also meet your technical and tactical requirements?"
Haaland was still teasing Li, mainly because Li always judged people accurately.
Before, George Lee spent almost no money to sign Morten Pedersen, Daniel Bratten, Ori Oscarson and others, and it can be seen from several warm-up matches that these people are all good, and their respective All have distinctive characteristics.
Pedersen's set kicks and crosses, Braaten's inward shot, and Oscarsson's aerial challenge all gave people a bright feeling.
"Yes, I have."
"It's true. Come on, contact the transfer department now." Haaland couldn't wait to get the transfer department to take action.
It’s no wonder that Lee George insists on letting Van Persie serve as the team’s lone forward in the new season, but several other coaches prefer to buy another serious center. Mainly because in recent games, Van Persie has been struggling a bit.
Who knew that Li glanced at Harland and said something.
"Maybe he hasn't been born yet, or he hasn't grown up yet." At first, George Li couldn't count on the "devil" in the future, and it would take at least ten more years.
"Stop making trouble, we are serious. We don't think much of the Dutch playing as a lone striker."
"Let's take a look at the next two games. In my tactical plan, the frontcourt players are relatively free. The wingers can go down and cut inside, and the forwards can go forward and pull wide. The two wingers can switch positions, and the forwards and wingers can also switch positions.”
George Li began to draw his tactical intentions on the whiteboard, talking as he drew.
"You have also seen in the previous warm-up matches that Van Persie did not have the support of the two wings when he played as a lone forward. Chris, you set the video recorder on the left to the 67th minute of the game. Our attack was on the opposite side. When it’s near the bottom line.”
Casper quickly operated the remote control and kept fast forwarding.
"Look, Van Persie took the ball on the right and broke through during the counterattack. Where should Milner appear at this time?"
"He should go to the middle."
"Yes, when Smith didn't come up immediately, Milner should have rushed to the center and opened up a certain defense for Van Persie instead of following behind Van Persie."
"It seems like there's a problem on the other side too."
"Yes, if Milner had not gone to the center at that time, then Bratten on the left should have gone to the center to attract the defense."
"Yes, I didn't see him in the picture, and there was also a problem with his movement."
"Yes, so all the defensive pressure is on Van Persie's side."
"That's right, as long as the opponent keeps an eye on Van Persie, our attack will no longer be a threat."
George Li finally took over and made the final summary.
"In the next two games, we must pay special attention to the movement in the frontcourt. We do not have a high center, so the movement must be positive and correct to open up space. I hope that after the two Danish wingers join, we can have more Let’s wait and see what happens.”
