Master Tutoring Class

Chapter 244 Battle for Midfield Tempo

As night falls, the Amstel Stadium in southeast Amsterdam resembles a ignited white heart, pulsating intensely. Even before you get close, a unique energy permeates the air.

It was a mixture of fanaticism, tradition, and supreme pride.

The entrance was like a ceremony, with tens of thousands of devout believers dressed in red and white robes pouring out from the canals and streets, forming a surging ocean.

The flags flew high, fluttering in the wind.

Tens of thousands of arms were raised high, keeping a unique rhythm.

The beer bottles in their hands clinked together with a crisp sound.

The stirring battle song "Fight! 90 Minutes" resounded through the sky.

The sound waves mingled with the scorching heat, making the temperature in the entire space seem to rise.

Here, the stands are not cold, impersonal seats, but rather a giant, flowing mural.

The South Stand (F-Side) is the eye of the storm, where the most die-hard fans are located.

They stood throughout the entire event, like conductors, leading the entire audience in singing and stomping their feet in unison.

Every synchronized movement sends shivers down the spine of the entire stadium, like a roaring beast.

"Are you ready?"

Ready!!

"Are you ready?!"

Ready!!!

"Are you ready?!—"

The DJ's voice grew louder and louder through the dome speakers, eventually culminating in a shout.

Tens of thousands of fans at the scene immediately raised their arms, returning with the most passionate voices.

Prepare for battle!

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Amstel Stadium, the heart of Amsterdam Sport. Make as much noise as you can so our warriors can hear you!"

Boom boom boom boom! ! !
Tens of thousands of people stomped their feet together, and the entire stadium seemed to tremble.

The cheers and shouts came in waves.

"Oh my god! I'm getting goosebumps!"

"My God! Is this the atmosphere of European football?"

"What are you saying? I can't hear you!"

"I said! Awesome!!—"

A group of fans from China stood on one side of the entrance tunnel, in a good position, very close to the stadium.

Although it doesn't offer the same panoramic view of the stadium as the upper tiers, it allows for a closer experience of the match atmosphere.

"Holy crap! It's coming!"

Suddenly, a Chinese fan peeked out and saw the referee stepping out of the entrance tunnel.

He immediately took out a national flag from his bag and unfolded it in a flash.

Draped in the bright red five-star flag, they surged onto the field alongside the players from both sides.

These Chinese fans, who traveled thousands of miles to this stadium, cheered loudest for their heroes.

"Wei Lai!! We're here!!!"

Wei Lai followed the team and had just walked out of the player tunnel when he saw his compatriots.

He slightly raised his hand and clenched his fist as a response.

He immediately looked ahead and resolutely followed the group forward.

"This is the fifth match of the 2027/2028 Eredivisie season, with Atlético Amsterdam hosting Elfelt!"

"As two of the Eredivisie's biggest clubs, their direct confrontation not only affects the top spot in the standings, but also ignites the passion of the entire stadium."

Dutch commentator Louis van Gaal shouted, "Come on! Let's see who can take the victory and continue to lead the Eredivisie standings!"

In the Leke Sports live broadcast room, Zhan Jing shouted loudly:
"After much anticipation, the battle to determine the top spot in the Eredivisie is about to begin!"

"Both sides boast a wealth of talent, including Elefert's Fantasia, former captain Mosktl, as well as a host of outstanding young players such as Marco de Jong, Lotperis, and Romeni. This is why Elefert has been able to consistently deliver excellent performances!"

"Athletics Amsterdam's Felix, Musar, and Kakabanja, these former world-class stars, are also starting, along with promising young players like Konrad Lechmann, Dennis Chilburne, and Wei Lai!"

With four wins out of four, this former Eredivisie champion has awakened from its slumber and is ready to reclaim its glory!

Zhan Jing shouted, "A great battle is about to break out!"

The starting lineups for both teams are as follows:

Amsterdam Athletic (4-3-3):
Goalkeeper: Rutte.

Defenders: Dennis Zilben, Shutak, Kakabanja, Lent.

Midfielders: Wei Lai, Musar, Reyesa.

Forwards: Robinson, Felix, Conrad Lehmann.

Elefert (4-2-3-1):
Goalkeeper: Weilen van Trier.

Defenders: Reid, Traunez, Hankook, Smadiap.

Midfielders: Lotperis, Guein, Marco de Jong, Battwidte, Romeni.

Forward: Fantasia.

On the right side of the field, Wei Lai squatted on the ground, swaying back and forth, pulling his left leg, shifting his weight, and pulling his right leg.

But his gaze was fixed on the opposite half of the court.

Ellerfeldt, one of the Dutch giants and last season's champions, will undoubtedly face another tough match.

But they also made ample preparations for this.

"Don't rush to attack at the start; first, control the tempo!"

Musar reminded Wei Lai again.

Wei Lai nodded immediately.

The core concept of this match is control of the midfield.

Whichever team gains control of the midfield will gradually dominate the pace of the game.

This initiative can enhance their ability to perform.

"Of course, if you have your own ideas, I will cooperate with you!"

Musar said to Wei Lai again.

During this period of contact, he discovered that Wei Lai was a very special midfielder.

It's so special that you can't find anything like it in the entire European football scene.

Wei Lai's understanding of the game is different from theirs, but he often achieves very good results.

"Musar and Wei Lai are communicating. They are already key midfielders for Atlético Amsterdam. Compared to Reyessa in defense, Wei Lai and Musar are responsible for attacking and organizing the offense!"

"And we can also see clearly that Musar's arrival became the catalyst for Wei Lai's outbreak!"

Wei Lai's performance in the first four rounds of the competition was already a perfect result.

It can be said that Wei Lai is already one of the most important players for Atlético Amsterdam, responsible for key tactical tasks.

He is no longer a rotation player, but a key piece of the puzzle.

While everyone waited, the referee slowly began to walk out of the center circle.

The first half began with Atlético Amsterdam kicking off.

Beep!
The moment the whistle blew, the entire stadium erupted in cheers.

At the same time, Felix quickly passed the ball back.

"The match has begun! After Felix kicked off, Elefelt immediately pressed, while Atlético Amsterdam dominated the midfield battle!"

Elefert players immediately pressed forward, with Fantasia charging straight to the opponent's back line, while the rest of the players surrounded and blocked him.

"Push forward! Disrupt them!"

Guy shouted, and the rest of his teammates immediately pressed forward.

"Aaahhhhh!!"

Wei Lai turned his head and saw Marco de Jong shouting incoherently as he rushed toward Musar.

Musar shrugged and turned in the opposite direction, and the guy missed.

"then!"

Musar passed the ball to Wei Lai, who positioned himself to the side, stepped on the ball, and pulled forward.

But the next second, Romeni came from the rear, with Bartwitt providing backup in front.

All passing lanes were blocked immediately.

It must be said that Elefert's high pressing was excellent.

Wei Lai stepped on the ball and immediately leaned back sharply.

Actively seeking confrontation, he collided with Romeni, who was not particularly strong, so Wei Lai only swayed slightly but was not seriously injured.

At this moment, Bartwitt moved closer, intending to press Wei Lai before he could react.

But Wei Lai suddenly pulled the ball up and flicked it with his thigh, using the momentum to break free from the encirclement of the two players.

"Beautiful! Very calm!"

Just as Van Gaal was about to praise him, Wei Lai regained control of the ball and swung his arm around it.

Bow and arrow!

"Here it comes! Wei-style curved blade (crescent moon scimitar)!"

boom!
The ball struck his foot solidly and flew towards Konrad Lehmann at the far end.

Seeing this long pass, Musar, who was about to receive it, couldn't help but grin.

Therefore, Wei Lai's thought process is a bit different from mine.

However, he also trusted Wei Lai; since he dared to pass on the message, it meant there was an opportunity.

Conrad Lehmann was already prepared for the weak side.

"Well done!"

He made a stop-the-ball motion and found Reed rushing towards him.

"Trying to interfere with my first touch?"

In a split second, Conrad Lehmann immediately understood the other party's intention.

He leaned back slightly, a movement that puzzled Reed, who was a beat slower in his own movements.

The next second, Konrad Lechmann stretched out his foot and suddenly used the instep of his foot to lift the ball up, and the ball landed right behind Reid.

"Damn it!"

Reed was shocked.

But it was too late; Konrad Lehmann had already started.

However, the moment he reached the landing point, he was viciously tackled by Elefelt's center-back Traunius.

Beep!
The whistle blew. The referee pointed at Traunius, issuing a warning.

The latter was also very polite, immediately admitting that his actions were too exaggerated.

But everyone knows that this guy did it on purpose.

There was no other way; they couldn't let Conrad Lehmann into the danger zone, so they had to foul him.

"Hehe!" On the coaching bench, old man Morton chuckled and said, "Trying to interfere with our first ball, I have to say, Eleferte's head coach Stottrie has a good idea, but it's too idealistic."

He neither recognized the precision of Wei Lai's long pass nor the ability of Konrad Lehmann.

However, this idea is indeed quite good.

But old man Morton knew that Reed couldn't do it.

"Oh my god! Lehmann handled that ball so well! He actually passed the ball directly behind Reid, creating a breakthrough. If it weren't for Traunez's decisiveness, it would have been really dangerous."

"At the same time, they must also understand the threat posed by Wei's long pass!"

Musar takes the free kick from the left side.

It's not that Wei Lai can't be punished, but that's just the specific tactical requirement.

Musar is left-footed, so if Wei Lai takes the penalty, he will have to cover on the right side. On the right side, Musar will not be able to launch an attack with his right foot immediately.

Musar raised his hand and kicked the ball directly into the penalty area.

Immediately, chaos erupted inside the penalty area.

boom!
Traunius leaped up and headed the ball out of the penalty area.

"Fight back!"

Marco de Jong hooked the ball in front of him, immediately passed it forward to Fantasia, and then sprinted away.

Marco de Jong continued forward, but he seemed to hear hurried footsteps.

Someone was following behind him.

boom!
Fantasia passed the ball back again, and Marco de Jong dribbled forward.

He made a good transition this time, without slowing down too much, but he was still caught up.

Wei Lai suddenly appeared to Marco de Jong's side, and the two sprinted forward together.

"Marco de Jong is dribbling at high speed, but Wei is right next to him!"

Van Gaal stared intently: "Even with a sudden stop and restart, he still couldn't shake off De Jong; Wei has him cornered!"

Wei Lai continued to follow up, relentlessly pursuing Marco de Jong.

While his steals and interceptions may not be top-tier, his help defense and disruptions still contribute significantly to the team's defense.

"so annoying!"

Marco de Jong tried several times, but he just couldn't shake off Wei Lai.

"Well done, Wei! Keep it up!"

Kakabania shouted loudly.

Because of Wei Lai's close-range interference, he only needed to stand still and control the area.

Unconsciously, this greatly reduced the defensive pressure.

The two kept running forward, and Marco de Jong was forced to the baseline by Wei Lai.

Wei Lai occupied the inside cutting lane and immediately blocked Marco de Jong's attempts to pass the ball.

"Try it!"

Marco de Jong braced himself and attempted to cross the ball, but Wei Lai suddenly stretched out his leg and intercepted it.

The ball bounced off Wei Lai's shin and then struck Marco de Jong before rolling out of bounds.

"Our ball!"

Wei Lai immediately raised his hand and pointed at Marco de Jong: "He touched it in the end!"

The referee didn't see it clearly, but the linesman pointed to the six-yard box, indicating a goal kick.

"here you go!"

Kakabania ran over and gave Wei a high five.

He likes teammates who play aggressive defense.

Although Wei Lai was unable to make a direct tackle or disrupt the play, he kept marking Marco de Jong, which greatly eased their defensive pressure.

"Wei's aggressive defense earned praise from his teammates. He sprinted from the front to the back, relentlessly marking Marco de Jong and limiting his passing lanes. Wei's performance on the offensive end was outstanding, and he was equally active on the defensive end!"

Van Gaal exclaimed, "What a great lad!"

call!
Wei Lai let out a sigh of relief.

"As expected, they're not passing the ball!"

This marking strategy was based on two factors: trusting his teammates to maintain their positions and betting that Marco de Jong wouldn't pass the ball.

This guy is a total lone wolf!
It's not that he never passes the ball until he shoots, but rather that he likes to use feints to distract defenders and then finish the final pass or shot himself.

Therefore, on several occasions when Marco de Jong made a passing motion, Wei Lai ignored it as long as it wasn't in a threatening area.

Ultimately, they pushed this guy to his limit.

In fact, Wei Lai only severed the connection between De Jong and Fantasia.

If you keep an eye on Fantasia, Elefert's efficiency will be halved.

Wei Lai ran all the way to the front, and his teammates praised him.

"here you go!"

"Pretty!"

"Keep going! I love the way you run!"

"Dennis Zilburn said with a grin."

Wei Lai rolled his eyes. If this guy hadn't been positioned so far forward, almost reaching the corner area on the other side, Wei Lai wouldn't have had to run back like this.

Dennis Zilburne gave Wei Lai a thumbs up.

Dude! I give you a thumbs up!
He also knew that if Wei Lai hadn't actively returned to defend, their side would have been left out.

Why don't you kick?

"You clearly had several opportunities to kick just now?"

Can you read minds?

Hey! Didn't anyone teach you how to answer other people's questions?

"You don't respect me!"

"So why don't you kick?"

Wei Lai ran ahead, while Marco de Jong chased after him, asking questions.

So, this guy is annoying.

That mouth was like a machine gun, constantly firing.

Although Wei Lai couldn't understand what this guy was saying at all, it didn't stop him from finding the guy noisy.

"you"

Marco de Jong suddenly shut up.

It's not that he didn't want to ask anymore, but rather that he passed the buck to Wei Lai.

Wei Lai received the ball with his back to goal, but was immediately interfered with by Marco de Jong.

But he still kept his foot on the ball and lowered his shoulder to the right.

"right?"

Marco de Toni acquiesced.

Then, he saw Wei Lai veer to the right, creating distance between them.

"."

After getting rid of his opponent, Wei Lai passed the ball out and turned to look at Marco de Jong.

"He's talking nonsense!"

Marco de Jong is like an upgraded version of Pei Le.

He has a lot of ideas, but sometimes he's too idealistic.

Wei Lai ignored the rambling guy and looked towards the opposite half of the court.

Elefert's midfield and defense did not move very actively, and the overall connection and interaction between the players was not very quick.

"It's a little loose!"

Wei Lai blinked.

Should we go up?
"Get up!"

Musar suddenly shouted.

Wei Lai ran forward decisively.

Musar is still very capable. The reason he can't play as a starter in the top five leagues is largely due to his physical condition and stamina. It doesn't mean that his footwork, thinking, or reading ability have declined.

Musar playing for Atlético Amsterdam feels like a game of overwhelming power.

Every pass he made was very purposeful.

Wei Lai could certainly do this, but not as efficiently as him.

What Wei Lai needs ten passes to achieve, Musar could create the desired situation directly within five or three passes.

Just like now, after a sudden relocation, Musar has turned himself into bait.

While drawing the ball and pressing, he made a seemingly ordinary lateral pass to Dennis Zilburne.

"Pass it forward!"

Musar continued to command.

Dennis Zilburne passed the ball forward, and Wei Lai received it on the right flank.

The defensive midfielders have all been drawn away, leaving only the full-backs to push forward and disrupt the play.

Faced with this situation, Wei Lai didn't even look up, and directly used the instep of his foot to chip the ball behind him.

The ball spun, following a parabola, and fell backward.

There, Robinson made a diagonal forward run, controlled the ball, and lay down inside the penalty area.

"Ellefelt is in danger!"

Commentator Van Gaal roared.

Facing a 3v3 situation, there were almost no surprises.

As Robinson drew the opposing center-back closer, he gently passed the ball diagonally forward.

Felix immediately cut into position, twisted his waist, turned, and fired a shot.

boom!
The ball flew rapidly towards the goal and crashed directly into the roof above the net!
In the 23rd minute, Atlético Amsterdam scored the first goal.

(End of this chapter)