Master Tutoring Class

Chapter 285: I remember everything! I've forgotten everything!
With the Europa League concluded, Sporting Amsterdam prepares for the league season.

In the 24th round of the Dutch Eredivisie, Atlético Amsterdam will play away against NEC Nijmegen.

In this match, both Konrad Lechmann and Wei Lai were given a rest, and both were not included in the squad.

Mr. Morton believed that NEC Nijmegen's own strength was not strong enough, but the remaining players were able to handle the game, and at worst, they could at least get a draw.

But he was caught off guard and his plan backfired!

In 80 minutes, both sides had their chances of attacking and defending, but neither managed to score.

In the 89th minute, just before the end of the match, a substitute midfielder from NEC Nijmegen suddenly unleashed a stunning long-range shot that pierced the goal of Atlético Amsterdam.

Amsterdam Sporting failed to score until the end of the match, ultimately suffering a heartbreaking defeat.

This match also marked Atlético Amsterdam's first defeat of the season.

After 24 rounds of the league, Atlético Amsterdam currently leads the standings with a record of 20-3-1.

Furthermore, they are a full nine points behind second-placed Eilefelter.

The resurgent Atlético Amsterdam, with its terrifying league dominance, is once again shaking the Eredivisie.

In the Europa League, the round of 16 matches have all concluded.

Final qualifying spots.

Sporting Amsterdam (Eredivisie), Taurhamles (Premier League), Brighton (Premier League), Sporting Lisbon (Primary League), Castellón (La Liga), Bergamasca (Serie A), Bayer Leverkusen (Bundesliga), Flemburg (Bundesliga).

In the quarterfinals, almost all the teams that advanced were from the top five European leagues.

Even the only two teams not from the top five leagues, one is a Dutch Eredivisie powerhouse and the other is a Portuguese Primeira Liga powerhouse.

Surprisingly, Brighton managed to defeat French powerhouse Lyon twice in the round of 16 to advance.

Judging from these two rounds of matches, Brighton's overall performance is better than in the group stage.

In the Europa League quarter-finals, Atletico Amsterdam will face Belgamasca.

They've really stirred up trouble in Serie A, facing two Serie A teams in a row.

However, Bergamasca's performance was not as good as Milan FC's. In the round of 16 against Belgrade, they lost 1-2 away but won 1-0 at home.

The aggregate score was tied 2-2, but the team advanced based on away goals.

Their overall strength is inferior to that of AC Milan FC, and their journey has been fraught with difficulties.

While Amsterdam Sporting can't be said to have an easy win, they certainly have a very high chance of winning.

The remaining three matches are:
Taulhamletz vs Brighton (English Premier League derby).

Bayer Leverkusen vs Sporting Lisbon

Castellón vs. Flemburg.

The current media predictions for the Europa League semi-finalists are Sporting Amsterdam, Taurhamles, Bayer Leverkusen, and Castellón.

These four teams are currently the best performing teams in the entire Europa League.

"Which of these teams do you think is the most threatening?"

Inside the villa, Wei Lai and Diego Ruma sat in front of the television, watching the Champions League match and discussing the upcoming Europa League games.

"The most threatening? I should say who we least want to play!" Wei Lai scoffed. "Bayer Leverkusen!"

Diego Ruma grinned: "You think the same way I do!"

Atlético Amsterdam is an attack-oriented team with many strengths, but also weaknesses.

The two most obvious weaknesses are his weak physique and his defense.

They are not afraid to engage in a direct offensive with their opponents.

They weren't afraid of the rapid pace of the game, or of stabbing each other in the back amidst the chaos.

What they fear is that the game will be dragged into a stalemate and positional battle by their opponents!

In positional warfare, physical confrontations are inevitable. Therefore, once a team like Bayer Leverkusen drags them into positional warfare, the young team of Atlético Amsterdam, with an average age of only 22, is directly knocked into a yo-yo by the burly German giants.

Another option is the defensive counter-attack mode!
So far, Atlético Amsterdam has not encountered a team that truly plays a defensive counter-attacking style in the Europa League. Even if they have, their defense is terrible and they can't play the rhythm they should.

Bayer Leverkusen is a prime example of a defensive counter-attacking style!

They can't launch a lightning counterattack like the Merseyside Reds, but the Germans will use their unique tank-like advances and counterattacks to leave you bewildered.

Currently, Bayer Leverkusen is undoubtedly the team that best counters Atlético Amsterdam in terms of style.

In a simulated classroom, Wei Lai is receiving instruction from the world-renowned football coach.

"No! No!" Coach Qiu Wang walked over, grabbed Wei Lai's arm, and said with dissatisfaction, "You're too obedient! Your style needs to be more free. Don't be bound by those technical movements. I'm having you learn these movements, not to follow these templates. You're not a robot."

"Do you understand?" The football king coach raised his hand; "Play football with more freedom!"

Wei Lai: "???"

"Okay! Give me an example!"

The football coach picked up the ball, held it to his chest, and pointed ahead, saying:
"You need to pass the ball forward, but it's trending downwards. The moment it hits the ground, someone will block your passing angle. What do you do?"

Wei Lai thought for a moment: "Stop the ball properly! Then try to get rid of the ball, create space, and then pass the ball!"

Snapped!
The football coach clapped his hands; "That's your problem! Why wait? Why insist on waiting for it to land? I've already told you, I'm giving you more freedom to play. Don't you have any weapons besides your feet?"

He reached out and patted Wei Lai's chest, then his shoulder.

"Your chest! Your shoulders are weapons!"

"Use your chest to stop the ball and pass it to your teammate, or tap the ball to your teammate with your shoulder. You don't necessarily have to wait for the ball to hit the ground; you need to end the passing process early."

Wei Lai paused for a moment, then looked up and said, "You mean, you want me to forget these technical moves?"

“That’s right!” the football coach exclaimed happily; “Forget about it! Forget it completely.”

Wei Lai: "I think I understand!"

The football king's coach taught him many technical moves, including feints and proper kicking techniques.

Then he emphasized 'free play'.

To put it simply, it's a process of sublimation, only expressed in a somewhat complicated way.

Just like the conversation between Zhang Sanfeng and Zhang Wuji, "remembering everything" and "forgetting everything" are the same principle.

'Remember everything'—this is the process of memorizing actions and building an arsenal.

By observing and imitating the signature feints of star players, such as the Marseille turn, the croquet move, and the stepover, a kind of muscle memory is formed, which is then repeated thousands of times in a non-contact or low-contact environment.

The goal is not to 'think' about how to do the movements well, but to let the body 'instinctively' perform the movements.

This is the arsenal upon which we depend for survival, the foundation of all creativity. Without this solid foundation, so-called 'freedom' is merely a castle in the air.

'Forget everything' – break free from feints, move from having moves to having no moves.

Once muscle memory is formed, the key leap lies in 'breaking free from feints' itself, which is the essence.

It's no longer about pedaling for the sake of pedaling beautifully, but about observing your opponent's center of gravity, posture, and intentions.

At the most opportune moment, in the most effective way, perhaps just a drop in the shoulder or a change in the gaze, one can guide the opponent to make a mistake.

Instead of rigidly imitating each movement, one can freely combine and use them.

After cycling, you can connect to the fried meatballs.

A simple shoulder-lowering stance can lead to a series of weight shifts or a clean, crisp horizontal movement for both initiation and finish.

The concept of action becomes blurred and merged, all serving the same purpose—to get past the opponent.

A sophisticated feint may not be a 'pre-set action' at all, but rather a simple look up, a change in rhythm, or even a pause.

Coach Harvey once said that he had a partner who didn't have the concept of feints; all his moves were real. However, he was always in this process of alternating between feints and real moves, making him impossible to defend against.

Playing football freely is about winning without using any specific moves.

By 'forgetting' all the constraints on movement, one enters the realm of freedom where one can 'do as one pleases without overstepping the bounds'.

"I understand, but what can I do if I can't do it?"

Wei Lai shook his head helplessly.

He wasn't a peerless genius like Zhang Wuji. After Zhang Sanfeng demonstrated his moves a few times, he successfully went from 'remembering everything' to 'forgetting everything'.

Wei Lai now can't even 'remember everything,' meaning he hasn't developed absolute muscle memory, let alone elevated it.

"Go ahead and practice!" Wei Lai shook his head; "Even idiots have their own methods!"

Let time wear it down!
After 24 rounds of league matches, there are only ten rounds left in the season.

In the Europa League, if you make it to the final, you'll only have a maximum of five matches.

They completely gave up on the Dutch Cup, fielding a fully reserve team, with the starters not even making the squad – a total surrender.

With their strong performances in the league and the Europa League, how could they possibly have the mind to focus on the Dutch Cup?

This is especially true for the Europa League. For many top teams in the top five leagues, the Europa League is in an extremely awkward position.

You say it has no prestige, but the Europa League champions are directly promoted to the Champions League group stage.

But to say it has any real value would be an overstatement; it's impossible to sacrifice the league's Champions League qualification to gamble on the Europa League title.

Manchester City last season is a prime example!
With a less-than-ideal situation in the league, they are focusing all their efforts on the Europa League, hoping to earn a Champions League spot.

Ultimately, after a season, they ended up empty-handed.

Not only did they gain nothing, they also lost their chance to qualify for European competitions in the league, meaning they won't even be able to play in the Europa League this season.

However, for Sporting Amsterdam, it's still worth trying the Europa League.

On the one hand, they are not under much pressure in the league and currently have a significant points advantage.

On the other hand, their performance in the Europa League has been really good. They can even use this season's Europa League to hone their European skills so that they won't be at a loss when they enter the Champions League next season.

There are three weeks left in March, with a total of three league matches and two Europa League matches.

In the league, they made great strides, especially when they entered the crucial points-grabbing phase. Even with Wei Lai dragging his tired body, he still needed to play for half a game.

After three league matches, Atlético Amsterdam has won all three.

After an unexpected loss to NEC Nijmegen, they adjusted their form and achieved an outstanding performance with three consecutive wins.

In the two Europa League matches, they will face Bergamasca at home and away respectively.

Both matches were extremely dull.

Bergamasca still adheres to the old-fashioned Italian chain defense style of attack and defense. In the modern football field with five-way attack, they are still obsessed with attacking from both wings and have ignored the penetrating style of attacking from the flanks.

To be honest, Wei Lai felt that the pressure in these two matches was not great, at least not as great as the pressure from AC Milan FC.

The Europa League is an extremely chaotic competition.

This place brings together second-tier teams from the top five European leagues, and first-tier teams from other leagues.

This leads to many problems. Some famous people may be just imposters, all looks and no substance.

Some may not be well-known, but they quietly exert their strength and can strike unexpectedly, which can be quite deadly.

Of course, the current Europa League has skipped this stage.

With the entire month of March concluded, the Europa League Round of 16 has come to an end.

As predicted by the media, the final four teams are:

Atlético Amsterdam (Eredivisie), Castellón (La Liga), Taurhamletz (Premier League), Bayer Leverkusen (Bundesliga).

Europa League semi-finals.

Amsterdam Rally vs Castellón.

Taurhamletz vs Bayer Leverkusen.

Atletico Amsterdam will face La Liga powerhouse Castellón in the semi-finals.

"La Liga teams are really going to have a tough time!"

Wei Lai chewed on a slice of bread, glancing at the match schedule on his phone and muttering to himself.

The core concepts of the Dutch Eredivisie and the Spanish La Liga are the same.

Imagine them as two brothers raised by the same father.

They all developed different characteristics under the core concept of total offense and total defense.

Amsterdam Sporting emphasizes ground-based play and demands a fast-paced attack.

Castellón also emphasizes ground-based play, but requires a combination of fast and slow tempos, with a focus on control.

It can be said that the two teams have a similar problem.

That's the ultimate requirement for the tempo of the midfield!

Undoubtedly, their confrontation will be a midfield battle.

The key to victory or defeat lies in the midfield; everything else has to take a backseat.

“Castellon was quite impressive, even pushing Atlético Barcelona out of the top three in the first half of the season,” Felix said, shrugging. “Although it only lasted a few weeks!”

Castellón's ability to squeeze out one of the three giants and enter the top three in the three-way battle for La Liga shows how strong they are.

However, what makes a family a family a family is its ability to fight back in the long run.

For example, Castellón only lasted a few weeks before falling out of the top three. With the pressure of the Europa League in the second half of the season, their performance in the league also suffered, and they have now dropped to fifth place.

Castellón is currently in a very complicated situation.

They don't want to give up La Liga's Champions League spot, but they also covet the Europa League title.

This resulted in them having to fight on two fronts with the same lineup, so it's understandable that they lacked stamina in the long run.

The overall intensity of La Liga is still very high.

The pressure in the internal league of Atlético Amsterdam is not very high. After finishing the Europa League, they can come back and beat up weaker teams. One squad can barely support two competitions.

But Castellón's conflicting and chaotic season goals could lead them down the same path as Manchester City.

"Want to go on vacation after this season ends?" Felix extended the invitation again.

Wei Lai sighed, "I can't go on vacation. I need to go back to China."

Before he knew it, he had been studying abroad for over a year.

I was only 16 years old when I went abroad.

They've already celebrated their 18th birthdays and are now officially adults.

The main reason for his return to China this time is related to commercial endorsements; he can't just take the money without doing any work.

After returning home, he will shoot several commercials and then participate in youth football promotional activities.

This is Zhang Zhenting's first project after taking office as the director of the Youth Football Development Department, and Wei Lai has to give him face.

Also, he's going to participate in the national youth team's summer training camp.

He hadn't played football with these friends for a long time, so it was inevitable that he would feel a bit distant. This was a good opportunity for them to get back together.

As for his participation in next year's Asian Youth Championships, Wei Lai will have to see how things go.

The Asian Youth Championships will be held in February next year.

Next season, Atlético Amsterdam will most likely play in the Champions League, and if they advance from the group stage, the coaching staff will not let him leave.

One is the AFC U-19 Championship! The other is the UEFA Champions League!

Even if Wei Lai wanted to participate, Xue Guohao couldn't refuse and called on Wei Lai.

"My summer vacation is ruined!"

Wei Lai couldn't help but sigh.

I had planned to take a break during the holiday, but when I calculated it all out, I realized I didn't have much time to rest at all.

In the afternoon, in the tactics room.

Mr. Morton explained Castellón's lineup configuration and tactics.

He pointed to the two black brothers on the screen.

One of them is named Trokoj, a Ghanaian international.

The other one is named Guellery, a Senegalese international.

These two Black brothers formed Castellón's midfield control line.

"Trokoy, an attacking midfielder, made a total of 35 passes in the last game, with 26 accurate passes and a pass completion rate of 74%."

"Gailei, a defensive midfielder, usually plays as a defensive midfielder in a 4-4-2 formation. He excels in ground pressing and aerial duels. He made 49 passes, 34 of which were accurate, with a passing accuracy of 69%!"

Wei Lai raised an eyebrow slightly; "It's a bit rough!"

This passing accuracy, especially considering they are midfielders, suggests they are not regular starters in that position.

Indeed, Castellón's midfield maestro is a Spanish player named Hollein, who is currently injured.

"These two players are physically strong, but they are prone to making passing errors when under pressure. So we need to press hard while occupying space in midfield and taking control of the tempo."

Mr. Morton is still very confident.

With Castellón's number 10 key player, Hollein, absent, it's not a sure thing they can win, but the midfield will definitely be their domain.

Once Amsterdam gains control of the midfield, their attacking firepower is something even the top clubs have to dread.

Therefore, the requirements for this Europa League semi-final are very simple.

Control the midfield tempo!

This is a direct order! It's a crucial point that must be done!
Once the attacking engine is activated, Castellón will find it difficult to withstand Atlético Amsterdam's offensive firepower!
(End of this chapter)