Awakening the Messi template, Florentino Pérez begs me to join Real Madrid

The young defenders looked at each other, their faces filled with "How could this happen?"

That goal we just conceded was scored by center-back Li Mingming—18 years old, a U19 center-back for Evergrande, who made his first-team squad call-up this season.

He made a typical mistake for a young player:

He hesitated for half a second the moment Chen Liang started, thinking about whether to create an offside trap or follow up. In that half second, Chen Liang had already rushed out.

System prompt:

Teammate's mentality fluctuation detected:

Shocking (Li Mingming) 18 years old

Panic (Zhang Yu, right back, 17 years old)

Confused (Zhao Kai, defensive midfielder, 18 years old).

Team morale: -20%.

Special Note

A misperception of defensive intensity in the China League Two has been triggered.

Your teammates thought this was a "slightly more intense youth league," but it was actually a "professional arena where anything goes for survival and dignity."

Wu Shi took a deep breath and clapped his hands:

"Focus! It's just one ball! This is just the beginning."

After the restart, even more problems began to surface.

In the 12th minute, Wu Shi dropped back to the defensive midfield position to receive the pass.

Zhang Yu – Right-back, technically gifted, known in the youth team for his ability to both dribble and pass.

Facing pressure from the left winger of the Manatee, he tried to execute a Cruyff turn...

"Watch out!" Wu Shi shouted.

late.

The Manatee players didn't even look at his feint and went straight for a physical collision.

Zhang Yu was knocked off balance and lost possession. The opposing team launched a counter-attack, passing the ball around three times before reaching the edge of the penalty area, where a long-range shot grazed the crossbar and went wide.

"What are you thinking!" Wang Zhuofeng roared. "This is a competition! Not training!"

Zhang Yu looked unwell and raised his hand to indicate that he had a question.

In the 18th minute, Evergrande finally managed a decent combination play.

Wu Shi broke free from two defenders in midfield and delivered a precise diagonal pass to Liu Fei, the 17-year-old left winger with outstanding left-foot technique and a prolific scorer in the youth academy.

When Liu Fei received the ball, there was only one defender in front of him, and his teammates had already moved forward to make a run into him.

Normal choice: cross or cut inside and shoot.

But Liu Fei chose... to ride a bicycle.

"Get past him! Get past him!" A few fans from Evergrande who had come with the team shouted anxiously from the stands.

Before Liu Fei could finish his third bicycle kick, the Hainiu defender tackled the ball away and leaned against him, causing Liu Fei to fall to the ground.

The referee didn't call it.

The counterattack has begun again.

This time, Chen Liang received the ball on the right wing and faced Li Mingming one-on-one.

Chen Liang made a simple change of direction and accelerated, and Li Mingming reacted a beat too slow, getting completely outmaneuvered.

Chen Liang crossed the ball, and a player heading it towards the goal from the center was brilliantly saved by the goalkeeper.

"See that? Your teammates are 'showcasing individual skills,' while the opponents are 'winning.' Do you see the difference now?"

A mature, older woman's voice appeared in Wu Shi's mind.

Wu Shi felt a throbbing vein on his forehead.

As time went on, the tension of Evergrande's young players not only did not ease, but intensified due to their inability to break through and their repeated mistakes.

In the 25th minute, Zhao Kai, a young defensive midfielder, passed the ball back to the goalkeeper with little power when no one was pressing him.

The Manatee forward immediately pounced on the ball, forcing the goalkeeper to clear it with a long kick and relinquish possession.

In the 31st minute, Evergrande won a free kick in the attacking third, in a good position.

Wu Shi was about to take the penalty when he noticed that his teammates' positioning was chaotic.

Some tried to move forward, some stood still, and some even blocked Wu Shi's passing lanes.

"Run! Cross!" Wu Shi commanded.

But the young players seemed not to hear, or rather, their nervousness prevented their brains from processing the complex instructions.

Wu Shi has to take the shots himself.

He kicked a curving ball that went over the wall, but the angle was too straight and the goalkeeper caught it.

The Manatee goalkeeper launched a quick counter-attack with a throw-in, and after three passes and two turnovers, the ball reached the edge of the Evergrande penalty area.

This was a long-range shot, blocked by a defender and going out for a corner.

The corner kick was taken, and the Manatee's center forward outjumped Li Mingming to head the ball towards the goal, but it hit the crossbar and bounced out!

"Waaah—" A collective sigh of regret filled the room.

The young players at Evergrande were already pale.

[Half-time statistics (40 minutes):]

Possession: Evergrande 62% - Hainiu 38%

[Shots: Evergrande 2 (1 on target) - Manu Ginobili 7 (3 on target)]

[Threatening Attacks: Evergrande 3 times - Manatee 11 times]

[Passing accuracy: Evergrande 71% - Wilderness 68%]

[Success rate in the confrontation: Evergrande 42% - Manatee 58%]

"Tsk tsk tsk, these numbers."

"See that? A classic case of 'ineffective possession'."

"You guys are passing the ball around in the safe zone, but you make mistakes as soon as you get to the frontcourt, within 30 meters. What about the opponents?"

"Every time they get the ball, they're aiming to kill you. High possession rate?"

"That's only because your defenders are afraid to pass forward, so they can only pass back to the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper kicks the ball long, loses it, wins it back, and passes it back again—it's a vicious cycle. Statistics can be deceiving, but scores won't."

Wu Shi felt his throat was dry.

He tried to organize it several times, but the problem was:

When he gets the ball, at least two players will double-team him;

When he passes the ball to his teammates, they either don't dare to accept it, or they lose the ball as soon as they do.

When he runs off the ball and calls for it, his teammates' passes are either too late or too wide.

In the entire first half, Evergrande's best chance was created by Wu Shi himself in the 39th minute—

He dribbled past one player on the right wing with a series of changes of direction, cut inside, and curled a left-footed shot into the far corner.

The ball arced out, but was headed away by a Manatee defender, going just wide of the post.

That was the only shot from open play in the first half that forced the Manu Ginobili goalkeeper to make a save.

1: 0.

Amid cheers from Tiantai Stadium,

The young players of Evergrande walked quickly toward the players' tunnel with their heads down.

Some people walked unsteadily, while others had unfocused eyes.

Wu Shi walked at the back, sensing the low morale of his teammates.

The locker room was deathly silent.

The young players slumped on the benches, some gulping down water, others staring at the floor.

A sense of frustration permeated the air.

Lippi and his assistant coach were the last to walk in.

The Italian old man had no expression on his face. He simply looked around, then leaned against the wall by the door, crossed his arms, and gestured for Wu Shi to speak.

Wu Shi took a deep breath and stood up.

"Raise your heads, everyone."

Several team members raised their heads.

"We played terribly," Wu Shi said bluntly.

"I know you're nervous. It's your first official match, an away game, the opponents are playing like crazy, and the fans are booing you—I know all of that."

"But that's not an excuse. We are Evergrande, we are professional players."

"It's okay to be nervous, but don't let nervousness control you. What were you doing in the first half?"

"Zhang Yu, you can do that Cruyff turn in training, so why can't you do it in a match? Because your opponents won't play along with your act!"

"Li Mingming, what were you thinking when you were staring at Chen Liang?!"

The two people whose names were called lowered their heads.

"And Liu Fei."

Wu Shi looked towards the left wing.

"Cycling is cool, but winning is even cooler."

Next time you get that kind of opportunity, either pass or shoot, don't perform.

We're not here to perform, we're here to win.

"In the second half, we have three things to do."

Wu Shi held up three fingers.

"First, simplify. Don't think about complicated combinations. Two-on-one, straight pass and diagonal cut, that's all the basics."

Second, communication. Shout it out! Who's open, who wants the ball, who's covering – shout it out! Don't expect others to understand your thoughts.

third……"

"Wu Shi is right." The old man's voice was calm, but carried an unquestionable authority. "The problems in the first half are my responsibility. I overestimated your ability to adapt to professional matches."

He walked up to the tactics board.

"Second half adjustments. Li Mingming, Zhang Yu, you two are off." His tone left no room for negotiation. "Liu Fei, you move to the right wing. Change the formation to 4-4-1-1."

The two people who were named turned pale, but dared not speak.

"Sun Yang and Chen Hua have been substituted on," Lippi announced, naming the two players.

Sun Yang and Chen Hua are both substitute center-backs for the first team. Although they don't get many opportunities to play, they are both veterans around thirty years old with rich experience.

"Sun Yang, you'll play left center-back and be in charge of directing the defense. Chen Hua, you'll play right center-back and mark Chen Liang closely." Lippi's instructions were very detailed. "I don't want you to participate in too much of the attack. Just one thing: hold the line. After winning the ball, simply pass it to the midfielders; don't dribble too much."

"Wu Shi, in the second half you'll be in charge of organizing the attack and play as the number 10 attacking midfielder. Got it?!"

"clear."