Starting With Real Madrid

Tony Leung's character in the movie Cold War has a classic line: "Every institution, every department, and every position has its own rules of the game. Whether they're overt or covert, the first step is to learn them."

However, many people fail before they even get to this point. Do you know why?

Because they're too stubborn!

...

Actually, this statement is true, but not entirely so.

We live in an era of specialization and cooperation. From individuals to entire nations, everyone has to find their position.

But why is it also wrong?

Because times change.

Just like in the movie, Li Wenbin couldn't be promoted to the top rank in the police force as per the old traditions. Times have changed, and the requirements for leadership have evolved. Liu Jiehui was more suited to the needs of a new era.

This is true in bureaucratic systems, business, and football.

Take Osasuna, for example their aim has never been to compete in the Champions League or even the UEFA Cup. They simply want to stay in La Liga.

From that perspective, their strategy is to spend as little as possible while staying afloat.

Running a football club has never been a profitable business.

Because of this, when they invited Gao Shen to coach, they wanted to leverage his contacts at Real Madrid to cheaply loan young players, thereby boosting their short-term performance.

As for long-term planning?

That's never been something teams like Osasuna consider.

Short-sighted? Cowardly?

It is indeed short-sighted and cowardly, but this is Osasuna's positioning in La Liga.

Similarly, in Serie A, there are many teams like this.

For example, Ascoli.

Since being promoted to Serie A in 2005, this team's only goal has been to survive by any means necessary.

They want to stay in Serie A!

And within that framework, they save money wherever they can.

Therefore, in the second round of the Coppa Italia against Napoli, out of their eleven starters, four were loan players, two of whom came from Juventus' youth academy.

Bear in mind, Juventus is currently in Serie B, a lower division than Ascoli.

Another player is a veteran, the former Inter Milan mainstay and Italian international Pagliuca, who is now 40 years old.

Their most valuable player was acquired from the relegated Lecce last season Croatian centre-forward Bijelanovic at less than two million euros.

Head coach Marco Tardelli's only aim is to avoid relegation with this squad.

The six-goal win in their last round was due to a brace by Paolucci, who is on loan from Juventus.

For this game against Napoli, Tardelli tried to replicate his previous tactics with a 4-4-2 formation. Up front, he fielded two tall strikers, Paolucci and Bijelanovic, to try and pressurize Napoli's defence.

But Napoli didn't give them a chance.

...

...

"GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!"

"Hamsik!!!!"

In the 23rd minute of the game, Gervinho broke through from the left and crossed the ball into the penalty area. Cavani used his body to shield the central defender Lukavic, but his foot was disrupted, and the defender kicked the ball away first.

Lukavic's clearance was weak, and the ball landed to the left of the penalty spot in the box.

Hamsik burst in quickly, got there before everyone else, and volleyed the ball straight into Ascoli's net.

1-0!

The Slovakian player turned and ran out of the field, celebrating wildly.

This was his second consecutive goal in the Coppa Italia.

This time, the fans at Naples' San Paolo Stadium remembered his name. More than 50,000 Napoli fans screamed in the stands, chanting his name in unison.

"Hamsik!!!!"

The goal came unexpectedly but was also inevitable.

From the start of the game, Napoli launched an aggressive attack against Ascoli.

Especially the high pressing and relentless pressure in the midfield and front were extremely intense.

Unlike Frosinone, Ascoli's defence was tighter, making it difficult for Napoli to break through. However, they still organized two threatening counterattacks and even managed a shot on goal.

Nevertheless, no matter how tight the defence was, under Napoli's relentless assault, cracks began to show.

After high-fives and hugs with his teammates on the sidelines, Hamsik ran over to the home team's bench and slapped hands with Gao Shen, who was bent over and reaching out, before sprinting back onto the pitch.

"Nice job, Marek!" After the high-five, Gao Shen raised his hands above his head and clapped vigorously.

The applause from the crowd was thunderous.

1-0, Napoli was in the lead!

...

The game soon resumed.

Napoli maintained the same lineup from three days earlier, with Gao Shen only making a few positional adjustments.

For instance, he replaced Bonucci with David Luiz.

The Brazilian centre-back has better footwork and physicality, but he also has the carefree temperament of a Brazilian player and can be a bit reckless.

On the plus side, his long passing is quite good.

In fact, Gao Shen has been experimenting. Both David Luiz and Bonucci excel in passing from the midfield and backline, and their long passes could become a crucial weapon for Napoli.

But for now, it hasn't been fully utilized.

His main task is to shape the team as soon as possible, then gradually unlock more of their potential.

At right-back, Gao Shen started with captain Montevino, allowing Georgie Garrick to rest.

Montevino is a versatile player who can cover multiple roles in both midfield and defence. Gao Shen has tried him in several positions, and he performs adequately at right-back.

Of course, just adequately.

"Our pressing still has some issues," Gao Shen said, frowning.

Carlo nodded. "The problem lies in the midfield."

Neither Biglia nor Rakitic are traditional defensive midfielders; they're more technical players.

But Gao Shen insisted on using them as holding midfielders.

It's not that they can't do it; they just aren't used to it yet.

Gao Shen has discussed his reasoning with Biglia and Rakitic. His goal is to develop them into midfield passers who can handle physical play and maintain tactical discipline.

If you consider 2021 standards, he's aiming to develop them into a hybrid of midfielders like Modric, Toni Kroos, Xavi, and Iniesta what's often termed a "technical warrior" in midfield.

However, their pressing hasn't been great, especially their positioning, movement, and spacing.

"After we get back, let's do a 6-vs-7 half-pitch drill," Gao Shen instructed.

"6-vs-7?" Carlo was a bit surprised. Will that work?

The so-called 6-vs-7 is essentially a half-pitch drill where six players attack with the ball and seven players defend.

Isn't that too easy?

And how would that help train Rakitic and Biglia?

Gao Shen nodded and added, "But the seven-player side won't have a goalkeeper."

Carlo was clearly taken aback. No goalkeeper? How would that work?

But his experience in training is extensive, and he quickly understood Gao Shen's intention.

All training sessions simulate game conditions and have a clear purpose.

What's the purpose of a 6-vs-7 setup with no goalkeeper?

It's simple: without a goalkeeper, no matter how well the seven defend, what's the point?

As soon as the six get the ball, they'll try to shoot from distance whenever they get a chance.

So, the seven defenders have to change their defensive mindset. They need to press more, prevent the opponent from getting long shots; otherwise, they might as well just give up.

Essentially, Gao Shen wants to train the seven players in overall pressing.

"Got it, I'll set it up," Carlo said, looking at Gao Shen with newfound respect.

Simply removing a goalkeeper from a standard drill changes a lot.

Gao Shen always comes up with some unconventional yet highly targeted training methods.

Like the overhead ball drill, which is highly effective in building team chemistry.

As Carlo turned around, Gao Shen looked back at him.

With Carlo around, Gao Shen found things much easier.

Many times, he only had to say a word, and Carlo would understand what he wanted to achieve and handle everything, including training arrangements, perfectly.

This was much better than when he was at Real Madrid; Maqueda, his assistant back then, wasn't nearly as effective.

Speaking of which, that guy called Lucas a few days ago, asking if there were any openings on Gao Shen's team.

But unfortunately, Gao Shen's coaching staff was already complete.

...

...

As the game approached the 40th minute, Napoli intercepted the ball again and launched a quick counterattack.

Cavani tracked back to make a tackle, and Rakitic distributed the ball to the right. Sanchez sprinted down the wing, bypassing Ascoli's left-back and crossing from the baseline into the penalty area.

Hamsik and Gervinho both rushed into the box, but Lukavic took the lead, heading the ball out to the right side of the box.

Just when everyone thought Napoli's attack was over, Cavani, who had just retreated to defend, rushed to the loose ball, chest-controlled it, and, before the defenders could approach, unleashed a powerful volley.

The ball rocketed into Ascoli's net with lightning speed, going past Pagliuca again.

2-0!!!

The Uruguayan centre-forward clenched his fists, cheered excitedly, and rushed to the sidelines to celebrate his goal.

Napoli's players followed him in celebration.

This was Cavani's consecutive goals in the Coppa Italia and it took everyone by surprise, as the young, relatively unknown Uruguayan striker made an immediate impact after joining Napoli. Not only did he score in back-to-back matches, but his tireless work ethic pressing relentlessly in the front and actively helping in defense set him apart.

This left the visiting coach in disbelief. Watching Cavani's outstanding performance, he couldn't help but express his astonishment, saying, "Such a good player, only 800,000 euros? Any more?

The way Cavani integrated into the team so quickly, both in terms of scoring and overall work rate, made his transfer look like a bargain and hinted at the potential he was about to unleash in European football.