Starting With Real Madrid

After returning to the Bay Area from Fort Volturno, Guardiola headed to his room to take a shower. 

The past two days had been full of surprises for him at the Napoli training base.

The first surprise was Gao Shen's apology to his players after their recent match. It completely overturned the image Guardiola had built of him. Guardiola had thought Gao Shen, being young and successful, would be headstrong and overly confident. Yet here he was, humbly admitting his mistakes in front of his players, something few coaches ever did.

The second surprise was the candid and insightful conversations Gao Shen had with his team, treating them almost like colleagues, guiding them to think and grow independently, rather than just players executing orders.

In comparison, Guardiola wasn't particularly interested in the tactical training session that afternoon, though it was clear to him that the team's approach and method were effective.

On the way back to the Bay Area, Guardiola had asked Gao Shen if he had time for a chat later that night, and Gao Shen readily agreed.

When Guardiola finished his shower and stepped out onto the second-floor balcony, he saw that Gao Shen was already sitting there, staring out at the dark sea in the distance. The distant lights twinkled like stars on the horizon, probably from ships passing through the bay.

Fernando Lucas was also there, sitting in the corner of the balcony with his laptop open, busy on the phone. He was a man with an endless stream of information to process and analyze, and right now, most of his attention was focused on gathering intelligence about Parma, Napoli's next opponent.

On the table next to Gao Shen was a bottle of water and a can of beer, the latter clearly intended for Guardiola. Smiling at the thoughtfulness, Guardiola walked over, sat down beside Gao Shen, and cracked open the can of beer. He took two big gulps and let out a satisfied sigh.

"The hardest part of my time in Mexico was adjusting to the drinks there," Guardiola joked, initiating the conversation.

Gao Shen chuckled in response. He already knew a lot about Guardiola's time in Mexico, his coaching under Lillo, and his philosophical discussions with Bielsa. These were no secrets, especially in football circles.

"To be honest, if you don't smoke or drink, you're missing out on some of life's pleasures," Guardiola quipped with a smirk.

Gao Shen laughed again, "That's probably the generation gap between us."

Guardiola, caught off guard, paused before nodding. "You're right."

Indeed, there was a gap. Gao Shen was just 26 years old, while Guardiola was 35. Despite only nine years between them, the difference in their life experiences, especially in football, sometimes felt like a generation apart.

"When I'm not playing games or training, I like to spend time playing 'World of Warcraft'," Gao Shen said with a smile, referring to one of his personal hobbies.

Guardiola had recently learned about this, although Lucas had privately revealed to him that Gao Shen's gaming habits had more to do with the girl he liked than the game itself. 

"He and this girl she plays a dark priest, while he's a paladin have been grinding levels together from Northshire Abbey all the way up. The girl is supposed to be a healer, but she's gone full dark, while he's turned his paladin into a healer. They've somehow managed to make it work."

Lucas, who clearly didn't share Gao Shen's enthusiasm for video games, had complained about this in private, which had made Guardiola laugh. While Guardiola didn't understand much about the game itself, he appreciated how Gao Shen seemed to balance football with other parts of his life. 

At that moment, sitting on the balcony, drinking his beer, Guardiola thought back to an earlier question he had asked Gao Shen: What's the difference between coaching a newly promoted Serie B team like Napoli and coaching a giant like Real Madrid?

Gao Shen's answer had been surprisingly simple: They're completely different, but in essence, they're the same.

Tonight, Guardiola had another question for Gao Shen. After taking a sip of his beer, he turned to him and asked, "Why did you apologize to your players?"

Gao Shen raised an eyebrow, gesturing for him to continue.

"I mean, shouldn't a head coach always be trying to establish and maintain his authority? Isn't it the coach's job to give the players confidence, not the other way around?"

Gao Shen nodded, acknowledging the validity of the question. "You're right. Maintaining authority is important."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "But I believe that if a leader needs to hide their mistakes to maintain authority, then that authority is worthless."

Guardiola remained quiet, reflecting on those words.

"The truth is," Gao Shen went on, "my players haven't lost confidence in me, nor have they questioned my authority, even after I admitted my mistakes. They respect me more because they know I'm honest with them."

Guardiola recalled the interactions he'd witnessed between Gao Shen and his players. Even after the mistakes made in the Juventus game, the players hadn't lost faith in their coach. In fact, they seemed to respect him more for it. 

During the drive back to the Bay Area, several players had even offered to give Gao Shen a ride, small gestures that showed just how deep their bond with him was. It was clear to Guardiola that Gao Shen commanded both authority and trust from his players, and it wasn't through fear or intimidation it was through respect.

Understanding Gao Shen's point, Guardiola didn't press the issue further. Instead, he asked the question that had been bothering him the most: Why do you encourage your players to think for themselves?

"I've played for a lot of coaches," Guardiola began, "and most of them don't encourage players to think independently. In fact, they often discourage it. They prefer players to simply follow orders, to do exactly what they're told nothing more, nothing less. Even great coaches like Benitez or Van Gaal often prefer to control every aspect of the game."

At this, Gao Shen smiled. He had expected this question.

"Someone once told me that when you're young, you should choose a career with a high ceiling for growth, one that's difficult to replace, and then focus on learning and accumulating experience."

Gao Shen paused, allowing the words to sink in.

"Think about it," he continued. "Many leaders believe their subordinates are incompetent. But are they really? The truth is, most people are smarter than we give them credit for. They have their own thoughts and ideas. When you treat your subordinates like fools, who's the real fool?"

Guardiola nodded. He had seen plenty of coaches treat their players like machines, expecting them to follow orders blindly without any room for creativity or personal growth. Gao Shen was taking a completely different approach.

"Whether in football or in any other field, people want to grow. If you suppress that growth, it'll lead to frustration and conflict. That's why I focus on encouraging my players to think for themselves, to understand why we do what we do. If they understand the 'why,' they'll perform better."

Gao Shen's approach was not the quick and easy method that most coaches used. It was the long-term, "foolish" approach, which focused on developing his players as thinkers and decision-makers on the pitch. The short-term results might not always be perfect, but the long-term growth and potential were immense.

"Sure, it's harder at first," Gao Shen admitted. "Some players will resist. They might not want to think for themselves. They might just want to be told what to do. But once they start thinking, once they understand the bigger picture, they'll become much better players."

"The more they understand, the more confident they become. And once they reach that point, they don't need me to tell them what to do anymore. They can make decisions on their own, in real-time, based on the game's circumstances."

Guardiola was beginning to see the brilliance of Gao Shen's method. It was like building a foundation for the future. In the short term, it required more work, more patience, and more effort. But in the long term, the results would be far greater than simply ordering players to follow tactics mechanically.

Players who understood the game deeply, who could think for themselves, wouldn't just follow Gao Shen's tactics they'd embody them.

"I also think about the future," Gao Shen added. "Players won't always obey blindly. When they're young, sure. But as they grow, as they get more confident, they'll start questioning everything. If you suppress their growth, you'll eventually face resistance. The whole team will fall apart."

Guardiola could see it now. There were two paths a coach could take. One was to assert control from the beginning, to make players follow orders without question. This worked well at first, but as players matured and gained confidence, they would eventually resist.

The other path the one Gao Shen was taking was much harder at the start. It required patience, effort, and trust. But once the players understood the philosophy and embraced it, they'd grow together with the coach, making the entire team stronger and more united over time.

It was a difficult, "foolish" way to coach, but it was also brilliant.

And in the end, it was the same path taken by legendary coaches like Johan Cruyff.

As Guardiola sat there, listening to Gao Shen's words, he couldn't help but reflect on Cruyff's influence at Barcelona. Cruyff had always encouraged his players to think, to understand the game, and to play with intelligence. Many of Cruyff's players had gone on to become successful coaches themselves. 

Gao Shen never concerned himself with what Guardiola was thinking; he simply said what was on his mind.

He had even reflected on why the coaching careers of managers like Benítez and Van Gaal fluctuated so much. Could it be related to their management style?

And then there's Mourinho, who famously talked about his "three-year cycle." Isn't that also due to his approach to management?

Otherwise, why does Mourinho always create an external enemy for his team?

As Gao Shen explained to Guardiola, coaching Napoli and coaching Real Madrid may seem different, but at their core, they're the same. Both are about managing the locker room and handling people.

In Naples, Gao Shen had an advantage he was working with a group of players in their twenties, still like blank slates, ready to be molded.

So far, Gao Shen believed that the management and coaching of Napoli were progressing exactly as planned, and the results were promising. He was confident that, given time, this Napoli squad would bring him immense rewards both on and off the pitch. There would be no disappointment.

As for Guardiola, he was still contemplating those deep insights.

Chances are, he won't be getting much sleep tonight.