Starting With Real Madrid

After the first leg of the fourth round of the Coppa Italia, everyone was astonished to see that nearly all of the Serie B teams had been eliminated.

AC Milan crushed Brescia 4-0 at home, Trestina lost 1-2 at home to Roma, Sampdoria lost 0-1 at home to Palermo...

Only Napoli, playing at home against Parma, secured a 2-0 victory with two goals scored in the first six minutes, completely dominating the match.

As Gazzetta dello Sport reported: "Napoli once again played their signature high-level offensive football!"

Judging from the overall matchups between Serie A and Serie B teams, even mid-to-lower-tier Serie A teams have a clear strength advantage over strong Serie B teams, and this advantage becomes particularly evident in cup competitions.

This isn't surprising. If there were no significant difference in strength between Serie A and Serie B teams, why would there be two different league levels?

What is surprising, however, is Napoli's ability to leapfrog and defeat Serie A teams consistently in the cup, especially in their latest victory over Parma.

However, some media outlets raised questions, pointing out that Napoli's impressive performances had all come at home against Ascoli, Juventus, and Parma.

"If Napoli really wants to prove themselves, we need to see how they perform away from home in the second leg."

"Parma will undoubtedly go all out to launch a counterattack when they return to their home stadium for the second leg. That will be the true test for Napoli."

This sentiment wasn't just echoed by the media, but by Parma's coach, Pioli, in his post-match press conference as well.

Pioli admitted that his team had faced immense difficulties at the Stadio San Paolo, especially at the start, which saw them playing very passively. Napoli seized the opportunity and scored two quick goals, which completely changed the game's dynamics.

"Our opponents did indeed get a bit lucky at home, as both of their early shots resulted in goals."

Pioli conceded that, while he didn't intend to entirely shift the blame to his team's defense, it was true that Napoli's luck had been better.

After all, their first two shots were both on target, which was remarkably efficient.

Despite the loss, Pioli expressed confidence that his team would be able to stage a comeback in the second leg at home.

Additionally, Pioli acknowledged that Napoli didn't resemble a typical Serie B team but rather looked like a Serie A side.

"Gao Shen has truly crafted a very competitive, young, and unique team."

So, Pioli's a good guy.

...

In return, Gao Shen praised Pioli.

That's his style if he wins, you're the best.

After the pre-match banter, it would be hard for him to speak with sarcasm now.

He can't just admit that everything he said before the match was just psychological warfare and shouldn't be taken seriously, right?

Is there such a thing in this world?

Thus, Gao Shen continued to heap praise, while also giving his own players a reality check. The fourth round of the competition is played over two legs, and the second leg will be in Parma's home stadium. This will undoubtedly pose a major challenge for Napoli.

The media weren't entirely wrong either.

Since the start of this season, all of Napoli's key games had been at home.

The cup draw had been extremely favorable, with the first three rounds all played at home, and even the first leg of the fourth round.

It's as if fate decided to give the newly reorganized Napoli an easier start.

During the post-match press conference, the media also touched on an interesting topic: Guardiola.

Since his departure from Serie A, the legendary Barcelona captain had essentially disappeared from the media spotlight. The last time his name came up was when he joined Qatar, but there had been little news since.

Even when he had a brief stint at Manchester City, it didn't draw much attention. His time in Mexico similarly went unnoticed. But now, his sudden appearance on Napoli's coaching bench caused quite a stir.

Gao Shen briefly introduced Guardiola's situation, clarifying the rumors about him being an assistant coach but not going into too much detail about his role.

In reality, Gao Shen was ecstatic.

Finally, someone noticed!

Come on, dig deeper! Publicize it! Soon enough, even Guardiola will have to acknowledge me!

But outwardly, Gao Shen remained calm and composed.

After all, being a head coach these days requires maintaining a cool persona.

Given his young age, if he doesn't project stability, who will take him seriously?

...

There's an old saying in journalism: "The less someone says, the bigger the story."

The more Gao Shen tried to downplay things, the more intrigued the media became.

Soon after, the media followed a well-trodden path for reporting on Napoli's 2-0 victory over Parma ramping up the hype and the praise.

However, Sacchi stood out by writing a few words in his column, saying this game was even better than Napoli's match against Juventus. He particularly highlighted the excellent pre-match preparations, noting that it was evident how much effort Gao Shen had put into it.

The insight of an experienced master like Sacchi was undeniable he could pick up on subtle details just by watching the game.

On this point, Gao Shen could only offer Sacchi his utmost respect.

But what really catapulted Napoli into the media spotlight was Guardiola.

The Italian media were the first to report on it, and soon the Spanish media, especially those from Catalonia, took notice.

It must be said that Barcelona's treatment of Guardiola back then was quite harsh, leading to him being almost without a team to play for. As a result, he had barely appeared in public in Barcelona in recent years.

And now, he had gone to Italy, joining forces with Gao Shen. What was going on?

Journalists did what they do best, digging deep until they unearthed the story behind the scenes.

But for the Catalan media, the situation was uncomfortable.

Guardiola, you're a legend at Barcelona! You went to Mexico to seek out Lillo, to Argentina to learn from Bielsa, that's understandable. But now you've got your coaching license, and instead of interning at Barcelona, you went to Italy to study under Gao Shen?

Don't you know that Gao Shen is practically an enemy of Barcelona?

However, upon reflection, the Catalan media could only feel helpless. Last season, Rijkaard had been at his peak, but this season, Barcelona's form had plummeted. After losing Ten Cate, the locker room had become even more chaotic.

Neeskens, who replaced Ten Cate, was a good guy, but he lacked the tough approach that Ten Cate had.

Now, everyone knew that Gao Shen was building a team of his own, with innovative and cutting-edge concepts. It made sense that Guardiola wanted to learn from him.

It was just like Bielsa said in an interview in Argentina: "I've had in-depth discussions with Guardiola about Gao Shen."

Lillo also mentioned in Mexico that Napoli was the team he found most intriguing at the moment.

See? Nobody mentioned Barcelona.

But who's to blame for that?

The Catalan media, with their conflicted and confused feelings, rushed to Naples, hoping to interview both Gao Shen and Guardiola.

Gao Shen declined the interviews from the Catalan media, instead pushing Guardiola into the spotlight.

In his interview, Guardiola naturally spoke highly of Gao Shen, mentioning how well he had been taken care of and what he had learned from him.

These were facts, and Guardiola didn't embellish them. But given his reserved nature, the fact that he said them at all was proof enough of how much respect he had for Gao Shen.

This left the Catalan media even more conflicted.

Praise Gao Shen? That didn't sit well with them.

But if they didn't, they felt uneasy.

Seriously, Gao Shen, you're not even in La Liga anymore. Why are you still giving us such headaches?

Guardiola also clarified his relationship with Barcelona's management. He explained that when he first received his coaching license, Vice President Soriano and Technical Director Begiristain invited him to take up a position at Barcelona, but he politely declined.

"I wanted to be exposed to more advanced tactical concepts and ideas. In Naples, I've learned a lot from Gao Shen not just in football, but also in management, interpersonal interaction, and other areas."

"I think he's highly underrated."

"I wasn't there for his time at Real Madrid, but I believe he's doing something remarkable in Naples. It's difficult to explain, but I'm really looking forward to seeing Napoli in Serie A, and even the Champions League. I think that day is coming soon."

Guardiola's words left the Catalan media genuinely surprised.

They knew his character well, and he wasn't one to speak lightly.

If he said this, he truly believed it.

Could Gao Shen really be that impressive?

From Valdano to Sacchi, and now even Bielsa and Guardiola what kind of magic did Gao Shen possess that could garner admiration from such esteemed figures in football?

There's a saying that rings true: admiration from your rivals is always more convincing.

Initially, Gao Shen only wanted to establish his relationship with Guardiola as a sort of "mentor-student" dynamic. He never expected that the Catalan media's reports would spark widespread interest, especially from Spanish outlets.

Suddenly, many people, including fans, realized they had underestimated Gao Shen.

When he took over at Napoli, he truly wanted to build a team of his own, and he'd been doing so all along. Otherwise, would so many respected figures in football speak so highly of him?

What's so special about Gao Shen's Napoli?

When journalists dug deeper, fans who hadn't been following Serie B were left stunned by what they found.

Napoli had been nothing short of remarkable in Serie B.

Up to this point in the season, they had won every single match ten consecutive victories placing them firmly at the top of the league table!

In the Coppa Italia, they had won four consecutive games, defeating teams from higher divisions with ease!

This record was simply unbelievable!

Fans who had dismissed Serie B as beneath their notice were now faced with the reality of just how dominant Gao Shen's Napoli had become. Many of them were beginning to realize that this wasn't just a fluke. What Gao Shen was doing with Napoli was special, and people were starting to take notice on a larger scale.