The All-Around Center Forward

The second week of training began with ball work.

After a full week of physical training, especially without being able to touch a ball, the players were quite restless.

Although they would privately practice their ball control, it was completely different from a team training camp.

Therefore, when they entered ball training, everyone was in high spirits.

Especially the substitutes who had just joined this season.

Kroos, Casemiro, and others were also full of fighting spirit, intending to make their future at Real Madrid.

However, this fighting spirit only lasted for 30 minutes.

Soon, under the relentless attacks of the main team, they gradually weakened, and their defense even collapsed.

Swish!!!

Suker's powerful shot from outside the box precisely flew into the top right corner of the goal.

On the sidelines, Assistant Coach Faria flipped the scoreboard.

Main team 4:0 Substitute team!

"30 minutes, four goals, these guys' firepower is truly fierce!"

No matter how turbulent Real Madrid was, its foundation remained.

It was impossible for it to fall quickly!

What's more, the only main player who left was Alonso, and Kaka could completely take over that role.

In fact, with the 'conscious connection' between Suker and Kaka, their offense became even more powerful.

Suker scored two goals, while Benzema and Bale each scored one.

"How does it feel?"

Kaka asked Benzema.

Benzema gave a thumbs up: "Great! Your passing is so precise."

Bale, who was beside them, also smiled; "Your early control is so good, I don't even need to slow down to coordinate!"

Hearing their words, Kaka also showed a happy smile.

Alonso's departure greatly enhanced Kaka's tactical position and resources.

He could proactively do more things, which also gave Kaka more firepower in terms of pushing forward.

Of course, that's not to say Alonso was inferior to Kaka.

Their characteristics were different!

Alonso was more stable; he had more experience in midfield, constantly linking positions and controlling the game through passing and changes in tempo.

As for Kaka, he was a headstrong player.

Charge, charge, charge!

Go, go, go!

Without a word, he would unleash a precisely guided pass, directly launching a counter-attack!

Real Madrid's quick transitions in midfield made their counter-attacks even more ferocious.

But sometimes, overly aggressive play would lead to slow recovery in defense.

So, one could say they each had their own strengths!

"Huff! Huff! Huff!"

Casemiro gasped for air, supporting his knees and wiping away sweat.

"I couldn't stop them even once!"

He looked at Suker.

He knew Suker's powerful impact, but he hadn't expected this outcome.

In his imagination, although marking Suker was difficult, he should have been able to stop one or two attacks.

But in reality, he hadn't been able to limit Suker even once.

This made him feel extremely frustrated.

Kroos was also frustrated.

His frustration stemmed from being unable to keep up with the rhythm.

Real Madrid's rhythm changes were very quick, and the speed of their attack-defense transitions was too fast.

Even the substitutes were like this.

Whenever he looked up to observe, their forwards had already pushed forward.

And when he passed the ball, the opposing players had already retreated to their positions, and their forwards would spread their hands, complaining to him.

Bayern Munich's attack-defense transition speed was not slow, but Real Madrid's was faster.

This training match gave him a particularly strange feeling.

That was, he had to abandon thinking and make some mechanical reactions to keep up with the rhythm.

But if he abandoned thinking, how would changes come about?

These were all things Kroos needed to consider and change.

But at least he found the problem, so it wasn't a complete loss.

"Alright! Take a break!"

Mourinho clapped his hands, signaling the players to rest.

Then he said to Faria: "You don't have to come today."

Recently, Faria not only had to participate in the coaching staff's work but also had to go to the technical department to be Mourinho's 'spy,' which put a lot of pressure on him.

Some things he couldn't find out, he still had to force himself to inquire about.

Therefore, Mourinho hoped he could rest, as Faria was one of the few people he could trust, and if he collapsed from exhaustion, it would truly be difficult for Mourinho.

"I'm fine!"

Faria shook his head: "I'm an outsider there, called a consultant, but I'm just your messenger, and I inquire about some news, so it's not tiring."

It wasn't physical exhaustion, but mental exhaustion.

After all, having to be enthusiastic towards people who are cold to you was truly uncomfortable.

But there was no choice, as Mourinho didn't have many people he could trust anymore.

After speaking, he immediately said; "Casemiro's performance isn't very good!"

"Lack of experience! Can't keep up with the rhythm! Haven't grasped the tactics!" Mourinho paused, then continued; "Talent and technique are not a problem!"

The last one was the key!

Talent and technique, these two things cannot be honed over time.

If you don't have them, you don't!

Just like some people have poor positional sense and are always out of position!

Just like some people have poor anticipation and can't accurately judge the landing spot!

Just like some people don't grasp the timing of tackles well and are dribbled past as if they were a stick.

Conversely, Casemiro had no problems in these areas.

What he lacked was experience, rhythm, and tactics.

But experience can be accumulated!

Rhythm can be adapted to!

And tactics were even easier to say; Mourinho was preparing to give him special coaching!

"My goal is to train him up in half a season!"

Listening to Mourinho, Faria turned his head in surprise; "Is he going to give him a chance?"

"A lot of chances!" Mourinho said.

He was a pragmatist, preferring ready-made products.

But at this time, he couldn't consider ready-made products.

Although excellent defensive midfielders could be bought on the market, and Real Madrid was not short of money.

The problem was whether they would support him!

These mature guys were all shrewd.

Between the club and Mourinho, they knew how to make choices, almost all of them uniformly siding with the club.

These were not his own people at all!

Therefore, his decision to develop Casemiro was largely a reluctant measure.

He hoped Casemiro could grow quickly.

And before he grew, Mourinho would withstand the pressure and give him enough playing opportunities!

That's right!

He was going to move Khedira!

This was also picking on the weak!

Kaka couldn't be touched!

Touching Kaka was almost no different from making an enemy of Suker.

As for the other defensive midfield position, Khedira had secured his starting spot at Real Madrid based on his own ability.

He didn't rely on Suker or the Spanish local contingent, making him the easiest to move!

What's more, Khedira was not the defensive midfielder role he desired in the first place; even without Casemiro, he would have moved Khedira.

If he accepted the adjustment, then Khedira's position would be moved forward.

If he didn't accept, then he would be directly abandoned.

This time, it was a two-pronged approach!

Initially, Srna would teach Casemiro some defensive experience and play with him for a period.

Once Casemiro developed, it would be easy to handle.

As for Toni Kroos.

This was a player the club had forced upon him, completely outside Mourinho's tactical scheme, so he didn't care about him.

Occasionally giving him a chance to play was to save face for the higher-ups.

But he would not enter his starting lineup!

From the first day of training, Real Madrid entered an extremely aggressive attacking mode.

And on the second day of training, Casemiro was placed in the main team.

After this arrangement, his position never changed.

Usually, players would rotate into the main lineup for adaptability training, to avoid coordination problems when coming on as a substitute in a match.

But Casemiro was fixed in the starting lineup.

Everyone else rotated, but Casemiro was never substituted.

Soon, the Real Madrid players caught on.

This was Mourinho's plan to develop Casemiro, especially since Mourinho gave him targeted tactical explanations after training sessions.

This treatment was even better than Suker's.

Seeing this, if they still couldn't figure it out, they were truly foolish.

Mourinho's favor made Casemiro somewhat overwhelmed, but he was also constantly adapting to the main team's playing style.

At first, he still struggled to keep up, but after only five days, he could initially cooperate with his teammates to build a defensive network.

And combining his own characteristics, he was extremely stable in his own defensive area.

Although this stable defense could not overflow to provide comprehensive coverage.

But the changes in just five days had already surprised everyone.

Of course, Casemiro being exclusively favored by Mourinho did not only bring good things.

What Mourinho liked, Casillas hated.

Although he didn't explicitly say so, he almost completely ignored Casemiro.

Even Ramos and others would bypass Casemiro when passing, sending the ball elsewhere.

Suker felt that these guys from the Spanish local faction were somewhat unbalanced in their mentality.

You can fight among yourselves, but if you do this, I'm going to get angry.

Of course, before that, he needed to solve a problem.

Toni Kroos walked off the field, breathing heavily.

His expression was full of frustration.

He felt targeted!

No!

He should say he felt ignored!

He, like everyone else, had the opportunity to train with the first team, but it seemed like Mourinho had marked him.

Others could at least play for about two sessions.

But he could only play one session before being substituted into the reserve squad.

One session wasn't enough time to integrate; just as he was starting to get a feel for things and before he could make an impact, he was replaced.

This greatly frustrated Toni Kroos.

Not valued at Bayern Munich!

It seemed he was also not valued at Real Madrid!

"Here!"

A drink bottle suddenly appeared in front of him. Kroos looked up and saw Suker standing before him.

"Have some! You ran a lot today!"

Kroos pursed his lips; "But I didn't play well!"

Suker smiled; "Thinking about only playing one session?"

Toni Kroos fell silent.

It was fake to say he wasn't angry!

He definitely had an opinion about this blatant differential treatment.

But there was nothing he could do; he couldn't rebel against Mourinho.

"You're being targeted!" Suker said casually.

Kroos looked up: "Why?"

What else could it be?

Mourinho saw him as someone the higher-ups had pushed in. Based on how the higher-ups had been annoying Mourinho lately, this guy was making a small counterattack.

Suker didn't explain; there was no need.

He patted Kroos on the shoulder; "Don't worry, tomorrow will be different!"

Kroos was being bullied at Bayern Munich.

This guy being bullied was actually a matter of ideology.

Kroos was, strictly speaking, an East German. Although there was no longer a division between East and West Germany, the ideology remained, and so did the discrimination.

In the original timeline, when Kroos said Real Madrid was better than Bayern, Bayern fans were collectively furious, but East German fans cheered. It was the same principle.

At Bayern Munich, without any backing, Toni Kroos was inherently easy to bully and even to be sold.

But Real Madrid was different!

Toni Kroos was, strictly speaking, persuaded to come by Suker.

Suker had to take care of him, regardless of others!

Under Kroos's puzzled gaze, Suker walked towards Mourinho.

"Coach, let's talk!"

Suker's smile was radiant.

But Mourinho's brows were tightly furrowed.

He would rather roll up his sleeves and fight Casillas than talk to Suker.

Inside Mourinho's office.

"Sit down. Do you need me to make you..."

Suker had already gone to make coffee on his own, his movements practiced. He even knew which drawer the coffee was in.

Suker made two cups of coffee before sitting opposite Mourinho.

"Speak, what is it?"

Mourinho rubbed his temples. Other players feared being called in by him for a talk, but Suker was different; this guy was fearless, even seeking him out proactively.

"Today's training..."

As soon as Suker spoke, Mourinho waved his hand; "Are you talking about Casemiro? I have a plan for that, and I don't want you getting too involved."

This time, Mourinho's attitude was very firm.

Suker's smile became even more radiant.

"I think he's good, but he still needs more training!"

Mourinho couldn't guess what Suker was up to, but he still nodded and said, "That's right, he lacks experience and needs some game opportunities!"

"Some?" Suker continued to ask.

Mourinho frowned; "I will give him playing time, but I hope you can trust me, this will not affect our combat strength."

He thought Suker was worried about promoting reserves and disrupting combat strength.

After all, players like Suker cared most about their own achievements and statistics.

Especially since Suker had already begun to enter the historical realm, the more he pushed forward, the higher his achievements and status would be.

Suker smiled; "You misunderstood, I'm not worried about that. I also know that Casemiro is an excellent defensive midfielder. He has enough talent; he just needs some game time, of course, possibly frequent opportunities to play, including starting!"

Mourinho looked at Suker. It seemed it wasn't a concern about combat strength being damaged, so what was it about?

Mourinho didn't speak, and Suker continued:

"So I thought, if we promote one, why not bring another along? Can we do that?"

"Bring another?" Mourinho was surprised.

Suker nodded: "Toni Kroos!"

Mourinho suddenly understood that Suker was negotiating with him.

Understanding all this, Mourinho knew what to do.

"Kroos is not in my lineup..."

Suker stared at Mourinho; "Then Casemiro might not be either!"

Mourinho was silent for a long time...

"But it's not impossible!"

Mourinho pursed his lips and said; "But he plays as a defensive midfielder, right? What we lack is a central midfielder!"

Suker: "He can play as a central midfielder, and even swap positions with Kaka. We'll also have another outlet for passing, and compared to Khedira, Kroos's passing is cleaner."

Mourinho: "This will squeeze Kaka's tactical resources!"

Suker: "I've agreed for him!"

Mourinho couldn't help but sigh. With things said to this extent, he had to compromise.

Moreover, he had misunderstood.

It seemed Kroos wasn't someone the higher-ups had pushed in, but rather someone Suker wanted!

This conversation was mutually beneficial, an exchange of interests.

Furthermore, Mourinho didn't want to be hostile towards Suker, so he made concessions.

With Toni Kroos's matter resolved, Suker also let out a long breath.

Mourinho wasn't crazy yet!

This was a good thing!

If this guy really threw caution to the wind, feeling that Suker was pushing too hard, and decided to go for broke.

At that time, both Casemiro and Kroos would suffer!

This was something Suker didn't want to see!

Fortunately, Suker's direction was correct, and no problems arose.

Leaving the training base, Suker didn't go straight home but first went to the supermarket to buy a large quantity of ingredients.

Around 6 PM, Kaka, famished, walked into Suker's villa.

As soon as he entered, he saw the lavish dinner on the table and Suker with a radiant smile.

"So much good food?"

Kaka was surprised.

Suker smiled; "Eat slowly! Let's talk slowly!"

Kaka lowered his head and started eating.

Suker, beside him, said earnestly; "This time, there was no other way; I had to make some sacrifices. I can't just bring someone here and then not care about them, especially since he was misunderstood and targeted by Mourinho. This matter is a bit unfair to you, the two of us..."

"Another bowl!"

Kaka handed over his bowl.

Suker said in a daze; "Did you hear what I was saying to you?"

"I heard! It's no big deal, hurry up and serve the rice!"

Kaka urged.

Suker served him a bowl of rice and asked; "You don't mind?"

"What's there to mind?" Kaka continued eating.

Suker grinned; "It's not bringing one, it's bringing two players!"

Kaka's midfield partners went from the reliable Alonso + Khedira to the incomplete Kroos + Casemiro.

This would inevitably increase Kaka's pressure, but he seemed indifferent.

"It's fine, bringing one is bringing one, bringing two is also bringing two, besides, *slurp slurp gulp gulp... crunch crunch*"

Kaka finished another bowl of rice and pointed at the leftover dishes on the table: "Pack this for me, I'll eat it again tomorrow!"

Suker was torn between laughter and tears; "I'll make it for you again tomorrow, finish what you were saying!"

Kaka gave a thumbs up: "You're my good brother!"

Suker: "..."

"I've watched them both play. Honestly, we've struck gold this time."

"Although Casemiro can't keep up with the rhythm yet, some of his subconscious positioning and movements show that his positional sense is very good, and he also reacts, which means he knows what to do, but he lacks tactical familiarity, so he can't keep up. But give him some time, and he can implement defense, and even do it better!"

"Kroos's ability goes without saying; what he lacks is integration and tactical resources!"

After a pause, Kaka said; "Actually, I think once they play well, a midfield inverted triangle formation is best suited for us, but Mourinho won't use a single defensive midfielder!"

Suker nodded.

Kaka had hit the nail on the head; Casemiro was fully capable of handling the single defensive midfielder role.

The future 'Ceremonial Midfield' would be an inverted triangle formation!

"Also, if Kroos performs well, it's good for you too. I don't know how much longer I can play. My physical condition has indeed passed its peak, and it should decline very soon. You need a midfielder to pass you the ball." Kaka smiled; "I'll bring out a midfielder for you; consider it my last gift to you!"

"You guy..." Suker was a little moved.

"I want sweet and sour pork ribs, and they have to be spareribs! I'll bring Luca over to eat tomorrow; he likes this!"

Damn it! This guy started ordering food!