Chapter 98

The referee's whistle temporarily saved Endrit, the game restarted, and the system cleverly hid in an inconspicuous place.

"There are still six minutes left in the first half. Can Chelsea score another goal in these six minutes?"

"It all depends on whether Barnsley gives them a chance or not. The ball is in Barnsley's hands. Do they want to go for it in the last few minutes or save their energy for the second half?"

"Ah, alas, alas? What does it mean to give it a try and score a goal? Whether you score a goal or not is not determined by your efforts, but by whether the opponent's goalkeeper gives you a chance."

Will Endritt give the opponent a chance? Won't.

Barnsley also knew the answer long ago, so when the game was almost over, they took a long shot in the frontcourt as the whistle sounded. If it goes in, everyone will be happy, but if it doesn't, it doesn't matter, they can just rest for ten minutes and then fight again.

Ten minutes later

The second half of the game began, the two teams switched sides and Chelsea kicked off.

In the 48th minute, Anelka passed the ball to Cole in the penalty area. The latter shot directly after receiving the ball, but the ball went wide and failed to expand the score.

In the 53rd minute, Chelsea launched another attack on Barnsley's goal. This time it was Alneka's shot from the outside. Just like Cole just now, the ball flew for a while before he realized it was off target.

“It’s a little windy on this course.”

Arneka muttered something under his breath and kicked the grass, thinking that he must not miss the target next time. He is a striker who joined the team in the winter transfer window this year. He needs to perform well on the court. This will not only make him live up to his price tag, but also allow him to lift the trophy with his teammates with peace of mind.

The game continued, and Barnsley, who were two goals behind, played more aggressively. Seeing Cole steal the ball again and shoot directly from the spot, the Barnsley defender closest to Cole hurriedly caught up with Cole and grabbed Cole's jersey.

"Beep!" The referee gave a yellow card warning.

In the 57th minute, John Terry headed the ball to Alneka, who adjusted the angle and shot directly, but was blocked in time by defender Hassell.

In the 60th and 63rd minutes, Alneka and Cole made two more coordinated attacks, but they failed to break through Barnsley's goal.

In the 66th minute, Barnsley broke through Chelsea's defense and successfully launched an attack. Midfielder Devani made a cross from the right, and striker Odegayi, who had broken through to 6 yards away from the goal, jumped high and headed the ball to the upper left corner.

There was a reason why Odegayi swung the ball like that, Endrit was on the right side at the moment, and he scored with a header. Endrit should not have been able to... Before he could finish his thoughts, Endrit had already rushed to the left side of the goal, jumped high, stretched out his hand and slapped the football hard, and the football hit the grass directly.

The moment his hand slapped the football, Endrit shouted Ashley: AS. At first, Endrit called him Ashley, but this word had too many syllables, so in the end he simply abbreviated it to AS. During the days of team training, it was not clear how much Chelsea's teammates had improved, but they all had a new name, which was irrefutable and you had to remember the new name firmly.

This time, after receiving the ball, Ashley did not pass it to Lampard immediately, but passed the ball to his defender teammate Carvalho in the middle. After receiving the ball, Carvalho moved directly to the left side, and Ballack went forward directly.

As soon as there was movement here, the Barnsley players immediately moved in the direction where Ballack was running: This is too obvious, the greedy German, not satisfied with scoring one goal, wants to score another one to make it a brace?

Carvalho tried his best to chase Ballack's footsteps. When Ballack shook off Barnsley's defender for a second, Carvalho stopped suddenly and pretended to pass the ball. Barnsley player Devaney looked in all directions and rushed directly towards Ballack: he had made up his mind that if he failed to stop Ballack with his own skills, he would just take action, even if he would get a yellow card.

But this game is not a league, it’s the FA Cup! If they win, they advance, so it's a win even if they get a yellow card. If they lose, even if they get a yellow card, it won’t affect their league - in short, it’s not a loss at all!

Devani rushed towards Ballack. He wanted to snatch the football from Ballack's feet. He wanted to - where was the ball?

The football flew straight over Devany's head. Lampard, who did not move immediately when Chelsea launched the attack, now ran desperately. He jumped up when the football was about to fly out of the baseline, stopped the ball with his chest, and immediately took it off, raised his foot and shot.

"GOALLLL!!! The ball goes in! Chelsea leads 3:0, Barnsley has no chance at all! Every shot they make ends meet becomes a goal for Chelsea!"

"Yes, Chelsea's counterattack was so neat and tidy! Barnsley were already three goals behind, would they dare to attack again? If they attacked, would it give Chelsea another chance to score?" Clarence couldn't help laughing when he said this, "In that case, I'm looking forward to Barnsley attacking again, so that Chelsea can score another goal."

"Chelsea must have practiced this kind of counterattack. Chelsea also scored a goal in the match against West Ham United."

"Okay, the game continues. The ball is in the hands of the Barnsley players again. What choice will they make next? Continue to attack or..."

When the commentator began to explain the game, Capello, who was sitting in front of the TV, was still thinking about the moment when Lampard scored - before Lampard received the ball and shot, he also thought that it would be Ballack who received the ball and shot. After all, Ballack had already shaken off the defense of the Barnsley players and temporarily ran out of the open space.

The goal could have been scored as long as Ballack volleyed the ball or shot immediately after receiving the ball.

But Ballack didn't do that, and there wasn't even a hint of reluctance on his face: when the football flew directly over Ballack's head, the broadcast camera hadn't moved away, and Ballack smiled at the Barnsley players who were rushing to defend him.

What does this prove? It proves that Ballack already knew that his teammates would play like this. This was not a spontaneous cooperation, but a premeditated counterattack.

No, maybe this can't be called a counterattack.

Capello came back to his senses and looked at the TV. Noticing that the Barnsley players had retreated to the half court, he stood up and walked towards the study, ready to find the match between Chelsea and West Ham United and watch it again.

Capello watched the game from the beginning, not missing any details, and finally pressed the timeout in the 31st minute after the game started: this was Ballack's goal, and before Ballack received the ball and shot, Lampard, Cole and others were helping to cover, instead of actively fighting for space and waiting for teammates to pass the ball before attacking.

Capello thought of Chelsea's three goals in today's game again, rubbed his face hard with his hands, and the ideas in his mind gradually took shape.

Capello: Your idea is good, but it's mine now (hehehe)

When Capello came out of the study, the FA Cup quarter-finals had ended and Chelsea successfully advanced with a 4:0 victory.

Early the next morning, Capello asked his assistant to contact Chelsea and ask them when they could allow Chelsea national team players to come to St. George's Park for training. Players from other teams have participated in at least one training camp, but you Chelsea have never been here once so far!

After receiving the letter from his assistant, Mourinho personally called Capello and said, "It's not that I don't want them to go, but our recent Chelsea games are very important and our whole team is preparing for the Champions League..."

"Champions League? The next Champions League game will be scheduled for April, right?" Capello expressed his dissatisfaction, "No, this weekend, your players must come to participate in the national team training camp."

"It takes less than a month to prepare for the Champions League. Isn't that normal? Wasn't it the same when you coached Real Madrid? Oh, sorry, I forgot. You didn't need to prepare. All the stars in Real Madrid sat on the bench. No matter how good Beckham was, you kept him on the bench, didn't you?"

Mourinho paused here, and frowned when he didn't hear Capello's voice. "I'm not like you. I have too few players to use."

"really."

Mourinho hissed and held the phone away. "What did you say?"

"I said that you Chelsea do have very few players to use, but you have had a good record recently and the new tactics are very effective."

Capello's true intentions were exposed, and Mourinho pouted and hung up the phone.

When the national team coach calls the players for training, the players can indeed refuse, but if the coach calls them a few more times, the players will definitely go. If Capello really wanted Chelsea players to attend the training camp, he could have called Lampard a few more times and driven a few people over - then the fact that they didn't go before was because after the first rejection of the team training, Capello never said anything again?

As soon as Mourinho heard his assistant say that, he knew that this guy had no good intentions. He was a little curious, so he called him and deliberately said some unpleasant things. The guy didn't react at all - it turned out that he was targeting their Chelsea tactics!

Less than a minute later, Capello called again. Mourinho quickly said into the phone that he would let them go to the national team training this weekend and then hung up again.

When they went home together in the afternoon, Mourinho specifically told Endrit about this matter.

"Just tell him the truth if he asks."

"Ah?" Endrit was a little confused. "Just say it directly. Is this okay? Isn't this our Chelsea's secret weapon..."

Mourinho was amused. "Ritter, what are you thinking? Do you think that even if we announce this tactic, teams with the same problem as Chelsea will follow us? They won't."

"Why not? As long as they want to win the game, they will definitely learn it."

Mourinho reached out and touched Endrit's head. "Do other teams have you as a goalkeeper? No. This tactic works like this because of you. Without you, without a goalkeeper who can guarantee a zero-point game, why would your teammates bow their heads? Since bowing your heads doesn't necessarily mean you can win, why do you bow your heads?"

Endrit put his hands over his eyes, "Yeah, I didn't expect myself at all just now."

"Um?"

“I didn’t expect that I was already so important.”

"No," Mourinho corrected Endrit, "very important!"

…

At the weekend, as soon as Endrit arrived at St. George's Park, he was called aside by coach Capello for a talk.

This was the first time the two had communicated face to face. Previously they had expressed respect to each other through the media.

"Your new Chelsea attack started with you," Capello did not ask any questions, but gave his conclusion as soon as they met, "right?"

Endrit nodded.

"Then you," Capello paused, feeling a little embarrassed, but after thinking it over, he said, "Can you continue to play like this in the national team?"

Endrit pursed his lips, a little embarrassed: "Sir, I am happy to help you, but this is not Chelsea. I don't have much time to train with my teammates in the national team, and they will not trust me as unconditionally as our teammates in Chelsea."

"Counterattacks are a matter of a split second. To be effective, they must do whatever I tell them to do immediately without any hesitation." Endrit shrugged, "But coach, I'm just a newcomer to the national team."

"That's easy," Capello decided instantly, "You can be the captain."

Endrit: ? ? ? ?

etc! That's not what I meant just now!

"No, Coach, that's not what I meant. I don't want to..."

"No one is more suitable to be the captain than you," Capello stretched out his hands and put them on Endrit's shoulders. "Train the same way you did at Chelsea, and train here the same way."

Endrit held Coach Capello's wrist and tried to step back, "No, Coach..."

"From now on, you and I will decide the roster for the competition. If anyone performs poorly in training, you can tell him that he doesn't need to play in the national team's future games."

Endrit:! ! ! !

This, this, this condition, this...how could he refuse this...

Capello is sincere and eager: the England national team he took over is a complete mess, and not only that, he has to continue to compete in the European Cup this year with this mess. The English Football Association also hinted that he had to at least reach the semi-finals, saying that with Endrit in their national team this year, even the championship is within reach, but considering the team, we only have to strive for the semi-finals in this European Cup.

Oh my god, the only one who can play at the front of the entire England national team is Endrit! Without Endrit, there would probably be no England team in this year's European Championship, so he could relax a bit.

But now it’s no longer possible. He must build a team that can perform well in just a few months. Without considering the injury problem, the England national team's forward lineup is barely acceptable. But considering the injury problem - there is nothing much to say, the whole team was wiped out.

The configuration of the midfield players seemed very high, but they could not work together at all. Capello stayed up late to watch the England national team's games for several days, but could not think of a way to bring Lampard and Gerrard together.

As for the defenders: John Terry did not come to participate in the training camp, Ferdinand led the other three defenders in the backcourt alone, and Capello could also dribble past opponents when he came on the court. What's even more frightening is that John Terry and Ferdinand are often injured. In most of England's games this year, players from lesser-known opposing teams have found it as easy to come home to the England penalty area as to go home.

He hadn't called Endrit since Endrit had asked for leave once before, because he was afraid that the guy would see the current situation of the national team and run away without looking back. His teammate Capello did not call again, for fear of returning to convey some bad news to Endrit.

But now! It’s different now!

"Your tactics can be very effective in our national team!" Capello patted Endrit on the shoulder to reassure him, "Our national team's defense is full of loopholes. We can have more than a dozen offensive opportunities in a game! More than a dozen offensive opportunities, and we can win the game with just one goal. Just think about it, how happy it is~"

Endrit was a little embarrassed and thought to himself, Coach, this consolation is quite heartbreaking.

"Okay, go and have a rest first. I'll announce this later when everyone is here."

Endrite nodded, took a deep breath, and walked towards the Chelsea teammates who came with him today with a very calm pace.

"Ritter?" Lampard walked over with a surprised look on his face and looked Endrit up and down. "What did Coach Capello say to you? Why are you so excited?"

"Excited?" Endrit shook his head. "I'm not."

"Not yet," Lampard said with a click of his tongue, "You just walked over here with your hands and feet together."

Endrit's handsome face instantly turned red.

"What good news is this? Tell me about it."

Lampard, Wright-Phillips, Cole and John Terry all came over, and Endritt did not hide anything and explained in a low voice.

Halfway through the conversation, the four people's eyes widened, and when Endrit finished talking about his power, the four people's mouths opened wide at the same time.

"Ahem!" Endrit coughed softly, "Stop looking at me, talk!"

Lampard was the first to come to his senses, and then patted Endritt excitedly, "Is Coach Capello such a good person?"

"Ah?" Endrit was a little confused. "How did you come to this conclusion from what I just said?"

"Think about Coach McClaren," Lampard shook his head. "According to what you said, Coach McClaren was just drawing pie in the sky for you, but Coach Capello really gives you pie in the sky!"

Endrit stood up straight with awe, "You are right, Coach Capello is very good and can get along with him."