After the first half of the season, Jardim has developed a deeper understanding of the team's tactics.
He immediately had a one-on-one talk with the team's midfielders and forwards, telling them that defense would be the most important part of the team this season, so no matter what position you are in, you must run and defend, even if you are just trying to interfere with the opponent, that is also defense.
He must instill defensive awareness in every player.
In subsequent training sessions, he even incorporated defensive drills into the daily training of the attacking players, including not only the forwards but also the goalkeepers.
In order to withstand the grueling second half of the season, the team must improve its defense. Therefore, the new players he recruited this time are mostly defensively-minded.
In the last few games of the first half of the season, the team managed to keep several clean sheets under such difficult circumstances, which gave him a bolder idea: to take defense to the extreme.
His abundant offensive capabilities give him confidence that he can perfectly implement this tactic with the players.
Block defense, running chain defense, and fast defensive counter-attack tactics—all of these must be practiced.
So in the following period, the players found that the coach's demands became more stringent. If they wanted to continue playing in the same comfortable way as before, they had to face the coach's roars and even risk being placed on the substitute team.
During training, Jardim made it clear to them that if they wanted to be in the starting lineup, there was only one condition: defense.
If you don't improve your defensive skills, you'll only end up on the bench.
This was tough on Mbappe, as he found that his training volume was greater than everyone else's. He was not only being strictly required to perform defensively by the coaches, but he was also facing various assessments on the offensive end.
Faced with the demands of the demanding coaches, Mbappe could only grit his teeth and meekly accept them.
Just as Lei Ming often told him, "If you want to wear the crown, you must bear the weight," the current grueling training is all for the future when everyone on the field will call him Emperor Emu.
He is destined to become the third man of the Romer era.
Training is tedious, and time flies. With the major transfer news from European clubs coming to an end, Monaco is also welcoming its first game after the holiday.
This was a friendly match against Ligue 2 team Nîmes, and surprisingly, Lei Ming was not included in the starting lineup, or even in the 18-man squad.
He didn't even leave Monaco. Before the match, the head coach had a private talk with him and clearly told him his plan: he would not play in the two warm-up matches, but should maintain his form, and he would start in the match against Marseille in a few days.
The goalkeeper who took the field was Subasic, who had just recovered from injury, and the third goalkeeper also traveled with the team as a substitute.
Subasic took his first game back very seriously. Even though it was just a warm-up match, a game for the coaches to practice, he treated it like a Champions League final and tried his best to prevent the opponent from having any chance to score.
The final score was 0:5, and Nim was thoroughly thrashed.
The opposing team was very unhappy with this result. From the players to the head coach, no one gave Jardim a friendly look. Where did the friendly exchanges promised before the match go? What does it mean to not even give us a goal!
Yaldin could only manage an awkward laugh at this.
He did allow the defense to play a little easier, but he really forgot about Subasic.
The opponent has just returned from injury and is eager to prove himself, which is understandable. It's just a pity that he doesn't know how to express himself to the entire Nîmes team.
The following day, in the second friendly match against Lens, Jardim learned from his experience and directly fielded third-choice goalkeeper De Sanctis. De Sanctis did not disappoint either team, directly causing Monaco's first defeat in the second half of the season.
The 3-2 scoreline, however, brought smiles to both teams' coaches.
This left De Sanctis feeling utterly disheartened. Just by looking at his coach's reaction, he knew that his starting position next season was likely a long way off.
That's clearly a smile that hides a knife!
Even a smile couldn't hide the murderous glint in his eyes.
Everyone was happy, but Subasic, who traveled with the team, was very unhappy. No matter how much he suggested it, the coach wouldn't let him play, which frustrated him.
I feel like I'm not being valued.
He hopes to prove himself through this match and make it into the starting lineup for the league three days later. Their first opponent in the second half of the season is Marseille, who are sixth in the league. Although the opponent is strong, this is the best stage for him.
After all, you can't show your strength if you're not strong.
However, the coaches didn't seem inclined to let him perform.
With one win and one loss, the result was not ideal, but the coaching staff saw what they wanted in the process.
The defensive awareness that has been forcibly instilled in the players' minds over the past ten days or so has gradually taken shape. I believe that as long as they train for a while longer, the team's defensive awareness will definitely get better and better.
During the two days of the team's warm-up matches, Lei Ming was not idle either. He and Mbappe, who also did not participate in the competition, continued to sweat it out on the training field.
Everyone is giving their all in preparation for the crucial second half of the season.
...
"Dear viewers, I'm sure you all feel the same way I do: on days without matches, even the strongest liquor tastes utterly bland. Those twenty-odd days of rest felt like an eternity. But thankfully, those difficult days are finally over. Now, let's welcome our players back onto the field..."
Marseille fielded a 4-3-3 formation in this match:
Goalkeeper: Perez
Defenders: Hiroki Sakai, Van Nistelrooy, Rolando, Rekik
Midfielders: Lopez, Weinkel, Zamaba
Forwards: Thauvin, Gomis, Cabella.
It's clear that this lineup is somewhat targeted at Monaco. It seems that before the match, Marseille's Tudor had learned from his previous experience, placing a large center forward as a focal point in their attack.
Monaco's lineup is as expected, still using a 4-4-2 formation:
Goalkeeper: Lei Ming
Defenders: Toure, Glik, Sidibé, Gemerson
Midfielders: Bernardo Silva, Fabinho, Bakayoko, Lemar
Forwards: Falcao, Gilman.
In this round of matches, Jardim clearly wasn't trying to give his players any playing time. None of the newly signed players played, not even young Mbappe. It's obvious that Monaco wanted to take Marseille seriously, hoping to get off to a winning start in the new season.
The commentator for the Ligue 1 match was shouting passionately in the studio, and that passion deeply resonated with the viewers who couldn't attend the game.
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