Leeds is destined to be anything but peaceful today!
When Li Shiguang led the team in training in the morning, the training field was already crowded with media and fans.
Some extreme fans even wandered outside the training ground holding signs that read "Lee Shi Guang get out of Leeds".
Li Shiguang understood the fans' reaction. After all, he had no experience leading a team in matches before, and it was normal for the fans to distrust him before tonight's match even started.
As for the media, the fact that Li Shiguang didn't rush out and yell at them shows that he was already emotionally stable.
It is said that women are the most fickle people in the world.
However, the overwhelming news in Leeds these past few days has made Li Shiguang deny this statement from the bottom of his heart. In his mind, it's not women, but the media!
This came right after Li Shiguang announced at a press conference that he would also serve as the head coach of Leeds United.
The media outlets that were praising Leeds United and Lee Shih-shih just a few days ago have immediately changed their tune and started to denigrate Lee Shih-shih and Leeds United in various ways. Some of the news headlines are so outrageous that Lee Shih-shih is even considering sending a lawyer's letter.
Guided by these media outlets, some neutral fans who had been waiting to criticize him after Sunday's match changed their minds and went to Leeds United's official website to leave comments criticizing him for being an amateur directing professionals.
Fortunately, Li Shiguang had been busy with club affairs and training these past few days and hadn't had time to pay attention to these messy news. Only occasionally would his assistant Allen mention a few things to him, and Li Shiguang would just smile indifferently when he heard it.
At 11:30, the morning training session ended on time.
The team members gradually returned to the locker room.
A short while later, Li Shiguang walked in carrying his blue board.
As soon as he walked in, the slightly noisy locker room fell silent. The players all knew that Li Shiguang was coming to announce today's starting lineup.
Li Shiguang came in, pulled the whiteboard from the corner to the middle of the locker room, drew 11 circles on it, and then looked at the young men in front of him.
He smiled and then said, "This is our formation for tonight, 4-2-3-1. We've been practicing it for a few days now, guys. Tonight I'm going to test your skills!"
Before Li Shiguang came in, Sneijder and Viduka were speculating about what tactics the coach would arrange tonight.
Because in the past few days, under Li Shiguang's arrangement, they have indeed tried several formations.
According to Viduka, it's more likely that Lee Shiguang will stick with the previous formation, since he used the same lineup for the first half of the season and the results were excellent.
But Sneijder didn't think so. He felt that Li Shiguang was not a conservative coach, and that in their tactical training sessions these past few days, Li Shiguang had not arranged for them to practice counter-attacking at all, but had been emphasizing that they should run.
Of course, there's also the most important reason: he wants to play football!
Yesterday, Li Shiguang clearly told him that under the 4-2-3-1 system, he would become the core of this Leeds United team, and he would control the rhythm of the entire team, with the attack starting from his feet.
So when Sneijder saw Li Shiguang draw a 4-2-3-1 formation on the whiteboard, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Li Shiguang then announced the starting lineup that had been finalized the day before, waved to indicate that everyone could leave, and then left the locker room.
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At 7 o'clock, Bates was sitting on his sofa after dinner, enjoying the wonderful taste of the cigar in his mouth.
Across from him, the television was showing footage of Elland Road Stadium.
The Leeds United vs. Wolves match is about to start in half an hour.
In the current scene, Li Shiguang is directing the players in their pre-match warm-up.
Bates was in a terrible mood today. West Bromwich Albion's official website was bombarded by angry fans from the morning, and the club's entrance was surrounded by fans demanding his resignation. When he left work in the afternoon, Bates didn't even dare to leave through the main entrance.
So as soon as he finished eating, he couldn't wait to sit in front of the TV, wanting to see Li Shiguang's disheveled state today.
In his mind, Leeds United had no chance of winning today.
Not only does Li Shiguang himself serve as head coach, but a large portion of today's starting lineup consists of players who didn't even play a single game in the first half of the season.
With this kind of skill, how do you think you can win?
Thinking that Li Shiguang might suffer even more insults than he would tomorrow, his previously depressed mood eased a little.
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Meanwhile, in the locker room.
Li Shiguang is giving his final speech before the competition.
He is very angry now.
Because at the pre-match press conference, none of the media outlets believed that Leeds United could win today.
One reporter even asked him directly, "How many losses would constitute a success today?"
Li Shiguang was so angry that he told Allen to remember this reporter and not allow him to attend any Leeds United press conferences in the future.
While he was leading the players in warm-up, some extreme fans in the stands were hurling insults at him without restraint.
Even the die-hard Leeds United fans in the South Stand looked at him with distrust.
So he's holding back a lot of anger, and he needs to vent it out. The best way to do that is to see his players beat today's opponents on the field, and it would be even better if they scored a few more goals.
Li Shiguang clapped his hands, then pressed them down to signal the players to be quiet.
Everyone was sitting and looking at him.
Li Shiguang took a deep breath and slowly began to speak: "Guys, since the day I took over this team as head coach, no one has had faith in me, and no one has had faith in us either. Just like at the beginning of this season, no one believed that Leeds United could win the mid-season championship. But everyone knows very well how arduous our training has been this week, and through that training, we have gained many advantages that our opponents do not possess. With our unique tactics and our own strong strength, we can completely crush any opponent!"
He paused slightly, his gaze sweeping across the faces of everyone in the locker room. Sensing their growing excitement, Li Shiguang took a deep breath, then abruptly raised his voice, shouting with passion and power:
"Therefore, in the crucial next 90 minutes of the game, I hope and I ask you to do your best to accomplish one thing—completely crush our opponents today! Prove to those unscrupulous media outlets that have been mocking and pessimistic about us, and let the fans in the stands and those watching on TV who don't have faith in us clearly see just how strong our team really is!"
"Go, take what I have taught you, and starting today, break through the Championship!"
After saying that, Li Shiguang didn't linger and turned to leave the locker room.
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