The coaches and directors of the evaluation team took their seats on the sidelines.

They were talking to each other in whispers, and it was not difficult to tell from their eyes and gestures that their focus was on Gu Ran who was training with the team.

Gu Ran is a hero of Southampton High School, a rising star of Southampton Football Club, and the apple of the eye of old Rice - the last person who was so valued by old Rice was Gareth Bale. Therefore, the entire coaching staff of the club is looking forward to seeing Gu Ran's wonderful performance on their own field.

Speaking of which, Gareth Bale cannot be considered one of the top stars, but Bale came from Southampton Club after all, and Southampton Club is proud of Bale.

Gu Ran looked calm and continued to practice juggling on the court step by step, without showing any nervousness at all.

With the title of national champion and Gu Ran's own big heart, he was born for big scenes. Competitions like team training matches were just small scenes in comparison.

nervous?

Of course not.

But the excitement is definitely there.

Getting excited when the competition starts is the quality of a natural strong person.

Before his rebirth, Gu Ran did not have such qualities. He was so nervous that his palms were sweating during an interview. However, after his rebirth, Gu Ran underwent a tremendous change. Both physically and mentally, he now possessed the qualities of a strong man.

And this is just the beginning.

As the evaluation team took their seats, the atmosphere on the training ground became increasingly tense.

The weather today is not very good. The humidity is very high, the grass is a bit slippery, and the wind is quite strong.

Therefore, when we group and choose sides later, there must be some considerations.

Picking the left half of the field with the wind in your favor and picking the right half of the field with the wind against you will inevitably have different impacts on the players' performance.

——This is also an inevitable objective situation in outdoor stadiums.

Coach Dodd clapped his hands and called all the players who were training themselves to the midline area of ​​the court.

The players responded quickly and soon gathered into three rows.

It seems that running slower is disrespectful to the members of the evaluation team.

Gu Ran still stood low-key at the end of the line.

Yuichi Kawai wanted to squeeze to the front row, but no one gave him a chance.

Coach Dodd cleared his throat with a serious look on his face and said in a deep voice, "Next, we will have an internal training match. I think everyone should understand the importance of this internal training match even if I don't say it."

"For some of you players, the apprentice contracts of the youth team are about to expire. With your previous performance, it is basically impossible for you to be promoted to the first team. After all, you are not players like me and Alan Shearer who can be promoted directly from the youth team to the first team."

"However, you still have the opportunity to be promoted to the reserve team first."

"Each of you has the opportunity to fully demonstrate your abilities on the court, so at this critical moment, you'd better not let down your guard."

"If you fail to perform well, I'm sorry. I promise that I won't let anyone who fails to perform well appear in the friendly match with Liverpool U18 team - because even if it is a friendly match, the Saints must do their best to win!"

Coach Dodd's words made the U18 youth team players present feel full of pressure.

The match against Liverpool U18 team is also a great opportunity. If we play well, we can attract the attention of Liverpool Club and even... get a contract from Liverpool Club!

Kawai Yuichi clenched his fists and encouraged himself quietly: "Yoshi! I must make the roster! I must let Liverpool see me!"

Gu Ran: ...Stupid son.

Gu Ran has no contract pressure and has never thought about attracting Liverpool's attention.

However, this is Gu Ran's first team match after training with the U18 youth team. There are many big guys waiting on the sidelines, and Gu Ran also wants to test his training level during this period to see what extent he has reached.

Coach Dodd said sternly, "Before the groups, I have a few ugly words to say first - I know everyone wants to do their best to show themselves, but when you are competing, when you kick, be f*cking clean! Your opponents are your teammates, I don't want to see malicious fouls and violence on the court! Whoever dares to kick his own teammates, don't blame me for kicking him out of the training ground!"

"The most important thing to note is that you are not allowed to commit malicious fouls against Gu Ran!"

"Gu Ran is an important asset of the club. Whoever is so blind as to injure Gu Ran, forget about staying in this training ground or this club!"

"Did you understand everything?"

"I understand! Coach!" The players of the U18 youth team shouted in unison.

Kawai Yuichi's face was full of jealousy.

He has never been treated like this before! Faced with such special care, Gu Ran felt that it was unnecessary.

With his physique and basketball IQ, he doesn't need any special care at all - the ones who should be careful are the players who play against him.

Of course, Gu Ran couldn't refute Coach Dodd's kindness in public.

This in turn reminded Gu Ran that it was, after all, an internal training match within the team, and the scale of the confrontation should indeed be lighter, and it should not be treated as a formal match where everyone was risking their lives.

Gu Ran decided to hold back when kicking.

"Okay, now let me briefly explain the rules of the team competition."

"The game lasts a total of 60 minutes, divided into the first and second halves, each lasting 30 minutes, with a 10-minute halftime break and a change of venues after halftime."

"Team A goes to the right half first, and Team B goes to the left half first."

"Team A wears red training vests and Team B wears green training vests."

"Team A kicks off first in the first half."

"Now, let's start dividing the teams. For the sake of fairness, we will use the on-field position drawing method to divide the teams. Those who draw red lots will go to Team A, and those who draw green lots will go to Team B."

"Any other questions?"

"No more! Coach!"

"Very good, then let's draw lots to divide the teams!"

Coach Dodd waved his hand and the U18 physical coach brought a box.

The U18 players took turns groping in the box.

Everyone hopes to get a green sign and go to Team B, because Team B starts in the left half of the court and has a favorable start, which is very beneficial for establishing an advantage.

If someone touches the green lottery ticket, someone else will naturally touch the red lottery ticket.

Those who got the green lottery ticket were overjoyed, while those who got the red lottery ticket sighed.

The division proceeded quickly and in an orderly manner.

In less than 5 minutes, the players of the U18 youth team were divided into two teams, A and B, according to their respective positions.

Now, only Gu Ran and Kawai Yuichi have not been grouped.

"Yoshi..." Kawai Yuichi was about to reach out to touch the box, but Coach Dodd frowned and stopped him, "You don't have to touch it."

"Nani..." Kawai Yuichi suddenly widened his eyes in anger, "Coach! Didn't you say that everyone has a chance?"

Coach Dodd ignored Kawai Yuichi's questioning and turned to Gu Ran and said kindly: "Gu, you don't have to touch it, because you are training with the team. I have no right to decide your position on the court. So, you just need to flip a coin with Kawai Yuichi to decide who will go to Team A and who will go to Team B."

Gu Ran nodded, "Okay."

"I see!" Kawai Yuichi suddenly became excited, "Yoshi! Gu, we can finally face off! I will definitely beat you this time! Gu Ran, you coward! If you don't dare to fight me in the ring, then I will defeat you with a competition!"

Gu Ran smiled contemptuously.

This cheap son will have to be beaten sooner or later. He will only behave himself if he is beaten severely.

Coach Dodd pulled out a coin and said, "Come on, heads or tails?"

Kawai Yuichi said first: "I want the front view!"

Gu Ran said calmly: "I want the front."

Coach Dodd said, "Okay, Gu Ran, the front is yours."

Kawai Yuichi: …

Coach Dodd tossed the coin into the air and caught it expertly with the back of his hand.

"The back is facing up, so... Gu Ran, you choose it."

Kawai Yuichi's face was full of question marks, "Wait! Coach! Didn't you just say that Gu Ran is the positive side and I am the negative side?"

Coach Dodd put away the coin and stared coldly at Kawai Yuichi, "Are you questioning me?"

The muscles on Kawai Yuichi's face twitched slightly and he didn't dare to say anything more.

Coach Dodd immediately said to Gu Ran with a smile on his face, "Gu, you are really magnanimous - OK, let him choose first. Anyway, I believe that with your ability, no matter which team you are on, you will be able to perform well."

Gu Ran couldn't help but laugh secretly: Coach Dodd's speed of changing his expression is really unique.

Yuichi Kawai took a deep breath and quickly looked at the grouping situation of teams A and B.

Team B has the advantage of going first and having the wind down.

Moreover, the overall strength of Team B is obviously much higher than that of Team A.

Usually, most of the main players of the U18 youth team who perform well in training are in the B team.

Team A is basically composed of substitute players from the U18 youth team.

Coach Dodd had a disgusted look on his face, as if to say, “I think you look like a B.” “…Okay.”

The players of Team A, who were originally sighing, immediately cheered excitedly!

The players of Team B, who originally thought they had drawn a favorable draw, frowned.

Team B already has two forwards, and both are considered to be the main force. If they add another forward, they will have to play with three forwards? Playing with three forwards is not a big problem. The key is, who the hell wants Kawai Yuichi! During the trial period, Kawai Yuichi was arrogant and caused trouble. He almost offended all the players of the U18 youth team! It doesn’t matter if they have offended them. We are all professionals and we will play in a professional way on the field. But the problem is... Kawai Yuichi is not very good on the field!

In comparison, although Gu Ran argued with the U18 youth team about the restaurant incident on the first day of training, no one in the U18 youth team was dissatisfied with Gu Ran. The more they trained together, the more in awe the players had of Gu Ran.

What is there to be awed about Kawai Yuichi? Kawai Yuichi is very independent when he plays on the field. He usually shoots the ball himself after getting it. Even if other teammates are in a better position, Kawai Yuichi rarely passes the ball.

Yuichi Kawai is simply the cancer of the team!

The players of Team B were quite happy because they drew the first and favorable draw. But now they realized that they were too happy too early.

Not only are they implicated by Kawai Yuichi, the cancer of the team, but even more troublesome is that they have to face Gu Ran, a cold-blooded and ruthless super opponent.

How the hell do you kick this?

The team training match hasn't even started yet, but Team B's morale has already dropped significantly!

Coach Dodd then announced, "Okay, the division is over. You have the last five minutes to prepare and discuss formations and tactics. In five minutes, the game will officially begin."

"yes!"

The players of Team A excitedly surrounded Gu Ran and said in unison: "Gu! I'm so glad to be playing on the same team with you!"

"Haha, I thought I had a bad lottery, but I didn't expect to get the Zhang Wang bomb in the end!"

"Gu! With you here, we're sure to win! We can turn a disadvantage into an advantage, and an advantage into a massacre!"

"Gu! Whether we brothers can get high scores and reserve team contracts depends entirely on you!"

"Gu, my life depends entirely on you!"

Holy shit…

I know you guys want to curry favor with me, but I'm not used to your fawning ways. I still like your unruly ways in the restaurant...

Gu Ran suddenly felt like he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Football is not a one-person sport. Let's all work together. Shall we discuss the formation and tactics first?"

"Okay, okay, Gu, as long as you lead the brothers to play, you can say anything!"

"Gu, we only have one striker here, why don't you play as a striker?"

"Yes, Gu, you are the top scorer in the national competition! You even said in the Advance Saints that you want to be the top scorer in English Football League One. If you dare to say that, then there will be no problem for you to play as a striker. With you here, what other tactics do we need? Just use a 442 formation."

"That's right! 442 will push them away!"

...Stop it! When Gu Ran mentioned the "Forward Saints", he wanted to cover his face with his hands.

Gu Ran quickly checked the personnel configuration of Team A, and then said:

"When I was in the Bucks Steel Horns, I played as a left back. I am more familiar with this position. Why don't I play as a left back? It doesn't matter if there is only one striker. We will play in a 4321 Christmas tree formation, with 4 defenders, 3 midfielders, and 2 wingers. The left forward, please pay attention to switching positions with me at any time. Add an isolated striker and try to get behind the opponent and play fast forward and counterattack."

"4321 Christmas tree?"

"We haven't practiced much."

"But that's no problem! If you say Christmas tree, we'll kick the Christmas tree!"

"Fuck from behind, that's my favorite!"

"Gu, I'm a striker, remember to pass the ball to me more often so that I can score a goal and improve my evaluation!"

"Gu, I'm a midfielder. My link-up skills are a little poor. I'm relying on you to run and support me!"

"Gu, I'm a center back. I'm a little slow, so please bear with me on the defense line."

"Gu, I'm the goalkeeper, and my saves are a little bit bad..."

Damn! You guys are not hugging my thighs, you guys are trying to hug my big cock!

I'm just a full-back!

I can defend those you can’t defend, I can pass those you can’t pass, I can pass the ball you can’t pass, I can shoot the ball you can’t shoot…

But you still let me help save the ball???

Can I handball on the court? Can I be used as Suarez?

Gu Ran said with a smile: "Everyone, come on, come on..."

After discussing some tactical details, Gu Ran put on his red training vest.

The players of Team A formed a circle, high-fived each other to cheer each other on, and then ran into the field with confidence.

At this time, the players of Team B also took their positions in a 433 formation, but their positions were full of contradictions - there was an attacking midfielder of decent level in Team B, and the formation of three forwards directly suppressed his forward space.

After the two teams took their positions, the U18 assistant coach acted as the referee, and the U18 physical coach and U18 technical coach acted as linesmen respectively.

Beep! With the whistle of the U18 assistant coach, the team training match officially began.

First, Team A, wearing red training uniforms, kicked off.

The two sides engaged in a fierce but restrained fight near the midfield.

In the first few minutes of the game, both sides played in a disorganized manner, with frequent mistakes and goal losses. Both sides were not familiar with the 4321 Christmas tree formation or the 433 attack formation.

However, a professional team is a professional team after all. Five minutes after the start, both sides quickly got into the game.

The offensive and defensive rhythms of both sides changed very quickly.

Team B has many main players with good coordination, plus the advantage of a favorable wind. Their main idea is to control the ball through midfield, pass the ball, and create opportunities through the forwards' positioning and confrontation.

Team A, where Gu Ran was, had relatively weak overall strength. Most of the players were substitutes from the youth team and were also affected by the headwind, so they started off rather passively.

Gu Ran kept the defense line stable on the left wing and did not have any good opportunities to get the ball for a while.

In the first few minutes of the game, Team A was suppressed by Team B and the players were a little anxious.

The two midfielders of Team A combined to double-team the opposing center, which created a large hole in the defense.

However, the center of Team B was too eager to show off his breakthrough ability and did not pass the ball when he should have.

——For this mistake, the midfielders of Team A will be deducted points, and the center forward of Team B will also be deducted points.

The center back of Team A immediately stepped in and used a triangle defense to steal the ball from the center of Team B.

The moment Team A's center back successfully stole the ball, Gu Ran instantly launched himself, sprinting along the left side at high speed while raising his hand to ask for the ball.

The central defender naturally understood and passed the ball directly to his own left side.

However, another midfielder from Team B had already predicted that the players from Team A wanted to get close to Gu Ran, so he rushed to the passing route to intercept.

He is a professional player after all! The anticipation and interception of this ball was very beautiful!

Team B's successful interception was simply fatal to Team A!

The ball was intercepted near the 30-meter rib area, and what was even more fatal was that Gu Ran, the left-back, had almost run to the 40-meter area because of the synchronous start when his center back intercepted the ball just now! ... Gu Ran was out of position!

A large space appeared behind Gu Ran!

However, the other central defender of Team A did not help Gu Ran to fill the position immediately!

After all, they are not close teammates. Even if they are professional players, it is difficult to achieve tacit cooperation with a makeshift team.

Now, Team A is facing a grim situation! Gu Ran saw the pass was intercepted, and immediately stopped, turned back to defend and chase the ball! The main midfielder of Team B did not dribble forward too much, but kicked the ball to the left side of the ribs before the other defensive players of Team A rushed up to form a triangle double team.

This pass was very clever and he should definitely be given extra evaluation points.

But after kicking the ball, the main midfielder of Team B regretted it...

The person closest to the gap on the left rib is Yuichi Kawai, who is not having a very good life!

Kawai Yuichi shouted "Yoshi" while sprinting to chase the ball! Just by the sound of him shouting "Yoshi", you can feel his arrogance and arrogance! Not to mention the players of Team B want to beat him, even the teammates of Team A want to beat him.

Yuichi Kawai said "Yoshi" and quickly turned sideways to observe the positions of other defenders and goalkeeper of Team A.

Yuichi Kawai's intention was very clear. After getting the ball, he immediately cut in from the ribs and then shot directly like a tiger!

Team A's defense line quickly shrank to fill the position at the edge of the penalty area.

Although Team A is much weaker than Team B, everyone is a professional after all, and there are so many big guys watching on the sidelines, so no one dares to let down.

Just when Kawai Yuichi was about to touch the ball, an oppressive figure approached rapidly from behind him!

Hey, my son! Dad is here!

…

(End of this chapter)