Chapter 1060: A Gamble

"Southampton also fought hard in this game!"

In the visiting team's coaching booth at the Glory Stadium, Real Madrid assistant coach David Bertoni said with a wry smile.

He and Zidane were close friends when they were young. As early as when Zidane was just starting out and playing for Cannes, they were very good friends and comrades on the court.

This kind of friendship that starts from humble beginnings is undoubtedly more precious.

So, later on, even though Bertoni's career was very mediocre, Zidane became famous and became one of the world's top superstars, but the friendship between the two of them always remained very close.

When Zidane accepted Florentino's invitation and returned to Real Madrid, he wanted to find an assistant for himself. The first person he thought of was David Bertoni. Even though the latter did not have a coaching certificate, he still brought him to the Bernabeu.

From the youth team to the first team, Bettoni has always been Zidane's most trusted right-hand man.

This is also why, although he does not have the title of assistant coach in Real Madrid, he is actually performing the duties of an assistant coach.

Zidane listened to his friend's words and nodded slightly, "Ancelotti is very familiar with us."

This is indeed a very troublesome thing.

As the former coach of Real Madrid, there were not many changes in the lineup between the Real Madrid during Ancelotti's time and the current Real Madrid. He just replaced Benzema with Lewandowski, left Cristiano Ronaldo, and strongly supported Gareth Bale.

But overall, the changes in Real Madrid are not obvious.

This put Zidane in a very passive dilemma, as his every move seemed to be known by the opponent.

He tried to ask for change, but where could he change to?

The superstar lineup that Real Madrid has brought in the past few years is strictly speaking a double-edged sword.

If the team wants to bring out the best in superstars like Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo, it has to develop a tactical style of play that can bring out their strengths.

But for these impact-type players, the tactical flexibility is too small. They need space to bring out their characteristics, which makes Real Madrid's entire tactics lack variety and too monotonous.

When everyone in the team, from front to back, plays around a few superstars in the frontcourt, it severely limits the players' thinking on the field. The reason is simple: just pass the ball to the superstars in the frontcourt and the job is done.

What? Free play?

Nimei, isn’t that stealing the show from the superstars in the front court?

Why do many supporting actors who give outstanding performances ultimately fail to win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor?

Because you stole the show!

The same is true in a team. The supporting role should be able to set off the protagonist, be a supporting role, and not steal the show.

To put it simply, even though you can shoot the ball yourself and be more confident, you still have to pass it to me.

Why?

Because you are a supporting role!

With such a division of labor, the Real Madrid players' ideas of playing football will definitely be restricted and they will not be able to play freely.

As a professional player receiving a salary from Real Madrid, the player's thinking is very simple: since your team has decided to do this, then I will just do my duty and play the way you arrange it.

This results in Real Madrid players lacking creativity in their play and the team lacking vitality.

On the other hand, Southampton does not have to rely on any one player. The front three are all superstars, but they also have to invest in counter-attacks and defense. Di Maria and Pogba in the midfield, and even Toni Kroos, can also actively participate in the offense and play to their own characteristics and advantages.

The three lines of the entire Southampton team remain compact and cooperate in an orderly manner, but at the same time there is no clear division of labor and cooperation. Whoever seizes the opportunity will go on the field. Such a team and such tactics are very dynamic.

And Ancelotti is too familiar with Real Madrid.

The Italians' tactics in this game were very clear. They pressed forward from the start, pressing high and oppressing in a very targeted and purposeful manner.

That is to pinch Modric!

It should be said that as a midfield star introduced by Real Madrid with a large sum of money, Modric is the only player in Real Madrid's midfield who has creativity and the ability to organize the midfield.

Ancelotti focused on Modric, and his intention was very clear.

I will disrupt your midfield. No matter how many stars you have in the frontcourt, they are just decorations.

Zidane naturally saw this as well, so he frowned.

"Do you want to make some adjustments and bring James Rodriguez here?" asked Betoni.

James Rodriguez can play on the wing or in the midfield. If he retreats, he can share Modric's defensive pressure to a certain extent and control the midfield.

"Ancelotti is eager for us to do this." Zidane also has his own concerns.

"Why?" Betony didn't understand.

Zidane smiled coldly, "With the arrival of James Rodriguez, our route from midfield to front court is cut off, and we can only make long passes to find Lewandowski and Gareth Bale."

When he said this, Betony immediately understood.

With James and Rodriguez coming, Ancelotti will definitely have a way to restrain him.

It should even be said that he had prepared a routine long ago, and it was no problem for him to pinch Modric and James Rodriguez at the same time, forcing Real Madrid's midfield to find it difficult to pass the ball. Even if he managed to pass the ball, how would it get to the frontcourt?

We can only rely on long passes.

But everyone knows that long passes and crosses from the wing are not very effective when facing such a rigorous defensive system.

"This old fox!" Betony snorted twice, but felt helpless.

He is a qualified supporting actor, but he doesn't have much in-depth knowledge of football.

So, even if he knew what the problem was, he had no choice but to look at Zidane beside him.

The Real Madrid coach frowned, his eyes fixed on the field. Southampton's players fought hard and fiercely, setting the tempo from the very beginning. Real Madrid was simply unable to cope with it.

In this situation, Southampton had an overwhelming advantage.

But Real Madrid is not completely without opportunities. The Saints' defense is very high. As long as they can pass the ball and create opportunities for counterattacks on the wing, with the abilities of Gareth Bale and Lewandowski, they can create threats.

Zidane knew very well that this was a gamble.

The bet was right, Real Madrid scored a goal and the game became easier.

If the bet was lost and the Saints scored first, Real Madrid would probably be finished in this game.

Given that Real Madrid has always been impatient and easily impatient, if they lose the ball first away from home, then this game, or even both games, may be ruined.

But sometimes, a head coach just has to have this kind of gambling nature!

Zidane gritted his teeth. He was going to take a gamble on this card!

"He will definitely bet!"

Ancelotti sat in the home team's coaching booth, looked at Zidane in the visiting team's coaching booth and said with a smile.

His tone was so firm that it was hard not to believe it.

"Why?" Fat An asked with concern.

He doesn't understand. They are clearly being suppressed by Southampton and the situation is so dangerous, but Zidane doesn't retreat?

"I know him, I know his character. If he takes a gamble now, he may not have no chance. But if he doesn't take this gamble, he may not even have a chance."

When Ancelotti said this, he laughed, and he looked like coach Rianzai in Slam Dunk.

"Zidane is under too much pressure, but Real Madrid's overall strength has not met the expectations of the management and fans, so he is in a difficult situation. He is eager to prove himself and has to produce some results. Defeating Southampton will undoubtedly establish his position in one battle, so he will definitely take the gamble!"

After hearing this, Xiao Anpang suddenly realized.

"Let me tell you, if the victory or defeat of a football match is determined by overall strength, then targeted tactics are determined by people's hearts. As long as you grasp the opponent's mind, you will be invincible!"

When Ancelotti said this, there was a cold flash in his eyes.

This is really rare for the usually gentle Fatty An.

It's obvious that he wants to prove himself and wants to prove himself at Real Madrid.

As the game just started, Southampton pressed forward and Real Madrid was very passive on the field.

But at this critical juncture, Zidane, as the head coach, did not make any adjustments or changes. Even when he walked to the sidelines, he only called on the players to press forward more and pass the ball forward more often.

Southampton's high-pressure defense gave Real Madrid an overwhelming advantage. The Galacticos had to go into defense from the beginning because they found that the opponent's defense and pressure were not just fierce, but extremely fierce.

The Saints' ruthlessness is reflected in their investment and targeting.

That is the key point of Modric.

As soon as the Croatians got the ball, there would definitely be Southampton players around them. If they hesitated for a moment, even if they stopped the ball a little too long, or waited for their teammates to receive the ball, they would be immediately approached or even intercepted.

This caused huge trouble for Modric.

He tried to break free, but as soon as he slowed down in passing the ball, the Southampton players around him immediately double-teamed him, making it difficult for him to find a direction or opportunity to pass the ball.

Through such high-intensity pressing and oppression, Real Madrid's entire offense was put into a dilemma.

Once all players receive the ball, the priority is no longer how to pass it forward, but how to ensure that the ball is not lost.

As for passing the ball, it still relies more on long passes.

But how much threat can such a blind long pass create?

The answer is, almost zero!

On the other hand, when Southampton had the ball and attacked, both Di Maria and Pogba actively pressed forward and moved to the wings, creating a numerical advantage on both sides, while also creating opportunities for Messi, Hazard and Suarez to directly face the Real Madrid central defenders.

To put it simply, Di Maria and Pogba are like two baits, luring Casemiro and Modric away from the middle, and then allowing teammates such as Messi, Hazard and Suarez to move to the middle to create threats.

Judging from the course of the game, Southampton's opening tactics were very effective.

Not only did they set the tempo of the game fast from the start, making Real Madrid run around in a hurry, but the players were also very invested and active in the game, with strong tactical execution and tacit cooperation, which not only gave Southampton an overwhelming advantage, but also frequently created threats.

Almost from the beginning of the game, Real Madrid's entire defense line was under tremendous offensive pressure, especially the two central defenders, Ramos and Pepe, who were both exhausted.

But even so, the penalty area of ​​Real Madrid was still full of dangers, and there was a panic in front of the goal.

But head coach Zidane still did not make any adjustments.

Maybe he was still gambling, or maybe he felt that it was a bit unreasonable to adjust tactics just a few minutes into the game.

But no matter what, Real Madrid finally revealed its flaws!