Chapter 34 Simeone's Champions League nightmare [Please read! ]
Chapter 34 Simeone's Champions League nightmare [Please read! ]
Li Chen thinks he has a relatively good understanding of Atletico Madrid, his "old rival".
Even though he had left La Liga a long time ago, he and Mourinho had not played against Atletico for a long time.
But his attention and research on Atletico Madrid has never stopped.
Atletico Madrid from 2014 to 2016 achieved the ultimate as a team in terms of defensive pressure and disrupting the opponent's offensive rhythm.
In this regard, Mourinho is likely to be inferior to Simeone.
In the 2013-2014 season, when Li Chen assisted Ancelotti, he suffered a lot from Atletico Madrid.
Before the Champions League final, Real Madrid had a derby record of defeating Atletico Madrid twice in the Copa del Rey semi-finals.
But in the more important La Liga, Real Madrid only achieved a record of one draw and one loss against Atletico Madrid, and only got one league point from Atletico Madrid in a single season.
Atletico's oppressive defense and sharp counterattacks made both Real Madrid and Barcelona miserable. Barcelona was even helpless against Atletico in the Champions League semi-finals and was eventually eliminated.
This is a remarkable achievement.
The only team that could defend against Real Madrid at their peak was Atletico Madrid.
Since then, Li Chen has been very interested in Simeone's tactical ideas and team building concepts.
Even today, even though Atletico Madrid is no longer the powerful team that once dominated Europe with the name of "Iron Blood", Li Chen still thinks that Simeone's tactical ideas have many merits.
Now that the Manchester United led by him and Simeone's Atletico Madrid meet in the Champions League, it can be said that they have a lot of "fate".
Simeone not only encountered his Champions League nemesis Cristiano Ronaldo, but also encountered a head coach who has been seriously studying Atletico Madrid's tactical system for many years.
What's worse is that Ronaldo's threat to Atletico Madrid is obvious, and Simeone and his coaching team can at least impose tactical restrictions on Ronaldo.
Li Chen's threat to Atletico Madrid is entirely in the dark.
Simeone never expected that Li Chen, whom he had never communicated with, would be an admirer of his tactics.
Not to mention him, even if Li Chen personally admitted to the outside world that he really liked the iron-blooded Atletico Madrid team back then, I'm afraid the fans would think he was joking!
First of all, he bears a deep imprint of Real Madrid.
Besides, whether he coached Burnley last season or Manchester United this season, the tactics he used had nothing to do with Atletico Madrid's all-player pressure defense.
How can you, a coach who will never give up the opportunity to counterattack until the very last moment of the game, be a supporter of someone like Simeone?
They don't go together at all!
"So this is our huge advantage in preparation, the media and the fans can't guess, even you can't guess, and Atletico Madrid is even less likely to anticipate this special situation.
In the first leg at the Wanda Metropolitano, we must make the most of this information gap advantage, stabilize the first 60 minutes, and then strive to kill with one blow, forcing Atletico to come out and play against us in the second leg! ”
In the last internal coaching meeting before the start of the game, Li Chen directly set the tactical tone for the two rounds of the Champions League knockout matches.
Manchester United quickly unified their tactical thinking and set off early on the morning of February 2, arriving in Madrid before the routine training in the afternoon.
The Manchester United team, which had already reached an official agreement with the Real Madrid club, finally completed its first training session after arriving in Madrid at the Valdebebas training base.
Some Spanish media have expressed dissatisfaction with Real Madrid's borrowing of its training base from Manchester United.
They believe that in the Champions League, the teams representing La Liga should face the outside world in unison at this time.
Therefore, Real Madrid's borrowing of the training base from Atletico Madrid's opponent at this moment is quite suspected of "deliberately aiding the enemy."
However, before this argument caused a public opinion storm, the Real Madrid fans who stuck together stood up to denounce it!
"Lee has helped two Real Madrid head coaches win major championship trophies. Don't forget, it was with Lee's key suggestions that we were able to achieve our dream of winning the club's tenth Champions League trophy!
There is no doubt that Li is a true 'Real Madrid man' and a friend of the Real Madrid club and all Real Madrid fans. We should certainly give him convenience and help when he needs it.
So is there anything wrong with Real Madrid helping its friends?
People with ulterior motives, please shut up! We are just doing what we are supposed to do! "
These words have left the Spanish media who jumped out to sing a different tune speechless.
Li Chen is indeed a "coaching legend" of Real Madrid, even though Li Chen was only an assistant coach of Real Madrid at that time.
But it is undeniable that Li Chen did make significant contributions in the seasons when Mourinho led the team to win the La Liga championship and Ancelotti led the team to win the La Liga and Champions League titles.
To this day, Ancelotti and many of the Memphis fans are still obsessed with Li Chen, which is enough to demonstrate Li Chen's ability.
So is there anything wrong with Real Madrid helping an old friend who once made great contributions to the club's resurgence?
Li Chen deserves the friendship of Real Madrid. The official Twitter account of Real Madrid Club also immediately released a photo of Li Chen, Ronaldo, Varane, Ancelotti and other senior players of Real Madrid's first team that afternoon.
The official title given to the latest developments is even more heartwarming.
"Reunion of old friends"
For a while, fans of Real Madrid and Manchester United temporarily put aside their prejudices against each other on the Internet and interacted happily and friendly.
In this relaxed atmosphere, Manchester United's main players showed good training condition.
Not only that afternoon, but the training the next morning was also completed quite smoothly, and Li Chen was quite satisfied with it.
At the pre-match press conference, Li Chen showed respect for Atletico Madrid's past achievements and his speech was quite low-key.
But his humility was met with deliberate provocation from Atletico fans before the game.
Of course, this provocation is not necessarily directed at him, but most likely at Cristiano Ronaldo, who has hurt Atletico fans the most in the past.
But now their provocations and ridicule indiscriminately cover all Manchester United players and coaches.
Atletico Madrid fans don't care what other Manchester United players except Ronaldo think of them, and Manchester United players naturally won't understand this.
The feud between the two sides was formed before the game.
From verbal abuse outside the hotel to the deliberate obstruction of the team bus on the way to the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium.
Atletico fans did whatever "work" they thought they needed to do.
Li Chen, who saw all this, also had some thoughts in his mind...
When the Manchester United players finished their pre-match warm-up and completed the morale mobilization in the locker room, Li Chen rarely pulled Ronaldo and encouraged him with a smile:
"I understand how much Atletico Madrid fans fear you. How about giving them another 'unforgettable' memory today, Chris?"
The other Manchester United starting players all smiled knowingly after hearing Li Chen's words.
C Ronaldo can indeed be regarded as the biggest victim in the history of Atletico Madrid club.
Even though he had left Real Madrid a few years ago, he still performed a hat trick when he met Atletico Madrid again in the Champions League!
Simeone seemed to be convinced by Ronaldo after being overturned by Juventus. One could not help but sigh at the tenacity and strength of the Portuguese striker.
This time, facing the Atletico Madrid fans who were tough and provocative before the game, can Ronaldo still give the same face-slapping performance he has given many times in the past?
Li Chen didn't have to wait too long before he got a firm answer from Ronaldo.
"Let me play the full 180 minutes in two rounds, Lee, and I will give all Manchester United fans a perfect report card!"
Ronaldo, smiling with two rows of white teeth showing, was full of confidence at this moment.
Infected by his enthusiasm for fighting, the other Manchester United players excitedly high-fived Li Chen one by one, and then walked out of the visiting team's locker room!
Li Chen, who had sent off the last player, turned his head and looked at Carrick, "I have confirmed now, Michael, Simeone will definitely receive a big gift today, a gift that is guaranteed to surprise him."
Carrick made a prayer gesture humorously. "May God bless Simeone and keep his heart from getting too hurt in today's game..."
The boiling and restless Wanda Metropolitano Stadium has earned the reputation of being a well-known devil's home ground in Europe with its fanatical atmosphere and terrifying momentum.
No matter which team visits this stadium, they will be amazed by its beautiful modernity and terrifying home atmosphere.
This is exactly what Simeone and every Atletico player are proud and confident of.
Wild cheers and thunderous boos sounded almost at the same time when the players from both teams appeared on the field!
Simeone looked very satisfied with the noise created by the home fans.
In front of more than 60,000 fanatical Atletico Madrid fans, the few thousand Red Devils fans couldn't make any waves at all.
Their singing and cheering were drowned out by the noise of the home team's fans.
The Manchester United starting players who cannot receive support from their own fans will easily fall into a depressed team atmosphere of fighting alone at the beginning of the game.
In Simeone's view, such a situation is very likely to occur, and this is also the most valuable significance of the devil's home field to Atletico Madrid.
But when he looked at them carefully with great anticipation, he found that the faces of Manchester United's starting players were either calm as water or full of excitement.
Nervous and hesitant?
nonexistent.
It seems that for these Manchester United players, the only result of coming to Atletico Madrid's home stadium to play the game is to strive for a more beautiful win, and they have never considered the result of failure.
This made Simeone feel something was wrong.
He couldn't help but think of Li Chen, who had taken the initiative to find him and chatted with him enthusiastically for a while before the game.
"Playing psychological warfare? Or..."
Simeone didn't think that Li Chen was so enthusiastic about him because he really wanted to make friends with him.
Considering the close relationship between Li Chen and Mourinho, he naturally felt that Li Chen was learning from Mourinho to play psychological warfare with him, deliberately putting on a low-key and enthusiastic attitude to lower his vigilance!
Simeone was very cautious after thinking more. After the game officially started, he signaled his players on the field to be careful of the possible offensive launched by Manchester United.
But to his surprise, Manchester United did quickly take over the midfield space that Atletico Madrid intentionally left, but were not in a hurry to launch an active attack on Atletico Madrid.
"Manchester United has taken control of the midfield rhythm. They played very patiently and were not in a hurry to press forward to penetrate Atletico's defense. Instead, they kept passing the ball in the midfield to find space to pass to the ribs and flanks. They played very steadily!"
The Sky Sports commentator saw Li Chen's opening tactical intention.
Just like Simeone, I just want stability!
Atletico Madrid is better at using its tough and stable defense to create counterattack opportunities when it loses the initiative in the game.
The Manchester United coaching staff, having seen through Atletico's basic tactical intention, developed a corresponding tactic of conservative control of the midfield.
The ball possession must be taken over and the midfield rhythm must be controlled.
But I don’t want to take the risk of pushing forward and attacking!
Either you, Atletico, come out and play against me, or forget about the ball. Hey, when it comes to patience, we at Manchester United have plenty of it.
Manchester United's attitude of competing with Atletico Madrid in tactical patience soon aroused dissatisfaction among Atletico Madrid fans at the scene!
The scattered boos soon connected together and rang out in large numbers!
But Li Chen and other members of Manchester United coaching staff turned a deaf ear and continued to sit in the coaching seats.
The Manchester United players on the field were not affected at all.
Without Li Chen's words, they continued to firmly implement the tactics arranged by the coaching staff before the game.
Even Ronaldo actively retreated several times to assist his teammates in midfield to pass the ball, and was not in a hurry to move forward and shoot.
Simeone's brows quickly furrowed as he watched this scene.
Generally speaking, when playing against other traditional European giants, Atletico Madrid never worries about the opponent not taking the initiative to attack.
Rich and powerful families, no matter they are in decline or thriving, all attach great importance to their own wealthy background and reputation.
Atletico Madrid is not considered a traditional European powerhouse, so naturally they do not have such concerns and can afford to play defensive counterattacks.
But for teams like Real Madrid, Salzburg and the two AC Milan clubs, when they encounter a situation where their opponents voluntarily give up control of the midfield, they have to go for it even if they don't want to, because they can't be timid!
Therefore, whenever Atletico Madrid encounters traditional top teams in the Champions League, they can often achieve good tactical results by giving up the initiative in attacking the game.
But today they suffered a big defeat at the hands of Manchester United!
There is no way. Manchester United is a traditional giant, but it has been in chaos for too long, and Li Chen has too much tactical autonomy.
Atletico Madrid can sacrifice the reputation of a powerful team in order to launch a more efficient counterattack.
Of course, Manchester United can also sacrifice their reputation as a traditional giant in order to avoid being stabbed by Atletico Madrid. After all, everything is for victory.
This was the first time Simeone witnessed the pragmatism of Li Chen's tactical arrangements.
Meeting an equally shameless colleague, he had no choice but to signal his disciples to take the initiative to attempt an attack.
After all, we are playing at home today, so we can't make the situation too ugly. If a big fight doesn't work, then we have to have a small fight.
However, I don’t know if Atletico Madrid stayed at bay for too long at the beginning of the game. After they deployed their formation and wanted to attack from both wings, they couldn’t get into the game for a long time.
After being unable to get the ball for a long time, Felix, who was a little anxious, retreated significantly to ask for the ball.
But he lost the ball in a bold breakthrough attempt just after receiving the pass from his teammate Lodi!
After completing a flexible interception, Fred immediately sent a long pass to Atletico's defensive area!
Cavani, who pulled out of the penalty area to receive the ball, withstood Jimenez's small interference, held the ball steadily, and then passed it to Ronaldo who was running inward.
After completing the pass, Cavani turned and rushed towards Atletico's penalty area!
Jimenez and another Atletico central defender Savic also believed that Ronaldo would try to form a passing connection with Cavani if the breakthrough was unfavorable.
So their turning and double-team defense is very resolute!
But Hector Herrera did not rush to grab Ronaldo at the first time because of Bruno Fernandes' forward advance.
He was afraid that if he lost his position, Ronaldo would pass the ball to B Fee to create a great shooting opportunity.
It was his hesitation in defense this time that strengthened Ronaldo's determination to shoot from outside Atletico's penalty area!
Ronaldo was seen quickly adjusting his pace while cutting inside, then suddenly swinging his right thigh and kicking the ball towards the upper right corner of Atletico's goal!
At this moment, Oblak's attention was attracted by Cavani's running confrontation with his two central defenders.
So when Ronaldo completed the shot, he made the corresponding save reaction!
At the critical moment, Oblak felt that he seemed to have touched the football!
But the secret joy in his heart was only fleeting, and soon, his heart was filled with despair!
The force of this ball is so great!!!
In the live broadcast, Ronaldo's long shot was slightly deviated from the forward direction due to Oblak's extreme save, but it finally hit the goal range!
The football finally dived into the net of Atletico Madrid's goal, creating a rippling white net flower!
After confirming that the ball had entered the net, Ronaldo opened his arms excitedly and rushed towards the corner flag area while roaring!
When Li Chen was hugged by the passionate and excited Carrick, his mind was still a little dazed.
He was mentally prepared to have the game with Atletico Madrid dragged on until the second half of 60 minutes to decide the outcome.
But who could have thought that Ronaldo would score a goal in Manchester United's first quick counterattack of the game!
The surprise tactics he prepared for Simeone had not yet been used, but Ronaldo gave him another big surprise!
Simeone's Champions League nightmare!
Ronaldo is going to have to perform explosively against Atletico Madrid again!
Please read and vote for me, big guys.
(End of this chapter)