August 1, Phoenix University Stadium, Phoenix, West Coast, USA.
Game 4 of the first round of the International Champions Cup, Real Madrid faced the Los Angeles Galaxy.
The opponent's strength was not strong, so Gao Shen did not send all his main force, but used a large rotation to fight.
Only six minutes into the game, Vázquez sent a cross from the right, and new aid Dzeko hit the goal with a header from the front of the penalty area, opening the scoring for Real Madrid.
In the 15th minute, Isco sent a long pass. Dzeko made a direct pass without stopping the ball and passed the ball across. The unguarded Jesé easily shot the goal, 2-0!
After that, Real Madrid launched wave after wave of offensives against the Los Angeles Galaxy.
After changing sides in the second half, Gao Shen made substitutions again, including Pogba, Verratti and others coming on as substitutes.
In the 51st minute, after Pogba advanced with the ball from his left rib, he sent a diagonal pass. Morata in the penalty area scored with a low shot, three to zero!
Then in the 63rd and 74th minutes, Real Madrid scored two goals from Casemiro and Jese, rewriting the score to 5-0!
Real Madrid beat Los Angeles Galaxy with five goals.
This made Gao Shen dissatisfied with the team's performance when interviewed by the media after the game.
The reason is also very simple.
Such a warm-up match is not advanced at all!
…
On August 3, Real Madrid moved from Phoenix to Los Angeles and faced the Premier League's Leeds United at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.
This is a battle that has attracted much attention.
Leeds United defeated Serie A's Juventus 2-1 in their first game and gained the right to advance.
Gao Shen also attaches great importance to this game.
He has a clear enough understanding of Real Madrid's strength, so he can take this opportunity to test Leeds United.
Moreover, after entering the semi-finals, according to the contract between Real Madrid and the organizer, the team should use all its main players.
Therefore, Gao Shen played his best four-three-three at the beginning. In the starting lineup, except for Xavi Alonso who was injured and was replaced by Casemiro, all other players started.
As a result, in the first ten minutes, Ramos' long pass was accurately passed to the left side of the penalty area. Cristiano Ronaldo quickly crossed into the penalty area and hit the volley after stopping the ball on his chest, opening the scoring for Real Madrid.
Just four minutes later, from a direct pass from Toni Kroos, Cristiano Ronaldo advanced again, passed the ball past the attacking goalkeeper Navas, and pushed the ball into the empty goal, making it 2-0.
In the 17th minute, Real Madrid had another chance, but this time it was Modric's direct pass. Ronaldo started a little early. After the goal, the referee signaled offside and the goal was invalid.
But in the 31st minute, Modric once again sent a direct pass. Cristiano Ronaldo made a cross from the left side of the penalty area. Benzema succeeded in pushing the shot into the empty goal, expanding the score to 3-0.
Leeds United did not get a very threatening attack until the end of the first half, but Vardy's shot hit the post and failed to score.
In the second half, the team changed sides again. During the halftime break, Gao Shen changed 6 people in one breath. The pressure on Leeds United was slightly relieved, and they began to have interactions with Real Madrid.
In the 62nd minute, Zaha dribbled the ball from the left and forced a breakthrough and then passed in. Harry Kane hit the ball in front of the goal and got a goal back for Leeds United.
In the end, Real Madrid defeated Leeds United 3-1.
Everyone can see that this is a complete defeat.
Even if Gao Shen hadn't saved his strength during the halftime break, Leeds United might have lost a big score.
After the game, the media's reaction to the game was relatively negative.
The main reason is that Leeds United's signings and adjustments this summer have not been effective.
At least, the team's overall strength has not reached the height of last season, and the situation in the new season is precarious.
But Gao Shen has a different view on this.
…
The game kicked off at 17:00. After the game, everyone returned to the hotel. Gao Shen took Carlo, Zidane and others to have dinner in the hotel.
Fernando Lucas, Borrell and others happened to call.
Everyone was staying in the same hotel, so they happened to be called over to have something to eat together. Pochettino also came over after hearing the news, and they joined us at the same table.
At the dinner table, the topic of conversation was naturally the game that had just ended.
Zidane pointed out that Pochettino's tactics still have some problems, and the three lines are not running smoothly.
"Half an hour before the game started, your entire midfield was in complete chaos. We hit each one accurately without any protection for the defense. Three goals, plus the one that was whistled, four goals, all from the penalty area.
It’s transmitted directly from the outside.”
Once can be said to be an accident, but twice or three times, there must be something wrong.
Also, regarding Ronaldo's movement, the two central defenders still didn't cooperate enough.
Pochettino very much agrees with Zidane's statement, and he has been adjusting the midfield configuration and positioning.
This game still had a strong military training aspect to it, but the effect was not good.
"My original idea was to play Coutinho in the tenth position, with Zaha on the left in front, Harry Kane in the middle, and Salah on the right, forming an offensive formation."
Pochettino also has his own considerations on this point.
Coutinho is not a fast player and his impact is not strong. If he is placed on the wing, the problem will be more obvious.
Last season, Pogba often moved around on this side, and the situation was not particularly obvious, but this season, Pogba and Kondogbia have left, Rabiot has just arrived, and there is no such person in the Leeds United midfielder.
"Coutinho is really a good player." Carlo fully agreed with Pochettino's meaning. "I found that after he gets the ball, he basically doesn't lose it. He has the ability to pass the ball through and threaten the ball. He can also
Long shot, but the physical confrontation is a bit weaker, which limits his performance."
"Yes." Pochettino took over Carlo's words, "If you put him on the wing and directly face the defense, you will actually suffer a lot."
What Pochettino meant was to let Coutinho play the No. 10 position and serve as the core of the offense, while Brozovic and Kanter served as double midfielders, but the effect was very bad.
"I think Coutinho can't be too forward. In the first half, he was too close to Casemiro." Gao Shen said.
Casemiro's physical confrontation ability is very good, and Coutinho cannot take advantage of him.
"And Kanter, he should get more freedom, let him run and grab. If we delay, Brozovic can hold his position and his defensive ability is also very good."
When Gao Shen said this, he asked Lucas, who was carrying a briefcase, for paper and pen, and drew directly on the table.
"Harry Kane's characteristics are very comprehensive, and his scoring efficiency is also very high. He has height and strength. He has no problem occupying the center. The two wings provide impact and are the hot spot of the team's offense."
Leeds United now has many wing attackers, such as Zaha, Salah, Mane, Felipe Anderson and Sterling. These are all very good wing attackers and can become the team's wing attackers.
point.
"The midfielder must grasp the rhythm and possession of the ball. This is Coutinho's advantage. He has a very strong ability to control the ball and a strong passing ability, so he should be responsible for delivering the shells, while Kante is
Responsible for grabbing the ball, Brozovic is responsible for organizing and distributing the ball. These three people must be closely connected to control the midfield."
"Bertrand is very fast and has strong impact, and Trippier on the right has excellent passing ability. Both wings can provide strong support to the team."
"The most important thing now is to rotate the front, middle and back lines to form a combined force."
Gao Shen felt that Pochettino still didn't let go.
Perhaps, when facing Real Madrid, he still wants to perform better.
At the very least, he wanted to hold on to the situation, but the result was that he lost even more miserably.
"I think you must make it clear that Leeds United's biggest advantage lies in rushing, not control, and not defense."
In this warm-up match against Real Madrid, Leeds United was completely defeated and lost miserably.
But it's not entirely without gain.
Judging from the process, Leeds United's players are still quite good.
This group of young people in their twenties are still very capable. The key lies in how Pochettino can bring them together to form a joint force.
"Take your time, we performed well." Borrell reassured Pochettino with a smile.
Lucas nodded and said: "Isn't it? We are facing Real Madrid, so what if we lose 1 to 3? At least we can score one more goal than Bayern, that's all!"
Everyone couldn't help but smile when they heard this.
Who says it’s not?
In the Champions League final, Bayern still lost by three goals.
"After I go back, the coaching staff and I will study it carefully. I think I know what to do." Pochettino nodded.
Gao Shen, Zidane and Carlo's words are still very inspiring to him.
Once you have an idea, the next thing will be much easier to handle.
Gao Shen turned to look at Lucas, "How is it? I heard that you have done well in the United States recently."
It's okay not to mention it. When it is mentioned, Fernando Lucas sighs repeatedly.
"Not to mention, the momentum is good, but the actual effect is not ideal. I think this will be a protracted battle."
Everyone nodded.
If the North American market were so easy to develop, teams such as Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern and Manchester United would have made huge profits long ago.
You know, competitive sports in North America are also extremely involved, especially football, which is considered a niche sport here.
What are really popular among people are football, baseball and basketball, etc. Football has to take a back seat.
No, Barcelona will go to Asia this year.
To put it bluntly, it’s because this big piece of fat meat in North America looks tempting, but you can’t eat it.
After working hard on development for several years, how many of them have actually made money from the North American market?
Manchester United has made a lot of money. After all, Britain and the United States are related by blood. Real Madrid and Bayern are also somewhat similar. It is hard to say about other teams. They mostly want to mix in the appearance fees of commercial games.
"Definitely, don't think about opening up this market all at once, but focus on cultivating it deeply."
Gao Shen smiled and patted Lucas on the shoulder, encouraging him.
"If we can't make any money this summer, what does it matter? We'll come back next year. If it doesn't work next year, then we'll come back the year after that. If we keep at it, we'll conquer it sooner or later."
"You said, we have been doing this for two years, we have so many fans, and we still haven't found a monetizable business model. What can we do?" Lucas asked with a wry smile.
