Before the European Super Cup, he was actually very worried when facing the Red Devils Manchester United.
In that game, he didn't even dare to play his best 4-3-3, but responded with 4-4-2, intending to adopt defensive counterattack tactics. Arshavin, who had just shined in the European Cup, was only a substitute.
What Manchester United is best at is this kind of stormy attack.
But in that game, the Red Devils were missing their two most threatening players.
The leading scorer Cristiano Ronaldo is missing on the front line, and Carrick is missing in the midfield.
The former is responsible for scoring goals and attacking; Carrick is responsible for controlling the rhythm and organizing the offense, and it is his task to distribute the ball.
Therefore, Manchester United in that game mainly focused on long-range shots. It looked like they played very hard, but in fact there were not many opportunities to threaten. Instead, it was Zenit who first took the lead through a corner kick and then scored a counterattack.
, expanded the score.
In the end, Zenit defeated Manchester United 2-1.
In this battle, the two sides fought evenly, but Manchester United did not perform satisfactorily.
But is this really the only level the Champions League champions have?
Advocaat didn't believe it, he had always remained calm and rational.
In the Champions League group stage, they were assigned to the group of death. Zenit only scored one point in the first three rounds and was at the bottom of the group in terms of points. However, in the first three rounds of games, Zenit performed not bad.
They lost to Bayern 0-1 away from home, lost to Real Madrid 1-2 at home, and drew 1-1 with Naples at home. All three games made Zenit deeply regretful, because they all had the chance to win, but always because of various reasons.
For various reasons, I failed to defeat my opponent.
Now, his team is cornered.
If you want to qualify in the group, you must win the remaining three rounds.
This is very, very difficult for Zenit, but Advocaat has no choice.
Unless, he doesn't want the right to qualify.
In the twelfth lunar month of winter, from the freezing and snowy St. Petersburg to the warm Naples, Zenit finally felt what Naples had experienced in St. Petersburg.
Although Zenit was well prepared and had even experienced such an away game before, they were still not used to it.
What made them even more uncomfortable was that Naples had long expected that they would not be conservative, so at home, from the first minute of the game, they suppressed Zenit with a crazy offensive.
Less than two minutes into the game, Rakitic opened the scoring for Naples with a long shot.
Not long after, Cavani's supplementary shot expanded Naples' score.
Two goals behind, but Zenit still performed very bravely.
This is an iron army honed in the snowy north of Russia. It is a powerful team that has repeatedly defeated powerful opponents in the Europa League. They began to counterattack and compete with Naples.
But in the 28th minute, after creating several opportunities in a row but failing to score, Naples finally seized the chance to score again.
Di Maria forced a breakthrough on the right side of the penalty area and passed with his left foot to the goal. Cavani grabbed the point in front of the goal, but the shot was saved by the goalkeeper, but Sanchez, who followed closely behind, stopped the ball on the left side of the goal.
Pass the defensive player and hit again with your right foot.
Three to zero!
After taking a three-goal lead, Naples was still chasing after them. Even in the stoppage time of the first half, Naples kept creating opportunities. Vargas' pass from the left, Cavani's goal
A powerful volley from 13 meters hit the crossbar and bounced back into the penalty area.
Di Maria followed up and shot again, but the goalkeeper saved it directly from the bottom line.
The continuous offensive was like a violent storm. Zenit was overwhelmed and found it difficult to cope with the attack.
Advocaat stood on the sidelines, silently watching Naples prepare to take a corner kick, feeling very sad in his heart.
He knew that the legend of Zenit was over!
The schedule of the Russian Super League is different from that of the five major leagues. It has already been played. Zenit failed to continue its previous outstanding performance and only finished fifth, without the glorious peak of last season.
Advocaat knew very well that this was because this team had reached its limit.
After reaching the limit, it will inevitably start to go downhill, which is beyond anyone's control.
If Zenit can play well in the first three rounds of the group stage, this momentum can continue. After all, everyone still has something to look forward to, but they only got one point in the first three rounds, and they are at the bottom of the group.
It's such a deadly group again, and Zenit's players have begun to lose confidence.
If the hearts of the people are scattered, the team will no longer be able to lead!
…………
…………
When Advocaat fell into deep despair in front of the visiting team's coaching bench, in the stands not far behind him, Gosari, a man with a big round face and glasses, was so excited that he grabbed the guardrail of the stands with both hands, and followed him.
It's like taking a shot of chicken blood.
This is the football of his dreams!
In the first half, Naples played the football that Sarri has longed to achieve for so many years!
In the past two years, with the rise of Gao Shen, especially after Barcelona's Guardiola also raised the banner of passing and controlling the ball with high pressure, this style of play seems to have become a hot topic and trend.
Every head coach talks about advanced pressing and pressing.
But how to press and press from a high position?
Sarri very much agrees with what Gao Shen said in Coverciano that high-post pressing is not about grabbing the ball. All pressing and pressing for the purpose of grabbing the ball are completely different from his philosophy.
In Italy, many teams are starting to play this style of play, such as Spalletti's Roma, but why doesn't it work?
Because Roma's so-called high-position pressing is more symbolic. Players follow the opponent's players one-on-one. Their running coverage ability has declined a lot this season, and they have no way to effectively intercept the opponent's passing line. This is
Unable to form high pressure.
In this case, as long as the opponent has enough ability to play the ball in the midfield and backcourt, a long pass can hit you behind you.
There are also some teams that have the ability to run and cover, but they have no structure at all. All the players seem to be running around blindly, without an overall tactical purpose.
How long can such high pressure last?
Thirty minutes? Sixty minutes?
What should you do after your physical energy is exhausted?
Okay, you can run away, I won’t argue with you, I will wait until your physical energy is almost exhausted, and then I will take care of you slowly!
But what about Naples?
Cavani, a center who is 1.84 meters tall and weighs 72 kilograms, runs back and forth crazily when he gets on the court. In front of him are two central defenders pressing Zenit. As soon as they get the ball, Cavani will definitely
When he goes up, he retreats and pinches Zenit's midfielder Tymoschuk.
After the first half, he had run nearly eight kilometers. What is the concept?
For many teams' centers, they may only have this number for the entire game.
There are also Sanchez and Di Maria. They both actively retreat and at the same time can attack the opponent's ribs at any time, effectively suppressing the passing line between Zenit's central defender, goalkeeper and full-back.
I'm nearby, don't be afraid of being snatched away by me. If you have the ability, just pass it on.
This is oppression!
And Rakitic.
Sarri did not have clear data, but he vaguely felt that Rakitic and Biglia should be the players who ran the most in the game, especially Rakitic, who ran back and forth a lot. This is similar to Cavani.
Very similar.
So many back-and-forth runs and sprints can ensure that he can participate in the attack forward, press the opponent, and actively assist in defense when retreating to ensure that the team's midfield is solid.
Many people's impression of the football match is like Naples' start tonight, where they immediately rush to score a goal.
But in fact, this is not common in football matches.
The real game is more of a wrestling match.
Everyone on the court constantly creates pressure on the opponent through their running, dribbling, pressing and pressing coverage.
When every player on the team is creating pressure on the opponent, this pressure will accumulate as the game progresses. When it accumulates to a certain level, it will cause the opponent to make local mistakes or even collapse completely.
.
But all of this is based on running.
And Gao Shen's team can not only run, but also be comprehensive.
The three midfielders composed of Thiago Motta, Biglia and Rakitic are both offensive and defensive, and also have strong passing and cutting abilities.
On the back line, Bonucci is also good at passing the ball, especially long passes to instigate counterattacks. David Luiz's long passing ability is also very good, but more importantly, he has excellent physical fitness and flexibility.
His dribbling ability is very strong, which allows him to suddenly dribble the ball forward and pass it to his teammates in front.
Sarri is really excited!
This Naples tactic is simply the tactic he wants to realize in his dream. Every player in this team seems to be tailor-made for this tactic, which makes the entire Naples team look like
Integrated.
Sarri is even thinking, does this team have any weaknesses?
What other opponent can defeat such a team?
He was really excited.
If in the past, he just watched videos, just watched the news, and just listened to advanced lectures, he felt that Naples was very suitable for him, then now, sitting in the Sao Paulo Stadium in person, watching the Naples game with his own eyes, even if he just watched it
In the first half, he couldn't help but want to cheer for him and sing praises for him.
This is his dream team!
…
Just when Sarri was in a state of excitement, the first half of the game was over.
Napoli currently leads Zenit 3-0.
But judging from the course of the game, no one doubts that Naples will definitely be able to score again.
Because this team really played crazy at their home court tonight!
Just like that night at the Bernabeu when they slaughtered Real Madrid.
As usual, Gao Shen welcomed the players off the court with a smile on his face, sent them into the tunnel, and then turned to leave.
"Hey, Maurizio."
Gao Shen stood at the entrance of the passage, suddenly raised his head and shouted towards Sari.
Sari was still immersed in excitement and excitement and didn't hear anything for a while. It wasn't until Gao Shen shouted again that he woke up.
"Let's go!"
Gao Shen waved his hand and got into the players' tunnel.
Only then did Sarri react and hurriedly left the stands.
Many Naples fans around looked a little confused.
This middle-aged Italian looks stupid, how could he be on the Naples coaching staff?
