John Hendry's long and thick legs suddenly came into Keller's sight, and Keller felt like a bolt from the blue!
He could only watch as Hund hit the ball with his toes and then slid into the goal while dribbling the ball.
"John Hendry! John Hendry! He could not be seen almost throughout the first half, but at this moment, he and Fleming who assisted him completed a beautiful cooperation, and he broke through Mill
Wall's defense line, and then stretched out a kick to send the ball into Millwall's goal. Middlesbrough equalized the score! Millwall's zero-goal defense announced in front of Middlesbrough
Record shattered!”
Since the start of the league, Thuram - Stam - Southgate - Neil Keller, the five-man defensive combination including the goalkeeper, experienced the feeling of being breached for the first time.
The cheers at the Aiyasumme Park Stadium were overwhelming. Middlesbrough's players gathered around to celebrate and then walked towards the backcourt with their heads held high. It seemed that the equalizer was expected, and their mature and sophisticated game
Experience is their greatest reliance.
Bryan Robson made no other movements except clenching his fists and waving his hands after seeing the goal. He was calm and composed.
Aldridge looked calm and clapped his hands toward the court, telling the players not to lose heart and take ten thousand steps back. The game is just back to the starting point.
But after losing the ball, Aldridge felt speechless, and he knew in his heart that Robson had taught him a lesson.
The goal Millwall conceded had nothing to do with personal ability or player error, it was entirely due to the effectiveness of Middlesbrough's tactics.
Tactics focus on winning by surprise.
If Middlesbrough lets two full-backs come forward to assist at the beginning of the game, then Aldrich believes that Middlesbrough's two wingers will not do anything during the whole game, at least Thuram's side will definitely
In this way, in terms of defensive ability, there are very few wide players who can break through Thuram head-on, at least in the English League One.
At this moment, Aldrich suddenly realized that Middlesbrough's previous conservatism was exactly a tactic used to paralyze opponents.
The defensive 532 formation deceived everyone, and the slow pace of the game created an illusionary fog for Millwall's defense. When Millwall's defensive players were "habitually" confident to grab more and less, Middlesbrough
The full-back suddenly came forward at high speed and caught Millwall's defense off guard.
Tactically, the effect of "victory by surprise" was achieved. This sudden acceleration of the rhythm from slow to fast was something that even Aldrich did not expect.
Aldridge thought to himself: Bryan Robson, who is just looking at the food, has a way of doing it.
But he is not discouraged. The current Millwall team is not fully formed at all. It is still in its infancy in terms of the rhythm of the game and the flexible use of tactics. This requires a longer period of tempering and games to accumulate experience, and Millwall is still in its infancy.
Delsburg is already a very mature team and it will be difficult to improve.
The center circle kicked off again, and Millwall's defense learned the lesson just now. Not only did the two full-backs pay special attention to the opponent's wing attack, Pires and Schneider also began to retreat to defend from a distance on the defensive end.
Seeing the Millwall players quickly adjusting themselves on the field, Robson, who originally wanted to take advantage of the victory and hit the opponent again before they recovered, shook his head and made a calm gesture to the players, indicating not to risk attacking.
.
The first half was coming to an end, and Aldridge felt very calm when he saw that the opponent was playing the slow-paced conservative tactics again. Millwall's defense would not be broken by a lost ball. This was something he had worked hard to shape.
Line of defense.
The referee blew the whistle to end the first half, and Aldridge was the first to leave the field and return to the locker room.
Morale is such an ethereal thing.
If Millwall concedes the goal first and then ties the score, the momentum will be high.
But Millwall scored first and then got equalized, so the players felt a little depressed.
Obviously the score is 1:1, but there is always a weird feeling that something you have got has been taken away.
This is human nature, and Aldrich felt the same way in his heart.
It is this kind of emotional change that made Aldridge very afraid of losing in the early stages of building the team, let alone being reversed. That is simply a taboo!
It takes time to cultivate the team's calm mentality and stop worrying about gains and losses. It takes time to develop a strong heart that is unfazed by honors and disgrace in big scenes. There is a long way to go.
The players who returned to the locker room were silent, sitting on the bench and breathing heavily. The atmosphere was a bit depressing, as if the air had been frozen.
Aldridge didn't want them to bear the pressure. When the pressure is unbearable, it will generate a series of negative emotions, so he shrugged and chuckled: "Robert, you should practice shooting when you go back."
The players were stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.
Pires smiled bitterly and said: "Boss, can you forget about that goal? Give me a hundred more chances and I won't slip."
He knew that the weird goal in the first half was bound to become a source of jokes among his teammates.
But Aldrich spread his hands and said: "No, no, no, if I give you a hundred more chances, it doesn't matter if you slip a hundred times. Just kick the ball in for me. Even if you shoot with your hip, I will applaud you."
.”
Ha ha ha ha......
The atmosphere in the locker room suddenly became cheerful, and most of the gloom caused by conceding the goal at the end of the first half dissipated.
After laughing, Aldrich pressed his hand, and everyone put away their smiles and listened to his tactical arrangements.
When it was time to be serious, Aldridge was never vague, nor did he think that just mobilizing the enthusiasm of the players would make the team win the game.
In front of the tactical board, Aldridge drew the position of the opponent's defensive players and said softly: "Middlesbrough's defense spent most of the first half near the penalty area, rarely taking risks to press forward, and never attempted to create a
Offside, this is the reason why our penetration attack was unable to score in the first half. What you have to do in the second half is very simple. We have to draw out their defense and force them to make space in the penalty area for our offensive players to move forward. Robert,
Bernd, Henrik, the three of you can move at the front of the penalty area. After getting the ball, you can take long shots when there is space. There is no need to pursue angles. The key is the number of kicks and the range of the target. David, you are in front to support in the second half.
The offense of teammates must serve as the fulcrum of the center's offense. Once the opponent's defense presses forward and compresses our long-range shooting space, you must always be prepared to counter offside, do you understand?"
The players nodded seriously.
Aldrich reminded a few more defensive issues, and then asked the players to rest for a while to prepare for the second half.
He has confidence in this defensive line and will not fall into the same pit twice. A sudden wing penetration like the one in the first half will never happen again.
In fact, Aldridge also needs to thank Bryan Robson. The goal conceded also allowed Millwall players to improve their defensive awareness, which is the accumulation of experience.
Experience is never learned or practiced. For defense, it is something that is engraved in the mind when it comes to getting up from failure.
Returning to the sidelines, Aldrich was still standing. The second half of the game began quickly, and the cheers of fans from both sides filled every corner of the Aiya Sumei Park Stadium.
Aldridge was very attentive in observing Middlesbrough's tactical changes in the second half. After watching football all over Europe for many years, he seemed to have developed a subconscious habit of always simulating the opponent's overall formation changes when overlooking the stadium.
.
On the basis of solid defense, Millwall began to take frequent long-range shots, threatening Middlesbrough's goal several times, which made fans on both sides very nervous. Brian Clough responded quickly, and he did not
Instead of letting the defensive line press forward, he allowed the frontcourt players to recycle. Except for John Hendry, who was roaming around in the frontcourt, the other players returned to defend the half court, creating a situation where there was more to grab but less to do.
After winning the ball, Middlesbrough's counterattack also used the width of the field to carry out a wide range of long passes, but the effect was not obvious. Their full-backs stepped forward to participate in the support, and they were also blocked by the Millwall wingers who returned to defend.
Players clung to them every step of the way.
Fifteen minutes into the second half, the game became stalemate, with the ball moving back and forth between the two halves of the penalty area. It was almost difficult for both sides to get shooting opportunities.
Only at this time did Aldrich fully understand Bryan Robson's tactical setup.
It is neither a defensive 532 nor a full-attack 352 on the wing, but rather an asymmetrical 442. Although visually this formation is a bit strange, the formation itself does not explain anything. The technical and tactical factors are the formation and the
A combination of styles of play.
Middlesbrough's two full-backs have a tacit understanding when they come forward to assist. There are never two wide players coming forward at the same time. They always maintain the position of at least four defenders in the back line. The tacit understanding in cooperation allows them to
There will never be a numerical disadvantage on the defensive end.
However, the miraculous effect of the two wingers taking turns to advance forward often catches the opponent by surprise.
Aldridge is deeply impressed. No wonder Middlesbrough has gone through a turbulent summer. The team's overall strength has not improved significantly, but it has performed well in the first nine rounds of English League One.
Bryan Robson is still capable of building such a capable team with limited resources, but this is only in the English League One.
What surprised Aldridge even more was that when England was still being poisoned by Charles Hughes' famous poking theory in the 1970s and 1980s, Middlesbrough's style of play was biased towards ground attack and would not
A swarm of offensive players piled up in the frontcourt to directly press the penalty area.
In this era, teams that can counter the "long pass" and "maximum positional opportunity" poking theory and use ground attack coordination are unique in England. Because of this, Nottingham Forest won the European title twice that year, Brian -
Clough's outstanding achievements were promoted to the altar of greatness. The Nottingham Forest he coached adopted the tactics of short ground passing and attack.
Aldridge was hesitant. The situation on the field was at a stalemate at the moment. If his team could take away a point here, it would be more beneficial than harmful to the entire season. At least they did not lose to the favorites to win the English League One away game.
Delsburg, the morale and psychological impact on the players is crucial.
Whether to use risky tactics to win a victory or to hold on to a draw. Just when Aldridge was hesitant, the situation on the court suddenly changed!
