Before the game, it rained heavily all day long in Turin, from morning to night.
Although the drainage system of the Juventus Arena is very complete, the venue is still very slippery.
What is going on tonight in the heavy rain is the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals. Juventus faces Chelsea at home.
In fact, neither team likes this kind of water battle.
Needless to say, Chelsea are good at passing and controlling, which will greatly reduce their ground ball attack power.
As for Juventus, it mainly depends on its influence on Pirlo, the brains of the midfielder.
He hates playing in this kind of weather. The ball is wet, slippery and difficult to control.
As the metronome of the team, today he still appears in the middle of Juventus' three midfielders. Next to him are two strong young men, Pogba and Vidal.
On the outside are two wing-backs, Evra on the left and Lichtsteiner on the right.
In front of Pirlo, there are two forwards, Tevez and Morata.
Behind him is the classic BBC combination-Bonucci, Barzagli, and Chiellini.
The one at the back of the team is, of course, the young player Buffon.
This is almost the strongest lineup of Juventus now, and every player is a famous figure in the world.
On the bench, Juventus still has many good players, such as Marchisio, Asamoah, Ogbonna, Koeman, Matri, Llorente, etc.
So this is definitely a tough battle for Chelsea!
Pan Yi also sent the main force.
The goalkeeper is Courtois, the defense is Terry, David Luiz, and Gary Cahill, the midfielder is Kante and Matic, and the wings are Marcos Alonso and Azpilicueta.
.
The frontcourt trident is the combination of Hazard, Lukaku and B.
Chelsea has a strong army and has won seven Premier League championships ahead of schedule. It has no future troubles and its morale is high. Therefore, although Juventus is playing at home today, they still focus on stability.
In other words, the old woman under Alegri's rule basically focused on stability when encountering any opponent...
Therefore, at the beginning of the game, even though it was still raining heavily, Chelsea took the lead in launching the offensive.
After Hazard received the ball on the left, facing Lichtsteiner, he tried to hit the ball with his heel. As a result, the field was slippery. Belgium Yang Kun's performance directly knocked the ball to Lichtsteiner.
.
Lichtsteiner immediately sent the ball to Pirlo's feet.
This is one of the most important playing methods of Juventus now, which is to let the metronome Pirlo control the offensive and defensive rhythm of the entire team.
If you want to slow down, Pirlo will use his ball control and transfer to avoid the opponent's press;
If you want to counterattack quickly, Pirlo will use his famous stunt-a long pass spanning more than half of the court, accurately finding the two forwards, and giving the opponent a fatal blow!
This is also an important reason why Allegri now mainly uses the 352 tactic, which can maximize the role of Pirlo!
In the midfield, the two versatile midfielders Pogba and Vidal can play their own roles on both offense and defense, and can also help Pirlo block attacks from opponents.
In the front, the existence of the two centers Tevez and Morata will not be alone like a single forward formation, and it can also give Pirlo more and better options when making long passes.
However, it is obvious that Pan Yi has also conducted detailed research on Pirlo's current role at Juventus - and even reviewed it with Valentina at Allegri's house that night!
Therefore, when Pirlo just got the ball, Chelsea's extremely wide-covering midfielder Kante had already bullied him in front of him, preventing him from having more time to react.
This surprised Pirlo, who quickly passed the ball back to the defense.
In this way, Juventus' fast break would be impossible, and it would turn into a positional battle.
To be honest, Juventus' positional warfare ability is still a bit worrying.
What are the offensive routines of Alaigri's 352, positional warfare?
Pan Yi also made a summary:
1. Pirlo makes a long pass behind the opponent's central defender, and Vidal, Pogba or Marchisio intervene;
2 Pirlo made a long pass behind the opponent's full-back, and Lichtsteiner on the right inserted into the penalty area;
3 Breakthrough with the ball from the left. However, due to the limited ability of the left wing-back Asamoah, and the aging of the other veteran Evra, his physical ability has declined greatly. In actual operation, he basically just made a few perfunctory moves on the wing.
Then pass the ball to Vidal, Pogba or Marchisio near the penalty spot;
4Bonucci made a long pass directly from the backcourt to find Lichtsteiner;
Hey, I don’t seem to see the forward’s name here?
That's it.
Before the arrival of Tevez and Llorente, Vidal was the team's top scorer, followed by three or four people who tied for second...
But after the arrival of Tevez and Llorente, Allegri unlocked several new postures:
5. Llorente’s big center tactic, carry the man back, Vidal, Pogba or Marchisio step in and hit the goal;
6 Everyone rushed up to stir things up to attract defensive troops, and then Tevez took care of it himself!
This is almost all the skills of Juventus’ current offensive routine.
All offensive routines and movements are all scripted. To put it bluntly, they are just a few long-distance runners - Lichtsteiner, Vidal, Pogba, Marchisio running wildly in both directions, and then pretending.
A high-frequency CP like Pirlo is in command.
And if you can't move much when running behind, then the 352 system becomes simpler, that is, 8 players stand still, and then the two players in the frontcourt participate in the attack and run.
This is the BT strategy that many media and fans complain about.
In fact, no professional head coach would be able to see through such a tactic, and Juventus can dominate Serie A only because of their proficiency and the personal abilities of their players that are much higher than others.
In the current Serie A, which team has as good a lineup as Juventus?
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It's just that such tactics are not difficult at all for Pan Yi to deal with.
That is high pressure and pressing, coupled with fast offense.
As long as Juventus' midfield is robbed and they cannot pass the ball or press forward easily, then this "running wildly from both ends" tactic will be greatly reduced.
It rained heavily and the view was greatly obstructed.
Everyone in the stadium, including the referee, has been drenched in water.
Pirlo wiped the rain off his face and looked at the flickering figures in front of him, feeling very unreal.
And his experience today was also unreal.
The ball hardly stayed at his feet for more than a second!
Chelsea is guarding him too closely.
And it’s not just him.
Now all teams know that Juventus' offensive brain is Pirlo, and of course they will send people to specially mark him.
But in this Chelsea, it seems that even Pogba and Vidal have been taken care of, and the connection between their three midfielders has become fragmented, making it difficult to form a whole.
Once the midfielder loses contact, there will inevitably be problems with the operation of the entire team.
At this moment, Chelsea, who had grabbed the ball again, launched an offensive again and still passed it to Hazard on the left.
This time, after receiving the ball, Matic made a mid-to-long-distance through ball and passed the ball directly behind the Juventus defense.
Hazard quickly made a diagonal pass, passed Barzagli, received the ball and shot low.
I don’t know if it was affected by the heavy rain, but Hazard’s single kick was not on target and slipped out of the far post.
But this time, it still caused a large number of fans in the Juventus Arena to exclaim.
This kind of one-on-one opportunity is too easy for Chelsea to get!
"Hey, brothers, cheer up." Pirlo shouted to everyone.
At the same time, he also signaled to Pogba and Vidal, telling them not to get too close and to pay attention to protecting the defense line.
He could see that Chelsea's opening tactics were very smart. They did not blindly pursue passing and control, but focused on offense and efficiency.
In this kind of weather, they chose to use the simplest and most direct way to send the ball into dangerous areas as much as possible, and then relied on the players' personal abilities to create threats.
Therefore, he must remind his teammates.
Although Buffon is the captain on the field now, Pirlo, as a world-famous midfield master and the core of Italy's midfielder who won the 2006 World Cup, will naturally shoulder the important task of commanding his teammates on the field, and Juventus players
I will also listen to him.
Pogba and Vidal both nodded to Pirlo, and then stood back a little.
Pirlo wiped his face and looked to the sidelines again.
In the mist, he saw a head coach, Pan Yi, wearing a transparent raincoat and still standing on the sidelines directing the game.
Pirlo certainly admires Pan Yi.
Pan Yi had heard of this name as early as when he was an assistant coach in Milan.
Later, Milan played against Juventus, and Milan defeated Juventus through a sneak attack on Pirlo. Sleepy also heard that this tactic was also made by Pan Yi.
Later, Pan Yi went to Hamburg and Chelsea and became famous. Pirlo had no chance to play against him again, but he actually wanted to get to know him.
After all, as the team's midfield brain, he also wants to become a head coach after retiring, just like old teammates such as Seedorf and Inzaghi.
Especially Inzaghi, after working with Pan Yi in Hamburg for two years, he is really impressive now, and he is coaching quite well in Milan.
Of course Pirlo also wants to learn from him if he has the opportunity!
As for why you didn’t find current head coach Alaigri?
Haha...
Beep!
Just as I was thinking about it, in the heavy rain, the referee's whistle came from the left side.
Pirlo looked up and through the rain curtain, he saw seat B lying on the ground. Juventus left wing-back Evra was explaining something to the referee.
It seems that Evra fouled seat B.
Chelsea's offensive players are all very versatile and are really difficult to guard against. Therefore, Juventus players can only often use foul actions to solve the problem.
Evra, who is 34 years old this year, cannot keep up with the pace of the B seat, and fouls are inevitable.
Fortunately, this time the referee did not give a card, but only gave a verbal warning.
Chelsea's free kick opportunity in the frontcourt.
"Damn, watch out for their free kick!" Buffon shouted, "Andrea!"
"I'm coming." Pirlo ran over immediately.
He knew that the captain was calling him to come over and form a human wall.
Chelsea has scored a lot of goals through free kicks this season, and Allegri also warned this before the game.
This area may not be close, but it’s not too far either. Whether it’s a direct hit or cooperation, it can create a threat.
At this time, there were three Chelsea players standing at the penalty spot, Hazard, David Luiz and Matic.
One left foot, one right foot, one left and right foot, theoretically you can kick a free kick from any angle.
"Be careful." Pirlo turned back as if facing a powerful enemy and shouted to his teammates in the penalty area.
The human wall was set up, and Chelsea's players did not hesitate at all. Three players started at the same time.
David Luiz and Matic both feinted, but Hazard did not shoot directly. Instead, he chose to use his right foot to cross the wall and fall into the penalty area.
This is a tactical free kick!
Since no one of the Juventus players expected that the opponent did not shoot, this tactic was successful.
Marcos Alonso grabbed the first shot in the penalty area, but the ball was too slippery, so he volleyed and hit an anti-aircraft gun!
Alonso squatted in the penalty area with his head in regret, looking very frustrated, while Juventus felt like they were surviving a disaster.
In just a few minutes, Chelsea has created several very threatening shots.
To be honest, if it hadn't been rainy and slippery today, the gate guarded by Buffon might have been blasted open long ago.
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Sure enough, seeing is better than seeing it. Chelsea is really a terrifying team!
Time passed by minute by second, but Chelsea's attack continued.
In the eighth minute, Azpilicueta suddenly stepped in and passed a curve ball from the right. Lukaku volleyed near the penalty spot, but failed to hit the target.
As a result, the ball had no impact and fell limply into Buffon's arms.
Three minutes later, Hazard received the ball and forced a breakthrough, trying to take the ball out between Lichtsteiner and Pogba. However, he accidentally slipped and the ball was intercepted by Juventus. p>
At this time, Juventus launched its first threatening counterattack of the game and broke into Chelsea's 30-meter area. However, Tevez could only complete a hasty long-range shot and it went higher.
Crossbeam.
The opening only lasted for about ten minutes, but it felt to Pirlo as if a long, long time had passed.
Kanter is like a tough dog-skin plaster!
As soon as Pirlo and Pogba get the ball, he will get close immediately. This kid runs like a tiger. Although his feet are not dirty, he is very skilled and knows his positioning and tackling.
This reminds Pirlo of his fear of being dominated by Kante during the Milan period...
He tried several times to stabilize the rhythm or control the ball, but failed.
On the contrary, Chelsea, even though it was raining heavily, they still frequently carried out continuous passing and receiving cooperation, and the players were also very active in running. It seemed that the advantage of the entire midfield was obvious.
Juventus failed to play its own rhythm, and their defensive steals and interceptions failed to show their power. However, Allegri did not consider letting the team shrink its defense, but still hoped that the team could gain a foothold as soon as possible.<
/p>
This is dangerous!
Pirlo instinctively sensed the crisis, especially when he saw Pogba and Vidal frequently pressing forward to grab the ball, he became even more agitated.
"Don't chase the ball, make sure you stay in formation!" Pirlo reminded.
When encountering a team like Chelsea, chasing the ball is a very irrational behavior.
Because even in heavy rain, their passing and ball control can still make it difficult for Juventus' pressing and interception to exert its power.
On the contrary, Juventus itself, once it cannot grab it, not only consumes physical energy, but also easily becomes overheated and loses its position.
After all, if they press forward, the protection for Pirlo will no longer exist.
As for a lonely Pirlo, everyone knows how fragile he will be.
But now, the game is getting more and more intense, and Pirlo's voice is drowned in the heavy rain. Pogba and Vidal have not changed at all, and they are still pressing forward.
There is no other way, Pirlo can only move forward with the two midfielders.
If the distance between the three midfielders is not maintained, the situation will only get worse because there will be a serious disconnect.
Once the midfield is out of touch, Pirlo, the metronome, will never be able to "beat".
But at this moment, Chelsea's central defender David Luiz suddenly stopped the ball.
Morata immediately rushed to grab the ball, but David Luiz suddenly kicked the ball forward.
In the heavy rain, the ball drew an arc and fell to the right side of the top of the penalty area.
Pirlo was slightly startled and immediately turned around to chase after him.
At this time, he saw Lukaku blocking Bonucci with his body at the front of the penalty area, blocking the best position.
Facing the ball flying from the backcourt, Lukaku took a smart step forward, headed the ball directly to the ground on the right.
Pirlo was shocked because he saw a blue figure rushing towards the center from the left side in the heavy rain. It was Hazard.
Pirlo desperately tried to catch up faster, but he was only so fast.
Why is Pirlo said to be an elegant midfield master?
In addition to accurate passing and leisurely control of the ball, in fact, the so-called "elegance" also has a subtext of "slowness".
Can you imagine calling speed dogs like Bale and Mbappe "masters of elegance" or something like that?
Therefore, although Pirlo actively defended, when he chased back to the front of the penalty area, he saw that Hazard had already adjusted, raised his right foot, and took a violent long shot from the front of the penalty area.
Pirlo thought quickly and tried to slide the shovel to stop him, but it was too late.
I only heard a bang, and the rain in the air around me seemed to have exploded. Then I saw a round shadow in the heavy rain, like lightning in the dark clouds, fleeting.
When it appeared again, it had already appeared in the goal behind Buffon.
The ball just went in!
“gllllllllll!
”
"Only 15 minutes into the game, only 15 minutes, Chelsea took the lead in breaking through Juventus' goal!"
"Assist from Lukaku, Hazard's long shot from the front of the penalty area broke the Juventus goal!"
"This is a very exciting and sudden shot."
"Hazard's shot came so suddenly that Buffon didn't even have time to react."
"Juventus had a bad start and conceded a goal first."
Covered in grass clippings and rainwater, Pirlo got up from the ground, his eyes filled with tears.
Is this Chelsea?
Is this the Chelsea that won the Premier League title seven games ahead of schedule...
"We were completely suppressed and couldn't perform at our level."
Allegri sat in the coaching bench, holding his chin and muttering to himself.
Juventus's poor performance in this game was partly due to its own state, but mostly due to being suppressed by Chelsea.
The Blues took control of the game from the start!
Under the interference of Kanter and others, Pirlo's long pass lost the threat. Whether it was the forward penetration of Vidal and Pogba or the attacks from the two wings, all routines were curbed.
The two forwards Tevez and Morata also performed mediocrely under the care of the opponent's three central defenders.
Under Chelsea's level of pressure, Juventus's technical gap was fully exposed, with frequent mistakes in passing and receiving.
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In the final analysis, skills are still inferior to people.
Although it is said that Allegri "drove Pirlo from Milan to Juventus for his own use" and guaranteed Juventus' midfield organization, defense and interception still became problems.
From this game, Juventus allows opponents to pass through the midfield too easily. This is a long-standing problem.
It is the job of a team's head coach to encounter problems and solve them, but Allegri has never been able to solve this stubborn problem of Juventus.
Speaking of which, Vidal and Pogba's personal abilities are not bad at all, and can even be said to have reached world-class levels, but in front of Chelsea, they seem to be fooled around and have no temper at all.
Pan Yi's research on Juventus' tactics is really thorough, and his restraint is too obvious.
Of course, Juventus can't reverse the situation now. In fact, it has a lot to do with the aging of the team.
From Pirlo, to BBC in the backcourt, to the two wing-backs... they are not young anymore.
This also makes it difficult for them to cope with a fast and capable team like Chelsea.
Loss of power in the midfield is sometimes not just a problem for the midfielder. The coordination and mutual assistance of each line will affect both sides' control of the midfield.
Looking at Pan Yi, he has only been at Chelsea for just one year, but he has already left a profound personal imprint on this team.
Chelsea's passing and controlling style and quick counterattack have really obvious advantages in front of Juventus!
Allegri also really envies these young people in the Chelsea team, they are all so energetic!
"How come this guy has so many connections and channels and can dig out so many treasures?" Alaigri was really puzzled.
As early as when he was working together in Milan, Pan Yi brought a lot of high-quality and low-priced goods to Allegri such as Kante, Salah, Van Dijk, and Mane;
When he arrived at Hamburg and Chelsea, he dug out players like Vardy, Casemiro, De Bruyne, Carvajal, Robertson, Cancelo, B, Marcos Alonso, Gnabry
……
Ah, I can’t even count them!
To say that he has been involved in European football for so many years and Juventus's scouting team is so complete, he asked himself that he has some knowledge of people, but why is there such a big difference compared with Pan Yi?
"How about shamelessly asking him to recommend some players to me?" Allegri thought to himself.
After all, my relationship with Pan Yi is not ordinary!
In addition to the relationship between old colleagues, there is also a relationship between Valentina...
Although I said it didn’t happen that night, it seems like it will happen one day!
By then, won’t we really be a family?
If I was a little worried about saving face when I was in Milan, now we are all a family, so why are we so polite!