Su Dong didn't know that in distant England, two old enemies scolded each other for a long time because of sneezing.
After playing Slavia Prague away in the Czech Republic, Valencia returned to Spain and began non-stop preparations for the new season of La Liga.
In the afternoon of the next day, after everyone took a lunch break, they all gathered in the rest area to watch the live broadcast of the lottery.
In distant Monaco, the annual Champions League group stage draw is being held.
As in previous years, the Champions League draw is interspersed with UEFA's annual best awards, but the latter has nothing to do with Valencia, because these awards have always been games for wealthy teams.
Goalkeeper Buffon, who plays for Juventus, won the European Goalkeeper of the Year, Carlos, who plays for Real Madrid, was elected the Defender of the Season, and Czech midfielder Nedvěd, who played for Juventus, was elected the Best Center in Europe.
Ruud van Nistelrooy, who plays for Manchester United, won the best forward in Europe.
In the season that just ended, Maldini, who as captain led AC Milan to win the Champions League, was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Without exception, these winners are all from the top wealthy families in Europe.
In Valencia, it is extremely difficult to win such an award.
This is why, when Valencia reached the Champions League finals twice, and although they both finished second, captain Mendieta still wanted to go to Real Madrid. However, due to the grievances between Valencia and Real Madrid, he was forced to
Went to Lazio.
To put it bluntly, Mendieta wants to take his career one step further.
Compared to Sporting Lisbon, Valencia was already superior, but after landing in the four major leagues and joining Valencia, Su Dong looked up and saw naturally more top giants.
Looking at the people receiving the award on TV, Su Dong knew very well that with his current age and development momentum, sooner or later, he would have to leave Valencia. Otherwise, it would be a failure!
Of course, before leaving, he must work harder, work harder, and improve his strength.
…
The draw rules for the Champions League group stage are very simple. According to the European war points, the thirty-two teams are divided into four tiers. Each group draws a team from the four tiers to avoid the same country.
Due to reaching the Champions League finals in two consecutive years at the beginning of the century, Valencia gained enough European points, so it was divided into the first tier, tied with teams such as AC Milan, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Lazio.
But this may not be a good thing.
In the second tier of teams, although they have avoided Deportivo La Coruña from the same country, teams such as Inter Milan, Porto, Lyon, Chelsea and Eindhoven are all very strong. If they really want to fight, it will be very difficult.
Tangled.
From the current point of view, the strongest teams are Inter Milan, Chelsea, Lyon and Porto. No matter which one of these four teams is drawn, they are quite terrible. Among them, Inter Milan also defeated them in the knockout round last season.
to Valencia.
Cooper, the head coach of the Nerazzurri, is also the former coach of Valencia.
"According to outside conspiracy theories, there is no doubt that the team we are most likely to draw is Inter Milan."
Aimar came to Su Dong's side and said with a somewhat solemn expression.
Last season's two-leg knockout round dealt a huge blow to Valencia.
Cooper was so familiar with Valencia that when Valencia faced Inter Milan, they couldn't come up with very effective methods.
Of course, the absence of the striker is also a key factor in losing.
Seeing the handsome Argentinian guy staring at him, Su Dong smiled and reached out to touch his head, but Aimar slapped him away in an "offensive" manner. Like all short people, he didn't like having his head touched.
.
"Don't worry, if we meet Inter Milan again, we don't know who will win." Su Dong said with a smile.
He has no shadow over Inter Milan, but is eager to give it a try.
At first, Luis Suarez tried to recommend him to Inter Milan, but they didn't like him.
I heard that Moratti said at that time, Inter Milan has money, if you want to buy it, buy the God of War. Why buy the little God of War?
If he can really meet Inter Milan, Su Dong really wants to let Moratti see whether the old God of War is better or the young God of War!
There are also many strong teams in the third tier. Celtic, the runner-up in the UEFA Cup, Ajax, the old giant of the Netherlands, Marseille in Ligue 1... These are all strong teams with good strength, and they are all good if they encounter them.
Very troublesome.
Logically speaking, the fourth tier should be the weakest, but in fact, there are still teams such as Real Sociedad, Stuttgart, Monaco and Besiktas.
Even though Besiktas was eliminated by Sporting Lisbon in the UEFA Cup last season, this Turkish team is very strong. The head coach Lucescu is a famous European coach and his coaching ability is extraordinary.
There are no underdogs in the Champions League, and no team that can advance to the group stage is easy.
…
The results of the lottery are coming out one after another.
Almost every team that is drawn makes people's hearts beat faster.
I don’t know if Aimar’s crow’s mouth worked, or if there was really a so-called conspiracy. As the seed team, Valencia was drawn in the second round and the team it drew turned out to be Inter Milan.
This made everyone in the rest area take a breath.
Valencia meets Inter Milan, Benitez meets Cooper again, and Sudong will also meet Vieri.
What is more disappointing is that after a failed loan period, the God of War Batistuta left European football and went to play for a team in Qatar. It was somewhat regretful that there was no confrontation between the old and new Gods of War.
What is even more unexpected is that the team in the third pot drew Marseille from Ligue 1.
This is another strong team!
In the fourth pot, we had better luck and were drawn against Club Brugge of Belgium. However, this team eliminated Dortmund of the Bundesliga in the third round of qualifiers and advanced to the group stage, so their strength should not be underestimated.
Everyone in the lounge was a little confused, the scene became extremely quiet, and everyone showed a solemn expression.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Valencia is indeed not weak, but it is not so strong that it ignores any opponent.
Needless to say, Inter Milan, Marseille and Bruges both have the ability to challenge Valencia.
In other words, the four teams in this group are very close in strength, and everyone has a chance to stand out.
This is also a "conspiracy" in the Champions League group stage.
If you have good luck in drawing lots, it means you are strong and weak; if you have bad luck in drawing lots, you have average strength.
"Do we think we have been drawn into the death group?" Vicente asked with a wry smile.
"Don't count, after all, they are not top wealthy families." Marchena replied.
Valencia is a new player and Inter Milan is a veteran club, but the Nerazzurri's record this year cannot be said to be top-notch.
"The four teams in our group have all participated in the Champions League final." Captain Albelda reminded.
"Ah?" Everyone was surprised.
"Both Inter Milan and Marseille have won the Champions League. Inter Milan has two championships and has participated in four Champions League finals. Marseille has one championship and has participated in two Champions League finals. We have participated in two Champions League finals. Brugge is
once."
After a pause, Albelda smiled bitterly and said: "It is probably rare for people like our group to be like this."
Everyone was silent, it is not easy to play in such a group stage!
"I think……"
Feeling that the atmosphere at the scene was a bit solemn, Su Dong smiled slightly and said, "Don't think too much, it's already drawn, so there's no point in thinking about it. We Chinese have an old saying, if soldiers come to block you, if water comes to cover, no matter who you encounter, fight to the death."
That’s it!”
When everyone heard this, they all felt that Su Dong was simplistic.
But if you think about it carefully, it is indeed the truth.
No matter how much you think about it, you still have to go to the court and fight for real.
Unlike others who were in a heavy mood, Su Dong was a little eager to give it a try.
It’s also a good opportunity to meet Inter Milan!
…………
…………
The draw results for the Champions League group stage had just been released, and it immediately stirred up waves.
Media around the world rushed to pay attention to the report, and the results of the draw were mixed.
Teams that draw good draws are as happy as finding gold. After all, every Champions League game brings real money and silver income. If they can stand out from the group stage and enter the knockout rounds, the income will be even more generous.
Of course, if you accidentally become extremely happy and become sad, it will be the end of you.
People like Valencia, who are drawn at the bottom of the lottery, can't express their pain even if they feel miserable.
Sometimes, luck in the Champions League draw is indeed crucial. It can even be said that every team that wins the last laugh has relatively good luck.
In an interview with the media, Benitez said that he would not consider the Champions League group stage draw prematurely, because for Valencia, the most important thing right now is the opening game of La Liga.
According to the schedule, La Liga must play two games in four days before the national team match day in early September. This is not a small challenge for Valencia, because Valencia has played two more Champions League games than other teams.
Peripheral qualifiers.
"In today's Champions League, there are seven or eight teams that are capable of competing for the championship, such as Manchester United, Real Madrid, AC Milan and Juventus, etc., but this does not include Valencia, even though we are a seeded team."
Benitez still spoke very calmly, and then changed the subject.
"But we have enough strength and experience to play more games. We will not stop in the group stage. The premise is that we must focus on playing every game well so that we can have a chance to advance to the knockout rounds.
"
Benitez also said that the team's strength has improved compared to last season, and it is also a good thing to be able to face Inter Milan again. "Encountering the same opponent can better make everyone, including ourselves,
We all see the improvement in the team’s strength.”
Benitez said he respected Cooper but was eager to beat Inter Milan.
"If I were asked to choose a player among many players who can help the team lead the team out of a stalemate similar to last season's knockout round, then there is no doubt that I think it will be Su Dong."
"That's why I decided to sign him, he will be the most critical winner in the game!"
Benitez's words made Su Dong, who had been a little popular before the league started, once again thrust into the spotlight by the media, especially in the first round of the league, which has always been difficult to play.
