There is a belief called football

Chapter 267 Defensive Triangle

The Belgian stopped the ball out of the baseline, and Stein gestured to Webb for a substitution. Webb agreed, but he didn't continue the game right away.

For the first time, the Brazil World Cup has carried out a humanization reform. For the first time, a football game can stop and let players drink water on the sidelines during the game, commonly known as "drinking water time".

The game was played at 2 pm local time in Brazil, which was the hottest time of the day, so Webber allowed the players to drink water to cool down when the ball went out of bounds and caused a dead ball.

Stan used this time to repeat the tactical arrangement to Li Weifeng.

"After you go up, you have to form the second defensive triangle of the Chinese team. The first one is Zheng Zhi, Wei Xiao, and Zhou Dun. And after you go up, you have to form a second defensive triangle with Wei Xiao and Zhang Chengdong."
Li Weifeng nodded as he listened. This must be the last time he participated in the World Cup, and it is likely to be the last time he was selected for the Chinese team. In fact, he is the same as Van Buyten of Belgium. Van Buyten, who was born in 1978, announced before the start of the World Cup that he would retire after the World Cup.

Li Weifeng, who was also born in 1978, is the "Van Buyten" of the Chinese team, and their last "burning passion" was left to the country.

Li Weifeng paid special attention to every word Stan said, he kept every word in his heart, and executed Stan's tactical orders meticulously after playing. Sometimes football games are really like wars. The coach must be wise and the soldiers must work hard, then the desired result can be achieved.

After speaking, Stan gave Li Weifeng a small piece of paper with specific tactical arrangements and illustrations. Normally, the coach’s tactics can be verbally brought up by the players who replaced him. However, some referees are impatient and will ask the players to return to their positions immediately. Just in case, Stan wrote down the tactics in a small piece of paper.

"For Joe Lee," Stan said.

Li Weifeng nodded.

After drinking water, Weber resumed the game. Li Qiao took Stan's small note, on which he drew something and added a few words - "You are the only one left in front, Ding Mu, Lin Zhijian will withdraw to defend".

The game continued, and the Chinese team changed to a formation of 4321, but this time the three players in front did not form a triangle, but two retreated, leaving only Li Qiao alone in the Belgian half.

A good coach should predict the situation on the field in advance. Stein knows that after Belgium returns to its usual style of play, it will be as difficult to defend as Barcelona. Belgian midfielders are all at a level that can join Barcelona. Hazard and De Bruyne are no worse than Barcelona's midfielders.

Why is Barcelona so difficult to defend?It is because their midfielders can finally "create out of nothing" through seemingly ineffective passes again and again, and "create" a chance through a pass in a situation where there seems to be no chance at all.

Belgium played like that in the first 15 minutes of the second half, which is what Stan wants to see most. For example, it would be like Barcelona not wanting to play in the midfield, and directly let "Pique" make a long pass to find "Messi" in the penalty area. This kind of play seems to be fast-paced, but it is self-defeating.

After the change, Belgium's three lines advanced layer by layer, protecting each other, like a boat connected by iron chains. It was obvious that the Chinese team was not as strong as their opponents. Stan's change also had a very clear purpose-to keep a tie and get a point.

*****
In fact, even the Chinese team has 10 people defending and 1 person playing guerrilla in front, but the scene is still very passive.

In the 2010 UEFA Champions League semi-final, Inter Milan led by Mourinho played against Barcelona. After gaining an advantage at home, Inter Milan was determined to defend away. However, Inter Milan, which was known as the strongest defense at the time, almost failed to defend away.

Defending on the football field is very tiring, not only physically, but also mentally. On the one hand, you have to endure the depression caused by being beaten, and on the other hand, you have to be highly concentrated. This is why everyone knows the Italian "concrete defense", but others cannot learn this technique.

After making adjustments, the Chinese team strictly maintained the formation. If there is a high-altitude overhead shot, you will find that the Chinese team's half-court players are positioned in a triangle. Wei Xiao, Zhou Dun and Zheng Zhi in front form a triangle, and goalkeeper Wang Dalei also forms a triangle behind.

The triangle is not only the most stable geometric figure, but also the most effective local formation on the football field.

If it is a parallel position, even if there are 100 people, if you break through one of them, you will break through the other 1. But the triangle position is different, even if you break through a triangle, you will enter the next triangle.

Let’s use another analogy. For example, the triangle formed by Wei Xiao, Zhang Chengdong, and Li Weifeng is called A, and the triangle formed by Wei Xiao, Zhou Dun, and Zheng Zhi is called B. If Hazard of Belgium breaks through the A triangle of the Chinese team, he will immediately fall into the B triangle.

Usually in Asian games, Stan does not need the front man to come back, because the defensive triangle in the backcourt is enough, but in the Belgian game, Stan feels that no amount of triangles is enough, so he can only keep one Li Qiao in front.

From the start of the Chinese team's substitution to the 25 minutes of the second half, within 10 minutes, although Belgium launched a fierce attack on the Chinese team, the Chinese team's defense did not show any loopholes. Except for Dembele's shot from the arc of the penalty area, which hit the goal frame and threatened Wang Dalei. In addition, although Belgium had more than 10% of the ball in these 75 minutes, it did not form a substantial opportunity.

*****
Stan replaced Li Weifeng 15 minutes into the second half. From then on, there were still 30 minutes before the end of the game. Taking 10 minutes as a time period, Stan divided these 30 minutes into 3 thresholds. Now that the first threshold has been passed, Stan feels that the team can score a full score in these 10 minutes.

But every next level will be more difficult than the previous ones. The first is the intensity of the competition. The Chinese players consume a lot of energy. Although they have undergone special training on high altitudes, they don't know if they can persist.

Second, there are still several masters sitting on the Belgian bench. If Belgium has not scored after 75 minutes, Wilmots will definitely use up the remaining two substitutions.

Whatever you are afraid of, Stan turned his eyes and saw two people coming out of the Belgian bench and running towards the "warm-up zone".

Stein estimated that by the 75th minute, the Belgian side would definitely make a substitution.

In the 74th minute of the game, when the ball was dead, the line referee crossed the flag in his hand, and Belgium made a substitution. After the fourth official routinely checked the studs of "Origi" and "Mertens", the two entered the field.

"Origi" replaced the midfielder "Fellaini", and "Mertens" replaced "Miralas".

After the substitutions, Belgium became 442, diamond-shaped midfielder, Dembele played the midfielder, De Bruyne played the midfielder, Mertens played the right midfielder, Hazard's position remained the same, Origi and Lukaku formed a terrifying "black wind double evil".

Stan knew that all of this could not be escaped, but when Belgium actually formed such a formation and players, Stan was still caught a lot in his heart. How much pressure his disciples had to endure! !
*****
In the last 15 minutes, Belgium was a scumbag. They were determined. Before the game, they were rated by experts as the team that had the same chance to compete in the Hercules Cup as Germany, Argentina, and Brazil.

At the critical moment, Stan kept walking on the sidelines like the Argentine coach "Marcelo Bielsa" back then, but unlike Bielsa, Bielsa just paced and didn't speak, but Stan applauded and yelled at the players loudly while walking.

"There are still 15 minutes, we can do it, think about it, more than a billion people are looking at you now, one point, one point can make them happy and satisfied."

After all, the effect of the mental victory method is limited. Faced with the continuous blows from Belgium, the triangles formed in the backcourt of the Chinese team gradually loosened. At first, they were equilateral triangles, and later became isosceles triangles. Now they have become obtuse triangles.

Obviously, the players can no longer keep up with each other, and they can persist because of a spirit—a spirit that Stan has brought to everyone in the past two years—football is belief, she is not a game, and behind her is national honor.

When the game lasted to 87 minutes, Belgium launched an attack. Origi and Lukaku in the penalty area disrupted the defensive formation of the Chinese team. In an instant, a "no man's land" appeared in front of the penalty area.

Although Zheng Zhi is in the position, he obviously can't run anymore. Belgian Hazard took the ball in this position. He glanced at it, rubbed a curved ball with the arch of his foot and went straight to the far corner of the goal.

Wang Dalei made a pounce, but in the absence of defense, Hazard kicked such a ball very accurately. When the ball crossed half of the penalty area and entered the goal of the Chinese team, all the players of the Chinese team fell down.

Only Li Qiao stood alone in the frontcourt, and he watched silently with a blank face. He watched half of the ball, and his teammates had done their best.

The morale of the Chinese team was obviously hit at the re-kick-off, and the Belgian side also got the result they wanted. In the last few minutes, the two sides made no achievements. In the end, the Chinese team lost 1-2 to the European Red Devils Belgium in the first match of the World Cup.

They lost the game, but after the game, all the Brazilian fans cheered for the Chinese team. They shouted "China" in Portuguese in unison. Brazil is indeed the kingdom of football. They saw the hard work of the Chinese team.

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(End of this chapter)