"When we face such a team, one scenario we can imagine is that we control the ball throughout the game and then play around their penalty area."

"But in this case, it is very likely that they will fall into their favorite routine. In other words, they have been playing like this this season, and they are very adaptable to such pressure."

"Once they get the ball and launch a quick counterattack, Mahrez's ball control and breakthrough, Vardy's speed and shooting, may cause a fatal blow to us."

"But like any tactic, setting up a bus has its advantages and disadvantages. When a team sets up a bus, they will naturally concentrate on defending in the middle. This means that the space on the left and right wings can be utilized...

…”

Pan Yi rearranged the tactical board and placed the chess pieces representing Chelsea players in corresponding positions on both sides.

Then, he pressed the remote control, and another game video played on the screen.

"When it comes to controlling the ball and playing against the bus, which two teams come to mind? Yes, it's Barcelona versus Atletico Madrid."

"Barcelona always has to face teams with big numbers in the league, and Atletico Madrid is the most powerful opponent among them. But Barcelona can always break the opponent's defense, and one of their ways to break the opponent's defense is in the penalty area.

Move the ball around quickly."

"Iniesta, Messi, Neymar and Suarez are all capable of playing at such a pace, making it difficult for the opposing players to get back in time and find the correct defensive position."

"Look at this shot. After Neymar got the ball in the dangerous area, Albala quickly put it on him. Then, Alba got the ball in the dangerous area."

"Although Atletico Madrid has the upper hand in the number of people in the penalty area, Messi and Rakitic have gained a lot of space at this time. One thing is very important here. You can see that Atletico Madrid players are paying attention at this time.

Where."

"Atletico Madrid players are all staring at Alba, but no one pays attention to Messi's running. In this way, as long as the Argentine moves to the right position, he can shoot."

"Then in the next shot, Alba passed the ball to the dangerous area, and Messi rushed to score the goal."

"Please note that, including the goalkeeper, Atletico Madrid had nine defensive players in the penalty area, but Messi still managed to find a kicking opportunity. This is a typical way to crack the bus."

"Although we don't have Messi, we do have Hazard, Bernardo Silva, and Harry Kane. They can still tear apart their defense through this kind of cooperation."

"Of course, in order to achieve this tactical goal, I will also make certain adjustments to the initial formation and starting lineup..."

——

While the Chelsea coaching staff was studying tactics, a Premier League preview program on Sky Sports was also going on at the same time.

Several guests were arguing fiercely about an issue, that is:

Are Leicester City a flash in the pan?

Lineker believes that Leicester City is the Southampton of last season and will not last long.

This is of course well-founded.

In the last season, that is, the 2014-15 season, the big dark horse Southampton was hollowed out in the pre-season main center axis. Before the Premier League game at the end of November, it had been at the forefront of the standings and performed better than the same period this season.

Leicester City is better.

But in December, Southampton began a serious wave of injuries and ultimately only finished eighth.

Leicester City so far this season also match every weakness Southampton had before the start of last season.

First, the players are unknown and their abilities are questionable.

Second, the new coach took office and was not favored.

Third, the lineup is weak, there are too many new players, and the integration is questionable.

This is also a common problem with dark horses.

And why can Leicester City now reach second place, second only to the super strong team Chelsea?

Lineker also laid out Leicester City's first 15 rounds of fixtures this season.

It can be seen that most of the top six teams last season, Leicester City met in the Christmas schedule, and the teams they met every week in the early part of the season were mid-to-lower teams.

Different from the intensive schedule of upper-tier teams due to their European war missions, mid-tier and lower-tier teams almost always play one game a week in the early stages of the season.

Adequate rest and an advantageous physical condition, coupled with appropriate tactics, make the beginning of each season a time when dark horses emerge.

Similarly, upstream teams have more national team members and need to travel considerable distances to participate in international competitions on international match days, resulting in reduced physical fitness and potential injuries.

The lower-tier teams have fewer national team members, but international match days have become the best time for tactical improvement and training.

Let’s take Southampton last season as an example. Their schedule also started to encounter strong teams in December, and then their performance began to decline.

Therefore, based on experience, Lineker is not optimistic that Leicester City can still grab points when facing strong teams before and after the Christmas schedule.

"If Leicester City can still be ranked in the top four after the Christmas schedule, I will host the show in my underwear!" Lineker finally said.

This caused everyone in the studio to laugh.

Carragher then said: "Gary Neville bet that Pan Yi's Chelsea could not remain unbeaten, so he took off his clothes and sat here. You are lucky, now you want to take off your pants!"

Zola also said: "I'm afraid you are going to lose. Don't forget, Pan Yi has always been very optimistic about Leicester City, and even said so before the start of the season. Therefore, I also believe that Leicester City can

Black to the end.”

Lineker shook his head firmly: "Instead of believing that Leicester City can make the top four, I would rather believe that Gary Neville will become an awesome coach."

Just a few days ago, Valencia Club officially announced that it had signed a contract with Manchester United legend Gary Neville, who officially became the head coach of Valencia!

Regarding Gary Neville, Valencia wrote on its official website: "Throughout his career, he has shown outstanding leadership. In English football, Gary Neville has proven himself, and we are convinced that

This is the right choice and he will lead the team until the end of the 2015-16 season."

Carragher laughed: "Compared to the two, I still believe that Leicester City can succeed. I even doubt whether Gary can stay in Valencia until the end of this season..."

Roy Keane also came over and said: "I still believe in Gary's ability. I don't think Ranieri is very good, and I don't think he is much better than Gary."

The 64-year-old Italian Ranieri has been known as the "tinker" during his career, a coach who is similar to firefighting and transitional.

In nearly thirty years of coaching, he has yet to win any top league title.

"Tinker" has also changed from representing his ability to quickly combine the characteristics of the team with strong combat power to a mocking and ironic title.

Before Ranieri came to Leicester City, Fox City had not yet enjoyed the joy of relegation. News came that three of the team's players had made a sex video and were racially profiled during the Thailand tour.

Leicester City's senior management quickly fired three young players, as well as the father of one of the players, head coach Pearson, who led the team to miraculously avoid relegation.

So when Ranieri took office, the media had a very consistent tone - he was here to "fill the pot" again.

At the beginning of taking office, Ranieri faced last season's relegation challenge. Veteran Cambiaso refused to renew his contract. As the absolute core of Leicester City last season, Cambiaso was famous for his superb health-care playing style. Premier League stadium.

Losing Cambiaso has cast another shadow on Leicester City's prospects for the new season.

Therefore, Roy Keane is not optimistic about Leicester City, but he analyzes it from the perspective of internal problems of the coach and the team.

"Perhaps we still have to wait for the direct showdown between Leicester City and Chelsea before we can make the most accurate judgment."

Alan Shearer, who had been silent all the time, finally said:

"Leicester City performed really well this year. We all know about Vardy. He is the Bundesliga Golden Boot and the Champions League champion. Needless to say, he is very capable."

"But other players should not be underestimated. Especially Mahrez, if he can perform against Chelsea, then they really have the possibility of making a splash in the Premier League this season."

On January 11, 2014, Leicester City announced the signing of Algerian winger Mahrez from Le Havre in the French second division for a transfer fee of 500,000 pounds to compete in the English Championship.

At this point in the season, Mahrez has relied on his outstanding performance to earn a transfer price of 50 million euros, a 100-fold increase from two years ago.

He was also dubbed by fans as the real "thigh" standing behind Vardy.

And his life trajectory is somewhat similar to Vardy's. He almost couldn't play football when he was young.

It wasn't until the age of 19 that he joined the youth team of France's fourth-level professional team and participated in the French seventh-level league. Before that, he was just a street football enthusiast - excellent dribbling and excellent ball feel, but thin and thin. There is no tactical awareness at all.

It wasn't until he was 22 years old that he finally played in the first team, and then he was brought to Leicester City. Finally, in the 2014-2015 season, this former street boy played in the top league.

Amazing sense of the ball, excellent dribbling, thin body, poor passing selection, poor defensive ability, poor shooting skills... This is the general impression of Leicester City fans before Miracle was relegated.

Then came the critical period of relegation, and Mahrez's performance improved. Against Southampton, the dark horse of the season, the Algerian scored two goals, ensuring that the team completed a victory escape and successfully avoided relegation.

In the 2015-16 season, he ushered in a complete explosion. His extremely excellent dribbling ability and passing made him established as the absolute core of Ranieri's staff.

With his excellent left-foot skills and superhuman flexibility, the Algerian, who was once almost blocked from the professional league due to his thinness, has become the most pleasing technical player this season. Many of his goals are enough to be included in the best goals of the season.

of ranks.

At this time, Carragher also agreed: "To be honest, what Mahrez does with his left foot, I have only seen Messi do. ​​If he keeps doing this, I have no doubt that he will

Become a real star, and you may be poached by wealthy clubs in the future."

"Well, it seems that you are quite optimistic about this group of players from Leicester City." Lineker said helplessly, "But I also wonder if you were affected by Pan Yi's remarks..."

"Anyway, Pan Yi will soon personally lead the team to face this year's dark horse. Let's wait and see what a good show it will be!"
Chapter completed!