Ultimate Demon Sword

Chapter 219 State ups and downs

On January [-]rd, before the end of the domestic New Year's Day holiday, Atletico Madrid had regrouped, and the competition tasks followed one after another.In the first round of the Copa del Rey's quarter-finals, Atletico Madrid will go to Lleida in the Catalonia region to challenge away to Lleida, the West C team that eliminated Real Sociedad in the last round.

If it weren't for Simeone's self-confidence that the team's strength has an absolute advantage, he would never let the team devote themselves to the game task as soon as they received the leave.It can only be said that Simeone values ​​the league more.The Copa del Rey is just a platform for him to discover new players and restore some of the main players who have returned from injury.Atletico Madrid is not as rich as Barcelona, ​​and can rule out two or three similar lineups.So for relatively tasteless cup games, we can only take one step at a time.

For the away game against Lleida, Wen Zhihao was placed in the squad to go with the team.In addition to him, Simeone also arranged for half of the main players of the first team to play away games.Because Lleida's comeback against Real Sociedad in the last round also sounded the alarm for Simeone, so I dare not take it lightly.

Although the importance of the Copa del Rey has to be relied on, if the ship is overturned in front of the West C team, the team's face is one thing, and doubts from all sides will not make Simeone feel better.

Being the coach of a wealthy family is certainly famous and glorious, but there is one thing that is very unfair.External requirements can be harsh.Everyone will think it is normal to win and win consecutively. Few people think of the head coach when they win.And once they are upset and lose, the head coach is probably the first to take the blame.Even if it is the mistakes of the players on the field, the head coach will be accused of making mistakes on the spot or poorly controlling the team.

So Simeone is extremely cautious the more he is against weak teams.Although strategically ignoring the opponent, but tactically, he paid special attention to it. At least the main players including Wen Zhihao played in the starting lineup before the game. Simeone especially asked that he should not take chances just because the opponent is weak, and wait for the opponent to make a mistake. He should still actively create opportunities and seize opportunities like the normal rhythm of the game.

In this game, Simeone wants more than just the result.A victory with no tactical value fails to achieve the fundamental purpose of discovering newcomers.

The teenager Barre, who had an eye-catching performance in the last round of the Copa del Rey, continued to start as the right midfielder this round. Although this young player has no chance to play in the league, it can be seen from the arrangement of the Copa del Rey that he has entered the scope of Simeone's investigation.

Wen Zhihao was assigned a special extra task, try to pass the ball to Barre as much as possible, Wen Zhihao understood Simeone's intention in no time, it was to focus on observing him.Wen Zhihao gave Barre a look of "you are very lucky", but he didn't know how much pressure Barre had in front of him and how much he envied him.

Barre is 20 years old, and he is still working hard for the possibility of being a substitute for the main team. Compared with Wen Zhihao, who is three years younger than him, he has become an important weapon for the team in the Champions League and La Liga.What made him feel the gap most was that his own performance depended on Wen Zhihao passing him the ball!
……

However, during the game, Simeone found that something was wrong. Barre's firepower output on the right side that he wanted to see was completely absent.Facing the West C team, 10 minutes before the opening, the scene of Cork and Barre flying on both wings did not appear.The crux of the problem is not Barre, but Wen Zhihao, whom Simeone has always been completely relieved of!
It's not that Wen Zhihao's passing is not accurate enough, his passing times seem to be very few.

On the one hand, it is certainly the reason for the intensive defense of the opponent's five defenders, but is the West C team like freezing Wen Zhihao?

Internal factors are always the main ones.Wen Zhihao's movement speed and running range on the court are completely different from his normal state before the holiday.Moreover, after being intercepted by the opponent, the counter-grab is not as active as usual.

Simeone was very puzzled. It stands to reason that after nearly a week of vacation, as long as there is enough self-discipline, the rest and adjustment time should be enough.

what is going on?Could the problem be the holidays?

Simeone will not doubt Wen Zhihao's self-discipline ability.A person who often trains himself is not hard enough?
The only reason for Simeone to convince himself is that the previous part of the schedule was too intensive. Wen Zhihao estimated that he practiced too frequently, did not have enough rest, and his body reacted slowly.

Despite Wen Zhihao's slump, Atletico Madrid still achieved an absolute advantage in the scene by virtue of their overall strong strength.At halftime, Simeone removed Wen Zhihao and replaced Saul to continue strengthening the midfield.

Wen Zhihao knows how well he plays. Since joining Atletico Madrid, he has never been replaced in the first half of the game.It must be his performance that made the boss very dissatisfied.

Wen Zhihao was mentally prepared to accept criticism, but what Simeone gave him was encouragement.

After Saul came on the field, although Atletico Madrid's formation changed from 4-4-2 to a single striker formation, the two wings were completely activated. Atletico Madrid's first scoring goal came from Barre's arc shot after two passes from the wing.

After 10 minutes, the three players in the front court of Atletico Madrid made a pass, Saul made a pass, and Gameiro used his body to support the opponent's central defender to shoot, and the ball went straight into the dead corner.

The final score is also fixed at 2:0, which is not a big victory, but it is enough.Atletico Madrid won the first victory of the new year.

……

The Copa del Rey is just the beginning of the second half of the season.There are only four days left before the start of the No.18 round of La Liga. Wen Zhihao's sudden decline made Simeone very worried.At the away hotel that night, Simeone had a conversation with Wen Zhihao.He didn't directly mention the past game, but just reminded Wen Zhihao to pay attention to scientifically adjust his physical condition, and he will play a bigger role in the more difficult second half of the game.

Of course Wen Zhihao could hear the implication in Simeone's words.For others, Simeone may be the most direct criticism: I am very dissatisfied with your performance in this game, adjust yourself!
There is no need for a heavy hammer to beat the drum. Wen Zhihao understands this truth, and patted his chest to promise Simeone that when the league restarts, he will return to his normal state before the holiday.

In fact, there was a reason why Wen Zhihao was more or less aware of his physical condition.

Blame Gabby!
Those few glasses of wine not only made me drunk all night, but also slept all morning.It also disrupted his normal training plan.

And professional athletes are physically demanding.Ordinary people will not be affected after sobering up, but it is more difficult for teetotal players to recover after exposure to alcohol.Alcohol has a huge effect on motor nerves.

If he can't afford to offend, but can afford to hide, Wen Zhihao decides that he can no longer hang out with Gabi in the future, and it's the best policy to stay away from him.

Thinking of this, Wen Zhihao felt that he was quite kind and didn't tell the head coach that he was drunk, otherwise Gabi would definitely be in trouble.

For the unity of the team, Wen Zhihao felt that he had fully considered the overall situation.But when he thinks of Gabi's scam, is it worth it for him to take the blame for him?
(End of this chapter)