Four Hundred and Twenty-Four Goals, the More the Better!

Before I knew it, it was the third season since I came to Naples.

Sometimes, Yinwan Rakitic can't help but think of the scene when he met the head coach Gao Shen for the first time in the small town called Molin on the outskirts of Basel.

At that time, he would never have imagined that he would usher in the fastest progress in his career, which can be called the three years of rapid progress.

Before representing Croatia in the European Cup, Rakitic was interviewed by the media. He talked about Gao Shen’s help to him. There is one point in it, Gao Shen is completely different from all other head coaches.

"He has a pair of unique eyes, as if he can see the uniqueness of each player, dig out the potential and advantages of each player, and blend them into a complete set of reasonable tactics."

Yes, this is Rakitic's biggest impression of Gao Shen.

He came to Naples with doubts and apprehensions.

Because he doesn't know, what can this newly promoted Serie B team bring to him? How much can the prospect outlined by the head coach be realized? Could this head coach who was not much older than himself be a liar?

But now, three years later, he has to say that he made a wise decision.

These three seasons in Italy are the three seasons in which he has improved the most, and it is also the three seasons in which he has established his own style and tactical characteristics. Although he is only 20 years old, he already has very obvious technical and tactical characteristics .

Gao Shen once commented on Rakitic in an interview with the media.

He said: "If I were to choose, I would think that Rakitic is the benchmark player with the most modern football midfield characteristics in today's Serie A league and even European football, because he is too comprehensive."

In terms of defense, he is not as good as Vidal, in terms of organization, he is not as good as Biglia, and in terms of offense, he is not as good as Hamsik...

But he just firmly locked the main position of a midfielder.

Because he is very comprehensive, he can do any job, and he can do it well.

In the words of the head coach, the requirements of modern football tactics for midfielders are comprehensive.

Partial undergraduates will have less and less living space.

Looking at all the midfielders in Naples, they are basically both offensive and defensive.

The difference is to attack more or defend more.

In Naples' midfield combination, the division of labor is also very clear.

Gao Shen once mentioned this to Rakitic.

If you track all the Naples games this season, it is not difficult to find that Gao Shen likes to use 433 in the Champions League, but the midfielder basically uses Big The combination of Leah and Rakitic.

There is a reason for this.

In the warm-up match, the coaching staff tried many different combinations, but there were some problems.

In contrast, the combination of Biglia and Rakitic is the most stable.

But in 433, the tasks of the two are very different from those in 4231.

Thiago Motta is a barrier in front of the defense. Strictly speaking, defense is his main task, but at the same time he also bears the burden of distributing the ball reasonably, passing the ball to the right teammates at the right time, This is Barcelona's number four.

Rakitic has played in this position, but he is not used to it.

The other two players, Biglia can control the rhythm. His mind is always very calm, responsible for organizing and controlling the rhythm, and at the same time launching offenses when the offense and defense transition. He is also very comprehensive, like a command tower.

If you watch Biglia play carefully, you will find that although he can make long passes and forward passes when he meets the right time, in fact, in a game, he runs more laterally. Mainly responsible for support.

But Rakitic is different. He runs more vertically, participates in the offense forward, goes forward to score the ball or shoot from a long distance, and retreats back to the defense line. This also makes Rakitic have a strong kick long-range kung fu.

Rakitic and his teammates once had a question, why is it the combination of Rakitic and Biglia?

Vidal? Hamsik? Nainggolan? Parejo? Pastore?

Why can't it be someone else?

At the beginning, everyone didn't understand, but after some games and the head coach's analysis, everyone gradually understood the reason.

If you play four-three-three, consisting of two Rakitics, then Naples' midfielder will completely lose their sense of rhythm, the organization will be chaotic, and even defense will have problems, because these two players are likely to see them before they see them. Insert the space, and insert it at the same time, but ignore the hidden danger behind.

If it is a combination of two Biglia, the rhythm of the game will become very slow, the depth of the midfield will be completely lost, the coverage will be greatly weakened, and the pressure on the opponent will also be reduced.

Therefore, in the past two or three years, Gao Shen has repeatedly adjusted the lineup and repeatedly adjusted the players.

Rakitic knows very well that when he played in Switzerland, he was not what he is now, and when Biglia first came to Naples, he was not what he is now, but they are slowly being refined into the head coach's mind. The way you want.

This is also of great benefit to them.

Not only has their performance improved significantly, but they have also gradually gained fame in European football, and at the same time found the direction of their careers, which will be of great benefit to them.

At least, Rakitic is very clear that everything he has today comes from the cultivation and refinement of the head coach Gao Shen for many years, which made him already in the European football at the age of 20. The altar rose to fame.

It has even attracted the attention of many wealthy teams.

This was unimaginable before.

In return for the head coach, Rakitic always does his best in every game, and he will go forward bravely at every opportunity, and he never discounts any tactical arrangements made by the head coach.

Therefore, when the game started, Naples snatched the ball under the pressing pressure and instigated an attack from the left. When the opponent's defensive player is opened, he is aware of the opportunity and advances without hesitation.

This is his task!

Biglia's pass finds Cavani with precision.

The Argentine midfielder's pass is always very precise, and after Cavani blocked the opponent's central defender with his body, he stopped the ball with his chest and tried to turn around and hit the goal, but the opponent was already prepared, so the Uruguayan center immediately protected the ball.

At this moment, Rakitic quickly stepped forward and called out Cavani.

The two have played together for more than two years, and they are very familiar with each other. Cavani knows Rakitic's tactical tasks and playing habits. As soon as he heard the shout, he immediately crossed the ball to the top of the arc. Right.

Rakitic rushed to the horse, and before Tymoshchuk rushed over, he didn't stop the ball and shot directly.

Cavani's pass was very comfortable, and Rakitic's shot was also in place.

The ball flew out quickly like a cannonball and hit the right side of Zenit's goal directly.

...

"GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!"

"Less than two minutes into the game, Naples opened the scoring!"

"Cavani received a long pass from his teammate and assisted Rakitic to score a long shot."

"It was a beautiful shot from long distance, at a high level and Rakitic made a very good start for Napoli."

"One to zero!"

After Rakitic scored the goal, the whole person was so excited that he turned around and ran out.

The Naples fans in the audience were shouting and cheering hoarsely.

Could there be a better start than scoring the lead in less than two minutes?

Gao Shen also jumped up excitedly on the sidelines, applauding loudly for his players.

Rakitic's goal came just in time!

To score the goal first is also Gao Shen's request to the players before the game.

With a goal, the next game will be much easier.

But after the celebration, Gao Shen walked to the sidelines again, shouted at the players, and signaled them to press up and press tighter.

In terms of strength, Naples has the advantage.

Gao Shen didn't want to give Zenit a chance to react, but wanted to beat his opponent in one go.

...

Advocaat's team actually played really unconservatively.

The two sides performed extremely bravely in the first game. Even if they were away at the San Paolo Stadium in this game, even if they conceded the goal less than two minutes into the game, they still fought fiercely against Naples.

They had a cross from Denisov in the fourth minute, but Handanovic deflected the ball straight out of the air.

Naples quickly counterattacked. Vargas sent a cross from the left side of the front court. Sanchez got the ball from the left side and cut inside. upper right corner.

The result was slightly wide and failed to form a shot, but it still made Zenit break out in a cold sweat.

Naples, who were playing at home, took this opportunity to suppress Zenit again and launched a wave of onslaught.

In the 11th minute, Naples once again pushed the defense across the midfield, and Biglia and Rakitic have both pushed into the 30-meter area.

After getting a pass from his teammate, Biglia scored the ball from the center to the left. After Sanchez broke into the penalty area from the left rib, he kicked the goal again.

But this time the shot was too straight and was blocked by the opponent's goalkeeper.

But Naples quickly made a comeback.

In just one minute, after the Naples midfielder successfully intercepted the ball, Thiago Motta received a pass back from his teammate. After controlling the rhythm a little, he sent a pass to the right side of the front of the penalty area.

Di Maria ran inside and volleyed with his left foot after stopping the ball, hitting a curve ball.

The goalkeeper of Zenit made a save by accident, and the ball was shot by Cavani, who came in after him, and blasted the ball into Zenit's goal again.

Two to zero!

The entire St. Paul Stadium boiled up!

In just over 12 minutes, Naples scored two goals in a row.

This is definitely a scene that surprised everyone, but when watching the game, some people will take it for granted.

Because Zenit has never gained a firm foothold since the beginning of the game, and has never tried to control the ball and rhythm.

The entire game was under the control of Naples.

The fans at the St. Paul Stadium were cheering wildly, hoping that the team could continue to attack!

Goals, the more the better?