Football No. 10: God's Perspective

Midweek, match day, Wies** Stadium.

In the first round of the Champions League 1/8 knockout round, Dortmund was in an extremely unfavorable situation away from home. After Wang Po's flash moment, they won a precious draw. What was more important was the away goal. In other words, if it was a 0-0 draw in this round, Dortmund would advance to the 1/4 knockout round with the advantage of away goals.

Such a small advantage also gave Dortmund more room for maneuver in the second round in terms of tactical formulation.

On the contrary, Juventus was forced into a desperate situation and had to attack. If they wanted to advance, they had to attack.

"Steady, the full-backs should pay attention to cutting inside, and the wing forwards should pay attention to recovering to protect the midfield."

Before the game, Tuchel repeatedly reminded the players.

The midfield strangled Pjanic and the forwards restricted Dybala, and Juventus's offense collapsed by more than half. "Pay attention to assisting defense and rotating positions."

Compared to the first round of confrontation, when the emphasis was placed on the offensive line, this time against Juventus, Tuchel focused on building a defensive system.

In the player tunnel.

"Hey, I bet you have no chance to break through my goal this time."

Buffon took the initiative and said confidently.

"Really? My foot has been a bit smooth recently." Wang Po joked.

"Haha, we are well prepared this time." Chiellini smiled and said.

Before the big battle, it can be seen that the players of Juventus are still relatively relaxed.

Bonucci was still indignant about being the background board of Wang Po's goal last time. He raised his eyebrows and interjected, "We won't give you any chance this time."

"See you on the court." Wang Po said with full fighting spirit.

The four made an "ok" gesture.

The passionate Champions League march echoed in the Westfalenstadion. Wang Po entered the stadium with a ball boy. The drizzle fell from the sky and the air was a little cold.

It was a rainy game.

Even so, the whole stadium was filled with die-hard Dortmund fans. The shocking scarf wall brought a huge visual impact to the visiting players, as if they were facing a huge army. Cold fireworks rose in the die-hard stands, rendering the suffocating atmosphere before the battle to the extreme.

On this field, even the referee would have weak legs and feet.

"Beep~!"

The referee blew the whistle and the game officially began.

Due to the disadvantage of away goals, Juventus had to attack and took the initiative of the ball as soon as they came up. It seemed to be a replica of the first round of the two teams. The difference was that this time, the attack was accelerated.

The ball transmission and empty cutting and running were improved by a level compared to the first round.

This is the real Serie A overlord, the level, intensity and rhythm that a wealthy club should have.

In this game, Juventus' offensive changes are more than that. Allegri has worked hard for this game. After all, his team has Bonucci and Chiellini, two old men in the back line, sitting in charge. He is not worried about the decline of defense. Offense, still offense.

Surprisingly, Mandzukic, the typical pillar center in Juventus, did not play the center position he is best at this time, but appeared in the position of central midfielder.

What is this?

Even the commentator who has been explaining Juventus for many years can't understand what the uncle is selling in such a formation.

However, as the game progresses, Allegrini's offensive tactics soon surfaced.

The big circle tactics were created by Van Gaal when he was in Manchester United.

When attacking, Marchisio sinks between the central defenders Bonucci and Chiellini to be responsible for the backcourt pass and take into account defense.

Another Juventus midfielder, Pinjaci, appeared near the front circle, but his focus was not on offensive organization, but on defense and ball movement.

Judging from the intentions of three consecutive offensive rounds, basically when the ball reaches the front court, it will pass through the feet of the center forward Mandzukic who retreats to the central midfielder position. The latter uses the center forward technique to fight against the Dortmund midfielder, taking the ball from a high point, or putting the ball at his feet with his back against the defensive player, and moving the war to the two sides.

From a macro perspective, whether in offense or defense, in the midfield area, there are no Juventus players, all of whom are concentrated on the two sides.

The ball is basically transferred through the sideways, and the transition of the ball is Marchisio who sinks between the central defenders in the backcourt.

On the front line, Dybala and Higuain, two impactful forwards, split the right and left sides.

The ball develops on the sideways and reaches the feet of the two forwards. Mandzukic, who previously fell in the central midfielder position, strives to move forward and return to the center position.

Go down the wing and use height and hardness to attack.

Of course, there are also times when the attack changes positions, using Mandzukic to pull the left side, and Higuain, who also has the attributes of a center forward, goes to the middle to grab the point.

Adopting such an offensive tactic, "Uncle Embarrassing" Allegri is helpless.

The midfield combination of the runner-up of the UEFA Champions League in the 15-16 season, accompanied by Pogba's return to Manchester United, the defensive bandit Vidal's departure to Bayern Munich, and the midfield master Pirlo's retirement, in fact, Juventus' midfield has collapsed.

Compared with Pirlo, Pogba, and Vidal in those days, Pjanic, Marchisio, and Khedira who are reused now are inferior in both offense and defense.

Playing this kind of sleepy old football is also a helpless move.

Offense has always been Juventus's weak point, but in this game, Juventus must give it a try.

After a week of "closed-door training", "Uncle" Allegri decided to adopt the big circle tactics created by Van Gaal when he was at Manchester United.

At that time, Van Gaal created this world-famous big circle tactic at Manchester United because the philosophy of passing and controlling football was popular in the world football at that time. However, with the midfield personnel configuration of Manchester United at that time, it was difficult to get rid of it on the spot and pass the ball when facing close pressure. The adoption of the big circle tactics is an innovative tactic and the optimal solution combined with the personnel configuration of Manchester United that year. The use of this tactic allowed Manchester United to defeat the Premier League powerhouses in the second half of the 14-15 season.

In the system of Manchester United at that time, the core of this big circle tactic was Fellaini, a midfielder who could attack and defend.

There was a saying that Fellaini should be used to strengthen the offense when attacking, and Fellaini should be used to strengthen the defense when defending.

In terms of the control of high-altitude balls, Fellaini has a unique advantage, which is also a strong point that many teams cannot reach.

In this game, Allegri pulled Mandzukic back to the central midfielder position to replace Fellaini. Although Mandzukic is a serious center forward, his defensive attributes are also quite high. He often adopts frontcourt pressing and chasing defense.

The big circle tactics adopted in this game surprised everyone.