The Godfather of Football

"Van der Vaart got the ball on the right and Kaladze went up to defend."

"Maicon quickly came in from behind, and the two cooperated. Maicon got the ball, quickly went down and made a pass!"

"Ibrahimovic headers!!!"

"Beautiful, Dida hit the ball out with one punch, and Nesta made a quick clearance!"

"The ball flew out of the penalty area, Sneijder stopped the ball with his chest and took a long shot!!!"

After Sneijder's shot, the entire Arenal Stadium was lifted up for a breath. Some excited fans even rushed out of their seats involuntarily, wanting to shout loudly to celebrate the team's victory. A goal was scored.

But it's a pity that Sneijder's long-range shot was 32 meters away from the goal. In the end, he failed to suppress the ball. It was too high!

"Ajax started the game very aggressively and with a fast pace, especially in the movement of the ball. They quickly passed through the midfield and used both wings to plan the attack. This offensive routine was very lively after the start. It was obviously Ye Qiu’s arrangements and targeted tactics against AC Milan.”

The live TV footage showed Ye Qiu sitting in the first place in the home team's coaching bench. After Sneijder's long-range shot missed, he shook his head a few times, but obviously made no other unnecessary movements. He held his chin there. While continuing to watch the game.

"This is a crucial game. Whoever wins it will be able to determine the right to qualify in the group, but AC Milan is obviously more disadvantaged because they have to win, but Ajax only needs a draw. Able to qualify!”

I say this as if to reflect the different characteristics of the two head coaches in commanding the game. Ancelotti stood outside from the beginning, looking very nervous, making adjustments and calling out to the players from time to time, while Ye Qiu He always sat firmly on the Diaoyutai, sitting calmly in the home team's coaching bench, holding his chin and watching the game.

This was the sixth leg of the first round of the Champions League group stage at the Arena. Like all games played at the Arena, Ajax took advantage of their advantage from the beginning and adopted a fast pace. The attacking tactics, combined with the team's tight defense and pressure in the midfield and frontcourt, caused AC Milan a lot of trouble.

But in fact, in terms of ball possession rate, Ajax is not as good as AC Milan, but the Eredivisie team created more threatening attacks after the start of the game than the Rossoneri, who have so far Not even a shot on goal.

Ye Qiu was satisfied with the development of the game situation because the players executed his tactics well.

Why is it that more than ten minutes have passed since the game, but AC Milan hasn't finished the shot yet?

When Ye Qiu got AC Milan's starting lineup before the game, he felt strange on the one hand, but on the other hand he was urging his players, even when the opponent's two forwards and Rivaldo were pulled to the wing to receive the ball. , the defenders and midfielders must also keep up, especially for Rivaldo.

In this game, Ye Qiu moved Arteta closer to Mascherano in order to ensure that there was an Ajax player next to Rivaldo to defend and harass him at any time.

"I can't figure it out!" Ye Qiu looked at the trend of the game and shook his head, "Why did you give up the single forward who has been playing so smoothly so far this season and switch to the tactics of two forwards Garivaldo?"

Some people were worried before the season that AC Milan's double forward combination was not ideal. With Shevchenko's injury, Inzaghi performed very well in the single forward position, and AC Milan's 4321 Christmas tree tactics were also used. Very good, but since Shevchenko returned from injury, AC Milan seems to have been affected.

Of course, Ye Qiu would not say that this was Shevchenko's responsibility, and it had nothing to do with the Ukrainians.

"Using two forwards and having Shevchenko and Inzaghi frequently move to the wing is obviously to suppress our two full-backs." Bobby Hames tried to follow Ancelotti's thinking Go analyze.

Ye Qiu smiled after hearing this, "So I just asked Maicon and Abidal to adjust their responsibilities and position themselves when defending. But as soon as our midfielders get the ball, they find the gap and press forward boldly, maximizing the "Get rid of the impact of this tactic and it's not effective at all."

The biggest risk of 433 is that the distance between the winger and the full-back is too long. Ancelotti used two forwards to pull the wing to influence and interfere with the two full-backs, but Ye Qiu used this kind of defense to get into position, but The strategy of boldly pressing forward when one's own side has the ball can fill this loophole to the maximum extent.

But this is only theoretical. The key lies in the execution of the players. But from the beginning of the game, Ajax and AC Milan executed the tactics well, and no one took advantage.

"Logically, if I were to play as a double forward, I would consider Rui Costa, but Ancelotti used Rivaldo in this game. This Brazilian is not a No. 9 and a half, so judging from the game, It’s a bit like a front three.”

After listening to Ye Qiu's words, Bobby Harms couldn't help but smile. The more he communicated with Ye Qiu, the easier it was for him to discover that Ye Qiu's improvement in tactical sense was really great. Now he almost only needs to see the other party. Once he understands the opponent's tactics and formation, he can quickly grasp the opponent's strengths, weaknesses and loopholes.

"The problem with using Rui Costa is also obvious. The midfield is slow. They suffered this loss in the last game at San Siro Stadium. So Ancelotti did not continue to use Rui Costa in this game, but used Rivaldo, also worried that the slow rhythm problem would be exploited by us again!"

"But with Rivaldo, the connection between the midfield and the attacking line is very problematic. Mascherano and Arteta directly cut off the connection between them. Now they want to pass the ball to the two forwards, so they can only choose to pull the side and long pass."

When analyzing, Bobby Hams also felt a little helpless for Ancelotti. Why use two forwards?

Originally, letting Rivaldo and Rui Costa play the 2 in 4321 at the same time should be regarded as the best solution to the two major problems of filling the problem of slow midfield operation and connecting the midfield and the forward line, although it seems a bit disadvantageous. After all, two players are used to make up for what should normally be done by one person, such as Kaka in the future.

But sometimes, you have no choice but to compromise with reality.

But Ancelotti used two strikers in this game, playing 4312. When the three midfielders could not move, he could only choose between Rui Costa and Rivaldo, and no matter which one he chose, there would be big problems.

That's why Ye Qiu adjusted the team's starting tactics in the locker room as soon as he saw AC Milan's starting lineup.

"And, did you notice, Bobby?" Ye Qiu looked at Bobby Hams beside him with a smile.

Every time the Dutch old man played, his face turned as red as a Fuji apple, and he looked excited and a bit like Ferguson, but in Ye Qiu's opinion, Bobby Hams was much more amiable than Ferguson.

"What?" Bobby Hams didn't understand what Ye Qiu meant.

"Their full-backs always shrink very far back!" Ye Qiu laughed.

The difference between 4321 and 4312 is whether there is one more or one less person in the midfield.

Don't underestimate this person, because when the three lines are compressed very tightly, in the midfield area between 10 and 20 meters, the difference between one more person and one less person is still very obvious, at least in the ball point and the empty cut running position.

AC Milan's midfield is indeed very creative, Pirlo, Gattuso and Seedorf, plus Rivaldo and Rui Costa in front, or even two players playing 4 No. 10 together, their creativity is excellent, but that is in the middle, the side is the weak point of this tactic.

Ancelotti is obviously paying more and more attention to this problem, so he wants to introduce a right back in the winter break, and the target includes Roma's Cafu, because in his opinion, the full-back is not just to defend, because the midfield lacks side attacks, so the full-back's attack is very important.

From 4321 to 4312, there was one less player in the midfield, so the pressure became greater, especially on the wing. In addition, Ajax's offense was originally good at going to the wing. Van der Vaart and Robben almost always faced the opponent's full-back. AC Milan's wing attack was completely abolished at the beginning of this game.

According to the current situation, if Ajax fights in the middle, it has no advantage, which is equivalent to going to the opponent's advantage area, so he chose to go to the wing, so he soon issued an order to adjust the team's tactics again, that is, high-intensity pressure in the middle, and go to the wing more after getting the ball.

"I thought it would be a tough battle, but now it seems that I should enlarge my ambition. Not only do I want to win, I also want to win beautifully!" Ye Qiu showed a confident smile.

Bobby Hams also laughed after hearing this, obviously supporting Ye Qiu's opinion.

Sometimes, the outcome of a game is doomed!

…………

…………

Ajax soon created another very good scoring opportunity.

When Dario Simic once left his position to receive the ball from the midfield, the pass was intercepted by Mascherano in advance and passed to Sneijder, who made a diagonal pass. Robben quickly entered Simic's area and rushed straight into AC Milan's penalty area.

Ibrahimovic and Van der Vaart also pressed forward at the first time, and it became three on three for a while, but because Van der Vaart pulled Kaladze to the right, it became two on two in the middle.

Robben made a cross pass, and Ibrahimovic knocked the ball back after receiving it, but the ball was touched by Nesta. Robben, who had already rushed over, had to retreat to receive the ball. At this time, Gattuso had come over, and Robben quickly shook off Gattuso and passed the ball to the right post of the goal. Ibrahimovic's follow-up shot was caught in his arms by Arrival.

This attack again did not work, but it made Simic, who was returning to defense, feel his heartbeat speed up. If the ball went in, he would be the biggest responsible, so he warned himself in fear and depression not to move forward.

Don't seek merit, but avoid mistakes!

Simic on the right side stayed in his position. Although AC Milan's midfield had fewer passing routes, Ajax frequently intercepted the ball, but it was difficult to attack on the left side, so they began to move to the right side.

I saw Mascherano intercept the ball passed to Rivaldo again, and Maicon next to him quickly inserted the ball.

The ball came to Maicon's feet. The Brazilian quickly used his speed to shake off Seedorf and dribbled the ball quickly along the right side to attack AC Milan's defense. After attracting Kaladze's attention, Maicon passed the ball to Van der Vaart.

Van der Vaart got the ball outside the right corner of the penalty area. Facing Maldini's defense, he pretended to dribble the ball to the middle, but Pirlo and Gattuso had returned at this time, so Maldini was not fooled. As expected, Van der Vaart failed to make a fake move and quickly dribbled the ball to the bottom of the penalty area on the right side.

The speed was very obvious at this moment. Even if Maldini realized it, he still found a chance for the Dutchman to cross the ball in the face of Van der Vaart, who had excellent explosive power. Van der Vaart passed the ball horizontally before going out of the baseline and passed the ball to the front of the goal.

Nesta was standing behind Maldini and was also moving. He subconsciously blocked Van der Vaart's pass with his foot, and the ball changed from a horizontal pass to a back pass. Sneijder, who came in the second round, was just in front of the penalty area. When he saw that Nesta's clearance was not strong enough, he rushed forward immediately.

Nesta also realized the problem and reacted quickly, making a flying move to block the hole, but Sneijder was faster and shot the ball in an almost straight line, hitting the lower right corner of the goal at a very fast speed.

"GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!"

"In the 17th minute, in the 17th minute, Wesley Sneijder scored the first goal for Ajax!"

Sneijder excitedly rushed out of AC Milan's penalty area, quickly pulled up his jersey, covered his head, and ran out of the stadium, sliding under the Ajax chairman's stand, opening his arms and accepting the cheers from the stands that were like a landslide.

Ye Qiu, who was sitting on the Diaoyutai, also clenched his fist and shouted immediately after seeing Sneijder score, and stood up to celebrate with Bobby Hams, Ricklink, Van Basten, Roland and other assistants, and looked very happy.

"This time Ajax's attack was very sudden. They went from attacking the left to attacking the right. AC Milan was caught off guard, especially in the wing defense. Maicon rushed directly to AC Milan's defense line very smoothly. The Rossoneri's midfield defense was useless. It can be said that this goal seemed accidental, but it really makes people feel sorry for AC Milan."

After the team lost the ball, Ancelotti hugged his round head tightly and looked very depressed.

From the beginning of the game, he felt that the situation was not going well. AC Milan was always playing in a very awkward state. The players' best skills were not played at all. He originally hoped that the two strikers and Rivaldo's pulling to the side would create some threats to Ajax's wing, but he didn't expect Ye Qiu to be afraid at all.

This can't be said to be Ye Qiu's problem. In this game, Ajax did not adopt the usual high-position defense, but held a more rigorous defensive preparation. They let AC Milan's midfielder control the ball, but firmly cut off the link from the midfield to the forward line. Arteta and Mascherano looked more like double defensive midfielders.

When Ajax built a wall between the forward line and the midfield, AC Milan's ball path advancement was completely cut off.

When the ball path advancement was cut off, the offense fell into a dilemma, and the team's tactical problems were gradually exposed, especially on the wing.

Ye Qiu was very decisive and had a good vision. He gave up the entanglement on the wing and gave up those meaningless ball control battles. He played directly on the wing and used his most advantageous advantages to destroy AC Milan's loopholes.

So from the beginning of the game to now, Ajax's threats were almost all launched from the wing.

"If we don't play with two forwards, maybe we won't be so passive!" Ancelotti shook his head helplessly.

This sentence was heard by his assistant Mauro Tassotti, but he didn't say anything, because he knew that Ancelotti's words were too light, for the sake of the overall situation. AC Milan's biggest mistake in this game was the two strikers.

"Think of another way? Maybe there is still hope!" Tassotti said.

Ancelotti shook his head. How could he think of a solution in this short time?

There is a ready-made one, taking down Shevchenko or Inzaghi, Rui Costa, or even Serginho, can help the team reverse the current unfavorable situation.

However, he didn't have such courage and determination in the end!

Ajax seemed to be in high spirits after scoring, while AC Milan became very passive. In addition, Ancelotti did not make any substantial changes, resulting in AC Milan's passive situation not being well adjusted, and the scene still looked very passive.

According to the commentator, "AC Milan did control the ball, but they could not organize an effective attack. What's the point of having the ball? More possession in the midfield and backcourt will bring fatal hidden dangers to their team!"

And this was soon verified.

Pirlo was intercepted by Mascherano and passed to Arteta. Gattuso fouled by shoveling on the left side of the penalty area and was shown a yellow card by the referee. Ajax got a free kick opportunity in a good position outside the left corner of the penalty area.

Arteta stood at the free kick spot, watching more and more Ajax players rushing into the penalty area. Taller players such as Kivu, Lucio, Abidal, and Ibrahimovic all rushed in, while shorter players such as Van der Vaart and Robben were also waiting for opportunities, and Sneijder was ambushing outside the penalty area.

As Arteta took a corner kick, Kivu and Ibrahimovic ran quickly from the center to the left at the same time, which immediately made AC Milan's Nesta and Maldini and other players also run to the left. In a hurry, they couldn't think too much about where Ajax's free kick would fall, so they just wanted to keep an eye on the player.

Unexpectedly, Arteta's free kick fell into the gap behind them. Lucio was originally ambushing on the right, and quickly rushed to the center after the ball was kicked out. Without Nesta, Lucio jumped high, feeling a bit like a crane standing out from the crowd, and no one around him even interfered with him.

The ball hit his head, turned in a different direction, and hit the goal line. Dida didn't even have time to react!

PS: Since I've posted it directly, I might as well post the evening one as well. I'll continue to check it regularly tomorrow!!!