The Godfather of Football

"Hello, Peter, I'm Roland! I'm telling you, there's a very smart investor interested in your research project. If you want, bring all your information and stuff and rush to Jin Shouzi right away."

"Big money?" Peter Brandt on the other end of the phone must have had his eyes shining.

Ye Qiu and the others who were listening on the phone tried hard to hold back their laughter. Roland leaned over and nodded, "Big money, definitely big money, the kind that makes hundreds of thousands of dollars a minute, in Euros, not Zimbabwean dollars. Yes, come right away, hurry up, they'll be gone soon!"

Because of this phone call, Peter Brandt, this poor guy, skipped class in the middle of class. He's probably the only teacher who skipped class in the University of Amsterdam in all these years, right?

As a result, when this guy took more than 20 minutes to run to Jin Shouzi, panting and carrying a lot of stuff, he saw Ye Qiu, and he almost asked Jin Shouzi to borrow a knife, and looked directly at this fat man Luo.

"Okay, okay, if you want to fight, hit him hard. He's fat, so it won't hurt. Don't pretend!" Ye Qiu was on the side, hoping to make trouble, and urged Peter Brandt to act quickly.

Fatty Luo looked sad. Who am I doing this for, brother?

Peter Brandt didn't do it. He pushed Fatty Luo away angrily and sat down next to him to eat.

"Tell me, what are you researching?" Ye Qiu asked with concern.

Ye Qiu knew Peter Brandt very well. This middle-aged professor's research ability was definitely not bad, especially in the field of sports. He was definitely the hero behind the scenes for the fact that Ye Qiu's team had not suffered many injuries in recent years.

Of course, the injuries mentioned here refer to avoidable injuries, such as injuries caused by fatigue, or some unpreventable injuries during the game, which are not included here, because no team can completely eliminate injuries.

Peter Brandt stuffed several dumplings into his mouth, chewing them, and took out one of the documents he brought with him and handed it to Ye Qiu, meaning, take a look yourself, don't disturb me while I eat.

Ye Qiu shook his head and smiled bitterly. He still respected Peter Brandt very much, because Peter Brandt was his wife Huang Chu's senior, and the two were also good friends, so Peter Brandt's family had a close relationship with Ye Qiu's family.

Recently, Peter Brandt organized graduate students in the university and some other people who were equally interested to study a data together, and here we must mention a set of software that Ye Qiu had someone write before.

This set of software has a variety of functions, mainly focusing on the preparation of a head coach and coaching team, analysis of opponents, post-match summary and archiving, etc., and one of the functions is a bit similar to OPTA's data analysis, mainly analyzing the running distance, speed and other factors of each player in the game and training.

Ye Qiu attaches great importance to running and speed, but he never pays attention to the players' 100-meter speed test. He only pays attention to the first 30 meters, especially the first 5 meters and the first 10 meters.

For example, some people questioned Van Persie and thought that he was not fast enough, but Ye Qiu directly slapped him in the face, saying that Van Persie's speed was famous in the Chelsea team. Many people thought he was defending Van Persie because the Dutchman's speed was not that fast, but Ye Qiu was talking about the starting speed, because this is the most important thing in a football game.

Van Persie is flexible, has a fast starting speed, and is not injured very often. His weakness is mainly in the upper body. Ye Qiu even asserted that if Van Persie strengthens the strength of his upper body and continues to maintain a healthy body, he will be the strongest attacker in the world.

Of course, Peter Brandt didn't know that Wenger, Ye Qiu's previous life, had also said such words.

Because Ye Qiu attaches great importance to running, this software has made great efforts in this aspect. After Ye Qiu resigned, Peter Brandt formed a research team to use this software to conduct systematic data analysis on the 50 Champions League group matches and all the Champions League knockout matches and finals this season, and obtained the game data of more than 600 professional players, and then classified them.

Speeds below 11 kilometers per hour are considered not running or brisk walking, 11-14 kilometers are considered jogging, 14-19 kilometers are considered half-speed running, 19 kilometers to 23 kilometers are considered fast running, and more than 23 kilometers are considered high-speed running. Then the running distance of players in each position is counted and an intermediate value is given. The running distance varies according to the style of each league.

For example, in La Liga, the average running distance of the whole team is 11.393 kilometers, but in the Premier League it is relatively more. In the whole team, each position is different. The midfielder runs the most, more than 12 kilometers, followed by the wingers, and the full-backs are third. Then there are the forwards and the center backs. The center backs run the least, but also more than 10 kilometers.

"Can you see the meaning of this?" Peter Brandt said with a test.

Ye Qiu looked at this report, which distinguished the running distance and speed of each position, and even gave the difference in running distance and speed between players of different types, different leagues, and different styles of teams, accurate to how many meters.

This is indeed a very tedious set of research. It can even be said that it is absolutely boring in the eyes of many people, because at first glance, you can't see any use at all, but Ye Qiu feels that it is not simple.

First of all, getting such accurate values ​​can make the club more aware of the situation between itself and its opponents. It can even get the performance and status of the opponent's players from the accumulation of data. Everything can be faked, but you can let the players run against each other on the court. Is distance fake? Are you cheating on your speed?

Of course, there are too many mysteries and elusiveness in players' bodies, so Peter Brandt is also trying to grasp a certain probability through precise calculations in large databases, and then understand a player's status and psychology.

For example, suppose you use this set of data software in a game and find that a player is running less and slower than usual. Combined with the situation on the court, you may get the player's status. It's relatively bad, but your tactics can completely use him as a breakthrough point. For example, if the offense uses him as the breakthrough direction, the defense should try to force the opponent to hand the ball to him as much as possible.

In addition, through this set of data, we can understand the physical condition and injuries of the players, and use this to formulate the team's training program to avoid unnecessary injuries or excessive fatigue of the players.

Finally, after this set of data is completed, when the team introduces players, it can be used as an auxiliary tool to evaluate players based on this set of data. For example, if you want a full-back, you need him to run back and forth in a wide range. You have to be able to jump in and attack, but you also have to be able to retreat to defend. If you just watch the game, it's not accurate.

Why is it not accurate?

Because games can be deceiving, especially through game videos, the degree of deception is even higher.

This is why some people often say that real head coaches and fans see completely different things in the same game.

This set of data and analysis will undoubtedly provide the team with evidence, not data evidence, but a comparison to determine who is more in line with the team's requirements and who is more suitable for the team's tactical system.

This is sports science. It seems boring, tedious, and boring, but in fact it has a very far-reaching impact.

Even Ye Qiu was thinking that even if he knew the meaning behind it and asked him to do it by himself, he would never have the patience. Only a true scholar like Peter Brandt would have the research spirit and patience to complete it. it.

When Ye Qiu was thinking and watching this report, everyone around him was silent, but Peter Brandt saw hope in Ye Qiu's eyes. When he raised his head, he chuckled: "Boss, Big money, do you want to do it?”

Her flattering look was just like that of a streetwalker in the De Wallen district of Amsterdam, which made everyone shudder.

"How much?" Ye Qiu asked like a prostitute.

Peter Brandt opened his palm and said, "Initial estimate, half a million euros!"

"Deal!" Ye Qiu immediately agreed, "But I also have a request. You continue to be my physical coach. At the same time, you plan to build a new training base. I plan to build a sports science center in the training base and invest five million. You will be the person in charge of this center and be responsible for forming the team!”

"Really?" Peter Brandt slammed the table hard, "No problem, we don't even need to sign a contract, I'll go with you!"

He could still trust what Ye Qiu said. Not to mention that Ye Qiu was rich now. Even if he had no money, Peter Brandt would not think twice about what he said and just follow him. At least Ye Qiu had never done so in these years. Let him down.

"Have you heard of Milan Laboratory?" Ye Qiu asked again.

"You want to poach them?" Peter Brandt was a little surprised.

"What the heck!" Ye Qiu shook his head. The Milan laboratory has a very famous name, but in fact, they are not necessarily that great in the field of sports, because many teams have similar institutions, but they have different names. , such as the Brazilian national team, Nike has long supported them in building such a team, and doesn’t Adidas also support Ajax in building the same organization?

"I have been to Schalke 04's training base before. I can really feel that they are modern, the equipment is very advanced, and the concepts are very up to date with the times and technology. Later I went to the United States. Although the United States is a football desert, did you know that the United States has very advanced sports medicine research and has a lot of advanced instruments and equipment.”

Peter Brandt has the right to speak on this point, so after listening to Ye Qiu's words, he nodded in agreement. In terms of research on sports medicine, the United States is indeed ahead because of their NBA, baseball and rugby. All attach great importance to research and development in this area.

"I have done some calculations. How much does it cost to introduce an advanced facility from the United States? One to two million U.S. dollars, more than one million euros. Even if we want to build an entire sports science center, it will cost several million euros. Oh my God, although this money can bring in a very good cost-effective star from the transfer market, what we get is the long-term benefit of the club!"

"Of course, the introduction is only one aspect. In the future, maintenance, upgrades, and employee allocation will be required. It is initially estimated that five million euros will be invested in building such a sports science research center. In the future, another one million euros will be poured into it every year. It’s the least expensive, but I still think it’s a good deal. As long as it works, I think it’s worth it!”

When he said this, Ye Qiu smiled proudly and said, "I believe that no football club owner in the world knows as well as I do. If a team can minimize the impact of injuries, how amazing the effect on the team will be."

Ye Qiu and Eliza have been saying since a long time ago that football is a very strange industry. It is very open, but also very closed. It is open to any media and commercialization is everywhere, but it is also very closed, almost isolated from the outside world.

Just like Tottenham Hotspur's training base, Ye Qiu even wondered how little attention it would take to endure such a bad training base? But Tottenham Hotspur has had so many head coaches in the past, but no one is willing to mention it, say it, or fight for it. The same was true for Chelsea's Harrington training base.

Another point that can reflect the closedness of football is the Milan Laboratory.

There is no doubt that fans and professionals have unequal information, so they regard the Milan Laboratory as a treasure, which is also impossible. But you have to know that such a set of institutions that are very common in other competitive fields, or even backward, are very rare in the field of football.

Ye Qiu had such a feeling because, in early May, a food poisoning incident occurred in Tottenham Hotspur, where 10 players suffered from collective food poisoning. Many conspiracy theorists said it was poisoning. Don't be ridiculous, this is a criminal offense. Who would be so stupid as to poison for a league ranking?

This was the mistake of Tottenham Hotspur's internal staff. It was the stupidity of their internal staff that led to such a ridiculous incident in the team, and at the same time, the team was blamed for the incident.

Therefore, Ye Qiu's attitude was very firm and affirmative. He wanted to reform every inch of land and every person in Tottenham Hotspur from top to bottom, and he was ready to bear the consequences for this.

He would not follow Abramovich's crazy spending. First, he could not afford it. People who sell oil have too much money to spend, but Ye Qiu's money could not be spent like Abramovich, so he had to be careful about how much he spent, but he would not be stingy with the money he should spend. The important thing is to spend it in a valuable way.

As for the second, Abramovich's method is not sustainable and lacks long-term planning. Ye Qiu was dismissed and Mourinho was hired, but the two have different styles. Ye Qiu made drastic reforms to Ranieri's team as soon as he came. Ye Qiu was dismissed and Mourinho also made drastic reforms to Ye Qiu's team. It is difficult to calculate how much money was lost.

Chelsea still won the Premier League this season, but it is only this Premier League championship, and the leading advantage has been closely pursued by Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United. In this case, everyone knows that Chelsea's advantage is not that big and may be reversed at any time.

Moreover, I believe that many people are doubting how long Abramovich's spending can last?

The Premier League finally came to an end, and Chelsea still won the Premier League championship this season without any danger. This made Chelsea excited to take to the streets, board the open-top bus, and start their parade around the city.

Abramovich stood at the window of his office at Stamford Bridge and watched the team board the bus and walk slowly forward holding the Premier League trophy. However, he could feel that the fans were no longer so ecstatic, because this was Chelsea's third consecutive Premier League title.

This season, apart from one Premier League, there was nothing else, and even the Community Shield was lost. Mourinho's first season as the team's coach was indeed difficult for Ye Qiu to say he was satisfied with, especially because his character was so unruly, which made Chelsea fans who were used to Ye Qiu's reserved and kind character very dissatisfied.

Standing in front of the window and watching Mourinho standing on the bus, Abramovich suddenly thought of a sentence in his mind, "If it was Ye Qiu, he wouldn't have boarded the bus, right?"

After thinking about it, he soon smiled bitterly, because it was Ye Qiu, who he remembered, who actually sued him.

"They are very smart. Eliza Moon is indeed a very shrewd woman. She did not ask the FA and the Premier League for arbitration like Arsenal did. Instead, she asked for arbitration on the one hand, but at the same time announced it directly to the media and put pressure on us. Now it is obvious that we have violated the rules!" Although Pini Zahavi was reluctant to admit it, in fact, he really had no choice now.

Frank Arnesen, the technical director of Tottenham Hotspur, was poached by Abramovich to Chelsea to take charge of the youth training and scouting system. However, when he was poaching, Frank Arnesen still had a contract with Tottenham Hotspur. Chelsea's practice was indeed illegal, and this matter caused a big fuss.

If Tottenham Hotspur had only applied for arbitration from the FA and the Premier League like Arsenal did when Chelsea poached Ashley Cole, Chelsea would not have taken it too seriously, but now even the media has made a fuss.

Over the past period of time, Chelsea has indeed given people the impression of poaching players unscrupulously, from Peter Kenyon to Frank Arnesen, they have all taken this path. But as for Frank Arnesen, Abramovich must get him because he always feels that he has owed the Dane in the past.

At first, he had promised the position of technical director to Frank Arnesen, but because Ye Qiu was popular at the time, Abramovich sacrificed Frank Arnesen in order to keep Ye Qiu. Fortunately, Pini Zahavi introduced him to Tottenham Hotspur, but who could have thought that Ye Qiu would become the boss of Tottenham Hotspur and directly complained about Chelsea's poaching.

If this matter could not be settled, the people below would definitely not be convinced, especially Pini Zahavi.

"Where is Ye Qiu? I'll talk to him!" Abramovich decided to come out in person.

"He seems to have gone to the Netherlands and hasn't come back yet, but I can arrange it." Pini Zahavi said.

Abramovich shook his head, "No, don't come out, I'll call him myself!"

At least, he still kept Ye Qiu's mobile phone number.