The Godfather of Football

August 11, 2007, 13:00, Sunderland Stadium of Light.

Perhaps because the match was held at noon, the attendance rate of the Stadium of Light was not very high. The Stadium of Light, which can accommodate 40,000 fans, was estimated to have only about 30,000 fans. However, this match attracted much attention from the outside world, especially for many fans in Asia, who could enjoy this match after dinner.

This was also the first challenge of the new season for Ye Qiu and his Tottenham Hotspur after bidding farewell to Van Nistelrooy and the magical 06/07 season. The opponent was also not small. Sunderland was definitely not as strong as Tottenham Hotspur, but it had a very big head coach, Roy Keane.

Big names have their advantages. Roy Keane came from Manchester United, so this guy was also very good at using this relationship. Last season, Sunderland was promoted and rented Manchester United youngsters Evans and Simpson. This season, they were promoted to the Premier League and introduced Andy Cole on a free transfer, and also introduced Richardson from Manchester United.

Moreover, this Sunderland team also meets Roy Keane's consistent characteristics, with a tough and tenacious style of play, which is also the consistent characteristic of Ferguson's disciples, such as Steve Bruce of Birmingham, who has trained this Birmingham team into an iron army.

Before the game started, Roy Keane took the lead in saying that he would give Tottenham a heavy blow at home and taste the taste of being a dark horse, "because our nickname is the Black Cat!"

And Keane also said that Tottenham would not go all out in the first round of the league, because for Tottenham, who entered the Champions League for the first time in decades, the first game of the new season is the away game against Sparta Prague in the third round of the Champions League qualifiers.

"When there are only three days between two games, and both are away games, Ye Qiu always needs to make a choice!"

At this time, Keane made a joke, "I think what Mourinho said last season was right. When we face an opponent who must split his troops into two groups and distract from the game, as long as we try our best, it is always easy to win!"

In fact, Ye Qiu really didn't try his best in this game, which can be seen from his lineup.

Beckham, Van Persie, Messi and Mascherano did not play. No one would doubt that these four players would be the starting main force of Tottenham Hotspur this season, but they did not play, which shows that Ye Qiu wanted to use the substitute lineup to capture the Stadium of Light.

This time, Ye Qiu tried to use the 4231 tactical play, but the combination of Arshavin and Carroll did not work this time. Tottenham Hotspur's offense was difficult to create a threat in the 30-meter area of ​​Sunderland, but it was interesting that Sunderland could not organize an effective offense, which made the game very dull.

But just when everyone thought the game would end in a 0:0 draw, Chopra, the top scorer of the English Championship last season, scored a goal in the 93rd minute, the last minute of stoppage time, during Sunderland's last attack. This was a counterattack after midfielder Yaya Toure's sticky ball was intercepted.

No one expected that they would be scored in the last minute, and Tottenham was a little too arrogant at that time, because they all thought the game was about to end. However, it was this kind of thinking that caused Tottenham to suffer a heavy blow. Yaya Toure was strongly criticized by the media and condemned by the fans after the game.

In the first round of the league, among the top five teams in the Premier League last season, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool had a difficult game, but they all defeated their opponents, while Manchester United was tied 0:0 by Reading at home.

After the first round, the best performance was the leader Newcastle, and the Magpies led the Premier League. This situation is really rare.

The second round of the league was held in the middle of the week after the first round, but because Tottenham Hotspur had to play in the third round of the Champions League qualifiers, the second round of the league was forced to be postponed. Not only that, the fifth round of the league was also forced to be postponed because of conflicts with the second round of the Champions League third round of qualifiers and the European Super Cup.

While other Premier League teams were playing in the second round of the Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool started playing the first round of the Champions League third round of qualifiers. Tottenham Hotspur's opponent was Sparta Prague, and the first round was still away.

Although the team has played in the UEFA Cup and won the championship last season, the UEFA Cup and the Champions League are two completely different concepts. All teams participating in the Champions League are the best teams in their national leagues. Such teams often gather the best stars and strength in a national league.

Therefore, the opponents encountered in the Champions League and the UEFA Cup are two completely different levels.

Ye Qiu felt that for many mid- and lower-level leagues in Europe, the strength gap is often very large. The entire league structure is a bit like La Liga, that is, the strong get stronger and the weak get weaker. If you look closely at the structure of La Liga, it is not difficult to find that the teams playing in the Champions League are teams like Barcelona and Real Madrid, while the teams playing in the UEFA Cup are teams like Sevilla and Espanyol.

Is there any comparability between the two?

This is also why Ye Qiu attaches so much importance to the Champions League qualifiers. He doesn't want to be like Everton back then. He finally made it to the Champions League, but ended up losing to his opponent in the third round of qualifiers and leaving cleanly and elegantly.

And it doesn't matter if they lose in the first round of the league, because they can still have a chance to catch up later, but if they lose in the Champions League now, they won't even have the chance to regret it.

Sparta Prague is a top team in the Czech League. It won the Czech First Division last season. The strength of this team is extraordinary. After Ye Qiu was drawn to Sparta Prague, he immediately asked the team's scout system and data center to submit the most detailed player lineup and tactics of Sparta Prague.

For a young team in the Champions League like Tottenham Hotspur, if they don't play well in the first game, they may not be able to recover in the second round, because playing in the Premier League is a bully at home, but going abroad to play in the Champions League, it is not necessarily that they can continue to be bullies.

There are also teams that are bullies at home but beaten black and blue when they go abroad. On the contrary, there are many, many.

The most typical example is Roma in Serie A. They were beaten by Manchester United in the Champions League knockout match last season with a nearly humiliating score of 7:1. At that time, Ye Qiu was thinking, how pathetic must they be to be beaten with such an amazing score?

Therefore, playing away against Sparta Prague has always been as Keane said. This is the first important game of the new season in Ye Qiu's mind, so he arranged the most rigorous tactics and arranged for the full lineup of the main players to play.

There is only one goal, to play the first game of the Champions League well.

Although Tottenham Hotspur is a Premier League team with high exposure and greater attention from fans all over the world, in terms of Champions League experience, it is really far inferior to Sparta Prague in the Czech Republic.

The so-called Champions League experience, in fact, many times the head coach cannot give players more, because it is an ability to deal with different types, even very unfamiliar technical characteristics. Only when you have more contact and play more, you can adapt.

It's like someone said that the rhythm of Brazilian players' dribbling is different from others and it is difficult to defend, but if you often play against Brazilian players, you will accumulate some experience no matter how difficult it is to defend.

This is not just the case in Brazil. Football in almost every country and region has its own traditional characteristics and styles. These are not something you can understand or deal with by listening to others or watching more game videos. You have to accumulate enough rich experience through more matches to deal with them.

This is why Ye Qiu was so cautious in dealing with this game, because many players in Tottenham Hotspur have experience in the Champions League, and there is no shortage of them. However, as a team, Tottenham Hotspur has no experience in the Champions League, which is Tottenham Hotspur's biggest weakness.

Sparta Prague also clearly saw this, so even though they knew that they were not as strong as Tottenham Hotspur, they had played so many Champions League games and they knew how to play to their home advantage. Therefore, they planned to put the game into their own rhythm from the beginning of the game.

Just two minutes into the game, Sparta Prague's central defender Kadlec knocked down Van Persie, giving Tottenham a long-distance free kick opportunity, but it was a severe blow to Tottenham.

Then Sparta Prague obviously did not give up its home advantage and launched a fierce attack on Tottenham. In the 8th minute, with a long pass from the left, the striker volleyed and hit the post directly, which scared all Tottenham players.

If this ball goes in, the game will become very troublesome.

Ye Qiu and the coaching staff are very clear about the visiting team's tactics. They have played in the Champions League for so many years and naturally know how to deal with it. So before the game, when arranging the team's tactics, Ye Qiu kept warning the players not to be intimidated by the home team's attack after the opening, to be patient, and to play steadily after the opening.

After Sparta Prague launched round after round of attacks, Ye Qiu shouted loudly to the players again and again on the sidelines, reminding them not to be anxious, to continue to be patient, to stabilize the situation, and to try to control the ball.

In the first half, both sides played very badly. Tottenham Hotspur could not stabilize the situation. Sparta Prague was at a disadvantage, but they knew how to use their home advantage to disrupt Tottenham Hotspur's ball control and rhythm.

None of the teams that can play in the Champions League are easy to deal with, and they are all difficult teams.

During the halftime break, Ye Qiu reminded his players again that they must not be anxious in the Champions League. At the same time, he also gave his own response adjustments to some problems in the first half of the team, and also warned the players that this is an away game, don't be stressed.

At the beginning of the second half, Sparta Prague still wanted to continue using the tactics of the first half. At the beginning, they launched a crazy pressing against Tottenham Hotspur. Ribery broke through the ball on the left, but was pulled and dragged by the opponent. His jersey was torn, and he was still knocked down. The referee gave him a yellow card.

This was a foul in the 67th minute of the second half, but Tottenham Hotspur's free kick failed to create a threat, and Ribery had no chance to change clothes because he had no chance of a dead ball. Roland stood on the sidelines with Ribery's replacement jersey waiting.

Ye Qiu continued to call on the players to stay calm, control the ball patiently, advance patiently, and use passing to pull the opponent's defense.

"Their physical energy has been almost consumed. Don't worry, take your time, our advantage will get bigger and bigger!"

Having such a head coach who occasionally shouts a few words in your ear when you are about to lose your mind is very effective. At least Tottenham Hotspur seemed to be relatively stable and patient for most of the rest of the time, except for the slightly chaotic and impatient opening.

This is also Ye Qiu's strategy. I am not familiar with your style. I also lack experience and strategies for dealing with sudden changes in the Champions League. Then I will rely on the team's steady and steady strategy to approach step by step, slowly encroach on your territory and control you.

When the game reached the 73rd minute, Tottenham Hotspur's strategy finally worked.

After a pass error in the opponent's midfield, Fabregas intercepted the ball halfway and launched a counterattack. A straight pass was passed to Ribery's feet who moved to the left rib. Facing the double-team of two defensive players, the French scarred face suddenly started and broke through with the ball, breaking through the double-team of two players.

At this time, Van Persie also followed behind, one on the left and one in the middle, with Kadlec in the middle, forming a two-on-one situation, and Messi on the right was also catching up quickly, but he deliberately lagged behind his teammates to form an offensive level.

Van Persie pointed in front of him, indicating that Ribery should pass the ball to the back point, but Ribery entered the penalty area close to the left side of the penalty area, facing Kadlec, a sudden stop and then accelerated, pulled out a body position and seized the fleeting opportunity, and knocked the ball with his left foot.

This kick came quickly, and although Kadlec had reacted and kicked to intercept, he failed to intercept.

When Van Persie behind him quickly caught up, facing this kick, he did not hesitate at all, staring at the opponent's goalkeeper, seemingly wanting to hit his right side, that is, the lower right corner of the goal, and deliberately cooperated with a fake move to deceive the goalkeeper, but his left foot gently pushed the ball.

The ball rolled into the lower left corner, 1:0!

The opponent's goalkeeper Posturka fell to the grass, hammering the grass in anger.

This is Van Nistelrooy's trick.

"When you face the goalkeeper and want to shoot, you only have one opponent, that is the goalkeeper, so you must learn how to deceive the goalkeeper. This is a must for an excellent striker or an excellent scorer, that is to hit the ball in the opposite direction of your eyes!"

Van Persie smiled with his mouth wide open. This was his first personal goal this season, and it was scored in the Champions League play-offs. The value is incomparable, and he himself can vaguely feel that Ye Qiu is deliberately arranging him to play as a main player this season. This is to make him the right one and fill the gap left by Van Nistelrooy.

Because of this, after scoring the goal, Van Persie seemed very excited and rushed over to hug Ribery.

The two kept celebrating on the sidelines, and Ribery took this opportunity to run to the sidelines to change a jersey before returning to the court. The game soon resumed.

After scoring the first goal, the morale and confidence of Tottenham Hotspur were also played out. The implementation of Ye Qiu's tactics became more resolute and decisive, and they even began to consciously pull Sparta Prague. On the one hand, the latter was too physically exhausted, and on the other hand, they were indeed weak, so they could only be led by the opponent.

In the 84th minute of the game, Sparta Prague rushed to the front court to attack, but the pass was wrong. After Mascherano intercepted the ball, Beckham made a long diagonal pass over the top. Van Persie quickly rushed to the left wing, stopped the ball without anyone defending, and rushed forward with the ball.

Sparta Prague also returned to defense very quickly. Central defender Kadlec blocked Van Persie on the left side of the penalty area. The Dutchman had no choice but to knock back after seeing Ribery come in. Ribery followed up and kicked the ball directly into the penalty area. Fabregas quickly entered the penalty area of ​​Sparta Prague from the middle and pushed the ball directly with his right foot along the momentum of the ball sent by Ribery.

This time Posturka reacted quickly, but Fabregas used the inner instep to push the ball, and the angle was very tricky. He deliberately almost brushed the right post and entered the goal. He had no way to stop it. 2:0!

The happiest person who scored two goals in a row was Ye Qiu on the sidelines.

After Fabregas scored, Ye Qiu applauded and cheered loudly on the sidelines.

After the team broke the deadlock, they executed the tactics more and more confidently, and the team's offense gradually took effect. The offensive routines of the two goals were actually what Ye Qiu wanted to see, that is, the back-and-forth cross-position of the team's frontcourt players and the hierarchical back-insertion offensive echelon.

At present, the only team that Ye Qiu is not very satisfied with is Messi. After the Argentine played in the America's Cup, he returned to the team and started the preparations and adjustments at the beginning of the season to prepare for the new season. So for now, the state is not adjusted very well, and he does not seem very excited in the game.

However, Ye Qiu saw the skillful and flexible cooperation between Van Persie, Ribery and Fabregas in the last period of this game. He also saw that his ideas and tactical ideas were implemented. He felt that he was right to choose such a change, and as the players became clearer and more integrated with his tactical ideas, the team's offensive power would become stronger and stronger.

Relying on the two goals of Van Persie and Fabregas, Tottenham Hotspur defeated Sparta Prague 2:0 away.

This away win almost announced that Tottenham Hotspur had entered the group stage ahead of schedule, which meant that Tottenham Hotspur had earned tens of millions of euros!

But Ye Qiu still didn't dare to be too careless.

After the first round of the game, in the third round of the Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur played against the newly promoted Derby County at home. As a result, Ribery was in full swing and scored two goals for Tottenham Hotspur in less than ten minutes after the start. In the 16th minute, Fabregas scored another goal, and Tottenham Hotspur took the lead 3:0 in the first half.

In the 60th minute of the second half, Van Persie scored the last goal for the team. In the end, the team defeated Derby County 4:0 and won a hearty victory at White Hart Lane.

But a week later, because they had to participate in the second round and the European Super Cup, Tottenham Hotspur still played with a half-main and half-substitute lineup, and lost to Manchester United 0:1 at Old Trafford.

This made Ferguson somewhat proud in the interview after the game.

But after Tottenham Hotspur returned to their home court, they defeated Sparta Prague 3-0, defeated their opponents with a total score of 5-0, and successfully advanced to the group stage.

The day after the game, UEFA started the Champions League group stage draw ceremony and the season awards ceremony, and Tottenham Hotspur also went to Monaco to welcome the European Super Cup with AC Milan.