The Godfather of Football

August 3, 2000, Amsterdam Arena Stadium, the first match of the Amsterdam Cup Invitational Tournament.

The host Ajax played against the Serie A champion Lazio.

Ajax's performance in the past two warm-up matches was very depressing.

The game against Anderlecht reversed the opponent. Although the scene was terrible, it was at least a win. However, the challenge to Werder Bremen, 0:2 away to the opponent, made Ajax encounter a period of doubts, because the team's performance did not improve much, which made Ajax feel depressed.

Among them, the most depressed was Ibrahimovic, because he did not play in both games.

In the Ajax first team, there were two who did not play in both games, one was Gilberto Silva, but he was injured, and the other was Ibrahimovic. Ye Qiu did not let him play, which made Ibrahimovic very depressed.

But what made him even more depressed was that in the third warm-up match against Lazio, Ye Qiu let him play, but he met Nesta.

The team was at a disadvantage in terms of strength, so after the opening, Ajax was more inclined to defend, while Lazio took the initiative to attack. The first threatening attack of the home team came in the 7th minute. Robben took the ball from the left and broke through Pancaro and passed it to the opponent's defense line. Ibrahimovic followed from behind.

Although Ibrahimovic is tall and his explosive power is not outstanding, he is not bad either. His speed is not bad either. Moreover, the kick given by Robben is obviously on the left side of the small penalty area. As long as he inserts it, he can basically get a chance.

But the problem is that Nesta seemed to have judged Ibrahimovic's running in advance, and blocked him in front of him, limiting his speed with his body, so that he could not insert to the left side of the small penalty area in time to respond, and finally he could only watch the ball go out of the baseline.

The Swede was so depressed that he almost wanted to push Nesta from behind.

The second direct dialogue between the two appeared in the 13th minute, when Ajax counterattacked again.

Sneijder passed the ball to the left, Robben quickly inserted from the left, and after getting the ball, he was knocked down by Pancaro's fierce tackle.

After Ibrahimovic got the ball, he wanted to control it, but at this time, Nesta suddenly appeared in front of him. While Ibrahimovic was dribbling the ball, he decisively seized the opportunity and poked the ball directly, destroying Ajax's attack again, and also making the Swede return frustrated and unsuccessful again.

Ibrahimovic is not the only one who is frustrated with Nesta.

Robben dribbled the ball to counter offside once, and he had obviously passed Pancaro, but Nesta suddenly inserted to the right to assist in defense, blocked Robben with his body, kicked the ball off, turned around calmly, and passed the ball to Stankovic. The whole process was indescribably chic and calm, allowing everyone to feel Nesta's personal ability.

Immediately afterwards, Van der Vaart made a straight pass after cutting inside with the ball. Ibrahimovic originally wanted to hold Nesta with his body, but he didn't expect that the Italian central defender chose to defend in front and intercepted the ball passed to Ibrahimovic in advance.

This series of blows made the Swedes look very depressed, but Ye Qiu on the sidelines laughed.

"I'm afraid this kid will meet a strong opponent!" Bobby Hams said with a smile.

Ibrahimovic seemed to be a kid who had never seen the world. The opponents he met in the past were basically in Sweden. After coming to Ajax, he encountered a series of blows. First, he met defenders like Lucio and Abidal who were not afraid of his body, and at the same time, he met Robben, Van der Vaart and a group of players whose skills and personal abilities were not inferior to his.

This time, he directly faced the leading central defender in Serie A, and he was afraid that he would suffer.

"Are you doing this on purpose?" Bobby Hams looked at Ye Qiu with ill intentions.

In the first two games, Ibrahimovic was deliberately kept up to make him feel depressed. Now that he is on the court, Ibrahimovic naturally wants to show his strength in every possible way, but he encounters a strong opponent like Nesta. This is definitely a series of blows for Ibrahimovic.

"This kid has strength, skills, and talents, but the key is still here!" Ye Qiu pointed to his head. He felt that Ibrahimovic's biggest problem was his mentality and temper.

If you want Ibrahimovic to learn how to work with the team, it is best to let him understand first that it is not feasible to rely on his own recklessness. He needs the support of his teammates, and at the same time, he must inspire his fighting spirit and let him see clearly what level the world's top players are at.

"Aren't you afraid that this dose will be too strong?" Bobby Hams asked with a smile.

Ye Qiu smiled slightly, "It depends on the person. I think his ability to withstand pressure is not too low!"

When he said this, Ye Qiu turned around and looked at Van Basten, "Marco, after you go back, make a technical evaluation and analysis report based on his performance in the game. You will be the leader and dig out all his problems!"

Van Basten smiled and nodded in agreement. He is experienced in scoring goals, but as a coach, it is new to him to instruct others on how to score goals and run positions, but it is not difficult for him.

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When Ibrahimovic met Nesta and was at a loss, Lazio's offense met Ajax's defense and was also at a loss.

The Serie A champions have been training for a while, but it is obvious that they have not yet adjusted to the level suitable for the game, especially on the offensive end. Even though the top star Nedved showed the same diligence and hard work as always, and Stankovic was as good as always, the newly joined Crespo just couldn't score the ball into the Ajax goal.

Gilberto Silva performed very well in the position of defensive midfielder. He didn't move much vertically, but he did a very good job in lateral movement, especially in protecting the defense line, covering the area and defending.

What's more rare is that Gilberto Silva is a Brazilian player after all. His basic technical ability is not weak and he has a certain ability to pass the ball. When the opponent enters the 30-meter area and the team retreats, he can basically firmly control the 18 to 25-meter area in front of the goal, which is the so-called front area of ​​the penalty area.

"This Brazilian is really a wall!" Bobby Hams's eagle eyes immediately saw Ajax's defense. The reason why they were able to freeze Lazio's attack was not only because Lazio was in poor condition, but also because of Gilberto Silva's protection of the defense line.

Lucio still frequently left his position, and Maicon often joined in the attack. The two Brazilians had not formed a good enough tacit understanding with each other, but Gilberto Silva's presence in the defensive midfielder position prevented their recklessness from being used by the opponent.

"This is a hidden danger!" Blind himself was a defender and immediately saw the problem of coordination on the back line.

Ye Qiu also understood, "Lucio and Maicon are both players with strong ability to attack from behind. They both have the ability to easily carry the ball forward, especially Maicon, who has a better ability to advance. However, the ability of the defender to advance, while contributing greatly to the offense, often represents a huge hidden danger."

"Coordinate the division of labor on the back line, avoid two people attacking at the same time, and use the running ability of the midfielders and the positioning and defensive ability of Gilberto Silva. This should be able to avoid the problems exposed by the defender attacking to the greatest extent, don't you think?" Bobby Hams is experienced and saw Ye Qiu's calculations at once.

Ye Qiu smiled. He was recently studying a book by Ferguson called [Looking at the Midfield Configuration of Modern Football]. It contains some of Ferguson's understanding of the role of the midfield in modern football, as well as targeted functional configuration.

First of all, there must be players who can pass and dispatch, distribute the ball and transfer, and there must be players who can carry the ball to create deep attacks. At the same time, there must be the ability to use space, especially when the ball is advanced to 32 meters, and someone must be able to protect the defense and firmly control the front of the penalty area.

Look at Manchester United's golden midfield in 1999, Beckham's large-scale transfer and deep advancement; Giggs's deep dribbling, attacking the wing, creating width; Scholes's 32-meter insertion and the last pass; and Keane's protection of the defense and the ability to dispatch the ball.

These four people formed Manchester United's midfield, and Ferguson used 442 to allocate a reasonable running distance to each of them, plus tacit cooperation and support, which made Manchester United's black wind twins on the front line at that time only need to run to the gap to respond, and someone behind them will naturally pass the ball to them and create opportunities.

As the defending side, facing such a routine combination, it can be said that it is hard to defend.

Ye Qiu also went to see the midfield configuration of AC Milan when they won the Champions League in 2007. Gattuso's regional coverage and defensive replacement showed that his running ability was amazing, and he was not as stupid as many fans imagined; Pirlo was responsible for large-scale passing and advancing, so he always stood relatively far back.

Kaka took on two responsibilities, one was to advance with the ball, and the other was to make a back-up within 32 meters.

Seedorf took on the responsibility of distributing the ball, but he could play a huge role in the team's offensive and defensive transition.

In addition, like Liverpool's midfield and Barcelona's midfield, in fact, almost all midfields are arranged around a set of power configurations.

In other words, different teams have different player configurations, but to be frank, the power configurations are all the same.

Ye Qiu had fully considered this when recruiting players.

Gilberto Silva's ability to protect and intercept the front of the penalty area, as well as the defensive support after the defenders advance; Yaya Toure or Keita's wide coverage, pressing and passing ability, and their good ability to attack from behind; Sneijder's ability to distribute the ball and pass the ball in depth, as well as his ability to attack from 32 meters behind.

As for the problem of advancing the ball, Robben's personal dribbling and one-on-one breakthrough on the left, Maicon's dribbling and advancing from behind on the right, and even the 10-meter advancement ability of central defender Lucio after taking the ball, can all help Ajax effectively advance the ball.

From this point of view, Ye Qiu had already clearly given up Kaka when he formed the team, because Kaka's role in the current Ajax has been replaced by other players, and having one more Kaka would be a bad thing.

Of course, this is only a theoretically perfect midfield configuration, but there are many other factors that affect the operation of a midfield, such as the degree of cooperation and tacit understanding between the players, the orderly running of the players, and the awareness of keeping a proper distance between each other.

"I need more time!" Ye Qiu said with a smile.

He has enough confidence in his personnel configuration, and more needs to be polished and improved on some details, such as Robben's cooperation awareness, Ibrahimovic's details and playing habits, etc., all of which need time to be polished.

Yaya Toure currently plays in the midfield and tends to attack, but his running ability is excellent, he is physically fit, and he is a little young. On the contrary, Keita has rich professional experience, and he is also the best player of the 1999 World Youth Championship. He is a typical all-around player from penalty area to penalty area.

Therefore, after a period of investigation and observation of the game, Ye Qiu has initially formulated the team's main lineup.

The goalkeeper must be the veteran Grimm, because there is no more suitable candidate at present.

Abidal is the best player on the left side of the back line, Kivu and Lucio form the defense line, and the right side is handed over to the more offensive Maicon. Heitinga, Kolo Toure, De Jong and Maduro are all suitable substitutes.

The midfielders are Sneijder, Gilberto Silva and Keita, and the forward trident is Robben and Van der Vaart occupying the left and right wings respectively, Huntelaar and Ibrahimovic sitting in the middle, depending on the specific situation.

Bobby Hams and others understand and support Ye Qiu's lineup and tactical arrangements. Even experienced people like Bobby Hams think that there is no problem with Ye Qiu's lineup arrangement and tactical arrangements, and it can even be said that it is very exciting.

But in the field of football, many times, fans and the media will not pay attention to your head coach's intentions. The only thing they care about is whether the game is won and whether there are stars in the team.

Ye Qiu is better. Van Praag personally gave assurance and support, so he can slowly start his own layout.

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The game with Lazio ended in 0:0, and neither side was able to score a goal.

This also fully demonstrated the progress that Ye Qiu had made in the team's defensive transformation. Although many problems were still exposed in the game, at least the team was able to withstand the offensive pressure of Lazio very well.

On the other hand, on the offensive end of the team, Ibrahimovic was abused by Nesta throughout the game. He was stared at by Nesta and disappeared throughout the game. He even had only one pitiful shot in the whole game. This was definitely a painful blow to the Swedish center who was ambitious and wanted to show his skills before the game.

After the game, Ye Qiu praised the team's performance and believed that the players' performance was worthy of recognition.

"I understand that many people hope that the team can win every game and defeat every opponent. I hope so too. However, we are a young team that has just been reorganized. I hope everyone can give us more patience and confidence."

"I am confident that we will be able to integrate and show strong enough strength in the next two months!"

Ye Qiu's answer to reporters after the game was obviously not satisfactory, because most of the outside world was full of doubts about Ye Qiu's lack of experience and Ajax's youth, but the performances of several young players such as Gilberto Silva, Robben, Van der Vaart, Abidal and Kivu were all recognized.

Especially in the game against Lazio, Gilberto Silva's performance in the midfield was very stable and eye-catching.

But Ibrahimovic, who was introduced by the team at a high price this season, performed very poorly. After the game, he was selected as the worst player of the game. Many fans also gave him the title of a fake, believing that he could not bear the heavy responsibility of attacking the Ajax front line.

But fans' attention to Ajax is always not as good as Barcelona.

The match between Barcelona and Arsenal filled the Arena Stadium. In comparison, Ajax, which made its first appearance at home, only received half the attendance, which shows the difference between having or not having stars.

However, the La Liga giants were not ambiguous and defeated Arsenal 2:1.

But Wenger's team soon vented all their anger on Ajax.

Robben, who has performed well recently, was restricted by Lauren on the right side of Arsenal on the left, while Van der Vaart on the right was guarded by Dixon. Ibrahimovic and Huntelaar, who came on as a substitute, were guarded by Keown and Tony Adams and had no temper at all. Even Ajax's midfield was suppressed by the Gunners' midfield led by Vieira.

The forward line composed of Henry and Bergkamp took advantage of two mistakes in the Ajax defense line and penetrated the Ajax goal twice, helping Arsenal beat the host Ajax 2:0.

In this way, all four games were played.

Barcelona had 4 points with one win and one draw, but because they drew 3:3 with Lazio and scored 5 goals, they got 9 points.

Arsenal got 6 points with 1 win and 3 goals, ranking second.

Lazio got 5 points with 2 draws and 3 goals, while Ajax got 1 point with 1 draw and 1 loss, and no goals, ranking at the bottom of the group, and the gap was very large.

If we just look at the win-loss relationship, Ajax's performance is not too bad, at least they are evenly matched with Lazio. When playing against a strong team like Arsenal, their strength and situation are very passive, but this is also considered normal performance.

But the problem is that, judging from the standings, Ajax lost too badly, especially without scoring any goals, which made Ye Qiu's team criticized by some Ajax fans. They believed that the reason why Ye Qiu's team was weak in attack was mainly due to the blind purge after he took office.

To make matters worse, after the Amsterdam Cup, Ajax played a warm-up match with Barcelona, ​​and the home team lost 0:3 to Barcelona at the Arena Stadium.

Ferrer, the then head coach of Barcelona, ​​said in an interview after the game, "This is not a very valuable warm-up match, because there is a huge gap in strength between us and our opponents, but we still go all out, which makes us unbeaten in the pre-season preparations and makes us full of confidence in the new season."

Obviously, in his eyes, there is no Ajax at all.