The Godfather of Football

On October 16, at noon, dozens of journalists and media from the UK, Italy, Europe and even the world gathered outside the Wellington Hospital in London. They all gathered at the gate of the hospital, anxiously waiting for the latest news.

Last night, at the San Paolo Stadium in Naples, Italy, they faced the last opponent of the group stage, Armenia.

This should have been a game without any suspense, because Italy had already won the first place in the group and advanced in advance, and Armenia had no hope of advancing, so the game between the two sides was more like a formality, and Prandelli also arranged a large number of substitutes in the last two games of the group, and more of them were observing the players.

But the two games have one thing in common, whether it was the away game against Denmark before, or the home game against Armenia now, Prandelli arranged Pirlo to start, and both played the whole game.

As early as September, in order to ensure smooth promotion, Italy played Pirlo for two consecutive games against Bulgaria and the Czech Republic. Tottenham Hotspur sent a fax to the Italian national team, saying that Prandelli should use Pirlo more cautiously instead of using him to death.

It's not that Tottenham Hotspur is petty. Even the Italian media believe that Prandelli used Pirlo too frequently, so that after Pirlo returned to the club, Ye Qiu began to reuse Matic and even Stroman instead of Pirlo.

But Prandelli's explanation for this is that Pirlo is the core soul of the team and an indispensable and important member.

As the soul of the Italian national team, Pirlo has said that he will retire from the national team after the World Cup next year, so he himself also said that he hopes to enjoy the few remaining national team games more.

This resulted in Pirlo not resisting Prandelli's use of him, so that in the second half of the match against Armenia, Pirlo collided with the opponent's player during a defense and was carried off the court on a stretcher. The Italian national team doctor initially diagnosed that he had a right knee ligament strain, but did not give a conclusion on the specific situation.

Tottenham Hotspur brought Pirlo back to London from Italy overnight and sent him to its partner Wellington Hospital for detailed diagnosis and treatment. The team has not yet given a result or explanation, and all reporters are waiting outside Wellington Hospital for news.

The waiting time is undoubtedly long. It was not until nearly noon that Ye Qiu and Mauro Tassotti walked out of Wellington Hospital one after another. The reporters waiting outside suddenly swarmed up and surrounded them at the gate of the hospital.

"Mr. Ye Qiu, Pirlo was injured and left the field. Is the situation serious?"

"Will it affect Pirlo's participation in the World Cup?"

"Will he retire because of this? Or will he be able to return to the field soon?"

For Pirlo's age, once he is injured and left the field, the outside world will inevitably produce some rumors. Ye Qiu is already used to this phenomenon, so he waited until all the reporters had finished asking questions before he spoke.

"Pirlo's current situation is very clear. Because of too many games, he has physical fatigue and a strained right knee ligament. He will be out for at least six weeks. As for the situation after the rest and returning to the field, no one knows!"

Ye Qiu looked at the reporter's camera with a serious face and spoke slowly, as if he was counting Prandelli's crimes.

"I must once again question the Italian national team and head coach Prandelli. Why did they insist on using Pirlo in two dispensable games when many main players were rotated? Does he think that the 34-year-old Pirlo will be in better physical condition than Balotelli and Montolivo?"

"What? Balotelli played less than 30 minutes in the second game, and Montolivo did not play in the first game, but Pirlo insisted on playing both games? I don't understand why?"

"Prandelli has always vowed that Pirlo is an indispensable member of the Italian national team, but in my opinion, his way of using people is to use up my players. Doesn't he know that he should protect the core players? Doesn't he know that Pirlo is already 34 years old?"

After saying that, Ye Qiu waved his hand, indicating that he did not intend to continue the interview. He was in a bad mood.

Mauro Tassotti took over Ye Qiu's words and said to the camera: "We will communicate and contact Prandelli about this matter. We hope to get a satisfactory answer. Otherwise, we will not rule out filing a complaint."

For those big players of national team, the struggle between them and the national team has always been heard. Even after paying for national team players since the 2008 European Cup, the clubs are not interested in that little money. What they are worried about is the national team's unscrupulous use of players, especially core players like Pirlo.

For Ye Qiu and Tottenham Hotspur, Pirlo's injury has some impact, but it is not very fatal, because there are Matic, Stroman and others who can play in the defensive midfielder position. Tottenham Hotspur has a lot of manpower to replace, but the team must also show a tough attitude.

Ye Qiu's relationship with the national team had been handled well in the past, but this time Prandelli clearly violated the tacit understanding between him and Ye Qiu. Although he had to frequently use Pirlo in preparation for the World Cup, he had a certain reason for this. and difficulties, but from Ye Qiu's perspective and standpoint, Prandelli went too far.

If Tottenham Hotspur does not stand up this time, but instead offers consideration and understanding and settles the matter, then who will be willing to negotiate with Tottenham Hotspur in the future? All national team employment and recruitment can completely ignore Tottenham Hotspur. How do you feel about Tenham Hotspur?

This time Ye Qiu asked the team to handle the matter more forcefully, that is, to tell the national team where the national football team is playing that we will give due consideration to your interests, but that is without sacrificing our own interests.

In fact, it is not only Tottenham Hotspur who is dissatisfied with Prandelli, but also many Italian newspapers have questioned Prandelli's actions, among which Gazzetta dello Sport directly criticized him.

"We all know that Pirlo is very important. He cannot be copied. He is the soul of the team. Prandelli hoped that Pirlo could play a better role and play a greater role, but his wish was shattered. Pirlo's injury will be serious. It has hit the national team’s preparation and morale. We better hope that Pirlo can recover and return to form before the World Cup!”

Corriere della Sera criticized Prandelli's approach and believed that players like Pirlo should be treated specially. "Prandelli's conservative attitude is very annoying. He only has one Pirlo in his eyes. Maybe Pirlo now It is indeed very important, but after the World Cup, Pirlo will retire. What about the future? Prandelli doesn't think about it, he only thinks about the present!"

Pirlo's successor, this is also the biggest deadlock for the Italian national team.

When Pirlo performs better and better, the issue of his successor becomes more important because he is thirty-four years old.

The Turin newspaper directly commented on Ye Qiu and Prandelli, believing that the biggest difference between the two is that Ye Qiu is very aware of Pirlo's problems and he dares to promote and introduce players such as Matic and Stroman. To reserve talents and boldly promote them, Prandelli sticks to Pirlo and does not dare to make the slightest change.

In the 2012 European Cup, Italy's performance was eye-catching and stunning. However, two years later, as Pirlo aged further, Italy's problems gradually came to light. As the core of this team, Pirlo It can even be said that it has become the weak link of this team.

Because of this, many people are not optimistic about Italy.

Now, Pirlo is injured, and all Italy is watching to see what Prandelli will do!

But all of this has nothing to do with Tottenham Hotspur. After Ye Qiu and Mauro Tassotti learned about Pirlo's injury, they must formulate a plan as soon as possible and adjust the team's plan.

There are gains and losses. Although Pirlo's injury has weakened the team's midfield thickness and organization, it has also given the team's midfield metabolism a natural turnaround.

Next, it depends on whether Matic and Stroman can seize this opportunity!

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Pirlo's injury made the Tottenham Hotspur players who returned to Theobald feel a little regretful. Many people asked the team for news first. Captain Thiago Silva even suggested that everyone After the afternoon training session, he went directly to Wellington Hospital to visit his teammates, which also received support from the entire team.

The morning training session was mainly about adjustments. After the training session, the three captains Thiago Silva, Kompany and Ribery were called away by Mauro Tassotti and Roland Schepas. A group of people took the team's BMW car to Stratford Stadium to hold a meeting with Peter Kenyon, Ron Gurley and others.

In the afternoon, after the team took a lunch break, the three captains also summoned all the team's players to the player area for a meeting.

The so-called player area is actually an independent area specially opened up by Theobald for the players. In this area, even the head coach is not allowed to enter easily, let alone the team's management. Players can discuss anything in this area, including locker room revolution.

This tradition started when Ye Qiu was coaching Chelsea. When Grant first arrived, in order to please the players, he ventured into the players' area. The result was the opposite, and he was so frustrated that he had to apologize to the players and lost face.

"We went to Stratford Stadium for a meeting at noon. We mainly discussed three things!"

As the captain of the team and the captain of the Brazilian national team, Thiago Silva is becoming more and more like a general. He is already familiar with meetings like this.

"The first is Pirlo's injury, which is very regrettable, but Mr. Tassotti said that the coaching staff has formulated a detailed contingency plan. He believes that Pirlo's injury will not affect the team, but this also requires all of us. "Working harder, especially our midfield, should better bear the impact of Pirlo's absence."

Having said this, almost everyone knows that midfielders such as Matic and Stroman will have more opportunities.

If it was at the beginning of the season, this decision might cause some controversy, but after more than ten games, the strength of these two players has been affirmed and recognized by the first-team players, especially Matic. It seems very logical to take over Pirlo. It’s just that whether the team should play three midfielders or two defensive midfielders is a question.

"The second thing is also the decision of the team management and coaching staff. Our team’s goal in the new season is to win the championship!"

As soon as Thiago Silva finished speaking, there was an uproar around, but the players were more happy and excited, and some were very calm. After all, such a goal is not worth their fuss.

Tottenham Hotspur does not talk about winning the championship, or it is strange to think that Tottenham Hotspur cannot win the championship.

"We always have only one goal, that is the championship, all the championships!"

"Mr. Tassotti and Mr. Kenyon both hope that we can convey their meaning. They are very satisfied with the current situation of the team. They believe that as long as every player present works together, the team's goal will be achieved!"

Tiago Silva's resounding words also excited many players, including Kompany and Ribery standing on his left and right sides. They are the team's vice-captain and third captain.

This is also a management mechanism of Tottenham Hotspur, that is, the management and coaching staff manage the team through the captain. Whether it is a penalty decision, some rewards, or some strategies of the team, they are all conveyed through the captain, and the opinions and ideas of the players can also be conveyed to the team management and coaching staff through the captain.

It can be said that the captain is the communication channel of the team!

So the captain has the authoritative right to speak in the locker room, which even the team's top star Messi cannot challenge.

Of course, Messi himself is not the kind of person who likes to challenge authority. He is shy and introverted, and is not suitable for such a position. On the contrary, Ribery is more extroverted and is currently the third captain of the team.

But in order to prevent the captain from abusing his power, Tottenham Hotspur arranges private communication and contact between the coaching staff and the players every week, which can be regarded as a means of balancing the power within the team.

"The last thing is closely related to each of us. After Mr. Tassotti coordinated and communicated with the management over the past week, the team finally formulated a bonus plan for this season!" When he said this, Thiago Silva smiled at everyone, because he knew very well that most people would make a fuss.

Sure enough, as soon as he finished speaking, cheers and strange shouts suddenly rang out in the conference hall.

Everyone plays football to support themselves and their families, to make money, and honor and championship are just a pursuit for them besides supporting themselves and their families.

If someone says that he doesn't play football for money, then this person should play amateur football. No professional player would think so, so Tottenham Hotspur has always been very realistic in terms of money.

"I believe that everyone got the bonus they deserved last season. After every important game, the team will cash out the bonus, and this year is the same!"

Tottenham Hotspur's bonus system is linked to the team's performance, just like the team went to the Club World Cup. After the game, the team immediately cashed out the Club World Cup bonus, and the team qualified from the group stage. The management will cash out the first place qualification bonus. After each promotion, the team will immediately cash out the bonus until it wins the championship, and then the final championship bonus will be awarded.

Tottenham Hotspur's 30 million euro double crown award is the sum of all bonuses. A large part of it was awarded during the promotion process. Only the league championship bonus and the Champions League championship bonus, as well as the final double crown bonus, will be distributed after the Champions League final.

This is also a convention, the purpose is to stimulate the performance and fighting spirit of the players.

"After consultation between the management, coaching staff and the finance department, the team's bonus this season will continue the bonus model of last season, but considering that the broadcasting rights of the Premier League in the new season have been greatly improved, the team has also given a corresponding increase in bonuses."

"The prize money for winning the Premier League will be as high as 15 million euros, which is the same as the prize money for winning the Champions League. The Club World Cup is still 1.5 million euros, and each domestic cup championship will add 5 million euros. If the team wins the Premier League, the Champions League, and an additional cup championship, it will get 40 million euros. If it wins the quadruple championship, the total bonus will reach 60 million euros, an increase of 10 million over last year!"

All the players present were shocked after hearing this, including the newly joined team, such as Lewandowski.

According to Tottenham Hotspur's bonus sharing model, as long as he plays as a main player, let alone salary and commercial income, as long as the team makes a difference in the Premier League and the Champions League, let alone winning the championship, as long as the Premier League top three Champions League semi-finals, the bonus he can get will exceed his annual salary in Dortmund.

It was so surprising. He had never expected that Tottenham Hotspur would give such a big bonus.

60 million euros, it was scary just to think about it!

But don’t think that Tottenham Hotspur have too much money to spend. In fact, it is not the case, because the Premier League broadcast rights in the new season have almost doubled compared to before. If Tottenham Hotspur wins the championship , will be allocated at least more than 100 million pounds, that is to say, at least around 130 million euros.

With the increase in Premier League broadcast rights, even the last place in the Premier League this season will be able to receive a bonus of about 65 million pounds after the season. This is the bonus share that only the Premier League champions could receive in the past.

Therefore, Tottenham Hotspur dares to give such an amazing bonus this season because they have enough confidence.

Moreover, Peter Kenyon and Ron Gurley have already reached an agreement with sponsors, and they will also provide part of the bonuses. In addition, the team's salary is usually not high, and the bonuses can fully avoid taxes. So overall, Tottenham Hotspur does not suffer in this matter.

If the team can win the championship, Tottenham Hotspur will be happiest.

But in the minds of the players at this moment, their most intuitive feeling is how wealthy the team they play for is. Looking at the whole of Europe, which team dares to give out 60 million euros in bonuses in a single season? ?

Only Tottenham Hotspur!