Three Hundred and Seventy-One Gifts for Mourinho

After the start of the training camp in Naples, the security of the Konami training center in Castel Volturno has been upgraded.

But spies are always everywhere.

It has even appeared before that someone sneaked into the golf course, tried to stand on a high place, and used a telescope to spy on the Naples training ground, but was discovered by the security personnel of the golf course.

Since then, Naples has continued to step up patrolling.

Every time they go out for a match, it is an excellent opportunity for the opponent to spy on the military situation. They are even very aboveboard, directly setting up cameras in the stands and shooting at the stadium.

In fact, they are all mixed in Italian football, who is who's scout, and each other knows it well.

Since the first warm-up match, Inter Milan has arranged special scouts to follow Naples, but after following a few games in a row, it may be because Gao Shen's formation is always messy, and the opponents are all small balls Team, tossing back and forth, but with few results, so I started to be absent occasionally.

Gao Shen was quite self-satisfied in his heart, at least Mourinho really valued him as an opponent.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have specially arranged for people to follow Naples in such a big battle.

Therefore, Gao Shen also turned on the anti-spy mode.

Just like now, in Grosseto's home court, there are only 1,800 fans in total, and the tickets are all through Grosseto's own channel. It is not difficult to know if there are any spies who have sneaked into the opponent. .

The circle is so big, who doesn't know who?

...

"do not have it?"

After listening to Lucas' report, Gao Shen was a little funny.

How much does this look down on Grosseto?

In fact, the strength of this team is quite good.

Of course, there must be a big gap with Naples back then.

"It's probably annoying." Lucas laughed straight, "You don't respect other people's profession at all, and you're just playing around with others."

"That's because they've all been stereotyped to death."

What does Gao Shen mean?

So-called stereotypes,

In fact, it is very simple. Everyone thinks that after Gao Shen sold Domic, he brought in a character similar to Domic, who was positioned as the fourth central defender.

Fans who paid attention to Naples before the season will definitely find that Madesi Benatia has no attention at all. Even after David Luiz and Bonucci went to China to participate in the Olympic Games, the most mentioned by all media is Cannavaro Jr., followed by Thiago Motta, because he played a lot of central defenders in Barcelona.

And Vidal, he was born as a central defender.

Who is Benatia?

Oh, and part of the French U17 national team, used to be.

Then?

He couldn't get ahead in Marseille. After being loaned out consecutively, he didn't show much in Ligue 2. Tours, who played for him, were also relegated.

Note that it is a relegated team from Ligue 2.

Then in Lorient, he only played one game, losing 3-0 to Paris Saint-Germain, and he performed poorly.

Then there was a severe tear of the knee ligament, and then Marseille refused to renew his contract.

This can be said to be a young player who, let alone the first division, may not even be able to play in the second division.

At best, he has some talent, but his knee ligament is severely torn. After missing a whole season, can he still play?

Therefore, this is almost perfectly in line with the actions of the outside world regarding Gao Shen's signing.

Zero transfer fee, and the introduction of a fourth central defender who is willing to sit on the bench, just in case, seems to be quite cost-effective.

Therefore, in the pre-season media, Benatia has almost no sense of presence.

Gao Shen's use of him also indirectly contributed to this impression.

For example, as long as the opponent's scouts and media reporters are present, Gao Shen will only arrange Benatia as a substitute, or even a substitute among the substitutes, to go up in the last few minutes of the game.

Then, in the media reports, Benatia had no sense of presence, and even played very little time, just like a dispensable role.

It's free to import, that's fine!

But actually?

If you analyze it carefully, it is not difficult to find that Benatia's playing time is not too small.

And when there are no scouts, spies, and few media reporters, Gao Shen will even arrange for Benatia to start and play for a long time. The player he has played with the most is Cannavaro Jr.

As for outsiders, Gao Shen never mentioned Benatia.

Therefore, when all the media outside are worried about Naples' central defender in the Italian Super Cup, Naples is very clear inside that it is not Thiago Motta, not Vidal, but Benatia.

Gao Shen trusted the Moroccan central defender from the very beginning.

He didn't come to play the fourth central defender at all, but a substitute central defender, and he might even grab the main position.

The reasons are not complicated.

Gao Shen has always believed that Cannavaro Jr. is enough to play in Serie A, but if he wants to play in the Champions League, the third central defender must be stronger.

Before he crossed over, Benatia played in Ligue 2 for two years after returning from injury, and performed very well. He was scooped up by Udinese to Serie A at a very low price, and he became a blockbuster.

This means that the central defender is still very strong after returning from injury.

In Ligue 2, this can be done without receiving special care. In Naples, with the help of Buenaventura Pintus, a world-class trainer, Gao Shen believes that his strength will recover faster , the improvement is more obvious.

Facts also proved that Benatia did not disappoint Gao Shen.

...

Among the central defenders in Naples, there is actually a very clear division of labor.

For example, David Luiz and Bonucci, the former grabs up and the latter assists in defense.

Benatia is also an attacking central defender. He is best at frontal interception. This comes from his excellent anticipation and keen grasp of timing, which makes his frontal interception ability very strong, and one-on-one defense is even better. It's his specialty.

Fast speed, excellent chasing ability, coupled with a height of 1.9 meters and a strong body, these all give him an advantage in defense.

Moreover, according to his own disclosure, he played as a center forward in the youth team, with excellent footwork, good header ability, and more stable passing ability. These are the main reasons why Gao Shen likes him.

Perhaps, some people can't help but ask: If he is so strong, why didn't Marseille renew his contract when he was injured?

This is what Gao Shen said before. The same player has fixed characteristics and playing style, but in different tactical environments, it will produce completely different effects.

Central defenders like David Luiz and Benatia need to be able to play their maximum role in a tactical environment suitable for them, otherwise, their weaknesses and deficiencies may be exposed instead.

This is why David Lewis always had mixed reputations before his high-spirited traversal.

But this is precisely what Gao Shen likes the most.

It is a great gift he prepared for the Italian Super Cup and Mourinho!

...

This time against Grosseto, after knowing that there were no spies, Gao Shen arranged for the central defender combination of Benatia and Cannavaro Jr. He wanted to try again in this game. What is the effect of a central defender.

Grosseto played a tactic very similar to Naples, using a high position to press and press, which was a great test for Naples' central defenders, especially Pioli put a speed player in front, and he was very effective in counterattacks. threaten.

But when it came to the game, everyone discovered that Naples' defense was still very stable.

There were several quick counterattacks, and Benatia was able to catch up quickly.

Even once, he chased directly from the center line all the way back to the penalty area, used an unconventional action to intercept the ball, and there was no foul.

This wonderful defense even won rounds of applause for the Moroccan central defender.

Gao Shen is quite satisfied with his performance.

In contrast, Cannavaro Jr. is actually quite bleak.

Although they are two brothers, Cannavaro Jr.'s football attainments are indeed much inferior to Cannavaro Jr.'s.

Even after finalizing his ideas, Gao Shen still tried to rotate. In the second half, he replaced Thiago Mota on the field and switched to a three-back tactic.

This is also a direction that Gao Shen is very interested in trying.

Bielsa actually likes three backs, including the style of play in the Argentine national team. Although it failed, it is still of great research significance, and Gao Shen is no exception.

He has been studying the books of other managers in the tactical library, including Bielsa's.

Anyway, it's a warm-up match, Gao Shen naturally wants to cherish the opportunity and play every possibility.

In the end, Naples beat Grosseto 2-0.

This is the first time Benatia has played a full game.

...

"This central defender is not easy!"

As soon as the game was over, Pioli greeted him full of admiration.

Before the game, like everyone else, he thought that Naples lacked a central defender, but looking at it now, where is it missing?

Thiago Motta can play, Vidal can also play, and even Benatia, whom no one mentions, is the biggest trump card in Gao Shen's hand.

"Are you deliberately suppressing him and saving him for the European Super Cup in Italy?" Pioli guessed Gao Shen's intentions at once.

Gao Shen smiled slightly, and changed the subject: "This kind of high defensive tactic, behind the front line of defense, requires higher personal abilities of the central defenders, because they are often in one-on-one situations."

"In addition, central defenders have more passes. This will definitely be a trend, and it will even become an important criterion for the selection of central defenders. In the past, central defenders with strong bodies and excellent defense, but rough skills are no longer suitable."

Pioli nodded, but looked at his central defender again, and found that he had no choice.

Sometimes he also wondered, how did Gao Shen find these players?

With such a strong ability, it still meets his tactical requirements. The key is that all of them are of high quality and low price, which is simply amazing!

Well, the only downside is that...

"Playing more civilized, you should take him to the bad side." Pioli said with a chuckle.

Gao Shen nodded in agreement.

Italian central defenders are notoriously dirty.

Many people will be confused by Nesta's so-called elegance. In fact, the so-called elegance is based on the advantage of crushing strength. When he really meets a master, Nesta kicks dirtier than anyone else.

In contrast, the current Benatia is not dirty enough or ruffian enough.

"Are you asking me to teach the children badly?" Gao Shen asked with a smile.