svetikya Chapter 82 Unconventional Tactics
Chapter 82 Unconventional Tactics
On Sunday, Yip Hin once again fielded a depleted squad to face Southampton.
Drogba returned to the team for this match, and Ye Xian also used the 4-2-3-1 formation that he used in the second half of the previous round.
Fueled by the cheers of the Goodison Park fans, Everton dominated the game, launching frequent attacks into Southampton's territory.
However, Everton had a bit of bad luck today.
In the 12th minute, Rooney calmly received the ball in midfield, spotted an opening on the wing, and delivered a precise low through ball that pierced through Southampton's entire flank defense.
On the left flank, Ronaldo made a high-speed forward run, perfectly received the ball, dribbled past the pressing full-back, and powerfully stormed into the penalty area byline!
Facing the blocking of the center-back, Ronaldo calmly dribbled past him to adjust his position, creating a shooting angle, and then unleashed a low shot into the near corner.
The ball traveled a tricky path and was extremely fast. It passed the goalkeeper Jones's reach and was about to go into the net, but it crashed heavily against the outside of the near post!
Goodison Park erupted in a chorus of sighs of regret, with countless fans clutching their heads in their hands, their faces filled with disappointment.
In the 24th minute, Everton created another deadly threat.
Grosso dribbled forward at high speed on the left, then crossed the ball into the center of the penalty area after reaching the byline.
Inside the penalty area, Drogba used his powerful physique to hold off two defenders, win the header, and headed the ball towards the goal from close range.
The ball was at an extremely difficult angle, heading straight for the far corner of the goal. Southampton goalkeeper Jones, who was in top form, made a diving save, tipping the ball over the crossbar with one hand!
Dwight Howard spread his hands, looking utterly helpless. Such an excellent close-range header ultimately failed to result in a goal.
In the 67th minute of the second half, the best chance of the game came.
Everton's continuous crosses from the flanks created chaos in the penalty area. Southampton's defender made a clearance error, and the ball fell to Rooney, who was unmarked near the penalty spot.
The 16-year-old prodigy had an open goal opportunity but overexerted himself, and the ball grazed the crossbar and went out of bounds again.
Sighs and regrets rose and fell from the Goodison Park stands, and Rooney looked on incredulously.
Ye Xian, standing on the sidelines, could only shake his head slightly.
You're still too young!
If it were the future Rooney, he would definitely be much calmer when shooting...
Everton continued their relentless attack, but Southampton, through sheer defensive effort and a stroke of good luck, managed to hold onto their goal.
Finally, the referee blew the final whistle.
The score remained 0-0, with each side having scored one point.
Throughout the match, Everton had over 70% possession and 15 shots, 8 of which were dangerous.
In contrast, Southampton didn't manage a single shot on target throughout the entire match!
This is also what prompted the Liverpool Echo to lament:
"Ye Xian has used his tactics to the fullest and completely dominated the opponent on the field. But unfortunately, God was not on our side today."
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After the fourth round, Everton had 2 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss, accumulating 7 points and ranking joint fourth in the standings.
Newcastle United also have 7 points, the same as Everton.
The top three were actually only one point higher than them.
They are Arsenal, Manchester United, and Liverpool, all with a record of 2 wins, 2 draws, and 0 losses!
Behind these five teams is a bunch of teams with 6 points.
Tottenham, Leeds United, Chelsea, Charlton...
This also shows that the competition in the Premier League this season is still very fierce.
The gap between the leading teams is not widening; every round, some teams will rise while others fall behind.
Moreover, even teams as strong as Arsenal and Manchester United cannot always defeat those so-called weak teams.
After this round, Ye Xian and his Everton team can finally take a breather.
With Alonso and Gravesen back from injury and the next match scheduled for the weekend a week from now, everyone's fatigue will be greatly alleviated.
However, they will also face their toughest opponent since the start of the season – the defending champions Arsenal!
Arsenal at this time was certainly very strong.
Just looking at their attack line is terrifying:
Henry, Bergkamp, Pires, Wiltord, Kanu...
They are all world-renowned football stars.
Therefore, Ye Xian still needs to study the characteristics of Arsenal players in more detail before figuring out how to counter Wenger's tactics.
这个时候的温格，主打的阵型是4-4-2或4-3-3。
When using a 4-4-2 formation, the forward line is usually Henry and Bergkamp.
If a 4-3-3 formation is used, Kanu might be positioned in the center, with Henry and Wiltord on either side.
Based on the previous rounds, Wenger is quite likely to use a 4-4-2 formation.
Therefore, how to defend against the offensive onslaught of Arsenal's star players becomes the main challenge that Ye Xian needs to carefully address...
"Going head-to-head with Arsenal is probably not feasible."
In the tactical meeting room, Ye Xian was already discussing countermeasures with his coach and players.
Considering the current players' overall abilities, they might be able to withstand Arsenal's attack, but it would be very difficult for them to compete for control of the game.
Therefore, we should still use the same strategy we used when leading the Chinese team against Brazil – play a defensive counter-attacking style!
"The primary task of counter-attacking is defense. That's what I want to emphasize today."
Ye Xian placed red chess pieces representing Arsenal players on the tactics board.
"And in their attacking system, the most lethal firepower is obviously their striker, Henry."
"He scored 32 goals and provided 9 assists in 49 appearances across all competitions last season, winning the Premier League Golden Boot and helping the team win the Premier League and FA Cup double."
"Therefore, our main defensive focus is on Henry."
Seeing that everyone was listening attentively to his speech, Ye Xian cleared his throat and continued:
"A striker of his caliber is very difficult to defend, but once you stop him, Arsenal's attack will be greatly limited."
"Therefore, both Gravesen and Li Tie must do their best to cut off the passes to Henry."
"By limiting his possession of the ball, we can effectively limit Arsenal's attacking play in the front three."
"Of course, focusing on defending Henry doesn't mean we can relax our control over the others."
"Whether it's Pires, Ljungberg, or Ashley Cole who often makes late runs into the box, their breakthroughs are very sharp."
"And of course, we can't forget Bergkamp; he often has strokes of genius..."
Ye Xian began moving his blue chess pieces on the tactics board, giving his disciples the most detailed explanations.
"Wenger also likes to press high up the pitch and uses their compact positioning to reduce our space for handling the ball."
"And Arsenal has another great ability: they can often move from one side of the pitch to the other in a well-organized and synchronized manner."
"Therefore, we still need to try using long passes to move the opponent around and break Arsenal's defensive balance!"
"Alves, you need to push forward frequently and stay near Rooney, while Gravesen also needs to move closer to the right flank."
"If they rely on defensive positioning and movement to cut off our passing lanes to the right flank trio, then we need to make adjustments in time."
"Cristiano Ronaldo on the left, you need to drop back to the midfield line to support the midfield defense. If you're marked, then Alonso should drop back to the midfield line and move alongside Li Tie to form a second four-man defensive line..."
"In short, throughout the match, we must demonstrate strict tactical discipline, maintain organization and a compact formation! This is the key to whether we can defeat Arsenal..."
Towards the end, for some reason, Ye Xian suddenly revealed a wicked smile.
"Of course, when facing a strong team of this caliber, sometimes conventional tactics cannot truly achieve the desired effect."
"So listen carefully now, this might be a tactic you've never heard of before in your careers..."
"If you think I'm joking, then I'm telling you now with absolute certainty: it's true, this is exactly the tactic I intend to employ!"
……