189. Tan, the son of fear (4)
[Woo Ho-young taps away.]
[Vieira takes a step back and engages in a confrontation.]
Sneak.
Hoyoung’s eyes looked straight ahead.
It may not be noticeable when looking at the screen, but when playing soccer in real life, the opponent feels particularly large.
But imagine that a black man over 190 cm tall is standing right in front of you.
Of course, it wasn’t that I had never dealt with a large person before.
but.
‘Strong.’
Vieira had an aura that could be felt just by looking at him.
It feels as if a huge barrier is blocking the way.
There was no time to think about anything else with him in front of me.
In terms of common sense, that is usually correct.
No matter how good a Serie A striker is, when dealing with him, he puts in his best efforts and shows off his best skills.
but.
Okay.
Hoyoung spread his eyes wide.
At the same time, Vieira tried not to lose concentration until the end.
Multitasking.
It was never about taking it easy.
The intention was to keep various possibilities open while exploring other attack routes.
And it wasn’t Vieira who wouldn’t have noticed that action.
My pride was hurt by the fact that everyone was paying attention to me.
The forehead was roughly wrinkled and the body moved first.
It was at that moment that Hoyoung stopped breathing.
Crack.
When the two people’s feet moved at the same time, the surroundings became quiet as if time had stopped.
The once somber atmosphere was heightened.
[Oh, Hoyoung Woo took off Vieira!]
[And then Hoyoung Woo! Let’s hit without stopping!]
For a moment, Vieira couldn’t believe his eyes.
When it comes to quickness, isn’t he second to none?
In his old days, he was evaluated as having the body of an animal.
This was a difference in muscle type and an advantage that black people could have.
But it broke through.
‘Mr….’
I swallowed my disgust.
Instead, he quickly turned around and approached Hoyoung.
It was truly the response of a veteran among veterans.
Even though he was old, his persistence, fighting spirit, and mental strength were still the best in the world.
but.
[Vieira tries to follow, but it seems to be not enough. Woo Ho-young has already crossed the second line.]
His worn-out legs were not enough to keep up with Ho-young’s dribbling speed.
The only thing I could trust was Cambiasso in the rear.
And that was then.
Pow!
[Woo Ho-young and Cambiaso collide.]
[Cambiaso sneakily approaches and quickly tackles him.]
Cambiaso, who had been watching Woo Ho-young’s movements the whole time, grabbed his uniform and attempted a physical fight.
Meanwhile, Vieira chased after Hoyoung, attacked him from behind, and took the ball away.
This was Mourinho’s defensive strategy.
[It was unfortunate for Woo Ho-young, but it was definitely a good attempt.]
It was definitely a good attempt.
Because there was an unexpected harvest.
[Undisrupted concentration (A+)]
Mentality talent for the first time in a long time.
‘I had this potential.’
When I thought about it, it seemed like I didn’t know anything about myself.
So my expectations were even higher.
This means that we can grow even more in the future.
25 minutes in the first half.
Mourinho slightly tweaked the formation.
[Inter showing a strong performance from the beginning. At first, it was 4-1-2-1-2, but it changed to 4-3-1-2 by adjusting the spacing of the lines.]
4-1-2-1-2 formation, also called diamond 4-4-2. This was Jose Mourinho’s favorite tactic during his FC Porto days.
And last year, Mancini’s Inter also mainly used 4-1-2-1-2.
Therefore, most experts thought that Mourinho would use 4-1-2-1-2 as is.
But in reality, there was something slightly different.
Mourinho boldly abandoned the existing 4-1-2-1-2 and created a formation called 4-3-1-2 by combining his own philosophy.
Inter, which was transformed under the Mourinho system, boldly abandoned the center and chose the side to get to this point.
[It is indeed a tactic worthy of a manager with a strong soccer philosophy. Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Adriano, who are on the front line as the top two, are opening up space.]
[The attack power on the side is increasing. Meanwhile, the game is going well.]
[This is different from the interview Ibrahimovic gave last week.]
Just a week ago, on the day of the loss against Napoli, Zlatan openly criticized Mourinho in an interview.
-I have no intention of playing on the side. If they keep trying to sideline me like this, I have no choice but to do it my way. Of course, we are achieving good results. We are very happy to have advanced to the semifinals of the Champions League, but in soccer, winning unconditionally is not the solution. We have truly won only when we feel that we have done well while running on the field. Several other strikers have the same thoughts about this. We are front line attackers, not wing attackers. It is natural for a striker to want opportunities to score more goals from the center. Sometimes I think it’s more comfortable to play two-top role with Crespo. Mourinho will have to refer to our thoughts on this.
It was an interview that contained many things.
What Mourinho considers more important than tactics is control of the players, and Zlatan’s giving such an interview was the same as offering a challenge to the coach.
Naturally, it became a rumor of discord and was spread around the world through numerous speculative articles.
The prevailing opinion was that Mourinho and Zlatan would compromise for the sake of the Champions League.
However, when I opened the lid, a game unfolded that was 180 degrees different from the interview content.
Far from being dissatisfied, Zlatan remained faithful to Mourinho’s words and followed his tactics.
Inter dominated the first half.
The score was out of balance in the 35th minute of the first half.
[Zanetti takes Zlatan’s place and penetrates into the center.]
[At the same time, he slightly passes a pass to Zlatan on the right side.]
Zlatan receives the ball from the side and Maicon runs like an animal. gave a quick and accurate pass to
[As Zlatan enters the box, Maicon catches the ball.]
[Roberto Carlos is trying!]
Poop!
“…!”
Maicon escaped Carlos’ territory with his strong body.
The next action was his trademark sharp cross.
[Cross from a diagonal!]
[Goes beyond Zlatan’s height and into the space behind him!]
[Adriano is rushing in!]
“Concentrate!”
“You’re going to the other side!”
“shit.”
There was chaos inside the box.
Cannavaro, who should have caught Adriano, missed his agile breakthrough.
and.
Crash!
The header was allowed as is.
It was Inter’s first goal.
[Gooooooo!]
[Adriano’s headed goal cuts through Real Madrid’s net. It was a powerful header that hit the floor using tremendous jumping power.]
[It’s a shame. Still, Casillas responded like a miracle. The penetration and heading were so great.]
Adriano, a God-given talent.
At the age of 27, his form had died down, but his sense of goal was still alive.
[The physicality that was said to be invincible can no longer be seen, but the positioning, space control, and power are still the same. Cannavaro, who is so massive, can’t move.]
The scary thing about Inter was right here.
There are players with excellent crosses, such as Maicon Quaresma and Luis Figo, and players with excellent air authority, such as Adriano Zlatan Crespo.
It was nothing short of a disaster for Real Madrid.
And what was even more serious was that exactly 10 minutes later, an additional goal was allowed in an almost similar pattern.
This time it was Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s goal.
Afterwards, Real Madrid’s attackers pushed hard, but Walter Samuel, Ivan Cordoba, and Davide Santon showed a strong defense.
Even if they broke through the defense, the spider-handed Julio Cesar was standing in front of the goal.
In the end, Real Madrid was unable to capitalize on a single decisive chance in 45 minutes and had to end the first half scoreless.
The visiting team’s locker room was filled with sighs.
They were very mentally distressed as they had nothing to show throughout the first half.
Although the difference was only 2 points, the fact that they lost so helplessly that they could not even hit a proper shot was truly devastating.
Hoyoung sat in the corner alone, lost in thought.
‘Everything dried up.’
Starting with the fact that Schuster was caught up in Mourinho’s psychological warfare, it seemed as if he had been possessed by something just moments ago.
And there was one thing that I still didn’t understand until now.
‘hmm.’
Zlatan’s interview that caused quite a stir some time ago.
And the discord between Mourinho and the players.
It was clearly a big win for Real Madrid.
In particular, Bernd Schuster was very pleased with this fact and prepared countermeasures.
I don’t know how much time I devoted to training just for that.
Most people assumed that.
They either boldly remove Zlatan from the lineup or compromise appropriately and place him as a central striker.
But today Mourinho made no changes.
‘why?’
Did the proud Zlatan lose his temper in front of Mourinho?
Otherwise, there was only one answer.
‘Smoke operation.’
Of course I had doubts, but because the target was Zlatan, I believed the interview.
Because he had the personality to do that.
‘I was completely defeated by the psychological warfare.’
I felt like I had been hit in the back of the head with a hammer.
He is indeed a famous general.
While Guardiola had the ability to play with the ‘soccer ball’ with one hand, Mourinho had the ability to hold the ‘game of soccer’ with both hands and shake it up.
‘Guardiola is great, but Mourinho is no joke either.’
I felt like I knew it after experiencing it myself.
This is why directors’ interview skills are so important.
His short and bold psychological warfare was the driving force that made Inter strong.
Hoyoung actually had no idea that Inter would be this strong.
Because the Inter team he knew in the 0809 season was not at this level.
But when I actually experienced it, it was a different story.
So, how much stronger will Inter become in the 0910 season?
An invisible fear seemed to engulf even the locker room.
but.
‘It’s a path that must be overcome.’
gulp.
I swallowed my fear and jumped up from my seat.
It was around this time that Raul and Zidane were talking to Schuster.
Hoyoung opened his mouth.
“We must seek to turn the atmosphere around.”
The home team locker room at that time.
Clap clap.
Two cheery applause sounds.
It was Coach Mourinho who came into the locker room celebrating two goals.
‘I guess I’ll just have to keep going like this.’
Everything was going according to plan.
An interview given to turn the media’s attention on Schuster and put pressure on him.
A false interview ordered to Zlatan to spark rumors of discord in the team.
Everything worked.
Now it was time to finish.
“Everyone gather together. The first half was good. But the second half has to be better. Why? This is because it is the time when Woo Ho-young’s fighting spirit ignites. That’s not magic, it’s human talent. “Do you all understand?”
“yes.”
“I know.”
“His fighting spirit was as good as his skills.”
“Okay, I wish I knew. So what do you guys have to do? Focus on defense. In particular, figure out when Hoyoung Woo is not in danger and when he is, and let him go gently. And that’s when Vieira and Cambiaso attack at the same time. We have to act differently than in the first half. “He would have already figured out our defensive tactics.”
“All right!”
Inter’s momentum seemed to soar through the sky.
Lastly, Mourinho added a few words.
“It is always me who leads you from the front lines. All you have to do is follow behind me. Go out and fight. “The only place we can go is Rome. In bocca al lupo.”
“Crepi il lupo!”
After saying good luck in Italian, they entered the stadium with the dream of making the finals.
And that dream began to shatter around the time the referee’s whistle sounded.
It also coincided with the time when Woo Ho-young started going crazy.