La Repubblica: “Winning hides problems!
He Tianqi’s early substitution of Di Donato and Arturo causes controversy!
Will Palermo face dressing room issues?”
Tuttosport: “Ten appearances, one goal.
The goal by Turin’s loan youngster Quagliarella can hardly redeem his parent team’s disappointment!”
L’Avvenire: “Fans call for Modric to go back to Croatia to herd sheep!
Besides kicking the ball forward blindly, what else can he do?”
News like this put a lot of pressure on Palermo internally.
Assistant coach Arrigoni found He Tianqi, hoping he wouldn’t “mess around” with substitutions in the next round.
His exact words were: “Di Donato and Arturo are the core players of the team and have an irreplaceable role!”
To this, He Tianqi said he would consider it…
consider whether to completely bench Di Donato and Arturo.
(Di Donato: ???) (Arturo: Arrigoni, I thank you, but please say less!)
After Arrigoni left, He Tianqi turned his gaze to the system panel.
[Ding!]
[You have won the first victory of your coaching career, rewards obtained:]
[Backing: Player-level skill.
A good defensive midfielder is the backing for the front-court players.
The player’s defensive positioning sense is slightly improved.]
[Right Wing Attack: Team Card.
Strengthens the effect of the team’s right wing attack training.
(One-time use item)]
[Mercurial 3: Special Item.
This is a classic pair of football boots.
The player’s speed and ball feel are slightly improved.]
Yes, this victory brought He Tianqi new items.
His “snowballing” coaching career was about to begin.
“Backing”—no doubt about it, equip it on Chiellini.
This player, “Little Chi,” had been playing as a midfielder and left winger since he was a child, but he hadn’t made it.
Later, he transitioned to the defender position and began to shine, becoming better as he aged.
What was the reason for this?
You should know that his playing style in the midfield wasn’t much different from his style in the back.
The reason was positional sense!
Positions in the back are relatively fixed.
In the midfield, positions are relatively open.
Players with poor positional sense often feel lost in open areas, leaving gaps and losing their flair.
Similarly, on the wings, positions are relatively fixed, whereas the center is open.
Many wing players fail when moved to the middle, which is also related to positional sense.
And “Backing” to some extent made up for Chiellini’s current shortcomings.
This was a skill that could lead to a metamorphosis for him.
“Team Card” is a one-time item that can improve the team’s tactical ability.
However, it requires supporting training; it’s not something you just have.
This “Right Wing Attack” card would undoubtedly give Ribéry wings.
“Special Item” is similar to player equipment.
Besides boots, there might be others in the future.
Logically, this equipment could go to Ribéry.
But He Tianqi didn’t do that.
If they were playing in Serie B, he would definitely give it to Ribéry.
But this was Serie C!
Ribéry’s ability in Serie C was already in an “overflow” state.
At this stage, no one in Serie C could stop Ribéry one-on-one.
Strengthening him further had very low cost-effectiveness.
Better to give these boots to someone who needed them more.
For example, the shepherd boy Modric.
Whether it was speed or ball feel, he needed them very much.
Moreover, he was the team’s midfield core; the value brought to the team by his improvement was the highest.
…
December 12th, Sicily was on high alert.
Because the Serie A team Perugia had arrived.
Palermo had good luck in the Coppa Italia this season, reaching the round of 16.
But that was as far as it went.
A Serie A team was definitely not something a Serie C team could overstep.
But He Tianqi’s comments at the pre-match press conference caused a stir.
He Tianqi: “Perugia is not as strong as everyone thinks; they are just at a relegation-threatened level in Serie A.”
“Palermo is also not as weak as everyone thinks; we have the foundation of a Serie B team.”
“Essentially, we are teams of the same level.”
“I think the key to this match lies in whether Ribéry blows up their left side, or if Grosso blows up our right side!”
???
The fans were all dumbfounded.
Wait, who are these two people you’re talking about?
You make them sound so legendary.
Who is Ribéry?
The Serie C dribbling king?
Can a Serie C player be called a “king”?
And who is Grosso?
A nearly twenty-six-year-old Serie A utility player who has moved from attacking midfield all the way back to left-back, never called up to the Italian national team, neither Perugia’s star nor their tactical core.
How is he going to blow up your right side?
Is this a battle of the nobodies?
(Grosso: …)
Everyone thought Perugia’s biggest threat was Miccoli, known as the “Little Maradona” or “Little Romário.”
He Tianqi definitely doesn’t understand football!
To this, the Perugia head coach said with a smile: “Ribéry is indeed a player we need to focus on limiting, but Grosso…
did He get Miccoli’s name wrong?”
Miccoli, who attended the press conference with the head coach, even made a joke: “It’s normal for He not to remember my name.
After all, when we were in the national youth team, I was his substitute.”
“But temporary success or failure doesn’t mean anything.”
“Just like now, I joined the Juventus first team and was loaned to Perugia to play in Serie A.
While He was forced to retire and can only work in Serie C.”
…
At the Renzo Barbera Stadium, 30,000 fans poured in.
The first leg of the Coppa Italia round of 16 officially kicked off.
Arrigoni was very angry on the side because He Tianqi used the same starting lineup from the previous match.
Chiellini was still the starting defensive midfielder.
Modric, Quagliarella, Ashley Young, and others were still on the bench.
He Tianqi was truly too dismissive of “authority”!
But soon Arrigoni showed a smile.
“Oh!
So unexpected!”
“Just three minutes in, Perugia has scored!”
“One to zero!
Perugia takes the lead away from home!”
“Miccoli completed a lightning-fast goal after a through ball from a teammate!”
“The former teammate has dealt He Tianqi a fatal blow!”
He Tianqi stood on the sidelines and shouted: “Concentrate!
Watch your defensive zones, don’t let anyone through!”
Many people came to the home stadium today.
The Palermo players were clearly affected.
This season, due to relegation, Palermo’s attendance had not been high, rarely breaking 20,000.
Today, the stadium was almost full.
Empty, half-full, and full stands have different effects on a match.
This is where many “hellish” home stadiums come from.
(END CHAPTER)