“The biggest problem with this goal is still Modric’s absence in defense.”
“Furthermore, is Chiellini really suited to play defensive midfield?
He lacks experience and his positional sense is poor; maybe moving to the wing would be better.”
“Don’t worry about those things, just do what you’re supposed to do.” He Tianqi pushed Ashley Young onto the pitch.
“Do you know what you should do after you get on?”
Ashley Young nodded seriously: “Diligence!”
He Tianqi really couldn’t look straight at that word: “Not just that, but also your running areas, understand?”
Ashley Young gave an ‘OK’ sign.
After Potenza equalized, their morale surged.
The home fans continuously cheered them on, determined to take all three points.
So the team maintained a high-intensity attacking rhythm.
Palermo, under He Tianqi’s command, contracted their formation and struggled to resist the pressure.
In the eighty-fourth minute, a Potenza forward’s long shot won a corner kick.
After the corner was taken, Vidic cleared the football out for a goal kick.
Potenza won consecutive corners.
“Vidic, head it this way!
Be bolder!” He Tianqi pointed towards the opponent’s goal, roaring until his voice was almost hoarse, triggering the Bandit Coach Roar effect.
He could tell that Vidic had held back when clearing the ball just now; Vidic could have tried to clear the football out of the penalty area entirely.
But he didn’t dare take the risk.
In case he slightly mishit the header and the football landed back in the penalty area instead, the team would be in danger.
While heading it out over the baseline was something he could guarantee.
This mentality of playing it safe is an essential quality for an excellent center-back.
But right now, He Tianqi didn’t need it.
Because he wanted to win the match!
Bang!
The opponent took the corner kick again.
This time, the 1.91-meter-tall Vidic leaped up, jumping higher than usual.
Showing no signs of the exhaustion of having played for nearly ninety minutes.
Bang!
The football was headed out of the penalty box.
Modric beat the opposing player to the football and kicked it towards the midfield, acting like a turbo engine, pushing the offensive-defensive transition to the extreme.
Fast horse Ribéry instantly accelerated.
“Counterattack!
Palermo launches a counterattack!”
“Ribéry caught up to the football, his dribbling ability is very strong!”
“He’s past him!
Ribéry used a small-scale change of direction to get past a defender.”
“One-on-one!
One-on-one!”
“Potenza’s goalkeeper rushes out, Ribéry shoots…”
“Oh!
It was saved!
Ribéry ah, the quality of this shot really wasn’t high, he…
wait!”
“GOAL!”
“The ball is in!”
“The youngster from England, Ashley Young!
He runs hard, only to catch up with the self his head coach He Tianqi had high hopes for!”
“His rebound shot dealt Potenza a fatal blow!”
“Three to two!
This is very likely a last-minute winner!”
“He Tianqi’s luck is too good!
God has opened a back door for his first official managerial match!”
“Three goals, none of them conventional; this is an unreplicable victory!”
Ashley Young was ecstatic after scoring.
He rushed towards He Tianqi immediately, giving him a powerful, high-impact hug.
Without He Tianqi’s support, without He Tianqi’s guidance, he would probably be like He Tianqi right now, forced to leave the green pitch and become a behind-the-scenes staff member unable to dictate matches!
(He Tianqi: ???)
On Palermo’s bench, Arturo rolled his eyes.
They were both rebound goals, so how come you subbed me off when I scored, but you’re so happy when your favorite scores?
Arrigoni also spoke up for Arturo’s injustice: “The difficulty of this rebound was far lower than yours.
A two-on-one situation ganging up on the goalkeeper like this is completely a sure goal.”
He Tianqi, who had given the celebration spotlight to Ashley Young, happened to hear this.
He smiled and didn’t argue.
Those who understand the difference between these two goals naturally understand; those who don’t won’t understand even if explained.
Simply put, Arturo’s goal was a luck-based rebound, just because he happened to be there.
Ashley Young’s goal was a tactical rebound.
He Tianqi had assigned him a massive amount of running tasks, making him sprint back and forth from front to back.
When defending, he had to drop into their own penalty box; when attacking, he could penetrate deep into the opponent’s penalty box.
Ashley Young truly did this, which is why he picked up this goal.
Furthermore, if Ribéry hadn’t shot just now but instead passed to Ashley Young after drawing the goalkeeper out, Ashley Young would have scored anyway, and it would have been even more secure.
This is the fundamental difference between tactics and luck.
“Coach He.” Ribéry also squeezed out from the pile of people and found He Tianqi, “Sorry I didn’t pass the ball just now.”
Right before he shot, He Tianqi had actually issued a command to pass the ball.
Ribéry heard it.
But he didn’t follow it.
And facts proved that He Tianqi was right.
If that ball was passed, it was a sure goal.
But shooting, even if Ronaldo came, the scoring rate wouldn’t be 100%.
“There’s nothing to be sorry about.” He Tianqi put his arm around Ribéry’s neck to console him, “Having the courage to shoot, having the courage to carry the responsibility of scoring on your own shoulders at the last moment, that’s a good thing.”
“I like players like you who take responsibility.”
“In the future, I will entrust you with more responsibilities.”
“Your importance cannot be reflected by stats like goals or assists.”
“Of course, you also have to promise me, go back and practice your shooting properly.
Because that shot just now really sucked!”
Ribéry laughed loudly, and the guilt in his heart was thereby elevated into respect for He Tianqi.
Next time, he would really seriously consider the head coach’s opinion.
Given that he was a troublesome player, this was not easy.
At the same time, Ribéry was also somewhat looking forward to what additional responsibilities he would gain under He Tianqi’s coaching in the future.
Was he going to develop him into a Thierry Henry-style forward?
So exciting!
To this, He Tianqi could only express: of course, it’s to have you continue being a football porter on the wing.
Don’t always think about shooting.
The scariest thing is a wide attacker wanting to score goals.
Didn’t I make it clear enough?
Goals and assist stats cannot reflect your importance.
Meaning you won’t have too many stats in that regard.
Ultimately, the score on the pitch did not change.
Three to two!
Palermo narrowly defeated Potenza, bringing three points back to Sicily.
And this match didn’t disappoint the 10,000 fans at the stadium and the hundreds of thousands of fans watching remotely; it was indeed spectacular enough.
But as the saying goes, winning is losing, and losing is winning.
Both the scoreline and the run of play exposed the weakness of this Palermo team under He Tianqi’s management.
…
L’Avvenire: “Juventus Suffers Shock Defeat But Still Tops Serie A, Future is Promising.
Palermo Wins Narrowly But Plays Ugly, Showing Signs of Decline!”
La Gazzetta dello Sport: “Young Manager He Tianqi Wins Debut!
Two Goals After Three Substitutions End Palermo’s Three-Match Winless Streak!”
Corriere dello Sport: “Tough-Luck Manager He Tianqi!
Two Rebound Goals, One World-Class Shot!
Besides Luck, We See Nothing Else in He Tianqi!”
(END CHAPTER)