Football: Starting from the 05 World Youth Championship

"What happened? Did something happen at home?"

After the match, Lin Feng immediately sought out Feng Xiaoting, intending to have a talk with him.

Feng Xiaoting shook his head with a wry smile: "My family is doing just fine, don't curse me!"

"Then why are you looking so long-faced? I don't see any injury or anything, so why are you performing so poorly in this match?"

Feng Xiaoting sighed and told Lin Feng about his current predicament.

After Guardiola took over Barcelona, ​​he began to implement sweeping reforms.

He carried out a major overhaul of Barcelona's existing squad, making all the Barcelona players feel insecure.

Feng Xiaoting was promoted by Rijkaard, and he was quite valued during the Dutchman's tenure.

Rijkaard gave him many opportunities, from being a substitute to a rotation player, and now to a semi-starter.

This season, Feng Xiaoting made a total of 29 appearances for Barcelona, ​​including 15 starts, with a total playing time of around 1350 minutes.

For a young player of his age, this number of matches and the amount of time he has played is quite good.

If Rijkaard hadn't resigned, Feng Xiaoting would most likely have been promoted to a starting position this season.

But his departure disrupted everything!
As the saying goes, "a new emperor brings a new court," and when a team gets a new coach with a completely different style, the tactics and personnel choices will definitely differ from those of the previous coach.

The fact that Guardiola seems to have a particular fondness for players from the La Masia youth academy who are considered true Barcelona players has further exacerbated Feng Xiaoting's concerns.

He worried that he wouldn't be good enough for Guardiola and would be purged by him.

After all, he lacks physical strength, speed, and top-notch defensive abilities.

In his view, he was full of shortcomings and was almost certain to be purged. He simply couldn't find any redeeming qualities that could impress Guardiola.

Feng Xiaoting finally managed to establish himself at Barcelona, ​​and if the team abandons him now, all the three seasons he has accumulated at Barcelona will be wasted.

Switching to a new team means starting all over again, and there's no guarantee that any team will want him!

This is Feng Xiaoting's biggest concern right now. He knows that with the Olympics just around the corner, he shouldn't be distracted.

But since it concerned his personal future, he couldn't help but worry.

"That's all? I thought it was something more serious!"

Hearing Feng Xiaoting's words, Lin Feng breathed a sigh of relief.

"Brother Lin, do you have any teams you can recommend to me?"

Seeing Lin Feng's expression, Feng Xiaoting perked up, thinking that the other party had some good opportunities.

"No, with your physique, forget about Serie A, Bundesliga, and the Premier League."

Feng Xiaoting felt very frustrated. Even Lin Feng thought he wasn't capable enough, so it seemed he really couldn't stay at Barcelona.

"La Liga, which promotes a technical style of play, is currently the best fit for you, and among all the teams in La Liga, Barcelona is the team that best suits your performance, without exception."

"Brother Lin, please stop joking with me. I'm almost kicked out of Barcelona."

"Although Guardiola has been very thorough in clearing out Barcelona, ​​you are definitely not on his list. If he really doesn't want you anymore, he will definitely send someone to notify your agent after the season ends so that you can find another club in advance. So, has Guardiola or Barcelona contacted you about this matter?"

Feng Xiaoting's eyes lit up, and after thinking carefully for a moment, he shook his head:

"It seems there really isn't one!"

He was beginning to believe Lin Feng's analysis.

"So relax, Guardiola likes to promote young, technically skilled players, and you meet his criteria."

While, as you said, you lack physical strength, are slow to recover, and aren't strong in one-on-one defense, you do have one significant advantage, are you aware of it?

"My passing ability?"

Feng Xiaoting tried asking.

"Yes, Rijkaard valued you highly before because of this, didn't he? Guardiola pursues a more extreme ball control tactic, which requires Barcelona to push forward and execute a high-pressing tactic. Under this style of play, the attack often has to be initiated by the center-backs."

A center-back like you, who plays with his brain, is good at observing the situation in the attacking third, and has excellent passing ability, would be very popular in Guardiola's tactical system!

"So keep it up, young man. Instead of worrying here, you should use the time to practice your skills. You need to practice your ball control and passing skills. Guardiola likes that!"

Lin Feng's words enlightened Feng Xiaoting.

The gloom in her heart vanished, and her eyes were filled with admiration as she looked at Lin Feng.

"Brother Lin, you're amazing! I don't even know anything about our new commander, yet you know so much about him!"

"Hehe, isn't there a saying that 'the person who knows you best is often your enemy'? Barcelona and Real Madrid are mortal enemies, so it's reasonable for me to be concerned about my opponent's situation, right?"

……

While Lin Feng was trying to persuade Feng Xiaoting, thousands of miles away at Barcelona, ​​the team's new head coach, Guardiola, was reviewing his information.

"Should we get rid of this Chinese guy? He's still young; he could probably be sold for a few million euros now!"

According to Barcelona's management, Feng Xiaoting is not physically strong enough and his defensive ability is not outstanding enough. He is clearly not capable of becoming a starter for Barcelona, ​​so he will most likely be released by Guardiola.

After all, he's already purged half the team this summer!

Guardiola shook his head: "Although he has some weaknesses, his strengths are also very prominent. If we can't buy a better center-back this summer, then he will be the team's starting center-back next season."

Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look at Guardiola. Clearly, none of them had expected Guardiola to value Feng Xiaoting so much.

The center-back position is so crucial, yet Guardiola is promoting a newcomer to the starting lineup!

Isn't this a bit too radical and risky?
The group exchanged glances, each secretly speculating:

Could it be that Guardiola is influenced by another Chinese player at Real Madrid and has a special bias towards Chinese players?
In their eyes, Feng Xiaoting was unremarkable and had nothing outstanding about him.

Guardiola did not explain why he kept Feng Xiaoting on the team, or why he valued him so much.

He believes that once he has perfected the tactics and strategies for the new season, people will no longer have such doubts.

Now, let's look at which suitable players are available on the market and consider how to formulate a transfer plan for the summer transfer window!
This summer, in addition to the world-renowned Olympics, there is another major football event – ​​the European Championship. While the Olympics are still two months away, the European Championship has already begun.

Because Europe boasts many football powerhouses, every European Championship is a fiercely competitive event.

Because there are so many strong teams, every match is of high quality, making it a great place to observe the form of your favorite players.

Currently, Barcelona's technical director, Begiristain, has flown to Austria to assess the form of some key players on Barcelona's transfer list.

Barcelona had actually started formulating their summer transfer plans as early as February, but Rijkaard's dismissal disrupted everything.

Guardiola's transfer strategy is not entirely the same as his predecessor's, so he will not accept everything without question, but he will not completely overturn the other party's plan either.

Barcelona currently has a strong need for both its defense and attack, and there are more than a dozen players on their shortlist.

For the forward position, Barcelona is currently focusing on observing Lyon's young prodigy striker, Benzema.

At just 20 years old, Benzema scored 31 goals last season, becoming the top scorer in Ligue 1 and attracting the attention of many top clubs.

Currently, as many as six or seven top clubs are eyeing him, and even Barcelona's arch-rival Real Madrid has sent scouts to observe him multiple times, which has aroused Barcelona's vigilance.

Barcelona needed a tall striker who could both score and create chances with his back to goal, so they set their sights on Benzema.

Besides Benzema, Arsenal's Adebayor, Chelsea's Drogba, and Stuttgart's Gomez are all on Barcelona's radar.

However, the most likely candidate for this position is neither these players nor Benzema, but Swedish striker Ibrahimovic.

Guardiola favors players with good footwork and instinctively rejects rough players with poor technique.

Although Bruin is tall and burly, and looks like a striker who relies on his physique, he is actually a player with exquisite footwork who relies on technique. This made Guardiola and the Barcelona management interested in him, believing that he could fit into Barcelona's tactical system.

Ibrahimovic currently plays for Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1. Considering his greater fame and ability compared to Benzema, the price for acquiring him would likely be significantly higher.

However, Ligue 1 has always struggled to retain talent for various reasons, often becoming a talent pipeline for other leagues. Therefore, Barcelona can acquire both players if they are willing to spend the money.

As for the defense, former Juventus players Thuram and Zambrotta are both on Barcelona's transfer list and will most likely leave the team this summer.

Therefore, Barcelona needs to bring in a full-back and a center-back.

Among the full-backs, Barcelona has its sights set on Bayern Munich's Lahm and Sevilla's Alves. Both are among the best young full-backs in football, excelling in both attack and defense, which perfectly fits Guardiola's tactical needs.

As for center-backs, although Guardiola intended to keep Feng Xiaoting, the departure of Thuram and the injury of Milito have left Barcelona with a severe shortage of players in the center-back position.

Therefore, strong center-backs such as Garay, Lucio, and Coloccini came into Guardiola's sights.

But none of these players were actually his top choice. What he really wanted to bring in was a center-back with strong passing ability.

But in this era, such defenders are extremely rare in football.

That's why Guardiola chose to keep Feng Xiaoting, because he saw potential in him.

……

Feng Xiaoting, who was training with the national Olympic team, was unaware of all this. However, after listening to Lin Feng's analysis, he finally understood where his way out lay. He was no longer confused and accepted Lin Feng's advice, starting to focus on practicing his passing ability.

While other shortcomings also need to be addressed, the most urgent task is to further enhance one's strengths so as to better impress the head coach.

As for the defensive issues, we can only work on them gradually through practice.

Feng Xiaoting originally planned to do muscle-building training to increase his weight and improve his physical strength.

Lin Feng felt it was unnecessary, as blindly gaining weight would only increase the risk of injury, and Yao Ming was an example of this.

He's not very strong physically, so just pair him with a strong center-back.

These types of defenders are a dime a dozen in the football world; they are very common.

On the contrary, a center-back like him who plays with his brain is an anomaly in the current football world and is rarely seen.

On June 18, the Chinese Olympic team faced their second warm-up opponent – ​​the African Eagles of Cameroon.

Although the Cameroonian team is not well-known and has very low profile in the country, many people may not have even heard of the country.

But actually, their football level is not bad at all, and is even stronger than the Uruguayan team that the Chinese Olympic team previously faced.

Although they don't have a striker like Suarez, they have a large number of players playing in the top five leagues and other European leagues.

Among them are star players like Alex Song, who became a regular starter for Arsenal.

Given the national Olympic team's lackluster performance in their first match, the outside world is not optimistic about this game.

The fact that this African team is the kind of physically strong and tough team that Chinese teams are generally afraid of has exacerbated concerns from the outside world.

But the final result of the competition surprised everyone!
Lin Feng contributed a goal and an assist, while Gao Lin and Dong Fangzhuo each scored a goal, leading the Chinese Olympic team to a 3-0 victory over their opponents.

The Cameroonian team is indeed physically very good, and they certainly have the upper hand in physical confrontations.

But it was all for naught. In the first half, they pressed too far forward and were left questioning their existence by two textbook counterattacks from the national Olympic team.

In the second half, the Chinese national team's dazzling passing and movement in the midfield and attacking third completely overwhelmed them.

These black men had plenty of brute strength, but nowhere to vent it, and they lost in a very frustrating way.

After the game, the opposing team's star player, Alexander Song, approached Lin Feng and asked to exchange jerseys.
"Lin, you and your team are really amazing. I wish you all the best in this Olympics, and I hope we never meet again at the Olympics!"

Lin Feng responded with a smile:
"Thank you for your blessings, and I wish you all the best in defeating Italy and taking first place in the group!"

Cameroon was placed in Group D, along with Italy, South Korea, and Honduras.

For Cameroonians, Italy is their biggest rival and the biggest obstacle to winning the group, while South Korea is their main competitor for qualification.

Song shrugged: "That's a bit difficult. Italy is a traditionally strong team, and we can't beat them. But dealing with the South Korean team shouldn't be too hard!"

"Then beat them to death, show no mercy!"

"Hehe, I get it!"

South Koreans are notorious in the football world. Their underhanded tactics during the Japan-Korea World Cup made them almost public enemies of the football community.

Although Cameroon was not a victim, he didn't mind helping other victims seek justice. (End of Chapter)