The road to godhood starting from Ligue 1

Chapter 269 See you next week
The atmosphere was different from that of the Bastia locker room.

At the end of the corridor, the Tottenham Hotspur locker room was filled with a mixture of oppressive, anxious, sweaty, disinfectant, and a sense of impending failure.

Villas-Boas is young as a coach, but he has been with Mourinho for many years and understands what it means to have the presence of a coach.

After entering the locker room, he did not speak immediately, but remained silent, his gaze sweeping over each player.

A brief silence is more oppressive than a roar.

half an hour.

Boas began to speak, his tone not as irritable as one might expect, but firm.

He said with a Portuguese accent, "We controlled everything, 71% possession, 12 shots."

As he spoke, he pulled over the tactics board, wrote a few numbers on it, and compared them, "Look at this, and then look at them? 3 shots on target! Just 3 shots, and they fucking scored two goals, tell me, is this normal?!"

Villas-Boas's gaze swept over everyone again.

Stopping with Asu Hector, "When you're facing an eighteen-year-old, and he treats you like an obstacle course on the training ground, where is your speed? Where is your aggression?"

Hector's face flushed instantly, and he moved his lips as if to explain, but he lowered his head again under the coach's intense gaze.

“And you.” Villas-Boas turned to Vertonghen, his tone hardening. “I said press, I said press! But not so you can rush in like a headless chicken and concede a penalty! I need calm judgment! You left him a highway to the penalty area!”

Vertonghen wiped the sweat from his face, unable to look directly at him.

Villas-Boas's tone softened slightly, but remained firm. He shifted his focus to offense, with the man at the heart of the matter.

“Gares,” he said, his gaze shifting to Bale, who sat silently in the corner, “I need you, now, immediately, forget about organizing! Forget about dropping back! I need you to be selfish! Very selfish! Do you see that area between their full-backs and center-backs?”

He drew a heavy line on the tactics board.

"That's your corridor. Use your speed and strength to tear it apart! Charge straight at them! They're afraid of you! That 18-year-old kid is their protagonist? No! You are the protagonist here! Prove it to them! Prove it to everyone!"

Bell raised his head, his eyes blazing with fighting spirit, and nodded vigorously.

Villas-Boas surveyed the entire field, reiterating his tactical foundation, even though that foundation had developed significant cracks in the first half.

"Keep the defense pushed forward, don't back down! Backing down is tantamount to handing over the home ground to them!" He waved his arms. "But—"

A fierce glint flashed in his eyes as he swept over everyone.

"You all need to be on your guard! De Bruyne! Mark him tightly! Don't let him comfortably send through balls to Lukaku and that Gaio like he did in the first half! Cut off their connection! That's your responsibility!"

He walked to the tactics board and began to make specific adjustments, his movements quick but slightly stiff.

"Squeeze that Gaio out, two against one! Don't let him get going! Don't let him turn! He dares to cut inside? Let him experience the physicality of the Premier League – be ready to shift lateral and cover at any time, block his cutting lane! I won't allow him to wreak havoc on the right wing again!"

"Be decisive in attack! Adebayor, did you not get enough rest last night? You're so weak today. Hold off their young center-back!"

"And this match isn't the end; it's a two-legged, 180-minute match."

He said a series of words.

The entire tactical board was covered with dense lines. This was a habit of Villas-Boas'; he liked to explain everything clearly and required the players to seriously implement his tactical arrangements.

He has his own operational model for tactical play in his mind.

He even strongly agrees with the method of renowned coach Bielsa, which uses extreme discipline and systematization to compensate for individual differences and pursue the overall optimal solution.

but,

When he discussed this with Mourinho before, Mourinho told him something: "Football is not a science. If football were a science, if the players were robots and did everything you told them to do, that would be great."

But players are human; humans have emotions, form, confidence, fear, ambition, and even jealousy… all of these are beyond the control of science, therefore football is not science.

He didn't believe it.

He trusted Bielsa more.

With halftime approaching and his players preparing for the second half, Villas-Boas was assessing the necessity of making substitutions.

finally,
Conservatism prevailed; 'Now is not the time.'

Time's up.

The Tottenham players returned to the pitch tunnel.

just,

They appeared resolute, but the air was thick with a fragile determination forcibly solidified under immense pressure.

Hector felt a little annoyed when he saw Gaio at the very front of Bastia in the players' tunnel.

Gaio, sensing something, turned and exchanged a glance with Hector.

As I walked out of the players' tunnel, I silently kept something in mind.

Hector is no pushover.

Gaio had some impression of him.

The most memorable incident was during the 2014 World Cup in my previous life, when Hector got into a fight with his teammates during a match.

Hector and striker Mukonjo first had a verbal altercation, then Hector headbutted Mukonjo, who retaliated by swinging his arm.

That year's Cameroonian team was so abstract that they became a laughing stock worldwide.

Besides the fight between Hector and his teammates, Cameroon was also dissatisfied with the World Cup bonus distribution plan offered by the Football Association before the World Cup and refused to play.

Later, Cameroon's star player, Alex Song, inexplicably received a red card in the group stage match against Croatia—he punched Mandzukic after making physical contact with him while tracking back on defense.

boom!
Boom boom! !
The cheers from the White Hart Lane fans brought Gaio back to reality.

He anticipated what might happen in the second half, just as Hagi Begic said, "They're likely to foul you maliciously, after all, it's only the first round."

soon.

With the referee's whistle, the second half of the game resumed.

Commentators around the world continued their work.

Some commentators discussed the question: Will Bastia score again in the second half?

But Hagibis, standing on the sidelines, wasn't thinking about whether they could score again; instead, he was pondering whether they could hold on.

To be honest, Bastia's 2-0 lead over Tottenham in the first half was quite unexpected.

However, Bastia actually paid a heavy price.

Physical exertion.

This is nothing like the slow pace of Ligue 1; under Villas-Boas's guidance, Tottenham's attack comes wave after wave.

Gaibo retreated deep to help defend.

It's easy to imagine how much defensive pressure they faced.

Tottenham found the score incredible, but only Bastia himself knew how fragile it was.

really!

Just five minutes into the game, Bale cut inside, received the ball, and unleashed a powerful shot.

Damian had absolutely no chance to react.

Bang!
The crossbar at White Hart Lane saved Bastia; the football hit the crossbar and bounced back.

Van Dijk quickly cleared the danger with a long kick. Wow!
Tottenham fans were surprised by Bale's long-range shot, and also felt very sorry that the ball didn't go in.

When Gaio saw Bale's shot, his first reaction was that Bale was being selfish. Lennon, who was not far from him, actually had an open opportunity, but Bale did not pass the ball and instead chose to take the shot himself.

Gaiola senses that Tottenham's midfield has undergone some adjustments.

Just three minutes later, Bale made another strong run down the wing, squeezed past Gaio, and played a one-two with Dempsey, shaking off Klose and Angola's defense before sweeping the ball across the face of goal.

Fortunately, Damian was tall and had long arms, and he managed to tackle the ball while diving to the ground.

Adebayor was following up in the middle lane.

Danger!

Less than ten minutes into the second half, Tottenham's two attacks nearly caused Bastia to concede goals.

"Teldesley said, "Tottenham, trailing by two goals, are attacking more decisively, which may not be good news for Bastia. Furthermore, Gaio's defensive duties are increasing, and he is positioning himself further back. Can Bastia still launch counter-attacks?"

This is also Haji Begitch's concern.

When Gaio finally got a chance to counterattack, he felt the "passion" of the Premier League defender.

Before Gaio could react after receiving the ball, Hector bumped into him from behind, shoving him and making a sneaky move by pressing down on Gaio's lower back.

Gaio immediately collapsed, giving Hector no chance.

However, as he fell, he feigned a loss of balance and patted Hector's side, specifically his "kidney," with his hand.

The two of them fell to the ground together.

Hector was in pain, Gaio was being pushed.

The referee did not call a foul.

His playing style in this match was quite aggressive, which was actually a good thing for Bastia, because Anguilla and Van Dijk's defense against Adebayor was practically a physical battle.

Gaio is mostly off the ball, so opponents can't foul him if they want to.

"He is very smart."

Florentino Pérez Rodriguez, in his office at Real Madrid's training ground, watches the Europa League match between Bastia and Tottenham Hotspur with Zinedine Zidane and Moriente.

FP was primarily evaluating Bell, but by halftime, their attention had shifted to Gaio.

Zidane laughed and said, "Yes, he has changed his bad habits from when he was at Chelsea and has become more composed. Last season at Bastia, he almost carried the team on his own, a dominant ball-carrying player. But this season he has quickly switched to a style of play that involves more off-the-ball movement and less ball-holding."

FP looked at Zidane and asked, "You have a very high opinion of him. Do you think he can make it at Real Madrid?"

Without waiting for Zidane's reply, he continued, "I've already spoken with Tottenham. They want over £4200 million for Bale, who is only worth €8000 million, and they insist on waiting until the end of the season to begin formal negotiations. Now, how much should we spend on Gaio, who is worth €6000 million and is five years younger than Bale?"

Zidane considered it for a moment and decided to reply, as he did not want Gaio to come to the Bernabéu for the time being.

This is definitely not a place for newcomers to improve their skills.

There are far too many geniuses who have fallen at the Bernabéu.

Even among players developed through Real Madrid's own youth academy, very few are able to play for Real Madrid's first team.

However, just as he was about to speak...

The Spanish commentator's exclamation, "GOOOOOL!!!", echoed on the television screen. He continued, almost breathless, before catching his breath and saying, "Bale is a god descending to earth!!! Look at that earth-shattering, cloud-piercing shot!!! The ball flew like a cannonball straight into the top corner! Young Damian was powerless to reach it! He could only watch helplessly as the ball went in."

The commentary was full of passion.

FP didn't continue asking Gaio questions. He had seen Bale's performance in the Premier League, and compared to a potential star, what he needed most right now was a super player who could contribute immediately.

Real Madrid needs to make some changes.

Someone needs to challenge those who take themselves too seriously.

White Deer Lane.

Tottenham fans erupted in cheers as Bale once again displayed his unstoppable individual ability, breaking through Bastia's defense and unleashing a powerful shot to pull one back for Tottenham.

Gaio took a deep breath.

tired.

Defending is really physically demanding, and he can understand why most forwards are unwilling to track back, because tracking back would greatly deplete their energy on the offensive end.

He feels like he can't run anymore.

The main problem is that there's too much forced acceleration. Whether it's the extra effects of speed enhancement or the berserk effect, they are all bonuses obtained on the basis of consuming a lot of stamina.

If he only focuses on the offensive end, he might be able to play the full match.

Once you need to defend, it fails.

Gaio watched the celebrating Tottenham players and thought to himself that he would have to work on improving his physical attributes.

I glanced at the time; it's been about 70 minutes.

Courtside.

Hagi Begić also noticed Gaio's fatigue and made a quick decision.

Replace Gaio with Palmiri.

Add a defensive player on the wing and use Lukaku as the lone striker.

Lukaku, on loan, has been thoroughly exploited.

Gaio must be protected!
Even Hagi Begic believes that it's acceptable for Bastia to lose to Tottenham in this round of knockout matches, but Gaio absolutely cannot be injured, because for Bastia, the probability of winning the league title is far greater than that of winning the Europa League.

Therefore,
We must prioritize ensuring the health of our key players and maintain stability in the league.

Bastia now only has the league and Europa League titles to hope of winning.

If Gaio's injury causes both the Europa League and the domestic league to collapse, then failing to win any of the four major trophies would be a huge loss.

When Bale saw Gaio leave the field, he said something to Gaio.

Gaio didn't hear clearly.

But judging from his lip movements, he probably said "See you next week".

The final battle will be the second round next week.

Gaio ignored him.

After hugging Palmiri, he walked towards the bench.

Hagi Begic also hugged Gaio, saying, "Get some rest, and I believe they can hold on."

Gaio nodded. Like his other teammates on the bench, he was nervously watching the remaining twenty minutes.

Fortunately,

When the final whistle blew, the score remained 1-2.

They took a victory with them from White Hart Lane.

After the match, Gaio also said something to Bell:
"See you next week."

(End of this chapter)