After Paris Saint-Germain was removed from the list, I led England to victory!

The morning after the match, Nagelsmann and his team returned, looking travel-worn.

The players could take a short rest, but Yan Yuan knew that his "test time" had arrived.

He didn't have to wait long before assistant coach Cramer came looking for him:

"Yan, the boss is waiting for you in his office. Bring your laptop."

Yan Yuan gripped the notebook filled with tactical thoughts, took a deep breath, and pushed open the door to Nagelsmann's office.

The room had a slightly chaotic feel, as if someone had just finished a long trip. Na Shuai himself seemed to be overthinking things, with his hair all messy.

He was standing in front of the tactics board when he heard the noise at the door, and his sharp eyes immediately swept over.

"You're here? Have a seat." Nagelsmann gestured to the chair in front of the tactics board, getting straight to the point.

"Tell me your thoughts on the Frankfurt game. What did they do? Where did we struggle? How do you think we could have played better?"

There were no pleasantries, no reflections on the loss, and the discussion went straight to the point: tactical questions and answers.

Yan Yuan was not surprised; this was exactly his mentor's usual style.

He opened his notebook, placed it on his lap, and began to clearly and logically explain his observations and analyses during the live broadcast.

He first explained how Frankfurt's high-pressing trap at the start of the game cut off Hoffenheim's backline from the wing-backs, forcing the center-backs to frequently launch long balls, resulting in a dismal possession rate in the attacking third.

Then, the key role of Gacinovic in transitioning from defense to attack was pointed out, as well as the problem that Hoffenheim's midfield did not adequately contain him.

Then came the stagnation on the offensive end…

It was also pointed out that when Ute was closely marked, the support from the flanks and the timing of the runs from the back were too slow and one-dimensional, failing to effectively exploit the weakness of the opponent's tall center-backs who were slow to turn.

He also mentioned Gnabry's brilliant goal, one of the few times he tore apart the defense with a well-designed cross-run, but unfortunately, such combinations were too few throughout the game.

Nagelsmann listened intently throughout, occasionally tapping his fingers on the table, and occasionally interrupting Yan Yuan to ask for details.

"Have you observed how quickly their defense recovers after pressing high up the pitch?"

"Regarding the area coverage before that goal was conceded, where do you think Uth would have been in a more sensible position?"

"If you were in their position, with the ball near the center circle and the opponent in that position, which two passing spots would you prioritize?"

……

The questions came one after another, sharp and precise.

At first glance, this scene looks a bit like a college student's graduation defense.

Yan Yuan was highly focused, incorporating his comprehensive understanding—which transcended ordinary observation—gained from his initial experience with the "Space Weaver" skill while watching the game that night, into his answer.

He wasn't describing the actions of individual players, but rather trying to depict how the "lines" and "nets" formed by the movement of Frankfurt players created exploitable "holes" behind them.

"To put it simply... their overall movement is like a very dense net, trying to tightly entangle our people and small groups..."

We need more triangular passing and sudden diagonal stretches, especially when wing-backs and midfielders cut inside or make forward runs more synchronized and bolder, to cut through their defense…”

Yan Yuan finally tried to summarize using the concept of "net" that he had just internalized.

Nagelsmann remained silent for more than ten seconds, his gaze shifting from the tactics board to Yan Yuan's face, and then back to the key points clearly marked in his notes.

Then, the corners of his mouth twitched slightly upwards. Although it wasn't a big laugh, those familiar with Nagelsmann's personality would recognize it.

This is already extremely high praise.

"Quite good, Yan." He nodded, tapping the notebook on the table with his finger.

"Your observation skills remain excellent, and your thinking is deep enough, especially your dynamic understanding of the 'net' you mentioned... It's very interesting; it doesn't just stay on the surface."

He picked up the pen on the table and began scribbling directly on Yan Yuan's notebook.

"Here, regarding the opponent's Gacinovic, you noticed his pivotal role is excellent, but one point to add: he usually receives the ball with his left foot during transitions. Next time we encounter a similar situation, we can…."

He added this next to another note.

"Regarding the issue of insufficient width on the flanks, you're right about Vogt's predicament, but we need to balance the risks... He must move closer to the back line... and then form a triangular defense..."

A dozen minutes later, Nagelsmann added more tactical details and tips on coping strategies to Yan Yuan's notebook without reservation.

This is not just simple guidance; it's more like a master giving extra lessons to a gifted apprentice with exceptional comprehension.

Nagelsmann instilled his experience and insights accumulated over more than a decade into Yan Yuan's mind in the simplest way.

This has a strange feeling of Bodhi Patriarch giving Sun Wukong special training.

"Alright, kid," Nagelsmann put down his pen, closed the notebook, and handed it to Yan Yuan.

"You've passed the test, now you can go to the training ground. I'm looking forward to your performance against Mainz next week." Nash said the last sentence very calmly, as if he were making a matter of course.

Yan Yuan took the now heavy notebook, and his heart calmed down as well.

He was neither overjoyed nor surprised, after all, he had become one of the team's regular main rotation players and even a regular starter recently.

But the coach's personal confirmation that he would soon return to the field, along with the recognition he received during the assessment and the "bonus" of new knowledge, still gave him a warm feeling of being trusted and a strong sense of urgency.

He nodded vigorously: "Absolutely no problem, boss. I'll get back to work now."

In the days that followed, the training ground became Yan Yuan's main battlefield for practicing and putting his new insights into practice.

He poured in double the enthusiasm and focus.

The new skill, [Spatial Web Weaver], seems to have been fully activated after the analysis and testing by the coach during the frustrating match against Frankfurt.

In daily group matches and tactical drills, Yan Yuan perceived the court with an unprecedented clarity.

The network of teammates' and opponents' positioning, which he used to have to rely on experience and quick thinking to vaguely sketch in his mind, now unfolds almost dynamically in real time in his field of vision.

Those invisible connections, such as the possible passing routes between teammates, the space created when the opponent's defensive line moves, and the gaps exposed during the transition between offense and defense, are all crucial.

In Yan Yuan's eyes, it all became a visual flow of information.

The most direct consequence of this is:

His decisions were faster and more accurate.

In a brief halftime offensive and defensive play,

Baumann tossed the ball to Amiri, who caught it and turned to look for a passing spot ahead.

Almost at the same instant, Yan Yuan had already moved!

His brain instantly processed the entire match scenario: the left-back was slightly occupied by the opposing striker, both teammates in the middle seemed to be marked, but on the right flank…

The opposing left-back positioned himself slightly inward, while his teammate Uth made a sudden dribble to the side, drawing away the center-back who was marking him closely.

At the same time, a small gap was rapidly forming in front of Amiri!

Yan Yuan's body moved faster than his thoughts!

He didn't even shout; he simply made a quick turnaround run and sprinted diagonally towards the gap from the side!

Amiri had intended to pass the ball to the left wing, but out of the corner of her eye she caught Yan Yuan's ghostly start and precise aim at the open space.

Without the slightest hesitation, he flicked his ankle and delivered a perfectly timed through ball to Yan Yuan's forward run!

That was such a perfect pass!

Yan Yuan didn't stop the ball, or even adjust his footing. He simply dribbled towards the incoming ball and instantly broke through the opponent's first line of defense, directly facing the center-back!

A fast-paced attack that was so smooth it was almost breathtaking was easily executed.

Gnabry couldn't help but slap his thigh: "That was such a sneaky run! Amiri! Yan! Did you two coordinate beforehand???"

Such scenes of tacit understanding are appearing more and more frequently during training.

Yan Yuan is no longer limited to completing his own small-scale passing and receiving coordination; he has begun to play more and more of the roles of "connector" and "route planner".

He seemed to be guiding the ball to flow more efficiently and more lethally.

Some passing routes would catch striker Uth off guard when he received them:

"Huh? Yan, are you guessing? How did you know this place was empty?"

"I didn't guess. You know I'm a robot, and my system was recently updated." Yan Yuan replied using his "robot" joke, which amused his friends again.

After a training session, starting goalkeeper Baumann, wiping sweat from his brow, said to captain Vogt:

"Has this kid taken the wrong medicine lately or upgraded his skill level? He used to be fast, it was just a flash of inspiration, but now... it's like he sees the field from a radar-like angle?"

Vogt nodded in agreement: "Absolutely! He handles the ball much faster now and his passes are much more difficult to execute."

Nagelsmann stood on the sidelines, his hands in his training uniform pockets, observing silently.

He saw Yan Yuan pass the ball with more confidence in the confrontation, saw him suddenly tear apart the seemingly solid defensive position with an unintentional pass, and saw his increasingly accurate grasp of the timing and route of his off-the-ball runs.

The metaphor about the "net" seems to be gradually becoming a tangible reality under the feet of his beloved student.

Yan Yuan could also feel his own progress.

With each start-up, each touch of the ball, each glance upwards, the vision of the "space weaver" is quietly at work.

He is no longer the same person who relied solely on system skills and physical instincts to sprint a few rounds ago.

He began to act like a true architect, trying to construct the most efficient offensive blueprint through passing and running in the midst of intense competition.

In the debriefing room after training, Yan Yuan remained enthusiastic.

By watching the game video, he can not only point out existing tactical problems, but also clearly analyze, with that "grid" perspective, how space is generated and disappears within a certain period of time, or behind a goal or a goal conceded, the success or failure of the entire offensive and defensive system in the struggle for space.

His understanding has become more rational and logical than before. His innate talent for reading the game, combined with the assistance of his skills, has made him even more formidable.

During a post-game analysis of the defensive system, Yan Yuan pointed to the paused portion of the screen and analyzed a successful penetration through the opponent's flanks:

"Look here, they have the ball on the right wing and have drawn our left-back inside to cover, while their defensive midfielder makes a diagonal run into this area..."

"The starting point of this line wasn't blocked laterally in time... and the ball went through very easily..."

His analysis was concise and to the point, directly highlighting the core elements of how space was utilized.

As he listened to Nagelsmann analyze the tactical details with such clarity and vividness, the smile on his lips deepened slightly, even though he had his back to the screen.

He has to admit that part of his sense of accomplishment as a coach comes from this extremely talented young man in front of him.

The sense of accomplishment from nurturing a genius is just as enjoyable as the sense of accomplishment from winning a championship.

A player's skills can be honed and experience can be accumulated, but this kind of sudden enlightenment in tactical understanding and spatial awareness on the field is absolutely rare and hard to come by.

The match against Mainz is just around the corner.