Who made him play as a winger/attacking midfielder?

Chapter 91 Champions League Group Stage Assist Record! A Survival Guide to Serie A Timber-Cutting Tactics!

The 15th round of the 2017-2018 Serie A season has concluded.

The focus of mainstream European football media has shifted to the Champions League and Europa League.

Next, the two European competitions will see their final group stage matches.

Whether or not a player can secure a spot in the knockout stage depends entirely on their individual abilities.

Roma have already secured qualification and are now three points ahead, and will host Qarabag, who have only two points, in the final round.

This was a contest that was considered to have no suspense.

That is indeed the case.

Chang Huan, who hadn't provided a direct assist in the last two league matches, suddenly exploded.

To be precise, all the forwards wore shooting boots in this match.

He assisted Dzeko and Lorenzo Pellegrini to score goals in the 16th and 37th minutes respectively.

Roma, having extended their lead, focused on control of the game, while also working out the new tactics that Di Francesco had tailored for Chang Huan.

That means giving him more freedom on the field!

Chang Huan is full of energy and has no problem carrying out the task.

The problem is that the teammates are not yet used to this kind of adjustment where one move affects the whole team.

Overall, this kind of time, which can be considered a waste of time, is needed for more adjustment and integration.

In the end, Roma defeated Qarabag 2-0.

In the other match in the same group, Chelsea drew 1-1 with Atletico Madrid.

六战五胜一负的罗马15分获得小组第一，切尔西3胜1平2负积10分排名第二。

马竞1胜3平2负积6分排名第三，将会参加下半赛程的欧罗巴1/16决赛。

Qarabag finished bottom of the table with two points from two draws and four losses, and will be heading home.

With the completion of all six rounds of group stage matches in the eight groups, the sixteen teams that have advanced to the knockout stage have been determined.

The Premier League emerged as the biggest winner.

There were originally four direct qualification spots for the group stage, and with the addition of Manchester United, the 2016-2017 UEFA Champions League winner, there were a total of five teams participating.

The result—all of them advanced!

Apart from Chelsea finishing second in their group, Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, and Tottenham Hotspur all finished first in their groups.

La Liga was the second biggest winner, with three teams advancing to the knockout stage.

Real Madrid, Barcelona, ​​and Sevilla.

Serie A only has Roma and Juventus.

The remaining six teams are Bayern Munich from the Bundesliga, Paris Saint-Germain from Ligue 1, Porto from the Portuguese Primeira Liga, Besiktas from the Turkish Super League, Basel from the Swiss Super League, and Shakhtar Donetsk from the Ukrainian Premier League.

The draw for the Round of 16 will take place next Monday at 12 noon.

The location remains UEFA's Nyon headquarters.

With two assists this round, Chang Huan surpassed Liverpool's versatile Milner to top the assist chart with six assists!

At the same time, it also set a new record for assists in the group stage of the Champions League since statistics began!

欧冠助攻榜2002—2003赛季开始统计，最高纪录是内马尔上赛季与鲁尼在2013—2014赛季共同保持的8次。

This also means that Chang Huan is only two assists away from breaking the record!

However, scoring a goal is different from assisting. Scoring a goal is simply a matter of seizing the opportunity yourself, while assisting requires your teammates to put on their shooting boots.

Roma fans and Chinese fans are very much looking forward to it.

After nearly half a season of performance, Chang Huan is leading the Serie A assist chart.

Key passes are closely related to assists, and leading the Serie A assist chart is also due to a significant lead in key passes over other Serie A players.

Chang Huan is also among the top players in key passes in the Champions League.

Roma fans and Chinese fans are optimistic, believing that breaking the record is likely only a matter of time!

But other fans just chuckled.

They felt that Roma lacked overall competitiveness, and the Champions League Round of 16 was likely to be the focus of this season. Breaking records was easier said than done.

As we approached mid-December, the weather grew increasingly cold.

Rome, located in the southern part of the Apennine Peninsula, has a daytime high temperature of 10°C to 14°C, while Chievo, located in the Veneto region of northeastern Italy, is not as hot.

The daytime temperature is relatively good, reaching 6℃~10℃.

However, the temperature will drop to -1℃ to -3℃ at night.

Roma's away game against Chievo at the Bentegoti Stadium in the 16th round of the league is scheduled for the evening.

"Hiss~"

"It's so cold!"

Chang Huan, who was warming up on the court, was shivering and his breath was steaming.

"Yeah, this awful weather is so annoying."

Lorenzo Pellegrini grumbled as he pulled a pair of warm gloves from the pocket of his warm-up pants.

"Lend me one."

"No!"

Because of the cold weather, a warm-up that usually takes half an hour only lasted about fifty minutes in this league match against Chievo.

Cold weather isn't actually that scary.

What's worse is that it's raining in this kind of weather!

Roma's performance in this match was affected by the cold weather; their overall play against Chievo, where they parked the bus, was quite poor.

Captain De Rossi is in his second straight-red suspension, and Gonalons is unable to replace him.

The lack of fluidity in the attack forced Chang Huan to frequently retreat to participate in the organization and coordination of the attack.

The distance from the goal reduces the direct threat level.

Chievo also fully replicated the tactics used by Genoa in their home draw against Roma, employing a "logging" strategy against Chang Huan.

The Roma players got angry after committing a series of fouls without receiving cards.

The players from both sides engaged in frequent and intense physical contact, resulting in numerous falls and collisions.

The home team fans, eager to stir up trouble, booed loudly.

This played right into Chievo's hands, successfully breaking the game into pieces.

The referee had no choice but to stop the game, call both captains aside, and give them a verbal warning.

The first half ended with the scoreboard showing 0-0.

The game resumes after switching sides.

Lorenzo Pellegrini replaced Gonalons, relieving Chang Huan of the pressure of organizing the attack.

The effect of this substitution wasn't immediate, but it was quite good.

Roma had several shooting opportunities in the second half.

Chang Huan first cut inside past three players, stacking up his buffs, and then unleashed a long-range shot that went just wide of the left post, giving the home fans a scare.

Then, he made a quick run down the right flank and delivered a through ball to Nainggolan, who had moved forward between the defensive midfielder and the back line.

A tricky long-range shot from the edge of the penalty area was saved by goalkeeper Sorrentino.

Three minutes later.

Chang Huan delivered a precise cross from the left flank at a 45-degree angle.

Dzeko leaped high, overpowering Gamberini to complete a powerful lion's head shake.

At the crucial moment, Sorrentino stepped up again, making a miraculous save to deny the ball.

This 38-year-old goalkeeper made a series of incredible saves, reaching his peak performance!

His outstanding performance also sent a positive signal to his teammates, who, as if injected with adrenaline, did not give Roma any decent shooting opportunities.

The final stage of the regular season.

Chang Huan then played a series of one-two passes with Lorenzo Pellegrini, Nainggolan, and Dzeko, before breaking into the right side of the penalty area. He feinted a shot and then cut inside to shake off center-back Gamberini, before unleashing a high-quality low shot with his left foot that went straight into the far corner of the net.

Sorrentino, in superb form, moved with a speed far beyond what one would expect from a 38-year-old goalkeeper. With a flick of his right fingertip, he deflected the ball out of play, changing its trajectory and sending it grazing the outside of the left goalpost before going out of bounds.

The match has ended.

Chievo managed a 0-0 draw against league leaders Roma thanks to an outstanding performance from their goalkeeper.

Fortunately, neither Inter Milan nor Juventus managed to score in their match at the San Siro.

Roma's lead remains at six points.

Perhaps due to the cold weather, Napoli, playing at home, were also held to a 0-0 draw in this round.

This means that all four teams in the league drew, while fifth-placed Lazio suffered a 1-3 home defeat to Torino.

12 noon European time on Monday.

The draw for the 2017-2018 UEFA Champions League Round of 16 was held at UEFA headquarters in Nyon.

As is customary, the group winners Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain, Roma, Barcelona, ​​Liverpool, Manchester City, Besiktas, and Tottenham Hotspur are seeded teams.

The eight second-placed teams from each group—Basel, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Juventus, Sevilla, Shakhtar Donetsk, Porto, and Real Madrid—form the second tier of teams.

With former UEFA General Secretary Gianni Infantino's successful bid for FIFA president, the draw ceremony is now being used as a UEFA public relations event.

Media Director Pinto and UEFA Competitions Director Marchetti co-hosted the event.

Xabi Alonso, the retired Spanish football star who once played for Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, served as the draw guest.

The draw for the Round of 16 will still follow two principles.

That is, teams from the same football association and teams from the same group will automatically avoid each other.

Chang Huan and his teammates watched the live broadcast in the first team canteen at the Trigoria training base.

Whether a team can go further in the Champions League depends not only on its ability to win tough matches, but also on the luck of the draw.

Chang Huan, who has had good luck since obtaining the "Koi" trait, patted his chest and said, "With me here, there will be no surprises. This time, the draw will definitely avoid the strong teams."

Due to the draw rules, Roma's potential opponents in the second tier are only Chelsea and Juventus.

The remaining six teams include top powerhouses like Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.

If you draw one of these two in the round of 16, you're in for a tough time.

The first team drawn from the second tier was Juventus.

Of his six potential rivals, Tottenham Hotspur were the lucky ones.

Basel was the first to be drawn from the "gift package," and Roma players were all making wishes.

We are willing to bear any responsibility!

Manchester City turned out to be the lucky ones.

This also means securing a place in the Champions League quarterfinals in advance.

The draw proceeded very quickly, resulting in Porto and Liverpool being drawn against each other.

Sevilla will face Manchester United.

When Real Madrid became the fifth team drawn from the second tier, Roma's sporting director Monchi and technical director Totti couldn't help but feel nervous.

The same applies to the Roma players who are far away in Trigoria.

It was a close call, but no real danger.

Paris Saint-Germain, which has repeatedly violated Financial Fair Play regulations, ultimately bears the brunt of the consequences.

Real Madrid vs. Paris Saint-Germain!

The sixth team drawn from the second tier is Shakhtar Donetsk.

Rome's on-site representatives Monchi and Totti became nervous again.

As the draw participant Xabi Alonso unscrewed the Champions League logo ball, he unfolded the paper inside and faced the broadcast screen, exclaiming, "Roma!"

Totti's tense face broke into a faint smile, and sporting director Monchi secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Several Roma players watching the live broadcast from the first team's restaurant raised their arms and cheered.

Chang Huan grinned: "I knew it."

If the seeded team drawn is either Barcelona or Besiktas, then there will be no choice in the subsequent draw.

Chelsea is definitely out of the question, leaving only Bayern Munich as an option.

The draw ceremony, with four teams still in progress, proceeded very quickly.

Chelsea —

vs. Barcelona!

Bayern Munich automatically picks up the "gift pack" Besiktas.

The seeded team plays away first, then at home.

The draw for the Champions League Round of 16 has concluded; next up is the Europa League Round of 32.

The top teams from the 12 Europa League group stage groups and the four best third-placed teams from the Champions League group stage will be seeded.

The 12 second-placed teams and the remaining 4 third-placed teams in the Champions League groups will be unseeded.

However, not many media outlets and fans are paying attention to the Europa League draw anymore.

Everyone's attention is focused on discussing the two-legged Champions League Round of 16 clashes.

For example: Juventus vs. Tottenham, Real Madrid vs. PSG, Chelsea vs. Barcelona. The entire Roma team should focus on returning to the afternoon recovery training session to prepare for the next three matches.

They will host Cagliari in the league, and then travel to Torino for two consecutive matches.

Torino and Juventus.

One match is the Italian Cup Round of 16, and the other is the championship match involving the tournament champion!

However, Di Francesco is not worried about playing away against Juventus in the league.

As the team that has won six consecutive league titles, it is the team with the most Serie A titles.

The Old Lady, playing at home at the Allianz Stadium in Turin, will definitely dominate the attack.

It would feel good to kick each other.

He is worried about Cagliari, a team in the lower tier, and Torino, a team in the middle tier.

Genoa and Chievo, two teams employing the logging tactics, both scored points against their own team, essentially providing a standard answer for other teams.

Cagliari and Torino will definitely be re-released.

The large-scale logging tactics employed against Chang Huan will severely impact his performance on the day, thus affecting his overall performance.

The most crucial thing is————

I'm afraid Chang Huan will get hurt!

I haven't suffered any serious injuries from being cut down recently, but my legs are covered in bruises!

Therefore, we must come up with a new tactic that can both protect Chang Huan and maximize the overall strength of the team.

That tactic of allowing players to play freely in the attacking third was completely ineffective against the logging tactics.

Paulo Stoppa, the team's correspondent for the Italian newspaper "La Gazzetta dello Sport," saw Chang Huan's leg injury on the sidelines and took a picture, which he then intentionally posted on his personal social media account.

Chang Huan, while browsing online that evening, had a sudden inspiration and forwarded a comment: "To all you 30-year veteran football fans, I'm asking for a survival guide to Serie A's logging tactics!" [Please/emoji]

In an instant, it attracted the attention of a large number of Roma fans and Roma fans.