SWR: Chapter 939/940

Chapter 939: The Best in the World

"What's going on?"

After receiving the news, Gao Shen, Su Qing, Zidane, and Carlo immediately returned to Madrid from the UK.

After sending his pregnant wife back home, Gao Shen didn't dare to linger and went straight to Valdebebas.

As soon as he walked into the coach's office, he asked Zidane and Carlo, who had come back earlier, about the situation.

Hierro, Carlos Vargas, Buenaventura, and Pintus were all there.

"We just confirmed with the Brazilian national team that Marcelo has a fractured fifth metatarsal in his right foot," Buenaventura said.

The metatarsal bones are the bones on the instep of the foot, with the outer parts leading to the phalanges of the toes.

When Gao Shen heard this, his heart sank.

A fracture is definitely a big problem.

And it was Marcelo.

"Damn!" Gao Shen cursed angrily. "Is it confirmed?"

"The local hospital has already checked it out."

"What about our team doctor?"

"They have already rushed over. We'll get news from Poland later."

Gao Shen nodded, but his face was still dark with frustration.

The Brazilian national team had been training in Poland recently. Marcelo, Kaka, and the others flew directly from Madrid to Poland to avoid long travel. Gao Shen and the others had thought this was a good arrangement, but they did not expect such a thing to happen.

"Lorenzo, tell me," Gao Shen asked.

Buenaventura, a rehabilitation expert who is also very experienced with injuries, had always been Gao Shen's right-hand man.

"If it's a fracture, surgery will definitely be required. After the surgery, it will take at least three or four months."

A fracture is a very serious injury, and the surgery will be very complicated.

Although metatarsal injuries are not as troublesome as cruciate ligaments or meniscus injuries, if they are not treated properly, they can be very tricky.

What is most important is that Marcelo's absence for three or four months will have a huge impact on Real Madrid.

At present, apart from Marcelo, the only other player on the left is Marcos Alonso. Arbeloa can fill in occasionally, but the attacking left flank partnership between Marcelo and Ronaldo that Gao Shen had been building will be out of use for the time being.

So what should be done next?

The most troubling part is that they are about to face Manchester City, the strongest opponent in the Champions League group stage.

"How are the others?" Gao Shen asked with concern.

Carlos Vargas, sensing his bad mood, quickly replied, "I've been in contact with them. Their condition is fine, but they all have matches to play."

It is natural for players to fight for their national teams, but traveling long distances to represent their country in the middle of the season is a huge challenge for any professional player.

If another injury occurs, it will be even worse.

"How is Varane?" Gao Shen asked again.

Varane, who plays for the French national youth team alongside Koulibaly, had suffered an injury during a youth national team match before and returned to the club early for treatment by Real Madrid's medical team.

"It's nothing serious, just a minor issue," Buenaventura finally gave some good news.

Gao Shen turned around, looked around the room, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

He needed to carefully sort out the current situation.

Marcelo is injured, and the attack on the left will be severely affected. Arbeloa can play there, so defense is not a big problem. On the right, Ramos and Carvajal can both handle the job.

Marcos Alonso can serve as a substitute and rotation option for Aveiro. With this arrangement, the team can manage.

But the attacking system will need some adjustments.

Alternatively, he could consider trying a three-at-the-back formation, with Marcos Alonso playing as a left midfielder.

Gao Shen had tried this in a warm-up match before, and the team's performance was average. But it might be worth trying again.

For the three center-backs, Ramos, Pepe, Albiol, and Varane are all available.

He could try it if there is an opportunity.

But that is still not a perfect solution.

…

While Gao Shen and the others were waiting for further news from Poland, Valdano and Butragueno also came to Valdebebas. It was clear they had received the news as well.

At this point, Gao Shen and the others had even begun discussing the surgery.

"If surgery is necessary, Madrid is definitely not the best place," Buenaventura said. "I suggest doing it in the Netherlands. The renowned doctor in Amsterdam, Van Dijk, specializes in this type of surgery. Both Van Nistelrooy and Cristiano Ronaldo had their operations done by him, and the results were very successful."

Gao Shen nodded. "Then contact Dr. Van Dijk first. Once we get confirmation from Poland that surgery is necessary, contact him immediately and start making a surgical plan."

Surgery cannot be done impulsively, especially for a top-level professional like Marcelo. The plan must be carefully considered. The key is to ensure it does not affect his future career, paying attention to every detail.

"By the way, Jorge, did we arrange a private plane to pick up the players from South America this time?" Gao Shen asked Valdano.

"Yes. The gathering point is in Santiago, Chile. We have rented a private plane together with Barcelona. This time, it will fly to Madrid first and then to Barcelona."

For Europe's top clubs, chartering planes to bring back players is nothing new. It is done almost every international break, and each time the club carefully selects the meeting point to ensure players can return as quickly as possible.

This time, they chose Santiago because the Chile vs Argentina match will be held there.

It is over 10,000 kilometers from Chile to Spain, a 15-hour flight, costing 150,000 euros to charter. But the advantage is that they can return to Madrid on the evening of the 17th, train on the 18th, and play on the 20th.

If they take commercial flights, they might not return until the evening of the 18th at the earliest, or even the afternoon of the 19th. By then, not only training but even playing in the match could be in doubt.

Gao Shen looked at Buenaventura and Vargas. "Keep a close eye on the condition of the national team players."

As a club coach, there is very little he can do regarding his players' performances on national duty.

Gao Shen has his own pressures, but national team coaches have theirs as well.

For example, in a strong clash like Chile vs Argentina, can Higuaín and Di María really be left out?

Similarly, Spain will be playing France, another high-profile match. While the fans will enjoy it, Gao Shen is worried.

If there is another injury, Real Madrid will be in real trouble.

Not to mention, these matches carry the highest risk of injury.

Because players are not only exhausted, but they also push themselves to the limit.

How could they not fight with everything they have in a high-profile clash?

…

With no news yet from Poland, Gao Shen took the opportunity to talk with Valdano and Butragueno during dinner in the restaurant about another matter.

If Marcelo really has a fracture, depending on its severity, he will need at least three months, but there is no guarantee of exactly how long it will take.

More importantly, no one can be sure if he will fully recover after the injury.

This brings another hidden danger.

"Didn't you say earlier that we still had a surplus in the transfer market?" Gao Shen asked.

Valdano and Butragueno looked at each other and gave bitter smiles.

"It's October, Boss!" Butragueno reminded him.

"I know." Gao Shen was not stupid. He knew that it was impossible to buy players in October because the transfer window is closed.

"I just looked at the technical department's player database and noticed something. What a coincidence."

"What is it?" Valdano and Butragueno asked with interest.

"Bayern's left-back, David Alaba, has been recovering from an injury this season and only recently returned."

"So…"

"Can we buy him so that Bayern won't register him for the Champions League?"

As soon as Gao Shen finished speaking and saw the stunned expressions of the two men opposite him, he immediately realized he had gone a bit overboard.

"I know. I'm just preparing for the worst."

"But do you think Bayern would agree?" Valdano asked with a smile.

This is Bayern. They are not short of money.

Digging Alaba out of Bayern is not an easy task. Now, on top of that, he wants Bayern not to let Alaba play, just so he can be registered for the Champions League with Real Madrid after a January transfer?

That is not realistic at all, is it?

Putting aside everything else, right now Real Madrid still needs to qualify from the group first.

Gao Shen shrugged helplessly. He was really forced into a corner.

This came out of nowhere, and Marcelo is injured. What can he do?

"What is your plan?" Valdano also understood the seriousness of the situation.

Gao Shen has always placed high hopes on the left flank, the combination of Marcelo and Ronaldo. Now that Marcelo is injured, this problem is fully exposed.

"I will definitely say something to encourage the youngsters. It's only October, and there are more than two months before the winter transfer window. We have so many matches to play, so for now, we have to rely on the players we have. I must stabilize their morale first."

Valdano and Butragueno both nodded.

"Marcos Alonso, Nacho, Arbeloa, they can all play in this position. If necessary, there is also Juanfran from Castilla."

This Juanfran is not the two Spanish internationals with the same name, but a 24-year-old Castilla player who came from Getafe's youth academy. He joined Castilla in 2009 and can play on both flanks.

However, from Gao Shen's understanding, this player later achieved little and his performance has been average.

From the current perspective, Gao Shen will have to dig internally until the winter transfer window.

His biggest hope now is that no one else gets injured.

"Let's try to contact Bayern and test their attitude. David Alaba is quite good, so we should at least try to sign him," Gao Shen suggested.

Valdano nodded. "I'll make contact when I get back, but don't get your hopes up."

It is not easy to poach players from Bayern.

This summer, if it weren't for including Khedira in the deal, Bayern would never have let Toni Kroos leave so easily.

And facts have shown that after Khedira went to Bayern, his performance was not as eye-catching as it had been in the European Championship, while Toni Kroos' performance at Real Madrid has been much better than when he was at Bayern.

This also confirms one thing.

There are many good horses, but there are very few good trainers.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 940: Misfortunes Never Come Singly

The news from Poland was bad.

Marcelo was diagnosed with a metatarsal fracture and was immediately brought back to Madrid by Real Madrid's medical staff for a more detailed examination.

It was basically confirmed that Marcelo would miss all the remaining matches in 2012.

Both the Brazilian national team and Real Madrid announced the news on their official websites as soon as possible.

Real Madrid's medical team also contacted Van Dijk, a renowned doctor in Amsterdam, Netherlands, and immediately communicated with him.

The surgical plan given by Van Dijk was to make a seven to eight centimeter incision on the instep of Marcelo's right foot and implant a titanium screw in the broken bone to help fix it and accelerate healing.

Even so, the surgery cannot be performed before the 20th, and he is expected to be out for at least three months.

This is still an optimistic assessment. Considering the fracture and the long period of absence, the impact will be even greater.

This is definitely very bad news for Real Madrid, because Marcelo will miss all the games this year.

The only good news is that if Real Madrid can qualify from the group stage, Marcelo should be able to make it back in time for the knockout rounds.

Another piece of bad news is that Real Madrid made an inquiry about Bayern's left-back David Alaba, but Bayern rejected it without hesitation and reiterated that Alaba is not for sale.

Valdano even had someone investigate and found out that even if Real Madrid offered a transfer fee of 20 million euros, it would not be enough to convince Bayern.

Not to mention, Alaba will not take part in the remaining four Champions League group matches.

Of course, according to UEFA's latest rules, even if Alaba had already played in the Champions League, he could theoretically play in the Champions League for Real Madrid after the winter transfer window, but that depends on Bayern being eliminated in the group stage.

But everyone knows that this possibility is almost zero.

The actual relaxation of registration restrictions will only come in 2018. At that time, UEFA will revise the player registration mechanism. Even if a player has participated in the Champions League group stage, he can still be registered by another team for the Champions League knockout stage.

For now, the old rules still apply.

Real Madrid is unlikely to spend a large sum of money on a player who cannot play in the Champions League during the winter.

So, for the time being, the matter with Alaba has to be put aside.

…

After finishing the examination with Marcelo, Gao Shen made a point to talk with the Brazilian.

The main topic was still about the injury and the rehabilitation plan after surgery.

Gao Shen repeatedly emphasized to Marcelo that he still has an important position in his plans, and he hoped that Marcelo could maintain a good attitude, cooperate with the doctors and the coaching staff, and recover as soon as possible.

"The team still needs you very much!"

Gao Shen expressed his confidence in qualifying from the Champions League group stage.

"Don't worry, no matter how big the difficulties are, I am very confident that I can lead the team to qualify from the group. When the time comes, I hope you can return in time to help the team in the knockout rounds!"

"You are very important to us. Please don't let me down, Marcelo!"

After receiving such affirmation from Gao Shen, Marcelo said he was very touched and promised to work hard to live up to the expectations of the head coach. He would never slack off even during his recovery period.

"Very good. I and everyone else will be waiting for your return!"

From their conversation, Gao Shen could feel that Marcelo's mood was good.

This has a lot to do with the traditionally positive and optimistic attitude of Brazilians.

But after talking with Marcelo, Gao Shen immediately met with Marcos Alonso, Nacho, and Vazquez.

In Gao Shen's plan, the best candidate to replace Marcelo is Arbeloa, but he is currently with the national team.

Marcos Alonso is an option at left-back, Nacho is a versatile player who can also play at left-back, and as for Vazquez, this winger is sharp on the flanks, both offensively and defensively, and can also try to play as a full-back.

When meeting Marcos Alonso, Gao Shen put special emphasis on improving his own abilities as quickly as possible, especially during Marcelo's absence. He hoped that Marcos Alonso could perform better and more consistently.

"I believe you can do it."

"I see the potential of an excellent left-back in you, but this requires you to work harder and perform better. Come on!"

As for Nacho, Gao Shen still positions him as a versatile player. He hopes that this 22-year-old academy product can actively express himself and strive to adapt to multiple positions.

He promised that he would try to give him more playing time and opportunities.

In the following days, Gao Shen focused on the training of these players, especially Marcos Alonso and Nacho. Hierro even personally served as a special training coach, conducting specific sessions for these two defenders.

But unpleasant events kept happening one after another.

…

In the following match between Spain and France, in the 50th minute, Arbeloa was injured during a challenge and was helped off the pitch by the team doctor.

This made Gao Shen and others, who were watching the live broadcast of the match, worried. Hierro immediately called the national team.

But before the end of the game, French striker Benzema was also injured. He limped off with a pained expression, and the situation looked quite bad.

This made Gao Shen even more upset.

The FIFA virus broke out all of a sudden!

Situations like this are by no means uncommon and occur quite frequently.

But unfortunately, Real Madrid is about to enter a crucial period in the Champions League group stage. If several key players are injured at this time, it will be devastating.

Zidane also called the French national team immediately to ask about Benzema's condition.

Soon, the news came back.

There was good news and bad news. The bad news was that Arbeloa's injury was confirmed after the game. He had suffered a muscle tear and is expected to be out for at least three weeks.

The good news was that Benzema's injury was not serious. It was an old problem. He felt some discomfort during the game, but it improved after resting. He still needs to return to the club for a detailed examination, but there should be no major issues.

After Marcelo's injury, Arbeloa was now also out. Both starting full-backs were injured. What should Gao Shen do?

Fortunately, Gao Shen had sold Coentrao this summer. Otherwise, the situation would be even worse.

The Portuguese left-back has not played much since joining Chelsea and has been injured frequently. He was injured again during the last two weeks of international matches.

If he were still at Real Madrid, Gao Shen could almost form a complete set of full-backs out with injuries.

When a player is injured while on national team duty, FIFA will also "compensate" Real Madrid according to the player's salary. For example, Marcelo's current post-tax salary is 2.3 million euros, which is 6,300 euros per day. FIFA will pay his wages during the recovery period.

However, FIFA does not take responsibility for any losses caused to the club due to player injuries.

This is also the main source of conflict between clubs and national teams.

Otherwise, why would Wenger make sarcastic remarks?

…

After the team regrouped, Gao Shen gave a routine interview to a reporter from AS. He said that the injuries to several players had indeed affected the team's lineup.

"We need to make more adjustments and even try some decisions that we were reluctant to try in the past."

Gao Shen admitted that the team has encountered difficulties, but he still believes that if everyone works together, Real Madrid can overcome the current crisis.

"We also have a group of outstanding young players, such as Marcos Alonso, Nacho, Carvajal, and even Vazquez, who can all play in defense. I think these young guys are trustworthy and can help the team."

A reporter from AS asked, using young players in the Copa del Rey is normal, and using young players in La Liga is understandable, but in the Champions League group stage, facing strong opponents like Manchester City, Real Madrid still has to rely on young players. Couldn't this be too risky?

Gao Shen firmly confirmed it.

"I know Manchester City very well. They are the strongest team in European football at the moment. If possible, I would prefer to use all the main players, but unfortunately, we have two or three key players injured."

"It is indeed a heavy responsibility for young players to participate in such an important match, but this is the best option available now."

Gao Shen reiterated that he believes Real Madrid's young players can overcome the difficulties the team is currently facing.

Just one day before the team was to face Celta Vigo, Marcelo, accompanied by the team doctor, left for Amsterdam, Netherlands, to prepare for his surgery.

Gao Shen wished Marcelo a successful surgery during the interview.

…

On October 20, in the eighth round of La Liga, Real Madrid faced Celta Vigo at the Bernabeu.

Affected by the injuries, Gao Shen had to field a backline of Marcos Alonso, Pepe, Ramos, and Carvajal. The midfield was also adjusted, with Kaka and Verratti replacing Toni Kroos and Modric.

Up front, Ronaldo, Morata, and Vazquez led the attack.

There was no other choice.

Gao Shen had to save energy for the Champions League home match against Manchester City three days later.

If all the main players played against Celta Vigo, how would they fight Manchester City in midweek?

After kickoff, Real Madrid launched a wave of attacks with great efficiency, especially in the 11th minute, when Kaka made a solo run and passed. Morata dribbled past Celta Vigo goalkeeper Alvarez in the box and scored the first goal for Real Madrid.

But after adjusting, Celta Vigo began to counterattack.

In the 38th minute, Verratti made a brilliant pass. Ronaldo controlled the ball on the left side of the box, cut inside, and fired a right-footed shot to score again.

2-0!

In the second half, Real Madrid slowed down a bit. Celta Vigo also understood that Real Madrid was trying to conserve energy for the Champions League, so they pressed harder and even managed to pin Real Madrid back for a while.

Among them, the young South Korean player Park Ju-young had a very good scoring opportunity, but his header was miraculously saved by Courtois.

Just three minutes later, Higuaín, who had come on as a substitute, received a long pass from Ramos in the backfield, beat the offside trap, and scored one-on-one, making it 3-0 for Real Madrid!

This score remained until the end of the match.

Real Madrid defeated Celta Vigo 3-0 at home.

But everyone is still pessimistic about Real Madrid's crucial battle against Manchester City in the Champions League group stage on Wednesday.

Anyone can see that Real Madrid, severely affected by the international break, managed a perfect score against Celta Vigo, but the performance was not ideal.

In this condition, how will they fight Manchester City?

(To be continued.)