SWR: Chapter 651/653

Chapter 651: Our Goal Is to Be the Champion

Manchester City defeated Manchester United 5–3 and won the Community Shield!

After the match, all of England erupted.

No one had expected the Community Shield to turn out so spectacular.

The two sides scored a total of eight goals—it was a true goal-fest.

Although they missed out on the trophy, Manchester United manager Ferguson still spoke highly of the match in his post-game interview, stating that his players had shown good spirit and mentality.

"In fact, this is just a charity warm-up game. Neither of us placed too much importance on it. We were more focused on adjusting our lineups."

Ferguson said he was satisfied with his players' performances and believed that, with another week of preparation, United would be ready for the new season in better shape and spirit.

After securing the Community Shield, Gao Shen was visibly excited.

As the players lifted the trophy, he stood by the touchline, beaming, praising his squad's performance and expressing satisfaction with several of the new signings. At the same time, he didn't miss the chance to fire back at the media.

"Van Persie put on a fantastic display!"

"He was involved in three of the goals. I don't know what others think, but in my eyes, he's an electrifying player. I'm looking forward to what he can do this season."

When asked about City's ambitions, Gao Shen was direct: "We are aiming to win the Premier League title!"

And not just that—he declared that tonight's performance gave him unprecedented confidence.

"Not just the Premier League, we'll also give it our all in the Champions League. We'll prove our strength again with undeniable results!"

"In the Premier League, we want the title! In the Champions League, we want the title too!"

The Manchester City players heard their coach loud and clear. The squad was fired up and determined to go beyond what they achieved last season.

Van Persie, speaking to the media after the match, said that one of the key reasons he joined City was the manager's ability.

"He's a very special coach. I've felt that way since the first time I heard about him. I've always believed he could lead a team to success. That's why I came to Manchester City."

"I'm hungry for titles!"

Robben also said in his post-match interview that winning the Community Shield would be a huge boost for City.

"Maybe some people won't believe me when I say this, but the truth is, we haven't even shown our best yet."

"This season, we'll be fighting on two fronts: the Premier League and the Champions League. It's going to be tough, especially in Europe. We'll face strong opponents even in the group stage. But let me be clear, we're not afraid of anyone!"

"As our manager said, we feel sorry for the teams that end up in the same group as us!"

…

Manchester City's ambitions were sky-high.

The public and media alike gave rave reviews of their performance in this first official match of the season.

The 5–3 scoreline was the highest since the Community Shield was rebranded in 2003. Even going back to the old Charity Shield era, this was still among the highest-scoring matches in nearly a century.

The last time the Community Shield saw eight goals in a single game was 57 years ago, in 1953, when Wolves and West Bromwich Albion drew 4–4 and shared the trophy.

Even further back, in 1932, Everton beat Newcastle 5–3.

Clearly, these are long-forgotten matches.

In the Premier League era, whether in the Charity Shield or the Community Shield, it's extremely rare to see such high-scoring encounters. This was truly a feast of goals.

The Manchester City players were widely praised. Van Persie played a part in three goals, proving his quality. Taking on the responsibility as the central striker, he received full support from the front line and delivered.

More impressively, this was his very first official appearance for Manchester City.

Sacchi, the highly respected analyst, officially joined The Times as a columnist this summer.

In his piece analyzing City's opening match, he made it clear that Van Persie was the real deal.

"I watched him at Arsenal, and it was obvious he didn't receive enough support there—especially up front, where Adebayor was the focal point."

"But in the Community Shield, I saw a top-quality striker emerge under Gao Shen."

"Like many others, I was skeptical about Gao Shen's praise for Van Persie before the game. I thought he was overhyping his player. But after watching this match, I understood where that confidence came from."

"Van Persie definitely has the potential to become a top-class striker, and now he just needs Gao Shen's further guidance."

"Let's not forget, Gao Shen's ability to develop players is second to none in European football today."

"Even if we only focus on strikers—he developed Negredo at Real Madrid, Cavani and Pellè at Napoli, and now Suarez has made a name for himself at Manchester City."

"That gives us every reason to believe Van Persie will succeed too!"

As always, Sacchi kept his usual enthusiastic tone in the column and generously praised Gao Shen. Even when discussing Manchester United and Ferguson, he made sure to highlight Gao Shen's achievements.

At a time when Gao Shen was still facing doubts and criticism, Sacchi stood alone in his support.

…

Gao Shen didn't pay much attention to the media hype.

He knew very well—this kind of attention only comes to winners.

The media has no moral compass. Win, and they'll praise you to the heavens. Lose, and they'll turn on you faster than a mask change in Sichuan Opera. They'll trample you into the ground without hesitation.

If you want to be in professional football, you'd better get used to it.

The media and the game are two sides of the same coin—inseparable and interdependent.

On the night they won the Community Shield, Manchester City returned to Manchester from London.

The next morning, the team held its usual post-match recovery session, followed by a full analysis and review of the game, identifying and discussing areas for improvement.

Overall, Gao Shen gave the team a positive evaluation. After all, they won both the match and the trophy.

On an individual level, he praised three newcomers in particular: Yaya Toure, Leighton Baines, and Robin van Persie.

In the Community Shield, almost all of the new signings made their debuts, with the exception of De Bruyne. Jerome Boateng had several glaring errors. While he had some good moments, his overall performance fell short.

Gao Shen didn't criticize him publicly, but he did speak to him privately, encouraging him to keep working hard.

Yaya Toure played especially well. As the defensive midfielder in the first half, he stood out, launching a few impressive long passes to start attacks.

Sometimes Gao Shen even thought, if Toure focused solely on playing as a holding midfielder, he'd be nearly perfect.

But unfortunately, Toure wasn't content with that.

Later in the game, Gao Shen switched to a 4-4-2 diamond midfield, pairing Toure with Rakitic in the center. Toure thrived. Some of his passes, especially the two late ones to Giroud, were beautiful.

Once he moved further up, he played with more freedom. His forward dribbles also posed a real threat.

That gave Gao Shen a bit of a headache.

Playing him as a pure defensive midfielder wastes his attacking talent. But using him further forward doesn't quite fit in Gao Shen's typical system. He had tried the 4-2-3-1 with a double pivot, and the diamond midfield, and both produced solid results.

That might turn out to be an important tactical variation for City.

After all, whether in the Premier League or the Champions League, Manchester City can't rely on just one 4-3-3 setup to conquer the world.

European football is far too complex for that now.

Leighton Baines also had a solid game on the left. He defended well against Manchester United's top threats, Valencia and Rooney. There were a few mistakes, but they were understandable.

Gao Shen had trained Valencia himself and knew full well how quick and strong he was.

Baines did well under the circumstances.

More importantly, he hadn't yet shown his full attacking capabilities.

As for Van Persie—what more needed to be said?

Gao Shen practically sang his praises in every interview after the match.

With a win and a trophy to open the season, expectations were sky-high.

Still, Gao Shen tempered the excitement with a note of caution, reminding everyone that Tottenham looked strong this season.

Especially with the additions of Van der Vaart and Džeko, Spurs had significantly boosted their strength compared to last year.

"We must be fully prepared!"

More importantly, the season opener was going to be tough—an away game.

"But I believe you can overcome the challenge. We'll take a win from White Hart Lane!"

Gao Shen said it with full confidence.

He was clearly determined going into the new season.

He repeatedly told his players to treat every match seriously. Manchester City only needed players who gave their all—players who shared the same vision.

"I want to make this absolutely clear: our goal this season is to win trophies. All of them. Especially the Premier League and the Champions League!"

"My demand is simple. I want you to give your best from the very first match, because what awaits us is an extremely difficult schedule!"

Many players in the squad had experience in European competitions. Some had even lifted the Champions League before. They all knew that, with Manchester City's current coefficient, they were bound to land in a group of death.

And everyone knows how brutal those groups can be.

Wasn't Napoli, two years ago, strong as they were, also forced to battle it out in a group of death?

"Don't worry. No matter how tough our schedule is, no matter how strong our opponents are, I will lead you through it. All I ask is that you give me your best in every match and stay in peak form!"

The players responded with confidence.

As for the Champions League draw, no one knew yet who their opponents would be.

But Gao Shen thought, surely they wouldn't be unlucky enough to draw Real Madrid again… right?

(To be continued.)

Chapter 652: The Responsibility of the World's Top Coach

As the Premier League prepares to ignite once again, fans all over the world are eagerly anticipating the action.

However, the new season brings significant changes to the Premier League.

One major shift is that, in European competition, the Premier League has been overtaken by Spain in the league rankings.

Barcelona have reached the Champions League final two years in a row. Combined with La Liga clubs' strong performances in the Europa League, La Liga has rapidly closed the points gap in UEFA's coefficient rankings and now looks poised to overtake the Premier League as the world's top league.

This has sparked calls from the British media, urging the top Premier League clubs to perform better in the Champions League this season and earn more points for England.

Manchester United, Chelsea, and Liverpool are all traditional powerhouses and have performed well in the Champions League in recent years. Naturally, the spotlight is on them.

Gao Shen's Manchester City are also a strong side, but their biggest issue lies in the draw.

Due to UEFA regulations, Manchester City are a fourth-seed team, meaning they are guaranteed to be drawn into a group of death.

Everyone knows how difficult it is to escape from a group of death.

In Gao Shen's previous life, Manchester City failed to achieve good results in Europe for several years. One key reason was their low coefficient in European competition.

That said, the top clubs remain very wary of Manchester City. No one dares underestimate Gao Shen and his team. With such a brilliant record, some even claim that Gao Shen was born to win titles.

Last season, after Manchester City clinched the Premier League title, The Times, The Guardian, L'Équipe, and Gazzetta dello Sport all rushed to analyze the secret behind their success, claiming that Gao Shen had unlocked the formula to leading a team to championships.

The conclusions varied widely. Some were insightful, while others even made Gao Shen laugh.

But that's just the media.

Another major change is in the Premier League's registration rules.

Many are aware that starting this season, the Premier League requires eight homegrown players—defined as players registered with the FA or Welsh FA for 36 months or three seasons before turning 21.

This is what's commonly known as the homegrown player rule.

But what few noticed is that another significant change has occurred: the squad size has been reduced from 30 to 25 registered players.

In other words, each first-team squad is now limited to 25 players.

Many people wonder why Premier League registration is so expensive.

This is the reason.

Among those 25, eight must be homegrown players. That's a high percentage. But the supply of high-level domestic players is limited, so competition to sign them is fierce and their prices have skyrocketed.

According to the logic of the English FA, as local players become more valuable, clubs will be more motivated to develop youth talent, which will, in turn, improve the youth system. On top of that, Bernstein has been pushing for youth development reform within the FA, so there is reason to be optimistic about the future of English youth football.

On this point, Gao Shen genuinely admired the political vision and opportunistic instincts of the former Manchester City chairman.

On the day Gao Shen was "debating" with the media outside the FA, Bernstein immediately contacted him to have an in-depth discussion on youth training reform. He wasted no time in getting to work.

This showed Gao Shen the foresight and decisiveness of a successful person.

In his previous life, Bernstein would go on to become FA chairman later this year. Gao Shen had to admit, opportunity truly favors those who are prepared.

Back to the squad situation.

Some may think the new rules aren't that significant.

But take this for example:

The new season is about to kick off, and as of now, neither Chelsea nor Liverpool meet the registration requirements.

This is why Tottenham paid a high price for Micah Richards, and why Bridge was sold for a decent fee. All clubs are scrambling to sign homegrown players.

If they can't, Chelsea and Liverpool will have to sign more players, promote from the reserves, or reduce the number of first-team registrations. Fewer homegrown players means fewer squad spots, which could weaken the team's depth and strength.

This is how the value of a Premier League registration spot has been inflated.

There's no need to even mention Arsenal. Wenger is being heavily criticized. Of their eight homegrown players, only Walcott is English. The others are all foreign players who qualify under the rules, but the criticism remains.

Manchester City are in a better position. Players like Gary Cahill, Leighton Baines, Stephen Ireland, Gareth Bale, Sturridge, Shay Given, Adam Lallana, Jordan Henderson, and Kieran Trippier all qualify as homegrown.

However, limiting the first-team roster to 25 players is a bit tight for Manchester City. So players like De Bruyne, Hazard, and Trippier were registered with the second team, allowing them to be promoted to the first team as U21 players.

This is a common strategy used by many clubs.

Gao Shen personally explained the situation to the players, assuring them it was only a registration issue and didn't reflect their standing at the club.

Most of the players understood. After all, this kind of registration move is quite common in European football.

The Champions League has similar regulations.

Every club must consider these rules during transfer windows. Otherwise, you end up in embarrassing situations like Real Madrid's, when they signed Huntelaar and Lass Diarra only to find out they could register only one of them. That was truly amateurish.

…

While Gao Shen was busy preparing for the new season at Carrington, Sacchi came all the way from London to visit him.

With the rise of Manchester City, the landscape of English football has undergone tremendous change.

Especially this season, people are realizing that Gao Shen isn't just a disruptor. He's determined to make Manchester City a real powerhouse in the Premier League—one that can stand alongside Manchester United, Chelsea, and other giants.

He even aims to surpass them.

Both Gao Shen and Manchester City are full of ambition, which has caused quite a stir across the UK. Gao Shen is well-known, and City's football is attractive—smooth, well-coordinated, and highly entertaining. It has won over many fans.

But last season, the British media came to a frustrating realization: none of them really understood Gao Shen.

So this season, The Times took a unique approach by signing Sacchi—widely known as Italy's number one football pundit—to write a column.

Sky Sports also partnered with Sacchi, inviting him to appear on several league preview shows.

Clearly, the Italian bald guy was thriving.

When Sacchi visited Carrington, he couldn't help but complain.

It's widely accepted that most Premier League training grounds are remote and outdated.

Except for the newer facilities at Arsenal and Chelsea, the others are all fairly basic.

Manchester City had recently acquired land near the Etihad Stadium, planning to build a new training base. But a Manchester United supporter was holding out as a "nail house," and City's management was struggling to resolve the issue.

Sacchi laughed when this was brought up.

After training, Gao Shen introduced Sacchi to the players.

Sacchi's reputation preceded him, and the players showed him respect. He was a good conversationalist and quickly got along well with everyone.

As for lunch, Gao Shen had already arranged it at the Carrington facility.

During the break between the end of training and lunch, Gao Shen gave Sacchi a tour of Carrington.

Most of the facilities and departments already existed in Naples, where Gao Shen's coaching philosophy had matured. But at Manchester City, there was still plenty of room for improvement—in hardware, software, staffing, and even in himself.

According to Sacchi, this trip to Carrington was to gather inspiration.

For a professional like Sacchi, to heap praise on someone, you need a foundation. You can't just do it blindly.

If you want to blow the trumpet, you need something to blow.

Gao Shen also admitted that his football philosophy had evolved significantly since his time at Napoli.

"I told you, football is often about probabilities and statistics."

"The longer you hold the ball, and the closer you are to the opponent's goal, the higher your chance of scoring. The opposite is also true."

"So in the past, my whole aim was to keep pressing the opponent. That was high pressing."

Sacchi kept nodding. It was indeed a profound tactical foundation.

"But there are two problems. First, what do you do when you face a team that's better at passing and possession, presses just as well, and attacks even more sharply than you?"

"Second, what happens when you come up against a team that defends deep, is highly motivated, and stays fully focused? What can you do then?"

Sacchi knew that the first team Gao Shen referred to was Barcelona.

Especially this season's Barcelona. Their overall strength was simply terrifying.

A front three of Aguero, Messi, and Sanchez. A midfield trio of Xavi, Iniesta, and Busquets. And world-class attacking full-backs like Vargas and Alves. Their squad was incredible.

As for the second case, there were plenty of such teams.

You need talent to attack, but not to defend with ten men behind the ball.

Especially now, defensive standards across football had improved dramatically, placing higher demands on attacking teams. Transition efficiency between attack and defense had to be quicker.

But to improve transition efficiency, you need space.

If you press the opponent too deep, there's no room to accelerate in any direction. You just hit a wall.

Even someone as talented as Messi can't consistently beat two well-coordinated defenders by himself.

That's why space is essential.

Sacchi was thrilled to hear all this. He saw that despite Gao Shen already being at the top level, he was still thinking deeply, preparing for challenges even in times of peace, and continuously striving to improve.

This kind of thinking was undoubtedly forward-looking.

And it was also the responsibility that came with being one of the world's top coaches today.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 653: Every Generation Has Its Own Talented People

Some say football is a game of time and space.

But time is fixed. It's constant. So, space becomes the key.

Michels, the creator of Total Football, introduced the theory of spatial control in football.

Expand the space when attacking. Compress it when defending.

These two simple lines insightfully summarize the essence of football tactics.

Cruyff once said: Space is like everything in football and in life. You need to look for it. You need to think about it. You need to move. You need to find it. You need to help others find it. And in the end, it's very simple.

Later, based on this, Sacchi proposed four reference points for every player's movement: the ball, space, opponents, and teammates.

That's what shadow training is for.

"Pressing is not about running or working hard. It's about controlling space."

And clearly, to control space, you need to run more.

With that in mind, it's not hard to arrive at an interesting conclusion.

Match time is fixed, so space becomes the decisive variable in football games.

Among all the spatial factors, the pitch size is fixed, and the number of players is fixed. So, what becomes the main factor affecting space?

The answer is simple: players.

There are only a few ways players can create space, use physical strength to overpower opponents, use technique to break free from them, or use stamina and movement to create open areas.

Sometimes, Gao Shen would wonder: is it possible to integrate all of that into a single player?

What people often call a "complete player"—a regular hexagonal warrior.

It might sound like fantasy, but such players already exist. There are even efforts to train them this way.

Take Pogba, for example.

Or several other young midfielders who were emerging in European football before Gao Shen's reincarnation.

They're tall, physically strong, technically gifted, and great runners…

So, what kind of chemistry could result if you gathered a team of these players?

Among them, Pogba probably had the highest ceiling. But unfortunately, his career planning was a mess. Moving from Manchester United to Juventus was the right step, but going back to Manchester United was a huge mistake.

It was a real shame.

…

Clearly, all teams, whether in Europe or elsewhere, are trying to create space when attacking and compress it when defending.

Tactics are a way to guide players to do this in a repeatable, structured way.

The higher the level of competition, the harder it becomes to create or compress space, because the individual quality of players is higher.

In this context, three types of players become particularly important.

Physically dominant players. Technical geniuses. And tireless engines.

As the saying goes:

Seventy percent of the Earth is covered by water. The remaining thirty percent is covered by Kante.

Players like Iniesta, Modric, and David Silva excel because they use superb technique to escape pressure and drive forward. That's space creation.

Xavi, Toni Kroos, De Bruyne and others reached the highest level by being able to identify space and exploit it with their passing.

Neuer's role at Manchester City caused a huge stir in European football because his control of the space behind the defensive line was exceptional, greatly increasing the defense's margin for error.

Now, Manchester City have four central defenders. That's a long-term strategy.

Gao Shen believes that for the next five to ten years, everyone at City will be thankful for this decision.

Because for quite some time to come, elite central defenders will be extremely scarce.

Before Gao Shen's reincarnation, people loved to say that the quality of central defenders had declined. That they had lost their way.

Whether they had "lost their way" is a question that requires a broader historical perspective. But the decline in individual defending is understandable.

Because defenders now spend more time running and closing down space rather than trying to win the ball directly.

That's why Gao Shen told Jerome Boateng: if you can control the ball, don't kick it away. There's no need.

Because if you give the ball away, you lose space.

On the other hand, if you asked Ferguson what separates Ronaldo from Valencia…

He would likely talk at length about the difference in spatial awareness. That's the real secret behind Ronaldo scoring so many goals.

Random shooting?

That's a skill too.

After all, how many players don't even get into shooting positions?

…

After a long and in-depth discussion with Gao Shen, Sacchi realized that Gao Shen's thinking was more advanced than he had imagined.

Since his time at Napoli, Gao Shen had already been leading the tactical trends in European football. That was universally acknowledged. But now, he was still moving forward.

Taking what Gao Shen said about space, it's easy to see that Manchester City's formation has become far more flexible recently.

When attacking, the team spreads wide and uses the full width of the pitch, flattening out completely. When defending, the team tightens up quickly, gaining local superiority as fast as possible.

That's all at the tactical or formation level. But Sacchi also noticed another clear shift in Gao Shen's approach at Manchester City.

Or rather, ideas he had in Naples that he began applying directly at City.

For instance: inverted wingers.

Robben, widely recognized as one of the world's best left wingers, was immediately deployed on the right upon arrival.

It was clear this wasn't a coincidence.

"This wasn't accidental, right?" Sacchi asked with a smile.

Gao Shen was far too meticulous to do something without reason.

"And I noticed, when you use Gareth Bale on the left, and Sturridge too, neither of them are weak-footed. But most of the time, they're cutting in toward goal rather than playing as traditional wingers."

What do traditional wingers do?

Go to the byline and cross?

No, that's too inefficient.

In recent years, many people have praised Herbert Chapman, the legendary former Arsenal manager.

He believed the most dangerous crosses were cutbacks from the byline—what we now call inverted triangle passes.

Those passes put goalkeepers in a dilemma, whether to come out or stay back.

Gao Shen fully acknowledged the danger of inverted triangle passes. But he also believed that high-speed in-swinging balls from inverted wingers were just as deadly.

Like Robben, who had been practicing high-speed in-swinging crosses tirelessly in training.

The perfect example was the ball he sent to Gareth Bale in the first half against Manchester United. It was a fast in-swinger. One big advantage of these balls is that they can either be shots to the far corner or dangerous passes. Often, the attacking player just needs a simple touch for a goal. The threat is just as high as an inverted triangle pass.

"Another obvious advantage of inverted wingers is that our full-backs are mostly right-footed. Inverted wingers attack the opponent's weaker foot, giving us the upper hand."

"The most important thing is, we all know the winger and the full-back can't be too close together. If they are, there's no room for sprints on the flank. But inverted wingers move diagonally and centrally, giving up the vertical flank. That also draws defenders away."

"Then the full-back's sprinting overlap becomes a very important offensive weapon. The most famous examples are Messi and Alves, but also Sanchez and Vargas."

Barcelona now had two such attacking lanes, both of which were deadly.

At Real Madrid, Pellegrini was also trying to pair Cristiano Ronaldo with Marcelo on the left flank. That was following the same concept, though still in its early stages.

Whether Mourinho would continue this direction after taking over was still unclear.

After all, Mourinho places more emphasis on defense.

Manchester City were also building such an attacking system. Last season, Robben and Zabaleta weren't quite as explosive as Messi and Alves, but they were enough to dominate the Premier League. This season, Gao Shen was shifting his focus to the left side.

As for the center forward, he was a key connector between the flanks and midfield.

In Gao Shen's system, the striker was never just a finisher.

…

Sacchi had to admit, he could no longer keep up with Gao Shen.

But thinking about it, that was only natural. Gao Shen had always coached on the front lines.

The pressure in professional football is enormous. A tactic that works one week might fail the next and needs to be changed immediately.

What worked last season might be obsolete this season. You have to adapt.

If you don't change, you're finished.

That forces constant growth and evolution.

This applies to both players and coaches.

Just like former Chelsea manager Scolari—he was an excellent coach, but lacked front-line experience in European leagues. That's why he struggled at Chelsea.

The biggest difference between club and international football is the rhythm. National teams play infrequently or in short tournament bursts, riding form waves. Club football, however, is week in, week out, live broadcasts every match, stretched across ten months.

That's the real grind.

Successful club managers usually adapt well to national teams. But national team coaches often struggle when moving into club football.

Even someone as strong as Sacchi could analyze from the sidelines, but putting it into practice was another story. That's why his stint as Real Madrid's technical director was average at best.

Times have changed.

As the saying goes: "Every generation has its talents, and each rules the stage for a hundred years."

Gao Shen believed that he too would eventually be replaced. Maybe he'd get tired, or satisfied, and stop pushing forward.

But before that happened, he would shine even brighter.

He wanted fans around the world to remember his name.

Profound (Gao Shen)!

(To be continued.)