N-A-A Chapter 42 Taking the Lead Without Even Kicking
Chapter 42 Taking the Lead Without Even Kicking
At a time when a major conflict between China and South Korea is about to erupt, and media outlets and netizens on both sides are on the verge of exchanging barbs;
This sudden piece of gossip news unexpectedly grabbed the front page of many newspapers.
However, the reactions from netizens on both sides were completely different.
The news caused an immediate uproar in South Korea.
Although Jun Ji-hyun is only 20 years old, she debuted in South Korea several years ago. Her roles in "White Valentine" and "Happy Time" earned her the Best New Actress award, and she is already well-known to many South Koreans.
In 2000, Jun Ji-hyun starred alongside Lee Jung-jae in the film "Il Mare," for which she received a nomination for Best Actress at the Grand Bell Awards.
The film that truly brought her fame and international acclaim was undoubtedly "My Sassy Girl" in 2001, co-starring with Cha Tae-hyun.
After winning the Grand Bell Award for Best Actress, she gained even more fans.
It can be said that her portrayal of the "savage girlfriend" in the film, who was beautiful and refined but also domineering and savage, truly made her a national goddess in South Korea.
Therefore, there is really nothing wrong with the headlines used in gossip news.
It's not unusual for a female celebrity like her to have some scandals; it's quite normal.
The problem is that while South Korea and China are vying for the title of Asia's number one, the goddess in the hearts of South Koreans is seen chatting happily with the coach of their "rival," and there are even rumors of a romance between them...
This was somewhat unacceptable to them.
Anger instantly swept through the entire South Korean fan community!
"How can Jun Ji-hyun be with Chinese coaches? They are our opponents!"
"What a disappointment! Our national goddess actually favors Chinese people!"
"The pride of Asia can only be South Korea, China doesn't deserve it! Jun Ji-hyun has really disappointed us by being associated with a Chinese coach!"
Boycott Jun Ji-hyun!
Some have suggested, "Does this mean that Ye Xian does indeed possess the excellent genes of Koreans? Because he is a descendant of the Ye clan of Gyeongju, is that why Jun Ji-hyun has feelings for him?"
However, most people were too consumed by anger to bother studying the internal struggle between the left and right hemispheres.
Just spray it on!
On the Chinese side, however, the news brought a completely different picture.
"Hahaha, Coach Ye is amazing! He even managed to win over a Korean goddess during his break from preparations, and now he's already leading South Korea 1-0 before the match even starts!"
"Securing a point before the game means the third-place match is practically guaranteed! Coach Ye's move is even more satisfying than winning the game!"
"Are the South Korean fans getting anxious? It's no use. Coach Ye's tactics are brilliant, and his charisma is off the charts—that's a testament to his skill!"
"Look at this photo, they really are a good match. Compared to our handsome Coach Ye, Cha Tae-hyun is too ordinary."
"Go China's national football team! If we beat South Korea, and then Ye Xian brings Jun Ji-hyun back to China, it'll absolutely infuriate the Koreans! Hahahaha..."
The scandal escalated, and tensions between China and South Korea intensified due to this unexpected encounter.
Ye Xian, on the other hand, remained uninvolved.
He doesn't have time to care about scandals.
The most urgent task is to figure out how to make the best use of the cards we have and fight the final battle of this World Cup!
"Hiddink is a Dutch coach, and his style of play is somewhat similar to the Dutch total football style. He also likes to use a three-center-back formation like 3-5-2."
Ye Xian was already in the conference room, discussing tactics with Milu and the others.
"Of course, given the abilities of South Korean players, they cannot perfectly execute a true total football strategy."
"These are some of the weaknesses I've observed in their players so far."
"Central defense captain Hong Myung-bo is getting old, and his turning speed has slowed down. The other two central defensemen, Lee Min-sung and Lee Eul-yong, are in good physical condition, but their positioning is poor and they appear reckless."
"This results in the South Korean team's center-backs having a very limited defensive coverage area and average tracking ability, leaving space in the backfield for our forwards to attack."
"Lee Young-pyo, the left wing-back, has a strong attacking ability, and Lee Chun-soo here is good at crossing and cutting inside, but they often can't get back after attacking."
"Their two defensive midfielders, Park Ji-sung and Yoo Sang-chul, are very strong individually, but their protection of the ribs isn't particularly good, which is something we can exploit..."
Milutinovic, Jin Zhiyang, and Chi Shangbin all nodded repeatedly.
In particular, coaches Kim and Chi have faced the South Korean team in Asia more than once or twice.
But no one can explain the characteristics, weaknesses, and countermeasures of each Korean player in such detail as Ye Xian.
"In order to enable this South Korean team to perform at a higher level and to better match his total football style, Hiddink naturally made some changes."
"Even during this World Cup, he was constantly making adjustments to adapt to the characteristics of this group of players."
"For example, the defensive line is consciously pulled back, increasing the proportion of penetration through the middle, increasing passing and movement on the flanks, and reducing meaningless crosses..."
"However, due to the relatively rigid discipline of South Korean players, their defensive positioning is relatively fixed, which results in very few position changes and wide-ranging runs during offensive transitions."
"Furthermore, their limited technical skills meant that ground penetration was simply unable to break through the defense, and the lack of positional changes and penetration greatly reduced their attacking flexibility, so they didn't really have many attacking options besides crossing the ball..."
Milutinovic then interjected, "Ye, what kind of style of play do you think the South Korean team will use against us? We're so short-handed, and Su Maozhen can't play either. Isn't it too easy for our tactics to be predicted?"
Ye Xian replied, "I think that without the referee's support, Hiddink won't choose to go head-to-head with us. He might attack aggressively at the start, but ultimately he'll prefer to focus on defense and counter-attack against us."
After it was confirmed that China and South Korea would play a third-place match, Zhang Jilong used his connections at FIFA to ensure that the match would be officiated by a European referee.
With everyone watching closely, the South Koreans had no choice but to abandon their plans for underhanded tactics.
On the other hand, the South Korean team is indeed confident in defeating the Chinese team and wants to achieve a victory that will convince the Chinese people.
Therefore, this match can be confirmed to be a relatively clean one.
Otherwise, Ye Xian and his team might not be discussing tactics here, but rather how to prepare for a fighting tournament...
"But to launch a counterattack against us, speed and technique are required."
"They don't have Ronaldo, so we're not afraid!"
"Xue Qixuan is quite good at receiving the ball, setting up the ball, and shooting. He has excellent individual attacking ability and teamwork skills, but he is not an explosive striker."
"Ahn Jung-hwan is more of an opportunistic striker, better at off-the-ball movement and poaching, but his on-the-ball ability is not particularly outstanding."
"Given the speed and reaction capabilities of our defense, it shouldn't be difficult to stop their counter-attacks."
Then Ye Xian pointed out the key points of the Chinese team's attack against the South Korean team:
"Our next training will focus on offensive and defensive drills on the flanks, as well as the speed when transitioning from defense to offense."
"Use speed to counter their defense, and speed to counter their offense."
"Without Su Maozhen, our obvious choice for the forward line is to field a speed-type striker."
"But the problem is that what they fear is our speed. So we need to play with speed!"
"We must use the simplest, most direct, and most incisive method to defeat the South Korean team!"