Chapter 104 Preparing for the World Cup (Volume 2: German World Cup and UEFA Champions League Legend

On Monday, May 2006, 5, in Milan, Italy, AC Milan's Milanello training base was requisitioned by the Italian national team as a domestic training base before the start of the 22 World Cup finals in Germany.

The temperature is 16-24 degrees Celsius, sunny to cloudy, with a gentle breeze, which is very suitable for outdoor sports. Ricardo, who just finished training, is jogging with the big brothers of the national team on the green grass beside the pine forest to do relaxation exercises.

Several big brothers were still taking turns to ask Ricardo about last week's Champions League final. They were mainly listening to Ricardo bragging. After all, talking about Italian football was too depressing in the context of the Calciopoli scandal. Just now, Zambrotta and Camoranesi were called in for questioning by the investigation team...

So it’s more interesting to talk about overseas football. In fact, everyone is in a very depressed mood, and it’s just that Ricardo is making jokes to liven up the atmosphere a little.

"Brothers, don't tell me. After this winning goal, I was celebrated by a pile of people. I ate a lot of grass. It's so bitter just thinking about it..."

"Fuck, I was planning to do a cool goal celebration move."

"Oh, that's right, Brother Philip, you asked a good question. I haven't thought about it yet... Should we celebrate a goal by covering our ears to listen to the cheers, or by machine gunning like Brother Batistuta, the God of War, or by spinning and jumping like a domineering CEO? Damn, Brother Philip, you know a lot. Do you have any suggestions..."

"Yeah, after the game, everyone praised Iniesta a lot, saying he was the coolest guy on the field. They gave him a lot of close-up shots, but his baby face wasn't as handsome as mine, haha... During the celebration ceremony, I secretly gave him several pieces of cake to wash his face!"

"Well, in addition, the media criticized Van Bommel a lot this time. In fact, his style is not suitable for Barcelona. But when we returned to Barcelona to celebrate, no one blamed him. He tried his best. But I seem to have heard that he may leave the team next season..."

In fact, everyone just listened to what Ricardo said casually, and no one took it seriously. Originally, everyone was more interested in Ricardo's romantic affairs, but this son of a bitch didn't want to talk more...

All we know is that the day after winning the Champions League, Ricardo asked for leave and left Barcelona early, and did not continue celebrating with his teammates. But when it came to the details after returning to Italy, he said that he wanted to omit them for the sake of love and harmony. Damn, he wouldn't even tell me if you paid him!

Although after the Champions League final, Barcelona will have an away game against Athletic Bilbao on the evening of May 5, which is a make-up match of the 20th round of La Liga, most of Barcelona's main players will miss this game except Eto'o who has to defend his La Liga Golden Boot.

Ricardo was no exception and also missed Barcelona's last league game of the season because according to FIFA's requirements, Ricardo, who had been selected for the Italian national team's World Cup squad, could no longer play for the club after the UEFA Champions League final.

Yes, the Cameroon national team represented by Eto'o did not make it to this World Cup in Germany; so Eto'o shamelessly took a group of second-team players to play away against Athletic Bilbao.

In the end, Eto'o scored his 26th league goal of the season in the first half, surpassing Villa's 25 goals and winning the La Liga Golden Boot this season. Although Athletic Bilbao scored three goals in the second half to reverse the victory, the result of the game was not important to either side...

After the Champions League final, Ricardo returned to Barcelona with the team on May 5, the second day. It was the first day of the city's three-day carnival celebration. Ricardo secretly asked his boss for leave.

Rijkaard, who was in a very good mood, knew that Ricardo was severely allergic to alcohol and was indeed not suitable to participate in the crazy celebration that would involve alcohol. Moreover, according to FIFA regulations, Ricardo could not participate in the last round of the league the day after tomorrow. So he waved his hand and approved his leave!

So time management master Ricardo left early in the middle of the celebration attended by nearly 13 people and returned to Milan, Italy, because he wanted to spend one more day with his girlfriends.

According to Chiara's schedule, Ricardo gave up the celebration at Barcelona, ​​took leave and returned to Milan on the 20th, celebrated with himself all night, and then reported to the national team on the 21st.

According to Sarafina's schedule, Ricardo celebrated wildly in Barcelona for a whole day and night, then returned to Milan on the 21st, celebrated with her all night, and then reported to the national team on the 22nd.

However, according to the schedule of Julian and other family members, Ricardo celebrated day and night in Barcelona for two days and two nights, and then went directly to report to the national team on the 22nd.

There was no way. Julian was in London and Ricardo really didn't have time to fly over there. Besides, he really didn't have enough ammunition. The barrel of his gun had been smoking for a long time. He could only promise that after the World Cup, he would go to England to find Julian and have some fun for a few days!

No wonder most emperors in ancient times died early. With three palaces, six courtyards and seventy-two concubines, which man could handle it...

Ricardo had to deal with two of them. When he rushed to the national team for a physical examination, he felt so sore in his waist and legs that the national team doctor thought Ricardo was injured in the Champions League final...

Ricardo was so scared that he straightened his back quickly and did more than a dozen sets of push-ups followed by head-holding squats to prove that he was in good shape.

What a joke! I can’t be replaced from the national team because of injury at this time!

……

On the evening of the second day after Ricciardo reported for duty, after the Italian national team finished a relaxing training of jogging ten laps around the pine forest, the day's training sessions were over. The whole team returned to the five-star hotel where they were staying to rest and prepare for the last local training session tomorrow before heading to Iserlohn in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

The Italian national team will set up its World Cup base in Iserlohn and its overseas training base before the World Cup finals. The Italian national team will train here for about three weeks and then go to Hannover on June 3 to officially start the 6 World Cup finals journey!

……

Ricardo returned to the hotel and shared a room with De Rossi. The new vice-captain of Roma, a handsome man with short blond hair and no beard at the time, actually looked a bit like Ricardo, both in height and body shape, but Ricardo's face was more sunny and soft - you could say it was more delicate, while De Rossi's face was more fierce and fierce - which was in line with the role of a steel defensive midfielder.

However, De Rossi, who was in the hotel room, was looking at Ricardo frantically inputting codes with a look of shock on his face...

"Oh! I have to submit the semester assignment for my last graduate course before the weekend! I will try to apply to complete the final online exam before the World Cup, otherwise I may not have time after the World Cup starts...

“Aaaaaaah… I feel like this code has been called before… where was it… aaaaaah…”

De Rossi listened to Ricardo mumbling to himself while typing furiously on his laptop keyboard, and couldn't help swallowing his saliva: "Damn, (Animal!) This is a real animal! Studying for a master's degree in the national team? I can only watch action movies and play games on the computer, and the best I can do is clear the level with Minesweeper. What on earth is this pervert writing..."

So De Rossi was very embarrassed not to invite Ricardo to play games online, and was also very polite not to disturb Ricardo who was frantically doing his homework by watching movies. Instead, he quietly read the news on his laptop. Of course, the local sports news was skipped, and he read the overseas version...

Corriere dello Sport is still reviewing last week's Champions League final: "In the choice between A (Arsenal) and B (Barcelona), B had the last laugh. The Catalans turned the blessing of completing the Spanish meeting in the European Super Cup into reality.

After a brief period of darkness last season when no team made it to the Champions League quarterfinals, La Liga teams have created an Iberian whirlwind in Europe this season.

Previously, teams from Spain, Italy and England won the Champions League 10 times respectively, while Barcelona in Paris was the 11th time that a La Liga team won the crown, temporarily breaking the balance of the number of times the three major leagues won the trophy. Real Madrid won the championship 9 times, and Barcelona lost the championship twice. The 2 Premier League championships were won by 10 teams, namely Liverpool, Manchester United, Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa. AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus represented Serie A and won the European championship 4 times..."

The Gazzetta dello Sport simply and clearly named the Barcelona team that won the championship last week as the Dream Team II. The newspaper praised Barcelona for its 4-minute magic turnaround and miraculous victory. This is the second time in the history of the Barcelona club that it has won the Champions League... Eto'o and Italian wonder boy Li Qi are the heroes of the game. The two world waves created by these two players have entered the history books again. "

(De Rossi secretly glanced at Ricardo on the other side. The magical boy was still outputting codes frantically...)

Corriere della Sera directly quoted some comments from Spanish media:

"Barca used the Champions League title to prove that their title as the best team in Europe is not in vain. After winning the La Liga and Champions League double, Barcelona has become the new king of the European continent." - Marca

"Barcelona is now the master of all Europe. The King of Spain has extended his territory to the whole of Europe." - El Mundo

"Barcelona is the most exciting team this season, winning everyone's recognition, and now they have won the Champions League title that will go down in history. Barcelona is a fair and just champion. They were the favorites when they arrived in Paris, and when they left, they took away a trophy that proved they are the best team in Europe." - AS

De Rossi quickly skimmed through these meaningless news reports: "Tsk, tsk, tsk, they are all praises, meaningless... Hmm? The commentary on the players analyzed by Panorama Sports is interesting. Let's see if it is different from Ricardo's bragging."

De Rossi, who originally wanted to switch to the gossip channel to read entertainment news, was left on the international section of sports by an analytical article. Because De Rossi noticed that the media comments were about Van Bommel and Iniesta, who are in similar positions to him (both are currently defined as the No. 4 position), De Rossi also wanted to learn from the media's perspective, mainly to learn how to avoid spoilers...

"Panorama Sports" also starts from this Champions League final to analyze the respective advantages and disadvantages and roles of the two players, as well as the choice of the head coach.

"For Barcelona, ​​the biggest change in the starting lineup for the Champions League final was replacing Iniesta with Van Bommel. In fact, it doesn't matter whether it is right or wrong. The core of Arsenal's tactics lies in the midfield. If Barcelona wants to make a move in the middle, the vertical attack from the midfield becomes the key.

Rijkaard also saw this, so his intention of replacing Iniesta with Van Bommel was here.

Van Bommel is characterized by a strong forward awareness, and has created 4 penalties for Barcelona this season. It is obvious that Ronaldinho will be given special attention, Messi is not even on the squad, and Giuly's ability to cut inside is not good enough... Using Van Bommel can just find a balance between offense and defense on the right rib.

However, a red card from referee Hauge affected Arsenal's arrangements; Arsenal's formation retreated as a whole, and the number of people in the middle was very dense. At this time, it became less realistic to expect Van Bommel to move forward.

At this time, what Barcelona lacked most was effective short passes and fast passers. Rijkaard also quickly noticed this and at the beginning of the second half, he replaced Edmilson, who was injured in the first half, with Iniesta.

Xiaobai's characteristics are just the opposite of Van Bommel. His appearance helped Barcelona find the rhythm of ball control and let the whole team find life-saving oxygen in the almost suffocating heavy rain.

Iniesta's appearance freed up Deco and Ronaldinho, who could press forward more boldly. His distribution of the ball also made Barcelona's attack more three-dimensional, unlike the first half, when they had to use long passes to connect left and right. More importantly, Iniesta's technical ability was stronger than Van Bommel's. He was fast in his forward runs and the ball was difficult to be intercepted.

In the second half, most of the threatening attacks were almost entirely related to Iniesta, which proved how crucial this No. 4 player is to Barcelona.

The post-match statistics were astonishing: Iniesta played for 45 minutes, made 57 passes, 55 of which were successful, including 40 forward passes, 38 of which were successful; he had two shots, one on target; he made three tackles, two of which were successful; and there was also a key clearance.

No wonder even Spanish Prime Minister Zapatero realized that the appearance of Iniesta and Larsson was the key to Barcelona's reversal of the score.

It is worth mentioning that Iniesta, born in 84, and Fabregas, born in 87, are both players from Barcelona's youth training camp. They were teammates in the Spanish youth team. "They are very similar, but Fabregas is more outgoing." The former coach of Barcelona's youth team said, "Maybe Iniesta is a little older, so he was chosen by Rexach to join the first team."

However, Fabregas also got a chance at Arsenal later. In the direct confrontation that night, Iniesta's performance or his role in the team was better than Fabregas's. In the rating of El Mundo, the former received the second highest score of 8 points in the team, while Fabregas only received 5 points.

Back to the comparison of positions within the Barcelona team, compared to Iniesta, Van Bommel's performance in the Champions League final has been constantly criticized.

Van Bommel played for 61 minutes, without a single shot, 31 passes, only 22 successful, 25 forwards, 18 successful. Contribution? Not nothing, 2 successful tackles plus 1 foul. That's all Van Bommel has. You really don't know until you compare. Once you compare, you'll be shocked.

In the words of Le Monde, Van Bommel's legs were soaked by the rain in Paris and became stiff. His rhythm was outside the entire Barcelona attack and defense system.

Van Bommel's biggest problem is his technique. Among the 11 Barcelona players on the field, except for Valdes, he may be the roughest one; his forward penetration and breakthrough abilities are still bright spots, especially he can repeatedly create penalties in the opponent's penalty area. However, it is unrealistic to expect Van Bommel to organize and pass the ball.

Oleguer also performed poorly. Rijkaard wanted to use him to stabilize the defense, which was the original intention. But after Barcelona's overall formation pressed forward, Oleguer, who lacked speed, frequently assisted, and suddenly became a breakthrough point for Arsenal's counterattack. Henry and Ljungberg took turns to find opportunities from him, and Arsenal almost succeeded in a sneak attack.

In addition, Arsenal's physical strength was gradually running out. When Oleger was needed to press forward and continue the deep attack, the disadvantage of the bearded man's poor footwork was revealed. Two crosses, one was high and one was over the head. We have to thank Rijkaard for sending in the offensive teenager Li Qi in time, and the effect was immediately different..."

……

Seeing the comment about Ricardo again, De Rossi couldn't help but look up at Ricardo who was doing his homework...

Huh? No, why is this guy smiling so obscenely? What is he looking at?

I saw that Ricardo was no longer typing code, but was concentrating on reading a media report titled "Unstable Element Li Qi Stages Perfect Redemption"...