Chapter 432: Taking the lead

In the Kearney training base, Wenger sat in an office chair, with his back to the desk and facing the window. Below was Arsenal's training ground, but there were no players training at this time, but Wenger was still staring at the training ground in a daze.

Arsenal's start this season was really good, which is also Wenger's usual feature.

As Ferguson said, Arsenal was champion-level before the winter break, but Arsenal couldn't even make it to the Champions League after the winter break.

This is a bit exaggerated, but it does point out Arsenal's biggest problem. The start is always eye-catching and amazing, but after the winter break, especially in the final sprint stage, Arsenal lost the advantages they had created with great difficulty again and again, and even suffered a reversal in the end.

At the last moment of last season, many people said that the reason why Arsenal failed to enter the Champions League was because Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool both won, but they didn't see that even if they lost, could Arsenal enter the Champions League?

You lost to West Ham United. Even if your opponent loses, you still can't make it to the Champions League!

Arsenal's start this season is as eye-catching as ever, with four wins and one draw. Such a start shows Arsenal's good competitive state, but it also makes many people worried, that is, will Arsenal go back to the old path of the past few years?

Wenger is also thinking about this question at this moment facing the large training ground downstairs.

In fact, whether it is being a person or a head coach, at his level, self-knowledge is not a difficult thing. He is very clear about his problems, but sometimes, being clear is one thing, and inertial thinking and doing habits are difficult to change.

"Do you know what your biggest problem is? You are too stubborn and too cautious. We can even easily guess what you will do. So, in the eyes of many of us, you have no secrets at all!"

Wenger's ears involuntarily rang with what Ye Qiu had said to him, which made him very unconvinced, but he had to admit that stubbornness and caution are his usual style.

"Since you say I'm stubborn and cautious, then I won't be stubborn and cautious for once, let me show you!" Wenger showed a vindictive smile, he also wanted to see what it would be like when he was not stubborn and cautious.

Thinking of this, assistant coach Pete Rice knocked on the door of Wenger's office and walked in, "Arsene, you're looking for me?" As he said, he walked to Wenger's desk.

"This is the lineup and tactics I want to play against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, please help me take a look!" Wenger turned around and gently pushed a document on the desk in front of Pete Rice.

The latter opened the document, was a little surprised after taking a look, and immediately looked at it more carefully.

"Back to 442?" Pete Rice was a little surprised and lost his voice at first, but he looked more carefully.

Wenger's starting lineup is still 442, with Almunia as the goalkeeper, Clichy, Gallas, Kolo Toure and Sagna as the back line, Hleb, Arteta, Flamini and Eboue as the midfielders, and Adebayor and Walcott as the double striker combination in the frontcourt.

Over the years, as the tactics of the Premier League gradually catch up with the mainland, they began to consciously move towards the four lines, claiming to have returned to the four-line spectrum. Ferguson and Wenger, the old traditional coaches of the Premier League, have also been constantly improving, just like Ferguson, who has not adjusted the reform of Manchester United's tactics over the years.

The same is true for Wenger. He has always wanted to reorganize Arsenal's tactics, but he was previously limited by the player lineup. However, after gradually letting go of core players such as Henry, Pires and Vieira over the years, although the overall strength of the team has also declined, the tactical system has improved, and Wenger even began to consciously play the 4231 tactics.

But now returning to 442, it has to be said to be a risk, but Wenger's risk is obviously not just this step.

Defense line forward pressure!

This is the most shocking word for Pete Rice after reading this plan, because Wenger's so-called defense line forward pressure is not just to advance a little bit, but to move forward very far, to ensure that the team can compress Tottenham's entire midfield, use the overall formation to suppress the opponent, so that Tottenham has no time and space to intercept the ball and counterattack.

The purpose of doing this is naturally to attack, because after pressing forward, the team's offense can play the greatest threat, and Wenger arranged Walcott and Adebayor to start. These two players are also very targeted, targeting Tottenham's Hangeland and Thiago Silva respectively.

If Arsenal really successfully uses such a starting tactic to control the game, then it can be imagined that Tottenham will play very passively, because Wenger's approach is almost a gamble.

But there are risks with gains, and the risks brought by such a gamble are also very large, that is, the physical consumption of players, and Tottenham's counterattack, especially the straight pass behind the back.

Beckham is an excellent long passer, but his passing efficiency is not very fast under tight and high-intensity pressure. Therefore, in Wenger's tactics, Beckham's effect will be curbed. On the contrary, Fabregas's through ball from the midfield may be more effective, which is the focus of Arsenal's defense.

"Pate!" Wenger also noticed the rather strange look on his assistant's face and smiled, somewhat bitterly, "Maybe when I say this, many people, including you, will feel uncomfortable, but we have to Admit one thing, now we don’t have much advantage against Tottenham Hotspur, and we are even at a disadvantage in many aspects.”

After hearing this, Peter Rice frowned at first, and then looked at Wenger with some admiration. At least he must admit this. It is very, very difficult for people like Wenger. In fact, except for some Except for those who don't want to admit it, most people can see that Tottenham Hotspur are not worse than Arsenal, on the contrary, they may even be better than Arsenal.

"When we are at a disadvantage, if we still follow the original inertia and fight against Tottenham Hotspur, we will definitely die miserably. Ye Qiu, this guy, has too strong targeted tactics. He knows it very well. He must have targeted arrangements for how we will fight, so if we want to defeat the opponent, we can only take risks and change our formation!"

Peter Rice always felt a little uncomfortable when he heard it, because from the mouth of Wenger, who was always known for his stubbornness, he said that he wanted to change the formation. Why did it sound strange to him?

But he has no doubt about the sincerity of Wenger's words, because Arsenal failed to reach the Champions League last season, and Wenger was also under great pressure. If there is no improvement this season, Wenger may be criticized by the board of directors. Therefore, facing the most direct competitor in the Champions League, Wenger does not want to lose.

Wenger's eyes were always staring at his assistant. He saw the look in Pat Rice's eyes and understood something from it. He smiled bitterly and said: "Now that things have come to this, we must admit that now The Premier League is no longer the Premier League it was a few years ago, or even the Premier League it was a year ago.”

"In the past, the strongest teams in the Premier League were us and Manchester United. The championship was always between our two teams. Later, Chelsea rose and Liverpool revived. But in the final analysis, the status of the top four in the Premier League was not much threatened. But now the situation It's obviously different, Tottenham has broken the balance of the past."

After hearing this, Peter Rice immediately laughed and said, "Arsena, that team is now in the relegation zone."

Wenger also smiled, but at the same time he shook his head, "Never underestimate this team, Pate. He carries Ye Qiu's hope. He will be our most powerful competitor in the next few years. He even has hope." To become the strongest team in the Premier League in the future, as long as they maintain their current momentum of progress.”

There are many players in the Tottenham Hotspur team that Wenger admires very much, such as Cesc Fabregas, Messi, and Van Persie. They are all outstanding, but Wenger missed them due to various reasons. , now as a competitor, Wenger naturally does not dare to underestimate this team.

"Ye Qiu often said that he has studied me very thoroughly. This time I want to see if he is really what he said, or if he can really guess how I want to play this game! "

Peter Rice looked at Wenger. What he read in Wenger's eyes was provocation, a kind of passion that he had not seen for a long time.

Perhaps, in the past few years, the calmness of the Premier League and the lack of threat from Arsenal have worn away some of Wenger's energy and passion, and also made him lack some fighting spirit, but now, it is a matter of life and death for the team, and he is obviously regaining his strength. Recover the passion of the past.

Just like when he landed in the Premier League and ambitiously wanted to overthrow the Manchester United dynasty!

Ye Qiu really didn't expect that Wenger would launch an unreasonable fast break.

Returning to the team's more familiar 442 formation, Adebayor and Theo Walcott were arranged in the frontcourt. Wenger obviously did not think about being conservative or defensive at White Hart Lane. Instead, attack directly in one go.

"Is he really dying?" Mauro Tassotti looked on with some surprise.

After the game started, Arsenal's defense was very high. The two full-backs also pressed forward actively and directly participated in the attack. Together with Hleb and Eboue on the wings of the frontcourt, Arsenal actively pushed forward. Through the pressure of the defender, the numerical advantage in the frontcourt is completed, and the ball is controlled more effectively and smoothly.

Perhaps it was because they saw Arsenal actively attacking the away team at the beginning of the game. The more than 30,000 Tottenham Hotspur fans at White Hart Lane looked very angry and shouted at the Arsenal players one by one. The boos from the team were also cheering for the home team players, and the stadium seemed very lively.

As the game started to take advantage, Arsenal began to use their advantage to threaten Tottenham Hotspur's goal. In the 3rd minute, Eboue completed a cross from the right, and Ade Bayo blocked the position with his body and headed back before Hangeland. Arteta followed up with a volley.

Petr Cech stood very steadily in front of the goal line. When Arteta hit the volley, he quickly flew over and directly hugged the ball, completing a beautiful flying save!

The Czech goalkeeper stood up from the ground. He noticed Ye Qiu's gesture, indicating that he should hold steady and not be anxious, so he directly picked up the ball and avoided Adebayor, who was pressing hard in the frontcourt. Reach out and steady your teammates.

Perhaps seeing Tottenham consciously delaying time and slowing down the pace, Arsenal began to consciously retreat.

However, as soon as Tottenham Hotspur threw the goal kick, Arsenal immediately pressed forward again, pressing very hard in the midfield, and Tottenham Hotspur also quickly completed an offensive advancement. Fabregas made a quick straight pass, trying to tear open Arsenal's defense, but Gallas got stuck and intercepted the ball from the middle.

The ball soon fell to Adebayor's feet again. This time Adebayor and Walcott crossed positions. The former faced Thiago Silva. The Togolese striker held the ball and faced Thiago Silva directly, wanting to make a direct face-to-face breakthrough, but unexpectedly, Thiago Silva kicked quickly and cleanly, and directly cut the ball off.

Hleb got the ball and passed it to Walcott in the penalty area. The English teenager kicked directly, but missed.

Ye Qiu was watching Arsenal's attack from the sidelines, especially this almost desperate attack. He was really surprised, because this was really not like Wenger's style, but he appeared on Arsenal.

"Now the ball is basically turning in our half, which is not good for us!" Mauro Tassotti analyzed.

Ye Qiu nodded, "This is his calculation, he wants to suppress us in one go!"

While speaking, Ye Qiu pointed to the field, "Look, their three lines are all pressed up, kept very compact, suppressing our midfield. If Mourinho's Chelsea is to achieve the restriction by appropriate retreat and players running, then they are to maintain a compact formation by pressing up, and then complete the restriction."

Mauro Tassotti immediately reacted after hearing, "Then we can play behind!"

Ye Qiu nodded, "Yes, in theory we can play behind, but in reality In the game, Beckham is not very good at through balls. He is good at long passes, but his passes require space. So as long as the formation is tight enough and someone harasses and affects Beckham, our passing efficiency will be greatly reduced, and Fabregas is also closely guarded. "

If you observe Beckham's passing carefully, it is not difficult to find that his passes are often stopped and then passed, which is why his accuracy is so high. Ferguson once said that to ensure Beckham's passing success rate, he must be given time and space to stop the ball and then pass, so he is arranged on the wing.

Ye Qiu's strategy is to complete it by delaying, but now Arsenal is pressing forward to further suppress Beckham's space.

Sometimes it is like this, you clearly know and clearly see that there is a large gap behind the opponent, but it is difficult for you to grasp it. First, Tottenham Hotspur does not have possession of the ball at present, and second, Arsenal's pressing is very good.

"This is a life-threatening style of play. He clearly doesn't want to defend and wants to play against us!" Mauro Tassotti understood that Arsenal and Tottenham's offense are definitely in the top three in the Premier League, and the other team is Manchester United. Therefore, if they really play against each other, it is not certain who will win or lose.

"They are not sure to defend our offense. Our defense has problems, and their defense is not necessarily that good!" Ye Qiu said with a smile. Both Arsenal and Tottenham have problems in defense.

If Tottenham's defense is mainly due to the team's tendency to attack, and there are obvious loopholes in the back line, then Arsenal's problem lies in the lack of tacit understanding between the players. Clichy on the left and Sagna on the right are obviously not reassuring, and even Kolo Toure and Gallas' combination is not satisfactory.

Tottenham's offense was the strongest in the Premier League last season. Even though Van Nistelrooy has left, in the eyes of discerning people, Tottenham's offense has been revitalized. Which team dares to say that they can defend Tottenham's offense?

Ye Qiu smiled, "Actually, Mauro, we should be proud that we can force our opponents to adopt such extreme tactics. This also indirectly proves our success, doesn't it?"

"Besides!" Ye Qiu glanced at Wenger in front of the visiting team's coaching bench, "If we really fight against each other, we don't know who will win or lose!"

But not long after Ye Qiu finished speaking, Arsenal launched another wave of attacks. This time, Arteta stepped forward and received a cross pass from Eboue on the right. After getting the ball, he took two steps to the left and quickly passed it to the left. Hleb had already run out of space on this side.

After seeing the Belarusian get the pass from Arteta, he stopped, rubbed, and rubbed a cross ball over the top.

In the penalty area, Adebayor had already run to the middle of Thiago Silva and Hangeland without knowing when, just like a cheetah lying in ambush, waiting for the opportunity. When he saw Hleb's cross, he immediately rushed forward quickly, and Hleb's pass just passed over Thiago Silva's head.

In the penalty area, Adebayor, who had already jumped up, met the ball and knocked it lightly with his head. The ball was knocked in the opposite direction. Cech was powerless to such a header and could only watch the ball enter the net, 1:0!

"GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!"

"In the 17th minute, Arsenal scored the first goal, from Adebayor's header!!!" Andy Gray cheered loudly, obviously cheering for Arsenal's goal.

"After the game started, both sides played very openly, without any conservatism, but adopted a counter-attack. However, Tottenham Hotspur seemed a little passive, especially in organizing the offense. Arsenal shot four times after the opening and created a goal, while Tottenham Hotspur has not found an effective offensive routine so far." Wenger on the sidelines saw Adebayor score, and excitedly clenched his hands, laughing and clapping at the players. As he expected, Ye Qiu and Tottenham Hotspur were surprised by his almost suicidal style of play, and even a little unexpected, so they seemed very passive after the opening, and Arsenal took the lead!

"Wenger's deployment of troops in this game is very risky, but the harvest is also rich. At present, the away game is temporarily leading Tottenham Hotspur 1:0. The home team has not performed very well since the start. We should take a closer look next to see whether Ye Qiu will make appropriate adjustments."

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