Chapter 18 Death Group

"Look! This is it!"

The tactical room was packed with Arsenal players.

Mourinho stood at the front, pointing to the pause point of the game on the screen, and said; "I have been emphasizing effective offense and reducing ineffective ball control. Just like this time, it was obviously our opportunity to attack, but we forced There are two more passes! These two passes can be avoided!"

With that said, Mourinho pointed to Kanter and said: "You could pass it directly to Giroud. Giroud can be seen in your position, but you chose to split the sides."

Kanter pursed his lips slightly and nodded; "I don't dare to try a deep pass!"

Kanter's meaning is obvious, he is afraid of being intercepted!

"You need to try!" Mourinho's attitude was very firm. He said seriously: "I have always advocated quick counterattacks. This requires joint efforts. When counterattacking, it is very important to directly form a counterattack formation at the first point. If you pass the ball to Kai or split the ball, it's likely to miss the opportunity!"

"Just like this time, if you connect directly with Giroud, then the counterattack is quite threatening, but you choose to split the sides! Aubameyang took two more steps, guys, we ran forever The ball is passed quickly, so these two pauses give the opponent time to chase back! "

After saying that, Mourinho pressed the start button on the screen and paused again after two seconds.

At this time, Giroud holds the ball and forms an encirclement around him.

"This is the result of passing more passes!" Mourinho said; "I need you to dare to pass the ball more and dare to make moves when breaking through. You must be clear that now is not a battle for points. The team is in the adjustment stage, and we also need to make adjustments and adapt the new tactical system.”

"So changes must be made during this period. I hope our counterattack will maintain this form during the point-grabbing battle!"

Hearing this, the Arsenal players nodded.

Mourinho then clapped his hands and said: "Okay, the assistant coaches will take the players out for training."

After a pause, Mourinho said: "Lukaku stays!"

Hearing this, everyone was stunned for a moment, and they subconsciously turned their heads to look at Lukaku,

The latter's expression was also somewhat uneasy.

Before leaving, Lucky patted Lukaku on the shoulder, which comforted the latter a little.

After everyone left the tactical room, Mourinho came directly opposite Lukaku, pulled up a chair, and sat down with his hands on his crotch backwards.

He put the laser pen aside and said in a low tone, "I feel like we need to talk!"

Hearing this, Lukaku pursed his lips slightly.

Mourinho glanced at Lukaku and said: "I know you are very anxious now. Suddenly there is a strong substitute, which makes you feel threatened by your main position!"

"But I can tell you clearly that you and Giroud are the main players in my lineup!"

Hearing this, Lukaku was stunned for a moment and said: "But there is no possibility for us to coexist!"

Mourinho nodded; "I don't want you to coexist. My idea is to have two lineups."

Looking at Mourinho's scissor hands, Lukaku quickly understood.

"In the 2015-2016 season, you have not experienced this season, so you don't know. The reason why Arsenal was eliminated in the Champions League at that time was due to the simplicity of tactics!"

"Everyone knows that Arsenal are a team that plays around Kai, so they can do a better job of limiting that!"

"That season, Barcelona relied on this to eliminate Arsenal!"

After a pause, Mourinho said; "So we need a different tactical system."

Lukaku said: "I can do it too"

Mourinho waved his hand and said: "I know what you want to say, but can you really do it? In other words, I don't want you to play like this, and we still need to fight on two fronts!"

This time, Lukaku was completely silent.

"Can you really afford to fight on two fronts for one season?"

Facing Mourinho's serious tone, Lukaku was a little dissatisfied, but he needed to admit that once he completed the two-front operation for a season.

Even without injury, after playing for a full season, he was almost overwhelmed by fatigue.

At that time, the status will decline greatly.

A healthy and recyclable team configuration is what Mourinho needs.

Seeing that Lukaku's eyes became a little more relieved, Mourinho continued; "Giroud will start in the next few rounds. On the one hand, he needs to practice a new tactical system, and on the other hand, he needs to practice the new tactical system. You take a rest!”

Mourinho pointed to his head; "Observe more off the court and learn how to cooperate with your teammates. Even if you don't need to play the ball, you still need to understand how your teammates play. Giroud has to do more than you in this regard. a little better."

[A book-chasing app recommended to me by an old book friend who I have known for ten years, change the source app! It’s so easy to use. I use it to pass the time while driving or before going to bed by reading and listening to books. You can download it here]

The conversation between the two did not last long.

When Lukaku came out, his expression didn't show much frustration.

But in the following training, Lukaku became more active.

Mourinho's words were meant to appease himself, but they were also warning him.

If the state continues to be this bad, then he will have to sit on the bench.

Soon we entered the training match.

The main force was basically divided with Giroud. After all, they had to practice new tactics.

Throughout the training match, everyone was communicating frequently and expressing their opinions.

Every pass, every run, and every offensive idea will be explained thoroughly so that teammates can understand what they mean.

At the same time, the same is true for Mane and Aubameyang on the two sides.

They now need to form a connection with Giroud. At present, the player who cooperates best with Giroud is Wilshere, followed by Lukay.

Mane and Aubameyang, on the contrary, are somewhat unable to play effectively.

For this reason, the three of them also gathered together for a detailed discussion during the break.

While discussing and summarizing, they tried.

The tacit understanding is also gradually rising.

Soon, the day's training was over.

In the evening, Arsenal's players did not leave, but gathered in the tactical room again, waiting for the Champions League grouping.

Tonight, the final result of the Champions League grouping will appear.

Which group Arsenal will be assigned to is a very important thing for them.

Coaches and players gathered together.

Everyone's eyes were focused on the TV.

After a series of appearances of football legends and the introduction of the host.

These football legends began to draw lots.

First, the draw for the first echelon.

Arsenal appeared in Group H, which is the last group.

When the second tier was drawn, a strong enemy came into Group H.

Paris Saint-Germain from Ligue 1.

The joining of Paris made Arsenal players feel heavy-hearted.

This season, Paris Saint-Germain has strengthened again on the original basis.

Not only did they sign the last Samba Dancer Neymar at a high price, but they also recruited the talented player Mbappe from Monaco.

The arrival of Neymar and Mbappe will definitely make the combat effectiveness of this Paris team even better.

But this is not over yet. When the third tier was drawn, Dortmund appeared in the group again.

Now, everyone was stunned.

Just looking at the first three hands, this group is already a definite death group.

Arsenal!

Paris Saint-Germain!

Dortmund?

The three teams are strong teams in their respective leagues, and Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain are both expected to hit the championship.

With this grouping, the pressure is directly full.

Group H has directly become the death group.

It can be said that any fourth-tier team joining in is just to go through the motions and feel the atmosphere.

And APOEL became the unlucky one.

In the end, the members of Group H are Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain, Dortmund and APOEL.

And Arsenal will face Paris Saint-Germain in the first round.

It can be said that the strength of the Champions League group stage is directly pulled to the maximum.

After the draw, many people also had a heated discussion about the qualifying situation of Group H.

Whether it is Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain or Dortmund, they all have the strength to qualify.

At present, it is completely unclear what kind of situation will be formed.

Arsenal is very strong!

Paris Saint-Germain is also very strong on paper.

Dortmund has also played exciting games frequently in the Champions League.

Except for APOEL, which is sure to be a spectator, the strength of the other three teams is comparable.

There is no sign of any qualifying situation at all.

This also makes the qualifying situation of Group H completely unpredictable. Only after the group stage, whoever performs better will have a better chance of qualifying.