Chapter 154: Silver Fox’s Decision

"Although we have to attack in the second half, I want to remind you to pay attention to the counterattack of England."

Lippi has been able to guess what tactics Done will use because the situation is too obvious. After a goal lead, Done can wait for the Italian team to attack in the backcourt, while he will play a defensive counterattack. This is not a surprising tactical arrangement for Lippi who has studied him. If his team leads with one goal, he will make the same choice as Done.

So in the second half, Italy's focus was not only on offense, but also on guard against England's rapid counterattack.

"People who lose the ball counter-attack on the spot, and people from other positions quickly retreat and defend. If necessary, they make fouls in the frontcourt. In short, try every means to prevent them from attacking the fast attack."

During the entire halftime break, Lippi only gave tactical explanations, not saying anything like "hold for another forty-five minutes and get the championship." He is almost seventy years old and knows that such words have no effect on Italian players. Italian football is comparing tactics, not psychology.

Tony Don was still talking to the players, but James Vaughn didn't listen to a word. He felt that he wouldn't get any chance to play today. He didn't even think about why this happened. Now he feels like a spectator, like Mitcher. But Mitcher was suspended for a cumulative yellow card, which was the reason why manpower was irresistible. And what about himself? He was inexplicably pressed on the bench by the head coach, and there was no explanation...

This is really atrocity!

Des Walker touched Donn and pointed at him, letting him pay attention to Vaughn's condition.

Tang En then saw Vaughn, who was somewhat depressed.

This is not the effect he wants...

Tang En looked down at his watch. The time was almost over, so he waved to the players: "Go out, guys. The last forty-five minutes. Don't let yourself regret it."

When Vaughn heard this, he smiled bitterly in his heart. Maybe they wouldn't have any regrets, what about themselves?

"Vaughan, stay here." Tang En suddenly called his name.

Vaughan was stunned for a moment, and his feet stopped. The teammates turned their eyes to him and Tang En, but they said nothing, and didn't even whisper. They just took a look and turned around and left.

In their hearts, the boss should indeed give Vaughan an explanation. It would be too cruel to just press him in excellent condition on the bench and explain everything.

The two stayed in the locker room, quietly waiting for the fewer and fewer people around them to walk. Vaughan looked at Tang En, but Tang En turned his eyes outside the locker room door.

After the person finished leaving, Tang En took his eyes back and looked at Vaughan.

Tang En was trying hard to find traces of anger in Vaughan's eyes. What disappointed him a little bit was that his depression seemed to prevail.

Vaughn also thought the leader would explain to him this time why he didn't let him start, but he didn't expect that Tang En just spoke up -

"Don't take off the T-shirt in the jersey in a hurry."

After saying this, Tang En made a gesture and signaled Vaughn to go out first.

Vaughan walked out of the locker room in confusion until he entered the stadium through the player passage. He was awakened by the huge noise at the scene and understood something - would he have a chance to play in the second half?

But he understood this, but he didn't know what kind of mood he should be. Happy or... dissatisfied? Since he wanted to play, why not start. But it was a substitute? But it was a happy thing that he finally saw some hope.

After Vaughn, Done also walked out. He walked back to the coach's seat, and Des Walker was looking at him: "How is the conversation?"

"I just told him not to rush to change his clothes." Tang En shrugged. If this attitude was placed in the eyes of those who sympathized with Vaughan, he would have gritted his teeth with hatred for him.

Walker also smiled helplessly, "Aren't you afraid that he will hate you?"

"That's exactly what I want." Tang En replied seriously.

For the sake of the championship trophy, what is it that a player hates him to death? Are there fewer people in this world who want him to die?

After the second half of the game restarted, Italy significantly strengthened its interception and pressure in the midfield. The English midfielders could feel that they could no longer take the ball calmly for more than ten seconds like in the first half before considering whether to pass or dribble the ball. The Italians' close-fitting press made them feel uncomfortable. If they hesitate a little, the ball under their feet would be cut off.

At this time, the importance of "fast ball output" that Tang En repeatedly emphasized was reflected.

Everyone must observe the situation on the field before receiving the ball, know the position of teammates and the enemy, so that when the football comes, they can immediately know what to do next, instead of watching the route when the ball is received.

In the past two years, Don Eun has been doing this practice in England. No matter what style the players are in their respective clubs, they have to play in this way when they arrive in England. Those who cannot achieve this will be gradually eliminated. No matter how talented they are or how famous they are. Who does not meet Don Eun's requirements and is unwilling to change their own players, Don Eun firmly drove them out. Even if the media complained and spoke harshly, he was not moved.

Until now, there is only such an English national team that listens to him.

The players don't panic when he told him at halftime that he needed a quick pass.

Under Italy's pressing and front pressure, England's midfield became very simple. George Wood and Gerrard were in the middle and were mainly responsible for passing forwards in the offense. The two full-backs were more like wingers in the offense. However, Abang Lajo retreated and connected the forward line and forward line together, with a very flexible position.

When defending, England's midfielders collectively recovered, forming the first line of defense in front of the back line, and trying to resolve the Italian offensive outside the penalty area.

The two teams pressed very fiercely, and fouls were essential. The head coaches of both sides reminded their respective players to commit fouls when necessary. So the second half of the game was frequently interrupted by the referee's whistle. It seemed that no side's attack could start smoothly.

Lippi found it was not easy to find a flaw in the England defense line. The guy Donn was obviously quite satisfied with the true story of Italian reinforced concrete chain defense, although he didn't know who taught him.

When England defended, Rooney had to retreat near the circle. From him, England defended one by one, tied one by one, and closely linked.

Although Parosky was pulled to the side, the middle lane was not emptied. Forty was noticed by Terry throughout the whole process. She rarely got any decent opportunities out of the other party.

Lippi realized that to break such a intensive defense, what he needed to do was not to pin his hopes on a player's flash of inspiration, but to put them on the set ball.

Thinking of this, Lippi paid attention to the time. The second half has already started for seventeen minutes. The score is still 0:1. His team is behind. If he wants to make adjustments, he has to do it early. This is not the time to take care of some people's face.

He glanced at the players sitting on the bench, then pulled over to assistant coach Ferrara: "Go and ask Balotelli to warm up."

Just like Don Eun pressed Vaughn on the bench. It was also a bit surprising that Balotelli did not appear in the Italian starting lineup. After all, Balotelli is a very distinctive attacking player and is not very famous. But Don Eun and Lippi enjoyed completely different treatments, and everyone is questioning Don Eun's decision. Lippi expressed understanding.

It's very simple. Balotelli's decision to transfer to Nottingham Forest was wrong from the beginning. He switched to Nottingham Forest because of his unhappy life in Inter Milan, but as Nottingham Forest gradually declined in recent years, his personal status and fame were greatly affected. Moreover, the head coach of the Italian national team always has traditions. He doesn't care much about the inspection of players who play football abroad.

Originally, Balotelli could still occupy a place in the starting lineup of the national team, but now he has fallen into a substitute. Many Inter Milan fans sighed and sighed that luck was aroused.

Lippi changed Balotelli to play at this time, so he naturally took a fancy to his free kick style.   Because everyone has a lot of fouls, and the Italian team's offense is currently the dominant one, with fouls mostly in England's halftime, and attacking free kicks are mostly.   Ballotelli can always bring new hope to the team's offense.

In addition, he is considered a player in Nottingham Forest.   It should be able to help the team understand Tony Don't think...

Balotelli stood on the sidelines and was waiting to play. Half a minute ago, Lippi had already told him the task. It was very simple, use his skills to create opportunities for breakthroughs. In addition, he was given free kicks and corner kicks in the frontcourt. Be sure to make good use of these set-piece opportunities and find a way to break England's intensive defense.

Don En saw Balotelli standing next to the fourth official and thought about it. He searched for information about the Italian in his memory.

Nottingham Forest has average results in the past two seasons. This black player's position as the main player in the team is becoming more and more stable - after all, it cost 35 million pounds. Which head coach dares to put him on the bench easily? Unfortunately, he has not been able to use his personal abilities to help the team improve his performance. On the contrary, as the team's performance declines, it also has fluctuations.

He himself is not very happy, and he has been making a move this summer and may go to Manchester United to find his mentor Mourinho.

Lippi must have taken the time to come up because Italy has obtained a lot of set pieces...

I have to remind the players on the field to pay a little attention to the location of the foul...

He also got up and walked to the sidelines, calling Wood's name, asking him to bring his latest instructions to the players on the court.

"Please pay attention to the location of the foul!"

In fact, few people had hope for Balotelli, except for Lippi who replaced him on the court.

After all, this season, Balotelli's condition is really unstable. When it's good, he can score a hat trick in a game and turn the tide. When it's bad, the live commentator can suspect that the Forest team did not sign him up for the competition.

And even worse, such bad moments were more when they appeared last season.

But Lippi didn't think so, so before letting Balotelli play, he pulled the opponent to give a very detailed explanation. He told him what issues should be paid attention to, what should be done, and authorized him to take all set pieces. It can be seen that Lippi had high hopes on Balotelli.

It’s a pity that Balotelli failed Lippi’s high hopes for the first time after he took the ball. When he stopped the ball, he directly stopped the football to George Wood on the opposite side.

There was a burst of laughter from England fans in the stands. John and Bill even sang Balotelli's hymns. This was obviously a reminder of the relationship between the two.

"Did Balotelli think he's still wearing a red Nottingham Forest jersey? He actually stopped the ball to George Wood on the opposite side. And it can be seen that Wood was a little surprised by his mistake...ahha!" Motson sarcastically mercilessly, although in the league, he probably cheered for Balotelli's beautiful goal many times.

The Italian commentator covered his face and couldn't bear to witness this embarrassing scene.

There are conspiracy theorists among the Italian fans. They will definitely think that Nottingham Forest inexplicably snatched love and snatched the new golden boy from Italian football from Inter Milan for today. They are determined to depose Balotelli two years ago.

Now, they succeeded!

This idea made many Italians grit their teeth for the English. Think about Nottingham Forest and England's head coach is Tony Donn, that's even more likely! Maybe all of this is planned by Tony Donn! Otherwise, why would I go to Nottingham Forest instead of Manchester United where Mourinho, who knows Balotelli, is located?

It's true that I'm using any means to win...

Because of that mistake, as soon as Balotelli gets the ball, there will be a burst of laughter in the stands, and it is all England fans targeting him.

I really don’t know what Lanzafamei, who was replaced by him, saw this scene on the bench. What’s more interesting is what Lippi thinks now...

Don En laughed on the sidelines. He was a little proud. Balotelli's mistake was a blow to the morale of the Italian team, and it also shook the confidence of Italian teammates in him.

He didn't know why Lippi took the risk of sending Balotelli. Although Balotelli's free kick skills were excellent, it was a bit of a loss. After all, in the previous European Cup at the airport, Balotelli did not play much and his performance was average. In technical statistics, there was no number of numbers that could be shown except for one assist.

Is this the silver fox confused for a moment, or is it really that far-sighted?

"I feel that switching to Balotelli is a foolproof move. If Italy eventually loses the final, this substitution will definitely become the handle for the media to bombard him after the game."

"I think England can take this opportunity to attack and strive for another goal, and the victory is decided by that time. The English can start celebrating their first European Cup championship in history in advance."

"Ballotelli's performance in Nottingham Forest was very average. He had an unhappy relationship with the club's senior management this summer and wanted to transfer. These transfer rumors obviously affected his mood and condition. Lippi really lacked consideration for letting him play..."

"Lanzafame's performance was formal. He made a lot of contributions in defense. He just replaced him and replaced him with a Balotelli who was completely unwilling to let go. What did Lippi think?"

Commentators from all over the world don’t mind taking this opportunity to take advantage of the situation.

"Lippi is really old. He made such a mistake in such an important game... It's really a pity that time is unforgiving. After all, he is a sixty-eight-year-old man..." Someone even shook his head and sighed, as if it was a very regrettable thing.

The protagonist of the land was sitting quietly on the coach's seat, and you couldn't see anything you wanted to see from his Gujing Bubo's face. He did not frown because of Balotelli's mistake. He did not get up anxiously to scold the team. He did not do anything, like a statue.

This old Italian man who looks quite like Paul Newman is really getting more handsome as he gets older. His calm gentleman temperament has naturally been revealed.

His performance has actually added some confidence to the Italian players on the court.

The head coach didn't panic, why are we panic?

People who think so naturally include Balotelli.
Chapter completed!