In the locker room, Huang Hao did not reprimand any of the players. After all, the powerful strength Manchester United displayed today was something Cambridge United was far from being able to match.
He only encouraged the players not to dwell on the conceded goals, which were already a fact.
For the rest of the time, they should cherish the opportunity to play against a strong team, accumulate valuable experience, and most importantly, try their best to avoid a massacre.
After all, Huang Hao did not want to relive the dark moment when he first took over the team and conceded 7 goals.
The large deficit also allowed Cambridge United's players to shed the burden on their shoulders in the second half. When facing Manchester United players, they were able to perform some technical moves more boldly.
In the 58th minute, Tadić received a pass from Golonas on the right side of the front field. Using his speed, he successfully broke free from Evra's defense and sprinted towards Manchester United's byline area!
Just as Evra caught up again, Tadić directly kicked the ball, sending it towards the far post!
Mahrez rushed directly from the penalty area, leaped high in front of Neville, and headed the ball towards the goal!
The ball flew directly towards the near post!
Foster was almost entirely inside the goal and directly swatted the ball out with his hand!
The moment the ball rebounded to Mahrez's feet, Vidic decisively slid in!
Before Mahrez could take a follow-up shot, he was directly knocked to the ground by Vidic!
"Darren, did that ball not go in?"
Huang Hao did not have eagle eyes, but from his position, the ball seemed to have already crossed the goal line.
And Mahrez, who had gotten up, also rushed towards the referee to protest!
But Atkinson shook his head, showing no indication!
Huang Hao shook his head. This goal was not enough to affect the outcome of the match. If he were to aggressively pressure the fourth official, he would only make himself look more like a clown.
In the 65th minute of the second half, Owen, who had been warming up on the sidelines for over 10 minutes, finally took to the field. Also substituted was 20-year-old Obertan. Ferguson clearly wanted this young player to display his talents freely without pressure.
Although somewhat dissatisfied with being sent on at this time, Owen was exceptionally active from the moment he stepped onto the field.
In the 71st minute, Carrick successfully tackled the ball from Tadić near his own byline. He followed up with a super long-distance pass that directly found Scholes in the front field!
Seeing that Owen and Obertan were both well-positioned in the middle, Scholes directly lobbed the ball towards the center!
Sun Jihai, seeing that he clearly could not stop Owen after he received the ball, became anxious. The moment Owen broke past him, he directly reached out and grabbed Owen's jersey!
Owen, who was about to accelerate, was forcefully pulled down by Sun Jihai!
Atkinson naturally blew his whistle to stop the play, then ran directly towards Sun Jihai!
Sun Jihai, who already had a yellow card, nervously watched Atkinson run towards him, his face ashen.
Indeed, the scene he least wanted to see appeared. Atkinson ran to him and decisively pulled out a yellow card, two yellows making a red! Sun Jihai was sent off!
Huang Hao hammered the seat beside him with his hand. Clearly, Cambridge United had lost this match too thoroughly!
Cambridge United, already stretched thin in defense, faced doubled pressure with one player less.
Fortunately, after an intense warm-up match, Oblak was now more than fully prepared! Oblak made high and low saves, repeatedly denying shots from numerous attackers like Owen and Berbatov!
At this moment, Oblak was as if Pantilimon had possessed him!
In the 94th minute, Lovren once again headed Evra's cross out of the penalty area.
Owen, who was roaming at the edge of the penalty area, was perfectly positioned!
Owen lifted his leg to control the ball steadily, then dribbled horizontally along the penalty area, followed by a flying kick, directly shooting the ball towards the bottom left corner of the goal! Oblak landed quickly with astonishing speed, then dived vertically, once again blocking Owen's shot out for a corner!
Manchester United earned their eighteenth corner kick of the match.
At this moment, the Cambridge United players finally heard Atkinson's two short and one long whistle, and the match ended!
Huang Hao did not lose his composure due to the defeat. He still walked towards Ferguson and extended his right hand.
Ferguson said nothing, just smiled slightly and firmly shook Huang Hao's hand. Huang Hao was genuinely convinced by this loss.
After the match began, when he noticed that attacking players like Rooney and Scholes were able to track back to their own half and press fiercely, he already knew that today's Manchester United was a height Cambridge United could not currently reach!
In terms of defense, Huang Hao's gap from Ferguson could probably be measured in light-years!
And this crushing defeat also made Huang Hao even more eager for improvement! Perhaps in addition to the training from the matches themselves, he should also find a good mentor to improve himself!
Despite having only 3 days to prepare for the League Cup second-round knockout match, and the team having lost by a large margin to Manchester United, Huang Hao generously gave the players a day off this time.
As for Huang Hao himself, he once again appeared in the tactical analysis room. Ferguson had given him a vivid tactical lesson, and Huang Hao had to internalize the experience gained from the defeat as quickly as possible.
The reason Huang Hao had always insisted on Cambridge United adopting the traditional 3-5-2 parallel formation was mainly because the 3-5-2 was popular in later generations, and also because Cambridge United's individual players were strong, and Huang Hao preferred attacking football, which allowed them to smoothly reach the Premier League.
Especially in teams below the EFL Championship, most players' individual abilities were not outstanding. Coupled with Cambridge United's high-intensity pressing tactics, many teams fell at the feet of this League dark horse.
But after arriving in the Premier League, Huang Hao increasingly felt that this approach was not working.
Players who can establish themselves in the Premier League are generally regulars in their respective national teams, and their abilities are incomparable to those in lower-level Leagues.
Furthermore, this League gathers many talented Head Coaches. Once Cambridge United unveiled its mysterious veil, the Head Coaches of various teams could quickly figure out Cambridge United's tactical routines, causing Cambridge United's proud fast-break tactics to lose their original magic.
The 3-5-2 essentially only involves one player in midfield organization and distribution, while Ferguson's 4-4-2 actually has more players directly engaging in the central midfield.
In addition, with Ferguson's high-intensity pressing instruction issued yesterday, Ayu and Golonas were repeatedly double-teamed by Manchester United's defensive players, which drastically increased the pressure on midfield ball distribution.
Moreover, when possession was lost, Cambridge United's two lines of four-player zonal defense, while ensuring interception coverage in the backfield, simultaneously lost defensive layering. Many players in the Manchester United squad were masters of creating threatening passes, and almost every attack broke through Cambridge United's defense with just three passes and two assists.
How Cambridge United could survive in the Premier League, there were only two solutions: buying players or changing formation.
The team's current rate of profit growth was such that Ouyang Bing, who didn't know much about the Premier League, would rush into Huang Hao's office with financial reports, wide-eyed, almost every week for the first few weeks after the season began.
It wasn't until more than a month later, after Ouyang Bing fully understood the Premier League's profit model, that she gradually reverted to her usual cool demeanor.
Although Cambridge United had only played six Premier League matches this season, the broadcast revenue share they had received already amounted to £3 million!
This meant that the loan for building the new stadium could be cleared at any time if Huang Hao wished. But facing the low-interest special loan provided by the government, there was clearly no need to rush to deal with it.
Although Cambridge United's players received significant salary increases this season, compared to the daily influx of money, it was like a drop in the ocean. After all, Cambridge United's highest player salary currently was only £20,000 per week, which is completely insignificant compared to Premier League players who often earn £60,000 or even £100,000 per week.
As a result, Huang Hao will have at least an 8-digit sum in disposable funds for the winter transfer window, and then Huang Hao might finally get to experience the joy of a shopping spree.
In contrast, changing the formation would bring greater risks.
Cambridge United's current tactical style has been in place for four years. If they were to suddenly completely negate their past, their performance would likely be severely impacted in the short term. After all, personnel were acquired according to the 3-5-2 model, and a change in formation would mean a lack of suitable personnel for certain positions.
Moreover, while the 3-5-2 is ordinary, it also possesses extreme balance. Any formation and tactic will inevitably have drawbacks; otherwise, football would have long lost its unique charm.
Barnet, at present, might not require a major overhaul, but minor adjustments are inevitable. Otherwise, Barnet could easily fall into the relegation quagmire before the winter break.
From previous tactical analyses, Cambridge United's next opponent, West Ham United, is also a team that likes to use the 4-4-2 formation. And this gave Huang Hao a very good opportunity to try a change.
The next day, when the entire team finished their holiday and gathered for training, Huang Hao waved his hand and directly pulled everyone into the tactical analysis room. The already small office instantly became packed.
Huang Hao had the staff meticulously edit the match footage of Cambridge United against Manchester United, including Manchester United's passing routes, Cambridge United players' running routes, and so on, all annotated in the video.
For a full 2 hours, Huang Hao analyzed every offensive and defensive play in detail. Darren watched the eloquent Huang Hao and even felt a sense of impending unemployment.
"So, do you have any good suggestions for the upcoming match?"
This time, no player had the courage to step forward and answer Huang Hao's question.
After all, during the two-plus hours of tactical analysis, the players had witnessed the Head Coach's most professional side, and now was clearly not a good time to show off their limited skills.
"Alright, it seems I'll have to answer my own question."
Huang Hao spread his hands, clearly prepared for this.
"I hope you will remember what I am about to say. Of course, it doesn't matter if you don't. In future training sessions, Darren will repeat these words countless times."
Darren, at this moment, quietly pulled out his small notebook, looking like an obedient student.
Huang Hao turned and drew the classic 14-zone theory on the tactics board. Then he placed the buttons representing the 11 players one by one on the whiteboard.
"From today onwards, we will abandon high-pressing."
Huang Hao's first sentence caused a commotion among the players.
As one of Cambridge United's signature tactics executed for four years, high-pressing had frustrated countless opponents. Now, Huang Hao was decisively abandoning this core tactic.
"Yes, I understand your surprise, but think about it carefully, has it still been effective since we entered the Premier League?"
"Our opponents are getting stronger, and situations where they panic under high-pressing are becoming rarer, while your success rate in pressing has declined very significantly."
"The so-called abandonment of high-pressing is more about abandoning blind pressing. When you believe you have an 80% chance of success, I will definitely kick your ass hard from behind and make you charge forward!"
"Blind pressing will only make you 30-minute men, and I now demand that you become 45-minute men again."
Seeing Huang Hao's actions, the players all felt a tightening sensation.
"Especially the forwards, at all times, you are the team's first line of defense. Abandoning high-pressing does not apply to you."
Lewandowski scratched his head in frustration upon hearing Huang Hao's addition. It seemed he still needed more time to adapt to Cambridge United's workhorse-style forward.
And when Huang Hao drew the forward line's defensive retreat position in the midfield, the expression on Lewandowski's face became even more pained.
Next, Huang Hao turned his attention to the wide midfielders.
"Next are the two wings, Tadić, Mahrez, Kante, Ayu, Golonas, I require you to be inseparable in training. Except for sleeping and going to the bathroom, firmly remember your CP combinations."
"Whether in attack or defense, remember that you are a two-person unit. Pay attention to covering and cooperation, and you must keep our opponents away from Zone 14!"
Thus, for the entire morning, when the Cambridge United players walked out of the tactical analysis room, they felt their butts were numb, and at the same time, their minds were filled with a massive amount of information by Huang Hao.
Huang Hao did not expect the players to fully digest the tactical theories he proposed. Rather, he aimed to plant a seed in their minds, and then, together with Darren, conduct targeted tactical training to strengthen them one by one.
Although not every player intends to become a coach after retirement, Huang Hao has always believed it is very necessary for players to truly understand the Head Coach's tactical intentions rather than simply obeying.
As for whether Huang Hao's changes would be effective, it would become clear a day later, in the second round of the League Cup knockout stage.
After all, West Ham is no pushover.
