Chapter 247 This season, Inter Milan is incredibly strong!
Inter Milan attached great importance to this trial. In addition to arranging basic assessments, they also arranged actual combat. Even the main players who were preparing for the league were brought over to play with these people.
Wang Dalei performed well in the actual game, saving shots from Zanetti and Figo, and won applause from many players and coaches.
Although Inter Milan is not short of goalkeepers, Cesar is in very stable condition and veteran Toldo is also capable of fighting.
But Inter Milan still expressed their intention to sign him, but the goalkeeper coach in charge of evaluating him also admitted that Wang Dalei's basic skills are indeed not good enough. If he wants to gain a foothold in European football, some of his saving habits and hand shapes must be corrected.
Fortunately, the goalkeeper position has a relatively loose age requirement for players. Goalkeepers in their thirties can be found everywhere in the football world. Even some who are over thirty-seven or thirty-eight years old have established themselves in top clubs, such as Van der Sar of Manchester United.
So there is still a lot of time left for Wang Dalei.
But Inter Milan's evaluation of other players is not as high.
Deng Zhuoxiang, Zhang Wenzhao and others simply do not have the strength to meet Inter Milan's requirements, so it is basically difficult for them to stay.
However, if they are willing to lower their standards and play in lower-level European leagues, they may still have a chance.
As for the oldest one, Wang Yongpo, his problem is also the most complicated.
When they first saw him play, even Inter Milan's coaching staff were dazzled and felt like they had discovered a rough diamond.
The opponent has good footwork and football IQ, is very creative when attacking, and can deliver a good pass.
But his attitude towards the game was a bit casual, he played slowly, he was not running actively, and his physical confrontation ability was not good.
This made the coaches who thought he was good at the beginning disappointed in him:
"This guy definitely has talent, but his attitude is not positive enough, he doesn't run enough, he doesn't like confrontation, and he is rarely seen participating in defense."
As soon as these comments came out, everyone immediately thought of the classic attacking midfielder.
But compared with the classic attacking midfielder, Wang Yongpo has weaker organizational skills and no technical advantages, but he has many shortcomings.
Even a classic attacking midfielder as strong as Riquelme finds it difficult to survive in today's football world, let alone Wang Yongpo?
"If he is unwilling to correct his attitude and change the way he plays, his future growth ceiling may not be very high!"
The two attacking midfielders in Inter Milan are both capable of both offense and defense. Lin Feng is better at offense than defense, while Stankovic is better at defense than offense.
But neither of them plays like a classic attacking midfielder. Both are known for their good stamina, active running and wide coverage.
The confrontation in modern football is becoming more and more intense, and the rhythm of offense and defense transitions is also accelerating.
If we continue to play slowly like before and wait for the opponent to build up their defense before taking on the tough challenge, it will definitely be a thankless task.
Therefore, seizing the opponent's mistakes, speeding up the tempo of the game, and launching an attack when the opponent has no time to get into position to defend becomes the magic weapon to win.
This is also the reason why Mancini prefers Lin Feng so much, because he can really increase Inter Milan's counterattack speed.
Although the final trial results have not yet been announced, Inter Milan’s attitude towards different players can show who has hope of staying and who has no hope.
Wang Dalei, who has the best chance of staying, was very excited. Before him, there had never been a Chinese goalkeeper who successfully went abroad.
A few years ago, Jiang Jin, the national goalkeeper who had represented the Chinese national football team in the World Cup in Japan and South Korea, was once rumored to be studying abroad. He also went to Scotland for a trial, but ultimately failed.
If Wang Dalei can succeed, it will break the gap of Chinese goalkeepers studying abroad.
Compared to Wang Dalei's excitement, Deng Zhuoxiang and Zhang Wenzhao seemed a little depressed.
Zhang Wenzhao encountered tough players on Inter Milan's full-backs in the confrontation, either Zanetti or Grosso.
Although he has performed many one-on-one breakthroughs from the wing in domestic competitions, this tactic doesn't work well against Inter Milan.
Not to mention the main players of the first team, even if he randomly pulled a defender from the youth team, it would be difficult for him to succeed in breaking through.
The opponent is not slower than him and is physically better than him. After the confrontation, his weak physique will be further magnified, and his speed advantage, which he is proud of, will not be reflected.
Deng Zhuoxiang's situation is similar to Zhang Wenzhao's. His technical awareness and other aspects are okay, but his physical confrontation is too poor. His performance in static training is okay, but it is deformed in confrontational matches and his footwork techniques cannot be fully utilized.
This is also a common problem among domestic players, especially young players.
Due to the poor level of the Chinese Super League and the lack of intense competition, they have not developed strong physical confrontation abilities.
However, in today's highly competitive European football environment, it is useless for such players to have good talents, because they simply cannot hold the ball.
If they were to play in the Premier League, it would be even more of a disaster. With the atmosphere of the Premier League that encourages confrontation, they are likely to get injured. Once young players are injured, they may be completely ruined.
Therefore, Inter Milan’s advice to them is to continue to maintain technical training while also strengthening physical confrontation training.
If you can't strengthen your body, it will be basically difficult to gain a foothold in European football.
……
Lin Feng had been waiting for the tryout results of several people. After learning that Deng Zhuoxiang and others were unable to stay, although he was not surprised, he still felt sorry for them.
"It's no big deal. We can just consider this trip as an opportunity to broaden our horizons. Someone will reimburse us anyway, and we didn't spend any of our own money!"
Deng Zhuoxiang was quite open-minded. He had not had high hopes for this tryout. After all, he knew his own strengths and weaknesses.
"It's good that you think this way. When you go back, practice and play well. You are still young. Once you become famous in your country, you can still play abroad!"
"Ok!"
Several people nodded heavily upon hearing this, and hope rekindled in their eyes.
Isn’t this how predecessors such as Zheng Zhi, Shao Jiayi, and Sun Jihai came to power?
If they can do it, so can we!
Before the new season started, before they set off to return home, Lin Feng took the time to take them to Milan for a tour and treated them to a meal.
Among the young players, some are fascinated by the bright lights and nightlife of Milan, while others are completely focused on the court.
"Brother Lin, while our tryouts are still going on, can I ask you for a favor?"
On September 5th, Deng Zhuoxiang hesitated for a long time, but finally found Lin Feng.
Seeing the other party's serious expression, Lin Feng also asked seriously:
"what's up?"
"That's right, can I learn your free kick from you?"
Want to learn free kicks from me?
Lin Feng was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously thought of the game in which Deng Zhuoxiang defeated the French team with a free kick. Thinking of this, he nodded happily:
"Okay!"
Free kicks require talent, but diligence is more important.
Lin Feng taught the other party all the skills without reservation, and the rest depended on his own hard training.
……
A few days passed in a flash, and it was time for the opening game of the new Serie A season.
On September 9, the opening match of Serie A was held at the Olympic Stadium in Rome.
Last season's Serie A runner-up Roma, at home, defeated Verona 3:0.
In the first half, Inter Milan's former player Adriano helped the team score the first goal, and De Rossi scored with a long shot. In the second half, Totti missed a penalty, and Adriano scored twice, locking the score at 3:0.
In this game, Roma took the initiative throughout the game. Their solid defense and sharp offense left a very deep impression on the outside world.
Although Roma lost to Inter Milan again in the Super Cup a dozen days ago, it seems that their form has not been affected too much.
At the press conference after the game, when facing reporters' questions, Roma coach Spalletti publicly stated:
"Champion? Why not? I don't think the Serie A championship is anyone's private property. Everyone has the opportunity to compete, including Roma!"
Although they did not directly declare war on the defending champions Inter Milan, their ambition to win the championship was already obvious.
Roma's outstanding performance has brought some pressure to Inter Milan.
Moreover, compared with Roma's opponents, Inter Milan's opponents are undoubtedly much more difficult.
Inter Milan's opponent in the first round is Fiorentina. Although Fiorentina is no longer as strong as it used to be, they still have the ability to play the role of spoiler in the league with Toni, the Serie A Golden Boot winner.
Facing the defending champion, Fiorentina did not give up, but chose to fight to the death.
But unfortunately, the Viola's attack hit a wall.
In this game, Mancini directly used a 4312 formation. Stankovic, Cambiasso and Vieira all appeared on the field together, cooperating with Lin Feng in the frontcourt. Inter Milan relied on the strong strangling ability of the midfield to defeat Fiorentina's midfield.
Although Toni was very active on the front line, it was useless because his teammates could not get past Inter Milan's midfield and could not pass the ball to his feet.
In the 12th minute of the first half, Crespo scored the first goal with an assist from Figo.
In the 20th minute, Lin Feng made a long shot to help the team score another goal.
This was not the end. In the 33rd minute, Materazzi took advantage of a corner kick and won the first point in the penalty area. He headed the ball into the goal, extending the score to 3:0.
Roma had just won 3:0, and Inter Milan responded with a - score.
The battle for the championship between the two teams began from the first round.
However, the Italian football world's evaluation and reaction to these two games are completely different.
When reporting on the results of Roma's game, the media praised Roma's performance, believing that under the leadership of Spalletti, Roma will finally usher in a revival.
When reporting on Inter Milan's game, not only did he not praise Inter Milan's performance, but he also pointed out some minor flaws.
In the new season, under the instructions of owner Moratti, Inter Milan printed the Italian tricolor flag in the center of the new jersey, which aroused doubts and even criticism from the outside world.
"Inter Milan is a club. Why do they print the national flag on their chests? Do they think they can represent Italian football?"
"Moratti should be ashamed of his behavior. It's just a league title. What's there to brag about?"
"Haha, you look like a nouveau riche. I support Roma to win the championship in the new season!"
Facing external doubts and criticisms, Moratti did not back down and responded publicly:
"We are not the ones who should be blushing. When someone cheats, of course we should give the championship to those who are honest and innocent. Although we only won one championship, it was a clean championship without any tricks or shady dealings. Why can't we show off?"
Although no names were mentioned, it hurt the fans of Juventus and AC Milan a lot.
However, the fans of these two clubs happened to be the ones who had criticized Inter Milan the loudest before.
Putting these things aside, after the first round of the league, the entire Serie A was filled with a mood of worry and even pessimism.
It’s not that Inter Milan is not strong, on the contrary, Inter Milan is too strong this season.
In the first round of the league, Inter Milan had an overwhelming momentum, and was a level higher than Fiorentina in terms of technology, physical strength, and tactical application.
Especially in the first half when both sides tried their best to fight fiercely, Fiorentina was almost unable to form any formation due to the impact of Inter Milan's attack.
Although the three-defensive-midfielder formation deployed by Mancini is easily reminiscent of the formation Capello used in Juventus, even Vieira has not changed.
But being able to use your cards flexibly, absorb knowledge from your opponent, and put it to good use is an ability in itself.
This game shows that with San Xionggui in charge of the defensive midfielder position, Lin Feng in the attacking midfielder position was greatly liberated.
Of Inter Milan's three goals, two were directly related to him, and even the ball that Figo assisted Crespo was passed by him.
In addition, under his instigation and organization, Inter Milan threatened Fiorentina's goal many times, making the opponent's defense line breathless.
So don’t worry about whether Mancini stole some skills, just ask whether the effect is good, right?
Although the outside world has different opinions on Mancini's coaching ability, some people think he is a fake, while others think he is a genius.
But many people have noticed a trend, that is, Mancini's power has been further expanded this season.
Several unstable factors in Inter Milan gradually disappeared. Veron, who was unwilling to be a substitute, left, and Ade, who was at odds with him, also left.
This season, Mancini's voice and control over the team have been significantly improved. This subtle change shows that Inter Milan's power is concentrated on the coach.
Although it is not yet at the level of Premier League Football Manager, it is at least much better than in previous seasons.
It is precisely because there are fewer constraints that Mancini can make bold reforms to the team's current formation and playing style.
If Mancini's coaching style was to play beautiful football in the past, now he is changing from gorgeous football to practical football.
But the more this happens, the more worried the Italian football world becomes.
Before the start of the season, everyone was worried that Inter Milan would dominate the new season. But now, oh no, it’s exactly as everyone guessed, or even worse.
Given Inter Milan's current form, which Serie A team can be their opponent?
Serie A is likely to become the second Bundesliga!
(End of this chapter)
