How do you play against Dortmund?
This has become a huge question for the entire Bundesliga, and even for European football.
Since the rise of the Hornets, they have had an overwhelming advantage over Bayern Munich. Especially last season, when they beat Bayern twice in the league.
Many people say that Dortmund has characteristics similar to Napoli under Gao Shen.
Both teams advocate full-pitch pressing. Their pressing in midfield and the attacking third is fierce, and their playing style is extremely tough.
A style like this often puts the opponent in trouble when it comes to building up play and distributing the ball, especially for teams that are not particularly good at passing and ball control.
But is that all?
No!
Klopp's team is not just about high pressing. All of them have excellent tactical awareness and discipline, which makes the team's technical and tactical quality very high and the overall structure very complete.
It can be said that it is never easy for any team to play against Dortmund.
This is especially true for Real Madrid.
Everyone knows that since 2009, Real Madrid has always relied on quick counterattacks.
From Ronaldo to Kaka to Di Maria, this has been a consistent style.
But this approach becomes much less effective against Dortmund.
Under the strong pressing in midfield and the attacking third, many underestimate Dortmund's overall defensive structure, particularly their back line.
However, Dortmund's style of play is not flawless and has weaknesses.
The first is physical fitness.
There is a saying in European football that Dortmund is a 60-minute team.
What does this mean?
It means that they can be full of energy for the first 60 minutes, but after 60 minutes, as their physical energy declines, their performance drops significantly.
In theory, when dealing with such a team, you should hold out for the first 60 minutes and focus on the last 30.
But theory is just theory. Putting it into practice is much more complicated.
Especially in a high-level match like the Champions League, no one knows what cards the opponent will play or what tricks they will use. All you can do is fight for the best possible result.
The second weakness is defensive positioning.
The benefits of a high defensive line are obvious. When the whole defensive line pushes forward, you can create numerical superiority in certain areas, especially in midfield, effectively limiting the opponent's progress. But the disadvantages are also obvious.
That is, once you lose control in the attacking third and the opponent breaks through with a direct ball, the large gaps left behind become fatal.
This is true for Barcelona, Dortmund, and even for Gao Shen's own teams.
Later, Gao Shen adjusted his system, moving the pressing zone back to the midline, focusing more on control rather than blindly pressing high.
Therefore, theoretically, when playing against Dortmund, the team should use passing and control to avoid Dortmund's pressing in midfield and the attacking third, and then play direct passes behind them to launch attacks.
However, as mentioned before, theory is just theory and very hard to implement in practice.
The simplest reason is that whether you are trying to exhaust Dortmund's energy, avoid their pressing, or look for direct balls behind their line, it requires high-quality passing and control from midfield and defense.
But once there is a mistake in passing or receiving and the ball is intercepted, it can be fatal.
…
After returning from Manchester, Gao Shen made time to strengthen the team's passing and possession training.
This included an evaluation of the defensive players' passing and ball-handling abilities.
Ramos, Pepe, Varane, and Albiol, the four centre-backs, all have good passing ability.
Among them, Albiol can play both as a centre-back and as a defensive midfielder, and his passing ability is clear.
But when it comes to overall ability, Ramos and Pepe are the best, and both have the ability to hit accurate long passes.
If there are no surprises, these two will be the starting central defenders.
On the right, Carvajal is Gao Shen's preferred choice. He has no problem with technique and passing, but the key is his defending.
Dortmund's wingers are very strong in attack and have excellent physical attributes, which puts heavy pressure on Real Madrid's flanks defensively.
Gao Shen knows better than anyone what his Napoli team excelled at back then.
Local pressing and trapping.
What does this mean?
Simply put, it means creating a numerical advantage in a certain area and closing down the opponent with multiple players.
Especially on the wings, the effect is obvious.
The reason is simple. The flanks are the easiest areas to trap opponents.
To resolve this, you need to create a threat on the opposite side to share the pressure.
In other words, both wings must pose a threat.
On the left, Ronaldo and Toni Kroos will be the main attacking force. Originally there was Marcelo as well, but unfortunately, the Brazilian left-back is injured.
Now, Gao Shen is still considering whether to use Marcos Alonso or Nacho.
On the right, Carvajal is stronger offensively. Gao Shen wants to form an attacking triangle on the right with Carvajal, Di Maria, and Modric to share the pressure from the left and give Ronaldo a more relaxed tactical environment.
More importantly, Marcelo's absence has had a huge impact on the left-wing attack, and Gao Shen needs to make adjustments.
The ideal approach is to make up for it with the right wing.
…
After the lunch break, Modric received a notice from the coaching staff, left the players' rest area, and came to the restaurant at Valdebebas.
At this time, Gao Shen was sitting by the window in the restaurant with a cup of coffee in front of him, looking very relaxed.
How could he look like the loser about to be kicked out of the Champions League as described by the media?
He didn't even seem to be taking the upcoming La Liga match in two days seriously.
For some reason, every time he saw him, Modric always felt a certain confidence rise in his heart.
He is a natural authority.
He doesn't need to do anything, or even say anything. Just standing there is enough. Everyone is willing to listen to him, follow him, and work for him.
That is Gao Shen.
"Boss, were you looking for me?" Modric walked in.
Gao Shen smiled and didn't stand up. He lazily pointed to the chair opposite him, motioning him to sit.
"You'd better have a glass of water," Gao Shen said with a smile.
Modric was speechless.
Was now really the right time to drink water?
But Modric couldn't argue. He was a professional.
Since arriving at Real Madrid, Modric has deeply felt Gao Shen's uniqueness. Whether it's in team management or other aspects, Gao Shen is very different from other head coaches.
The biggest change is in the dressing room.
Last season, the internal conflicts in Real Madrid's locker room were well-known throughout the football world, but after Modric arrived, he found there was no tension at all. Everyone focuses on the matches and training.
The pre-season friendlies were played with their usual composure, with a bit of chaos but also uniqueness. When the official matches started, Real Madrid began to build momentum, improving with every game.
Many things that were unclear during pre-season became gradually obvious.
Gao Shen chats with him at least once a week, about everything from football to life, family, habits...
Sometimes, Gao Shen would even ask when his wife was coming back from Croatia.
Strangely, Modric, like other players, was very happy to share these things with Gao Shen.
He is like a magician who can always uncover the secrets in people's hearts.
This time, inviting Modric to the restaurant to drink water also had a reason.
"To be honest, my first impression was that La Liga focused more on skills and less on physicality, but I didn't expect the technical and tactical level here to be so high, and the intensity to be very strong, especially in away games."
"La Liga teams are tactically very sharp and play at a high tempo."
Modric talked about how his impression of La Liga changed after playing for some time.
Gao Shen told him that in recent years, La Liga has been leading the tactical revolution in European football.
From Cooper's Mallorca and Valencia, to Benítez, and then Gao Shen and Guardiola, they all came from La Liga.
Many think that La Liga emphasizes technique, but in fact, many La Liga teams play very aggressively.
Including teams like Athletic Bilbao, Osasuna, Valencia, and others.
Modric also mentioned the difference in La Liga fans. "They are more aggressive towards the opposing players. Sometimes, to be honest, I am afraid they will throw things from the stands."
Gao Shen laughed loudly when he heard this. "I have to thank Figo. Otherwise, I would have been buried alive under those pig heads at Camp Nou!"
Modric couldn't help laughing after hearing this.
In his impression, Gao Shen has always been a humorous person.
Gradually, Gao Shen began to steer the conversation in the direction he wanted.
"I still remember when you were at Tottenham, many people compared you to Pirlo."
Modric nodded. "That is an honor for me, Boss."
"But I think the two of you are not alike at all," Gao Shen said, changing the subject.
Modric was slightly stunned. He always thought he was quite similar to Pirlo. At one point, he even suspected Gao Shen wanted him to play as a deep-lying midfielder, but it turned out not to be the case.
"Pirlo's position is very clear. He is a deep-lying playmaker. But your role is more flexible than his. You can play in many different roles: deep-lying, central, or advanced."
"The deep-lying number four needs to intercept and pass long, the central number eight needs to run and organize all over the pitch, and the number ten needs to pass, shoot from distance, and make late runs."
"You can do all of these."
"More importantly, you have excellent running and coverage, which is very rare. Even someone like Zidane, if you look at it by today's standards, his coverage was actually very small."
Modric understood what the coach meant. He even felt a little flattered that the coach would compare him with Zidane. This was a huge compliment.
But he still did not fully understand why the coach was telling him all this.
Or rather, what exactly did he want to say to him?
(To be continued.)
***
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