Some say football is a game of time and space.
But time is fixed. It's constant. So, space becomes the key.
Michels, the creator of Total Football, introduced the theory of spatial control in football.
Expand the space when attacking. Compress it when defending.
These two simple lines insightfully summarize the essence of football tactics.
Cruyff once said: Space is like everything in football and in life. You need to look for it. You need to think about it. You need to move. You need to find it. You need to help others find it. And in the end, it's very simple.
Later, based on this, Sacchi proposed four reference points for every player's movement: the ball, space, opponents, and teammates.
That's what shadow training is for.
"Pressing is not about running or working hard. It's about controlling space."
And clearly, to control space, you need to run more.
With that in mind, it's not hard to arrive at an interesting conclusion.
Match time is fixed, so space becomes the decisive variable in football games.
Among all the spatial factors, the pitch size is fixed, and the number of players is fixed. So, what becomes the main factor affecting space?
The answer is simple: players.
There are only a few ways players can create space, use physical strength to overpower opponents, use technique to break free from them, or use stamina and movement to create open areas.
Sometimes, Gao Shen would wonder: is it possible to integrate all of that into a single player?
What people often call a "complete player"—a regular hexagonal warrior.
It might sound like fantasy, but such players already exist. There are even efforts to train them this way.
Take Pogba, for example.
Or several other young midfielders who were emerging in European football before Gao Shen's reincarnation.
They're tall, physically strong, technically gifted, and great runners…
So, what kind of chemistry could result if you gathered a team of these players?
Among them, Pogba probably had the highest ceiling. But unfortunately, his career planning was a mess. Moving from Manchester United to Juventus was the right step, but going back to Manchester United was a huge mistake.
It was a real shame.
…
Clearly, all teams, whether in Europe or elsewhere, are trying to create space when attacking and compress it when defending.
Tactics are a way to guide players to do this in a repeatable, structured way.
The higher the level of competition, the harder it becomes to create or compress space, because the individual quality of players is higher.
In this context, three types of players become particularly important.
Physically dominant players. Technical geniuses. And tireless engines.
As the saying goes:
Seventy percent of the Earth is covered by water. The remaining thirty percent is covered by Kante.
Players like Iniesta, Modric, and David Silva excel because they use superb technique to escape pressure and drive forward. That's space creation.
Xavi, Toni Kroos, De Bruyne and others reached the highest level by being able to identify space and exploit it with their passing.
Neuer's role at Manchester City caused a huge stir in European football because his control of the space behind the defensive line was exceptional, greatly increasing the defense's margin for error.
Now, Manchester City have four central defenders. That's a long-term strategy.
Gao Shen believes that for the next five to ten years, everyone at City will be thankful for this decision.
Because for quite some time to come, elite central defenders will be extremely scarce.
Before Gao Shen's reincarnation, people loved to say that the quality of central defenders had declined. That they had lost their way.
Whether they had "lost their way" is a question that requires a broader historical perspective. But the decline in individual defending is understandable.
Because defenders now spend more time running and closing down space rather than trying to win the ball directly.
That's why Gao Shen told Jerome Boateng: if you can control the ball, don't kick it away. There's no need.
Because if you give the ball away, you lose space.
On the other hand, if you asked Ferguson what separates Ronaldo from Valencia…
He would likely talk at length about the difference in spatial awareness. That's the real secret behind Ronaldo scoring so many goals.
Random shooting?
That's a skill too.
After all, how many players don't even get into shooting positions?
…
After a long and in-depth discussion with Gao Shen, Sacchi realized that Gao Shen's thinking was more advanced than he had imagined.
Since his time at Napoli, Gao Shen had already been leading the tactical trends in European football. That was universally acknowledged. But now, he was still moving forward.
Taking what Gao Shen said about space, it's easy to see that Manchester City's formation has become far more flexible recently.
When attacking, the team spreads wide and uses the full width of the pitch, flattening out completely. When defending, the team tightens up quickly, gaining local superiority as fast as possible.
That's all at the tactical or formation level. But Sacchi also noticed another clear shift in Gao Shen's approach at Manchester City.
Or rather, ideas he had in Naples that he began applying directly at City.
For instance: inverted wingers.
Robben, widely recognized as one of the world's best left wingers, was immediately deployed on the right upon arrival.
It was clear this wasn't a coincidence.
"This wasn't accidental, right?" Sacchi asked with a smile.
Gao Shen was far too meticulous to do something without reason.
"And I noticed, when you use Gareth Bale on the left, and Sturridge too, neither of them are weak-footed. But most of the time, they're cutting in toward goal rather than playing as traditional wingers."
What do traditional wingers do?
Go to the byline and cross?
No, that's too inefficient.
In recent years, many people have praised Herbert Chapman, the legendary former Arsenal manager.
He believed the most dangerous crosses were cutbacks from the byline—what we now call inverted triangle passes.
Those passes put goalkeepers in a dilemma, whether to come out or stay back.
Gao Shen fully acknowledged the danger of inverted triangle passes. But he also believed that high-speed in-swinging balls from inverted wingers were just as deadly.
Like Robben, who had been practicing high-speed in-swinging crosses tirelessly in training.
The perfect example was the ball he sent to Gareth Bale in the first half against Manchester United. It was a fast in-swinger. One big advantage of these balls is that they can either be shots to the far corner or dangerous passes. Often, the attacking player just needs a simple touch for a goal. The threat is just as high as an inverted triangle pass.
"Another obvious advantage of inverted wingers is that our full-backs are mostly right-footed. Inverted wingers attack the opponent's weaker foot, giving us the upper hand."
"The most important thing is, we all know the winger and the full-back can't be too close together. If they are, there's no room for sprints on the flank. But inverted wingers move diagonally and centrally, giving up the vertical flank. That also draws defenders away."
"Then the full-back's sprinting overlap becomes a very important offensive weapon. The most famous examples are Messi and Alves, but also Sanchez and Vargas."
Barcelona now had two such attacking lanes, both of which were deadly.
At Real Madrid, Pellegrini was also trying to pair Cristiano Ronaldo with Marcelo on the left flank. That was following the same concept, though still in its early stages.
Whether Mourinho would continue this direction after taking over was still unclear.
After all, Mourinho places more emphasis on defense.
Manchester City were also building such an attacking system. Last season, Robben and Zabaleta weren't quite as explosive as Messi and Alves, but they were enough to dominate the Premier League. This season, Gao Shen was shifting his focus to the left side.
As for the center forward, he was a key connector between the flanks and midfield.
In Gao Shen's system, the striker was never just a finisher.
…
Sacchi had to admit, he could no longer keep up with Gao Shen.
But thinking about it, that was only natural. Gao Shen had always coached on the front lines.
The pressure in professional football is enormous. A tactic that works one week might fail the next and needs to be changed immediately.
What worked last season might be obsolete this season. You have to adapt.
If you don't change, you're finished.
That forces constant growth and evolution.
This applies to both players and coaches.
Just like former Chelsea manager Scolari—he was an excellent coach, but lacked front-line experience in European leagues. That's why he struggled at Chelsea.
The biggest difference between club and international football is the rhythm. National teams play infrequently or in short tournament bursts, riding form waves. Club football, however, is week in, week out, live broadcasts every match, stretched across ten months.
That's the real grind.
Successful club managers usually adapt well to national teams. But national team coaches often struggle when moving into club football.
Even someone as strong as Sacchi could analyze from the sidelines, but putting it into practice was another story. That's why his stint as Real Madrid's technical director was average at best.
Times have changed.
As the saying goes: "Every generation has its talents, and each rules the stage for a hundred years."
Gao Shen believed that he too would eventually be replaced. Maybe he'd get tired, or satisfied, and stop pushing forward.
But before that happened, he would shine even brighter.
He wanted fans around the world to remember his name.
Profound (Gao Shen)!
(To be continued.)
Bonus chapter because I saw something good. (IMG)