However, even though he could not figure it out, Rijkaard also realized that Carlos was in good form today and was not affected by off-field factors.
Rijkaard realized that he had made a mistake in his judgment. So, he walked to the sidelines and gestured for the team to change their offensive strategy: give up the tactic of attacking the middle and try to attack the flanks.
At the same time, Li Ang was sitting in the technical area. He was also very surprised.
Although the team doctor, Lucatli, said that Carlos was physically fit to play, Li Ang thought that it would be good if Carlos could play 60% of his usual strength. Of course, playing 60% of Carlos's strength had already given Li Ang some confidence. This was also the reason why he gave Montari more offensive tasks.
However, Li Ang did not expect Carlos to perform so well. This was not the 60% of Carlos's strength. Even compared to when he was in good condition, he was not inferior.
"How is this a D? This is clearly a G!" Banderas also exclaimed.
"What?" Li Ang asked.
"Nothing." Banderas said vaguely, "I'm just surprised by Carlos's form today."
Li Ang nodded. Maybe he was very excited because he had just become a father? Li Ang guessed.
*****
When Juan Carlos's defensive pressure was reduced, Inter Milan's offense became more active.
Carlos frequently gave the ball to Montari, who would pass the ball to launch the offense. This step was not to be underestimated. All the offense came from here. The importance of a defensive midfielder was shown through this step. If the football was always inexplicably lost at the defensive midfielder's position, then it would be useless no matter how good the striker and flanker the team had. It was not just a problem of not being able to attack. The team's rear defensive line would also frequently face the opponent's counterattacks. Therefore, a defensive midfielder who could snatch the ball was only half as good. A defensive midfielder who could snatch the ball down, control the football and send it to where it should go was truly world-class.
It was clear that Carlos was now a world-class defensive midfielder. It was obviously not possible for him to organize the offense, but to be able to complete the defense and pass the football out, this was the top performance of a defensive defensive midfielder!
In today's match, Li Ang's most creative tactic was to let Montari organize more attacks!
This was something that no one had expected!
Of course, Montari was not a precise organizer. At best, he was a combiner. However, this was already a very important tactical change.
Carlos was in charge of defense.
After Montari got the ball, he sorted it out and then passed the football to Mata or Arshavin. These two players would launch a fatal attack, and at this time, Montari would plug in deeper and participate in the attack!
This was Li Ang's tactical setting for today!
Montari's tactical task today was different from Modric's. Modric was the real organizer. He was the central brain of Inter Milan. Montari was not. At most, he was a 'pseudo-core'!
However, this was the tactic that Li Ang specially set for Montari for this match. It was very targeted.
With Montari's physical condition, he had the upper hand in the confrontation with Barcelona's players. This made the combing work possible.
*****
When Montari got the ball, he would face Barcelona's midfielder, Yayaturay.
Montari, who was focused on attacking, was not afraid of Yayaturay's defense. Although Montari might have the advantage in the physical confrontation, of course, he was not at a disadvantage. The two were evenly matched, which also meant that Montari might lose the ball. However, he was not afraid!
Because he knew that even if he lost the ball, Carlos would be behind him to clean up his mess.
This was also the benefit of a team having a world-class defensive midfielder like Carlos!
At this time, Montari also experienced the carefree feeling that Modric had when he played on the field.
Although Montari was not good at playing with details, he had a large range of activities and a wide field of vision. Montari had a long pass!
Therefore, now, Montari could play his passing, such as using the outside of his instep to rub the football into the space in the side, or directly passing a long pass over the top without stopping the ball to hit behind Barcelona's defensive line.
At this time, if Yayaturay pressed fiercely. He would pass the football to Carlos behind him, then he would run into position to pull away from Yayaturay and create a chance for Carlos to plug in. If Yayaturay was not pulled away by him, Carlos would pass the football back to Montari at this time. Generally, at this time, Mata or Arshavin would have already come over to help. Inter Milan could already form a numerical advantage in offense in a small area!
In short, these two players could both attack and defend, but Montari's offense and defense were not top-notch. Under such circumstances, allowing Montari to participate in the offense without distraction could maximize Montari's offensive ability!
With Modric injured, Li Ang quickly put Montari in an important position and tailor-made this tactic for the team!
This tactic made Barcelona very uncomfortable, especially when they only had Yayaturay, a player with excellent defensive ability in the midfield.
Moreover, Barcelona would find that if they wanted to mark or freeze Carlos or Montari, it would be useless. Because Inter Milan's real offensive threat came from Mata and Arshavin, as well as Diego Milito and Adriano on the frontline. If they focused on Carlos or Montari, the other Inter Milan offensive players would start to have fun.
However, if you did not pay attention to defending against Montari, this Ghanaian still had the ability to pose a threat!
Therefore, Barcelona played very awkwardly!
*****
At the same time, after Rijkaard shifted the offensive focus from the middle to the flanks, he soon found that the actual situation was not as smooth and beautiful as he thought: Barcelona's flanks tactics did not produce an effective effect.
This time, Barcelona had possession of the ball.
After Yayaturay received the ball, he directly passed the football back to Marcos. Then he ran horizontally without the ball and received the football sent over by Marcos.
Then, looking ahead, Yayaturay wanted to continue dribbling the ball, but Harvey raised his hand to ask for the ball.
Yayaturay passed the football out.
Harvey took the ball. He first subconsciously looked at Inter Milan's layers of defense in the middle, especially when he saw Carlos eyeing him covetously. After a feint, Harvey passed the football to the flank.
Henry retreated and received the pass.
The former King of Highbury pulled the ball and turned around. After a series of swings, he suddenly accelerated and shook off Montari.
This made Henry very happy. He liked the feeling of dribbling the ball and running at lightning speed.
However, he soon encountered Zanetti's tough interception!
To be exact, it was an interception like a sticky candy!
Zanetti would not blindly snatch the ball. He just followed Henry and did not let him dribble the ball comfortably. At the same time, he used half of his body to block Henry's path to cut inside.
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