A week later, on December 12, the penultimate league match before the winter break, the 15th round of the league, Sporting de Gijón's home game against Villarreal CF.
Sporting de Gijón's manager, Li Ang, had to continue to be a spectator in the stands for this game.
Villarreal CF was currently ranked 14th in the league, at the bottom of the rankings. Therefore, in the opinion of the media in Sporting de Gijón, this opponent was relatively easy to deal with.
Li Ang did not see it that way. He was clear about Villarreal CF's situation this season. This was a true dark horse. According to the original history, they had successfully reached the top four of the league at the end of this season. In the next season's UEFA Champions League, they had reached the top four, shocking the whole of Europe.
In fact, looking at Villarreal CF's current record, one could see some clues. After 14 rounds of the La Liga, Villarreal CF's record was three wins, six draws, and five losses, accumulating 15 points. They had only lost one more game than Sporting de Gijón, but they had drawn three more games than Sporting de Gijón. Too many draws were the team's biggest problem at the moment.
Li Ang knew that Villarreal CF's manager, Pellegrini, had been adjusting the team. In the second half of the season, Villarreal CF's formation and playing style became more mature and fixed. They began to really show their power, drawing fewer and fewer games, and they continued to win games. In the end, they successfully counterattacked and reached the top four of the league.
It was precisely because he knew how good Villarreal CF, especially their manager, Pellegrini, that Li Ang repeatedly emphasized in the tactical arrangements before the game that they had to be careful of this team.
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In this game, Sporting de Gijón's assistant manager, Scott Terry, continued to stand on the sidelines as the acting manager, but he was actually just doing it for show. Before the game, Li Ang and the coaching staff had arranged all the tactical arrangements and let the team play step by step.
In view of the importance of Villarreal CF, Li Ang's analysis of this game was even more thorough.
For Sporting de Gijón, the good news was that the team's captain, Hierro, had returned from his suspension for accumulating yellow cards. With this veteran in charge, the team's defensive line was finally somewhat presentable.
In the face of Pellegrini's Villarreal CF, Sporting de Gijón finally lost on their home ground. The score was two to three, and both sides scored a total of five goals. The game could be said to be very exciting. When Ribéry was suspended and Mata was injured, Modric, Dinatale, and Diego Milito formed a new trident. This was the B tactic that Li Ang had temporarily created for the team. In fact, in this game, his backup tactic and lineup played quite well. Dinatale had two assists, and Modric and Milito had each scored. Unfortunately, they lost to two people. One was Villarreal CF's midfield core, Riquelme. Riquelme started out at Boca Juniors and entered the European football scene in 2002, joining the La Liga powerhouse, Barcelona. However, his Barça career was not successful, and Riquelme went on to join Villarreal CF. In the yellow submarine, Riquelme became the absolute core of the team and was a great success there.
Riquelme was one of the best attacking midfielders in Argentina. His style of play was the classic style of attacking midfielders. Therefore, he was also known as the last classic master in today's football world. The Argentine legend, Valdano, once described Riquelme as such. "The average person would usually choose a two-hour highway to get from here to there, but Riquelme would choose a winding mountain road because the rugged mountain road has unique scenery."
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For a player like Riquelme, it was fine to let Li Ang admire him from afar. If he had such a player in his hands, he would definitely let him sit on the bench for a long time. His team's tactics did not have such a 'classic attacking midfielder' position. In Li Ang's team, the whole team had to run without caring about their physical strength in pursuit of speed and efficiency. Riquelme's characteristic was that running and positioning were not his strengths. Once the football reached his feet, it would pause for a moment. This was definitely something that Li Ang could not tolerate. Therefore, it was fine to just look at such a player.
As for Pellegrini, although there were some disputes about his evaluation of this manager, Li Ang still decided to give him a thumbs up. Just based on the fact that he could use Riquelme well and achieve success at Villarreal, it was not an easy thing to do.
In this game, Riquelme's two passes and one shot were the biggest contributors to Villarreal's victory: two assists and a penalty kick!
Speaking of this penalty kick, Sporting de Gijón lost to two people. One was Villarreal's midfield core, Riquelme, and the other was the referee on duty, Hudson.
Since the game against Barcelona, Li Ang had publicly attacked the referee on duty, Cadilamendi, Li Ang had become an unpopular figure in the eyes of the referees. In today's game, although it was a home game, Sporting de Gijón suffered from some inexplicable penalties several times. This penalty kick was even more questionable. When both sides had a half of the ball and the opponent's striker fell to the ground in the penalty area, the referee usually would not blow for a penalty kick, especially for the home team. However, this time, the referee, Hudson, decisively blew for a penalty kick. It had to be said that this decision had a certain causal relationship with Li Ang's bombardment of the referee.
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Li Ang was angry and helpless that his team had lost the game in such a way. He had done his best under the circumstances of his ban, but he had given the game to Riquelme and the referee, who were in a bug-like state.
The good news for Li Ang was that there was only one game left before his ban ended. When that time came, he could stand in front of the technical area and direct the team again. Although it was only a three-game ban, he missed the technical area and the feeling of directing the game from the sidelines. He was now like a hungry beast. In fact, he had only been hungry for three days. It was like he had been hungry for three years!
Li Ang's ban was a news selling point. Therefore, during the game, the television cameras had been focused on Li Ang's performance. Whether it was after Sporting de Gijón scored or after they conceded a goal. The cameras would quickly focus on Li Ang in the stands to see his reaction.
After the referee, Hudson, awarded the penalty kick, the camera immediately zoomed in on Li Ang. The special spectator in the stands who appeared in the camera first had anger on his face. Then, he glanced at the staff of the Spanish Football Federation who was' monitoring 'him not far away. The manager who sat and monitored the game had a sneer on his face …
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