When playing football, you should call it GOAT.

Chapter 47 I want to see them leave the stadium crying! (Please read on!)

Inside the locker room, Deschamps stood with his arms crossed, his face ashen, as if struggling to suppress some emotion about to erupt.

The players sat in a circle, the air thick with suppressed anger.

His voice was extremely low, yet it seemed to freeze the surrounding air.

"14 fouls, two yellow cards?"

Deschamps suddenly let out a cold laugh.

"When I played in Marseille, the level of discipline was even worse than in training matches."

Since the 80s, Marseille FC has championed a street football culture of "winning by winning the game." From fans and players to management, they have scorned "elegant football" and believe that "victory is justice."

However, during his time as a player for Marseille, Deschamps averaged only 1.2 fouls per game and preferred to defend by positioning himself early rather than tackling, earning him the reputation of an "elegant defensive midfielder."

This outburst of rage at this moment is more like a complete betrayal of his former club's football philosophy.

Marseille averages 14.2 fouls per game this season (3rd in Ligue 1) and 2.8 yellow cards per game (1st).

The two defensive midfielders, Celestini and Hemdani, are dedicated to "logging" and have already collected 23 yellow cards together this season.

Against technically gifted teams like Monaco, Perrin's tactical manual only has three rules:

The key to the chokehold: A relentless barrage of fouls against Roy (3 from Eker, 2 from Van Buyten).
Cutting off the flow of the game: A foul occurs on average every 4 to 5 minutes, disrupting the flow of the game.

Psychological pressure: Provoke your opponent with subtle actions, such as pulling their jersey, deliberately confronting them, or stepping on their heel.

Juli sat in the corner, staring at the floor, then suddenly looked up and sneered:
"They think they can win with these dirty tricks? Marseille can't even play football anymore, all they know how to do is kick people."

Rothen ripped off his jersey, revealing several bright red scratches on his shoulder—Eker's "masterpiece".

"Is the referee blind? They pulled my clothes and kicked my ankle, and they didn't even call a foul!"

Evra kicked over a crate of beverages, and Evian mineral water spilled all over the floor.

"These cowards! They don't dare to fight back, they just cower in the back and resort to dirty tricks!"

He was tackled violently by Laurentti, attacked with racist remarks, and even received a yellow card. He has nowhere to vent his anger.

Deschamps finally spoke, his voice deep and thunderous:

“Listen, they want war? Then give them war.”

He picked up his tactical pen and began to lay out the tactics for the second half on the board.

Max and Bernardi intensified their long-range shooting – forcing the Marseille defense to push forward after the match.

Roy was making frequent cross-cutting runs with Rothen – specifically targeting Laurentti's side, where he already had a yellow card.

Abidal replaced Evra – although his attacking ability is not as good as the latter.

However, similar to Laurentti, Evra, with his cards on his hands and prone to emotional outbursts, could also be seen as a weak point for Marseille.

"Perrin's tactical paradox has been exposed. The League Cup is a knockout tournament, and they are now one goal behind. Defending is tantamount to a slow death, while attacking is tantamount to exposing their own weaknesses."

"Roy tries to drop back into midfield to receive the ball, avoiding Van Buyten's 'strangulation zone,' and dropping back to the junction of attacking midfielder Johansen and defensive midfielder Celestini. As long as their two wing-backs, especially Laurentti, push forward, the right flank will rely entirely on the Swiss defensive midfielder Celestini to cover, as he is very slow. In a three-center-back system, the 15-meter gap between Meyette and Van Buyten will become Monaco's slaughterhouse and Roy's hunting ground."

"They fielded a five-defender formation, but forgot that football is played with your brain."

"Marseille are most vulnerable when they have to play 'normal football'."

Finally, Deschamps slammed his fist on the table:
"I want to see them leave the stadium crying for 90 minutes!"

The game starts again.

Trailing by one goal, Marseille began to press forward aggressively, committing too many players to battle around the center circle, which prevented Monaco, who had just come on, from controlling possession.

This led to Bernardi conceding a goal.

The roar from the south stand swept across the stadium like a tsunami, as 50,000 Marseille fans sang their team song "Droit au But" in unison, the drumbeats making the grass tremble.

Attacking midfielder Johansen dropped back to receive the ball, suddenly turned and got rid of Bernardi, and made a diagonal pass to Laurentti on the right wing.

Laurentti made a high-speed run down the wing, and facing Abidal's defense, he feigned a cross but suddenly cut back and played a one-two with Hemdani.

Hemdani played a through ball to Chapuis, who held off Squillaci and unleashed a half-turn shot!

Perrin leaped to his feet from the coaching bench, fists clenched, a rare smile spreading across his face, as if victory was in sight.

Chapuis' shot was heading straight for the bottom right corner, but Roma made a diving save, tipping the ball away with his fingertips!
Marseille fans immediately covered their heads, then erupted in even louder cheers, with some waving huge Marseille team flags and shouting, "One more time!"

Rodriguez cleared the ball first and launched a long ball forward!
Rodriguez's clearance flew towards midfield, where Marquez outjumped Celestini and headed the ball to Bernardi.

Bernardi didn't wait for the ball to bounce before launching a direct through ball, accurately finding Pulso on the right wing!

The moment Pulso received the ball, Roy suddenly cut in from the left, drawing Eker's attention.

Giuly cut inside from the right flank, forcing Dos Santos to hesitate to press forward.

Rothen made a high-speed forward run from the left flank, switching positions with Roy, instantly throwing Meyette and Van Buyten into disarray!
Pulso passed the ball across to Rothen on the left side of the penalty area. Rothen used a feint to shake off the chasing Laurentti and then fired a low shot with his left foot!
The ball grazed the far post and went wide; Lundger didn't even make a save attempt!

The cheers of the Marseille fans abruptly ceased, replaced by a deathly silence, followed by sporadic boos. Perrin's smile froze, his right hand unconsciously loosening his tie, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

Deschamps stood on the sidelines, a slight smile playing on his lips, and said to his old assistant coach Petit, "The more they attack, the faster they die."

This season, no team in Ligue 1 can match Monaco's attacking prowess.

In just one round, Marseille's tactical weaknesses were exposed:
Right wing-back Laurentti pushed too far forward and couldn't get back in time to defend.

The two defensive midfielders were poorly positioned and easily suppressed by Max.

The center-back was slow to turn and couldn't keep up with Roy's diagonal run.

Thierry Rolland commented: "Marseille's attack was like a tidal wave, but Monaco's counter-attack was like a sharp dagger – instantly piercing the heart! Look at this transition, from Flavio Roma's save to Rothen's shot, it only took 12 seconds! That's why Deschamps' team is so deadly!"

Perrin was caught on camera wiping his sweat on the sidelines, while Deschamps had already returned to the bench, seemingly in complete control.

Marseille's nightmare has only just begun.

The 49th minute of the game.

"Johansson wants to break through? Max is like a wall! Abidal covers, a beautiful tackle to keep the ball! Monaco's counter-attack is coming!"

Johansson attempted to break through the middle, flicking the ball with his right foot to change direction, but Max blocked him in advance, using physical confrontation to force him towards the wing.

Abidal seized the opportunity and made a precise sliding tackle to cleanly steal the ball, while simultaneously positioning his body in front of Johansson to ensure possession was not lost.

"Rothen calmly controls the ball and passes it to Roy! Monaco's counter-attack pace is too fast!"

After Abidal intercepted the ball, he quickly got up and passed a low cross to Rothen on the left wing.

After receiving the ball, Rothen did not rush to advance, but instead deftly passed it to Roy, who had dropped back to receive it.

"Roy's vision! He draws the defense with a tap-in, then passes to Max, already on his way! Marseille's defense is thrown into disarray!"

After receiving the ball, Roy stepped on it with his right foot, attracting Marseille midfielder Celestini to press him.

He then passed the ball back to Max who had made a run forward, and suddenly made a diagonal run to the right, cutting straight into the penalty area.

"Pulso! Strong physical confrontation, firmly protecting possession! Monaco's attack continues!"

After receiving the ball, Max quickly passed it to Pulso on the right wing.

Pulso received the ball with his back to goal, and while facing Van Buyten's pressure, he steadily protected the ball and observed his teammates' runs.

"Giuly's feint! The Marseille defenders were completely fooled! Roy has made his run forward, the opportunity has arrived!"

Giuly cut inside from the right wing to receive the pass, feigning a cross to Rothen at the far post, and even raising his foot as if to make a crossing motion.

Marseille's defense was instantly deceived, with both Meyette and Dos Santos moving to the left.

Giuly suddenly flicked his right foot, took a step to the right, and passed the ball to Roy, who had penetrated into the penalty area.

"Roy! Dribble! Cross! Pulso slots it home—BUUUUUT!!! Monaco's counter-attack is fluid and seamless; Marseille's defense has been completely torn apart!!!"

The moment Roy received the ball, he flicked his right foot, shaking off the last defender, Eker.

He then passed the ball across the face of goal, and Pulso, who had already made a run from outside the penalty area, fired a left-footed shot that went straight into the net!
This second goal highlights several major tactical errors made by Perrin in the course of the match, particularly after he had established an attacking position.

First, the midfield barrier formed by players Celestini and Hemdani was completely ineffective.

When the two defensive midfielders transition from attack to defense, they stand in a parallel position, lacking depth protection.

Celestini's reckless attack on Roy was easily evaded.

When Hemdani chased back, he chose to block Giuly's fake pass route, but completely left Roy's forward run open.

Secondly, the spatial disintegration of the three-center-back system led to the coordinated disaster of Meyette, Eker, and Van Buyten.

They made fatal mistakes in static defense:

After Meyette was lured away from the defensive zone by Roy's diagonal run, he did not switch positions with Van Buyten to cover for him.

Eker was overly focused on Pulso, who had the ball.

Third, the tactical suicide of the wing guards.

Laurentti was out of position on the right wing and pushed too far forward in attack.

When retreating, he sprinted straight instead of blocking the passing lane, and was easily fooled by Giuly's feint.

Dos Santos on the left flank was completely out of sorts, led astray by Rothen's off-the-ball runs, yet Rothen failed to make any effective interference when moving laterally.

As Deschamps said in the locker room: "They fielded a five-man defense, but forgot that football is played with your brain."

------

In future big games, after a goal is scored, instead of just passionate commentary, I will try to add some tactical analysis.

(End of this chapter)