There is a belief called football

Chapter 145 Standing on the Club World Cup stage for the first time
After getting off the plane, the Guangzhou Tianbao team was warmly welcomed by the fans, not only Chinese students, but also overseas Chinese came to the scene to pick up the plane, and even many Japanese locals came to see the AFC champions.

At this time, Stan was proud of himself. When he was here last time, he had ridiculed his opponents in Japan. Now that he finally won the AFC Champions League, when he returned to Yokohama, Stan's heart was full of excitement.

Stan made an exception and was interviewed by reporters at the airport, but he emphasized that he would not answer questions that had nothing to do with the Club World Cup.

A reporter asked how to view Guangzhou Tianbao's first opponent, Monterrey from Mexico.

Stan praised Mexican football, then changed the subject, talked about the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, and then started digressing, talking about Maradona in that World Cup, talking about the hand of God, and Argentina finally won the championship.

Why does Stan gossip about him?Don't dare to judge your opponent?That's so un-Stan.

That's because Stan is really a little afraid of Mexican football. Speaking of which, Mexican football is really like Yugoslavia, that is, it is not a top-notch team, but it has its own style. When it meets a strong team, it is often upset.

The first game of the cup is already difficult. If you boast at this time, you will put pressure on the players virtually, which also shows that Stan's coaching style is becoming more mature.

Seeing that Stan seemed to be secretive about talking about Monterey, the reporter at the scene asked again, "So are you optimistic about Japanese football?"
Why ask this question?
Because after winning the AFC Champions League, not only China but also the Japanese national team took a fancy to Stan and hoped that he could coach the Japanese national team. At this time, the Japanese team was doing well under the coach of the Italian Zaccheroni, but the old Italians were very conservative in tactics and lacked passion in the game.

Stan doesn't know what the question means, but Japan is hosting the Club World Cup this time, so Stan casually says, "OK."

"Stan, is your goal this time still to win the championship?"Another reporter asked.

Stan smiled and didn't answer. It's the same reason. He doesn't want to put too much pressure on the players now. Stan knows very well that the opponents in the Club World Cup are all very strong. It is different from Buriram and Seoul FC. Here, he has no bragging capital.

"Stan, will Li Qiao start?" Another reporter asked.

From the accent, Stan knew it should be a reporter from Guangzhou, or from Hong Kong, and Stan was very used to speaking Mandarin with a Cantonese accent.

"Sure, why not," Stan counters.

"Li Qiao has just been expelled from the national team," the reporter continued, implying that Li Qiao has come out of the shadow of the national team.

"I can only say that it is stupid not to let the person who scored a hat-trick in the AFC Champions League final start," Stein said tit for tat.

Stan still couldn't help standing up for his disciple. Although it was relatively cryptic, this sentence was clearly referring to Camacho.

"Stan, are you saying Camacho is stupid?" another reporter asked.

"You said this, I didn't say it, everyone testify for me," Stan said pretending to be wronged.

Everyone at the scene was amused by Stan.

Every time they meet Stan, the reporters have endless questions and can always find excitement. As for Stan, as long as he is in a good mood, he will try his best to cooperate. Stan knows how to use the media and how to give them some "benefits".

Stan specially designated the last question to be left to the local Japanese media. Maybe he was too nervous. The local Japanese reporter asked a very stupid question, "Coach Stan, would you consider coaching the Yokohama Mariners?"

The question drew snickers from fellow journalists on the scene, and Stan smiled gracefully and said, "Maybe."

*****
On the night of December 12th, Stan in the hotel suddenly felt anxious. Simply put, he was a little nervous. As the saying goes, the greater the expectation, the greater the pressure. His goal is the final, which is Barcelona. This will not change, but Monterrey and Santos are like two mountains in front of him.

Stan took out the "Made in Portugal" (Mourinho's autobiography) from the bedside. He read this book countless times.

That year, an unknown Portuguese led a Portuguese team to win the UEFA Champions League. Since then, there has been a madman in world football.

It was Mourinho who made Stan believe that a weak team may not be able to defeat a strong team. Miracles exist, as long as you dare to think and do it.

It may be more difficult for Stan to win the Club World Cup than it was for Porto to win the Champions League back then. Mourinho had Deco and Carvalho back then, and he had Li Qiao and Qi Bing, but Porto has a deep foundation after all.

Putting down the book, Stan went to the refrigerator, poured a glass of whiskey, and then walked to the window to enjoy the night view outside, "Actually, there is no chance at all," Stan thought to himself.

Stan thought of one thing that is best for him, or for Asian teams, and that is Christmas.

Is it strange?Why does Stan have a whim, thinking of Christmas?

In fact, everyone has a biological clock. This biological clock has been formed for decades. For Westerners, Christmas is just like the Chinese New Year. At this time of year, even if people don’t have a holiday, their bodies start to have a holiday early.

It just so happens that the annual Club World Cup is held very close to Christmas, which is why many people think that the Club World Cup is too much, because if there is no Club World Cup, Barcelona should have a holiday by now, so in terms of body, the Chinese team has certain advantages at this time.

Of course, Stan also understands that whether such an advantage can be converted into a victory on the field is a question mark.

Stan knows that a good head coach should take advantage of all the conditions that are beneficial to him. He thought of the away game against Buriram in Thailand. Guangzhou Tianbao was far stronger than his opponent in terms of strength, but why did he play so badly in the away game?It is because the opponent has made full use of the field.

And Guangzhou Tianbao, the venue in Yokohama, came once when preparing for the AFC Champions League last time. It can be said that this is also an advantage.

In short, Stan is doing everything possible to think of something beneficial to himself, and every time he thinks of one, his nerves can relax a little more.

Perhaps it was the effect of the alcohol. At this moment, Stan seemed to feel that the window glass in front of him had turned into an LCD screen, and what appeared on it was the game screen. The wonderful moves and beautiful goals made Stan feel drunk. Of course, he may have been drunk.

After closing the curtains, Stan returned to the table, put down his wine glass, and turned on the computer. Stan watched the collected videos about Monterey again. This was the only way for Stan before the war to feel more confident.

*****
On December 12th, this was the first time for a Chinese club to stand on the stage of the Club World Cup. Although the stadium was not full for the first game, it looked like China's home stadium at first glance. After all, it is not as easy for Mexicans to come to Japan as it is for Chinese. The ratio of Chinese fans to Mexican fans was about 8 to 20.

Monterrey fielded the same starting lineup as Stan predicted before the game.

Goalkeeper: No. 1 Orozk

Defenders: No. 20 Ayovi, No. 5 Darwin, No. 15 Basanta, No. 21 Mir.

Midfielders: No. 8 Lucho, No. 17 Zavala, No. 18 Cardoso, No. 24 Sergio Perez

Forwards: No. 11 Santana (87 minutes, No. 2 Mesa), No. 9 Denigris
It is a 4-4-2 formation.

And the formation sent by Stan is,
Goalkeeper: No. 1 Isaacson.

Defenders: No. 3 Taiwo, No. 4 Jacob Shin, No. 14 Gabriel, No. 21 Qi Bing.

The two defensive midfielders in the midfield are: No. 6 Nekonan and No. 16 Prahimi.

The three forwards are: No. 9 Li Qiao, No. 10 Conca, and No. 7 Recoba.

Single striker: No. 21 Gudjohnsen.

It is still the most accustomed 4-2-3-1 formation used by Stan.

Although he has watched a lot of video materials about the opponent, Stan still knows little about this team. Mexican football, like the Netherlands, is a star factory that can cultivate good players, but the domestic league cannot keep them.

And some of the games about Monterrey that Stan saw were in Mexico's own league, and he couldn't understand the true level of this team.

But after only 10 minutes into the game, Stan realized that his worries last night were unfounded, because the team’s two defensive midfielders could hold the ball and organize the attack calmly, while the other playmaker, Conca, could look up at the passing line after taking the ball. This shows that the opponent’s strength is mediocre.

The final result was no surprise. Guangzhou Tianbao defeated Monterrey 2-0 in the first game. This news made the domestic fans immediately excited. Everyone did not expect too much Guangzhou Tianbao to make a breakthrough in the Club World Cup. After all, even if it is the AFC champion, there is still a gap with the level of world football, but the first victory ignited the expectations of many fans and changed their views.

After the game, Stan was very happy and cautious. He still didn't say much, and he was even less willing to comment on his next opponent, Santos, because Stan knew that his next opponent was a real strong enemy, and that was the team that gave birth to the world champion Pele.

　Thank you readers who have always supported me

　　
　
(End of this chapter)