After Lu Ling came to Valencia, he went directly to the Mestalla Stadium.

After Yu Zixiang left, Rafael Benitez brought in Senegalese left-back Sadio Babacar for QPR – but this player was not up to the task, at least not alone. Lu Ling is here to watch the replacement candidate in her heart today.

Valencia's 19-year-old left-back Gonzalo Chica walked out of the tunnel to warm up. The sunlight was a little dazzling, and Lu Ling squinted his eyes and looked at the field. Somewhat similar to the video, this medium-sized, somewhat skinny young kid likes to keep his head down, maybe a little like Glenn Mitchell. His facial expressions are very rich, showing a lively mind, and a certain very "Spanish" personality.

In the 90 minutes of the game, Lu Ling's focus was always on this player. His confrontations, his speed, his insight into the situation on the pitch and his interactions with his team-mates...... She was pleased with what she saw.

After the race, she drove for more than an hour to Gandia, a small seaside town in the province of Valencia. She keeps an eye on the time while driving. Hopefully I won't be too late.

When Mr. Marcelo Bielsa stepped out of his villa near the beach, he was stunned for a moment, then smiled.

The woman in front of him greeted in Spanish: "Marcelo, long time no see." ”

Bielsa lifted her glasses, "Welcome, Christine, you look fantastic. ”

It was nearly evening, and the sea was covered with golden afterglow.

Lu Ling was invited to the courtyard of Villa Bielsa, where dinner was prepared by Bielsa's wife, Laura.

"I recently got an invitation from Valencia. Bielsa took a pickled olive into his mouth, "I'm still thinking about it." But Gandia is a good place, it's good for my mood and my body, and I can study some of the footage from last season. By the way, have you watched all the footage I gave you?"

Lu Ling glanced in the direction of the sunset and gave a heartfelt compliment, "This is indeed a good place. She turned back to her professor, as she had spoken to a professor when she was a student, and said mischievously, "Of course I read it, otherwise what have I been doing for the past ten months?" ”

Both the Bielsa couple laughed at her.

Bielsa looked at her from above her glasses, "That's good, that's good." "It's as if he really was her old professor. He remembered something and added, "Congratulations on your return to QPR." Although I was a little surprised, I thought you would go to Madrid. ”

"I thought too. Lu Ling nodded several times in a row, feeling indescribable.

Then she raised her glass to the Bielsas.

The red wine agreed a few years ago was only realized except for the time when White Hart Lane watched the battle.

Over the next two and a half hours, Lu Ling and Bielsa talked a lot about football. Bielsa's views still diverge from Lu's, but she is happy to hear from an idealist about her understanding of football.

"You know, Christine, we used to ...... when Pep went to Argentina to look for me," he stood up, walked around the back of his chair, and gestured. "Use a chair like this to simulate a defender and then deduce how he should react to the opposing striker in what situation. It took half an hour. ”

"I've heard it. Lu Ling nodded and smiled. She kept an eye on his movements, and the Catalans sometimes looked a little like him when he wandered around the sidelines.

"You're a realist, Christine. What I appreciate about you is that you can switch between idealism and realism, which is something that I and Pep struggle to do......"

Or you don't want to do it. Lu Ling added, "You have your persistence. ”

Bielsa shook his head, not knowing whether to sigh or deny, but it didn't seem to matter, and he continued, "At the end of the day, you're a realist, your style of play, your team's game, that made me come to this conclusion." ”

"Marcelo, we've talked about this in the past. Or rather, we're always talking about it. This probably stems from the fact that the philosophy of football is always around this concept. At first, I told you that I didn't like to define myself, but over the past few years, I felt that in my deepest heart, I was an idealist...... "This meal of red wine and food did not let Lu Ling fall into a kind of sobriety and trance that she often had when she talked with Nick. She only felt sober, and the alcohol brought only the rapid and logical thinking of her brain.

"Where does this begin?" Bielsa once again lifted his glasses, full of interest.

Lu Lingdao: "If it weren't for that, I wouldn't have emailed then head coach Ramsey when I was an assistant to Mr. Jones, God knows how many letters I wrote, and then Nick became the head coach, I wouldn't have walked into his office and told him how I thought the team should play, so I got my once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and even, in the beginning, I wouldn't have chosen to step into the industry at all." It all stems from my idealism. ”

"I have to disagree with your claim, Christine. But I can roughly understand what you mean. I mean, in your tactics, I see a compromise. I'm not going to compromise, I need the most perfect, the most precise tactics to be in my team. They said it was my problem. I don't think so. In fact, the players are not focused on football and I wish they could listen to and write down everything I say so there will be no problem. ”

Lu Ling pondered for a moment, "I think you have your point." It doesn't matter to me what I mean by being an idealist, and it doesn't matter what people think of my football philosophy. I like to be an idealist like you, though, but I also like to be a realist in what you call to be in control of the players and the dressing room, to take into account everyone's emotions and mentality, and to make the most appropriate arrangements. After all, players are people, not machines. ”

"Sometimes I really wish they were machines. Marcelo pursed his lips and took a long sip of his wine.

Lu Linggang wanted to argue, but Mrs. Bielsa whispered a "strange old man" that made her laugh and decided to end the topic for the time being. She also took a sip of red wine. Putting down her glass, she looked up at the sky, there were stars tonight.

A good bottle of red wine and a discussion about football on a summer night by the sea in Spain will not be enjoyed for a long time.

She heard Bielsa say again: "Christine, you have the confidence to come here, to have dinner with me, an old man, to drink, to talk about old anecdotes, football philosophies, these seem to me to be appearances. The truth is, you're ready for anything, you already know what kind of team you're going to build, and you just want to tell me that. Or maybe you'd rather tell another gentleman, but he may not have the interest or time to hear it. ”

Lu Ling turned his head and met the Argentine's eyes, "No." I'm just trying to keep my promise, sir, don't try to send me away when you said he was going to drink wine with me and talk about football. ”

Bielsa plucked her eyes and laughed, "No, no, I have a lot of treasures in my cellar." ”

****

"She says hello to you. Patrick's breath was not yet completely stable, his voice was deep and fast, and the words were slurred. It's a bit like the "she" in his mouth.

Nicholas wore a white shirt with cufflinks rolled up to his elbows, sweat on his chest and back. The result of this game was decisive for Real Madrid. The Real Madrid manager's frustration since being eliminated from the Champions League has finally been alleviated after this game.

The home fans of the Bernabeu were reluctant to leave the stadium. Patrick held his head high, and a drop of sweat ran down his forehead.

The race for the La Liga title this season was also settled after this game. Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola has long since disappeared from the players' tunnel.

Nicholas heard Patrick clearly, and he smiled at him and said in English, "Thank you for telling me this, Patrick. You played well this game and I'm sorry. ”

That's what the victors say. Patrick thought. He shook his head wearily, "You know that this sentence doesn't make sense. Anyway, I brought her greetings. See you later, Nicholas. After speaking, he picked up his jersey and wiped his sweat, and walked past the Real Madrid manager.

Nicolas glanced back at the Barcelona No.7, his steps a little swaying, I don't know if it was a recurrence of an old injury or just muscle soreness. Nicholas called out Patrick's name.

Patrick turned back.

Nicholas slammed his mouth, looking like a typical Latin man, "Good luck at the European Championships." ”

Patrick raised his chin at the Real Madrid manager, "Thanks, man. ”

Nicholas nodded, his gaze scanning over the poker tattoo on Patrick's arm.

Patrick caught up with his teammates, their backs looking a little frustrated to Nicholas.

Nicholas bowed his head. She said hello to me. She was in the country, but she didn't come to see the game.

She returned to West London, less than a year later.

Nicholas turned around and continued walking into the pitch, a meter or two away, followed by many cameramen and photographers. When he looked up again, Mbappe rushed straight at him and hugged him. Not far away, two Brazilian players, Gabriel Jesus and Vinicius, were also high-fived in celebration. The Real Madrid boss slapped his players on the back, smiled again and said loudly in Spanish: "Well done, boys. ”

This is the 36th round of La Liga, after the end of Real Madrid's home match against Barcelona. The result of this match was a 4-2 victory for Real Madrid. Nicolás Flores' first season at Real Madrid saw two national derbies with one win and one draw. After this game, Real Madrid's lead is eight points and officially locks up the La Liga title. At the same time, they also reached the final of the Copa del Rey and faced Athletic Bilbao, who have not been strong this season, and will be very likely to win the domestic double this season. 166 Reading Network