Chapter 23: The Unpredictable Tuchel
Early the next morning, the fat man and his teammates boarded the train to Munich. After a five-hour drive, www.biquge.info finally reached Munich, the capital of Bavaria, Germany's largest federal state. Bavaria is located in the southeast of Germany, because of its location in the Alps, lakes and mountains, the scenery is very good, Germany is full of charm of the tourist destination, tourism is an important economic source of the state.
Although the Munich 1860 team is located in the big city of Munich, it is currently competing in the Bundesliga, in stark contrast to another giant team in the same city, Bayern Munich has been the long-term hegemon of the Bundesliga. The fat man knows the Munich 1860 team because former international Shao Jiayi used to play for the Munich 1860 team when he stayed abroad.
The Munich 1860 Club was founded on 17 May 1860 and initially did not include football until 6 March 1899, when the Football Club was officially established, and three years later it played officially with other clubs for the first time. In the 60s of the last century, Munich 1860 was a relatively strong team. In the city of Munich, people in the south were more supportive of Munich 1860, while Bayern's supporters were mainly concentrated in the north of the city. Home to the Green Forest Stadium, head coach Costa Runjaic.
Around noon, Dortmund checked into a hotel near the home of the Munich 1860 team. After lunch, the team entered the Green Forest Stadium for field training. Training was over after just one hour, as the team's match against Munich 1860 would start at 5 p.m. in three hours.
Before the start of the game, Dortmund's two special commentators, Norbert Dicker and Boris Rupert, had already started to warm up for the game.
"Man, I'm excited to come to Munich and even though it's against another team from Munich, it's still a game to look forward to." Dicker was the first to speak.
"That's right, Norbert, I prefer Munich 1860 to Borussia Dortmund's arch-rivals, Bayern Munich." Rupert chimed in, "The enemy of the enemy is the friend, and we are friends with the Munich 1860 team, and the two teams have to arrange warm-up matches every year before the start of the new season. β
"Boris, have you heard? The club is working on the signing of two midfielders, one of whom is none other than Mario Gotze in Bayern Munich and Andre Schurrle in Wolfsburg! Dicker got to the point.
"Man, I'm reading the newspaper. To be honest, I have two very different feelings for these two. Rupert was a little emotional, "When Gotze announced his departure from Dortmund, I used to call him a traitor, because he was a midfield talent cultivated by Dortmund, but he wanted to turn his head to his rival Bayern, which made me very unhappy, all because of the damn money; I welcome Schurrle's arrival, a former disciple of Thomas Tuchel and good performances at Chelsea and Wolfsburg, so I look forward to his arrival. β
"Boris, this is football, you should look at some of it." Dicker comforted, "One is a veteran of Dortmund and the other is a mentor, and they do have a reason to join Dortmund, and I believe that their arrival can strengthen Dortmund's midfield."
'GΓΆtze spent three years under Pep Guardiola and was relegated to the bench in the German national team, and he barely improved in those three years. Rupert is still haunted, "I hardly see Gotze in the football newspapers now, but I often see Gotze on the entertainment news because he has a beautiful and sexy girlfriend. Gotzeta......"
"Alright, man, let's talk about this game!" Dicker interrupted Rupert, "Do you think the Chinese boys will start this game?" β
"It should be, the Chinese boy has been doing well recently, and many Dortmund fans have started to support him." Rupert said helplessly, "But I still think that it is more appropriate for the Chinese boy to be a substitute for Aubameyang."
"Boris, you guessed wrong again this time, the Chinese boy didn't start this time! Here's Borussia Dortmund's starting line-up for this game, take a look! Dicker said with a smile.
"Norbert, I find it a chore to be a docent at Dortmund." Rupert said depressedly.
'The reason is that we have an unpredictable manager, Tuchel, right, man?' Dicker said with deep sympathy.
"That's right, it used to be Klopp, but now it's a Tuchel, and the two of them are always unexpected, and it's hard to guess!" Rupert complained.
"Alright, man, stop complaining, what do you think of this starting lineup? Dicker asked.
"The Chinese boys didn't start, Aubameyang didn't start, Dembele was pushed up front, it's a strange arrangement......," Rupert looked at the starting line-up and fell into deep thought, "I think Coach Tuchel arranged this way to show that he is satisfied with Dortmund's forward line, and the team's focus in this game is to practice attacking and defending in the midfield." β
"I think so, man!" Dicker echoed, "The formation for this game is 3241, and when attacking, six players are arranged in the midfield; It can become 541 when defending, and five men at the back, and Tuchel's coach's intention to drill the midfield is clear. β
Let me introduce the Dortmund fans in front of the TV to the Dortmund line-up for this game. Rupert changed the subject, "...... Dortmund's starting line-up for this season is...... Goalkeeper: Berneeman; Defenders Schmelzer, Sokladis and Ginter; midfielders Merino, Rode; midfielders Paslak, Shinji Kagawa, Castro, Pulisic; Striker Dembele......"
At five o'clock in the afternoon, the game started on time. At this time, the fat man was sitting on the bench depressed, and last night the fat man swore to Rita that he was going to use an excellent performance to surprise her, but he didn't expect that he didn't even get a chance to start today's game. Life is indeed a TV series, especially the TV series directed by Tuchel, which must be full of surprises and black humor! The fat man thought depressedly.
Even more depressed than the fat man was Moore, whose face was terrifyingly dark. Moore was born in Denmark and has dual Danish-Turkish citizenship, and the Germans have always disliked the Danes because of the war between Germany and Denmark over the northern territories. The fat man has taken off his parallel hat due to his excellent performance in the last two games. As a result, some Dortmund fans began to point the finger at Moore, calling him "a little man who can only dribble the ball".
Moore wanted to wash away the shame with his performance, but it was a shame that Tuchel didn't give him a chance at all. Especially after seeing Dembele start, Moore's mood can be imagined.
As soon as the game started, Dembele was at the front, and it was clear that the Frenchman was quite excited today. The last game was dark for Dembele, who was on the wing, a few steps heavily defended by St. Pauli's players, and there was no performance. Today, when he found out that he would be playing as a lone striker, Dembele went crazy with excitement and vowed to prove himself with goals.
Both teams started with some caution, especially Munich 1860. There were a large number of Munich 1860 fans present today, which put Munich 1860 under a lot of pressure. However, Munich 1860 were unbeaten in their previous three home games. In this game, the head coach of the Munich 1860 team, Costa Runiajic, boldly discharged a 433 attack formation, and the goal was to win.
With 13 minutes played, it was Borussia Dortmund who had the first chance to shoot. Castro, who played as a winger today, received a pass from Rod and fired a long-range shot from more than 30 meters out of the post.
"Castro's long-range shot...... Oh, out of the column! Dicker was a little regretful, "Castro has a strong desire to attack today!" β
"Castro has always played in the back and although he has a strong desire to attack, Dortmund had too many attacking players up front last season, so Castro didn't have a chance to show his talents." Rubeher commented: 'His attacks will definitely be used heavily by the Tuchel coach this season. β
However, Munich 1860 is not a soft persimmon, especially the defense of Dortmund's back three, which gives them hope of breaking through the Dortmund goal. In the 15th minute of the game, Munich 1860 midfielders Adren and Lindell played a wonderful combination, past Merino, Lindell cut into the middle, and shot directly from 25 meters away, but fortunately, Dortmund goalkeeper Bernemann was in a good position and saved the ball.
"Lindell's long-range shot...... Oh, Berneman has done a good job! Dicker was a little excited, "Berneemann's pounce was very beautiful. β
"Munich 1860 have been winless in their last three warm-up matches against Borussia Dortmund, but that doesn't mean anything," commented Rubew, who lined up 433 in this game and looked like they wanted to change history. β
A brilliant long-range shot from each team got the game off to a good start. Since then, the two teams have gradually played into form, and the pace of the game has become very fast. However, when the Munich 1860 team attacked, the troops invested still could not catch up with Dortmund. Borussia Dortmund have six players in midfield, twice as many as their opponents.
In the 21st minute of the game, Dortmund midfielder Kagawa sent a long diagonal pass, Dembele received the ball and burst into the penalty area, facing the defense of Munich 1860 team central defender Mausberg, Dembele's shot was a little hasty, like a pass, and finally the ball was saved by the opponent Zimmermann.
"Dembele's shot...... Oh, and the ball was saved by the opposition goalkeeper. Dicker was a little disappointed, "Dembele's shot was a little less powerful and more like a pass. β
'Dembele is in a good position and he should have been more decisive. Rupert was a little dissatisfied, "My team-mate was too far away from the goal, and he shot better with a big shot. β
The fat man has been staring at Dembele, and I have to say that Dembele's running position this time is still quite good, although it is not as flexible as Aubameyang's running, but at least it is better than the fat man. However, Dembele's thin body determined that he did not dare to resist the opponent's tall defenders, so Dembele always avoided the defenders when shooting, which made this shooting opportunity missed. If you get this opportunity, you will definitely carry the defender to shoot, this kind of ball shooting is a better choice! The fat man thought silently.
After that, Dortmund began to rely on a strong offensive to press the Munich 1860 team to attack. The Munich 1860 team began to shrink the defensive line, waiting for an opportunity to play Dortmund to counterattack. Dembele's disadvantage was highlighted when he entered the battle, and in the tall crowd of the opponent's backline, Dembele could barely grab the first point. Dembele needs space to play, let him use his speed and technique, and without space Dembele will be greatly reduced.
Thirty minutes into the game, Kagawa and Castro played a wonderful combination, Castro received the ball, again shot from outside the penalty area, this time the ball shot into the goal frame, but was saved by Munich 1860 excellent goalkeeper Zimmermann, Munich 1860 central defender Udokaya made a mistake when clearing, the ball hit his teammates and rebounded in front of Dembele, Dembele immediately chose to head the goal, but unfortunately his header was lifted off the crossbar by Zimmerman.
'Borussia Dortmund were so unlucky to have two shots in a row saved by the opposition goalkeeper. Dicker was a little depressed, "We should play more resolutely!" β
"Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, the team's most important scorer, didn't play, so why did it work so hard to score this goal!" Rupert was frustrated, "We were in control, but we just couldn't break the opponent's goal. β
Dicker didn't speak this time, in fact, he had already spoken silently in his heart. This kind of tough battle is the most suitable for a Chinese boy, and his header is a very powerful weapon. Dicker thought to himself.
However, Dortmund's onslaught paid off. In the 33rd minute of the game, Munich 1860 goalkeeper Zimmermann, who performed well in the first half, played with fire in the penalty area, and after being snatched away by Rod in the penalty area, he pushed Rod into the penalty area. The referee did not hesitate to award a penalty.
"Wow, Zimmermann set himself on fire and he pushed Rod to give Dortmund a penalty." Dicker laughed and said, "It's too amateurish, he should kick the ball off the touchline instead of bringing it in the box, that's not what a goalkeeper should do." β
"Maybe it's a little carried away." Rupert was also happy, "In the first 30 games, the best performance was Munich 1860 goalkeeper Zimmermann. β
Castro stood in front of the penalty, ready to take it. The fat man can see that Castro's desire to attack in this game is very strong, and Dortmund has had half of his shots on goal before, all of which he has completed. However, Castro lacked a bit of luck and was not too his feet to finish the scoring, and this penalty will be his best chance.
However, Castro did not score the penalty. Zimmerman made up for it by deniing Castro a penalty from the left.
"Oh my God, the ball was saved by the opposition goalkeeper." Dicker couldn't believe his eyes, "Castro was so unlucky, he definitely forgot to bring his shooting boots today." β
'Castro hasn't scored in a long time and he's almost forgotten that feeling of shooting now.' Rubeus commented: "The angle of the penalty was not tricky enough, and it was not fast enough, so it was not surprising that it was saved by the opposition goalkeeper. β
There is a saying on the football pitch that "chances are wasted and opportunities are punished", and this statement was quickly verified. Munich 1860, 37 minutes into the game, found a good opportunity in a counterattack, and an inadvertent long pass from the back tore through the Dortmund defence. When midfielder Merino leaked the ball when he was helping to defend Ginter, Munich 1860 striker Aisicek took the ball and burst into the left side of the box to score with a powerful shot before Schmelzer and Sokladis were able to get it covered.
"Ball...... Entered! The goal was scored by Munich 1860 striker Aisicek. Dicker was depressed, "It was a simple goal, Munich 1860 only used one pass and one shot, while Dortmund contributed two defensive errors. β
'Ginter and Merino didn't get the first spot, Schmelzer and Sokladis didn't block the angle of the shot, which ultimately led to the opposition's goal.' Rubeher commented, "Four warm-up games, each of which conceded a goal, it was too much of a mistake, and although Baltra and Guerrero did not return, it was not a reason for us to concede a goal, after all, we did not play against a Bundesliga team. β
At the end of the first half, Munich 1860 led Dortmund 1-0 at home. (To be continued.) )