Chapter 10 Everything is ready
The game went unexpectedly smoothly, and Peperú, who had just been training with the team for two days, did not rush into the attack, but handed over all the tasks of organization to Enzo. Li Mudi's previous set of offensive routines was vividly played in this game, and the Mallorca players in the midfield who were forced by the on-the-spot counter-robbery made a series of mistakes, and the loopholes in the offensive and defensive transition were undoubtedly leaked.
In the end, thanks to two goals from Mariano and goals from Enzo and Lazuo, Castilla won 4-0 away from home. With 70 per cent possession, a staggering 647 passes, an 80 per cent success rate, 27 shots on goal and eight on target, the coaching staff is very proud of the stats that make the coaching staff very proud and if they can maintain this form of performance, then Castilla will be invincible in Group 2 of La Liga B this season, and may qualify for the title in La Liga 2.
On August 11, the team received a loan application from the Spanish Liga team R. Valladolid (C.F., SAD) and R. Zaragoza (ZaragozaSAD) for the main central defender Haimi.
Considering Haymi's personal willingness and practical benefits of being able to go to La Liga, his departure is already a foregone conclusion. After communicating with Solari, Li Mudi found Guti, the coach of the U19 team. On Guti's recommendation, the young centre-back, who shares the same surname as Real Madrid's legendary president, was promoted to the reserves.
The current ability of 80 and the potential value of 117 really can't get into Li Mudi's eyes, but it is too difficult to find someone to fill the gap in Haimi now. Pabloíniguez, the previously favored Villarreal central defender, has clearly rejected Castilla's invitation due to his promotion to the first team this season; Athletic Bilbao Bilbao's asking price is too high, and 2.5 million euros to play in La B is a bit too extravagant, after all, he is not a peerless talent like Mbappe. Therefore, Li Mudi thought about it and decided to let Hector (ability value 105, potential value 119) be the main force and promote a young player from the U19, so that although the strength of the defense has decreased slightly, it maintains a harmonious atmosphere and financial balance in the interior, which are necessary elements for a successful team.
In the away match against Villarreal B on the 14th, Haimi, who has not yet decided which team to choose, was excluded from the lineup. Castilla's performance in this game was a drop from the previous game, but they still managed 57 per cent possession, 554 passes completed 79 per cent, and 19 shots on target 9. They conceded three solo goals in the game and won the game 2-0 thanks to Mariano's header and an own goal from defender Adrian Martin in the 87th minute.
The two games against Mallorca and Villarreal B were generally the same as the coaching staff wanted, but they also exposed the team's lack of shooting ability, with a total of 46 attempts, a 37 per cent shot on target, and just six goals scored. During the training on the 15th, the recovery exercise after the scheduled match was cancelled and the practice of shooting technique was increased.
On August 17, Real Madrid's official website issued a message: Monaco club's 16-year-old French striker Kylian Mbappe officially transferred to Real Madrid for 6.5 million euros, and the contract was signed until June 30, 2019. Li Mudi hummed happily again: "Unforgettable... Tonight, unforgettable tonight......"
The contents of Mbappe's contract have not been revealed, but as a manager who will be in charge of him for at least the next year, there are no secrets. Real Madrid offered him an annual salary of 1 million euros before tax, an annual increase of 20%, a signing fee of 150,000 euros, and a loyalty bonus of 50,000 euros. In addition, a series of additional rewards such as appearance fees, Ballon d'Or bonuses, and substitute bonuses can be compared to the substitutes of the first team. The most important liquidated damages were set at 60 million euros under Li Mudi's reminder, but even this figure will become a blank slate after a year and a half.
Mbappe's arrival has brought endless confidence to Li Mudi, who scored three goals in the previous four warm-up games, but the efficiency was not high, and he failed to break the deadlock with his own ability when the team's midfield was out of control in the first two games. In terms of technical characteristics, Mariano is a typical stumping center, with strong physical fitness, and the stats of physique, balance, and strength are very much in line with the characteristics of black athletes. However, his speed and explosiveness are very average, and in Li Mudi's coaching style, he cannot play the power of the through ball in the midfield, and it does not match the fast attacking style of the Real Madrid first team, which is one of the reasons why Mariano has occasionally played well in the warm-up games of the first team, but has not been able to establish himself there. And Mbappe is worthy of the scouting tool to show as the next Henry's evaluation, technique 15, dribbling 14 and receiving 14 are all very good, speed, explosiveness and running without the ball are all above 15, with his 14 shooting value, it is completely a stupid successor made for Real Madrid. Don't forget, he was born on December 20, 1998, and he will not be 17 until the end of the year.
After a day of tactical play, Lee Mudi put Mbappe on the bench for a home game against La Liga side Eibar Athletic on 18 August and replaced Mariano with him before the start of the second half.
With 45 minutes of play, 5.3 kilometers of distance, 7 successful one-on-one dribbles 5 times, 38 passes including 32 successful passes, 3 shots on goal and 1 goal, Mbappe's Castilla debut was rated 2nd on the team by FM with 7.5 points. The first in the rating was goalkeeper Yáñez, with a super high score of 9.3, and he saved 3 excellent chances for his opponent in the whole game.
The strength of the La Liga team is indeed extraordinary, and even Eibar Athletic, who was predicted by the media to be the favorite for relegation, has put a lot of pressure on Castilla. In this game, Li Mudi's team only had 52% possession, 534 passes were similar to their opponents, and the 75% success rate was evenly divided. In terms of shots, Eibar Athletic's 9 shots on goal and 5 shots on target were ahead of Castilla's 8 shots with 4 on target, but it was thanks to Yáñez's supernatural play and Mbappe's flash of inspiration that the final score was fixed at 1-0, and the home team won hard.
However, the victory over the La Liga team is very encouraging for the whole team. President Francisco went down from the stands to the locker room immediately after the game to praise the coaching staff and players for their form and effort. After the game, Real Madrid's official website also published a brief introduction to the game, and Li Mudi appeared in front of Real Madrid fans for the second time since the news of his appointment.
A day later, Al Haimi decided to join Valladolid on loan on a one-year contract. At this point, the list of players of the Castilla football team in the 15-16 season has also been officially released.
According to the registration regulations of La B League, a maximum of two goalkeepers are allowed in the squad, a maximum of 22 players, a maximum of 16 players over the age of 23 (born before January 1, 1993), and European players under the age of 19 are not required to register.
Li Mudi preliminarily set the list as:
Goalkeepers: Yáñez, Abad;
Right-backs: Forlan, Philippe Ringhardt, (U19) right-back Dani;
Centre-backs: Hector, Jose León, Álvaro Bernabeu, (U19) José Luis Senna;
Left-backs: Abner, Álvaro Tejero, Macias Rodriguez;
Central midfielders: Martin Odegaard, Lucas Toro, Alex Fabas, Javi Muñoz, Fran Gavernina, Alberto Rubio, U19 Haoume Grau, U19 Peperu;
Forward: Enzo;
Right wingers: Alvaro, Cristian Cederes;
Left wingers: Jose Carlos Lazuo, Lin Liangming;
Forwards: Mariano, Narvaez, (U19) Mbappe,
There are 22 registered players plus 6 U19 players, and according to Real Madrid's practice, the team's captain Yáñez and vice-captain Muñoz are determined by the time of joining the team.
Speaking of captain appointments, there is also an episode. According to the time of joining the team, the oldest qualification in the team is goalkeeper Alphonso Hellero, who came to the U19 team in the 09-10 season. However, due to the registration of only two goalkeepers in La Liga B, Yáñez and Abad, who are better in terms of ability and potential, will not be able to play for Castilla this season unless one of them is seriously injured. Therefore, Li Mudi directly excluded Hellero when choosing the captain, which made him dissatisfied, and he kept a straight face during training, and the FM system showed that he was very dissatisfied with the selection of Yáñez as the captain of the team, and thought that he should be the best candidate. Li Mudi couldn't make everyone satisfied, so he had to sacrifice some people for the sake of the overall good of the team, hoping that Hellero would figure it out for himself, because he didn't have time to care about these innocuous little things.
The away game against Parla on 22 August was the last warm-up game of the summer, and after a long run-in and the adaptability of the new recruits, the team's tactical completion has reached the standard of high-intensity competition. The familiarity level provided by FM shows that the familiarity of the team's first choice 4-2-3-1 is 94%, the second choice 4-4-2 is 84%, and the third choice 3-4-1-2 is 78%.
This warm-up match also proved it all: 68% possession, 621 passes 82% success rate, 24 shots on goal 13 times, Mariano scored twice, Mbappe, Toro, Fabas, Abnell and León scored one goal each, 7-0 victory over the fourth division team, ready for the start of the new season.
6 warm-up games, 5 wins and 1 draw, scoring 15 goals and not conceding 1 goal, Li Mudi feels that the upcoming La B League will be very interesting, and various records are beckoning to him.