Chapter 48 A Good Hand

Rafael's recent form has been bad, but not without reason, and the entire Barcelona coaching staff knows why the Brazilian, who provided nine assists in 39 appearances last season, is out of form.

The reason is simple, Raphael...... Fat!

After a month and a half of vacation, Rafael's weight has increased by ten kilograms, and others have only seen his face round again, but Barcelona's coaching staff knows very well how much the fat ratio of this Brazilian star has increased, and it is obvious that Rafael is squandering his body capital without restraint this holiday.

Think about what Shaq, who has become the "king of the ball", did this summer, he returned to the team two weeks earlier than others to start training, his body "woke up" earlier than others, and now he has entered the best condition.

Comparing the two, every member of the Barcelona coaching staff is sighing that if there is any player in the world who deserves the most success, it is obviously Shaq.

Raphael's question was not made public, but Simon? Grayson specifically found the Brazilian, and said with a serious face: "Rafael, you have gained ten kilograms this holiday, and your current state is no longer suitable for the team as the main player, I don't know...... What do you think? ”

Face Simon? Grayson, Rafael was silent, last season was the most successful season of his career, he followed Barcelona as the main right-back, helped the team win the La Liga championship, the Copa del Rey, and the Champions League with an unbeaten record, becoming the "treble", he is indeed the hero of the team, and was selected for the best team in La Liga, the best team in the Champions League, in the position of right-back. Last season's Rafael was the best in Europe.

The rest of the summer did not wake up to the joy of success, and he spent a crazy holiday with his brother Fabio in his hometown in Brazil, where alcohol, women, and parties became the main theme of the holiday, and all kinds of habits that were not conducive to the football career appeared.

Originally, Raphael didn't think so. But when he faced Simon? Grayson, he suddenly realized that he was wrong, he seemed to ...... Betrayed the manager's trust in himself!

At Manchester United, Simon? Grayson was not optimistic about Rafael at that time, and even sold him himself, but when they met again in Barcelona last season, the mature Rafael has really grown into an excellent right-back. Grayson made a promise to him to play the main team, and last season Simon? Grayson did the same. Rafael also rewarded his head coach with a great performance.

But now...... Raphael suddenly regretted it, he regretted his unbridled during the holidays.

After a moment of silence, Raphael said, "Chief, I think...... I'm not in the right place to play anymore, so I don't complain at all about putting me on the bench. I just hope ...... I just hope that when I get back in shape, please give me another chance. ”

Raphael's attitude is sincere, and it's totally fine, Simon? Grayson was also surprised. At first, their coaching staff thought that this was a common problem for Rafael to get carried away with the Brazilian players, and even the team was ready to plan. If Rafael doesn't know to repent, then just give him up, Gonzalo has been excellent in training and in good form in the game, and another excellent product produced by the La Masia Academy has been finalized.

But now it seems...... It's really time to give Raphael a chance!

Nodding, Simon? Grayson said: "Raphael. It's good that you understand that, after all, you're a professional footballer, and our profession is professional football, so a lot of times we can't be emotional, and you're in a bad state right now. I'd like to see you adjust to that before that...... You just sit on the bench first! Like the promise I made to you this time last year, this time I'm going to leave you a chance and when you're back in form, you can go and compete with Gonzalo, I think...... Hehe, you're so experienced, you'll know how to win the competition, and Gonzalo's hairy boys still need to learn from you! ”

Simon? Grayson's words made Raphael laugh, he could fully see that his competitor was indeed extremely talented, maybe in two or three years he would not be able to compete with him at all, but now...... His own experience is definitely unmatched by Gonzalo.

Watching the pacified Raphael go away happily, Simon? Grayson smiled bitterly and sighed, shaking his head helplessly, things ...... How can it be so simple!?

Gonzalo's talent is in his own eyes, this right-back is completely seamlessly integrated into the team, Barcelona's traditional tactics are vividly reflected in him, when he is in the position of right-back, Gonzalo does not blindly rush up at all, many times when he sees that the opportunity in front is not very good, he will choose to pass the ball horizontally, back pass, this kind of calmness on the field is very rare, Rafael even in peak condition can not necessarily play a better role than Gonzalo on the field, now ...... That's even harder!

Immediately after, Simon? Grayson thought of the fifteen-year-old Chinese boy Chen in the team, this kid doesn't look at his age, his potential is really amazing, his physical fitness is good, he is especially good at teamwork, etc., and he is very fierce when defending, a bit of the characteristics of Barcelona's famous Puyol, and in two or three years, he will definitely grow to an amazing extent, and it is precisely because of the existence of Chen Jinlong, Simon? Grayson didn't find out that Rafael was not in good shape, otherwise he would have looked for new signings from the transfer market early in the morning, considering that Barcelona has a lot of games to play this season.

At the end of August, Barcelona went to the Frankie Stadium in Florence, Italy to play the "Gunners" Arsenal in the UEFA Super Cup, and with the help of Shaq's 1 goal and 2 assists, they defeated Arsenal with a score of 4:1 and won the first championship trophy of the season and became the "Quadruple Champion"!

Back in Spain, Barcelona has come to play the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup with Valencia, and this time they will play Valencia in a row, played the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup, and then the second round of the league with Valencia, and it is still away.

In this game, Simon? Grayson has made a big adjustment to the team, which is a chance to give some players a chance to rest, after all, with the first leg of the 9:0 victory in hand, Barcelona can really play how they want, and even Du Xiaoguang and Gimenez have teamed up to replace the combination of Batista and Rivero, plus Crisito as the left back, Chen Jinlong at the right back, and Barcelona's entire back line has been replaced.

Anyway, even if you lose the game, you can definitely win the Super Cup, but then you will end Simon? Grayson is on a 63-game unbeaten run at Barcelona.

Simon? Grayson fully trusted his players, and the players did not disappoint him, they beat their opponents 1-0 away from home, the only goal of the game was not scored by the Barcelona players, but another own goal from the opponent, and the two legs of the Super Cup encounter, Valencia gave an own goal every game, and the team's defense was really very problematic.

Valencia's problem is Valencia's problem, and it has nothing to do with Barcelona, "Brutal Simon" returned to Barcelona with his disciples holding the Spanish Super Cup, and the whole city is boiling again, they have become the "five champions", only one step away from the "six crowns" created by Guardiola, if you take into account the team's record, it is obvious that this Barcelona team is better now, after all, since Simon? They haven't lost since Grayson arrived.

It's been a year and a half since Barcelona last lost the Barcelona derby on 14 April 2018, and the Catalans have really forgotten what defeat is like.

In the eyes of his rivals, the most terrifying thing about Simon is precisely this, he has managed teams that will always be difficult to beat, his first season in charge of Manchester United five years ago was only after securing the Premier League title, he lost away to Manchester City, his second season was just two games, 2-3 away to Juventus, and 1-3 away to Leeds United in the Carabao Cup, after which he spent two years in charge of the "Three Lions", and only in the Confederations Cup1: 2 lost to France, but in the final, they won the Confederations Cup with a 4-1 win over France.

Overall, "Brutal Simon" is now the champion coach with the highest winning percentage in world football, winning 87 per cent of the more than 400 games he has managed during his coaching career, losing only 7 per cent of the time, and the remaining 6 per cent coming in draws.

Now, Simon with a good hand in his hand? Grayson is even more difficult to beat, Barcelona's lineup is already very strong, recently "brutal Simon" actually excavated Du Xiaoguang from the La Masia academy, Chen Jinlong two young Chinese boys, and although one of these two little guys is sixteen years old, the other has just turned sixteen, but the performance on the court is quite good, Du Xiaoguang's composure, Chen Jinlong's impact and excellent interception ability on the right side, all indicate that Barcelona seems to be about to get a bumper harvest again.

Vasquis, Gonzalo, Du Xiaoguang, Chen Jinlong, these four players have come out of the La Masia Academy, the oldest Vasquiz is only 23 years old, but he has become the main force of the Spanish national team, the 20-year-old Gonzalo performed amazingly at the beginning of this season, coupled with Du Xiaoguang and Chen Jinlong, the La Masia Academy is really worthy of the name of "West Point" in football.

And if you consider Otara, who is doing well at the moment, and Matthews, who is doing well in the warm-ups? Muller, "Brutal Simon" is really good at digging out young players, and it seems that any few hairy boys can become good cards in his hands, and easily set off a "youth storm" in the Barcelona team. (To be continued......)