The "learning" at the training center in Hamburg has benefited Loew a lot.

And then at the pre-game preparation meeting in Hamburg, he felt how terrifying Pan Yi's control of details was in the arrangement of his opponents.

"Schalke 04 this season is a team that is more focused on defense."

"In the last 13 rounds, they have scored just 20 goals, which is the bottom of the top eight teams."

"But what got them where they are now is because of their good defense."

"We have only conceded 12 goals in 13 rounds, which is the third highest among all Bundesliga teams, behind Bayern Munich and us. That's just one more goal than us. ”

When Pan Yi came up, he first laid out the data, and then began to analyze:

"In this team, the attack relies most on their main striker, Dutchman Huntelaar."

'His style is a bit like that of his Dutch predecessor Ruud van Nistelrooy, with a keen nose in the box and excellent shooting skills that can be used to get passes into the opposition goal at any time.

"Last season, the high-performance goalscorer made 48 appearances and scored 48 goals. At the same time, he also dished out 19 assists. These pretty beautiful statistics have earned him the Europa League and the Bundesliga Golden Boot. ”

'He's scored fewer goals this season, but he still can't let his guard down. Now I'll talk about his weaknesses. ”

"First of all, he's a typical point-grabbing striker, so his ability to push forward with the ball is average. We're going to take that and cut off his team-mates, especially the two wings. ”

"Whether it's restricting Finn Pukki or pressing Peruvian winger Farfan, we need to play to the strengths of active running and teamwork, so that they can't support Huntelaar!"

"In addition, although Huntelaar is in good physical condition, as far as I can see, his ability to fight is actually average. Our centre-backs can step up their direct physical contact with him when necessary, and I've already focused on Rudiger and Kjaer in that regard, so I won't go into that here. ”

"In addition, we can limit his play in this way......"

As Pan Yi spoke, the coaches and players in the conference room nodded frequently, and Loew, who was sitting in the corner, was also taking out his small notebook and taking notes.

It's a habit he developed when he was Klinsmann's assistant coach.

Of course, Loew didn't take everything Pan Yi said, after all, like Huntelaar's technical characteristics or something, he himself will also study it when facing the Dutch national team.

He was just surprised that Pan Yi was so thorough in his research on the weaknesses of his opponent, almost three hundred and sixty degrees without dead ends.

In this way, even if the opponent has something to deal with at that time, because they are well prepared, the players on the field can immediately find another way to deal with it.

Now Loew is more interested in hearing what Pan Yi has to say about the German players in Schalke 04's team.

In the current Schalke 04 team, captain Hevedes is the focus of Loew's investigation.

After all, he is the head coach of the German national team, and selecting the right players to play for his country is one of his most important tasks.

And soon, Pan Yi talked about what Loew was most interested in:

"A big reason why Schalke 04 has done so well defensively this season is because of the good performance of their captain Hevedes."

"Hevedes has a strong ability to read the game, so he can react quickly and interrupt the opponent's attack. This made it difficult for the opposition striker to break through his defence, as Hevedes was able to defuse the attack before they could react. ”

So far this season, Hwedes has averaged 3.3 interceptions per game, which is one of the highest in the Bundesliga. This statistic also proves that he is excellent in front defense. ”

'This kind of excellent interception of his is also very helpful for the wide defence. He will often assist on the wing, covering the entire right flank, so that his team-mate Atsuto Uchida can safely plug in and assist the right winger more widely. ”

And when Hevedes was on the right flank, he signalled for the whole team to fill each other's positions. For example, Matip/Papadopoulos for Hevedes, Fuchs for Matip/Papadopoulos, Afelai for Fuchs, and so on, without leaving the opposition strikers and midfielders to take advantage of. ”

'Hevedes organises the back line very well in this way. At the same time, he can also play a leading role by constantly shouting on the field, and coordinate the overall defensive command. Schalke's performances this season, particularly the very few goals conceded, speak to the role of Hvedes at the back. ”

After dissecting the characteristics of Hevedes, Pan Yi began to propose a solution:

So, what are his shortcomings? The most obvious point is that he is often too far away from his centre-back partner and the huge space between them can be exploited. ”

"Our strikers are very fast, so we have to take advantage of this gap and repeatedly intersperse here and tear this hole!"

'It's the same with the passing in midfield, De Bruyne has to give more through balls and don't be afraid to make mistakes. It only takes one or two successes to score a goal! ”

"Also, his passing, his speed is not very good. So that's where our frontcourt pressing tactics come in handy. ”

"With Jamie as the center, Son Heung-min and Wu Lei have to control the ball of their teammates next to Hwedes at the same time, so that he can create shooting opportunities by forcing him to pass the ball wrongly!"

"Also, we can ......do the same with his centre-back partner Papadopoulos"

Loew is truly breathtaking.

The analysis of Hevedes is definitely better than his, or rather than the analysis of the entire German coaching staff!

By the end of this pre-match preparation meeting, Loew couldn't help but grab Pan Yi and asked:

"Coach Pan Yi, do you think Hevedes can have a place in the German national team?"

Pan Yi pondered for a moment and replied: "To be honest, if it is in the central defender position that he is best at, he may only be able to play as a substitute." I think whether it's Boateng, Hummels or even Murdesak, the playing order should be above him. ”

"What ......?"

'But he can also play at left-back. You must be frustrating that you don't have the right person at left-back, right? Pan Yi smiled, "And, as someone who can play in all positions in the backline, it's always right to take him with you." ”

At the 2014 World Cup, although Hwedes was considered a weakness in the German team, he was always a key target of attack by opponents.

But in the end, he withstood the pressure and the test and completed his task as a cameo left-back.

He played seven games and played a decisive role in winning the World Cup in Brazil!

As a traverser, there's always nothing wrong with giving such reliable advice.

"Makes sense......" Loew nodded, thoughtful.

Indeed, compared to the talented centre-backs and right-backs with Lahm in charge, the Germans are a bit of a struggler at left-back.

Anyway, Janssen, Ogo and even Westermann in the Hamburg team have all been called up by Loew to try this position in the national team, but they are not satisfactory.

Pan Yi's statement gave Loew a new idea......

At the end of the conversation, Pan Yi added:

"Oh, by the way, their Draxler is not bad either. Although he is only 19 years old and needs some competition workout, you should be using it in two years' time. ”

Draxler, of course, was also a member of the 2014 German team that Pan Yi knew in his previous life......

(End of chapter)