"It can be said that even if Mourinho came to Stamford Bridge with the title of Champions League champion and UEFA best coach back then, he was not as popular as Pan Yi is today."

Sky Sports host Lineker also lamented from the bottom of his heart.

"Yes." Alan Shearer also picked up Lineker's words and said:

"After all, Mourinho was just a budding coach when he won the Champions League in Porto, and the peak of his real career was still in the Premier League and at Chelsea."

"Pan Yi is different. He has proven himself both in Milan and in Hamburg, especially when he won the treble in Hamburg last season. ”

"And Pan Yi is even younger. He had just turned twenty-eight! This is an age that is not too old even as a professional footballer, but he is already a world-class manager who is recognized as a world-class manager......"

But at this moment, Gary Neville snorted: "Who said it was recognized by the whole world?" ”

Everyone couldn't help but laugh.

Carragher said: "Yes, today's gamble has not yet been decided. It remains to be seen whether Gary will say out loud that Pan Yi is the best coach in the world. ”

Zola also pouted and said, "I think this bet is a bit hasty. Even if Chelsea loses today, I can't call Pan Yi out of class. After all, now Chelsea has one game less but is still ahead of Manchester United, and it is Van Gaal who will leave first. ”

The studio erupted in laughter again.

Roy Keane hurriedly came to speak for Gary Neville: "I think Gary is right, now that the Premier League has only played one or two games, it can't be decided so early. In the end, it is difficult to say whether Manchester United will be ahead or Chelsea will be in front. ”

Neville also nodded and said, "Let's take a look at today's game first!" Pearson has always done a good job defensively at Leicester City, and even if Chelsea play at home, I don't think it will be so easy to knock on Leicester's door. ”

At this time, Lineker also pointed to the big screen in front of him:

'Now the starting line-ups for both sides are out. Let's see what kind of tactics Pearson has prepared to deal with Pan Yi......"

——

In this game, Leicester City's starting lineup was indeed a bit unexpected.

Pearson had a serious 4231 formation and there were a number of changes to the starting line-up from the first game.

Forward: Jamie Vardy.

Front: Schlupp, Nugent, Mahrez.

Defenders: Andy King, Hammond.

Defenders: Kanchesky, Moore, Morgan, Delaette.

Goalkeeper: Kasper Schmeichel Jr.

The most obvious difference is that only Andy King was retained in the back three of the last round against Everton, and the more balanced England veteran Hammond was used to partner him.

'Is Pearson trying to play an attacking game against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge?' Alan Shearer wondered.

Indeed, in addition to the original two midfielders Drinkwater and Cambiaso did not start, the two people in the front court, Schlupp and Nugent, are also attacking players.

These two attacking players, plus Mahrez on the right and Vardy in the center, are a standard 4231 attacking formation.

"Looks like Pearson is quite bold." Carragher also analyzed, "He dared to put out such a starting lineup, which shows that he doesn't just want to get a point at Stamford Bridge. ”

Neville sneered and said, "You see I'm right, right? You all think Chelsea will win, but Leicester don't think so, Pearson doesn't! Perhaps he has seen Chelsea's weaknesses and is ready to strike a fatal blow in this game......

——

Meanwhile, in the visiting dressing room at Stamford Bridge, Pearson was already confused.

He had just been given the Chelsea starting line-up, but it was a drop from what he expected.

Forwards: Eden Hazard, Bamford, Willian.

Midfielders: Joao Cancelo, Loftus-Cheek, N'Golo Kante, Branislav Ivanovic.

Defenders: Ake, Terry, Zouma.

Goalkeeper: Thibaut Courtois.

Compared with the starting lineup that defeated Burnley in the first round, Pan Yi actually replaced seven players in one go today!

What's going on?

It stands to reason that a team that will win, and a team that has won big games, is generally not going to make much changes to its lineup.

But Pan Yi has just changed.

And it's become quite a few!

So this made Pearson really completely confused about Pan Yi's mind.

When the players of the two teams walked out of the tunnel and Pearson shook hands with Pan Yi, he could also see that Pan Yi was very confident, as if he had already guessed that Leicester City would not defend today.

This made Pearson's heart a little apprehensive.

And after shaking hands with Pearson, Pan Yi also went straight to Leicester City's striker, Vardy.

The two of them had spent two wonderful years in Hamburg, and now that they meet on the pitch again, they are already rivals, so it is inevitable that they will exchange a few pleasantries.

After the two men finished talking, Pearson couldn't help but go over and ask Vardy: "What did he tell you?" ”

Jamie Vardy smiled: 'It's nothing, I jokingly asked him why he didn't bring me to Chelsea and he said he would ...... next time.

Jamie Vardy is a professional footballer and he knows that a manager has his own reasons for making a move, and perhaps his characteristics are not suited to the tactics that Chelsea often need to attack.

Therefore, Vardy naturally has no complaints about Pan Yi not taking him away from Hamburg.

On the contrary, in his heart, he is still full of gratitude and reverence for Pan Yi.

After all, it was Pan Yi who made him go from an amateur player working hard in the fifth division to a Bundesliga champion, a Champions League champion, and a top scorer!

It is because of this that he was also favored by many teams, and eventually came to Leicester City and returned to England.

Of course, the reason why Leicester City was finally chosen, in addition to their sincerity, due to his age and personal characteristics, it also has something to do with the fact that there are no big teams interested in him.

Otherwise, who wouldn't want to try it out on a big team?

In fact, this is also normal, not that the members of the team who won the Champions League will necessarily be favored by the strong team, but also the characteristics and potential of the players, the needs of the team and other comprehensive aspects.

Just like the team that won the Champions League last time, that is, Porto led by Mourinho in 04.

At that time, the main strikers Carlos Alberto and Dre were the main midfielders, and the main midfielder was Costinha...... and so on, and then they were poached from some teams in Eastern Europe and even Brazil, and in the end they didn't play.

In fact, after Porto won the championship that year, a few three or four people in the main lineup, such as Deco, Ferreira, and Carvalho, went to the big teams, and most of them were brought to Chelsea by Mu Shuai.

"Didn't talk about the game? Tactics or something? Pearson then asked, "What do you think of our starting line-up today?" ”

"No, we just talked a little bit about home." Vardy shrugged his shoulders, "To be honest, I think he is probably the one who knows the most about my characteristics in this world. We didn't talk, but I felt like he had already laid out what to do with me......"

"Okay." Pearson nodded, allowing Vardy to return to the queue.

Then he heard a tsunami of sound coming from the stands at Stamford Bridge.

It was the DJ on the scene announcing the Chelsea starting line-up for the day, and with every name, there was a cheer.

While it's a Stamford Bridge repertoire, it's clear that the noise is louder today than ever.

On the one hand, because today is Pan Yi's home debut, Chelsea fans are even more excited;

On the other hand, it is because of the starting lineup sent by Pan Yi today......

Five of them came through the Chelsea Academy!!

Academy players make up half of the starters, which is the first time for Chelsea, who have always presented themselves as "mercenaries".

Now on the pitch, the 33-year-old captain John Terry, leading the 20-year-old Bamford, the 19-year-old Ake and Zouma, and the 18-year-old Loftus-Cheek, this is the past and future of Chelsea!

What could be more exciting than seeing so many 'of my own family' on the pitch for Chelsea?

And on the bench, there are even 18-year-old academy players like Christensen.

Of course, after a burst of cheers, a trace of doubt flashed through the hearts of Chelsea fans:

It's only the second round, is it really necessary to start such a large rotation right away?

The first round of the game was played so well, and the starting lineup also proved that there is strong strength and tacit cooperation, can this second lineup also achieve that effect?

What's more, today Coach Pan Yi directly sent so many youth players, is he really sure to use such a young squad to defeat the powerful Leicester City?

It is with such doubts that the game on the field has begun!

——

As the referee's whistle blew, Vardy handed the ball to Riyad Mahrez next to him and sprinted towards the heart of the Chelsea area.

And when Mahrez passed the ball back to the feet of defender Andy King again, several Leicester City's frontcourt players Schlupp, Nugent and others also moved forward.

Then, after a slight look forward, King sent a long pass to find Jamie Vardy, who had run into the Chelsea box.

But Chelsea's centre-back John Terry was so focused that he jumped straight and pushed the ball out of the danger zone.

N'Golo Kante then picked up the ball and crossed diagonally to winger Willian on the right, and the Brazilian cut inside and fired a shot just over the crossbar.

Less than a minute into the game, Chelsea had a shot on goal!

And judging from Leicester City's opening strategy, they also wanted to grab a start, but they were prevented.

From this point of view, both sides are indeed not conservative, and they are both thinking that they can score in the opening stages!

Because of this, the tempo of the game was fast from the first minute, but the Chelsea players had some advantages in their ability to pass the ball, so they had a slight advantage on the pitch.

"Pan Yi's set of 343 is really different from other coaches."

Pearson has also come to see where the Chelsea players are on the pitch, including some of their movement and team-up in defence and attack.

As a professional coach, he has certainly studied all kinds of formations and styles of play that are popular in the world, including the big school of three central defenders.

At present, in the Premier League, the one who has been insisting on using the 3 central defender tactic, except for Pan Yi, is Manchester United's Van Gaal.

However, looking at it now, there is a significant difference between the three central defenders of the two teams, which makes the whole system very different.

For example, in the second round of Manchester United against Sunderland.

Van Gaal didn't use the 'big circle tactic' at the time, but instead used a 5-1-3-1 stance when defending, with Fletcher playing as a defensive midfielder and Van Persie up front.

United's initial approach was to block the space in the middle and stop Sunderland's midfield from advancing.

However, they didn't last long and were slotted home in the 30th minute.

Unlike Chelsea, United's full-backs don't have the power to move forward to keep an eye on the opposite full-back.

Sunderland will use Virginie and Van Aanholt as full-backs to stay close to the touchline when attacking, and they will not cut inside as often as they do, but will go around the United defence.

This has made it very uncomfortable for United's wing-backs, especially Valencia, who often find themselves alone against Sunderland's wide two.

Juan Mata did not retreat resolutely and Cleverley was hesitant to leave the central defence, with the result that Sunderland were always a threat to United in the wide area.

United then changed their stance to a flat 5-4-1, but that raised new questions.

After the Reds fielded a four-man midfield defence, Sunderland began to find space between the Reds' two fronts, with striker Wickham always up front, while the other two fronts, Ross Barkley and Stephen Fletcher, rotated frequently.

This allowed Sunderland to maintain a numerical advantage in a small area, and it also made the division of labour in the United defence a little less clear, and there was some confusion about positioning and pressing timing.

The United defence would have been exposed with ease, and Sunderland would have had it been effortless to extend the score even further if it hadn't been for David De Gea.

But the 343 used by Pan Yi at Chelsea does not seem to have a problem with Manchester United.

Without the ball, Chelsea's first line of defence will remain narrow, while the defence remains high.

Wing-backs will be given the freedom to move forward to look out for the opposing full-backs, while the centre-backs will adopt a proactive defensive mindset to deal with the opposing wingers.

The narrower formation also allows for less space between Chelsea's lines, creating a numerical advantage on the side of the ball.

They also have a pretty good pressing system, with a 5-3-2 stance when defending, with forwards putting pressure on the opposing centre-backs.

The winger on the side of the ball will either block the pass in the middle and compress the space on the pitch, or he will have to watch over the opposite full-back.

In the process, the wingers at the far end will drop back to form a midfield trio with Loftus-Cheek and N'Golo Kante to further solidify the defense in the middle.

Of course, Chelsea players are generally more athletic.

In the case of centre-forward Bamford, who started today, although he seems to lack some fire in his final shots and passes, he is extremely athletic.

Sometimes one second he is seen stealing points in the Leicester penalty area, and the next second he has moved to the midfield or even the back to round up the Leicester players with the ball.

And it's not just Bamford, of course.

Whether it's Loftus-Cheek in midfield, Joao Cancelo on the left wing-back, or Willian on the right, they're all running hard.

As a result, Chelsea's overall tactics have been fairly fluid, with no hint of stagnation in any part – something that United often give the impression of.

This, combined with Chelsea's system, will give wing-backs considerable flexibility and allow them to play into the opposition box.

The wing-backs have an excellent understanding of the game with the wingers on the same flank, can rotate frequently, and the wing-back's job is to maintain the width, but not to stick to it dogmatically for 90 minutes.

Chelsea players' responsibilities are frequently reversed, with the wing-back threatening the opposition penalty area as an in-cut winger on many occasions.

In the process, the wingers will also switch to the wing to pull the opponent's formation and open up the gaps in the ribs.

It was the relentless movement of the Chelsea players, coupled with the natural rotation of the positions, that it was difficult for the opposition to deal with.

'If you're playing with three centre-backs, the wing-backs are closer to the midfielders than the full-backs.

Speaking to reporters before the game, Pan Yi said when asked about Chelsea's three-centre-back tactics.

'I wouldn't call Cesar Azpilicueta or Alonso a defender. There are times when they do need to be involved defensively, but they all have the freedom to be involved in the attack. ”

'They are closer to the opposition box than the traditional full-backs. We're going to encourage them to rush into the box, be attacking finishers and increase our attacking threat. ”

'Including them going inside like a winger, that's what I'm allowed to do, there's nothing wrong with that.

'The focus is on the areas we want to attack. In all areas where we want to show an attacking threat, we have players in place. So if a winger pulls the side to provide the attacking width, the wing-back can attack the ribs. ”

"Tactics are dead, formations are dead, but people are alive."

"As long as the players know what they should be doing on the pitch, why they are doing it, and how they are going to do it, then no matter what position they are in on the pitch, they can perform their duties well without being imprisoned and constrained by their position......"

Pearson now remembered Pan Yi's words, and realized that what he said was actually true.

He really told everyone about his tactics before the game!

This also shows how confident Pan Yi is in the flexibility of his rotation tactics.

Because the more flexible the tactics, the harder it is for the opponent to target!

Yes, you know that Chelsea's wing-backs and wingers take turns attacking their ribs, but do you know when and how they attack?

Sometimes even their midfielders are there, and then the wingers run into midfield to help defend......

Looking at it, Pearson also understood why Pan Yi wanted to use a player like Willian to play as a winger.

All-round! You can run!

In fact, the same is true for Seat B and Cesar Azpilicueta, who started in the previous round.

All of them are masters who can run all over the field and can play in any position they stand.

In fact, this is also the reason why Pan Yi can carry out such a large-scale rotation in the second round, and use the confidence of so many young players.

That is, after the summer of special training, these players have actually systematically received Pan Yi's tactical ideas, and everyone who can stay in the first team is called upon to fight!

Now, both Willian and Eden Hazard are very active on both flanks.

Including the young Joao Cancelo, who is also actively cooperating with Hazard, frequently inserting along the left flank.

After a dozen minutes of pushing each other, Leicester's players seemed to be starting to get a little overwhelmed.

They are also a little uncomfortable with such a wide range of interspersed runs and transitions at Chelsea.

The Leicester players began to unconsciously shrink back in order to better narrow the range of the Chelsea players' runs so that they could take a defensive position and tackle the ball at the feet of the Chelsea players.

But in doing so, Chelsea's attack has become even more reckless.

More often, they used their skills at their feet and small combinations to play dangerous attacks on both of Leicester's flanks.

In the 20th minute, Chelsea quickly moved the ball to the left flank after a break in their own half.

Before Cancelo could cross the halfway line, he spotted the space in front of him and sent a diagonal cross with his left foot to the ground and the ball was transferred to the left side of the pitch and into the feet of Eden Hazard.

The Belgian striker stopped the ball and, without waiting for Andy King to get close, quickly picked up a pass and sent it directly to the middle of the front.

There, centre-forward Bamford was ready to pick up.

But Leicester City's centre-back captain Morgan has long been entangled with Bamford, making it impossible for the young England striker to turn around.

It's just that Bamford is not to be outdone, and the 185cm tall also tries to jam Morgan with his body, and then seeks opportunities to cooperate with his teammates in the back row.

The two of them got together like this.

When Hazard's pass flew in front of Bamford, Morgan saw the moment to get on the scurry, but couldn't hit the ball.

Instead, he hit Bamford with a solid kick, and he fell to the ground.

The referee also blew the whistle decisively!

Chelsea were awarded a well-placed free-kick.

The ball was just over 20 metres from goal, slightly to the left.

Soon, Eden Hazard and Willian, who were the better free-kick players at the Chelsea pitch, were in front of the ball.

And Leicester City naturally did not dare to slack off, and a five-person wall has been discharged.

At this point the whistle sounds.

William ran first, but instead of touching the ball, he ran straight to the side of the wall.

Hazard ran again at this time, and he still did not choose to shoot directly on goal.

With a flick of the arch of his right foot, the ball rolled right into the feet of William, who had already run in front of him.

At this time, the defenders of Leicester City were stunned for a moment, and only after reacting did they rush forward to block it.

But it was too late.

Willian scrambled ahead and fired a volley straight from the penalty spot.

The shot was powerful and the ball flew straight to the right of the Leicester goal at lightning speed.

Leicester City's Danish goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel was still on the other side of the wall.

At the moment when William shot the goal, although he reacted quickly, the whole person flew out sideways, but after all, he still failed to save William's angry shot.

“Goallllllllllllllllllllllll！！！！！！”

'In the opening 20 minutes, Chelsea used a clever free-kick to open the scoring with Willian's shot!'

'I heard that Chelsea pay special attention to set-pieces in training, but I didn't expect them to really do it like this!

"This can't help but remind me of Hamburg in the previous two seasons, and it's not the first time Pan Yi has used such a 'trick' in a game......"

As the whistle blew for the goal, the entire Stamford Bridge stadium was boiling in an instant.

All the Chelsea fans stood up and cheered wildly.

Led by the stadium DJ, the crowd chanted Willian's name over and over again.

Willian also rushed to the sidelines, celebrating his first Premier League goal of the season.

It was also Chelsea's first goal at home this season!

Pan Yi calmly raised his right fist in the coach's seat of the home team and congratulated William Yaoyao.

He didn't act as excited as the players or the fans.

Because he knows in his heart that Chelsea's storm tonight is just beginning!

(End of chapter)