With the quarter-finals all over, the semi-final matchups of this World Cup are also out.

On the evening of July 10, the first final will be played by France against Belgium, and a day later on July 11, the second semi-final will be played by Italy against Croatia.

Italian fans are optimistic about this Eastern European powerhouse, which cannot be regarded as a traditional powerhouse in the world, and in their opinion, Croatia is easier to deal with than strong teams like Germany and England, right?

Although Croatia's performance so far in this World Cup has been excellent, the impression of a team is always ingrained in the fans, and they think more simply.

Fortunately, Pan Yi will not think so simple.

After accumulating enough "golden generation", Croatia is also on the rise in this year's World Cup.

In the group stage, Croatia shocked the world with a 3-0 win over last year's runner-up Argentina, and then qualified as the group leader with a record of three wins.

And then it's time to show the team's tenacious fighting and willpower.

Croatia played each other for 120 minutes in both the round of 16 and quarter-finals before beating Denmark and Russia on penalties to reach the last four of the World Cup for the second time in their history.

For such a team, does Pan Yi dare not to take it seriously?

And if you analyze the lineup, this Croatia team is also star-studded, especially in the midfield, which is no worse than Germany and England.

Now Croatia basically likes to adopt a 4-1-4-1 formation, with Brozovic as a single midfielder, Rebic, Modric, Rakitic, Perisic in front of him, and Mandzukic at the front.

As for this midfield, they are basically from European giants such as Inter, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Juventus.

That is, the star flavor of the back line is a little lighter, but Fosarico from Atletico Madrid, Lovren from Liverpool, and goalkeeper Subasic from Monaco are also very strong.

In terms of player composition, the midfield of the Croatian national team can be said to be impeccable.

They have a midfield master like Luka Modric, an excellent all-round midfielder like Rakitic next to him, and the breakthroughs of Rebic and Perisic on the wings, plus the attacking ground of the striker Mandzukic, can you compare Germany, England or something?

There is even a Kovacic on the bench who has mixed with Inter, Real Madrid, Chelsea and Manchester City......

Although there are no superstars on the backline, the backline composed of Lovren, Vida and others is also quite practical, and the running of the back Brozovic has made Croatia's waist stiffer, and at the same time, the technical players in the front field have no worries.

It can even be said that the overall strength of this Croatian team is stronger than their predecessors, the last "golden generation" who won the third place in the 98 World Cup.

The main stars of the original Croatian team were Davo Suker who played for Real Madrid, Boban of AC Milan, and Prosineschi who played for Real Madrid and Barcelona successively.

Among other well-known players, there are also "Rock Coach" Bilic, who later served as the head coach of the Croatian national team, Sordo, the current assistant coach of Shandong Luneng, Real Madrid defender Giarni, Milan defender Simic and so on.

But if you want to count more, it will be more difficult, because most of the other players play in the Croatian domestic league and are not very famous.

In fact, the same is true in terms of performance comparisons.

In Pan Yi's previous life, the current Croatian golden generation reached the semifinals in two consecutive World Cups, in addition to this one, there is also 2022, and the final result is one runner-up and one third place.

This result has far surpassed the class led by Davao Suker, and it can be said that this group of Croatian players formed the best team in Croatian history.

They were able to do all this, in addition to the quality of the players, the efforts of head coach Dalic are of course inseparable.

Dalic, who sat in the coach's seat, was always one-eyed and unsmiling, and seemed difficult to get close to, but this expressionless seriousness was actually the secret to Dalic's success.

He is a coach with a weak background, and in 2018, that is, this year, before he was appointed to the national team, few people even heard of him.

After all, since starting his professional career, Dalic has spent many years in the last Eastern European leagues, and in his first five years in charge of the national team, he coached as far away as the Middle East.

And when Croatia did not perform well in the 2018 World Preliminary Tournament and former head coach Tsacic was forced to step down, Dalic took over the coaching whip.

No one is optimistic about Dalic.

After all, in the past few years, many famous coaches such as Bilic, Kovac, and Tsacic have failed to lead Croatia to good results, and Dalic, a nobody who temporarily led the team on the verge of being out of the World Preliminary Tournament, is unlikely to get enough expectations.

However, Dalic made a military order: "If I can't make it to the World Cup, I'll be dismissed." ”

Then, he worked miracles.

Just three days into his tenure, Dalic had just taken charge and had an away game against Ukraine, which was a do-or-die match for Croatia, but Dalic proved that he only needed three days to turn the team's slump around.

In this do-or-die match, Croatia, who had only beaten Kosovo in the entire second round, miraculously defeated Ukraine to qualify for the play-offs, and beat Greece over two legs in the play-offs to claim the right to the World Cup.

Croatia has a lot of big names in the team, and Dalic is actually the weakest in the team.

We often know that a coach who doesn't have a top-notch record is hard to get a foothold in a team full of high-level athletes because he doesn't convince the players of him.

Dalic is an exception, however, as a junior coach, he has made the team up and down the ranks of players big and small respect him, and he has established a strong personal authority, even at the cost of maintaining it.

Dalic's responsibility, self-confidence, decisiveness and firmness have won the trust and support of all Croatian players, as a coach who has never coached a top team or a top player, he can successfully master the Croatian dressing room, which in itself reflects Dalic's high intelligence.

In fact, similar to Belgium's dressing room, which is often divided due to language barriers, there are also some ethnic tensions within the Croatian squad due to Yugoslavia's historical legacy.

But during Dalic's tenure, the whole team exuded an atmosphere of unity and progress, and even if there were some turmoil caused by player problems, the team was still able to tighten like a rope.

It has to be said that this is what Dalic excels at.

Of course, for a team to achieve good results, it is not enough to rely on charisma, you have to show something real on the field.

And this Croatian team's tactics are in stock at first glance, as you can see from the first game against Argentina.

Argentina's style of play, known all over the world, revolves around Messi.

Even if the tactical initiation is adjusted to the wing, Argentina is actually still a team waiting for Messi to start everything.

As a result, Dalic's tactics were sophisticated enough, allowing the Plaid Army to quickly dismantle Argentina's tactics with local packs and early cut-offs.

Moreover, under normal circumstances, Croatia has always maintained a constant pace, and the intensity of the frontcourt pressing has always been maintained, not to the point of crazy grabbing, but it just does not allow the Argentines to play comfortably.

However, once Croatia sniffed the opportunity, it was really an instant chase and a hard hit.

Modric is the key to speeding up, in the "grinding" stage, he is not visible, and occasionally comes to a "eh, why can't I think of" pass, that's all.

But when the opponent's formation is getting looser and the top defense is getting weaker and weaker, Modric will not be soft on his feet.

Then, with Luka Modric scoring a stunning long-range shot, Argentina's collapse began.

So, how to deal with such a team with superstars and good tactical literacy?

If you look at it with simple thinking, defensive counterattack may be the best way to deal with this Croatian team, but Pan Yi does not see it that way.

Croatia's ability to penetrate and tear through opposition defences with short passes up front was quite remarkable, especially with their centre-forward Mandzukic, a fighter who would run all over the pitch for the sake of scoring goals, and no amount of defensive excellence could guarantee that he would not get a chance for the whole game.

Even if it is a quick counterattack, Croatia is not slow to return to the defense at the back, and it also has height, and there is Brozovic in front of him to help sweep.

Against this kind of team, it is absolutely impossible to defend to the core, their technique and short passing combination and ball control are above Italy.

It's also not good to go out and press the attack, like Rebic and Perisic on their wings, they are the kind of strikers who are skilled and flexible, leaving enough space in the backfield for the opponent to sprint back and forth, and they can only find death.

In Pan Yi's view, to deal with this kind of team, it is necessary to start pressing from the midfield, disrupt the opponent's offensive rhythm, not leave too much space and space for the opponent in the backcourt, and use the overall defense to deal with their offense.

At the same time, deal with them through counterattacks with small cooperation between several people, constantly accumulate advantages, and finally kill them with one blow.

Of course, any tactic that is good in theory will definitely make a big difference in the actual execution, after all, the execution ability of the players, the previous tactical drills, and the sudden time on the field can break the deployment.

However, Pan Yi's mad dog-style attacking attack in the front court, which he has been using since the last game, is also suitable for Croatia in this game.

In the last game, in order to save some energy, Italy used the tactics of recovering the defense and counterattacking quickly in the second half, and this game is the time to do its best.

That's where Italy's biggest advantage comes in.

In the two knockout matches, Italy beat their opponents lightly, while Croatia played the full 120 minutes, and the physical advantages and disadvantages were clear at first sight.

If Italy are to go full speed in the game, Croatia will have to keep up.

Both sides started with a full tank of fuel, but the Italian team obviously had a larger tank capacity and would last a little longer.

Just wait until Croatia's tank bottoms out, and then Italy's chance comes.

If you win, you'll be in the finals!

And, on the positive news for Italy, the opposition top striker Mandzukic was substituted due to injury in the last game, and it is not yet known if he will be able to play in the semi-finals.

It's just that what is the extent of his injury, Dalic is really old-fashioned, and he didn't let out any rumors, which can play the role of some smoke bombs, and also makes Pan Yi not completely sure of his formation and playing style for the time being.

After all, Mandzukic can play, and Mandzukic can't play, and Croatia's tactical changes will be too much......

If Mandzukic can play, there is nothing to say, and it is estimated that Croatia's tactics are still the same.

But if he can't play, whether it's Kramaric to replace him as a central striker, or to bring in Rebic or Perisic as a double striker, the tactics are different.

Just looking at the way Dalic avoided talking about Mandzukic's injury during the interview in the past two days, it seems that the Croatian meritorious coach intends to put the suspense at the end......

"Whether Mandzukic can play in the semi-finals or not, let's assume that he can play." Pan Yi told the coaches: "Croatia's tactics are beautiful and practical, and Modric's ability to stuff the ball in the middle is also very good, as long as there is space in the back, they can create a lot of opportunities for the forwards." Mandzukic has also been very good at taking his chances in this tournament and has scored three goals now, so we have to pay attention. ”

The coaches looked at each other and nodded.

Modric is now at his peak, and the midfield combination he leads is organized, broken, conscious and cooperative, and Brozovic fills the position back and forth, and there is no lack of hardness.

With their support, even if Mandzukic is unable to play due to injury, using Kramaric or other strikers, Croatia's attacking threat will not be reduced too much.

This also has a very positive answer for Pan Yi, because in 2022, this Croatian team will not have Mandzukic, but they did reach the semi-finals!

'Defensively we're going to have some problems but we don't have to be too scared because it's not going to be a goal game. We have to be confident in our attack and use the goals to knock out Croatia and we can do that. ”

Pan Yi continued to make comparisons on the tactical board: "Lovren was very brave when he was young, but now he has an average turning speed, and the position of central defender may be more troublesome for Vida. He's got speed, he's not very bad in height, and he's brave......"

'But he's not without his flaws, he likes to go around the front and defend, which works at times, but it's a recipe for failure. Lovren, who was in the back, was more of a game-changer and we could use that more to get behind them......"

"As for the two wings, Strinic likes to fight more, and he feels that it is a little more difficult to break through on that side, so we focus on defense on that side, and the focus of attack is on Fosarico's side......"

"York City played Atletico Madrid in the Europa League final this season, and I felt that he was average in speed and explosiveness, and he was more good at attacking, so I used Spinazzola to suppress him. This kind of full-back is afraid of players like Spinazzola, who are relatively fast. ”

The coaches nodded their heads in agreement.

Fosarico's characteristic is that he likes to cross, likes to shoot from a distance, and in general he is more attacking, but his defense is not particularly good.

Sometimes he needs a midfielder to help fill in on this side, but in the Croatian national team, Brozovic has more places to fill in the position, and he is mostly on his own.

Therefore, it was a solid idea to use Spinazzola against him.

"As for the attacking tactics up front...... The tactics of the first half against England could not have been more appropriate. Pan Yi laughed, "Although the main offensive and defensive cores of the Croatian national team are from Barcelona and Real Madrid, against these two teams, the pressing in the midfield, the wide range of runs and disrupting the offensive rhythm are really suitable...... I have learned a lot about dealing with them. ”

The coaches laughed, Pan Yi's greatest wealth to the Italian national team is not anything else, but his rich experience against European giants.

Whether it is Atletico Madrid or Real Madrid and Barcelona's players, Pan Yi is very familiar with it, so he can better prescribe the right medicine and give his own plan.

"What if Mandzukic can't play?" Evani asked.

"If Mandzukic can't play, then Dalic has only two options." Pan Yi said what he had just thought, and then directly gave a response plan.

"If Kramaric were to play as a centre-forward, our basic tactics would remain the same, and we might have made it easier for us because his impact is weaker than Mandzukic's."

With a height of only 177cm and a weight of only 73kg, Kramaric is not a strong center at all.

And in the last game against England, even a striker of Harry Kane's level did not take advantage of the confrontation with the Italian central defender, let alone the smaller Kramaric.

Even if he is more flexible than Mandzukic, neither Bastoni nor Bonucci are the kind of centre-backs like wooden stakes – like Harry Maguire?

And isn't Raheem Sterling, who is more flexible in England's forward line, also blocked? Therefore, Pan Yi is still very confident in his own defense.

'Another option for Dalic is to bring in Rebic and Perisic up front, but then they will have less control and attack in midfield and less pressure at the back.

"But no matter how it changes, they are always inseparable from this category. So we don't need to change our tactics, strengthen the movement in the midfield, don't leave too many gaps in the back, launch a counterattack on the spot after breaking the ball, and use the cooperation between several players in the front field to get opportunities......"

'That's the tactic we used for this game and it's the tactic we're better at. In this case, we will firmly focus on our tactics, no matter what they do! ”

That's what Pan Yi said, and that's what he did.

Unlike the England game, where the starting line-up was announced only two hours before the game, Italy announced their own squad the day before the game.

Goalkeeper Donnarumma, defenders Spinazzola, Bonucci, Bastoni, Desiglio, midfielders Tonali, Verratti, Barella, forwards Chiesa Jr., Balotelli, Insigne.

It was very different from the starting lineup against England, but it became Pan Yi's most commonly used 4-3-3, and there were not too many surprises in terms of personnel.

"Why is it just that when you beat me??? you live?" Southgate, who was already watching TV at home in the UK, was so angry that he put the food in his hand on the table.

And it didn't take long for Dalic to announce Croatia's starting lineup.

Goalkeeper Subasic , defenders Fosarico, Vida, Lovren, Strinic, midfielders Brozovic, Modric, Rebic, Rakitic, Perisic, striker Mandzukic.

is also the main lineup in the quarterfinals, and no one has changed.

This makes many people think that they are not engaged in smoke bombs again, and both coaches are doing it!

How is it possible, it's all a regular lineup?

However, for Pan Yi, first of all, he is ready to use the regular 4-3-3 to impact Croatia this time, and secondly, he also thinks that Dalic should be this lineup.

After all, this Croatia is indeed a golden generation, but it is not so golden that even the bench is super strong.

Except for one Kovacic, the other players do have a big gap with the main players, how can Dalic risk any smoke bombs, and what surprise soldiers to send at the last moment?

The only variable is Mandzukic's injury, but now it seems that it should not be a big problem.

Of course, even if Mandzukic is really a little injured, with Pan Yi's understanding of him, this kind of warrior-type player is not in the firing line at all, so it is normal to start.

As a result, Pan Yi immediately began to discuss with the coaches about the arrangement of some specific tactical details.

Although it has been discussed before, the preparation before the game, of course, is as specific as possible.

It's all about getting to the World Cup final!