Cody Gakpo, who played the second game, learned his lesson. During his acceleration, he kept tapping the ball with his toes, pretending to shoot hard. When Neuer made a save, he quickly pushed the ball to the side and then kicked the ball. However, because the angle of the shot was not tricky enough, Neuer still touched the ball with his fingertips and changed the direction of the ball. Van Nistelrooy shook his head slightly and said loudly: "Angle, pay attention to the angle, don't give him too much time to react, and change the direction of the shot as quickly as lightning."

Edinson Cavani played the third game. He took a deep breath to calm himself down. He started to speed up, and when he was still some distance away from Neuer, he suddenly slowed down, and then shook with a realistic fake move. Neuer was indeed deceived and his center of gravity shifted. At this time, Edinson Cavani immediately accelerated, flashed past Neuer, and then gently pushed with the arch of his foot, and the ball rolled into the goal from the other side of the goalkeeper. Van Nistelrooy finally showed a satisfied smile on his face, and he cheered loudly: "Yes, that's it, we have to catch him by surprise and disrupt his rhythm."

After that, forwards such as Erling Haaland, Jamal Musiala, Chen Dayi, and Romelu Lukaku all came out to conduct relevant training.

Under Van Nistelrooy's urging, the forwards practiced low balls and lobs over and over again. They constantly adjusted their speed, the amplitude of their feints, and the angle of their shots, trying to find a way to break through Neuer's ten fingers. Every shot, every confrontation with "Neuer", gave them a deeper understanding of this world-class goalkeeper, and also gave them more confidence in the upcoming game.

In addition to Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, the Manchester United coaching staff also specially organized Nico Williams, Cody Gakpo, Dani Olmo, Theo Fernandez, Ashraf Hakimi Diogo Dalot and other players to conduct cooperation training between wingers and full-backs in view of the fact that Bayern Munich's right-back Joshua Kimmich likes to assist: during the training, the wingers will first make a fake move to break through the bottom, leading Joshua Kimmich to leave his defensive position, and then quickly knock the ball back to the midfielder who cuts in, while the full-back quickly inserts into the space left by Joshua Kimmich, forming a threatening offensive posture.

Aiming at the characteristics of Boateng and Hummels, the Bayern Munich central defender combination, which has excellent air defense ability but relatively slow turning speed. Mourinho reduced the tactical drills of high ball passes and focused on ground penetration training. In training, the offensive players were divided into small groups to conduct short passes in a small area. They tried to pass through Boateng and Hummels through fast passes and flexible movements. Mourinho constantly reminded the attacking players: "Don't compete with them in the air, take advantage of their slow turning and break through from the ground." The attacking players kept trying different running and passing methods in training, and gradually found a way to break through the defense of these two tall defenders.

In view of the fact that Bayern Munich's left back David Alaba hesitated to pass the ball when facing multiple people's pressure, Mourinho asked the attacking players in the front and midfield to conduct full-court pressing training. In training, the attacking players pressed David Alaba all over the court like a group of hungry wolves. When David Alaba got the ball, at least three attacking players quickly surrounded him and put great pressure on him. Mourinho shouted loudly on the side: "Let him feel the pressure, force him to make mistakes in panic, and then we can steal his ball." The attacking players gradually learned how to effectively press David Alaba in training, making it difficult for him to pass the ball comfortably.

Aiming at the Bayern Munich midfield trio: Thomas Muller's physical fitness may become his weakness under high-intensity pressing throughout the game, Javi Martinez is relatively lacking in offensive organization, and Thiago Alcantara do Nascimento's passing accuracy has obviously decreased when facing multiple pressing. Assistant coach Scholes led Marco Verratti, Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata, Scott McTominay, Dani Olmo, Bruno Fernandez, Rodrigo Hernandez, Aurelian Chuameni, Nico Williams, Jude Bellingham and other Manchester United midfielders to conduct high-intensity off-ball running training throughout the game.

In the training, the midfielders were divided into two groups, one group played Muller/Martinez/Thiago and ran without the ball, and the other group was responsible for marking him. Scholes paced back and forth and reminded loudly: "Don't let him get rid of your marking easily, run with him, consume his physical strength, and let him not have enough energy to create threats in the second half of the game." The midfielders gradually learned how to effectively limit the running of Muller/Martinez/Thiago in training, and also improved their physical fitness and marking ability.

In view of the fact that Arjen Robben's physical fitness has obviously declined after continuous breakthroughs due to his age, Mourinho asked Manchester United's full-backs Theo Fernandes, Ashraf Hakimi, Diogo Dalot, Ferland Mendy, Lu Kershaw and others to conduct special defensive training.

In training, the full-backs tried to maintain their defensive positions in the first half of the game and not be easily shaken by Arjen Robben's feints. When Arjen Robben started to break through, the full-backs should stay calm, follow his steps, and not easily commit fouls. At the same time, the full-backs should pay attention to Arjen Robben's physical changes. When his physical strength decreases after continuous breakthroughs, they should strengthen the pressing in time to block his inside cut route. Mourinho shouted loudly on the side: "You must understand Arjen Robben's characteristics, adopt different defensive strategies at different stages of the game, and don't be scared by his reputation."

In view of the characteristics of Franck Ribery's strong offense and weak defense, and his older age, Mourinho asked Manchester United's team to attack the wing where Franck Ribery was in the offense, forcing him to participate more in defense and consume his physical strength. In training, Manchester United's wingers constantly launched attacks on the wing where Franck Ribery was, forcing him to frequently return to defense. At the same time, Manchester United's midfielders also inserted in time to increase the number of attackers, making Franck Ribery exhausted in defense. Mourinho shouted loudly on the side: "Let Franck Ribery consume more energy in defense, so that his threat in offense will be greatly reduced."

For Robert Lewandowski, the biggest threat in Bayern Munich, Mourinho used a double-back midfielder double-teaming tactic to limit him. In training, when Lewandowski received the ball, Manchester United's double back midfielders should quickly surround him and not let him turn around and shoot easily. At the same time, Manchester United's forwards should also press to reduce Lewandowski's chances of receiving the ball. Mourinho shouted loudly on the side: "The double back midfielders should always be vigilant. When Lewandowski received the ball, they should pounce on him like two eagles and not let him have any chance to shoot."

In addition, targeted arrangements were made for several threatening players on the Bayern Munich bench:

Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman are fast and powerful, but their defensive experience is relatively insufficient. Mourinho simulated their playing situations in training to let Manchester United players learn how to seize the loopholes in their defense. In training, when Gnabry and Coman come on as substitutes, Manchester United players should pay attention to their defensive positions and attack the space behind them. Mourinho shouted loudly: "Pay attention to their defensive habits. When they come on the court, we should seize their defensive weaknesses and give them a fatal blow."

James Rodriguez has excellent skills, but his ball control will be affected by physical confrontation. Mourinho asked Manchester United's midfielders to conduct physical confrontation training. In training, when James Rodriguez has the ball, Manchester United's midfielders should defend him closely and use physical confrontation to interfere with his ball control and organization of offense. Mourinho shouted loudly on the side: "Don't be afraid of physical confrontation, make sure James Rodriguez can't control the ball comfortably under our pressure."

At the same time, Manchester United players also conducted various simulation training:

First, David De Gea (captain), Christian Romero, Lee Grant and other goalkeepers,

• Long-range shot save training: Considering that Bayern midfielders and forwards may try long shots outside the penalty area, Manchester United's goalkeepers conduct special long-range shot save training. The coach arranges multiple players to shoot hard at different angles and distances, allowing goalkeepers to practice quick reactions, judge the flight trajectory and landing point of the ball, and improve the success rate of saves. For example, set up multiple shooting points in the area 25-35 meters away from the goal, and the players take long shots in turn, and the goalkeeper needs to concentrate on making saves.

• Handling cross ball training: In response to the Bayern winger's bottom cross and the midfielder's diagonal long pass to find the forward's tactics, the goalkeeper conducts special training on handling cross balls. The coach will arrange players to make crosses at different heights and speeds from both sides, so that the goalkeeper can practice the timing of attack and the skills of boxing the ball.and the ability to pick up high balls. In training, goalkeepers need to make timely judgments on whether to punch or jump to pick up the ball according to the characteristics of the cross.

The second is Theo Fernandez, Raphael Varane, Ruben Dias, Ashraf Hakimi, Kepler Laveran Lima Ferreira (Pepe), Diogo Dalot, Ferland Mendy, Josh Gvardiol, Lu Kershaw, Harry Maguire and other defenders.

• Regional joint defense training: In order to cope with the flexible position switching and local cooperation between Bayern's offensive players, Manchester United defenders conduct regional joint defense training. Divide the defensive area into several parts, and the defenders clarify the areas they are responsible for, and practice mutual defense, filling in and communication. For example, when the full-back is broken by the opponent's winger, the nearby central defender should quickly fill in, and at the same time, other defenders should adjust their defensive positions according to the situation on the field to ensure the integrity of the defense line.

• Set-piece defense training: In view of Bayern's threat in set-piece attack, Manchester United defenders conduct set-piece defense training. For different set-piece situations such as corner kicks and free kicks, the defenders practice man-to-man defense, zone defense, and control of the first and second points. In corner kick defense training, the defenders will arrange a special person to defend the opponent's center forward according to the characteristics of the opponent's players, while other players are responsible for guarding the dangerous area in the penalty area to prevent the opponent's players from rushing to shoot.

Tap the screen to use advanced tools Tip: You can use left and right keyboard keys to browse between chapters.

You'll Also Like