"I seriously suspect Schuster is a fool."

  At the Piina training base in Min's northern suburbs, Mourinho and his coag staff were watg the live broadcast of the match.

  Inter Min's game was scheduled for the following day, giving Mourinho time to analyze Napoli's performance against Real Madrid.

  As a rival, Mourinho had beely hoping for Real Madrid to crush Napoli. A defeat like that would surely damage Napoli's morale ao mistakes in the league, being Inter.

  But to Mourinho's disbelief, Real Madrid's head coach was botg it so spectacurly that he found it infuriating.

  "With the current squad Real Madrid has, pressing Napoli high up the pitch is practically handing them the game on a silver ptter. Does Schuster really not know his own team's limitations?"

  Watg the game unfold, Mourinho felt like he was going to explode. He wanted nothing more than to take over Real Madrid's bench himself and fix the mess.

  "Not to mention, Naples has been making stant adjustments throughout the match. They've made several clear tactical ges already, but Schuster hasn't even realized it! Even after g goals, he hasn't figured it out..."

  By the time Mourinho finished ranting, he was utterly speechless.

  How could Real Madrid, a club of this stature, appoint such a mediocre head coach?

  Apart from a bad temper and a sharp tongue, what else did Schuster bring to the table?

  "I have to admit, Gao Shen's tactical pnning and in-game ma are being more and more refined," Vils-Boas said with a tone of genuine admiration.

  Gao Shen was youhan Vils-Boas, but his ability to read and influeches was impressively mature.

  The adjustments Napoli made during the game were all targeted and deliberate, exploiting Real Madrid's weaknesses.

  The result? Real Madrid's attack grew weaker with every passing minute, while Napoli's ters became increasingly lethal. These weren't the product of individual brilliahey were the result of Gao Shen's tactical tweaks.

  Take Robben's tai, for example.

  Initially, Vargas had been tasked with defending Robben one-on-one, but that wasn't w. Gao Shen adjusted by instrug Biglia to drop bad support Vargas, which stabilized the defe left it rigid.

  So, Gao Shen made another ge: David Luiz started drifting wide to help Vargas tain Robben, while Thiago Motta dropped deeper to cover Luiz's vacated position in the ter. Meanwhile, Biglia and Rakitichored the midfield to provide additional defensive support.

  These ges not only ralized Robben but also id the foundation for Napoli's sed and third goals.

  Without these adjustments, those terattacks would never have materialized.

  But Schuster didn't cat.

  The differeweewo coaches couldn't have been more obvious.

  "Actually, there's another issue," Vils-Boas added. "Napoli's tactical system is like a dimensionality-redug strike against Real Madrid."

  He expined, "Real Madrid's tactics are like an assembly of individual parts. Each pyer performs their role indepely, and while there's some cooperation, the overall system cks cohesion.

  "Napoli, oher hand, is like an interlog . Their tactics are tightly ected, with every pyer w as part of a unified system. It's seamless.

  "When Real Madrid spreads out to cover mround, the gaps between their pyers grow wider. Napoli exploits those gaps, driving wedges into the oints and disrupting the entire system."

  For example, Real Madrid's attack often relied on individual efforts. Evehey passed the ball, it rarely led to meaningful binations. This made their offense look powerful but ultimately iive.

  Napoli, by trast, relied on small-group teamwork tress the ball. Like when Vargas advanced and Biglia supported him, they created quick, coordinated pys that overwhelmed Real Madrid's defense.

  The result was clear: Real Madrid couldn't break dooli's defense, but Napoli sistently tore through Real Madrid's.

  This dynamic became even more pronounced after the 20th minute.

  "You're absolutely right," Mourinho said, nodding in agreement. "Schuster's arrogance has blinded him. He hasn't studied the tactical evolution of European football over the past two years, especially since Gao Shen's rise."

  "If this were the era befao Shen's influence, or if Schuster were fag any other team, his tactics might have been fine. But against Gao Shen? He's digging his own grave."

  Mourinho leaned forward, his eyes fixed on the s. "Just wait. ill has a few issues they o resolve, but once Gao Shen addresses those at halftime, Real Madrid will suffer even more. And Schuster? He's finished!"

  Mourinho's assistants—Vils-Boas, Faria, and Baresi exged ghey were surprised by how much Mourinho's opinion of Gao Shen had evolved.

  Previously, whenever Gao Shen's name came up, Mourinho would curse him without restraint.

  But now? Mourinho seemed to genuinely admire him.

  "Could the rumors be true?" Vils-Boas whispered to Faria.

  "What rumors?" Faria asked.

  "You know, about Mourinho seeing Gao Shen as a potential son-in-w."

  Mourinho's daughter, Tita, was only eleven years old, but the joke still made Faria chuckle. Enced by Vils-Boas, he decided to test the waters.

  "Jose," Faria began with a sly smile, "I 't help but notice that you seem to really appreciate Gao Shen."

  Mourinho g him, puzzled. "When someone does well, you give them credit. What's se about that?"

  Faria exged looks with the others before pressing further. "I heard you might be sidering... you know... introdug Gao Shen to Tita."

  Mourinho froze for a moment, theed. "Who said that?! Tita's only eleven! What kind of nonsense is this?!"

  Faria awkwardly backed off, while Vils-Boas and Baresi tried to stifle their ughter.

  But the rumor persisted in their minds. After all, where there's smoke, there's fire.

  "Massimo!" Mourinho swore, already bming Ai for the gossip. "When I see him, I'll make sure he regrets spreading this nonsense!"

  ---

  The first half ended with Napoli leading 3-0.

  As the pyers walked off the pitch, the Bernabeu fell eerily silent. The home fans, stunned by the scoreline, didn't even muster the energy to jeer or cheer. Their disappoi alpable.

  "This match has stripped away all the glittering illusions about Real Madrid," the entator remarked grimly.

  Gao Sheuro the locker room ahead of his pyers to prepare for halftime.

  Ohe team regrouped, the masseurs and fitness staff got to work helping the pyers recover, while Gao Shen held a quick tactical meeting to address the first half's issues.

  He began by aowledging the team's slow start but quickly shifted focus to their adjustments after the 20-minute mark. Despite their domihere were still areas for improvement.

  "First, we're not pying fast enough," Gao Shen said firmly.

  "I've said this many times: our transitioo be faster. Quick passing, quient, only then we catch Real Madrid off-guard and exploit their weaknesses."

  "To py fast, we o be ready. That means stant movement and creating space. Everyone has to run and be avaible for the ball. When we do that, our passing options increase, and the game flows much more smoothly."

  "Sed, we o trol the midfield better. Gago and Diarra aren't putting much pressure on Biglia or Rakitic, so we should take advantage of that. Hold onto the ball, dictate the tempo, and make them chase us. We have the pyers to dominate possession."

  Gao Shen pointed out that Real Madrid's lineup wasn't built to trol the game. With pyers like Gago, Diarra, and Van der Vaart, they cked the structure to pete with Napoli's midfield.

  "If they won't press, we'll keep the ball. If they press, we'll find the gaps. Their defense is shaky, we'll create ces, no question about it."

  Gao Shen then praised i for his tireless work, particurly his ability to drop deep defensively and spring forward for terattacks.

  Lastly, he emphasized the importance of defense.

  "Cut off their es. Separate their pyers so they 't build any momentum. Use our o overwhelm them in local areas. If we defend like this, Real Madrid won't pose much of a threat."

  By targeting Robben early, Napoli had effectively ralized Real Madrid's most dangerous on. With Robben isoted, Real Madrid's attack cked any real bite.

  "After the sed half starts, we stick tame pn. Stay calm, trol the tempo, ahem down. We're up 3-0, we have time. If they push, hit them hard on the ter."

  Gao Shen looked around the room, his voice steady but determined.

  "Tonight, at the Bernabeu, I want a big win!"

  ***

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