After the game, in a feren at the S?o Paulo Stadium, Gao Shen and Zidane hosted Klinsmann.
It wasn't anythiravagant, just a bottle of wine and some snacks.
your oppo a drink is a tradition, but only if the oppo ands respect.
Gao Shen had chatted briefly with Klinsmann after the matd extehe invitation, which the German coach readily accepted.
The mention of Lucio stemmed from Klinsmann's ents during the post-match press ference. He expihat Breno's role ieam had expanded because Lucio had transferred to Inter Min. While true, it also served as an excuse.
But sitting face-to-face with Gao Shen and Zidane, Klinsmann didn't resort to excuses. He simply admitted defeat.
Gao Shen followed a simple principle when making friends: If someone showed him respect, he would do the same. Klinsmann had shown him that respect. Moreover, they shared simirities in their approach to football, whiaturally led to many iing discussions.
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Befao Shen's ued jourhrough time, he'd e across a fasating question on Zhihu:
If someoraveled back to Li Bai's era aed all of Li Bai's poems before he could write them, what would happen to Li Bai?
The most on answer was: Li Bai would write eveer poems, but the time traveler would be beled a fraud.
Why?
Because Li Bai's poetry wasn't just about the words themselves, it was a form of personal expression, a way of dazzling his poraries with wit and talent.
This highlights an important truth: even if someone possesses knowledge from the future, they 't simply imitate greatness and expect it to be accepted. They must earn respect through their own abilities.
The same logic applies to professional football.
Even though Gao Shen was armed with knowledge from the future, he still had to instill his tactical philosophies into his pyers and develop strategies tailored to each match. That required deep football expertise and tactical a. On top of that, he needed aensive uanding of the game to hold meaningful versations with peers.
He vividly remembered his first meeting with Sacchi and Valdano when he was coag Real Madrid.
And nights like tonight were no different. As Gao Shen sat with Klinsmann and Zidane, discussing Bayern, Napoli, and football tactics, it wasn't just casual bahe value of the insights he could share depended on the depth of his knowledge.
If he had nothing substantial to tribute, it wouldn't take long for word to spread: Gao Shen's reputation was all smoke and mirrors.
To avoid that, Gao Shen had spent years immersing himself in tactical studies, reading every book he could find iactical library. That dedication was the foundation of his reputation in the football world.
Now, as he talked to Klinsmann about Bayern Munich's future, he traced the development of German football with crity, from the te 1990s reforms when German talent peaked, to the youth training revolution that followed the failure of the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, all the way to the current system.
It was all detailed in Bebauer's memoirs, which Gao Shen had read cover to cover.
Even Zidane was impressed by Gao Shen's ih analysis. Klinsmann, meanwhile, was amazed—not just by Gao Shen's knowledge but also by his ability to recall such specifics.
When the versation turo Bayern's future, Gao Shen didn't hesitate to offer his perspective.
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"Dual-wing attack?" Klinsmann echoed, clearly intrigued.
"Exactly," Gao Shen replied. "You've already brought in Ribery, a world-css left winger. If you add a simirly skilled right winger, implement a tactical system focused on both fnks, and improve your midfield's passing and trol, Bayern's strength will skyrocket."
He pointed out that Schweinsteiger was no longer suited to py on the wing. His ck of speed and limited dribbling ability made him less effective in that role. On the wings, speed is king.
With Ribery in his prime, adding aop-tier winger would ensure Bayern's petitiveness in European football for the decade. For any club, sustaining a ten-year peak is araordinary achievement.
Gao Shen wasn't theorizing, he had witnessed all of this unfold in his inal timeline. So, as he spoke, he exuded fidence, as though he weren't predig the future but retis that had already happened.
His certainty further solidified Klinsmann's trust in him.
Klinsmann nodded, clearly captivated. "It's an iing cept. If things py out as you described, Bayern could indeed establish a dominant era."
Gao Shen smiled knowingly. Deep down, he wao say: This is exactly how it will unfold but you won't be the one leading Bayer happens.
Certain outes are iable.
If Klinsmann remained Bayern's head coach, the team's destined peak might never materialize. That, Gao Shen thought, would be a tragedy.
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Bayern Munich's 0-2 loss to Napoli in San Paulo caused an uproar in Germany.
The result wasn't necessarily shog, Napoli had already stunned Real Madrid with a 7-0 thrashing in their opening group-stage match. What stood out was how vingly Bayern was defeated.
German magazine Kicker dedicated its Champions League ce to the match, highlighting Napoli's dominand exposing Bayern's deficies.
The statistics told the story: 24 shots for Napoli, pared to just five for Bayern.
What was even more damning? Bayern failed tister a single shot on target.
Kicker ented, "Even though Napoli eased off in the sed half, they still posed far more threat than Bayern."
"They pletely outcssed Klinsmann's team tactically. This wasn't just a loss, it was a wake-up call."
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Bild was equally scathing in its analysis, g that Klinsmann's Bayern wasn't on the same level as Napoli.
"Any fan who watched the game could see it. Bayern cked passion, drive, and a cohesive tactical system. It felt like Napoli was the Bundesliga giant, and Bayern was a sed-division team."
The entary urged Bayern to address their weaknesses quickly, with crucial matches against Real Madrid looming. Failure to do so could mean an early Champions League exit.
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Der Spiegel didn't hold back either, deg, "Gao Shen spped Bayern twice!"
Their artioted that Napoli could have scored more but chose not to, prioritizing energy servation over humiliating their oppo further.
"Napoli taught Bayern a footballing lesson, and Gao Shen showed Klinsmann what cutting-edge tactics look like in today's game."
However, the publication alsued that the group standings were far from settled. It suggested that Bayern could still qualify if they performed well against Real Madrid and if Napoli faltered in their uping match against Zenit Saiersburg in freezing Russian ditions.
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After defeating two European powerhouses—Real Madrid and Bayern Munich—Gao Shen's reputation tio grow.
Critics who had doubted Napoli's ability to survive the group of death were now residering. With two wins in two matches, Napoli had bee the group's favorite to advance.
Sacchi dedicated aire n to praising Gao Shen, ending his ability to lead Napoli to success on both domestid European fronts.
Oher hand, Gazzetta dello Sport took a jab at Klinsmann, suggesting he should learn from Gao Shen.
While both managers rotated their squads to manage workloads, Napoli's results were in stark trast to Bayern's struggles. Gao Shen's rotation policy was aggressive, yet his team remained uen, sitting atop Serie A after five rounds.
Still, some warhat peting on two fronts could take its toll.
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Three days after their victory over Bayern, Napoli faced Genoa away in Serie A's sixth round.
Genoa, promoted alongside Napoli from Serie B, had always been a challenging oppo.
Last season, they defeated Napoli, and this season, they managed a draw. After Napoli took an early lead, Genoa's Diego Milito equalized in the 73rd mih a swift terattack.
Despite dominating the match with nearly thirty shots, Napoli couldn't find a wihe iy of their attack led to Genoa receiving two red cards for accumuted fouls. In total, Genoa picked up eleven yellow cards, a testament to how fiercely they resisted.
In the end, the game ended 1-1. It was Napoli's first draw of the season.
Meanwhile, Inter Min capitalized on the opportunity, defeating Bologna 2-1 with goals from Ibrahimovi? and Adriano. With this result, Inter overtook Napoli to recim the top spot in Serie A.
