Before anyone realized it, he was already in his third season with Napoli.

  Sometimes, Ivan Rakitic couldn't help but think back to the first time he met Gao Shen in M?hlin, a small town oskirts of Basel.

  Back then, he could never have imagihat he was about to experiehe fastest growth of his career—three years of incredible progress.

  Before representing Croatia in the European Championship, Rakitic gave an interview in which he reflected on Gao Shen's impa his career. He highlighted ohing in particur: Gao Shen was unlike any other coach he had worked with.

  "He has a unique vision. It's as if he see what makes each pyer different, identifying their potential and strengths, and then iing those into a cohesive tactical system."

  This, more than anything else, defined Rakitic's impression of Gao Shen.

  When Rakitic first arrived in Naples, he was full of doubts and apprehension.

  He couldn't help but wonder: what could this newly promoted Serie B team possibly offer him? How realistic were the ambitions Gao Shen had outlined? Was this young coach, barely older than himself, even trustworthy?

  Three years ter, those doubts had long been dispelled.

  Rakitiow believed joining Napoli was one of the wisest decisions of his career.

  The past three seasons had been transformative. Not only had he developed a clear identity as a pyer, but his teical and tactical traits had also bee distinct. At just 20 years old, Rakitic already possessed a prehensive skill set that stood out in modern football.

  Gao Shen himself onented on Rakitic during an interview.

  "If I had to pie pyer who epitomizes the characteristics of a modern football midfielder, it would be Rakitic. He's incredibly versatile and adapt to almost any situation."

  Defensively, he wasn't as aggressive as Vidal. As a pymaker, he wasn't as refined as Biglia. And offensively, he couldn't match Hamsik's explosiveness.

  Yet Rakitic had ted his position as a idfielder.

  Why? Because he was versatile. He could do everything—and do it well.

  As Gao Shen often emphasized, modern football demands midfielders who are well-rounded.

  Specialists, those who excel only in one area, are being increasingly marginalized.

  Looking across Napoli's midfield, almost all pyers were two-way tributors, capable of both attag and defending. The difference y in how much emphasis they pced on each role.

  Napoli's midfield setup reflected this philosophy.

  This was something Gao Shen had discussed with Rakitic early on.

  If you watched Napoli closely this season, you'd notice Gao Shen's preference for the 4-3-3 formation in the Champions League. The midfield trio often sisted of Thiago Motta sitting deep, with Biglia and Rakitic supp him.

  This bination wasn't chosen at random.

  During pre-season, the coag staff had experimented with various midfield pairings, but the results were insistent.

  By trast, Biglia and Rakitic offered the most stability when paired together.

  Their roles, however, differed signifitly depending on the formation.

  In the 4-3-3 system, Thiago Motta operated as a shield in front of the defense. His primary responsibility was to break up attacks and distribute the ball effectively, a role akin to Bara's iiumber four position.

  Rakitic had tried pying this deeper role but struggled to adapt.

  Biglia, oher hand, was the team's rhythm-setter. Calm and posed, he trolled the tempanized py, and initiated attacks during transitions. While Biglia occasionally delivered incisive forasses, his movement was mostly teral, providing support and maintaining bance.

  Rakitic, by trast, was more vertical in his approach. He surged forward to join attacks, broke into dangerous spaces, and took le shots. Defensively, he worked tirelessly to track bad support the back lihis dynamic style allowed him to refine his ability to unleash powerful long-distarikes.

  Rakitice debated with his teammates why Gao Shen sistently paired him with Biglia.

  Vidal? Hamsik? Nainggon? Parejo? Pastore?

  Why not any of them?

  At first, no one uood. But after testing various binations in matches and analyzing the results with Gao Shen, the reasoning became clear.

  If you paired two Rakiti midfield, Napoli would lose its structure entirely. Both pyers would push forward simultaneously, leaving the defense exposed.

  Oher hand, pairing two Biglias would slow the game's tempo, eliminate midfield depth, and reduce the team's overall ce. This would ease the pressure on oppos.

  It was through trial and error, adjustments, and persistehat Gao Shen refined Napoli's system and pyers.

  Rakitiew he wasn't the same pyer he had been in Switzernd. Likewise, Biglia had evolved tremendously since arriving in Naples. Both had been shaped ily what the coavisioned.

  This transformation was one of the greatest bes of w under Gao Shen.

  Not only had their performances improved, but their reputations in European football had grown signifitly. They now had clear identities and career trajectories, setting them up for long-term success.

  Rakiti particur, uood that everything he had achieved so far was thanks to Gao Shen's guida just 20 years old, he was already making a name for himself across Europe.

  His rise had even attracted the attention of several major clubs—something he could hardly have imagihree years ago.

  To repay Gao Shen's faith, Rakitic gave everything in every match. He pressed forward relentlessly, took every opportunity to attack, and executed the coach's tactical pns without promise.

  ---

  From the very start of the game, Napoli pressed high, f Zenit into mistakes. On the right, Di Maria pulled defenders out of position while i applied pressure to the ter-backs. Reizing the opportunity, Rakitic surged forward without hesitation.

  This was his role, and he k well.

  Biglia delivered a precise pass to i.

  The Argentine midfielder's vision and accuracy were impeccable. i, shielding the ball with his body, brought it down with his chest. He attempted to turn and shoot but found himself tightly marked.

  Without panig, i held the ball and heard Rakitic's call.

  Having pyed together for over two years, they uood each other's movements instinctively. i passed the ball to the edge of the box, where Rakitic was charging forward.

  Without breaking stride, Rakitic struck the ball first-time.

  i's pass had been perfectly weighted, and Rakitic's shot was and powerful.

  The ball rocketed into the bottht er of Zenit's .

  ---

  "GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!"

  "Less than two minutes into the matapoli takes the lead!"

  "i's assist set up Rakitic's brilliant le strike. What a way to start!"

  "That shot ure css—a textbook finish. Rakitic has given Napoli a dream start."

  "One-nil!"

  Rakitic, overe with emotion, sprioward the er to celebrate as the crowd erupted into cheers.

  The Stadio San Paolo was electric. Sg so early was the perfect start Napoli needed.

  On the sidelines, Gao She into the air, g and shouting his approval.

  Rakitic's goal couldn't have e at a better time.

  Breaking the deadlock early had been one of Gao Shen's key instrus before the match. With the lead secured, the rest of the game would bee signifitly easier to manage.

  But Gao Shen wasn't oo let up. After the celebrations, he stepped to the edge of the teical area and shouted for his pyers to press even harder.

  Napoli had the advantage in both quality and momentum. Gao Shen wao seize this opportunity to overwhelm Zenit before they could respond.

  ---

  Despite g so early, Zenit showed no signs of retreating.

  Under Advocaat's guidahey were as aggressive as ever, even as the away side.

  In the fourth minute, Denisov delivered a cross into the box, but Handanovifidently came off his lio cim the ball.

  Napoli immediately tered. Vargas sent in a cross from the left, which Sanchez collected. The Chilean cut inside, creating space to curl a shot toward the far er.

  The attempt sailed just wide, but it was enough to make Zenit nervous.

  Napoli, buoyed by their home crowd, ramped up the pressure, ung wave after wave of attacks.

  Ih mihe midfield pressed high, with Biglia and Rakitic pushing into Zenit's defehird.

  Biglia received the ball and threaded it to Sanchez, who broke into the box from the left. The winger's shot, however, was too tral and was saved by Zenit's goalkeeper.

  Napoli didn't back down.

  A mier, after regaining possession in midfield, Thiago Motta slowed the tempo momentarily before delivering a grounded pass to the right edge of the penalty area.

  Di Maria, cutting inside, trolled the ball and unleashed a left-footed strike.

  The Zenit goalkeeper fumbled the save, spilling the ball into i's path. The Uruguayaed instantly, poung to smash the rebound into the .

  Two-nil!

  The Stadio San Paolo erupted into a frenzy.

  With barely 12 minutes on the cloapoli had scored twice, leavi shell-shocked.

  For the fans at the Stadio San Paolo, this was a dream start.

  Just over 12 minutes into the game, Napoli had already established a anding lead.

  But the way the match was unfolding, it seemed iable. Zenit had never been able to settle into the game, never mao trol possession or dictate the tempo.

  From the very first whistle, the match had been pyed entirely on Napoli's terms.

  The crowd roared in anticipation, urging their team forward, their ts growing louder with every passing moment.

  They didn't just want a win. They wanted moals.

  Goals. The more, the better!