Whealian media, who oreated Gao Shen like a publiemy and couldn't criticize him enough, suddenly turned around to sing his praises, Gao Shehhly unfortable.
The m after the 5-0 victao Shen sat at his puter to check the Italian news websites. To his surprise, the reports were overwhelmingly positive, with fans' ents also full of admiration. There were hardly any criticisms or doubts.
Not quite believing what he was seeing, he finished his m routine and rushed downstairs to read the neers.
While the loaples media were naturally supportive, even publications like La Repubblica, Gazzetta dello Sport, and Tuttosport which had always been harsher on Gao Shen were full of praise. The few criticisms they tained were directed solely at Mani and Inter Min.
Gao Shen leafed through every neer he could find, searg for a single ive word about himself or Napoli, but there was none.
It was baffling. It felt as though all of Italy had been brainwashed ht.
Some reports were so glowing that even Gao She embarrassed reading them. He almost wao call up the journalists and say, "Hey, weren't you the same people who were trashing me yesterday?"
He couldn't help but mutter to himself, "e on, have some bae. Stick to your criticism! Don't just flip-flop ht. If yoing to criticize me, the up criticize harder, go all out!"
"This sudden praise makes me so unfortable," Gao Shen joked as he posted to his private social media page:
"I think I have a terminal illness. If I'm not criticized, I feel restless."
Not long after, as he headed out for the day, his puter pinged with a reply:
"Don't fet to take your medie."
It even included a cheeky smiley face. Gao Shen chuckled to himself as he closed his puter and headed to the training grounds.
---
After their 5-0 thrashing of Inter Min and reg the top spot in Serie A, the mood across Napoli was jubint.
The team was riding a wave of morale, and though this was great for their fidence, Gao Shen worried it could lead to pcy.
After all, they were a very young team. With most pyers in their early twenties, it was easy for success to go to their heads. Gao Shehis firsthand because he was young himself.
Still, Gao Shen didn't want to stifle the pyers' enthusiasm or fide was crucial to guide and el it properly. Training would py an important role in maintaining their focus.
Since his days at Real Madrid, Gao Shen had alced great importan recovery sessions following matches.
Napoli's training schedule had been adjusted based on their fixture list. For instance, after Sunday night's game against Inter Min, their game against Roma was set for Sunday afternoon giving them six full days to prepare.
Here's how the week would typically look:
Monday M: Recovery training.
Monday Afternoon & Tuesday M: Rest.
Tuesday Afternoon: Resumption of training.
Wednesday: Strength training.
Thursday: Endurance drills.
Friday: High-iy session.
Saturday: Light tactical adjustments to stimute the pyers' sharpness for Sunday's match.
However, the timeline varied depending on their match schedule. If the game was on a Friday or Saturday instead of Sunday, the preparation time would shrink to just four or five days. versely, if there were seven days between matches, they had more flexibility.
Gao Shen was keenly aware of how much of an advantage Napoli's ck of European itments gave them. With no midweek fixtures, they could focus solely on the league, unlike Roma, who had to travel to Madrid midweek to face Real Madrid in the Champions League.
---
After the arrival of fitness coatonio Pintus, Napoli's trainihods had seen signifit improvements.
For recovery sessions, the pyers were split into different groups based on their physical dition and matvolvement.
Pyers who had pyed signifit minutes against Inter Min worked indoors with Pintus on low-impact exercises desigo aid recovery. Meanwhile, assistant coaches Carlo and Bueura took the remaining pyers out onto the pitch for specialized drills tailored to their needs.
Goalkeepers, as usual, trained separately with their coach, Lopis, while injured pyers followed rehabilitatirams under Bueura's supervision.
This prehensive and targeted approasured that training sessions were effit and effective.
Following the recovery training, Gao Shen gathered the eeam for a talk. His tone was her overly serious nor too lighthearted. He began by praising their excellent performance against Inter Min, ending their efforts and encing them to maintain their focus.
But he also issued a warning:
"We're at the top of the table again, but this isn't the first time. The st two times, we couldn't hold onto it, we barely had time to warm the seat before we were knocked off. This time, I hope we stay there."
"There are twelve games left in the league. No one guarahat if we lose the lead again, we'll get another ce tain it. I don't want us to end the season with regrets."
While his words were measured, the message was clear: Napoli had to stay focused and vigint.
Sitting at the top was exhirating, but it also came with immense pressure.
After his talk, Gao Shen annouhat the team would have the rest of the day off.
The young pyers cheered as they left the training grounds in small groups, eagerly pnning how to spend their rare free time.
Carlo, standing beside Gao Shen, couldn't help but ugh. "You've spent so much time with these kids, you're starting to act like one of them."
Bueura and Pintus nodded in agreement, but Gao Shen just smiled. "I am young, you know."
---
Napoli's growing success had also attracted attention to their coag staff. Carlo, Gao Shen's trusted assistant, had received multiple offers to bee a head coa his ht.
On the way back from the Inter Min match, Carlo fided in Gao Shen that he'd been sidering some of the offers but ultimately decided to stay in Naples.
"I know myself," itted. "If I take over a team on my own, I won't be peting for titles or Champions League spots. But as your assistant, I still have a shot at achieving something big. That's why I'm staying."
Gao Shen was more than happy to keep Carlo on board. Finding a reliable assistant coach wasn't easy, and Carlo had bee an integral part of the team.
self khat even with a blueprint of Napoli's tactics, he wouldn't be able to replicate Gao Shen's success. Tactics are ultimately shaped by the head coach, and Carlo uood that his coag philosophy was different.
---
After the team dispersed for their day off, Gao Sheuro downtoles for lunch with Zidane, Valdano, and Sacchi.
Guardio and Cruyff had both left earlier that m. Guardio was eager to return to his role as Bara's B-team coach, while Cruyff, who had a history of disagreements with Gao Shen, chose not to linger.
During lunch, Sacchi proudly shared that he'd been flooded with requests from TV works and neers to discuss Napoli's tactid Gao Shen's success.
"At least thirty neers wao write about you," Sacchi boasted.
Gao Shen ughed, shaking his head. "I think you're more popur than me right now."
"But I don't have as many Twitter followers as you," Sacchi quipped, feigning disappoi.
"Maybe if you ged your profile picture," Gao Shen teased. "From a distance, people might mistake you for Collina."
The table erupted in ughter, though Sacchi scowled and threateo write a scathing n about Gao Shen ialiation.
---
That evening, Gao Shen attended another dihis time with Napoli's ma and Maradona. The legendary pyer was as beloved as ever in Naples, drawing ad crowds wherever he went.
After the dinner, Gao Shewo more days preparing the team for their match against Roma.
Then, on Wednesday afternoon, following another interaining session, Gao Shen, along with Lucas and Bueura, boarded a flight to Madrid.
For the first time since leaving Real Madrid, Gao Shen was returning to the Bernabéu.
***
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