Chapter 47 China's Double Core

After Zhou Yi was subbed off, the Chinese team's midfield control also declined.

Anxious to score a goal and tie the score, Syria began a desperate counterattack, and in the seventy-seventh minute, they took advantage of a mistake in the Chinese team's backfield to pull back a goal.

After that, Gao Hongbo also adjusted the team's tactics, turning to a more defensive formation.

Trying to hold on to this one-goal lead.

Because in the first leg, the Chinese team lost to Syria 2:3 away from home. They had two away goals. As long as they could win this game 2:1, they would have an advantage in the group standings based on away goals, ranking ahead of Syria and taking first place in the group.

In the end, the Chinese team successfully defended their lead.

After this game, the Chinese team and Syria were tied on points, but because of their away goal advantage, they ranked first in the group.

As long as the Chinese team could beat Vietnam away in the last round of the group stage, they would complete Gao Hongbo's goal of "qualifying as the top team in the group."

And Zhou Yi played a crucial role in completing this goal.

His return to China this time can even be described as a "rescue." Without him, the Chinese team might not have been able to beat Syria at home at all.

After the game, Zhou Yi did not return to the hotel with the players, but instead took a car directly to the airport, where he would take a flight directly back to Germany to participate in Dortmund's league preparations.

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After returning to Dortmund, Zhou Yi did not immediately return to the team for training. Klopp gave Zhou Yi a day off to rest well and also to recover from jet lag.

So it was not until a day later that Zhou Yi returned to the team for training.

In training, Klopp found that in addition to being a little tired, Zhou Yi did not show any signs of unfamiliarity with the team's cooperation, which he was very satisfied with.

Before Zhou Yi participated in the national team's games, Klopp was most worried about two things: first, Zhou Yi's physical fitness, and second, that Zhou Yi had not participated in the team's winter break training camp and would not be able to keep up with the team's training rhythm.

But from Zhou Yi's training, the second problem did not occur.

Zhou Yi's physical fitness had not recovered, so Klopp modified Zhou Yi's training plan, allowing him to train with the physical coach for physical recovery, without having to train with the team all the time.

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At 0:30 a.m. Beijing time on January 18, Dortmund's away game against Cologne kicked off.

Zhou Yi, who participated in the national team's game, still started.

This was his fourth consecutive start for Dortmund.

Because he participated in the national team's game, Zhou Yi only played half the game this time and was substituted off at halftime.

He had neither a goal nor an assist in the first half.

However, Zhou Yi's contribution to Dortmund's two-goal lead over Cologne in the first half was not small.

He didn't have a direct assist, but he helped Dortmund control the situation.

In the end, Dortmund beat Cologne 3:2 away from home.

And a few hours before this game, the Chinese team also beat Vietnam 2:1 away, and finally secured the top spot in the group, advancing to the Asian Cup finals.

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After the game against Cologne, Sahin recovered from his injury and began training with the team.

Dortmund media has already begun to look forward to the scene of Sahin and Zhou Yi appearing on the court at the same time.

"Double control midfielder, Dortmund will become the team with the strongest midfield control in the Bundesliga!"

A week later, in the nineteenth round of the league, Dortmund played against Hamburg at home.

In this game, Zhou Yi's starting position was not affected by Sahin's return from injury, and he still started.

After sufficient rest and training, Zhou Yi's physical fitness had recovered, so this time he played for seventy minutes before being substituted.

And he had an assist before being substituted, helping Dortmund beat Hamburg 2:0 at home.

The person who replaced Zhou Yi was exactly Sahin.

This was Sahin's first appearance since his injury in the game against Hoffenheim, and Sahin's performance after coming on was average. However, after two months of absence, the most important thing for Sahin was not to have a wonderful performance when he came on, but to be able to step on the field again, which was already a victory for him.

As for the state, he would slowly find it back.

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In the twentieth round of the league, Dortmund played against Stuttgart away.

In this game, Zhou Yi continued to start, although Sahin had recovered from his injury and came on as a substitute in the last game.

But this does not mean that Sahin must grab Zhou Yi's starting spot after he can play.

Although Sahin had always been the team's main player and midfield core before this.

But now Zhou Yi has performed better in the time he replaced him. No matter from which aspect, there is no reason to replace him and give way to Sahin.

So even if he was once the core, he must now honestly start from the bench and regain his main position with his excellent performance.

In the end, Dortmund drew 1:1 with Stuttgart away.

Zhou Yi had no assists or goals, but he did a very good job in connecting the midfield, otherwise, Dortmund might have lost this game.

And Sahin replaced Zhou Yi again in the sixty-sixth minute, and his performance after coming on was also better than after coming on as a substitute in the previous game. It can be seen that he is gradually finding his form.

Next, Dortmund will play against Frankfurt at home. Like the last game against Stuttgart, Zhou Yi will still start and Sahin will be a substitute.

In the first half, when Zhou Yi was full of energy, he performed well and contributed an assist to the team, helping Dortmund lead Frankfurt 2:1 at home. This was also Zhou Yi's fifth assist for Dortmund's first team this season.

After his physical fitness declined in the second half, his performance was not as active as in the first half. However, Klopp was not worried about the team's midfield control declining as a result. He replaced Zhou Yi with Sahin in the sixty-fifth minute.

Sahin also completed an assist soon after coming on, helping Dortmund lead Frankfurt 3:1.

"Sahin! A beautiful return! Sahin and Zhou Yi are both in excellent form. I think this must be a happy worry for Klopp!" Marcel Reif said.

He was right. While celebrating the goal, Klopp said to assistant coach Buvac, "It seems we have to find a way to let both of them play at the same time as soon as possible, Zeljko."

"No problem," said the team's assistant coach and tactical master, Zeljko Buvac.

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In the end, Dortmund beat Frankfurt 3:1 at home, and after a draw, they regained victory.

Moving towards the Champions League qualification for next season.

And in the next game, they will challenge a powerful opponent - Bayern Munich.

After the game against Frankfurt, Dortmund's players found that their training content had changed somewhat.

The coaching staff is testing a brand new tactical idea, which is to let Sahin and Zhou Yi play at the same time.

The players were not surprised by this change. Zhou Yi was able to play because Sahin was injured, so when Sahin recovered from his injury and performed well, he would eventually return to the starting lineup. But Zhou Yi's performance was also good, and it was impossible to let Zhou Yi be a substitute just because Sahin wanted to return to the starting lineup. This would also be unfair to Zhou Yi.

So the two of them will definitely play at the same time.

As for how to play at the same time, this is what the coaching staff has to consider.

Through training, the players saw some clues.

During the time when Sahin was injured, Dortmund changed from 442 to 4231. The original starting striker Zidan lost his starting position and became a substitute. This was to make room for Zhou Yi. Before 442, there were two defensive midfielders in the center of the midfield, one was Sahin, and the other was Sven Bender and Kehl who rotated. This combination ensured the midfield's defensive hardness and organizational ability.

And after Sahin was injured, although Zhou Yi successfully replaced Sahin's organizational work, Zhou Yi couldn't help much in defense. If they continued to play 442, there would only be four people in the midfield, and only one defensive midfielder in the center. Klopp was worried that the team's midfield defense would not be hard enough.

So he changed the team's formation from 442 to 4231, allowing Sven Bender and Kehl to start in the defensive midfielder position. Two defensive midfielders with excellent defensive abilities ensured the midfield's defensive hardness, and also allowed attacking midfielder Zhou Yi to organize the attack with confidence and boldness, without worrying about losing the ball in the confrontation.

This formation worked well. In Sahin's absence, Dortmund instead achieved consecutive victories.

The players have basically adapted to this formation, so adjust it on this basis.

Sahin returns to the defensive midfielder position, responsible for rhythm control and scheduling, while Zhou Yi continues to stay in the attacking midfielder position, because he is closer to the penalty area, responsible for more detailed offensive organization, such as the fatal final pass.

The two maintain contact with each other, and the division of labor is clear.

At the same time, they can also switch positions back and forth. Zhou Yi can retreat to the defensive midfielder position to pass the ball, and Sahin can also go forward to organize the attack. After all, Sahin also has a certain ability to make fatal passes.

This is the double core that Klopp has equipped Dortmund with.

This is equivalent to double insurance.

When any core is performing poorly, the other core can still continue to work.

Now even computers emphasize multi-core, and playing multi-core on the football field is naturally an inevitable product of the times.

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ps, here are three updates today, I hope everyone can like it.

In addition, starting tomorrow, I will temporarily update once a day. I will try to save manuscripts. Thank you for your support and understanding!