Chapter 329 Behind the Times

In the Chinese Team’s locker room, it was so quiet that only the players’ ragged breathing could be heard.

Facing mighty Brazil, every single person on the squad had given their absolute all, not daring to slack off for even a second.

Right now, exhaustion was written on every player’s face.

The match was only at halftime, but facing a superior opponent had forced them to expend far more energy, leaving them utterly drained.

But beneath the fatigue, everyone was buzzing with a kind of feverish excitement, even exhilaration.

They had equalized just before the end of the first half, keeping their hopes alive.

With both sides back on a level playing field for the second half, it was still anyone’s game.

With that hope burning, every player was naturally filled with a soaring fighting spirit.

And the way they looked at Yang Yang had completely changed.

Most of the players on this team had only played alongside Yang Yang during the Toulon Cup and the AFC U-19 Championship. In those two tournaments, the Chinese Team had been competitive, even considered contenders for the title. As a result, those matches hadn’t been nearly as grueling as the FIFA U-20 World Cup.

Before the FIFA U-20 World Cup, Yang Yang had just been the team’s top star to them.

He played for the Dutch giants Ajax, he was the UEFA Cup’s Best Player, he was the winner of the European Golden Boy Award...

All those titles made Yang Yang seem dazzling, but to his own teammates, the man himself felt indistinct.

The only thing that was clear was that Yang Yang was the team’s ace, their core player, and everyone had to support him.

But it was a passive support, one that even felt coerced.

But throughout the FIFA U-20 World Cup, with every match they played, their perception of Yang Yang deepened.

Turkey was the runner-up in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship and widely considered one of the pre-tournament favorites. Before that match began, everyone on the team was on edge, terrified that Turkey would thrash them by a wide margin.

But to their surprise, Yang Yang scored right after kickoff, and the rest of the match went incredibly smoothly.

It wasn’t until after the game, when the players saw the three-to-zero scoreline, that they suddenly realized the so-called European U-21 runners-up weren’t so invincible after all. As long as they hit their stride and controlled the tempo, they could still trounce them three-nil.

The subsequent matches against Ukraine and Panama were tense, but they came through unscathed.

But once they entered the knockout stage, things were different.

Germany and Spain were in a different league than Turkey. Both were among the world’s most elite teams, and Spain was even the reigning UEFA European Under-21 champion.

But the final results, once again, stunned everyone.

It wasn’t just the media and fans who were shocked; even the players themselves found it unbelievable.

This once-indistinct image of Yang Yang, their ace, gradually came into sharp focus in the minds of all his teammates.

He wasn’t a man of many words, but his actions spoke volumes.

He could track all the way back to the edge of his own penalty area to defend against Spain’s pressure, yet he could also step up at crucial moments to break through the enemy’s defenses and score.

On the training pitch, he was meticulous. Off the pitch, he proactively helped his teammates contact clubs and create opportunities for them to play overseas.

By now, everyone knew that while Feng Xiaoting was the National Youth Team’s official captain, Yang Yang was the true leader whom everyone—including Feng Xiaoting himself—admired and respected most.

In fact, to a certain extent, Yang Yang’s authority in the locker room surpassed even that of head coach Klauen.

And Yang Yang never disappointed.

When the team was a goal down in the first half, he had once again stepped up to equalize.

One-one. The Chinese Team’s hope was still alive.

......

......

Klauen’s face was stern, but a hint of delight and excitement was discernible beneath the surface.

Upon entering the locker room, he immediately congratulated all the players, making a special point to mention Yang Yang.

"That last goal in the first half was absolutely critical. It kept our hopes alive and put us in a more favorable position for the second half. It was a goal worth its weight in gold."

Klauen also praised Gao Lin, acknowledging the huge role he played in pressing the opposition high up the pitch.

The players had been expecting this.

What they were more interested in was the plan for the second half.

"This style of play from the Brazil Team is outdated."

Klauen was a classic tactician, a coach with a very solid theoretical foundation and a thorough understanding of European football tactics. So much so that many had previously questioned whether he was all theory and no practice.

In short, that he was all talk.

But now, with the National Youth Team having fought its way into the semifinals, those doubts about Klauen were gradually fading away.

Furthermore, Yang Yang’s unwavering support for head coach Klauen’s authority meant the old German manager carried significant weight in the locker room. When he spoke, the players listened.

"The reason I say this style is outdated is that mainstream European football has moved away from this slow, methodical, possession-based game. Take Villarreal, the most South American-style team in Europe. Even though they have a classic South American number 10 like Riquelme, they actually play with much more speed and fluidity."

Yang Yang had played against Villarreal in the UEFA Cup, so he knew what Klauen was talking about.

In fact, as long as you could neutralize Riquelme, Villarreal’s entire game, both in attack and defense, would fall into disarray.

And by comparison, Villarreal did play at a much faster pace.

This Brazil Team, on the other hand, was always slow in their passing and possession. After winning the ball, their first thought wasn’t to attack, but to secure possession and then slowly work it forward. It was almost as if they were trying to pass the ball into the net.

Maybe it was a matter of aesthetics or just his own playing habits, but either way, Yang Yang couldn’t bring himself to appreciate that style.

"The prevailing style in Europe now emphasizes the speed of transitions between attack and defense. Everything has to be fast. Whether it’s passing, possession, or defending, the goal is efficiency and directness. On this point, the Germany Team excels, and they’re a model we should learn from."

The Germany Team’s transitions were indeed rapid. They would set up in a tight defensive shape, and the moment they lost the ball, they would immediately initiate a counter-press. The goal of this press was to win back possession or at least slow the opponent’s attack, buying time for their midfield and defense to get organized.

And as soon as they won it back, they would launch a counter-attack without a moment’s hesitation, instantly injecting pace with the intent to threaten the goal.

From this, it was clear that Klauen intended to implement this German style with the National Youth Team, and the results had been quite good. The only issue was the gap in individual skill and physical conditioning, which often forced the National Youth Team to retreat into a defensive shell.

Having played at Ajax for two years, Yang Yang understood this profoundly.

It was safe to say that both Arie Haan and Klauen had introduced advanced European tactical philosophies, something that coaches in China lacked.

’If only there were more coaches like Arie Haan and Klauen to bring these advanced philosophies to the National Team, to the clubs, and into the youth academies. If they just stuck with it, in ten or twenty years, Chinese Football would surely bear fruit.’

While Yang Yang was lost in thought, Klauen quickly began to lay out the team’s tactics for the second half.

For the most part, they would stick to the same game plan as the first half, but he was making a few positional adjustments.

For example, he wanted Yang Yang to do more to suppress Brazil’s right-back, Raphinha.

The player was the wellspring of the Brazil Team’s offense; shutting him down would significantly reduce the defensive pressure on the Chinese Team.

Yang Yang immediately promised he would give it his all and not give Raphinha any room to breathe.

In addition to Yang Yang, Klauen also instructed Chen Tao to push higher up the pitch, primarily to target the Brazil Team’s left flank.

Gao Lin, meanwhile, would operate centrally, with the specific job of restricting their center-backs and holding midfielder.

Pushing Yang Yang and Chen Tao higher up served a defensive purpose, but it also made them the team’s primary weapons on the counter-attack. Yang Yang, in particular, with his speed and individual skill, was someone the National Youth Team would have to rely on in the second half.

"Alright, gentlemen, that’s basically the game plan for the second half."

Klauen began his final pre-half rally.

"I need you all to believe that if we stick to this game plan, we can shut down the Brazil Team’s attack in the second half. After we’ve stubbornly withstood their offense, all we need to do is patiently wait for them to make a mistake."

"Give us one chance, and we’ll land the fatal blow!"

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"The players from both teams have returned to the William II Stadium."

"We can see the young lads of the National Youth Team looking invigorated. Every one of them appears full of confidence."

"There’s the National Youth Team’s star player, Yang Yang, who currently plays for Ajax. He’s the one who scored in the first half, stripping the ball from Raphinha before going on to score a one-on-one."

"We sincerely hope Yang Yang can continue his outstanding first-half performance, bring us more spectacular goals, and lead the National Youth Team all the way to the final."

"That would undoubtedly be the greatest moment in the history of Chinese Football!"

...

The match resumed.

The Chinese Team largely stuck to their first-half game plan, with only slight adjustments to the positioning of Yang Yang and Chen Tao.

Following their adjustments, the midfield trio of Hao Junmin, Cui Peng, and Zhao Xuri also made some minor tweaks to their positions.

But the Brazil Team stuck to the same rhythm and style of play they had used in the first half.

Right from the restart, they easily controlled possession and seized the initiative.

Under immense pressure from the Brazil Team, the Chinese Team was forced to retreat into their own half and rely on a counter-attacking strategy.

The Brazil Team managed to create a few chances subsequently, but none of them were particularly threatening.

It wasn’t until the sixty-fourth minute that the Chinese Team mounted their first threatening attack of the half.

Yang Yang and Hao Junmin linked up on the left wing, and Hao Junmin played the ball to the edge of the penalty area. Zhao Xuri ran onto it and unleashed a powerful shot.

But the shot went wide.

After that, the Brazil Team regained control of the match. They were noticeably more cautious, no longer giving the Chinese Team easy opportunities to counter. Instead, they relied on their superior individual skill and slick passing to patiently try and carve out openings.

Meanwhile, the entire Chinese Team remained on high alert, as if facing a formidable enemy, not daring to relax for an instant.

Klauen, for his part, made substitutions to further shore up his midfield and defense, continuing to wait for a mistake from the Brazil Team.