Preface
In the passionate Chinese Super League, every round of the game is full of unknowns and variables. When the fire of the 12th round was ignited in the major stadiums of the Chinese Super League, Shanghai Shenhua sat at home and defeated the visiting Qingdao Manatee with a score of 2-0 with an outstanding performance, once again showing their strength and style as a Chinese Super League powerhouse.
In this match against Manatee, Shenhua showed a different style from the past. From the tactical arrangement to the player's play, from the offense to the defense, Shenhua has shown a very high level. Especially at the crucial moments of the game, Shenhua's players were able to withstand the pressure, stay calm, and finally bagged the victory.
This contrast between before and after has undoubtedly brought new inspiration and inspiration to head coach Slutsky.
Shenhua "Hurricane": The difficulty of breaking through the side and the death of the midfield tandem
In the game before Shenhua's "Hurricane", their wing attack once fell into a monotonous and boring situation. The team seems to have relied too heavily on the tactic of "45-degree bombing" in an attempt to send the ball directly over the heads of the two tall forwards, Luis and Malele, in this simple and crude way.
However, from the tactical concept of modern football, it is clear that this mode of attacking from the wing lacks flexibility and variety, and it is difficult to be effective in the game.
To make matters worse, Shenhua's wide players don't have the same precision passing ability as David Beckham or Kevin De Bruyne, who often struggle to get the ball to the target area accurately. At the same time, the opposing team's defense also showed quite good defensive ability, so that Shenhua's wing attack was always fruitless.
In terms of attacking in the middle, Shenhua is also facing difficulties. In the absence of a central midfield player like Teixeira, the team's attacking organization appears disorganized, making it difficult to form an effective attacking combination. Although Xie Pengfei's previous performance in this position has caused him a lot of praise from head coach Slutsky, in this campaign, he has also fallen into a slump like the team, and his inspiration is no longer there.
This double dilemma of attacking on the side and in the middle makes Shenhua seem helpless on the field.
Shenhua's twin stars shine brightly, perfectly interpreting the art of bottom line crossing
When the Shenhua team showed their attacking power in the Chinese Super League, the two goals undoubtedly became the perfect footnote to their tactical execution.
In the first goal, Manafa received Xu Haoyang's precise pass at astonishing speed, sprinted all the way to the bottom line, and then made a clever cross. The opposition goalkeeper made a mistake under the sudden attack, leaving the opportunity for Jiang Shenglong to open the empty net, and the latter easily sent the ball into the net to open the door for Shenhua.
And the second goal showed the delicacy and precision of the Shenhua team's attack. After receiving Luis's ingenious pass, Yu Hanchao relied on his excellent "explosive point" attribute to fight all the way to the bottom line and sent a deadly cross again. The pass caused a huge killing chance in front of goal, and Malele arrived in time to take advantage of the brief confusion between the opposing goalkeeper and central defender to calmly poke into the net to give Shenhua another goal.
These two goals are not only a reflection of the individual ability of the players, but also the success of the overall tactical layout of the Shenhua team.
In soccer, when the opposition back line is in full swing, a 45-degree cross is often difficult to create an effective attacking threat, while a cross along the baseline can use the player's speed and skill to create more attacking opportunities.
Shenhua's two goals are a vivid illustration of the difference between these two offensive models, and also fully demonstrate Coach Slutsky's deep understanding and precise use of tactics.
Shenhua's tactical shift: the road to a breakthrough from 45 degrees to the bottom line
On the battlefield of football, every tactical choice is related to the direction and outcome of the game. For the Shenhua team, for most of the game, they preferred to choose the attacking method of 45-degree crosses. Behind this choice, there may be deep tactical considerations, or the players may try to break down the opponent's defense in this way. However, over time, it is not difficult to see that this tactic did not work as expected.
Perhaps, the players had difficulty trying to break through to the baseline and were unable to create effective attacking opportunities. Or perhaps the team was too stable and afraid of making mistakes after risking a breakthrough, so they opted for a relatively conservative 45-degree cross. But in any case, this tactical choice did not bring the expected benefits to the Shenhua team.
Luckily, Coach Slutsky keenly captured this. He realized that if he continued with this tactic, it would be difficult to open up the situation. As a result, he made decisive personnel changes and changed the way the team attacked. The tweaks quickly paid off, with the wide attacks starting to show their formidable power.
This remarkable change undoubtedly left a deep impression on Coach Slutsky. He is keenly aware that flexibility and variety of tactics are essential in the game of football.