Soccer: I’m Building a Giant in the Premier League

Chapter 13 – He's a Bit Like Ferguson!

From mid-July to the end of the month, Yang Cheng arranged five friendly matches in just over two weeks.

All against local teams:

Two amateur clubs,

One League Three team,

Two League One teams.

The result? A rather "glorious" record of one win, two draws, and two defeats.

Both games against League One sides ended in heavy losses—2–5 and 1–4.

The poor preseason results nearly undid all the good vibes the summer training camp had built.

The players had been excited about the tactics and training. They felt it was modern, advanced—even aesthetically pleasing. And after two weeks, they believed they had a basic grasp on it.

But when it came to actual matches, they were a mess.

Even against amateur teams, they struggled to reproduce what they'd done in training.

And against stronger League One sides? Forget it.

Yang Cheng and the coaching staff, however, weren't surprised at all.

He had seen it coming when he arranged the friendlies.

After all, the two League One teams were West Ham United, a recently relegated Premier League club, and Reading, a top-four side in League One last season who nearly won promotion.

And fans of English football would surely remember what happened a few years later, when Chelsea were torn apart in a brutal match—where keeper Petr Čech nearly lost his life.

The opponent? Reading.

They had always played a rough, high-intensity style.

Yang Cheng chose these opponents on purpose: to stress-test the team and expose their flaws.

Because in preseason, results didn't matter.

What mattered was the league ahead.

Still, after every match, Yang Cheng held full video analysis sessions, identifying problems and adjusting tactics.

After five friendlies, the team's starting XI was becoming clear.

Goalkeeper: Joe Hart.

Only 16, but physically mature and playing well.

Defense:

Left-back: Tony Capaldi

Right-back: Steve Jenkins

Center-backs: Laurent Koscielny and—somewhat surprisingly—Roger Johnson.

From a tactical perspective, Yang preferred Luke Chambers for his passing or the younger Alex Baptiste.

But in the matches, Koscielny and Johnson proved the most effective pairing.

Johnson had poor technique and often misplaced passes, but his physicality made him a beast—especially valuable in the lower leagues.

Midfield:

Huddlestone sitting deep, with Martin Rowlands and Modrić ahead of him.

Andy Holdsworth and Lee Williamson had performed well, but would start as backups.

Modrić's inclusion was a bit of a stretch.

His technique and passing were excellent, but he was far too physically weak. Against Reading and West Ham, he had been overwhelmed.

Still, Yang Cheng maintained full confidence in him.

In the original three-man midfield, Huddlestone played deep, while Rowlands and Modrić pushed forward in attack and dropped back when defending.

But after the two games against Reading and West Ham, Yang adjusted.

Rowlands would now take on more attacking responsibilities, while Modrić stayed deeper, to avoid being dragged into physical duels.

Up front:

Jonathan Stead edged out Rickie Lambert as the starting striker.

The flanks were more complicated.

In Yang's past life, Ribéry had thrived on the left.

But since he hadn't fully matured yet, Yang tried him on the right, hoping to use his speed and dribbling to tear through defenses.

But after five matches, something felt off.

Ribéry and Steve Jenkins didn't complement each other.

Jenkins was slow, stuck to his defensive zone, and didn't push forward much.

In a 4-3-3, the gap between winger and fullback was already large.

With Ribéry shouldering most of the right-side attack, their partnership faltered—especially in defense.

Against West Ham, England international Trevor Sinclair torched that side of the pitch. Four of West Ham's five goals came from that wing.

On the left, Martin Devaney also failed to link well with Capaldi. They were too similar in style and movement.

After the friendlies, Yang sat down with Brian Kidd for a tactical review.

Kidd suggested moving Ribéry back to the left, pushing him higher up the pitch, and putting Devaney on the right, with a deeper position.

Yang agreed completely.

…

August 9, afternoon.

Opening day of the 2003/04 League Two season.

Bayswater Chinese FC vs. Grimsby Town, a newly promoted side.

At Bayswater Stadium, the north and south stands were still under construction, and even the east and west stands weren't finished.

Total capacity: 5,000 at most.

When Yang Cheng entered the stadium, he looked across at the completely empty east stand.

It was a rare sunny day in London, but the empty seats cast a shadow over the atmosphere.

The west stand was fuller—according to intel, 2,500 fans had shown up.

That was thanks to Brian Kidd.

He was still the nominal head coach, and local fans respected his name.

Plus, the summer transfer activity had stirred some excitement.

Yang Cheng also had expectations for the match.

He hoped to start the season with a home win against the newcomers.

He fielded his strongest XI:

GK: Joe Hart

Defense: Capaldi – Koscielny – Johnson – Jenkins

Midfield: Huddlestone (deep), Rowlands & Modrić

Attack: Ribéry – Stead – Devaney

On paper, it looked like a 4-3-3—but in practice, it wasn't symmetrical.

Devaney played deeper, like a right midfielder, helping cover for Jenkins.

The entire left side pushed high.

But there were risks.

Both center-backs, Koscielny and Johnson, were aggressive and stepped high.

Huddlestone was a deep-lying playmaker, not a defensive destroyer.

And with the team still freshly assembled, players lacked chemistry.

Counterpressing and defensive transitions were still weak.

So, in the 27th minute, Grimsby's midfield sent a long ball over the top, behind the defense, landing at the feet of Dutch striker Laurens ten Hooven.

Koscielny reacted immediately, sprinting back—he was fast.

But Hooven had the upper hand. He reached the ball first and flicked a header into the path of Michael Boulding, bursting in behind Koscielny.

Without taking a touch, Boulding fired it past Hart. 1–0, Grimsby.

…

Clap!

Yang Cheng clapped his hands sharply, disappointed with conceding in the first match of the season.

Up to that point, Bayswater had dominated possession and the game.

"For the most part, Koscielny is reliable," Brian Kidd said. "Strong, tight marking, fearless tackling, and he's got recovery speed."

"But his aggression is a problem—especially paired with Johnson. The two of them…"

Yang gave a helpless smile.

He couldn't help but think back to his time at Real Madrid—Ramos and Pepe. A pair of wild stallions.

"They're too similar," Yang sighed. "No real complement."

He had already noticed this problem and had considered pairing Koscielny with Chambers or Baptiste.

But the chemistry was even worse.

Right now, Johnson was still the best option available.

"Let's give them more time," Yang said, turning to Kidd with a grin. "Center-backs grow through pain and punishment."

Kidd chuckled.

Sometimes he was amazed.

Yang Cheng was so young, yet his words sounded like those of a seasoned manager.

Sometimes, he really did seem a bit like… Ferguson.

…

Only five minutes after conceding, Bayswater struck back.

Ribéry made a run down the left, beat his man, and passed to the overlapping Capaldi.

Capaldi swung in a left-footed cross, and Jonathan Stead muscled through the defense to head it home. 1–1!

Then, in the 51st minute, after switching sides, Rowlands delivered a corner.

Koscielny rose high and powered a header into the net—redemption for his earlier mistake. 2–1!

Suddenly, the home crowd roared.

Bayswater controlled the game from start to finish.

But the squad was still young and raw. Errors crept in during passing sequences.

In the 84th minute, a miscue near midfield led to a loss of possession.

They failed to counterpress in time, and Grimsby broke through again.

Striker Ryan Anderson scored to tie it. 2–2.

The match ended in a draw.

After the final whistle, Yang Cheng welcomed his players back with applause.

That shocked them.

Being held at home by a newly promoted side was not a good start for a team chasing promotion.

But Yang Cheng wasn't upset.

He knew—this was already a good beginning.

The season was long.

And as the games piled up, as problems were fixed, and as chemistry grew, he was certain:

This team would become unstoppable.

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