Starting With Real Madrid

Valdebebas, meeting room.

"The Catalan media always likes to claim that Barcelona is a cosmic team!"

"Honestly, I've never believed in so-called aliens or cosmic teams on a football pitch."

There were still two days until the Clásico, and Gao Shen was meticulously following the plan he and his coaching staff had crafted, progressing step by step with the team's preparations.

At the moment, he was aligning the players' thinking and laying out the tactical framework.

"Franz Beckenbauer once said that on a football pitch, the strongest is also the weakest!"

"You can think about that. It's a very philosophical statement."

"Coming back to Barcelona, we'll find that the strongest point in their lineup is Messi, but their weakest link is also Messi!"

As soon as Gao Shen said this, a wave of surprise swept through the conference room.

Everyone in the football world knows how strong Messi is. So for Gao Shen to call him Barcelona's weakest link was shocking.

Was there any proof?

"Don't rush to disagree. I'd like everyone to think first. Over the years, football tactics have constantly evolved. Various formations have emerged, and the roles of players in different positions have been adjusted again and again. But the importance of the center position has never diminished. Why is that?"

As soon as he finished, Xabi Alonso raised his hand.

"Go ahead, Xabi. You tell us."

Everyone turned to look at him.

"Football is essentially about scoring and preventing goals. The center forward and the center back are the key players occupying the two decisive zones. So, regardless of how their roles change, someone always needs to be in those key areas."

Gao Shen smiled and nodded approvingly. "Well said, Xabi. You'll definitely become an excellent head coach one day."

The room broke into laughter. Everyone knew Gao Shen was showing appreciation while making a light joke.

"Xabi's right. Football is about scoring and preventing goals, and that ties into possession and space."

"There's also a saying in Italian football: no matter how strong you are on the flanks, you must return to the middle to score."

"That's why Italy has always produced great center forwards, but lacks in wingers. At the same time, they're excellent defensively."

"From that, it's easy to understand how crucial the two penalty areas are, which correspond to the center forward and the center back. Of course, the goalkeeper is also key, but he guards the goal itself."

Gao Shen noticed that none of the players looked impatient. They were all listening attentively, which was exactly the effect he wanted. He always tried to break down tactical concepts in a fun and engaging way.

Including moments like Xabi Alonso's interaction just now.

"So, back to our previous point. Why does the strongest player, Messi, also become Barcelona's biggest liability?"

"In modern football, the role of a center forward is no longer just about waiting in the box. The demands are broader—pulling wide, defending, pressing, occupying defenders, and more."

These are concepts that happen around them every day and are easy to grasp.

The importance of the center forward has never diminished.

Even though in recent years we've seen the rise of strikerless tactics, including Barcelona using Messi as a false nine, which seems to negate the need for a traditional center forward, the issues are clear.

Because Messi is not a true center forward.

He can score, assist, and even defend, but he cannot fulfill the other essential roles of a central striker.

For instance, in attacking phases, he cannot pin down central defenders and create space in dangerous zones for his teammates.

Or, when the team is struggling to break through, he doesn't have the ability to win aerial duels, making Barcelona's crosses from wide areas largely ineffective.

In fact, Barcelona has never had a tradition of crossing from the wings.

It's not so much that they think wing crosses are inefficient, but rather that it contradicts their philosophy.

In Gao Shen's past life, whether it was Eto'o or Ibrahimović, they either didn't fit Barcelona's philosophy or clashed with Messi. Especially later on, when Messi's brilliance continued to grow and Guardiola placed him in the false nine role, Barcelona essentially abandoned the use of a traditional number nine.

Luis Suárez was the most suitable partner for Messi. Alongside Neymar, they formed one of the most formidable, complementary attacking trios in football history.

But unfortunately, Barcelona failed to seize that moment.

Take Luis Enrique, who many Barcelona fans remember as the coach of the so-called Dream Team 4.0.

In many ways, Enrique was successful at Barcelona. But despite having the super trident of Neymar, Suárez, and Messi, their performances in the Champions League—aside from the historic five-title season—were dismal.

During Enrique's time, Barcelona won five trophies. But logically, that should've been the moment to innovate the midfield and move away from the Xavi-Iniesta-style possession game. On one hand, those players were aging. On the other, the game had evolved.

In the past, teams didn't know how to cope with Barcelona's possession and control. But now, everyone does.

That's why Gao Shen always says: in the Champions League, you can't live off your past glory.

If you try to win comfortably, you'll end up getting thrashed.

Barcelona during Enrique's era is the perfect example.

Many say he brought out the full potential of the MSN trio. But that's not true.

If Enrique had truly maximized MSN's abilities, why couldn't they replicate the five-title success?

Was MSN not good enough?

The answer is simple. Enrique didn't elevate the trio. He relied on them.

But reliance doesn't equal maximization.

For a trio like Neymar, Messi, and Suárez, the best way to use them is to avoid getting bogged down in positional play.

They all have exceptional individual ability. If you create space, they can dominate 3-on-4, 3-on-5, or even take on an entire backline by themselves.

How do you create that space?

Quick counterattacks before the opponent's defense is set.

See the contradiction?

That's fundamentally at odds with Barcelona's philosophy. They are built on possession. They fear taking risks and aim to control everything first.

But the problem is, by the time you've settled into your rhythm and the opponent's defense is in place, you're forced into positional play.

Enrique's solution was to give the ball to MSN and let them figure it out.

Now look at Real Madrid's four Champions League titles in five years. From Ancelotti to Zidane, the team focused on speeding up transitions between attack and defense.

How did they speed up?

By transforming the midfield.

Tactically, they abandoned the attacking midfielder role in favor of a midfield trio.

In terms of personnel, they moved away from one-dimensional players like Germany's No. 10, Khedira, and Kaká, and instead prioritized versatile players like Di María, Modric, Toni Kroos, Casemiro, and Xabi Alonso.

That was a trend.

Even in Gao Shen's timeline, Real Madrid focused on young midfielders with two-way ability like Valverde, Camavinga, and Tchouaméni.

The advantage of such all-rounders is that whoever gets the ball can launch a counterattack instantly, making them the most likely to strike before the opponent organizes their defense.

Some may ask, isn't Barcelona's midfield comprehensive?

Yes, they were. But that was in the past.

Xavi and Iniesta were once the most complete midfielders in the world, but that relied on their incredible work rate.

Now, they can't run anymore.

Once that physical edge was gone, their natural weaknesses were exposed. So what did they do?

They tried to improve ball control.

You've heard the phrase:

"As long as we don't give up possession, the opponent can't score."

But from the moment Xavi and Iniesta lost their legs, Barcelona's midfield began to collapse.

Especially Busquets.

He was never a physically dominant defensive midfielder. His strengths were anticipation and passing. But his defensive work and pace were always lacking. So once Xavi and Iniesta could no longer protect him, he was exposed.

And once Busquets was exposed, the back line became vulnerable.

Gao Shen had always said Barcelona's defensive system is flawed. Their entire tactical setup is built around possession, not defense.

This is why Barcelona has suffered blowout losses in the Champions League knockout rounds time and again.

As long as the opponent is strong enough to force Barcelona into exposing these issues, they become helpless.

In La Liga, the opposition isn't as tough. Barcelona can rely on their passing and control to maintain results.

But in this situation, Barcelona should have used a center forward to press high, to pin down the defense and provide space and cover for the midfield.

Unfortunately, Messi isn't that type of center forward.

And to accommodate Messi's tactical freedom, players like Eto'o and Ibrahimović were squeezed out. Ibrahimović especially was the perfect type of center forward for Barcelona.

Just imagine, if the Swedish striker had been allowed to anchor the opponent's defense, would Barcelona's midfield have suffered so much pressure?

This is exactly what Gao Shen meant when he said: Barcelona's strongest point is Messi, but he is also their weakest link.

…

Gao Shen didn't share every thought he had with the players. Instead, he reworded his ideas to help deconstruct Barcelona's current tactics and flaws, while also offering some predictions about future trends.

He also specifically mentioned young players like Isco and Verratti, reminding the squad that they needed to become more complete players and not resist the coaching staff's instructions to improve their defensive work and physical conditioning.

All-round ability is the way forward.

Through this analysis, Gao Shen had essentially laid out the plan for how to face Barcelona.

And many of the smarter players in the room had already begun to figure out the plan and the reasoning behind it.

This was exactly the effect Gao Shen wanted.

(To be continued.)