Chapter 50 : The head coach gives a private lesson! Full of useful information!

  After personally demonstrating to Gu Ran how to pass the ball better, Carter said earnestly:

  "Gu, the fullback is the position with the lowest minimum requirement and the highest maximum requirement among all the positions on the football field. As a fullback, it is easy to play well. Physical fitness, confrontation, and speed are all you need."

"However, if you want to advance and want to play well and lead the whole team, then this position is more challenging than any other position."  

Gu Ran asked humbly: "Coach, can you tell me more about it?"

  Coach Carter looked at Gu Ran with increasing admiration, "Well, if you have this kind of heart, you will definitely be able to play as a good full-back."

  "Let me first talk about how to be a qualified full-back."

  "Let's talk about defense first."

  "When defending, you must always pay attention to maintaining the correct position. What is the correct position? Specifically, when the ball is in the middle, you must maintain an appropriate horizontal distance from the central defender."

"If the ball is passed to the opponent's forward and your own central defender heads out, then you must shrink and protect the space behind the central defender."

  "If the ball is not in the middle but on the other side, you have to close the space behind the centre-back. If someone runs forward between you and the centre-back, you have two options: either you follow the centre-back to defend the striker with the ball, or you follow the runner."

  "There is no standard answer to how to choose. It all depends on your ability to read the game and your football IQ."

  "The only thing I can teach you is that during this defensive process, you must pay attention to staying in line with the overall formation. If you find that this line is misplaced, you must make timely adjustments to fill in the gaps."

  "If the ball is on your side, you have to coordinate with your teammates. If you rush forward, you have to call on your teammates to fill the gap behind you to avoid being passed by a two-on-one."

  "Like in this game, you rushed directly to fight for the ball. Fortunately, the level of the sparring team was relatively low. But if you were to meet a strong team and still rush forward like this, you would most likely lose your position."

  "Never let the opponent's wingers and full-backs easily get behind you."

  "Remember one sentence: the defensive principle of the full-back is to let the side go and defend the middle."

  "Many full-backs have a misunderstanding that they just need to focus on defending the flanks, which is actually wrong."

  "The area that full-backs need to defend most is the middle."

  As Coach Carter spoke, he took out the tactical board that was taped over and over again and drew a few circles in the middle of the board with a pen.

  "Look, just like what I drew. If you don't position yourself in time when the opponent breaks through the middle, the opponent in the middle will attack you from behind."

"When you turn around and chase back, the opponent's winger will be able to attack you from behind and form a two-on-one situation."

  "However, if the opposing winger chooses to attack from the wing, our winger and defensive midfielder will come over to assist, and you still have a chance to move up and limit the defense."

  Coach Carter summed it up: "So, the wing is easy to defend, but the middle is hard to defend. Your sense of position is very, very, very, very important."

  Gu Ran took a deep breath and nodded vigorously, "Full-back... the key is to defend the middle. Got it."

  Coach Carter continued, "In addition, there is another key point for full-backs: Don't kick easily if you can't see clearly. Especially in the 30-meter area of ​​your own backfield. It is very dangerous to be broken through in this area. If a foul is committed, it will be even more dangerous to give a free kick."

  "Of course, you don't have to be afraid of the opponent's players breaking through. Offense also depends on talent. In high school games, it is not easy to break through one-on-one."

"When you feel unsure of your foot or your body to push him away, just follow him, put pressure on him, force him to slow down, and wait for him to make a mistake."

  "As long as you maintain a good sense of position, use your body more to fight, and don't kick blindly, there won't be too many problems in defense."

  WTF…  

  Is this really the coach of an amateur high school team?

  He was so thorough! So full of practical information!

  Gu Ran suddenly felt like he had been enlightened!

  His understanding of the full-back position instantly deepened!

  Gu Ran quickly asked again: "So, in terms of offense, what makes a qualified full-back?"

  Coach Carter seemed to have met a bosom friend, and he became more and more excited as he spoke. "Our local British football style actually relies heavily on assists from full-backs."

"Although the passing and controlling style has become popular in Europe in recent years, in authentic British football, full-backs are the most important part of the overall formation."

  "If you want to become a qualified offensive full-back, in addition to the basic items of physical fitness, confrontation and speed, the first thing is to reduce your own mistakes. In simple terms, as long as you can pass the ball, you have completed your mission."

  "So, for an offensive full-back, the passing success rate must be high."

  Coach Carter wrote and drew on the tactical board again, "In fact, to put it bluntly, there are three ways for a full-back to handle the ball."

"The first is to pass forward, the target is the striker or the organizing front midfielder, the second is to pass horizontally, that is, to pass to the defensive midfielder, or, after you make a forward run, pass horizontally to the striker or front midfielder, and the third is to pass back, to the central defender, so as to protect our possession of the ball."

  "So, you have to always observe and read the positions of the forwards, attacking midfielders, defensive midfielders and central defenders on the field."

  "What is observation? Just take a quick glance and remember their location."

  "What is reading? Reading is predicting their next intention based on their current body language."

  "All of this needs to be based on your familiarity with your teammates and your rich experience in the game."

  Coach Carter put away the tactical board and said, "Gu, you played very well in the last 10 minutes today, especially your performance in cutting in from the wing. This also gave me a new idea. When you go back tonight, you have to think carefully about what I said to you today."

  Gu Ran said sincerely, "Okay, coach."

  Coach Carter added, "Oh, by the way, do you… have a girlfriend?"

  "No...Oh no, there is." Gu Ran looked slightly embarrassed.

  Actually, no, but according to the agreement with Sophie, he now has a girlfriend.

  Coach Carter shrugged indifferently, "It's normal for a young man to have a girlfriend. When I was your age, I had three or four girlfriends at the same time. I won't interfere with your private life, but... tonight, you don't have to be affectionate with your girlfriend."

  Hmm... Hmm?!

  What???

  Coach, can you explain to me what "love" means?

  Why don't I understand?

  Coach, I am a serious person!

  Coach, wait a minute!

  Coach, why did you emphasize that we shouldn't have sex tonight?

  Could it be that...

  Will I really have a chance to play in the group stage tomorrow?!

  Gu Ran took a deep breath and assured Carter firmly: "Coach, please rest assured! I will not be affectionate tonight!"

  (End of this chapter)