Chapter 176: First Match Against A Serie A Team

"Thank you, Mr. Jaconi, for a great game at San Paolo"

After the game, at the entrance of the player tunnel, Ivo Jaconi was met by Gao Shen, who wore a smile on his face.

At this moment, the old face of Frosinone's head coach was flushed a deep shade of red.

It was a complete disaster for them, both in terms of the game's performance and the final score a total fiasco.

But what embarrassed Jaconi the most was the various comments and actions he made before the game.

For example, belittling Gao Shen in the locker room and his rude behaviour before the match. He should be grateful that the Coppa Italia wasn't broadcast live on television, otherwise his embarrassment would have been laid bare to the entire Italian media and fans.

"Congratulations, you won!" Jaconi finally put away his arrogance, extended his hand, and shook Gao Shen's.

Gao Shen was even younger than most of the players on his team, which made Jaconi find it all the more unbelievable.

In fact, he was genuinely curious about how Gao Shen came up with such a tactical approach.

But he refused to ask.

Still, there was one thing he was sure of: Gao Shen was no pretender.

On the contrary, he possessed a unique, advanced tactical philosophy.

...

After a few brief words, Jaconi left.

Gao Shen didn't want to embarrass him.

After a defeat like this, you'd want to find a quiet place to lick your wounds, away from the spotlight, wouldn't you?

If you win and make a big deal out of it, wouldn't that just be rubbing salt in the wound?

No matter how you look at it, Gao Shen isn't that type of person, right?

Knock him down, get a little payback, and that's good enough.

"Do you think he's convinced?" Gao Shen asked with a grin.

Carlo, Lucas, and Buenaventura all laughed.

"Or, should I chase after him and ask for you?" Lucas was the most eager.

"Alright, I'll leave that to you. If you don't get an answer, don't bother coming back," Gao Shen pretended to be serious.

Lucas immediately begged for mercy; how could he dare ask?

He'd get pummeled to a pulp by Jaconi and Frosinone's players in no time.

Everyone laughed heartily.

Winning the game, especially by such a large margin, had everyone in high spirits.

Gao Shen looked at his five trusted assistants, extending his hand to shake theirs and hugged each one, thanking them for their hard work and dedication over the past month.

Even though it was their first year working together, their capabilities had already shone through during this period.

For instance, Carlo was excellent at leading training sessions and managing players. Naples, with its youthful roster, was perfectly suited to Carlo's expertise.

Buenaventura took on the challenge given by Gao Shen, striving to ensure that every Napoli player would run over 10 kilometers per game this season. Serie B has 42 matches in a season, so the challenge was quite significant.

But if he succeeds, Buenaventura's reputation in physical training will rise to the next level.

The same goes for Lopis and Borrell.

Many initiatives haven't yet shown their full effect, or their impact isn't immediately obvious. But over time, they will gradually become more evident, like Napoli's one-touch play and quick pass-and-move style.

Whether it's as small as a person or as large as a team, building character doesn't happen overnight. It takes time to cultivate, accumulate, and settle.

"I won't say too much; everyone has worked hard!" Gao Shen smiled at his coaching staff.

"There are still challenges ahead. In three days, there's another Coppa Italia match. Let's keep it up!"

The biggest challenge in this season's Coppa Italia is the schedule.

Playing three consecutive rounds in a single week is a significant challenge for any team, especially in a single-knockout format.

That means you can't know in advance who your opponent will be in the next round.

For example, now that Napoli eliminated Frosinone, the Italian Football Association will conduct the second-round draw tomorrow.

Only after the draw will they know who their next opponent is. There's no way to prepare in advance or gather intelligence.

Moreover, the first round of the Coppa Italia wasn't televised at all.

So right now, Napoli has no idea who their next opponent will be.

...

As Gao Shen sent the players off the field and back to the locker room, club owner De Laurentiis arrived with Marino.

From the broad smile on his face, it was easy to tell how pleased he was.

This was Napoli's debut game of the new season and the first match since Gao Shen took charge. De Laurentiis had been extremely nervous before the match, but now he was finally at ease.

At the entrance of the locker room, he was full of praise for Gao Shen's management.

"I have no doubts now that you'll lead the team to Serie A and succeed there!" De Laurentiis declared bluntly, and Marino nodded in agreement.

However, Gao Shen asked with a smile, "So, you still had doubts before the match?"

The smile on De Laurentiis' face froze, embarrassed. "Just a bit; it's only natural."

Marino kept his face neutral and stared straight ahead, trying to contain his laughter.

Sometimes he really admired Gao Shen. Both of them were technically employees, so why was there such a stark difference?

It's all his fault for getting tricked at the start agreeing too quickly without holding back!

Later, Gao Shen invited De Laurentiis into the locker room to meet the players.

The German owner was quite a character himself. When it came to praising people, he was full of flowery language, leaving Lucas and Buenaventura wide-eyed.

Only then did they understand why Gao Shen chose to work with De Laurentiis.

...

Napoli beat Frosinone 6-0!

Gao Shen's Italian debut was a resounding success!

This garnered significant media attention the following day.

Although the opponent wasn't strong, they were still a Serie B team at the same level as Napoli. Winning 6-0 was no easy feat.

Unfortunately, since the match wasn't televised, many media outlets didn't know the details of the game. Otherwise, there would likely have been more discussion and greater attention.

Even the local media in Naples focused mainly on the team's offense in their reports, without going into in-depth analysis. This left the outside world still somewhat in the dark about the game's flow.

Meanwhile, other matches also saw some big wins.

The highest-scoring match came from Serie A side Ascoli, who, like Napoli, defeated their opponents 6-0. They were even playing away, although their opponents were a second-division team.

Napoli played at home, and their opponent was stronger. Comparatively, this could be seen as evenly matched.

Due to Gao Shen's involvement, another young coach attracting attention in Serie B this season is David Ballardini, a disciple of Sacchi and now the coach of Pescara.

In his season debut, Ballardini's Pescara team defeated Pavia 4-0.

Pavia, incidentally, is the first Italian club later acquired by a Chinese consortium and is currently in the C-1 League.

Gao Shen has a close relationship with Sacchi. Ballardini is a disciple of Sacchi. Both coaches led their teams to big wins in their debuts, garnering considerable attention in Italian football.

Another offensive-minded coach, Zeman, coaching Lecce, had a disastrous start.

Zeman's team struggled in their opening match against Caveise, a C-1 team, conceding two goals within the first five minutes.

Despite Lecce's relentless attacking efforts, they were unable to reverse the situation and ended up being eliminated from the Coppa Italia after a 1-2 defeat. Meanwhile, Juventus comfortably won their away game against Martina in the C-1 League with a 3-0 victory, courtesy of goals from Marchionne, Bojinov, and Nedved. Gao Shen had scouts closely monitoring Juventus' matches, observing Deschamps' team, which featured a formidable lineup including Buffon, Nedved, Chiellini, and others. Their 3-0 win was strong, but they clearly held back some energy, given their busy schedule.

The first round of the Coppa Italia didn't attract much media attention, but following its conclusion, the Italian Football Association quickly held the draw for the second knockout round. This time, Napoli's luck wasn't as favorable as they were drawn against Ascoli, a Serie A team that had just demolished their opponent with a 6-0 victory. Both Napoli and Ascoli had dominant performances in their first-round matches, adding suspense to their upcoming encounter.

Ascoli's offensive power, demonstrated in their first-round victory, indicated that Napoli would face a tough challenge. Fortunately, Napoli would have home advantage. Pescara, another team managed by Ballardini, faced a similar challenge, being drawn against Serie A's Atalanta. The gap in quality between Serie A and Serie B teams was evident, making these matchups quite difficult.

Juventus, on the other hand, drew Cesena, a mid-level Serie B team, and seemed to have an easier path forward. The Coppa Italia's single-elimination format combined with a tight schedule emphasized the role of luck, with teams needing to quickly prepare for tough opponents.

When Gao Shen found out that Napoli had drawn Ascoli, he was both surprised and excited. While mentally prepared, he acknowledged the challenge of facing a Serie A team. Nonetheless, Ascoli wasn't among the strongest Serie A teams like Lazio, which made the prospect less daunting.

Gao Shen saw this as an opportunity to test his team's capabilities and told his players that it was a chance to prepare for the future. He encouraged them by saying, "We can use this game to gauge the level of a Serie A relegation team and get mentally ready because next season, we'll be facing teams even stronger than Ascoli!"

__________________________________________________

For every 200 power stones more chapter release and also if you're interested in supporting me or reading 15+ Advanced chapters here you go: patreon.com/Blownleaves

Please do check out the other fanfics I'm working on:

° Naruto: Reborn As Orochimaru.

° Ultimate Man: Loading Golden Entries At the Start.