Behind Closed Doors, Manchester's Beautiful Team Doctor Gives Tang Long a Special Lesson...

Tang Long opened the drawer and found a USB flash drive.

"What's in here?" Tang Long asked Ranocchia, picking up the USB drive.

"I got you a highlight reel of our team's star striker, Agüero's runs!" Ranocchia said proudly.

Tang Long was overjoyed upon hearing this!

Now that he has moved from Serie A to the Premier League, with the new season about to begin, Tang Long needs to figure out the movement habits of the team's forwards in the shortest possible time.

Since the Green Pitch Invisible AI System was launched last November, Tang Long has been feeding the system a large number of match videos during his spare time from matches and training.

However, most of these are about Serie A teams.

As for a specific individual striker, Tang Long only focused on Icardi.

After all, Icardi was Inter Milan's number one striker at that time, and the team's key weapon for scoring goals.

Tang Long figured out Icardi's habits, which opened up Inter Milan's attacking options.

While football tactics and strategies are generally applicable, the playing styles of the Premier League and Serie A are quite different.

The pace of the game here is faster, with offensive and defensive transitions completed in a very short time.

With its intense competition and frequent running, the Premier League appears more youthful and vibrant compared to the more relaxed Serie A.

Playing as a striker in the Premier League is different from playing in Serie A. Specifically, although Agüero and Icardi are both Argentina, their technical characteristics are completely different!

Agüero is not as good as Icardi in first touch shooting and heading.

However, Aguero is smaller, has a lower center of gravity, excellent dribbling skills, is faster, and has a wider range of movement!

He can not only lurk inside the penalty area, but also move out of the penalty area and roam on the flanks.

He can play not only center forward but also striker, unlike Icardi, who is a pure poacher.

In conclusion, Agüero has a wider range of playing styles!

This determined that Aguero's positioning habits, football thinking, and technical movements were significantly different from Icardi's.

In the past, the easy goals Tang Long provided to Icardi in Serie A matches were not always so easy for Aguero to capitalize on, and vice versa.

This requires Tang Long to collect and organize new materials about Agüero to feed into his AI System.

At this moment, Ranocchia sent Agüero's running highlights, which was like sending charcoal in snowy weather, exactly what Tang Long wanted.

"That's so thoughtful, Captain! How did you know I needed this?" Tang Long asked him curiously.

At a traffic light intersection, Ranocchia stopped the car and rolled down the window.

August in Milan is the height of summer in the Mediterranean climate.

However, in Manchester, a city with a temperate maritime climate, the temperature on the streets late at night is often below 20 degrees Celsius.

A gentle breeze blew from afar, sweeping across the carriage and making one feel refreshed.

"This was something Mr. Chivu specifically instructed me to do. He told me that you have a habit of studying striker runs by watching videos, and he had previously compiled materials on Icardi for you."

"He asked me to find as many videos about Agüero as possible online and send them all to him. After he edits them, I'll put them on a USB drive and send them to you."

"So don't thank me, thank Mr. Chivu! He really cares about you, it's like he can't let you go."

"He said he only confirmed your transfer to Manchester City three days ago, and he spent a full 10 hours editing this footage!"

Ranocchia's words deeply moved Tang Long.

Tang Long left Inter Milan, Chivu also left Inter Milan.

From a personnel perspective, the two are no longer colleagues.

Chivu had no work-related obligations; he was simply helping Tang Long edit film footage.

He did this entirely out of a pure mentor-student bond, hoping that Tang Long could quickly get to know his teammates.

Tang Long thought to himself, "In today's materialistic society, I, a foreigner, am truly fortunate to have met a mentor like Chivu who gives so much without expecting anything in return. I must repay him properly if I have the chance in the future."

Then I thought again, "Mr. Chivu worked as a technical analyst at Inter Milan. It's said that Mancini personally handled the analysis of every game. The videos he edited must be the essence of the game. I must feed them to the system properly so Chivu I can get started in the Premier League, gain the trust of my teammates, and produce better data than in Serie A."

He held the small 128g USB flash drive in his hand.

The USB flash drive was as thin as a cicada's wing, but it felt as heavy as a thousand pounds in Tang Long's hands!

Chivu eventually agreed to Mancini's request and went with him to the England national team as an assistant coach.

He was unable to stay at Inter Milan.

Tang Long took out his phone, opened social media, and went to Chivu's homepage.

The suffix to his name has been changed from "[Inter Milan first team coach]" to "[England national team assistant coach]".

The picture pinned to the top of the homepage is still him lifting the UEFA Champions League trophy with Inter Milan in 2010.

The second picture, when Tang Long opened it, showed Chivu and Mancini signing a contract at the Football Association office.

In the picture, Mancini looks smug and confidently gives a thumbs-up to the camera, clearly very satisfied with the signing and ambitious to make a big splash.

Although Chivu had a smile on his face, it looked unnatural and strange, as if it were forced.

"Where is Mr. Chivu now? I'd like to meet with him," Tang Long said.

"Then you probably won't see him. He's still in his home country, Romania. Sigh, you know, the national team has fewer duties and doesn't have to train every day, unlike the club, where you're busy all day long. It's good that Mr. Chivu has time to spend with his family and children. Unlike me, since I left Milan, my whole family has to follow me around to avoid being separated. Sigh, I just settled my daughter's school arrangements yesterday, it's quite a hassle." Ranocchia said sullenly.

Indeed, the national team plays far fewer matches compared to club teams.

Last year, throughout 2014, the England national team only played 13 matches, a workload less than three months' worth of work for a club.

Thinking of this, Tang Long felt a pang of regret for Chivu.

He's only 34 years old, so young. At his age, many players are still playing.

During the year he worked with Chivu, Tang Long felt that Chivu was a coach who was passionate about coaching and had a strong sense of responsibility and dedication!

I often edit videos and do technical analysis until late at night.

The next day, with red eyes and full of passion, he came to explain the problems in each player's game to the players.

If we send him to be an assistant coach for the national team, would he be able to stay idle?

However, Tang Long thought again that Inter Milan was now controlled by the old fox Ausilio.

The newly appointed head coach, Laino, is Chivu's arch-rival from his youth team days.

If Chivu insists on staying at Inter Milan, his days are likely to be difficult.

He simply couldn't imagine what a harmonious scene it would be if Chivu were Laino's assistant coach.

It seems the two started arguing in the coaching area less than 10 minutes into the game, before the players even warmed up.

Moreover, Mancini had shown Chivu great kindness and support.

If Chivu can continue working with his mentor, it would be a good option for him.

After all, Mancini is a top-tier coach in Europe, so Chivu can still learn a lot from him.

"But Tang, you don't need to worry about not seeing him. It's the national team. Once the league starts, the national team staff will be flying all over the country to scout England players. Especially since the UEFA European Championship is next year, I'm hoping Conte will come to Manchester City to scout me! Chivu will definitely be at the Etihad, and so will Mancini. You'll have plenty of time to catch up, and maybe you'll even have a drink or two," Ranocchia said.

Tang Long nodded.

Then he took out his laptop from his bag and inserted the USB drive.

As Ranocchia pressed the accelerator, he curiously glanced in Tang Long's direction.

"It's starting already? That's strange. I've been a player for so many years and I've never seen anyone enjoy watching game replays so much. Isn't that something coaches should be doing? You're so young, but you have so many ideas. When you retire in ten or twenty years, you'll definitely be a great coach!"

Because he returned late, Tang Long slept soundly until noon.

Manchester City Football Club provided excellent service, arranging a private car to take him to Manchester City's medical laboratory.

The female team doctor who examined Tang Long was named Gracie.

She graduated from the University of Manchester Medical School, is a Manchester native, and is about twenty-four or twenty-five years old with a sweet smile.

"Hello, Tang, I'm Gracie, Manchester City's team doctor. I'll guide you through a medical examination. Please follow me."

Inter Milan's team doctors are all men, and the chief team doctor Combi, is a muscular, bald giant.

Tang Long had heard that there were female team doctors in the Premier League, but he didn't expect to encounter one as soon as he arrived in Manchester City.

Height, weight, hearing, vision, heart rate, blood pressure, lung capacity, body fat percentage, blood test...

After these routine tests, Gracie led Tang Long to a small house and closed the door behind him.

"Take off your shirt and pants," Gracie said.

Her soft, delicate hands began to work on Tang Long's bare upper body, connecting various medical instruments to perform an electrocardiogram test and record the heart's echo.

"Very good, everything is fine. Let me take another look at your teeth. Open your mouth wider, yes, grow a little bigger!"

She even had Tang Long's teeth checked.

Watching Gracie, with his chestnut hair, probe his mouth with tweezers like a dentist, Tang Long couldn't help but ask him why he needed to have his teeth checked during a physical exam.

Dr. Gracie smiled and said softly, "A study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that among the UK players examined, 77% had gingivitis and 80% had periodontal disease. The risk of injury is particularly high in cases of dental malformation. Because the inability to chew properly affects the digestive system, it impacts the delivery of nutrients to the muscles. At the same time, dental malformation can also lead to scoliosis. Therefore, this is a special project our club has added this year; all new signings must have their teeth checked."

Tang Long said, "Don't worry about that, I have a good appetite and I sleep well."

"How's the pull going?" Gracie pressed.

"Well, it's good, once a day," Tang Long replied truthfully.

"Does it poop in the morning, afternoon, or evening?"

"Huh? Let me think," Tang Long paused, "I had more diarrhea this afternoon."

"You need to pay attention, this is a problem. You absolutely must change your bowel habits. It's best to have a bowel movement in the morning, but if you can't, it's okay to have one at noon."

Why is it said that you need to poop at a fixed time?

Tang Long was completely confused.

But seeing Gracie looking at him with a serious expression, she didn't seem to be joking.

Gracie further explained, "Most Serie A matches are after 7 pm local time, so it's fine if you need to poop in the afternoon. But most Premier League matches are at 3 pm. If you're used to pooping in the afternoon, what if you suddenly feel the urge while running during the match? Do you hold it in and keep playing, or do you ask for leave to go to the bathroom?"

"If you finish your morning practice and then compete in the afternoon, your body will be less strained, which is an advantage. Do you understand, kid?"

"...I understand." Tang Long smiled, finding the female team doctor in front of him quite considerate.

He had encountered this situation before when he was with Inter Milan.

It was during a match against Genoa. Guarin started the game, played very well, but during halftime, he had diarrhea for more than 10 minutes. Mancini couldn't find him to dictate the tactics, so in a fit of anger, he substituted him with Kovacic. After the game, he even scolded Guarin in front of the whole team.

In the end, Guarin had to make a public apology in front of the whole team, vowing never to poop during halftime again.

So much so that after that incident, during every halftime break, someone would tease Guarin, saying, "You need to go to the toilet, hurry up, or you'll poop in your pants!"

"Alright, now I want you to kneel on the bed with your butt sticking up, so I can check if there's anything strange inside you."

Gracie changed into a pair of blue gloves and walked towards Tang Long with a smile.