His Teammates Were All Putting in Extra Training, but Tang Long Had Gone Out to Have Fun?
Manchester City players are training hard on the training ground during their rest day.
Manchester City manager Pellegrini stood in front of the large floor-to-ceiling window of his office, looking down at the players on the field from the 6th floor.
"Wow, they've really gotten into it! I never expected that on our hard-earned day off, about ten players would volunteer to come for extra training. It's a real surprise."
Pellegrini remarked.
England manager Mancini was sitting on the sofa smoking when he responded:
"That's a good thing; it shows they have ambition."
Mancini visited Manchester City's training ground on Monday morning to discuss the situation of Manchester City team's England players with Pellegrini.
Although Manchester City doesn't have many England players, Joe Hart and Sterling are both key players in Mancini's mind for next year's UEFA European Championship.
Another substitute defensive midfielder, Delph, although not called up for the last qualifier against Switzerland, is still in Mancini's plans.
"The overall spirit is somewhat different this year."
Pellegrini continued, "Last season, very few players did extra training. Look at Nasri, you've coached him before, right? This kid is usually the laziest, but he actually came to do extra training today. I was absolutely stunned."
Mancini stubbed out his cigarette and went to the window, standing side by side with Pellegrini.
"Nasri is quite talented. After all, he's only 28 years old, and there's still room for improvement. It all depends on him."
Pellegrini and Mancini actually have quite a connection.
In May 2013, after nearly four seasons managing Manchester City, Mancini left the club, and was succeeded by new manager Pellegrini.
Although the parting with Manchester City was somewhat unpleasant, the responsible Mancini still carried out a comprehensive handover with the Chile, demonstrating his commitment to the club.
He and his successor detailed Manchester City's current tactical approach, as well as the personality and technical characteristics of each player.
This allowed Pellegrini to grasp the team's situation in the shortest possible time.
Pellegrini inherited Mancini's tactical approach and player legacy, leading Manchester City to their second Premier League title in his first season in charge!
Manchester City now have two Premier League titles, one from Mancini and one from Pellegrini.
Both of them are beloved head coaches among the club's fans.
Pellegrini told Mancini that he knew why Manchester City's players were so disorganized today, largely due to Tang Long.
"Tang is indeed very good. It seems you nurtured him quite a bit when you were at Inter Milan. As soon as he arrived at Manchester City, he first ousted Milner, and then performed exceptionally well as a striker, attacking midfielder, and defensive midfielder. Now, our players in those positions have to step up their game for their careers."
Since both had coached Tang Long, the two naturally started talking about the player.
Pellegrini values Tang Long's "catfish effect," believing that he has fostered a fighting spirit and positive atmosphere within the team, and that a healthy sense of tension and urgency has spread within the team, which is definitely a good thing.
Mancini smiled and said:
"Let me tell you about his conflict with Guarin when he was at Inter Milan, right after being promoted to the first team."
Mancini then recounted in detail how Tang Long was recommended to the first team by Chivu, and how, in a match, Mancini deliberately fielded Tang Long, whose technical level was not high at the time, in order to suppress the troublesome Guarin in the team.
"At the time, I was hoping to use Tang's 'catfish effect'—this young guy promoted from the youth team—to spur on the veterans and troublemakers in the team. But I didn't expect that Tang would actually live up to expectations. After adapting for a while, he actually made it to the top. His progress was so rapid that I really didn't expect it."
However, Mancini offered a subtle but opposing opinion regarding Pellegrini's rotation of Tang Long in the forward, attacking midfield, and defensive midfield positions.
In Mancini's opinion, it's still more suitable for him to consistently play Tang Long in the attacking midfield position.
"He played as an attacking midfielder for most of the season at Inter Milan. His technical characteristics, passing vision, and anticipation are all very suitable for this position."
Mancini said, "Of course, I know you want to unlock more of his potential, and that's certainly true for a young player."
Mancini paused, then changed the subject:
"However, his unpredictable position has caused concern among many players in your team. This kind of intense competition isn't a good thing, as players generally prefer to play with a stable mental state. I understand the players today; times have changed. Football is no longer their entire life; it's just a job. The era when we played football will never return."
Pellegrini and Mancini, one was born in the 1950s and the other in the 1960s;
Compared to current players, there is a 30-year age gap.
How to understand and connect with these young players, and establish positive communication with them, is a problem that this generation of older coaches has to face.
"Roberto, you mean, Don't think the best option is still attacking midfielder, right?"
"Pellegrini asked."
In fact, when he repeated the question that Mancini had already asked, he probably already had the answer in his heart.
Manchester City's biggest need right now is actually the attacking midfielder!
At 27 years old, Agüero in his prime, with all his physical indicators at their peak.
Bony's form is also improving, and his formidable physique is something Pellegrini admires.
As for the defensive midfield position, although Yaya Toure is old, his physique has not declined significantly, and his experience and technique are still excellent.
Moreover, with the Brazil duo of Fernando and Fernandinho, plus the new signing, the incredibly hardworking Delph, the most diverse position in Manchester City's squad is actually the defensive midfield.
In the attacking midfield position, after Milner left, the only player who could truly make a name for himself in that position was Espanyol David Silva.
However, Silva's physique is too weak, and he is often vulnerable to being attacked when facing multiple opponents in the mid lane.
Pellegrini still prefers to place him on the wing where the defense is more relaxed, giving him more freedom to play.
After a round of tactical experiments with forwards, attacking midfielders, and defensive midfielders, Tang Long's role has become increasingly clear in Pellegrini's mind.
His primary task is to act as the passer in the team's attack, delivering the decisive blow with his surgical passes to tear apart the opponent's defense;
Secondly, he controlled the tempo, and through his passing and control, he made Manchester City's passing and control tactics increasingly mature;
Finally, when the team needs to score, Tang Long, even in a more advanced position, still has the ability to break through the defense.
These three points also reflect Tang Long's technical characteristics and personal abilities, and were Pellegrini's assessment of him after coaching Tang Long for two months.
Mancini repeatedly praised Pellegrini's analysis of Tang Long.
"Your line of reasoning is correct. That's how I used him when I was at Inter Milan."
In fact, Mancini's suggestion to Pellegrini was based on considerations for Tang Long's career development;
On the other hand, didn't he also have his own selfish motives?
With the retirement of midfield maestro Gerrard, the England national team's defensive midfield position has been greatly weakened.
Gerrard's successor, Henderson, has great potential, but he still needs time to develop.
Therefore, Mancini is actually very optimistic about Delph, who just transferred from the Aston Villa to Manchester City this year.
Mancini had specifically scouted Delph and greatly admired the player's ability to make runs from the backfield and his anticipatory positioning in defense.
Furthermore, he is more refined than Henderson in his passing game.
But so far this season, Delph has only made two substitute appearances for Manchester City!
Mancini actually hopes Pellegrini will give Delph more opportunities to help him maintain his form and perform well in next year's UEFA European Championship.
Therefore, from the perspective of the England manager, Mancini did not want Tang Long to move from attacking midfield to defensive midfield, further reducing Delph's playing time, who was already just a rotation player.
In October, the England national team has two more matches in the UEFA European Championship qualifiers, against San Marino and Estonia.
Both teams are considered weak, and Mancini plans to give Delph at least one start to see how he performs for the national team.
While nearly 10 Manchester City first-team players were sweating profusely during extra training on this rest day morning;
Tang Long and Ranocchia had already taken the earliest train from Manchester to London.
There are two main things I need to do in London this time.
First came the invitation from his former teammate, Guarin.
During the match against Manchester United, Guarin, enraged by Icardi's unsportsmanlike conduct, punched him, sending him flying with a straight red card and subsequently receiving a three-match ban.
Guarin is really bored lately because he has no football to play.
I heard that Tang Long and Ranocchia were on vacation, so I invited these two former teammates to London for a get-together, and to chat up Icardi.
In addition, Diletta also extended an invitation to Tang Long.
"Little one, I've been so busy with work lately that I haven't had time to go to Manchester. How about you come to London instead? I'll celebrate your 19th birthday with you then."
On the train to London.
Ranocchia was wearing headphones, leaning back in his chair, listening to music in a relaxed and comfortable manner.
Although he had been to London, it was only for away games against Manchester City; he had never explored this bustling metropolis with a tourist's mindset.
Before starting kindergarten, the youngest daughter had been pestering her father to buy her a Jellycat plush rabbit doll in London, and she agreed by Ranocchia a pinky promise.
After listening to a few songs, Ranocchia opened his eyes and saw Tang Long beside him, watching a match video on his phone.
He was muttering to himself as he watched.
"I've seen you watching since we got on the bus. It's been over an hour, we're almost in London, and you're still watching. You finally get a day off, why are you watching the game? Haven't you had enough?"