Guardiola Announces New Tactics: Switching to a 4-3-3! Tang Long to Play on the Left Wing!
"As far as I know, Guardiola accepted a certain degree of pay cut after joining Manchester City from Bayern Munich."
"His annual salary at Bayern was Pound Sterling 15 million, but at Manchester City that figure dropped to Pound Sterling 12 million."
"However, Manchester City offered him a substantial performance bonus."
"If Guardiola can lead Manchester City to win the Premier League title or the UEFA Champions League title, he will also receive a bonus of several million Pound Sterling."
At Tang Long's home in Manchester, Diletta was discussing Guardiola's arrival with him.
Tang Long remarked with emotion, "Four years at Barca, three years at Bayern, he coached for only seven years and yet he achieved every honor a club could possibly win. Considering this, making some sacrifices in salary to go to a league he had never been to before and then conquering it, he truly is a man of great ambition."
Diletta nodded and said, "Your main task this season is the UEFA Champions League, and City Football Group also has great ambitions. Otherwise, given Pellegrini's performance over the past three years, no other club would have ever fired him."
The two talked for a while longer, then Diletta glanced at the wall clock, got up, and prepared to leave.
She stretched out her long, slender arms, yawned, and said she had to go to the station to work overtime on a documentary about the new season.
Tang Long put his arm around her waist and, with a little force, pressed her back against the living room island.
"Working overtime is so tiring, I'm afraid you won't be able to handle it, so I have to give you a boost of energy beforehand."
Diletta braced herself against the island counter, her black miniskirt lifted up to her slender waist, revealing two long, straight, and smooth legs. She trembled slightly, and two blushes instantly rose to her face. Her body moved in a half-hearted, half-resisting manner, her tone a mixture of reluctance and invitation.
"Again? We've already gone through two rounds, hehe, you'd better go easy on me..."
She was both shy and expectant, and her bright blue eyes were misty with tears.
Just as Diletta's face flushed, her pearly teeth lightly biting her lip, and she was filled with joy and ready to indulge in the moment, the doorbell suddenly rang. The sharp ringing sounded particularly abrupt in the ambiguous atmosphere.
Tang Long turned to look at the video phone screen, and lo and behold, a huge, gleaming bald head came into view—
It was Guardiola! Tang Long couldn't help but gasp, "Hiss..."
He frowned, pulled Diletta up from the island platform, helped her put down her skirt, patted her bouncy bottom, and gestured towards the door, indicating that she should hurry up and go work overtime.
"Hmph... you dog!" Diletta, her face full of anger, picked up her bag, stormed barefoot to the door, slipped on her high heels, and slammed the door open.
He glared at Guardiola with a surprised look, then walked away.
Guardiola stood at the doorway, subconsciously touching his bald head, looking bewildered and embarrassed, unsure whether to go in or back.
It seems that my unannounced visit has made me an uninvited guest.
Fortunately, Tang Long immediately and warmly invited him in, and even brewed him some tea he had bought from Manchester City's Chinatown, which eased the awkwardness.
After officially signing his coaching contract with Manchester City, Guardiola's first step was not to discuss with the Manchester City management how to operate in the upcoming summer transfer window or to assemble the squad he wanted;
Instead, he wanted to have a long talk with Tang Long, which had been brewing for most of the season!
He was in such a hurry.
Before she even had a chance to ask Tang Long for his phone number, she only got his address and drove straight to his house.
"You may not know this, but my scout Raymond and I have been preparing for this conversation for a very long time!"
Guardiola took an iPad out of his bag and began to browse through it in front of Tang Long.
Tang Long was surprised to find that the scout notes were filled with his own name.
Through Guardiola's explanation, he learned that the scout Raymond, whom Guardiola had sent, had been tracking Manchester City for most of the season, and Raymond would sit in the stands watching Tang Long's performance in almost every Manchester City game!
It turns out I've been being watched all along!
Of course, there are also records of other Manchester City players, but the main one is Tang Long himself.
"Tang, I remember after Manchester City was eliminated by Bayern, I asked you if you really wanted to win the UEFA Champions League. I remember you told me you wanted to win every club honor and the Ballon d'Or d'Or. Do you remember how I answered you then?"
"That's right! I'm saying, even if Manchester City wins the UEFA Champions League, the Ballon d'Or' Or won't be yours, it will be Agüero's, because you're not a striker, you haven't scored enough goals!"
"That's football. The striker is always the most dazzling player. If they waste ten chances but convert one, they become a hero in the eyes of the world."
"I've been tracking you for most of the season. After almost every game, I'll take ten minutes to review the game with Raymond. We've come to the same conclusion: you definitely have the ability to become a world-class striker!"
Looking at the detailed scouting report on the iPad, Tang Long's respect for Guardiola grew even stronger.
Before even joining a new team, he had already begun preparing for the next season; this dedication is truly admirable.
And Guardiola also performed very professionally!
In his final months coaching Bayern, he remained dedicated and hardworking, leading the Bayern not only to the league title but also to the UEFA Champions League final.
If it weren't for Cristiano Ronaldo's miraculous hat-trick comeback, Guardiola's three-year deal with Bayern would have been a perfect and unforgettable story.
"I'm very interested in becoming a striker, but I'd like to ask, we already have a top striker like Agüero in our team. If I were to play striker, would the team be top-heavy, and would that be beneficial to the overall strength of the team?"
Faced with Tang Long's question, Guardiola slapped his thigh hard.
"Child, that's a good question!"
"Next season I want to revamp the 4-2-3-1 formation left by Pellegrini and switch to a 4-3-3."
"In my plan, there will be three forwards: you on the left, Agüero can play in the center or on the right."
"As for the midfield issue, don't worry, everything is going according to plan. The only preliminary idea I can tell you right now is that Ranocchia will be moved forward, converted from a center-back to a midfielder!"
Guardiola is a well-known football fanatic. He's fine when he doesn't talk about football, but once he does, he immediately becomes completely absorbed in his own thoughts and can't pull himself away.
He chattered on and on, his mouth like a machine gun, speaking fluently in his Spain -accented English for over an hour, during which Tang Long barely managed to get a word in edgewise.
He was still using his old passing and ball control method, but you don't know until you compare, and the difference is astonishing.
Tang Long discovered that compared to what Pellegrini talked about in daily training, Guardiola's ideas were very bold, and some novel tactical thinking that Pellegrini had never mentioned.
For example, Guardiola mentioned that in his possession-based system in the backfield, full-backs should sometimes tuck in and be used as defensive midfielders. Tang Long then began to imagine how Sagna or Kolarov would play if they tucked in and played as defensive midfielders.
As the story concludes, the sun sets in the west.
The red sunset shone obliquely through the large floor-to-ceiling windows of the living room onto the herringbone-patterned wooden floor.
In the end, the topic returned to Tang Long playing as a forward.
"Tang, it's getting late, I have to go. Before I leave, I have one last question for you. Please answer quickly without thinking."
"Let me ask you, if you were to play striker, who do you think is better between you and Agüero?"
Without hesitation, Tang Long answered that it was Agüero.
"Aside from his height, Sergio possesses all the qualities of a top striker. He is fast, dribbles well, has excellent shooting technique, and his positioning is unpredictable. He is very good at seizing the moment when the defender is distracted and receiving through balls from the midfield. Moreover, he has strong stamina, a firm will, and is especially calm in one-on-one situations. I even learned a chip shot from him."
Guardiola listened attentively, nodding frequently.
"You're right. From your conversation, I can tell you know your teammates very well, which is a good thing because you've provided Agüero with a lot of assists."
"If I had to give my assessment—yes, Agüero's overall ability as a striker is indeed superior to yours, as can be seen from his number of goals."
But Guardiola immediately changed the subject and laughed:
"But in my opinion, none of that matters, because there's one thing you're far superior to Agüero in that you've left him far behind! Based on that alone, your potential as a striker is much higher than his."
"Prediction—that's the word I'm going to use!"
Before leaving, Guardiola made his demands of Tang Long for June.
The players will train in July, and June is their break time.
However, Guardiola insisted that Tang Long continue his personal training and even gave him the phone number of a private coach, saying that he had worked with this person during his time at Bayern and that he had now come to Manchester City.
"You are 182 cm tall and weigh 79 kg. This weight is fine for a midfielder, but if you want to play as a left winger, I need you to lose about 2 to 3 kg. This will make you lighter and it will be better for your knees!"
"Alright, kid, I had a pleasant conversation today. I have to go now. We won't see each other again for another month. I look forward to working together in the new season. Goodbye!"