Advice from Midfield Maestro Pirlo: Tang, Work on Your Dribbling!

Tang Long's error in midfield directly led to Inter Milan conceding a goal!

Pirlo's long pass looked like nothing more than a casual swing of his leg, yet the ball traveled like a cruise missile, bypassing the defender Ranocchia and landing precisely at the feet of the Spanish star Morata, who had successfully beaten the offside trap.

Goalkeeper Handanovic was powerless to stop it.

"Sigh, how could Tang handle the ball like that? He should have turned and shielded the ball first!"

With a loud "smack," Berni on the bench slammed his towel onto the ground.

Guarin, who was in the middle of his regular warm-up on the sidelines, couldn't help but shake his head as he watched!

"A fatal mistake. Conceding a goal from that position is just too fatal!"

After scoring, Juventus completely unleashed their offensive momentum.

According to statistics, they were the team in Serie A that scored the most goals between the 35th and 45th minutes.

This time window was the Bianconeri's peak period for concentrated firepower.

Relying on their powerful control over the midfield and defense, they took over the match.

In particular, the 36-year-old veteran Pirlo was frequently creating threats from midfield!

Many times during defense, Tang Long and Medel would struggle to double-team Pirlo, but the Italian veteran—who was neither tall, physically imposing, nor fast—could always escape their double-team through basic movements like stationary turns, feints, and ball drags.

He was like a slowly flowing stream; seemingly soft, yet no matter what you did, you could never catch the water!

And when you got frustrated enough to punch at it, you ended up with nothing but a face full of splashes.

As the saying goes, playing with the fluidity of clouds and water, and the ease of a master—that was exactly the kind of midfield maestro Pirlo was.

In the 43rd minute of the first half, Inter Milan suffered another blow!

It was another pass from Pirlo!

This time, Master Pirlo feigned a long pass to the left flank, his eyes fixed in that direction, but with his final touch, he suddenly twisted his ankle and unexpectedly sent the ball along a hidden path to the feet of the overlapping right-back Lichtsteiner.

Cross!

Morata header!

A brace!

The 70,000-plus Inter Milan fans at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza fell silent.

Such a start was truly agonizing.

In the second half, Mancini made personnel adjustments.

Tang Long was substituted off, with Guarin coming on in his place.

"Tang, you really need to learn from Pirlo. Look at his dribbling in midfield—how elegant, how stylish. No wasted movements. That is the demeanor of a master."

"Look at this! Look, why did he fool Medel just now? Did you see the trick? He used a shoulder feint during his turn; that's the key point! Did you learn it?"

On the bench, every time Pirlo touched the ball, Berni would earnestly analyze Pirlo's movements for Tang Long.

"In my opinion, Pirlo is the best top-tier midfielder in Serie A over the last decade. If you can learn even thirty percent of Pirlo's dribbling and ball-shielding skills, Tang, only then will you truly be able to secure your spot in a team like Inter Milan."

Tang Long nodded, his eyes fixed intently on Pirlo.

Although he had only played for 45 minutes, after facing Pirlo at such close range, he finally understood what a top-tier midfielder from Italy's golden generation truly looked like.

Berni paused, looking at Guarin on the pitch, seemingly hesitating to speak.

"Tang, actually, you should also watch Guarin. Even though this guy doesn't get along with you, he still has things worth learning."

The third-choice goalkeeper Berni was right.

After Guarin came on, the toughness of Inter Milan's midfield went up a whole level!

It was mainly reflected in their ability to hold the ball in midfield and their willingness to take possession.

Unlike Pirlo, Guarin's ball retention in midfield was the kind that relied on his strong physique to muscle through.

Previously, when Tang Long was on the pitch, as soon as two or more opponents surrounded him, Tang Long could only choose to pass the ball away immediately.

But Guarin was different; he could hold his ground!

The Colombian star's strength rating was around 95, and combined with his dribbling, which reached an average level of around 80, he became the main focal point for physical confrontation in Inter Milan's midfield.

Pirlo attracted opponents through dribbling and ball control, then passed the ball to create gaps.

Guarin did the same thing by using his body to hold off opponents.

Although his passing was nowhere near as elegant as Pirlo's, and the precision was far off, it at least allowed Inter Milan's flanks to receive passes in open space.

In the 66th minute, Guarin used his rock-like shoulder to bump Marchisio aside, moving forward like a bulldozer!

"Here!"

Icardi suddenly made a run behind the defense, tricking the center-back Bonucci, and called for the ball!

Guarin hesitated for a moment, didn't pass to him, and instead sent it to the overlapping Nagatomo Yuto on the flank.

Nagatomo Yuto charged to the byline, attracted two defenders, and then sent a cut-back pass!

Guarin rushed over and unleashed a thunderous strike, but the ball hammered against the crossbar!

The very ground seemed to tremble!

Guarin turned toward the North Stand, repeatedly waving his arms, "Louder! Let me hear you!"

The fans responded with roaring cheers; how could the Inter Milan faithful not love a Guarin like this?

"Icardi isn't offering enough. Bring on Podolski."

Mancini gave the order, and the German forward, known for his superior ball control and wider range of movement, entered the pitch.

As Icardi walked off, he received applause from the home crowd, but he clearly wasn't in high spirits, offering only a perfunctory high-five to his teammates.

He sat on the bench without saying a word.

Once Podolski entered the game, he played with ease and composure.

After all, he was a tournament-hardened veteran with over 100 caps for the German national team; he and his partner Palacio constantly drifted out of the penalty area to operate in the half-spaces.

In the 75th minute, it was precisely because of Podolski's cut-inside shot after receiving the ball in the half-space that Inter Milan pulled one back!

The broadcast camera specifically cut to Icardi, who had been substituted, on the bench.

His expression was far from pleasant; his face was dark and gloomy.

Berni glanced at Icardi, covered his mouth, leaned into Tang Long's ear, and whispered:

"This German is no joke. Against a powerhouse like Juventus, he's more effective than Icardi. He can run, he can dribble, he can shoot—he's incredibly well-rounded!"

In the end, the 1-2 scoreline held until the final whistle.

Inter Milan failed to complete their revenge on home soil.

The players on the bench rose one after another, heading to the center of the pitch to encourage their teammates.

After Tang Long exchanged a few words with Ranocchia, he felt a tap on his back.

Pirlo, with his signature thick beard, was looking at him with a smile.

"Hello, Tang. Could we swap jerseys?" Pirlo appeared very gentlemanly and polite.

"Of course."

Tang Long and Pirlo exchanged jerseys.

"You played very well, Tang. Those through balls you sent to Icardi in the first half were very creative. If our defenders weren't so strong, Icardi would have scored at least two, haha!"

After praising Tang Long, Pirlo shifted the tone of the conversation.

"However, you really need to work on your dribbling. I suspect Mancini was very unhappy with that ball you lost, which is why he subbed you off at halftime. You are a midfielder with great passing vision, but if you can't dribble, your ceiling won't be very high—you'll be limited to just Serie A."

"Yeah, I wish I had dribbling like Lionel Messi, but unfortunately..."

"No, no, no!"

Pirlo said "no" three times in a row!

"You don't need invincible dribbling like Lionel Messi; that relies too much on speed and raw talent. Learn from me—basic turns, cuts, and drags. You don't need to be lightning-fast, as long as you hit the right rhythm."

Having said that, Pirlo even gestured in the air to demonstrate for Tang Long, "That ball you lost—if it were me, I would have handled Sturaro like this..."

"If you have time, you can watch videos of my dribbling; you can find them all online." Pirlo patted Tang Long on the shoulder.

Tang Long asked, "Mr. Pirlo, I am your opponent. Why are you telling me all this?"

Pirlo replied, "Hahaha, what opponent? After this season, I'm heading to the United States to play. I'll be far away from the drama of European football, just enjoying life. The future of football belongs to you young guys!"

Tang Long paused, suddenly thinking of something!

"Mr. Pirlo, if I ask you for advice on football in the future, would you be willing to teach me?"

"Hahaha, feel free to ask! After all, I used to be an Inter Milan player myself, it's just that they didn't value me and sold me to AC Milan. Besides, I've been an Inter Milan fan since I was a kid—that's absolutely true. There are even pictures of me wearing an Inter Milan jersey as a child online!

Anyway, I'll have Chivu send you my number later; he and I are close, we're old rivals! Ask whatever you want. Once I get to the United States in July, I won't be using this phone number anymore!"