It is not difficult to form a team, but it is very, very, very difficult to form a team with a balanced lineup, full competitiveness, and at the same time maintain harmony in the dressing room.
This difficulty is reflected in every aspect.
Take Higuain for example.
He has played plenty of minutes this season and scored many goals, but he is still Benzema's backup.
At 25, right in the prime of his career, it is understandable that Higuain cannot accept being a substitute.
He has the ability and has already proven himself. There is never a shortage of clubs interested in him. If he chooses to leave Real Madrid, he does not have to worry about finding a new team.
In this case, it really comes down to whether he wants to stay or not.
In the past, he remained to compete with Benzema because he believed he had a chance to be a starter. At one point, he actually was. But since Gao Shen took over, Benzema's position has only grown more secure, and Higuain has realized this.
So he wants to leave.
But that creates another problem.
Real Madrid currently has only three regular center forwards: Benzema, Higuain, and Morata.
Joselu has already been sent back to Castilla by Gao Shen.
Among these three, Benzema and Higuain are the ones Gao Shen has relied on the most, using them as a form of double insurance while gradually developing Morata.
But now, if Higuain leaves, Real Madrid will only have two strikers left, and Morata is not yet mature or consistent enough.
This creates a hidden danger.
Over a long season, who can guarantee players will not get injured?
If Benzema were sidelined for four months like Marcelo was this season, who would Real Madrid rely on up front?
What about in key matches against strong opponents?
The difficulty lies in finding a replacement for Higuain.
First of all, strikers in their prime who are capable and established at other clubs are unwilling to accept a backup role.
Just like Higuain, or Negredo, they would refuse.
But Real Madrid's substitute must be strong enough, willing to endure being on the bench, and able to remain calm.
It would be disastrous to bring in a player who has the quality but stirs up trouble when he does not get playing time.
The question is, across European football, how many players of that level would willingly accept being a substitute?
Besides, Real Madrid is not Manchester City.
When Gao Shen was at City, he had the luxury of rotating two world-class strikers, Van Persie and Suarez, because City could afford their salaries.
Real Madrid cannot.
This time, Higuain took the initiative to confide in Gao Shen for two reasons. On one hand, he had no shortage of buyers. Clubs like Arsenal in the Premier League, Napoli in Serie A, and Inter Milan were all interested.
On the other hand, his contract renewal with Real Madrid had run into problems.
Since the end of last year, at Gao Shen's suggestion, Real Madrid began a round of contract renewals, and Higuain was included.
His current contract pays him 3.8 million euros per year and runs until 2016, which is still a long way off.
The renewal terms Real Madrid offered were 4.5 million per year until 2018.
When that failed to reach an agreement, the club adjusted it to 2017.
But Higuain's stance was firm. He wanted more playing time and a guaranteed role in the team.
Simply put, he wanted to start.
But that was something Gao Shen could not give him.
Higuain's characteristics on the pitch made it impossible for him to fulfill the same tactical role as Benzema.
The facts showed that Real Madrid's current lineup and tactics were functioning very well. With further refinement, results would surely follow.
But Higuain's playing style is different from Benzema's.
So how could Gao Shen make such a promise?
Once it is written into a contract, Gao Shen would be forced to honor it.
Do you see?
Often, a coach's lineup decisions are influenced by player contracts. But these matters are never made public. Even if a coach is sacked for poor results, it can never be said outright. This is an unspoken rule in football.
What is more commonly known are clauses regarding appearances.
That is why sometimes a player is suddenly brought on in a match just to increase his appearance count.
But Gao Shen could not agree to something like Higuain's request.
If Higuain leaves, where can a suitable replacement be found?
…
When Real Madrid returned overnight from Turin to Madrid, fans around the world were buzzing.
On one side, Real Madrid had beaten Juventus in both legs, showing overwhelming dominance and advancing to the Champions League semi-finals.
On the other side, Paris Saint-Germain held Barcelona to a 1-1 draw at home with tenacious defending.
The aggregate score was 3-3, but PSG advanced on away goals, knocking out Vilanova's team and setting up a semi-final clash with Real Madrid.
Ancelotti had displayed top-level tactical ability across the two legs.
Media and fans everywhere were looking forward to a showdown between Gao Shen and Ancelotti in the Champions League semi-final.
But Gao Shen had no time to dwell on this.
The morning after returning to Madrid, after overseeing recovery training, Gao Shen met Valdano and Butragueño in his office at Valdebebas.
They had come at his invitation to discuss Higuain's situation.
Carlo, Zidane, and Hierro were also present.
"Did Fernando Llorente really sign with Juventus?" Gao Shen asked with concern.
"He signed in December last year. Athletic Bilbao were very unhappy with Llorente over it," Valdano replied.
Fernando Llorente is a Spanish center forward, tall and strong, with good feet, considered a solid striker.
Interestingly, last summer Juventus had offered 20 million euros for him, but Athletic Bilbao refused. In the end, six months later, the Zebras took him on a free transfer.
That deal would go through in the summer of 2013.
Hearing this, Gao Shen felt a little frustrated.
Many times, it is harder to choose substitutes than starters.
For starters, strength alone is enough. But substitutes must have strength and also the mentality to sit on the bench.
"How is Morata right now?" Butragueño asked with concern.
"Not mature enough." Gao Shen frowned and shook his head.
When many people talk about Morata, they compare him to traditional Spanish center forwards like Morientes, Negredo, or even Llorente. But in fact, he is not exactly like them.
In a sense, he is more modern.
Traditional Spanish strikers excel at positioning and finishing, have a solid technical foundation, are good at dropping back to link play, and can hold the ball up. But physically they are often not strong enough, and their pace and explosiveness are lacking.
Llorente is an example.
But Morata is different.
He has all the strengths of a traditional Spanish forward, but he also possesses speed and explosiveness, which allows him to get away from defenders once he gets the ball.
This is why his idol is Ronaldo, not a striker.
Of course, Morata's speed and explosiveness are not on Ronaldo's level, but his playing style is somewhat similar.
Over the past season, Gao Shen and the coaching staff had been urging him to strengthen his physical duels and improve his finishing. He had made progress in both areas, but it was still not enough, especially inside the box.
Compared with that, Higuain's finishing ability was outstanding.
But if Morata were to directly replace Higuain as the team's second striker, it would be a big risk.
If Benzema were injured, and in matches that required physical battles, it would be very difficult.
But Morata is only 20 years old. It is still too early to draw conclusions.
"We definitely need a mature and stable striker," Gao Shen said.
Nowadays, in European football, there are many names when it comes to buying a center forward.
Not counting Manchester City's Van Persie and Suarez, there is also Giroud, Napoli's Pellè, Dortmund's Lewandowski, Bayern's Mandzukic, Tottenham's Dzeko, or even bringing back Negredo.
These are all excellent candidates, but they each come with issues.
For example, Lewandowski and Mandzukic. Would they be willing to come to Real Madrid and compete with Benzema?
That is the real question.
Next comes the salary issue.
Florentino's salary structure red line cannot be broken. Even if Higuain and Kaka leave and free up space, several players in the squad need renewals, young players need new contracts, and reinforcements are required in other positions.
Under this operation, can Real Madrid still make room for another striker's salary?
Gao Shen still remembered that in 2013, Real Madrid had offered Gareth Bale an after-tax salary of 11 million euros.
Given the current situation, signing a quality striker should not be too big of a problem.
The real challenge is coordinating the dressing room and managing Benzema.
"You should go back and study this carefully. The technical team needs to draw up a shortlist as soon as possible. The management should also review the financial situation and present a plan quickly. Time waits for no one," Gao Shen urged.
Valdano and Butragueño exchanged a look and nodded.
In fact, if Higuain had made this decision earlier, Real Madrid could have signed Llorente before Juventus.
It would have been acceptable to offer a slightly higher salary for a free transfer.
But now, it was far too late.
"Alright, we'll go back and study it, and give you an answer as soon as possible," Valdano promised.
It was already April, and soon the transfer window would open.
If Real Madrid wanted to bring in a striker, they had to finalize the plan quickly and begin preparations.
If they waited until the summer transfer market officially opened before acting, it would be too late.
Gao Shen himself did not want to get too involved in transfers.
Even though he had the right to nominate and approve, transfers still needed to follow proper procedures.
That way, a lot of unnecessary trouble could be avoided.
In any case, once the technical team produced a plan, it would still require Gao Shen's final approval.
(To be continued.)