"Mbappé has changed completely since he came back. Lucas and Borrell told me you must have given him some chicken soup."
On the way back to Cheshire from Leeds, Su Qing sat in the passenger seat, smiling at Gao Shen.
Gao Shen looked helpless, as if wrongly accused, and briefly explained the situation.
In fact, it was not a big issue. He did not want to interfere with Pochettino's coaching. He only wanted to give Mbappé some advice.
At the moment, he is Leeds United's most valuable and competitive player.
"The club has already responded and is actively contacting the media to protect Mbappé," Su Qing said, understanding Gao Shen's thoughts.
Gao Shen nodded. This was very necessary.
Allowing a core player to be attacked without restraint by the media is definitely not what a responsible club should do.
For example, Barcelona let the Catalan media attack Ronaldinho, and in Gao Shen's previous life, they even allowed and guided attacks on Messi. That was chilling.
Every club needs to protect its players and let them play with peace of mind.
This is not just empty talk.
"The team is leaving for Barcelona tomorrow. Are you not planning to talk to Pochettino?" Su Qing asked.
"Talk about what?" Gao Shen replied.
Su Qing thought for a moment, then hesitated.
"Pochettino is proud. He is very capable and, more importantly, he understands Barcelona."
Gao Shen showed a hint of surprise.
"Do you know which match made Pochettino famous?"
Su Qing shook her head. That was too long ago.
"If I remember correctly, it was February 21, 2009, not long after he took over Espanyol. He took them to Camp Nou to face league leaders Barcelona."
"At that time, Guardiola's Barcelona were truly invincible. They had gone 22 league matches unbeaten, losing only once in the first round and drawing three in total. By February, they were 10 points ahead of Real Madrid."
"He won?" Su Qing guessed.
"That was the match that put him on the map."
Gao Shen smiled. "On the football pitch, everything is based on strength. Even if you want to score a goal or win a title, you must have a certain level of strength. Otherwise, you are not even qualified."
"To beat Guardiola's invincible Barcelona at Camp Nou, Pochettino not only showed his ability, he also knew Barcelona very well."
Su Qing understood what Gao Shen meant.
In that case, there was no need to say anything to Pochettino.
Sometimes, too many opinions from outsiders only make a coach indecisive.
Before a decisive battle, you must remain calm.
Gao Shen believed Pochettino could lead the team out of Camp Nou unscathed.
…
Gao Shen did not know that when he left the Amazon Stadium and set off back to Cheshire, Pochettino was standing on the balcony outside his office at the AXA Center, just north of the stadium, looking out at the training ground.
At this moment, a name from his address book was displayed clearly on his P20 Pro screen.
Gao Shen.
Pochettino had already picked up his phone many times, looked at the name, and wanted to tap it several times.
Tomorrow the team would fly to Barcelona, Spain. The match against Barcelona would be a crucial group-stage battle. Before that, Pochettino actually wanted to discuss it with Gao Shen.
Because Gao Shen had said he would protect Leeds United.
And everyone knew he was known as Barcelona's nemesis. He had never lost to them.
If not for the loss to Chelsea, Pochettino would not have had this idea. But now he was worried.
Leeds United could not lose again at Camp Nou.
Should he call?
Pochettino hesitated.
After standing on the balcony for a long time, staring at the flat training ground, Pochettino picked up his phone again, thought for a moment, and turned off the screen.
"The courage and strength others give you are not your own and cannot last. Only your own courage and strength can benefit you for life."
"I believe in you, my friend. When you hesitate, believe in yourself, just as I believe in you."
"Mauricio, you are still a little conservative at heart. Relax a bit. We are a strong team now."
Those were Gao Shen's words to him before the season, and they had left a deep impression.
Thinking back now, the words were still vivid.
Gradually, the hesitation in Pochettino's eyes disappeared and turned into determination.
The Argentine turned sharply, walked through his office, and entered the conference room a few doors down.
His assistants, the first-team coaching staff, the medical team, psychologists, and other support staff were all present, discussing the team's current situation.
But before a big match, the head coach had to set the tone.
That tone would determine Leeds United's approach and lineup.
Pochettino had delayed because he was hesitating and weighing options.
Now, as he strode into the room, silence fell.
"Doctor, can Vardy play the full 90 minutes?" Pochettino asked seriously.
The head of the medical team immediately stood and shook his head. "We cannot guarantee it."
Pochettino's face fell.
Vardy was Leeds United's second-top scorer this season, behind only Mbappé, and his role in stretching the defense for Mbappé was crucial.
Losing Vardy was a huge blow to the attack.
Worse still, there was no obvious replacement. Haaland was only 18, Rashford's form had not fully returned and his last goal looked more like luck, and Vinicius was still very young.
They had considered using Mbappé as a center forward, but the results were poor and Pochettino was reluctant.
The French winger was best on the left, and moving him to center forward was extremely risky.
Under everyone's gaze, Pochettino took a deep breath, clenched his teeth, and said resolutely, "Then we take a big gamble."
The room was stunned.
Everyone stared at him in disbelief.
"We are going to attack Barcelona at Camp Nou."
The first reaction was simple. Madness.
It was crazy.
…
Losing to Chelsea was a heavy blow to Leeds United.
After surrendering top spot, Europe expressed concern about this young team.
More importantly, the next match was a crucial group-stage game away at Camp Nou.
Everyone knew that although all four teams in Group B had a chance, the most likely outcome was Barcelona topping the group.
But if Leeds United wanted to qualify, they could not afford a bad performance against Barcelona.
Right now, time and place were not on Leeds United's side, but public sentiment was…
Just before departure, British media broke the news that Leeds United captain Vardy was injured and could miss the match at Camp Nou.
The reaction was huge.
Everyone was shocked.
At first, some thought it was a smokescreen, but further reports showed Vardy was indeed injured and had not even trained. In that case, even if he played, how effective could he be?
The Spanish media, especially in Catalonia, were delighted.
With Vardy out, Leeds United looked like a team of kids.
How much threat could a group of twenty-year-olds pose at Camp Nou?
Especially up front.
Last season at least they had big names like Harry Kane, but now?
The striker was a 19-year-old Mbappé.
When have you seen a 19-year-old become the team's core?
Judging by his poor performance against Chelsea, was he capable of such a burden?
Sport speculated that Leeds United's most likely front line would be Mbappé, Rashford, and Dembélé.
Coincidentally, they were 19, 20, and 21 years old, with an average age of 20.
The youngest players in Barcelona's first team were older than Dembélé.
Did Leeds United really want to rely on a group of kids in Europe?
In fact, at the pre-departure press conference, when Pochettino announced the squad, Vardy was included, but the coach said he might not be able to play.
"The final decision will depend on his condition on match day."
The Catalan media took this as a sign of desperation.
It also proved Vardy's importance to Leeds United.
Even if it meant wasting a spot, they would still bring Vardy to Camp Nou and give him a chance.
Leeds United had suffered a heavy defeat three days earlier and lost top spot. Now, they were losing their top striker before a crucial match, which made the situation even worse.
The Catalan media were broadly optimistic.
Barcelona's La Liga form was not great. After four straight wins to start, they then went three without a win, with two draws and one loss, and two of those draws were at home.
But they had also beaten Huesca 8-2 at home.
More importantly, despite the dip, Barcelona still led the league, because Real Madrid were even worse.
This made the Catalan media and fans optimistic about the upcoming Champions League match.
If they beat Leeds United at home, the group would be as good as decided.
…
Gao Shen did not travel with the team. He arrived in Barcelona on match day with Fernando Lucas, Borrell, and others, and learned from Borrell what had happened inside Leeds United.
After hearing Pochettino's decision, Gao Shen slapped his thigh on the spot.
"That's it."
(To be continued.)