Ancelotti was indeed quite helpless, especially in the second match.
Despite having set up the tactics, all plans were disrupted due to a red card.
But should Alex really be blamed?
Not necessarily!
Although Alex was indeed impulsive, the through ball Suker delivered was also very dangerous.
If it had gone in, they would have also been in a passive situation.
Professional players must make decisions in an instant, and as a defender, their task is not to let any player get past their defense, so it's understandable that they instinctively made that decision.
One can only say that their skills were inferior!
The overall squad gap was still quite large.
Although Paris Saint-Germain is currently implementing a 'buy, buy, buy' policy, recruiting players from all over with large salaries.
But honestly, they really can't find top-tier players!
Some things money can't buy.
Just like Suker, no matter how much money he's offered, he won't join Paris Saint-Germain.
Besides money, he also needs many honors.
Not to sound like he is boasting, but with Suker's current income, he will never have to worry about money for the rest of his life, so he doesn't need to compromise for money.
Ancelotti walked into the pre-match area, comforting his many dejected disciples.
For them, the Champions League journey had just begun, and they had already laid a certain foundation; as for the future, that was no longer something Ancelotti could decide.
Yes!
He had already made a decision: he would coach Real Madrid next season.
"Congratulations to you all!"
As Suker finished his interview, Ancelotti came over, smiling, and extended his hand to congratulate him.
Suker didn't shake his hand but smiled and hugged him directly.
"Boss, is it decided?" Suker asked with a smile.
Ancelotti smiled without speaking; some things can't be said publicly.
Seeing his demeanor, Suker knew his guess was almost spot on.
He didn't linger with Ancelotti; there were too many people around, and it wasn't suitable for conversation.
When he returned to the locker room, Suker saw his celebrating teammates.
Marcelo had music playing, and a group of guys were swaying in the locker room.
Seeing Suker walk in, Marcelo even went over and invited Suker to dance with them.
But Suker declined, waving his hand with a smile, and went straight to sit on the bench.
Suker rubbed his ankle; in the second half, Paris Saint-Germain had put him under immense physical pressure.
And after the State Recovery Card had been used, it still needed some cooldown time.
Suker's body used to be very strong and resilient.
But for the sake of flexibility, he reduced some strength training, which led to a slight loss of muscle mass, the most significant characteristic of which was easy fatigue.
Suker played according to his previous running style, so continuous bursts in a short period would put a great burden on his body.
And now, after the reduction in muscle mass, what Suker needed to do was reallocate his physical energy.
He needed to change his bursts and the rhythm of playing matches.
This kind of thing should have been completed in the first half of the season, with the second half being the sprint phase.
But Suker suddenly started losing flexibility and experiencing muscle stiffness, and he couldn't avoid it; one could only say his luck wasn't particularly good.
But fortunately, with the State Recovery Card, the impact wasn't too significant.
After the celebration, the Real Madrid players took the bus back to the training base.
Due to the late hour, Leidup dismissed the players directly, planning to review and summarize the next day.
Suker drove straight home, and by the time he arrived at the villa, it was already around 11 PM.
After a day of noise and the match, Suker felt physically and mentally tired; he washed his face, brushed his teeth, and quickly fell asleep in bed.
The next day, Suker still woke up early, taking his dog out for a morning run, and activating his own body functions at the same time.
But he kept yawning!
Although the physical fatigue was gone, the continuous matches over multiple seasons had also left him mentally exhausted.
After running a few laps, Suker sat on a bench by the roadside to rest.
Once the dog finished its walk, he took it back home.
Luna has been very eager to go home lately, no longer stubbornly refusing to leave.
This was also Sukic's doing.
Children have endless energy and constantly bother the dog; sometimes, it's had enough, but Sukic still wants to play.
For Luna, playing with Sukic is fine for a short while, but it becomes a drag after a long time.
Suker merely gloated about this; the dog finally had someone to manage it.
Back home, he quickly made three portions of breakfast.
"Morning!"
Zorancic walked down, yawning.
Soon, Sukic also rubbed his eyes, groggily sat at the dining table, poured himself a glass of milk, drank it all, and then began to eat the sandwich Suker had prepared.
After eating, the little guy ran upstairs to wash up, and soon after, the football school's shuttle bus arrived at the door.
"I'm leaving!"
Sukic, holding his backpack, turned and waved at Suker, then quickly left.
Suker nodded, grabbed his training gear, and also planned to head to the training base.
"Isn't today a rest day?"
Suker turned his head: "I'm going to do some specialized training with Zidane."
"Training with Zidane?" Zorancic was a bit surprised but didn't ask too many questions.
Suker also walked straight out of the house and drove to the training base.
A ten-minute drive, and Suker quickly arrived at the training base.
Since it was a rest day, there were almost no starting players to be seen; there would be some substitutes doing extra training, such as Carvajal and others, but they were already accustomed to seeing Suker.
After all, at Real Madrid, even the top star is working hard, so how could the substitutes relax?
However, they couldn't keep up with Suker's training pace, so they trained separately.
Suker changed into his gear, carried a net of footballs, and went directly to field number two.
Soon, Zidane appeared there, wearing a training uniform.
"Good morning!" Zidane greeted with a smile.
"Good morning!"
Suker scattered the footballs from the net onto the ground, then said, "Shall I start?"
Zidane didn't dither and simply nodded.
Suker was seeking some midfield control-oriented play from Zidane.
Suker himself originated as a forward, so his playing style was more direct, primarily focused on breakthroughs.
But Zidane, a traditional number ten from the midfield, had a more comprehensive and highly controlling playing style.
Suker wanted to seek this control.
When the team advanced rashly, he wanted to connect the team's offense through his passing, and even take the lead himself to control the tempo.
Suker's technical aspects were not an issue, but he was unfamiliar with control.
It was like when they played Manchester United, and Kaka, who had just transitioned to midfield, was suppressed by Modrić's tempo control.
"Midfielders must maintain an open stance in their positioning!"
Zidane stood sideways, with his arms slightly open: "Like this, once someone passes, you can choose to pass in three directions, and when facing the attacking side, the turning radius is shorter, which can save more time."
"Of course, if the front is blocked, you can also take the first touch back and shift to the other side!"
"Controlling the tempo is nothing more than the frequency of passing and receiving the ball.
Zidane gestured, indicating for Suker to pass the ball.
Suker immediately passed, and Zidane passed it back with one touch.
"This is a one-touch pass."
Suker passed again.
Zidane stopped the ball with his left foot and passed with his right foot.
With two thumps, the ball rolled back to his feet again.
The third time, Zidane made some disengagement movements and then passed the ball to Suker again.
"The entire tempo control is like this, but it needs to be combined with the opponent's position and your own players' runs. Most crucially, as a tempo setter, you must never always run forward! Instead, you need to pause, ensuring the passing player can always see you, or while running, let him see your running direction before passing!"
At this point, Zidane said: "Actually, your individual technique already meets these basics, and your inherent technical characteristics are also very suitable for playing this way. However, I need to tell you that playing this way, you will lose some goal-scoring efficiency."
Suker: "Because it's too far from the goal?"
Zidane nodded: "That's one reason, but more so, during the control process, you will be exposed in the opponent's field of vision, causing them to be more vigilant against you."
He paused, then continued; "And based on the opponent's vigilance towards you, you can only make one touch; one more touch, and you might encounter the opponent's encirclement!"
Suker nodded seriously, "I've also thought about that reason, so I might need to utilize one-touch passes more, but if it's always one-touch, it'll be difficult to control the tempo. How can I slow down the tempo?"
Zidane: "Generally, midfielders don't face such high-intensity pressure and tackles, so they have some time to control the ball. But considering your factors, I think there are two options."
"First: Lateral evasion. Use your technique to break through!"
"Of course, this kind of breakthrough turn is more of a backward turn, so you can separate the ball from the opponent, then use your explosiveness to instantly create space, and then slowly transfer the ball!"
"Second: You can utilize the vertical width of the midfield to drop back and deal with the ball."
"When you drop back, the defending players will be wary of losing their position, so they won't follow as decisively. Their goal is more to drive you away, so at this time, you can gain more possession!"
Zidane held up two fingers: "You need to master these two things! I think you'll be able to control the tempo."
Suker thought for a moment, then nodded, "I still need to practice. Can I try it out in the next match?"
Zidane smiled, "Try it in a training match first!"
Despite what he said, Suker insisted, and he had no choice.
However, Suker still agreed.
He wasn't joking around with matches.
What's more, Real Madrid was still in pursuit, so even if he wanted to experiment, he would have to wait until the match had an advantage.
Zidane taught very diligently, even bringing out his accumulated experience, things he had kept under wraps.
Suker could feel that Zidane wanted to build a good relationship with him.
This was easy to understand; Zidane's future goal was to take charge of Real Madrid, and Suker was Real Madrid's top star. Building a good relationship with Suker would naturally be very beneficial to him.
The entire morning, Suker and Zidane were engaged in various specialized training sessions.
Zidane also watched Suker make rapid progress.
Zidane wasn't surprised; Suker's foundation was already top-notch, and there were no issues with his technique or awareness.
It was simply a matter of changing his playing style and shifting his mindset.
Initially, it would feel awkward, but once he adapted, Suker would quickly produce results.
"That's enough for today!"
Zidane waved his hand, pointing to the scorching sun overhead and saying, "If we keep training, we'll all get sunburned!"
Suker also wiped the sweat from his forehead, indicating he understood.
At noon, the two had a simple meal in the cafeteria. During this time, Zidane also shared some small tips from his playing days with Suker.
Although they were simple and easy-to-understand tips, they were very practical, and most midfielders used them.
After eating, Zidane said goodbye and left.
Suker thanked him again.
He took time out of his personal schedule to help, so Suker owed him a favor.
However, Zidane seemed indifferent, or rather, he wanted more, so this small favor didn't matter; he still needed to accumulate more.
But from any perspective, Suker was not at a loss!
In the afternoon, Suker went home.
The weather had become a bit muggy, as if it were a prelude to rain.
Sure enough, shortly after, the sky turned dark, and rain poured down.
The heavy rain continued all night, and many low-lying roads accumulated water, with some areas even experiencing flooding.
Even in the morning, a moderate rain was still falling.
"This isn't good weather!"
Zorancic shook his head as he looked at the gloomy outdoors.
Sukic raised his hand: "No school today, it's a holiday. I want to play games."
Suker replied without turning his head, "You can play after you finish your homework!"
Sukic: "I'm already done!"
Suker was surprised: "When did you do it?"
Sukic chuckled: "Last night, I wrote until 11 PM and finished all my homework. Today I want to enjoy my holiday!"
Hearing this, Suker smiled: "Go play!"
The little guy cheered and immediately rushed into his room. If there were no surprises, this kid wouldn't leave his room all day.
Suker, on the other hand, put on his training gear, ready to head to the training base.
Although the rain was heavy, Real Madrid had an indoor training ground. They would move indoors during rain or snow, which wouldn't affect their training progress.
"Good morning!"
Suker walked into the locker room and found several teammates looking listless.
Marcelo yawned, turned to look at the heavy rain outside, and sighed, shaking his head, "At this time, I should be lying on the sofa, wrapped in a blanket, sleeping."
"What sleep? The Champions League draw results are out, and we need to prepare for the next round of matches!"
As of yesterday, all Champions League Round of 16 matches had concluded, and the eight quarter-finalists were determined.
They were Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Juventus, Barcelona, Borussia Dortmund, Valencia, Málaga, and Galatasaray.
And after the draw, Real Madrid's opponent in the Champions League quarter-finals was Juventus from Italy.
Since topping Serie A last year, the Bianconeri have shown extremely strong internal fighting power.
And in the Champions League, they have also been consistently performing well.
Although Serie A as a whole is in decline, Juventus has managed to retain its strength, with good development of young players and strong squad depth.
But this match was not the focus of this segment.
The Champions League quarter-final focus match: Bayern Munich VS Barcelona!
A direct confrontation between Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi.
Guardiola, after coaching Bayern, facing his old club for the first time!
It could be said that this match was filled with various talking points.
For example, Guardiola created the tiki-taka system of the Dream Team Barcelona, a troublesome tactic. How should he, as the developer, deal with it himself?
At the same time, as the dominant force in the Bundesliga, can Bayern Munich once again achieve a crushing victory like in the last round?
Friendly reminder, in the last round, Bayern Munich eliminated Arsenal 8-0 on aggregate over two legs, achieving a truly perfect victory.
Borussia Dortmund's performance is also worth looking forward to; they are truly playing better and better.
And for Real Madrid, this match is a test.
As an Italian team, Juventus excels at their chain defense and deep-lying playmaking.
However, for Real Madrid, both Kroos and Casemiro are young players, lacking sufficient experience.
Especially when they have to face Pirlo, who is now hailed as a midfield maestro, this is truly unusually difficult.
Even Leidup and Zidane were somewhat troubled.
If Alonso or Kaka were still here, the problem might not be so serious, but now, going up against Juventus with this midfield combination always leaves them feeling a bit uncertain.
"Suker, have you thought about playing as a libero?"
During the tactical analysis, Zidane suddenly spoke.
With that one sentence, the entire tactical room suddenly fell silent.
In the quiet tactical room, the rain pattered, and no one dared to speak. They all exchanged bewildered glances.
He dared to say that?
Zidane quickly added, "Of course, it's not a traditional libero in the conventional sense, but with some modifications, expanding your range of activity and functions. This can more effectively utilize your role."
Suker looked at Zidane; he didn't think Zidane would suddenly say something like that without reason.
The traditional 'libero' was developed by Beckenbauer.
This was a position located in the backfield, a role that actively attacked through passing and receiving.
However, in current football tactics, these functions have been differentiated.
For example, the increasing emphasis on the ball-playing ability of center-backs today is also a characteristic evolved from the libero, safely passing the ball to the midfield's organizing point.
Leidup saw that the situation was a bit off and quickly said, "You two can discuss this issue privately later. For now, let's focus on the tactics for the next match!"
Only then did everyone breathe a sigh of relief.
However, they still looked at Zidane curiously, wondering why he suddenly proposed this.
Suker, meanwhile, showed some signs of contemplation.
He believed that Zidane's intention might be for him to play as an attacking libero.
This would allow him to consolidate midfield control, drive forward, and make free runs into attack.
However, the specifics would depend on what Zidane had to say!