"Midfielders, don't push forward! That's someone else's job, Toni! Hold your position! Maintain the rhythm."
"Great! That's it, fella!"
"Kaka, your distribution is too slow. Don't give the opponent time to react."
"Pass the ball to Suker, Suker! You have too many unnecessary movements, missing the chance to shoot!"
Whoosh!
As soon as he finished speaking, Suker took a poke shot, nutmegging two players in a row to score a goal.
Ancelotti, who was still shouting nearby, suddenly fell silent.
Suker turned his head to look.
Let me see, what's going on?
Ancelotti gave a thumbs up: "Great!"
His teammates nearby couldn't help but laugh.
Ancelotti is very interesting; he always gives his players great emotional value. He never suppresses any player, even giving full encouragement to substitutes.
In such circumstances, the team atmosphere, which was tense and stiff last season, immediately began to dissipate like melting snow.
"The shot was great, but always remember, don't make any unnecessary movements in front of the goal."
Ancelotti made a push-shot motion: "Shoot directly. In front of the goal, we prioritize efficiency. The simpler we make it, the more uncomfortable the opponent will be."
Suker nodded.
He did have a bit of a show-off tendency just now.
However, this is just a training match; just play as relaxed as possible.
The small-sided training match ended, and teams on the field began to switch for the next wave of training.
Suker, Kroos, Kaka, Benzema, Ramos, and others went to the shaded area by the field to rest.
They did not sit on the ground; it's not advisable to sit down immediately after intense exercise.
Suker picked up an energy drink nearby and squeezed it into his mouth.
Due to the high temperature, the energy drink was a bit warm, not as refreshing to drink.
Suker walked directly to the cooler box, where some ice packs were kept.
He sat down leaning against the barrier, placing two ice packs on each of his thighs. The cold sensation gradually cooled down his overly tense and swollen muscles.
"He says he's slowing down the training intensity, but isn't he just trying to train us to death?"
Suker supported himself with both hands on the ground, leaned back, and sighed while looking up at the sky.
In a one-hour training session, Ancelotti directly maximized the intensity.
Physical training only lasted for two days; next up was ball training.
And Ancelotti, for the sake of tactical integration progress, made his training methods in the training sessions very compact.
In the summer of Madrid, under high temperatures, such training was a bit overwhelming.
"Your stamina has also declined!"
Srna said, looking at Suker.
Suker rolled his eyes and didn't speak.
He reduced a lot of strength training, firstly because of increased body fat, and secondly because his stamina slightly decreased.
Of course, Suker has a State Recovery Card, so he doesn't worry about stamina issues.
Even if his stamina were worse, he could still easily beat most professional players.
"The training content is intense, but still very interesting."
Ramos also sat beside Suker and said.
Ancelotti's training, apart from some monotonous positioning drills, includes many small-sided confrontation matches and some simple games, allowing players to gain a sense of enjoyment during training.
"Did you watch the internal training promotional video of Barcelona yesterday?"
Pepe said: "That newly joined Brazilian genius, you can see his dribbling skills from the video."
The most important aspects of dribbling are rhythm and foot frequency adjustment.
And Neymar not only has these but also excellent ball control.
Especially in vertical breakthroughs, Neymar's performance is outstanding.
Barcelona's internal video has fully demonstrated Neymar's talent in dribbling.
"You still watch that stuff?" Suker turned his head and said.
Pepe: "Since Barcelona is promoting that Brazilian genius so much, of course I have to pay attention."
After all, for Pepe, this guy might be a particularly important penetration point to watch out for when facing Barcelona in the future.
Kaka: "Neymar's vertical breakthrough ability is very strong, and his acceleration and speed are also very fast. This is something we must pay attention to."
Marcelo: "But his style of play is very dangerous."
Neymar, Suker, and Messi are all experts in dribbling.
But Suker and Messi's dribbling is more for the sake of dribbling, and their dribbling methods are simple and direct.
However, Neymar's dribbling has some 'show-off' elements.
Indeed, an attacking player playing 'showy' will increase the entertainment value of the game, and many fans hope to see more of this.
But for the opponent, this is an insult.
For example, Neymar could clearly use a feint to dribble past, but he insists on using a rainbow flick.
Putting themselves in the shoes of a defensive player, wouldn't they kick him?
"If he dares to use a rainbow flick, I'll give him an elbow." Pepe directly made a harsh threat.
This guy not only makes threats, he can actually do it.
Today's Pepe and Ramos are both notoriously fierce throughout the football world.
Real Madrid's defensive duo, if they're unhappy, they'll go for the legs, which also puts a lot of psychological pressure on many frontline players when facing Ramos and Pepe.
After all, every dribble is a gamble with the risk of a broken leg.
Sometimes, a bad reputation is indeed very effective and can provide great help on the defensive end.
The morning training session ended, and Real Madrid's players were not in a hurry to go home; instead, they had lunch in the cafeteria and then took a short nap during their break.
Around 1 PM, they spontaneously began to gather at the gym and the training pitch.
Apart from the main session, other training items were voluntary.
Of course, some less disciplined players went home early, but most players chose to stay at the training base.
Real Madrid's gym is very large, and the training equipment is very complete.
Muscular men, with their upper bodies exposed, began their weightlifting session.
A moment later, the gym was filled with loud grunts.
Suker has strict standards for his strength training; neither too much nor too little.
Too much, and muscles tend to stiffen!
Too little, and muscle loss affects athletic performance.
Therefore, Suker trained his strength for a while according to his standards, then immediately lay sideways on a piece of equipment, propping his head with one hand, lazily watching everyone train.
There were also coaches assisting in the gym, but they completely ignored Suker.
Firstly, they knew that Suker was reducing strength training to alleviate muscle stiffness.
Secondly, when it comes to self-discipline, no one in the entire Real Madrid team can compare to Suker.
They were well aware of this, so they didn't bother Suker at all.
Before long, Pintus walked over.
He rubbed his bald head, holding a medical examination report, and smiled: "Your muscle mass is very well maintained, not too much, not too little. It seems you've been diligently doing your flexibility training."
Suker naturally nodded: "I do thorough stretching every morning, and I haven't neglected other training either."
Pintus nodded: "You don't need to continue with the training here; the boss is calling for you."
Suker blinked, nodded, and immediately left.
Putting on his training jacket, Suker walked out of the gym, passed the training ground, and headed towards the office building.
On the training ground, many substitutes were still training.
The Real Madrid first team has many players; some come in, some go out, and Suker can't accurately name everyone.
And here, most might not even get a chance to play.
After all, there are only so many spots on the main roster, and even fewer starting spots.
The bench of a giant club can wear people out; for many ordinary talents, getting into Real Madrid's main roster is already a great achievement.
As Suker walked past the training ground, many eyes also looked towards Suker.
These were substitutes, even third or fourth substitutes.
After joining Real Madrid, some of them hadn't even spoken to Suker.
But for them, Suker was a role model and their goal to strive for.
In the entire football world, everyone wants to be a player like Suker.
But there is only one Suker!
And for some players, being able to play and train with Suker is already a huge accomplishment.
Arriving at Ancelotti's office, Suker opened the door, and the room was once again filled with smoke.
"Cough, cough, cough."
Suker frowned, waving his hand to disperse the smoke, and walked directly to the window, sighing: "When you smoke, can you please open the window? This smoke..."
Suker opened the window and then turned his head.
He saw a young man sitting next to Ancelotti, also holding a cigarette and puffing away.
"Hello, my name is Davide Ancelotti!"
Davide smiled and extended his hand.
Suker blinked, curiously looking at Davide's face, then at Ancelotti.
"He is my son, serving as the team's tactical coach!" Ancelotti introduced casually.
Suker nodded and shook Davide's hand to greet him.
"Why did you call me here?"
Suker asked.
Ancelotti: "Mainly for two things."
"First: I hope you, Karim, and Bale, the three of you, can spare some time this afternoon for individual training."
Suker immediately nodded: "No problem, I've accepted for them."
Those two usually have nothing to do in the afternoon.
Benzema aside, Bale has moved to a house next to a golf course in the suburbs.
Suker had also visited his new house.
Walking out the right gate, it's less than 50 meters to a golf course.
Bale is obsessed with golf; when the weather is good, he plays outdoors, and when the weather is bad, he swings at home.
Initially, he was somewhat restrained, but now he hardly misses a day.
Sometimes, Suker even wonders if he is a football player or a golf player.
In Bale's words, he likes football, and he also likes golf.
Football can bring him wealth.
And golf can bring him high spirits.
Ancelotti accurately grasped this point; when communicating with Bale, he praised Bale's hole-in-one performance, and he was more excited than completing a hat-trick.
Ancelotti continued: "Second, I plan to start warm-up matches next week!"
"That fast?" Suker asked in surprise.
There is still more than a month until the start of the League.
Real Madrid's warm-up matches usually begin half a month before the League, playing two consecutive warm-up matches to ensure their pre-League form, while fully integrating training content.
The rest of the adjustments are made during official matches.
"There's a commercial match." Ancelotti said: "Of course, besides that, I want to extend the warm-up match phase, one match per week."
"Not playing warm-up matches consecutively, but leaving six days after the match for review and adjustment."
"Also, the effective improvement in training is not significant, so further testing is needed through matches."
Suker nodded; there was no problem with that.
"But… can you find opponents for the warm-up matches?"
Ancelotti: "I have already contacted several clubs, and some have given us their replies. The club has also contacted some, so there will definitely be no shortage of opponents."
Real Madrid playing warm-up matches is a great opportunity for many teams to test their strength, so they generally won't refuse.
"I understand." Suker nodded.
Ancelotti: "Then call Ramos over; I have some more things to tell him."
Suker nodded and was about to walk out when he suddenly turned back to Ancelotti's desk and put Ancelotti's cigar directly into his pocket.
"Smoke less."
With that, Suker left directly.
This action stunned Ancelotti's son, Davide.
On the other hand, Ancelotti couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Davide turned his head: "Your relationship is really good."
Ancelotti subconsciously reached out to pull out a cigar but found nothing. He rubbed his hands and said, "He is a good kid; if you treat him genuinely well, he will treat you doubly well."
With that, Ancelotti always felt something was missing in his mouth and couldn't help but squint and ask:
"Do you have any more?"
Davide grinned: "I always smoke yours!"
Ancelotti sighed: "Forget it, I won't smoke this afternoon!"
Soon after, Ramos also walked in, and Ancelotti also informed him of these matters.
He also wanted to observe the players' reactions to the warm-up matches through the two of them.
After all, after a few days of internal training, suddenly going out to play warm-up matches might cause some people to not be well-adjusted, thus feeling some resistance.
But judging from the performance of the two, Real Madrid was very well prepared.
The next day, Ancelotti announced the upcoming series of training plans.
It can be said that in the coming time, Real Madrid will only have one commercial exhibition match, with all others being warm-up matches.
They will go everywhere to play warm-up matches while making adjustments.
After explaining these matters, Ancelotti began to specifically contact opponents.
First, he contacted Arsenal!
Today's Arsenal is not what it used to be; their overall strength has severely declined.
During this transfer window, Fabregas released signals of his return through the media to test the waters, but Arsenal's reaction to this was very strong.
Wenger even left Fabregas hanging for a week before finally refusing him.
Fabregas is currently contacting other teams in the Premier League, and Chelsea is showing strong interest in him.
Real Madrid contacting Arsenal was naturally Ancelotti's desire to find a possession-based opponent.
In this regard, Arsenal met Real Madrid's needs.
But Arsenal refused.
Wenger did not want to play warm-up matches with Real Madrid for a simple reason: he was afraid that his players' mentality would collapse.
Anyway, the results of every warm-up match against Real Madrid were never particularly good; the disadvantages outweighed the advantages.
After Arsenal refused, Ancelotti could only seek other options.
Currently, there are many teams in the football world that play possession-based football, but they are basically concentrated in Spain.
And these are League opponents, and Ancelotti was unwilling to expose his tactics too early.
Guardiola's Bayern Munich also has a possession-based foundation, which would be the best choice, but Bayern Munich is Real Madrid's biggest competitor at the moment, so they also didn't want to play warm-up matches with them.
Finally, Ancelotti contacted Juventus through connections.
Juventus is not traditionally possession-based, but their control of the match tempo is very similar to possession-based play.
Juventus readily accepted the warm-up match invitation.
They also wanted to play against Real Madrid again, especially for their young players, such as Pogba, Kovacic, and others, who would certainly accelerate their growth if they underwent the baptism of Real Madrid.
With the warm-up opponents agreed upon, Real Madrid immediately began preparations.
On July 20th, Real Madrid was scheduled to travel to Turin, Italy, for a warm-up match.
This was also Ancelotti's first warm-up match leading the team, naturally attracting a lot of media attention.
However, neither side planned to make the warm-up match public.
For Real Madrid, the things they were currently practicing were not perfect enough, and regardless of winning or losing, after media speculation, there would not be a very good outcome.
The same was true for Juventus; from the time they gathered their players, many of their situations were kept secret.
Since Juventus won the Serie A League Championship twice, the Milan clubs had been watching them with red eyes!
They did not want to reveal any information, so a closed-door match was the most effective.
Both sides hit it off, and the preparations for the warm-up match went extremely smoothly.
On July 21st, Real Madrid was at the Juventus Stadium, ready to start the warm-up match.
It was still those familiar faces.
In the lineup, Pogba started, partnering Pirlo.
Suker also saw Kovacic on the bench.
However, it was clear that in the internal competition, he failed to surpass Pogba and was not as highly valued.
However, judging from Kovacic's expression, he was still full of fighting spirit and was not defeated by these factors.
"I didn't expect the boss to go to Madrid." Pirlo looked at Suker and Kaka, then asked the latter; "How is your injury recovery?"
Kaka shrugged; "It's just so-so; I can't go back to my previous State, but I'm also changing my style."
Suker smiled; "He will surprise you."
Pirlo smiled; "I hope so."
With that, he continued; "Oh, the captain is also in Turin. Shall we meet up tonight?"
Suker: "Let's talk after the warm-up match. If we play well, the boss might let us stay for a day."
Pirlo nodded: "Then I wish you an excellent performance."