Alright, can you elaborate?" Zhao Zhao said, pointing at Alan Tate.
This was actually one of the benefits of bringing in Alan Tate.
Young coaches like him often have more active minds and can provide Zhao Zhao with more ideas during such tactical discussions.
After all, although Zhao Zhao had already studied the tactical approaches of many famous coaches, he was still in a stage of learning and improvement.
And Alan Tate clearly had his own ideas on tactics, so this could be considered a way to achieve mutual learning and mutual promotion!
"Although I just started, I have actually done some research on Hull City's players and tactics," Alan Tate said directly.
"Combining that with what the boss just introduced, I found that their attacking style is mainly on the flanks."
"Because Hull City's two full-backs, including their two wingers, are all quite strong offensively, they tend to commit more players to both sides."
"But at the same time, Hull City's two main center-backs are both tall and strong, and their turning speed is slow, which creates a hidden danger for their defense."
"In fact, even their midfielders are not very fast."
"Therefore, I think we can resolutely exploit the space behind them on counterattacks, whether it's behind the center-backs or the full-backs, there will definitely be many gaps for us to seize!"
Zhao Zhao gave Alan Tate a thumbs up in agreement, then turned around, drew a line on the tactics board, and said:
"What you said is very good, but that's based on our counter-attack strategy when the opponent attacks."
"What if they take the lead and then start playing a very resolute defensive block, for example, compressing all their players behind this line? What should we do then?"
"At this point, whether it's Ranocchia or Maguire, their frontal defending ability is very strong. How should we break through such a defense?"
Alan Tate thought for a moment and then replied, "Perhaps we could try using two target men?"
Breswell shook his head at this point and said, "No. Besides Anichebe, we don't have any more powerful target men in our team."
Zhao Zhao smiled and said, "Even if I had two capable target men, I wouldn't choose to go head-to-head with them in that way."
Everyone turned their gaze back to Zhao Zhao, wondering what new trick this miraculous Chinese coach had to show.
"You might be underestimating the aerial ability and physical strength of Hull City's two center-backs."
"Let me put it this way, Ranocchia has been able to play for Inter Milan for so many years and even be selected for the Italy National Team, which is famous for producing defensive players, because of his frontal defending ability."
"As for Maguire, don't look at how he's not very famous right now, but I can guarantee that he will definitely be selected for the England National Team in the future and become a starter."
"His turning speed is his weakness, one could even say it's as slow as an aircraft carrier turning around. But if the team chooses to play a deep block, without requiring him to run and cover frequently, then he can even be considered one of the world's top center-backs."
"So I won't let my players engage in direct confrontation with them, but rather… make them run around!"
The coaches exchanged glances, and Breswell asked, "Make them run around? What do you mean?"
Alan Tate, however, seemed to understand something. He said, "The boss means to use passing to stretch their defense and make them struggle to cover everything?"
Zhao Zhao nodded: "Yes. As I just said, their center-backs' strengths and weaknesses are very obvious. So we need to avoid confronting their strengths and instead hit them hard where they are weak!"
"Therefore, we need to effectively move Hull City's overall defensive line by having our players constantly interchanging and passing the ball left and right, thereby achieving efficient fast attacks."
"The specific approach is that when an attack on one side is blocked, the full-back or winger will immediately use a long ball to quickly switch to the strong attacking side on the other flank, where we have a numerical advantage."
"Since their midfielders' running ability is average, the team's coverage and protection of the width of the pitch are clearly insufficient. In this way, we can make Hull City's players move around, causing their formation to become disorganized."
"At this point, their center-backs will need to cover the missing defensive positions, and the space behind them will be pulled open for us, and our opportunities will arise."
At this moment, Alan Tate raised his hand again and asked, "Boss, I understand what you're saying. But what if our players on the other side are already marked during the switch and can't receive the ball? What should we do?"
Zhao Zhao tapped one side of the tactics board and said, "Exactly, experienced coaches will immediately spot our approach and assign markers. So at this point, we need the center-forward to drop back and act as a link-up, and Defoe is particularly good at this skill."
"Yes, my starting center-forward will still be Defoe, not Anichebe. The full-back can pass the ball to Defoe at this point, and then Defoe can decide whether to pass the ball to the overlapping winger or to the midfielder behind him."
"The opponent's midfield and defensive line players will be constantly scrambling in such a defense. One second the ball might still be in our own half, and the next second, the ball has already reached our strong attacking side."
"Such wide-ranging diagonal switches will cause Hull City's defensive Center of Gravity to shift back and forth between left and right, and any team is bound to make mistakes, and a heavy center-back pairing like Hull City's is even more prone to showing weaknesses!"
Everyone couldn't help but nod to each other in agreement with Zhao Zhao's statement.
It was clear that such tactics were indeed very targeted, practically digging out all of Hull City's weaknesses!
However, Alan Tate still raised his question: "But in this tactic, I seem to only see the roles of wingers, full-backs, and center-forwards. What about the midfield? What should our midfielders do?"
Zhao Zhao smiled and said, "Alan, you're new here, so you might not be very familiar with how our usual 4-2-3-1 system works."
"The main role of the two defensive midfielders is to protect the center, while the more important position is the attacking midfielder."
"He not only needs to provide help to the team when attacking, but when the team is in a defensive shape, the player in the attacking midfield position also needs to fully participate in the team's overall defense, quickly integrating into the team's overall defensive structure."
"Especially if we encounter an opponent who focuses on defense and we need to press them high up the pitch, my demands on the attacking midfielder will be even more stringent."
"In attack, he needs to have a certain ability to dictate play, and also make a lot of off-the-ball runs;"
"And in defense, he not only needs to have a certain overall defensive awareness, but also needs to constantly observe the situation around his teammates, and provide strong support to his teammates when the team is in danger."
"To be honest, we don't have a player in our team who can perfectly accomplish both of these tasks. But why do I often use Januzaj in this position? It's because he is the closest to this level, and in attack, he can even meet my requirements."
"And he has been training very actively recently, and his attitude is also very good. I believe he can do very well. So…"
Under Zhao Zhao's explanation, Alan Tate also nodded repeatedly.
This was only his first tactical meeting, and he had already learned so much!
At this moment, he truly realized that the rumored Chinese coach, who was proficient in various tactics, really had genuine talent.
If Alan Tate had harbored even a slight doubt about leaving Swansea, where he had been for many years, to join Sunderland, it was now completely dispelled.
He was completely and utterly convinced by Zhao Zhao's extensive tactical knowledge!
Of course, this was a two-way street.
Zhao Zhao was also very satisfied with Alan Tate!
Even the veteran coach Breswell greatly admired the tactical level Alan Tate displayed.
After the meeting, Breswell even found Alan Tate alone and chatted with him for a bit: "I see your level is quite high. Have you ever thought about coaching a top team on your own in the future?"
Alan Tate, however, showed a wry smile: "I only have a UEFA A license… As for the Pro license, I've tried twice and haven't passed it yet."
"Damn, just like me." Breswell's face showed a look of finding a kindred spirit.
Then both of them said in unison:
"The Pro coaching license is harder than advanced mathematics!"