"It's still Real Madrid attacking down the left."
"In tonight's ga, both of Real Madrid's flanks have been very active."
"Look here, Ronaldo carries the ball forward."
"Marcelo quickly overlaps, and the two combine well on the wing."
"Ronaldo drives the ball to the byline, and Marcelo joins in."
"But there's no chance, Isla sticks close to Marcelo and the ball runs out of play."
"Juventus defended well this ti and didn't allow Real Madrid another breakthrough."
"It must be said, Juventus' two flanks have been under enormous pressure tonight."
"This is Marcelo's first appearance in the Champions League since his injury last October, and it also shows that the squad Gao Shen has carefully built this season is now almost complete."
"With Marcelo and Carvajal, both full-backs with strong attacking ability, and Ronaldo and Di Maria in front of them, Real Madrid's flanks are incredibly sharp."
"Here's the throw-in."
"Marcelo finds Benzema."
"The French striker, inside the box, uses his body to hold off Barzagli, with Bonucci closing from behind."
"No way through, so Benzema shields the ball and lays it back to Ronaldo."
"Here's Ronaldo, looking to drive into the box, but Juventus' defense is tight."
"He passes again, and now the ball is at the edge of the box."
"The edge of the penalty area is unmarked."
"Toni Kroos arrives…"
"Just hit it…"
"A long-range shot!"
"The ball is in!!!"
"GOALLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!"
"Toni Kroos! Toni Kroos!"
"A long-range strike from outside the box rockets straight into the top right corner!"
"Buffon stretched to save, but the shot was unstoppable!"
"From the German midfielder, Toni Kroos!"
"In the 69th minute, Real Madrid score again, it's 3-0!"
"Tonight at the Bernabéu, this has completely beco an offensive showcase for Real Madrid."
"Juventus can only sit back and absorb the blows, unable to even launch a threatening counterattack."
"As the top favorite for the Serie A title, Juventus still show a clear gap in strength compared to Real Madrid."
"After advancing from the group stage, Gao Shen's team overca nurous challenges against Manchester United and Barcelona. Now they've stabilized and are showing the qualities of a true powerhouse."
"Watch the replay again."
"Kroos' long shot ca so suddenly, at such a tricky angle, threading between Bonucci and Chiellini before flying into the top corner."
"Buffon was helpless against such a strike."
"This is Toni Kroos, the German midfielder."
"Last sumr, Real Madrid traded Khedira for him from Bayern Munich. Gao Shen was under huge pressure then. Everyone thought Khedira, star of the European Championship, was the better choice. Why swap him for Kroos?"
"But now, every Real Madrid fan must be grateful to Gao Shen, because this deal was worth it!"
"With that world-class long-range strike, along with his excellent passing and organization tonight, Toni Kroos has shown the potential to beco a world-class midfielder."
"He may not be fully mature yet, but given ti, he will certainly grow into the core of Real Madrid's midfield. Alongside Modric and Xabi Alonso, he can form a golden midfield for the club."
…
Gao Shen was surprised by Kroos' goal, but it made sense.
From the first half into the second, Real Madrid had created plenty of chances. But aside from the two first-half goals, they hadn't scored again.
At halfti, Gao Shen told his players with full confidence that more goals would co in the second half.
He even said bluntly, "I want to finish this tie in the first leg!"
He didn't want to leave suspense for the away leg.
Now, with Kroos' goal, the result was secure.
"I think Juventus' biggest problem is they don't have enough players," Zidane remarked as Gao Shen walked back to sip water.
Gao Shen nodded.
There was still a huge gap between this Juventus and the Juventus of his previous life.
The biggest difference was in midfield.
"They don't have a ball-winner in midfield who can consistently pressure the opponent," Gao Shen explained.
In his past life, Juventus had Vidal. With Marchisio and Pirlo, their midfield trio could both attack and defend. Vidal, able to do both, was indispensable.
In this match, Padoin was far inferior to Vidal. Juventus' midfield was completely outplayed.
Of course, this also had sothing to do with Conte being suddenly suspended for a long period before the season started. With a full season, he could probably solve so of these issues.
As for the frontline, Juventus really needed a true striker.
Soone like Llorente or Mandzukic.
The dia and fans worldwide might rave about false nines, like Barcelona with ssi at center, calling it advanced. But in reality, that style requires imnse team strength.
Even Barcelona often suffered for it.
Without a proper center forward, their attack was not as threatening.
Interestingly, Leeds United under Gao Shen also faced a similar issue this season.
Icardi was a fine goalscorer, but his tactical role and ability to link play as a striker were lacking. That cost Leeds several tough matches and many points.
That was partly due to Sarri's system as well.
Still, Icardi had scored more Premier League goals than anyone except Van Persie, Suarez, and Gareth Bale, ahead of Liverpool's Benteke and Swansea's Michu.
The Argentine had built a na for himself.
At the very least, he could score goals.
anwhile, Manchester City's attack had exploded this season, with Van Persie, Suarez, and Bale occupying the top three spots on the scoring charts.
But City also had problems. Pellegrini hadn't managed the dressing room well.
Like in the first round of the Champions League group stage, when they suffered a shock defeat away to Porto.
This season, Manchester City had lost several gas unexpectedly.
That could beco a major hidden danger for them in the Champions League.
…
Real Madrid eventually defeated Juventus 3-0 at ho.
Late in the ga, both sides made substitutions. Real Madrid strengthened their control in midfield and created more chances, continuing to threaten Juventus' goal.
Juventus made changes to tighten their defense, especially in midfield interceptions.
Interestingly, after conceding the third goal, Conte completely abandoned his initial two-striker approach, replacing Matri and Quagliarella with Vucinic and Giovinco.
Clearly, he realized his starting tactics had been flawed.
When the match ended, Gao Shen walked to the visitors' bench to greet Conte. The Italian legend took the initiative to hug him.
"We couldn't hold the ball in the final third," Conte admitted helplessly.
Gao Shen smiled, "You need a center forward."
Although there was still a second leg to play, the outco was essentially decided.
Even in Turin, Gao Shen was confident of advancing.
"Actually, I thought about it, but I didn't have ti. In midfield, I originally wanted Nainggolan from Napoli, but you know, that bastard De Laurentiis demanded a sky-high price," Conte said bitterly.
Gao Shen laughed. This ti, he was the one benefiting from De Laurentiis.
Because he had brought Nainggolan to Napoli, Gao Shen was entitled to 20% of any transfer fee.
De Laurentiis was holding firm partly for Gao Shen's sake, so how could he complain?
"Nainggolan is worth it. Good ball-winning midfielders are very scarce in European football right now."
What Gao Shen said was true.
There were only a handful of top ball-winners: Matuidi at PSG, Vidal at Bayern Munich, and Schneiderlin, who after just one season at Leeds, was imdiately poached by Ferguson for a high price.
And then?
Who else?
Bayern had stockpiled a few, like Gustavo and Tymoshchuk, but both were defensive midfielders whose positions clashed with Pirlo.
Vidal and Khedira together, though, made Bayern truly stacked.
Still, Khedira's form at Bayern had dropped.
Conte had asked about him in the winter, but Bayern refused, and Khedira wasn't about to leave six months after arriving.
For German players, Bayern was a matter of belief.
Atletico Madrid had Mario Suarez, but his value was also high.
"I'll be going now. See you in Turin!"
Conte shook Gao Shen's hand again, then turned and walked into the tunnel.
He and Gao Shen actually shared a good relationship. Back when Gao Shen taught many courses in Italy, Conte had attended them all and often exchanged ideas with him.
Sotis, Gao Shen missed his days in Italy.
There, he had made many friends among young coaches and built connections that shaped European football in the years to co.
…
Back at the ho bench, Gao Shen welcod the players off the pitch as usual, congratulating them warmly.
Beating Juventus 3-0 at ho had laid a solid foundation for reaching the semifinals.
"Listen to the cheers of the Bernabéu fans. This is what you deserve!" Gao Shen shouted with a smile.
The Real Madrid players were jubilant, clearly satisfied with the result.
But Gao Shen's mind had already shifted to another match being played at the sa ti.
Barcelona versus Paris Saint-Germain.
The first leg was at the Camp Nou.
PSG were led by Ancelotti, one of Gao Shen's close friends.
anwhile, Barcelona head coach Vilanova had officially returned to the team.
Gao Shen wanted to see whether Vilanova's return would change Barcelona.
(To be continued.)
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