With the Hangzhou Asian Games approaching, our team has finally returned to its familiar home. In the face of this rare opportunity, our team must go all out and strive to break the spell of the previous three top eight and reshape the situation of the national football team in the doldrums. At the same time, overage players play an increasingly important role in the game, they can not only help the growth of young players, but also a valuable asset of the national football team. Therefore, after consulting the head coach Yankovic, the latter clearly put forward the hope that the overage players will participate in the team's training. After a lot of communication and negotiation, the first three selected overage players finally joined the U23 national football team for the first time.
② Overage players make the cut, Yankovic weighs decisions
On the subject of the 99-age U23 national football team's call-up of over-age players, as the U23 national football team traveled to the west with the national football team, during which the national football association would have communicated with Jankovic. In the end, the power of selection fell into the hands of Jankovic. Of course, the final decision was made after the Dubai Cup. Because the Dubai Cup is the U23 national football team's first international competition in nearly three years, the purpose is to test the team and find problems. Therefore, Zhang Linpeng's final selection is not difficult to understand.
During the Dubai Cup, people who have seen the U23 national football warm-up matches will have the impression that the U23 national football team in the right back position there is an obvious short board, whether it is Xu Haofeng or Ye Lijiang play, always feel "not to the point", and even become the opponent's breakthrough. Therefore, the selection of Zhang Linpeng is to effectively make up for the U23 national football team in the right back position "short board". Of course, whether the U23 national football team will stick to the four backs tactical style of play in the future, or resolutely change to the "three backs" style of play, need to be based on the actual situation of the future games. But Zhang Linpeng, whether in the club or the national team, whether it is four backs or three backs, can be switched freely, and can also play as a center back. Therefore, there is such an experienced veteran player pressure, obviously conducive to the construction of the U23 national football team.
People familiar with the 99 age group troops are actually very clear, whether it was once the U19 national youth team period, or become the U23 national football team, the 99 age group players have good center backs in the back line, and there are also good strikers, but the midfield is the weakest link in the three lines. In the 2018 U19 Asian Youth Championship in Indonesia, the reason why the national youth team failed to get out of the group actually lies in the fact that the midfielders made serious mistakes and were seized by the opponents, which led to the force's consecutive losses to Tajiks and Saudis. After Jankovic took over, this troop, despite the midfielders have been replaced a lot, and now the team's midfielders have their own characteristics, but they have never been able to find the ideal candidate, especially a midfielder like Zheng Zhi, who can effectively link the troop's front field with the back field. Therefore, in the use of over-age players, the national team only like Wu Xi, such as players to meet the needs of the troops, assuming that Artemisia Junmin four or five years younger, perhaps more suitable, today's Artemisia Junmin after all, the age of the high, the physical condition of the most to play half a game ball. So it's not hard to understand why Wu Xi ended up being one of the overage candidates.
As for Zhang Yuning's selection, it actually has a lot to do with the fact that Shan Huanhuan is now injured and Guo Tianyu has left to play overseas. In Yankovic's tactical system, Shan Huanhuan is the kind of pivot center forward player that best fits Yankovic's tactical system. The fact that Shan Huanhuan, as a 99-age player, could jump the ranks and become one of the starters in the initial 97-age national youth team or national Olympic team speaks volumes. It's just that after Shan Huanhuan was injured in the 2019 Toulon Cup tournament, the injuries never stopped. During the training in Haikou before this western expedition, Shan Huanhuan was once again injured, resulting in his inability to follow the team.
Unlike Shan Huanhuan, who is a pivot center, Guo Tianyu is an impact center who has some breakthroughs and some speed. Now, Guo Tianyu is on loan to the Portuguese Super League, but at the end of the season, will he stay in Portugal or return to Shandong Taishan? So far there is no clear statement. Once continue to stay in Portugal, then faced with the actual problem: the Asian Games is not in the FIFA designated national team competition window period, European clubs have the right not to release. Therefore, it will be necessary to open negotiations with the other side. As a precautionary measure, it is not difficult to understand why Jankovic has drafted Zhang Yuning into the team. Regardless of whether Shan Huanhuan can recover and return to form, and regardless of whether Guo Tianyu will be ready to play in the Asian Games by then, the U23s can have more options on the forward line, which of course favors the construction and preparation of the troops. And, even if all three can participate, in the actual game can be adjusted at any time according to the situation on the field, and even extreme cases, all three will be dispatched into the field, using the simplest, most primitive method to open the punch hanging.
From the normal construction point of view, a force is the most critical is the "axis", Zhang Linpeng, Wu Xi, Zhang Yuning, to some extent is actually the future U23 national football "axis", to the old with the new, which is more conducive to the construction of the force. Of course, the actual game, Zhang Linpeng more will still appear in the right side of the direction.
(iii) Non-final selection, overage players may be adjusted
At this stage, the three overage Wu Xi, Zhang Linpeng and Zhang Yuning have begun to follow the U23 national football team to participate in training, but it does not mean that these three overage players have completely determined the overage quota for the Asian Games. On the one hand, because only began to follow the U23 national football team to participate in training, the final effect of how? Time to test.
On the other hand, I'm afraid it's also more important, because the U23 national football team has been formed for more than three years under the leadership of Jankovic, compared to the technical and tactical style of the troops as well as the way of playing has already been molded. Three overage players are now faced with the ability to adapt to the technical and tactical style of the U23s and the way of playing? The possibility of having the entire unit adapting to the overage players in reverse is almost non-existent. Therefore, after the overage players to participate in the U23 national football team, such as the U23 national football team in the former Dubai Cup demonstrated in the front of the field high pressure, after losing the ball on the ground counter-strike and other basic requirements, the three overage players can also be resolutely implemented on the field? This is more worthy of attention.
Head coach Jankovic is also at this stage fully investigating the actual performance and integration of these three overage players after joining the team, and may even test the effect through international matches for the first time in the East Asian Cup. If they are unable to fulfill their tactical requirements, there is still the possibility of replacing the overage players after the East Asian Cup. Moreover, the list of overage players prepared by Jankovic is not just these three. This is actually a kind of invisible pressure on the overage players, prompting them to better integrate into the U23 team, after all, if they are replaced halfway, the "decency" may not be very beautiful.
