Bilic stepped onto the field as soon as the morning sun dawned on Saturday, and by about nine o'clock, he and his assistants were already sitting around the table, enjoying breakfast. This is Bilic's daily routine after the team returned to Beijing. At eleven o'clock in the morning, the training began as scheduled, early Bilic and the Chinese coaching team cordial exchanges, deployment of training content, waiting for the players to arrive.
Despite being on hiatus, training was unrelenting. Bilic's training sessions are usually over a hundred years old, high volume and confrontational, and most of the time led by an assistant coach, with Bilic speaking only at key moments. During training, he always wears a hat, which seems to have become his trademark since arriving in China, and not just for shade. The team in Suzhou period, the first two rounds of two consecutive losses, before the third round of the game, Bilic changed a hat, as a result, the team began to win consecutively, and now this hat he is still wearing.
After four rounds of play, Guoan won two and lost two, accumulating six points. Such a result is not ideal, especially the two consecutive losses in the beginning of the league is unexpected. For Bilic, who has just been appointed, his debut does not seem to be a success.
After two consecutive defeats, questions about Bilic were raised, and he faced sharp questions at the conference, but the Croatian has long been used to this kind of big scene, and this frustration did not seem to make waves in his mind. The club's internal support is also an important reason for him to remain calm. Fortunately, the follow-up two games Guoan all win, the team gradually back on track, Bilic is also considered to be the most difficult pass.
Through these four games, it is difficult to define the new season of Guoan. The team lineup is chaotic, Augusto, Fernando's return is not yet determined, the state of the international players is not good, Bieira, Yu Yang, Wang Gang successive injuries ...... Similarly, it is difficult to define Bilic. Not to talk about soccer philosophy, only from the technical and tactical and personnel point of view, Bilic coaching Guoan still with the shadow of the past, if there is a change, in addition to a few newcomers, the intensity of the confrontation seems to have improved.
As for Bilic himself, he seems to be different from the image in people's mind. Before his arrival, people's minds were filled with passionate images, the rock and roll manager and Beijing-style soccer seem to be a perfect match, and Guoan should be able to rekindle the lost "soul". However, when the game started, it was not what was imagined. Bilic is very calm, and with the players, he is like a big brother; commanding the game is not exaggerated, the mobilization in the locker room is not a hot-blooded model, and even when facing the camera and accepting interviews, his body language is not much. He is like a bass player who has already closed the mountain, has long been the beloved strings scrubbed and put back in the box, only the left ear of the shiny studs proved that the master had been dry.
Now, enough with the music and the rock and roll, Bilic said, "Let's have a good talk about soccer."
▲Football: Hello! Do you come this early every morning?
Bilic: I don't know how early you mean this early. For me it's just a habit, because it's normal for me to be at my workplace two hours before training, and it's been like that since my first day as a coach. In that case, arriving a little bit earlier, you can prepare for the day's training, and then with my Croatian coaching team, as well as the entire Chinese coaching team were able to say hello and meet in advance, and then wait for the arrival of the players.
▲ This reminds me of the saying in my country that the bird gets the worm in the morning.
Yes, we have similar words there, and it is a worldwide consensus that whoever works hard and is willing to give more will succeed, relatively speaking, without too much difficulty.
▲ Let's talk about soccer, what is the overall impression about the Chinese Super League after four rounds of matches?
This year's league is another special season. As we all know, due to the epidemic, the league is in a closed state and has to be divided into several sections, but in general, the arrangements, arrangements and related work of our league are very meticulous and well organized. The league is divided into two main groups, each group is intertwined with strong and slightly weaker teams, no matter whether they are strong or weak, it can be seen that our technical and tactical requirements are very high, and the kicking game is very organized.
▲ Other, due to the restrictions on world travel caused by the epidemic, the entire Chinese Super League does not have a team is not affected, more or less will be affected, coupled with a single salon's own problems, the formation of a few teams perhaps the last minute to form a team to participate in the league, so perhaps they are also affected by the impact of the larger. However, in such a difficult situation, the final game shown on the field, the tactical content of each team is still very high, no game is particularly easy, even the so-called title contenders, against the weak team, to get points is not very easy.
▲Guoan took six points in the first four rounds of matches, which is not a little distance from what you expected before the season?
Before the start of the league, if someone proposes to me, or maybe to our salon, to give you six points for the first four rounds, do you agree? I would not have accepted it. But after the first four rounds of the future, especially our own first two rounds of the situation is not very good, coupled with the performance of other teams, I can clearly feel this epidemic formed by the special situation, such as our main players are not in, some players are in the preparatory period when the continuous return, the formation of the impact is still very big. Therefore, it should be said that the final six points can still be satisfactory. Plus a few other strong rivals, they also more or less appear some problems, in this case, the final results of the difference is not so big, the feeling of one or two games is also able to catch up.
The problem we are facing in terms of personnel, compared with the previous year is very obvious, Park Cheng in front of a few games are not in the temporary rental of Alain contract expires back to Guangzhou, Hou Yongyong injured, Augusto and Fernando did not come back, Bieira and Bakambu is in the preparatory period of the latter part of the return. In fact, Bieira and Bakambu's situation we have long predicted, they must not be in a too short preparation period to prepare, but to go through the game to prepare themselves, to improve their own situation, including Li Ke back is also late, Bakambu more unfortunate, due to the problem of the new crown, he also stayed in the hospital for a month. Then Jin Minya, Wang Gang, Yu Yang this injury is even worse, other than our multiple international players not only once, twice, each time to go to the national team training for more than two weeks ...... These conditions put together then, I feel that the final 6 points is still satisfactory.
▲Other, I also have an optimistic point of view, if you look at the whole season, the league in the early stage of so many difficult conditions, we can be said to be in several title contenders can be the most affected by the problem of the situation has not fallen out of the team, I think that if it is a normal situation, the whole team can be gradually improved in the late stage, gradually neat, then I think it is still very hopeful, and I like it! I like this team very much.
For a team, the main players if you lose 3 people is a big problem, lose 5 people, the problem is too big, and I'm here now is 9, they are the past more important players, now are not. I want to especially commend the remaining players, it is because of their courage, their commitment, to be able to make up for the lack of these 9 people, including our new introduction of young players, are playing a very good effect.
▲Football: I remember the first pre-match conference, you said we don't expect too much from the first match, does this mean that you already had an expectation about the team's overall condition at that time, and felt that the first match might encounter problems?
Bilic: My expectations for the new season have been very high, because I'm wearing this Guoan uniform, which is very heavy, and this is a big team, and I've been full of expectations. And the decision to come to China was made with high expectations.
▲ In fact, I think not only the salon itself, everything related to Guoan, like fans and so on, they have high expectations for this season. I just said so many difficulties, not to find an excuse to say get 6 points is enough, not to escape my own responsibility, or to lower our goals, I just review the entire preparatory period and the first four rounds of the situation, I said these are more to prove to us, we have a lot of difficulties, but such a difficult situation, our existing personnel can play this result, which will allow us to have higher expectations, not to be disappointed, but to be more optimistic. We have higher expectations, not to be disappointed, but to be more optimistic, we are gradually neat personnel, we better integration, we can completely achieve the goals of the beginning of the year.
I'm not sure if you're going to be able to get the best out of me, but I'm sure you're going to be able to get the best out of me, and I'm sure you're going to be able to get the best out of me, and I'm sure you're going to be able to get the best out of me. The fact is, we rarely come across a situation where we lose two games at the start of the season, but a big team that loses two games in a row at the beginning of the year tends to have a lot of problems, and then it's all downhill from there. The next game we played against Dalian was not so good, especially before the goal, the situation was very stalemate, but we rely on the courage, unity, and of course, by virtue of their own level, and finally scored a goal, and then gradually stabilized, which is a phenomenon that makes me feel very optimistic.
▲The first two games, the overall condition of the country is not good, the latter two games two consecutive victories, in the meantime what kind of adjustments have been made?
Of course, we must go to analyze the game, see where the reasons for the bad, and then according to find the problem, to do some fine-tuning, the most important is to let the players do not put the head down, that is to say, do not lose confidence, and then adhere to the team's stability, adhere to the calm. The first two games in fact can not be completely thought of as two big north, because these two games are different in nature, like Shenhua that game, I do not think we are a failure, because Shenhua this kind of kicking style is too special, you are very difficult to build up your offense, to fluently play things, in such a difficult situation, we play Shanghai harbor immediately adjusted.
The only thing that needs to be changed for the Harbor game is the rhythm that we entered the game, the situation of conceding too much in a hurry, which needs to be changed, especially the situation of conceding two goals in four minutes. Of course, I don't deny that Shanghai Harbor deserved to win the game, but I think it's too hard for a good team to come back and score two goals so easily. Maybe fate was not on our side in that game, but I still found a lot of positive things. In fact, if you look at the game we played against Dalian, the real improvement was that we didn't let the other team catch us making that stupid mistake, a seemingly simple change.
▲The halftime break against Dalian, I want to know what you said to the players? As until then Guoan's two and a half rounds of the new season, there was no hope of seeing success, but after that half-time adjustment, Guoan opened the road to success.
In fact, we have a big problem in that game, that is, Bieira was kicked and injured, can only be replaced. At that time, I asked the midfielders must have to enter the penalty area to grab more, more shots, the second half does play a role in the effect, and soon scored two goals in the future, we will relax, can be normal to play. In fact, the beginning of each new season is like this, the players will have some uncertainty in the heart of the idea, he will go to the proof, I'm this year, the preparatory period how ah? I have reached a better condition, can I play the original level?
▲ Especially in the reserve period it's not very systematic, due to closures, due to tour restrictions, maybe many people come late, and all these reasons, so he's going to have more doubts about this. This is actually the same for the individual, for the whole team. The best thing you can do to go and give him a positive answer is a success. Of course, sometimes it may take a little bit of fate to be able to go and get such a positive answer as early as possible. Sometimes it may also need a single capable player to use his individual ability to deal with the problem, our game is the two quick goals of Xunzhe, helped us a lot.
▲Soccer: Which of the four games was relatively satisfying, and perhaps which clip from which game was closest to what you wanted?
Bilic: Maybe it was after the second goal in the match with Wuhan, in that 10 minutes or so, I felt that our whole team was completely relaxed, completely playing the soccer we wanted to play, and created three absolute chances in such a short period of time. In fact, what I like the most is our continuous transmission and fluent style of play, even in the game we lost to Seaport, except for the first few minutes when we conceded the goal, most of the time after that, we still have this shadow. In addition to the deficiencies I mentioned earlier, perhaps there is also some room for improvement in the players' way of thinking.
▲ Although I am not an expert in the Chinese Super League, but after a period of time of research, including the preparatory period, including some of my preliminary research on the Chinese Super League, I feel that this year the epidemic of this special situation, China's homegrown players are likely to play a greater role than in previous years to do so. Of course, in the earlier Chinese Super League, I also know that when the number of foreign aid places was relatively small, it was also dominated by local players. Later on, as the number of foreign aiders increased, the level of foreign aiders also increased, and then we got used to it, especially after those superstar foreign aiders became more and more popular, and indeed the level was very high, in which case we got used to relying on them to deal with the problem by relying on their play.
▲ to the epidemic after the second year, coupled with our salary cap and other salary limit policy, the situation began to change, of course, foreign aid still still occupy a very important position, our expectations of them are still very high, but some foreign aid can not come back, under the salary limit policy, the club may not be too happy to pay so high salaries to foreign aid, so the constraints on foreign aid is getting bigger and bigger, like Shanghai Harbor, such as damage to the smallest of the clubs Too little, their several foreign aid, like Arnau, like Muy, Lopez, Oscar these players are in, so it this loss may not be big, or even no, the remaining impact is very big, not only us, and the Guangzhou team and so on.
▲ Our biggest loss is Augusto, he is after all the captain, is a symbolic figure, in the field to play a key effect, the other Fernando can not come back, plus Bieira and Kim Min Ja both of them. So now I have to rely on our particularly good local players, local players.
▲From another point of view, this is also an opportunity for them to improve themselves, to adapt to each other, to fill the gap left by the absence of foreign aiders, and then share their responsibilities. The best example is Xuanzhe, not only as usual he can pass the ball, pass out a good ball, but should be more running, into the penalty area, and even like the time to play Dalian, two key goals to deal with the problem. Of course, do not have to say that it is necessary for him to be like this every game, perhaps the next is Ji Zhongguo, the next is Dabao, Yuning, or a few other international players, each one every game, there will be a different display, so it is not difficult, they are able to do.
