"I plan to resign from the position of head coach of the Chinese national team."

Gao Hongbo said this sentence calmly, but it scared Zhou Yi very much.

He was stunned for a while before saying, "Is anyone putting pressure on you?"

He knew that the leaders of the Football Association went to Spain as soon as possible after this matter, and the two sides must have had a secret talk.

"Don't guess, Zhou Yi. It was the pressure I put on myself. I have high requirements for myself, and you know."

Zhou Yi was silent, Gao Hongbo did have very high requirements for himself. He is a taciturn person, but ambitious.

He hopes that he can become the top local head coach in China.

He is always trying to improve himself. In private, he also revealed that he would leave after coaching the Chinese team and then go to Europe to study.

"I do have a dream to lead the Chinese national team to the World Cup, and I have been working hard for it. But you must have heard of the recent situation. Sometimes I feel powerless and unhappy..." Gao Hongbo spoke unfastly, and he had to rest and pause in the middle, which shows that he has not recovered in both physical fitness and spirit.

"I hope to make some innovations in tactical aspects and have more changes. However, the new tactics and the new formation training of the three central defenders are not very effective..."

In fact, Zhou Yi has indeed heard of Gao Hongbo's tactical formation reform in the national team. He wanted to develop a three-center-back system, so that Guo Nu, Feng Xiaoting and Zhang Linpeng could partner with him to play the three-center-back.

Zhou Yi once discussed with his friends why Gao Hongbo did this, perhaps because Yan Min's outstanding performance at Dortmund gave him inspiration and confidence to do so.

The three-center-back system has high requirements for two wingers, and Yan Min is the winger player who can meet the high requirements, plus Wu Lei, who performed well in the domestic league.

The other three central defenders are very effective when breaking the opponent's press. If the Chinese team has Zhou Yi, they will inevitably be pressed by the opponent, so the three central defenders can help Zhou Yi break the opponent's press. At the same time, playing the three central defenders also requires sufficient ball control ability in the midfield and frontcourt. The existence of Zhou Yi, Yang Muge, He Ying, and Yan Min gives the Chinese team such a foundation of ability, which makes Gao Hongbo want the Chinese team to play the three central defender system.

But this is difficult for players who are used to playing the four-back system.

Even Guo Nu showed that he was not accustomed to the local environment.

Therefore, the Chinese team's defense in two warm-up matches was a big problem, and the opponent almost reached a sieve.

But Gao Hongbo is a stubborn man, and if he decides, he will go all the way to the dark. So after the first game exposed the problem of the third central defender, he did not give up the third central defender's style, but continued to advance the third central defender, and lost to the "soft persimmon" Bosnia and Herzegovina in the second game...

"...If we can't make a result before the World Cup opening, then we'll waste time and do useless work. I'll be a sinner..." Gao Hongbo said in a heavy tone. "It makes me very uneasy when I think of this. In fact, there was a pain in my heart a few days before I fainted, but I didn't even have to think about it at all..."

"I want to do my best, but I ignore the gap in my personal abilities. The result of constantly putting pressure on myself was to break my string..." Gao Hongbo smiled bitterly on the other end of the phone. "No one forced me to resign. In fact, after the leaders of the Football Association came over, they advised me to have a good rest and return to work as soon as possible. But after this incident, I lay on the bed and thought a lot. I felt that I was very selfish in the past..."

"I only think about myself, but I have never considered the future of the team, and I have never considered the players... I hope I will leave my name in history, but I have never thought about what the team should do. A head coach should take the team's work as the top priority and put the team first. If I really love my country's football, then I should hope that the national team will achieve good results in the World Cup. But my personal ability is not enough to complete such a task, so in fact, when I reach the World Cup finals, I should let the virtuous..."

"You can't say that. Guidance Gao, your ability is fine..." Zhou Yi quickly persuaded.

"You are saying good things to me." Gao Hongbo didn't appreciate it. "I know what I am."

"But coach Gao, at this critical moment, you resigned, who will take over? Changing coaches at the last minute is a taboo..."

"If I hadn't found a successor, of course I wouldn't have resigned." Gao Hongbo said. "Do you think I'm still a naughty person, and I quit on impulse?"

"So that..."

"I still have to thank Guangzhou Hengyuan Club..." Gao Hongbo sighed. "They contacted the Football Association as soon as possible and said that if I cannot complete the task of leading the team, they are willing to let their head coach be a firefighting coach, and their club will be responsible for the salary and bonuses of the national team."

Zhou Yi was startled: "Lippi?"

"It's him."

"Can Lippi agree? Be a firefighting coach?"

"He agreed."

"..." Zhou Yi didn't know what to say. He felt that a person as proud as Lippi should not accept the decision to change coaches in the last game and take a mess... Although he coaches in a Chinese club, he should not love Chinese football so much, right?

"Actually, I think he accepted it because of you."

Gao Hongbo's words surprised Zhou Yi even more: "For us?"

"Yes, because of you, He Ying, Sun Pan, Yang Muge, and Guo Nu."

"What does this have to do with us?"

"Don't you know how many coaches want to coach you? It's really fun and fulfilling to work with you." Gao Hongbo suddenly sighed. "Of course there is pressure. If you have a player like you, you can't win or even win beautifully, it must be the problem of the head coach. Ha!"

"Uh..." Faced with Gao Hongbo's praise, Zhou Yi didn't know how to answer the conversation.

"Okay, don't think too much. My historical mission has been completed. Let Lippi take you there in the next World Cup road. He is a world-class coach with much higher abilities than me. If he leads the team, I have much more confidence in the team's prospects in the World Cup. As for me, I'm here to tell you in advance, know and prepare early, and then play your core role in the team, cooperate with the new head coach, and let our Chinese football create a new history in the World Cup."

Since the matter has been settled, Zhou Yi did not continue to dissuade him pretentiously, but nodded and promised: "Don't worry, coach Gao. You will definitely not disappoint."

"Okay, I'll feel relieved with you. Then I won't bother you, you can have a good rest."

"I won't bother you anymore. You have a good rest, coach. Don't be too excited to watch the World Cup at that time, be careful of your health."

"Okay, I will follow the doctor's advice, haha!"

Gao Hongbo laughed, and amid his laughter, the two hung up the phone.

※※※

After Zhou Yi finished calling, he turned around and found that Cortana was sitting next to him reading a book.

"Are you always here?" Zhou Yi was surprised.

"Are you finished calling?"

"Um."

"What did you talk about?"

"We're going to change the coach at the last minute."

"This is what you should do, the sooner you make the decision, the better, but have you found the candidate?"

"Lippi."

When Cortana heard this name, she was also stunned for a moment, as if it was difficult to associate the name with the Chinese national team.

"Marcelo Lippi?" she asked.

"Yes. 'Silver Fox' Lippi."

"Big work," sighed Cortana. "So the phone call was called to you by the former head coach?"

"Well, he told me the news in advance, and it has not been announced to the public yet."

"Why should I tell you in advance?"

"Because I'm the core of the team."

Cortana gave him a blank look: "You are so polite."

Zhou Yi grinned.

His mood suddenly improved.

If Lippi was here to be this fire-fighting coach, Zhou Yi would be much more relieved.

In addition, he could also hear the inner changes of Director Gao’s heart from the phone call. It was obvious that when the call ended, Director Gao, who had let go of the pressure and responsibility, could still make jokes.

Although it is a pity that I cannot lead the team to participate in the World Cup, to some extent, this kind of willingness and letting go may be a relief for high-level coaches.

At least if the Chinese team performs poorly, no one will blame the coach Gao again.

Zhou Yi logged in to QQ on his mobile phone and left a message to everyone in the group: "I said, guys. We really have to do our best this time. If we fail, there is no reason or excuse."

"?"

"What does it mean?"

Others were surprised by Zhou Yi's words without any beginning or end.

"It's nothing, I just have to do my best. I must not stay in Brazil with any regrets..."

"Isn't this nonsense? Of course we won't allow regrets!" Sun Pan said.

Zhou Yi couldn't tell them, since the coach Gao only said it to him, of course he didn't want to say it out of his way, so as not to cause trouble.

One day later, explosive news came:
Chapter completed!