In the 25th round of the English Championship in the 2015-2016 season, Leeds United faced the challenge of Hull City, the third-placed team in the league, at home.
"Hull City is currently only one point behind Wolves. As long as they can win Leeds United in this game, they will return to second place in the league. For a team that wants to reach the Premier League, every point is crucial. This is related to
The team’s fate at the end of the season!”
"As for Leeds United, their recent form has been crazy, and they have won nine consecutive victories. If they continue to win this game, then Leeds United will break the club's winning streak record set in 1931!"
Looking at Bielsa who frequently appeared on the camera, Andy Gray narrowed his eyes with a smile. He loved this crazy old man who advocated extreme offense.
Although this cute old man has not won many honors and trophies after coaching for decades, he is a believer all over the world and is highly praised by countless well-known head coaches.
For example, Manchester City's Guardiola, Real Madrid's Zidane, and Atletico Madrid's Simeone.
Guardiola has even told the media many times that Bielsa is the coach who knows football best in the world and is the best coach in Guardiola’s heart.
But in Andy Gray's view, Bielsa's greatest achievement in the past few decades is not his honorary trophies, but the countless coaches who have studied under him.
But soon, countless fans in front of the TV discovered that Leeds United seemed to be acting like a monster today and actually formed a 4141 formation.
"What is Bielsa doing?"
"In the first few rounds of the season, Leeds United seemed to play with this formation. How come 4231 was playing well and then suddenly changed back?"
In the studio, Andy Gray and Hudson were both dumbfounded and frowned when they saw the position of the Leeds United players on the field after the game started.
"Marcelo, isn't this too risky?" Frank asked worriedly, looking at the calm-looking Bielsa beside him from the coaching bench.
He really didn't expect Bielsa to use new tactics in this strong match.
From Frank's point of view, this is too risky. If there is a slight mistake, it will collapse. Of course, it may also directly cause the opponent to collapse.
Because this new tactic is really great. He really admires Bielsa in terms of tactics. Those arrangements are so imaginative.
"It's okay, these little guys are already quite skilled!" Bielsa smiled very confidently. Although some things were gradually forgotten, he never gave up.
On the field, Mo Yang is no longer a defensive midfielder, but a left central midfielder, Hernandez is a right central midfielder, and Phillips is a defensive midfielder.
Soon Leeds United ushered in an excellent offensive opportunity, which stunned everyone.
In front of Leeds United's penalty area, Hull City forward Aluko temporarily got rid of Phillips's entanglement and took one or two steps along the penalty area line to shoot directly.
"The quality of Aluko's long-range shot was very good, and it was very powerful, but unfortunately the angle of the shot was too right, and it was directly hugged by Silvestri." Andy Gray breathed a sigh of relief, Leeds United defended
Not really good.
After getting the ball, Silvestri immediately threw it to Dallas on the left and quickly launched an attack.
In front of everyone's eyes, Leeds United's formation changed at this moment.
The positions of Dallas and Ayling on the other wing moved directly forward to the back of the midfielder, while Phillips positioned directly between the two central defenders Koch and Cooper, instantly turning into a three-back system.
Leeds' midfield and frontcourt have also changed, with Costa and Harrison moving forward to the winger positions.
The positions of Moyang and Hernandez, who were originally standing in parallel, also changed rapidly.
Mo Yang came directly to the attacking midfielder position, while Hernandez dropped back, standing parallel to Dallas and Ayling on the left and right.
"I bought it!"
"I bought it!"
In the studio, Andy Gray and Hudson saw Leeds' attack formation instantly changing from 4141 to 3313. They suddenly stood up from their chairs and their eyes almost popped out of their eyes.
What a familiar tactical formation and what a representative formation.
On the field, after Dallas took the ball through the midfield, he immediately faced the pressing of Hull City midfielder Livermore.
Another change in Leeds United was also revealed at this time.
Dallas didn't wait for Livermore to get closer and passed directly to the right to Hernandez, who was approaching.
Hernandez kept playing the ball and passed it directly to Mo Yang. With just two touches of the ball, he directly penetrated the first line of defense built by Hull City's midfielder.
Hull City's midfield and backcourt retreated quickly. After playing so many rounds in the league, these players are very aware of how fast Leeds United's offense is.
Moreover, they are still a little confused now. After the game started, Leeds United's offensive speed and formation made them feel very unfamiliar. It was completely different from what coach Bruce explained to them before the game.
At this time, Harrison and Costa on the striker directly entered the penalty area, forcing Hull City's two full-backs Robertson and Oduba to follow them into the penalty area.
Hull City's two wings were empty, and Dallas and Ayling immediately started to advance forward.
Mo Yang didn't even look, he suddenly passed the ball and pushed the ball directly to the left wing.
After Dallas received the ball, he directly took off the ball and passed it low without hesitation.
In the penalty area, Bamford and Maguire, who was marking him, stretched out their feet at the same time. Maguire relied on his height, long legs and good position to clear the ball directly out of the baseline.
"Wow!"
The fans at the scene made noises of annoyance, and at the same time they were a little confused. Looking at the familiar faces of their own players on the field, they felt a little strange.
"Oh my god, in Leeds United's attack just now, seven people from Leeds United were involved in the attack. This is incredible! Bielsa doesn't need to defend? What a madman!" Hades sighed with emotion.
.
But Andy Gray on the side always felt that this tactic was not that simple.
Sure enough, after Leeds United's tactical corner kick was taken, he saw a four-man team formed around Mo Yang, the core of the offense, inside and outside the Hull City penalty area. Ayling and Dallas stepped in from time to time to contain Hull City's defensive players, carrying out precise actions.
The passing and cutting cooperation continued to tear Hull City's defense apart.
The offensive rhythm is firmly controlled by Mo Yang. Although this kind of pass-and-cut coordination with one kick will occasionally make mistakes, they will immediately follow the tactical arrangements during training and directly block Hull City through the connection between the front, middle and backfields.
The ball release point.
Hull City went crazy when faced with this kind of high-level press. The ball couldn't be passed at all and had to be forced to pass back to the goalkeeper.
But even so, the goalkeeper is often forced to drive the ball forward.
After being besieged for more than seven or eight minutes, Leeds United slowly recovered under Mo Yang's control, allowing the players on both sides to take a breather and rest.
The group of Chinese media reporters on the sidelines were already excited by the siege that lasted for more than ten minutes.
It's really surprising that this kind of offense and this kind of pass-cut coordination appears in the secondary league.
Especially since Mo Yang still plays an important role in it, his passes one after another are so accurate that it makes people feel numb.
The only pity is that Hull City's defense and luck were very good, and no goals were scored.
In the coaching area on the sidelines, Hull City head coach Bruce was already a little panicked, and his mind was full of how to adjust to withstand this sharp passing attack.
He can see some of Bielsa's tactical intentions, such as the retreat of the midfielder, which can free up the two central defenders on the left and right, and move the position to the left and right, which can effectively make up for the two ribs that appear after the dynamic changes of Leeds United's formation during the attack.
Empty.
If the Leeds United midfielder does not press when they get the ball, they will get enough space and time to organize the attack calmly, and can directly hit them behind through long passes.
If they press, the midfield will be empty. Leeds United can easily move out through tacit passing and cutting, and then quickly pass through the midfield, and the Chinese offensive playmaker of Leeds United will launch the attack.
But these are not the most troublesome things. What troubles Bruce the most is the tacit coordination of passing and cutting that Leeds United showed in these ten minutes. This reminded him of Arsenal's passing and cutting cooperation.
But if you look closely, you will find that there are many differences. For example, Leeds United's quick and smooth passing and cutting, combined with a group of three or four, will only appear in the half where the Chinese midfielder is every time.
Otherwise, Leeds United's passing and cutting cooperation will often make mistakes, giving people two different feelings, which is very strange, as if several players on one side are very skilled in practice, while the players on the other side are a bit rusty.
Bruce didn't know that this was actually Bielsa's choice out of desperation.
Only by using Moyang as a transfer station for passing and cutting can the error rate be effectively reduced.
He must rely on Mo Yang's precise passing skills and huge vision to help other players.
This is also the inspiration that Mo Yang brought to Bielsa in that match. This is the only way to practice this tactic until it is 100% proficient.
