Football: I can see player entries.

Chapter 313 Drawing Lots

As Burton gradually found his rhythm, the gap in strength between the two sides became increasingly apparent.

Porto is certainly not weak, but they are still a bit lacking compared to Burton, who are already thriving in the Premier League.

What Li Yanqing didn't expect was that the goal scorer would be the striker he had recruited from the youth training team, who was mainly responsible for defense.

He made three forward runs, two of which resulted in shooting opportunities, and he successfully scored a goal.

He is also a very talented young man.

It seems that Rheinland's work with the youth training team this year has been unexpectedly successful.

Ultimately, Burton secured their final group stage victory with a score of 1-0.

They successfully advanced as the top seed in their group.

"Great! We're one step closer to the next championship!"

Li Yanqing didn't really dare to hope for the league title, since Burton's bench depth wasn't very strong, but they definitely had the ability to compete for the cup title.

"Isn't it a bit too early to say that now?"

"The group stage has just ended."

"There are many other strong teams in other leagues."

This time, it wasn't Lyman who spoke, but Cheng Mengmeng.

She could clearly sense that Li Yanqing was somewhat out of sorts.

"Please, stop putting me down."

"In any case, the team has achieved its goal perfectly."

Li Yanqing waved his hand, seemingly unconcerned.

To be honest, he felt he was already doing quite well to be a little overconfident; most people would probably have been... overconfident by the time they led the team to promotion.

"No."

"You are the head coach, the brain of the entire team!"

"Anyone can drift, Lyman, Neville, Quinn, they can all do it, it doesn't matter."

"You're the only one who can't do it!"

Unexpectedly, Cheng Mengmeng became particularly angry after hearing Li Yanqing's words, and her brows furrowed slightly.

As everyone knows, even when she's angry, her expression doesn't change.

Then, in the shadows...

This time, he actually started throwing a tantrum in front of everyone!

"Uh, okay, I understand, I promise I won't get carried away!"

"I'm going back to take a cold shower to calm down!"

Li Yanqing made a run for his life and fled.

Having grown up, the only thing he couldn't handle was girls.

After all, he entered the youth training camp before he was ten years old, and he didn't usually have many opportunities to meet girls.

After leaving his playing career, he devoted himself entirely to coaching.

I have virtually no experience in coaxing girls.

Therefore, Li Yanqing's usual approach is...

Let whoever wants to coax them do so.

He doesn't care.

However, after Li Yanqing actually washed his hair with cold water, he realized that Cheng Mengmeng's words were indeed correct.

As the head coach, I'm the one who absolutely cannot afford to get carried away...

Two days later, Li Yanqing attended the draw ceremony for the knockout stage of the Europa League.

There aren't many noteworthy opponents in this round of 16.

Well-known clubs include Inter Milan, Manchester United, Roma, Arsenal, and Sevilla.

Slightly weaker teams include Shakhtar Donetsk, Wolfsburg, and Frankfurt.

The reason Sevilla is also ranked in the first tier is because Emery once led Sevilla to three consecutive Europa League titles.

Therefore, the Europa League is also jokingly referred to as the "Sevilla Cup".

When Li Yanqing saw the name he had drawn, he was also taken aback.

Seville...

What a coincidence!

However, after looking at all the second-place teams in their groups, he could only pat his own hands and shake his head helplessly.

That was terrible luck...

I don't know who they offended, but among the second-placed teams in the eight groups, Sevilla is probably the most difficult to deal with.

I should have let Porto finish first in the group.

The only match that could have been won easily is now gone...

Fortunately, Li Yanqing soon received good news.

Barker has secured Deulofeu's signature, with Watford agreeing to loan the player to Burton for one year for three million, with Burton having the option to buy.

Of course, Burton was responsible for the salary.

Li Yanqing said there were no problems. Now that Araujo and Deulofeu are on the central axis, he only needs a midfielder to experiment with short passing.

Use short passes when attacking from one side in a narrow area...

If successful, the team will undergo even more changes, and will be able to catch up with Manchester City in terms of technical details.

Probably!

Moreover, midfielders with short passing skills are not as hard to find as defenders and forwards, since many playmaking midfielders are specifically responsible for passing the ball.

If all else fails, you could have Quinn learn it.

Compared to skills like "dribbling past opponents with ease," learning "short passing combinations" isn't that difficult.

Li Yanqing always remembered one sentence.

There is no such thing as a tactic that lasts forever. As a head coach, the most perfect solution is to build a team framework that can accommodate any tactic, and then use the most suitable style of play to counter the opponent in every game.

This was clearly not something Mourinho said.

It was mentioned by Wenger in his tactical notes.

However, it was too difficult to implement, so even though Wenger, who proposed the idea, stayed at Arsenal for so many years, it remained just an idea.

Li Yanqing was quite interested in putting it into practice.

His advantage undoubtedly lies in the affix panel, which allows him to avoid many detours when assembling team compositions.

Li Yanqing's seemingly useless system is actually the best aid in implementing complex tactics.

"Lehmann, help me find a midfielder."

"They need to be able to play as a defensive midfielder and be good at short passing combinations."

"You can look to Cazorla as a reference, but he has to be younger..."

Since the negotiations for Bale had fallen through anyway, Li Yanqing simply decided to spend the budget on the midfield.

It's not really suitable to train him ourselves. David Lewis's technical style is obviously not that refined. Blinder seems like a good fit, but his age is a big problem.

It's not worth it to train them to play for a few years and then have them retire.

"Midfield?"

"Shouldn't we look for another winger?"

Lehmann was somewhat puzzled. He knew that Deulofeu hadn't actually made it into the league, and even if he came, he might not be able to contribute immediately.

Therefore, theoretically, we still need to find a strong striker.

"I'll stop looking for it for now."

"Let's talk about it during the transfer window."

"Right now, it's difficult for us to buy suitable players with the money we have."

"I'll find some time to talk to Chris again and see if we can get a little more budget..."

That's what they say, but Li Yanqing actually knows that the possibility is slim.

Burton would need to sell one or two more players to have enough transfer fees, but that would be another major blow to their already weak bench.

We still need to find another way...