Chapter 1 When Qiu Suhui saw Liu Peng standing in the center back position on the training ground, he nodded with satisfaction. Although for players and coaches, the more versatile a player is, the better, and the more positions they are good at, the better. But not everyone can play more than two positions. Some people can only play one position, but they can create heights that others cannot reach in this position. Qiu Suhui believed that Liu Peng was such a person, a natural center back. However, if he wants to reach that height, he still needs hard training and the guidance of a good teacher.

One-on-one defensive training was underway on the field, with the team's forwards taking turns attacking the defenders. Liu Peng had a high win rate in one-on-ones. His amazing explosive power and keen judgment often made him the winner. However, after Liu Peng intercepted his opponent's ball for the tenth time, Qiu Suhui blew the whistle to suspend the training.

"Liu Peng!" Qiu Suhui walked towards Liu Peng. He casually hooked the football from under a player's feet, "You defend against me!" After speaking, he dribbled the ball towards Liu Peng.

Seeing that the coach had dribbled the ball over, Liu Peng didn't bother to ask why he was challenging him to a one-on-one. He quickly lowered his waist and prepared to meet the enemy.

The distance between the two was rapidly shortening. Qiu Suhui was just dribbling the ball in a straight line, and it was impossible to tell what he was going to do next. Liu Peng took the lead as before when the distance was appropriate. Relying on his amazing explosive power, he stretched his foot to poke the ball between Qiu Suhui's legs!

It couldn't be said that Liu Peng's leg extension speed was slow. In fact, many players who had lost to him just now hadn't even seen Liu Peng's movements clearly before the ball was intercepted. But Qiu Suhui's movements were faster. He turned as fast as lightning, leaving Liu Peng behind, and the ball was still at his feet.

Qiu Suhui stepped on the ball, turned around and looked at Liu Peng: "Did you see my movements just now?" Liu Peng nodded: "You first pretended to break through to the other side with your right foot, but instead knocked the ball from behind you to your left side, and then quickly turned around, using the same foot to take the ball away from my defensive range with your back to me."

Qiu Suhui smiled with satisfaction: "Not bad, you watched very carefully. This is called the 'Cruyff Turn', and it was invented by Dutch star Cruyff."

The other players watching were slightly agitated. No wonder even Liu Peng couldn't defend against it.

"Since you saw it clearly, why didn't you stop me?" Qiu Suhui continued to ask.

Liu Peng was stunned for a moment, and then hesitantly replied: "Because, because my left foot had just stretched out, and you moved, and at that time I couldn't change my technique..."

"Then do you think you are inferior to me in reaction speed? Or, is your foot extension speed slower than my turning speed?"

Liu Peng thought for a while, and shook his head: "No, I don't think so..."

"Haha!" Qiu Suhui laughed, "Actually, football is a strategy game full of wisdom."

The players didn't understand why the coach was talking about this. Wasn't this a one-on-one defensive training? This statement sounded very fresh to them, so they all listened quietly as the coach continued.

"I want you to understand this point. Football is by no means a battle of reckless men, but a sport that requires thinking. Players on the field need to keep their nerves tense at all times, analyze and make decisions about the situation on the field. Don't think that these things are the responsibility of the coach. In fact, the coach's angle and position are different, so the analysis and decisions made are also different, and the coach is more focused on the analysis and decisions of the overall situation. In the local areas, you must make your own decisions. To give the simplest example, the midfielder is often the brain of the team. He must know whether he should dribble through, pass the ball to a teammate in a better position, or shoot from a long distance in different situations. So, this is what we call analyzing the situation on the field and making a decision." Seeing that the players nodded to show that they understood, Qiu Suhui continued to speak.

"Sometimes, you need to make decisions early, otherwise you may delay the opportunity. Especially the forwards, the opportunity in front of the goal is fleeting. Once there is even a little hesitation, you will lose a scoring opportunity. And for the defenders, what they least want is to face those who can seize every shooting opportunity. But sometimes, making a decision a little later is better. This is especially evident in defense. Sima Hongxin!"

"Ah?" a tall man responded. He was Sima Hongxin, the main goalkeeper of the Henan Zhongyuan Youth Team.

"Tell me, if the other side crosses, what will you do?"

"Watch the incoming ball, analyze the height and speed, and then jump up and take the football down when the ball passes." Sima Hongxin's simple four sentences include the entire process of a goalkeeper observing the situation, making decisions, and then taking action.

"Well, very good. That is to say, you made this decision to block the ball after careful observation and judgment, right? Then you won't always take the initiative to intercept aerial crosses, right?"

Sima Hongxin felt that this new coach was a bit annoying. Did he even need to ask about this kind of thing? He really didn't know how this coach got the job, but he still honestly replied: "Yes, if I think the ball's flight path is not within my control, I won't attack to get the ball, but will stay in place."

"Very good! Does everyone understand? If Sima Hongxin made a decision too early, without careful analysis and judgment, then if the cross was going to deviate from his control range, his attack would be a mistake, which could easily lead to a goal. For defenders, delaying your decision time will be beneficial to your defense."

"But Coach..." Liu Peng still had questions, "Sima can delay making a decision because the ball needs time in flight, and this time is enough for him to analyze and judge. But I am a center back, and when I am one-on-one with the opponent, it is impossible to have enough time for me to analyze."

"Ha! Didn't you see my movements just now?"

"I saw it, but..."

"But why didn't you stop me?" Qiu Suhui looked at Liu Peng with a wicked smile.

"That's because my left foot stretched out, and you..." Liu Peng suddenly stopped, as if he understood something, and looked at the coach.

"Haha!" Qiu Suhui laughed, "In one-on-one situations, it's not always about striking first. When you are one-on-one with someone, don't take the lead, because it's easy to be taken advantage of. Keep your eyes on the ball, pay attention to his movements, and then make a decision. When he makes a move to break through you, that's your chance. Liu Peng, remember, move after the attacker, but be sure to move faster than them! The so-called 'striking after the opponent has moved' is the principle."

Qiu Suhui blew the whistle, "Okay, everyone continue training!" He turned and walked off the field.

"Striking after the opponent has moved, striking after the opponent has moved..." Liu Peng was still muttering this phrase.

Hu Li went up to Qiu Suhui and shook his head: "Coach Qiu, I, Lao Hu, really admire you! You really have the ability. These kids are lucky to have you!"

Qiu Suhui put his arm around Hu Li's shoulder and smiled: "Lao Hu, you're overpraising me. One person can't train a good team. Even the best coach can't train those who are not suitable for playing football into superstars. He just does his best to guide a player to the correct path of football, give pointers at the appropriate time, and maximize the morale of the players, so that their abilities can be brought to the extreme during the game. I am still far from that. And I can't lead a team alone. Without your and other coaching staff members' joint efforts, winning the national U21 championship next year will be a pipe dream."

"Hehe... Ah? Wait, what did Coach Qiu just say? If I didn't hear wrong, you said our goal is the national U21 championship?"

"Yes, if I don't win the championship, what am I doing here?" Qiu Suhui looked at Hu Li with some surprise.

"But, I know the club wants to achieve results, but next year... isn't it a bit too fast?"

"No, I'm afraid it will be too late next year. Lao Hu, I don't have much time left!" Qiu Suhui cast his eyes to the sky outside the training field. The sky was overcast, and if you didn't look at your watch, you wouldn't know what time it was. Driven by the wind, the clouds were moving towards the southeast, accumulating more and more over the sky of Zhengzhou.

"Tomorrow, it will probably snow..."

Chapter 2 The First Snow

The snow fell silently. The first snow of winter in Henan arrived just like that. Qiu Suhui didn't get to appreciate the feeling of "The northern scenery, a thousand miles of ice, ten thousand miles of snow. Look inside and outside the Great Wall, only a vast expanse remains; up and down the great river, the mighty flow is suddenly lost. The mountains dance like silver snakes, the plains gallop like waxy elephants, trying to compete with the sky..." When he went out in the morning, the snow on the road had already been swept to the side of the road by the early-rising sanitation workers. Cars drove past on the road, only splashing a piece of dirty water, with no aesthetic appeal at all.

The city is truly the source of all evil. Qiu Suhui somewhat missed the feeling of seeing even the windmills covered with white snow in the Dutch countryside. At that time, he could unscrupulously act like a child, lying in the snow and looking up at the sky. Now... Qiu Suhui looked at the snow that had been blackened by sewage and wouldn't lie down even if he was paid.

The apartment he lived in was very close to the youth team's training ground, and it only took half an hour to walk. Although he had traveled in Europe for more than ten years, he actually didn't have much savings. At least, among private cars, buses, bicycles, and walking, he chose to walk, which didn't cost a penny. In Henan dialect, it was called "di ben" (walking).

The benefit of "di ben" wasn't just that it was free, but also that it gave Qiu Suhui more time to think about problems. Riding a bike while thinking about problems could make you fall into a ditch. People say, "Zhengzhou, Zhengzhou, digging ditches every day; if you don't dig for a day, it's not called Zhengzhou." Qiu Suhui didn't want to use his own actions to verify how many ditches there really were in Zhengzhou. Taking the bus while thinking about problems could make you miss your stop. Once or twice didn't matter, but if it happened every day... Qiu Suhui didn't want people to think of him as mentally ill. Thinking about problems while driving was even more dangerous. That was a matter of life and death. If a person died, what was there to talk about the national championship? The hope of Chinese football?

Qiu Suhui came back to his senses from his thoughts again. He was already standing at the gate. Because of the snow, today's training was moved indoors. The workers were nervously clearing the snow from the outdoor training ground. It was impossible for this ordinary youth team training ground to have geothermal facilities.

In fact, the youth team originally didn't have an indoor training ground. Thanks to the club's desire to be promoted to the Chinese Super League, in order to ensure that its supporting facilities could keep up with the requirements of the Chinese Football Association, it specially converted a large warehouse into an indoor training ground. Although it was far from being comparable to the indoor training bases of some European clubs, it was better than nothing.

Hu Li was leading the players in warming up. It was cold in winter, and warming up was especially important.

Qiu Suhui had always found it strange that there was a phenomenon that existed both in Europe and China. That is, many coaches in training attach great importance to technical and tactical training, physical training, offensive routine training, defensive tactical training, various set-piece tactical training... but they ignore one of the most important factors: shooting training. In their training plans, shooting training is always a subsidiary of the above-mentioned training.

In fact, many coaches are numb and indifferent to the phenomenon of players not shooting accurately. You can often hear coaches say in post-match evaluations: "We performed very well, but we failed to seize the opportunity." But in fact, performing well should include seizing opportunities. Many coaches pay more attention to how to create opportunities in daily training, rather than seizing opportunities—this is inherently the wrong approach.

Therefore, Qiu Suhui adjusted the training of the Zhongyuan Youth Team, raising shooting training to an important level. Shooting training changed from one day a week to two days a week. Hu Li had questioned this arrangement, believing that it was not worth spending time on shooting training, and it would be better to do more tactical training or strength training.

Qiu Suhui answered him like this: "Lao Hu, I understand your concerns, but the truly exciting moments in football are all contained in the shooting. Whether it is individual tactics or overall tactics, both sides of the game are trying to create shooting opportunities. What's the point of a game where the football is passed dazzlingly but not shot? Whether it is defense or offense, it is all for the sake of scoring goals!"

After the warm-up, Qiu Suhui gathered the players together, briefly explained the precautions for shooting training, and then let Sima Hongxin stand in front of the goal and start shooting training.

The sound of banging and clanging filled the gymnasium, which was very lively. After one round, Qiu Suhui asked Hu Li to calculate the training situation just now. The result was that a total of twenty-four shots were taken, of which four goals were scored, ten shots hit the target goal, and the other fourteen shots were either high or wide. Qiu Suhui looked at such a report card and said nothing, and waved his hand: "Another round!"

The gymnasium was filled with noise again. This time, there were a total of twenty-four shots, three goals were scored, eight shots hit the target, and the other sixteen shots were either high or wide again. Qiu Suhui did not let the players continue to the next round, but gathered the players together and waved the two statistical results in his hand to everyone: "What do you think? You are all going to be in the first team, professional players. Some of you still want to be in the national team, right? Is this your level? You can't even hit such a big standard goal! In the first round, fourteen shots missed the target, and in the second round it was sixteen... I know some people think that shooting is a matter for the forwards, but I want to correct this wrong perception now! Any of you, including the goalkeeper, must train shooting and cultivate shooting awareness. I will not think that someone who has an excellent scoring opportunity but passes the ball out is very 'selfless'! You must know that what you are passing out is not a ball, but responsibility! That kind of behavior is irresponsible!"

The players saw the coach get angry for the first time, and each of them didn't dare to breathe loudly, and honestly lowered their heads to take the scolding.

"Don't lower your heads! All of you raise your heads and look at me! Who knows what you are thinking with your heads down?" Qiu Suhui roared, echoing in the gymnasium. The players hurriedly raised their heads again.

"First of all, you must value shooting from the bottom of your hearts and cultivate a strong desire to shoot! Don't worry about whether you can hit the target first. You will never hit if you don't shoot! Then there are technical factors. Note that the requirement for accuracy should be ranked first when shooting. I am not against powerful shots, but before you use all your strength to shoot, please aim first. A powerful shot without accuracy can only make the ball boy exercise more. Then, be sure to try to keep the ball down when shooting. Even if it's a miss, it's better than shooting high. A miss can still be rebounded, but a high shot will only give the opponent a goal kick. Okay, let's start again below. Think about what I said in your heads. Come one by one, five balls per person!"

So the players started shooting training from a specified distance outside the designated range in order of their numbers.

Hu Li said to Qiu Suhui beside him: "Coach Qiu, you let them shoot as soon as you come up, without even explaining the key points of the technique. Of course their hit rate is low."

Qiu Suhui looked at the players practicing shooting and smiled: "Hehe, I am doing this just to make them understand how important it is to have the correct attitude towards shooting. Lao Hu, you will know when everyone is done and you calculate the results."

The result of the statistics was that the hit rate increased by 30% and the number of goals increased by 50% compared to before.

Hu Li was very surprised to see the results he had personally calculated.

"Hehe, 30% and 50%, how about it?" Qiu Suhui smiled, "Lao Hu, you know what? Those coaches who only do tactical and technical training often ignore this point. Attitude is the problem that coaches should solve first during training, other factors are secondary, and the improvement of attitude will bring the fastest and most obvious progress to the players."

"So that's how it is. No wonder Milu always wears his hat to the training ground. The words on it are really profound..."

"What words?"

"Attitude determines everything."

Qiu Suhui looked at Hu Li, then turned and walked into the field again. He clapped his hands: "Okay, everyone understands, right? I just made some changes to your attitude, and the progress has been shown. In fact, it's not that your technique is bad, and you can't shoot, but that you don't want to shoot. Now that everyone has corrected their attitude, let's still come one by one, and I will tell you the specific technical problems..."

Watching Qiu Suhui teach these young players how to shoot, Hu Li suddenly felt that what Qiu Suhui said yesterday might really come true, the national U21 championship...

Hu Li looked up and suddenly found that the sun could be seen outside the window! After snowing all night, the sky cleared up.