Chapter Thirty: Aura Like a Rainbow
Among them, Aolin is only good at powerful shots and direct instep shots that ordinary people can do. The former has the lowest hit rate except for special shooting methods such as reverse hooks, while the latter requires too high a requirement for the shooting position and is not easy to encounter in competitions. Moreover, it is easy to be blocked by the goalkeeper's angle, so Aolin's shooting accuracy is not high even in training, and the more anxious he becomes when he can't score, the more he can't score, forming a vicious circle, which is how the "Aolin Airplane" was formed later in history...
Compared to others, Yu Hai's shooting method is much more diverse, but due to the position he plays in, his shooting technique is not mature enough. Simply put, his basic skills are not solid and need to be practiced from scratch. Additionally, Yu Hai's dribbling style is conducive to inside cuts and shooting, but his right-footed shots are even worse than his left (which is already quite poor), making it difficult for him to fully utilize this advantage. As a result, he was also ordered by the coach to practice his right-foot technique intensively, at least to develop his shooting ability. However, because Yu Hai was not originally a pure left-footer, coupled with the coach's strict requirements and his own hard training, he eventually became an "ambidextrous player" who can skillfully dribble, pass, and shoot with both feet, rather than relying more on his left foot like in the past. Although changing his habits initially led to a decline in his performance, in the long run, his growth potential increased significantly...
Under the guidance of French youth training coaches and Xu Genbao's personal strict supervision, the players of Dongfang team have made significant improvements in technology, and everyone has experienced for the first time that technical training can be so tiring. "No wonder Arsenal's offense can play like a cloud, it turns out that it is such a dead detail, practiced bit by bit!"
The only player in the Eastern team who doesn't need much guidance from French youth training coaches is Gao Jun. His technical application in offense is even used as a textbook by Arsenal's youth coaches to demonstrate to everyone, but his defense still has a lot of room for improvement in their eyes. Although as a forward, he doesn't need to frequently participate in defense, modern football emphasizes overall teamwork, and it's not okay for forwards to not defend at all. Now Gao Jun is physically insufficient to support full offense and defense and can only make some compromises, but in the future, after his body grows up, defense will definitely be a must-participate, and the Eastern team's pressing tactics are originally their biggest advantage. It's worth noting that "pressing" was actually proposed by Xu Genbao. If Gao Jun hadn't participated in the team's overall pressing, he couldn't fully understand the Eastern team's tactical ideology. Therefore, Gao Jun also has to take out time every day to conduct a certain degree of defensive training...
In addition, Gao Lin's passing ability was relatively poor in the past. This was because he used to play as a midfielder and his main responsibility was to make runs behind the defense and score goals. However, after his breakthrough, Gao Lin's speed became very fast and he also had great potential on the wing position. If he could also improve his passing ability, it would be even harder for opponents to defend against him. Therefore, when the French coach made this suggestion, Gao Lin began to spare time to strengthen his training in this area.
Generally speaking, participating in the China League One would definitely require foreign aid. However, even after cooperating with Arsenal, Dongfang Club's financial pressure is still greater than it was historically (historically, Xu Genbao had leftover money to buy the land under the base and use it as collateral to take out more loans from banks, but there isn't that much extra money in this timeline, so they can only rent and the cash flow is increasingly tight). Moreover, Xu Genbao believes that based on the team's current situation, although it's their first time participating in China League One, at least ensuring relegation shouldn't be difficult. To think about making a strong push for promotion, foreign aid would need to have an annual salary of at least $300,000, and four of them would need to be assembled, which is something that Dongfang Club cannot afford right now. Since ensuring relegation is worry-free but pushing for promotion is hopeless, and the financial pressure is great, it's better to just use all Chinese players to play in China League One, this way they can also train more young players.
However, after the start of China League One, Shanghai Dongfang team unexpectedly got off to a great start. In the first round, they met Ningbo Guoli team, who were deeply involved in a fake ball scandal, and their boss Wang was taken away by the police for investigation. The team's players had been owed wages for a long time, and even the old captain Jiang Hong retired due to the team's relocation after the end of last season. The whole team was demoralized and lacked fighting spirit. They were defeated 0-6 by Shanghai Dongfang team, with Gao Jun scoring his first hat-trick in China League One despite wasting five shooting opportunities while trying a new shooting method.
The young team's momentum once started, it was easy to perform exceptionally. In the second game, Dongfang Team sat at home against Changchun Yatai, a strong team in the Chinese League One. Many fans thought that a draw would be a victory, but Dongfang Team surprisingly won 5-3 in an intense attacking battle. Gao Jun, who did not dare to take risks on the field before the game due to the opponent's strength, played exceptionally well and scored three goals with his signature push shot, also assisting his teammates twice, becoming the biggest contributor of the game. He became the only player in Chinese League One history to score a hat-trick in two consecutive games. However, after losing two veteran players, Dongfang Team's weak defense was completely exposed, causing headaches for boss Xu Genbao and head coach Fan Jun...
Continuous victories, a large number of goals, plus the Oriental team's youthful vitality, quickly gained the favor and support of many Shanghai fans. As more and more fans poured into the Shanghai Stadium to support the Oriental team, other teams in Shanghai felt threatened, especially the long-time leader, Hua Flower Team. However, the rise of the Oriental team was too fast, exceeding everyone's expectations, they didn't even have time to apply eye drops...
April 3, 2004, the third round of China League One, Dongfang team away to challenge the strongest team in China League One, Wuhan Huanghelou team, but relying on Wuhan old general left back Rong Hao and goalkeeper Zeng Cheng's brilliant performance and Gao Jun's stable play, Dongfang team easily took 3 points with a score of 4:2 in away game.
After this battle, Shanghai Oriental team became the biggest favorite to rush into the super league. However, many media still do not look good at the prospect of Oriental team rushing into the super league, and their reasons are mainly three points: First, the bench thickness of Oriental team is not enough; Second, the state of young players fluctuates greatly; Third, the training matches of national youth and junior teams have a great impact on the Oriental team with many selected players...
