Chapter 33

Well done!

When Lin Sen entered the locker room at halftime, his first words were to praise the players for their tactical execution. Atlético Madrid indeed deserved praise in the first half; their performance was on par with the opponent in most statistics, but they far outperformed Deportivo La Coruña in the crucial category of tackles. Considering that the opponent was a defensive team, what Atlético Madrid achieved was no small feat.

Lin Sen's straightforward praise was well received in the locker room, especially by De Gea, who clearly never imagined he would suddenly become Atlético Madrid's starting goalkeeper, even though this match might not be significant.

Seeing De Gea's reaction, Lin Sen smiled inwardly. Then, he said something that he never expected would suddenly change the atmosphere in the locker room.

Instantly, the color above the heads of five players changed. What was originally almost uniformly green became a mix of colors: yellow for disappointment, orange for confusion...

Lin Sen realized something was wrong.

In the locker room, everyone looked calm, and no one showed any disagreement with Lin Sen's words, not even the slightest change. On the surface, it seemed that everyone had calmly accepted his instructions. However, the color changes above their heads clearly told Lin Sen: this was just the surface!

Lin Sen subconsciously recalled whether there was anything wrong with what he had just said. Soon, he understood that he had been too presumptuous, or perhaps too naive.

The second half continued.

Lin Sen said just this one sentence.

As the words suggested, Lin Sen wanted the team to continue with the first-half strategy, focusing on defensive counterattacks. According to his thinking, if the first half had not broken the deadlock, Atlético Madrid might need some changes. But since they were leading, Deportivo La Coruña would certainly strengthen their attack in the second half. Therefore, Atlético Madrid did not need to make any changes; defensive counterattacks would be the best strategy.

However, it seemed that the players did not agree, at least not half of them, though they did not show their thoughts.

"Diego, do you think I'm being too conservative?"

Among the five players with the most significant emotional changes, one person was completely unexpected by Lin Sen: Uruguayan star Diego Forlán.

In Lin Sen's impression, the Uruguayan had always been a very low-key star. After taking over Atlético Madrid, Forlán's performance confirmed this. Because of this, Lin Sen did not choose anyone else; he believed that Forlán's thoughts could represent those of the others. So, he directly asked Forlán his question.

Perhaps not expecting Lin Sen to ask this suddenly, and even more surprised that Lin Sen had noticed his emotional change, Forlán paused before answering, "No, Coach, I agree with you. Defensive counterattacks are the right strategy."

Hearing Forlán's affirmative answer, Lin Sen frowned: right? Why are you so disappointed then?

"Then, can you honestly tell me if you are willing to accept this arrangement?" Lin Sen asked deliberately.

"I will accept it," Forlán answered after another pause, "But, to be honest, I'm not exactly enthusiastic about it."

Lin Sen nodded, not pressing further. Forlán's answer was already very clear. There was no need to be too blunt. He patted Forlán on the shoulder, smiled, and left the locker room.

Accept, but not enthusiastically.

This seemed paradoxical, but it was not contradictory.

Simply put, Forlán did not like Atlético Madrid's playing style in the first half, but as a professional player, he would hide his emotions and faithfully execute the coach's requirements. At the start, he did not think much about Lin Sen's arrangements, but throughout the first half, if not for the free kick, Forlán's number of shots would have been embarrassingly zero. Combined with the occasional boos from the stands, Forlán's mindset had changed, which was understandable.

Among the five players with the most significant emotional changes, four were from the midfield and forward positions. The answer was clear: no attacking player likes to participate in defense, let alone for the entire match.

After confirming this, Lin Sen wanted to say something in the locker room, but he ultimately chose silence. He had thought that the lead would at least suppress this kind of emotion, but it seemed that the score had nothing to do with it.

Ugly victories and beautiful defeats, sometimes the outcomes are the same. Who is right and who is wrong is always an unsolvable question in football. Lin Sen did not intend to solve this question; to him, it was always a multiple-choice question, not a discussion topic.

---

When Dina saw Lin Sen return to the coaching bench with a deadpan face, she was initially confused. She had been worried that Lin Sen's decision to field three young players was too risky, but the first half proved her concerns were unfounded. She thought Lin Sen would be quite pleased in the second half, but instead, his expression seemed even worse than at the start.

Dina wanted to ask what was wrong, but as she prepared to stand up, the players began to leave the tunnel, so she had to hold back.

As Lin Sen had expected, Deportivo La Coruña made the first change.

They replaced a central defender, Lopo, with a midfielder, De Guzman.

The 5-4-1 formation became a 4-5-1, shifting from defense to attack! Lottiña finally had to treat Atlético Madrid as a "weaker" team.

At the start of the second half, Deportivo La Coruña abandoned their cautious approach from the first half. The two full-backs began to frequently push forward, and the midfield quickly established a numerical advantage, putting more pressure on Atlético Madrid. Atlético Madrid continued with their first-half strategy, focusing on defensive counterattacks. As a result, while Atlético Madrid's chances of winning were greater, the match became even more unappealing for their fans.

The first half was already unappealing, but at least Atlético Madrid was not at a disadvantage. Now, it was clear that Deportivo La Coruña was dominating Atlético Madrid, which was unacceptable.

Boos erupted at the Calderón.

"Kamacho wins the ball! He passes it to Raúl García, who advances... There are too few Atlético Madrid players in the attack, and Raúl García can't find a suitable target. Indeed, his pass is intercepted again. Let's look at the possession statistics. In the first half, Atlético Madrid had 48% possession, while the opponent had 52%. In the past few minutes of the second half, Atlético Madrid's possession has dropped to 31%."

"Unbelievable! After taking the lead, Atlético Madrid is still so conservative. It seems Lin is satisfied with a 1-0 lead, but the home fans clearly don't agree. After a terrible season, they have the right to demand better performances from the team, not just defensive play."

At this moment, the camera focused on the stands, showing a serious-looking Reixach, who was quietly watching the game. The camera then switched to Cerezo, who was calmly cleaning his glasses, while his assistant, Hill, looked grim.

On the sidelines, Lin Sen was unaware of the spectators in the stands or the commentators' remarks. He focused only on the field.

Forlán's color above his head eventually turned green. The changes in the locker room lasted only a few minutes before the Uruguayan adjusted. However, the other four players still carried their emotions onto the field.

In the 73rd minute, Koke's pass to Raúl García was intercepted by Belelón. Instead of immediately trying to win the ball back, Raúl García chose to watch, leaving Koke to press alone.

Belelón, who had been surrounded by three Atlético Madrid players in the first half, was not someone the inexperienced Koke could handle alone. Moreover, Koke was not a defensive player. Belelón easily performed a one-two, leaving Koke facing his back. Without midfield support, the defense was like a bikini-clad girl.

Seeing the situation, Koke immediately pulled Belelón's jersey from behind. However, Belelón was waiting for this move and promptly fell to the ground.

Koke's color above his head instantly turned indigo with anger.

Seeing him about to complain to the referee, the experienced Antonio López immediately pulled him back. Pulling a jersey is a common tactic among defenders, but there is a technique to doing it without fouling. Koke's action was seen by the referee, and it was best not to ask for a yellow card at this moment.

Free kick.

Lin Sen was not overly concerned about the free kick. Training for set pieces improves both offense and defense. Koke's foul, though a trap, was not without value. If Belelón had advanced directly, the consequences could have been worse. Of course, this was just a possibility.

One minute later.

Belelón's free kick aimed for the far post!

Barragán, who had given Atlético Madrid a penalty in the first half, leaped high at the far post and headed the ball towards the goal. Surprisingly, there was not a single Atlético Madrid player within a meter of him to interfere!

De Gea made his best save of the match, deflecting the ball back into play!

In a flash, a figure rushed forward, standing exactly in the path of the ball's rebound.

Was it a reaction too late, or perfectly timed?

The rebounded ball hit the figure and flew into the goal without hesitation!

It was an own goal!

The entire Calderón fell silent, with only a few Deportivo La Coruña fans celebrating.

At the same time, the TV broadcast focused on Lin Sen's face.

Expressionless!