A/N: After going through whatever said by Word of Yu, it seems to me that Sun Quan was out to give Zhou Yu extra credit via a major rehash of my last post.
Foreword
Gonna talk footie again here, let's just have a brief glimpse on what happened so far. Basically, Cao Cao managed to annex Jing Province and the next target in line was Sun Wu. Without getting into messy specifics tantamount to retarded intellectual infighting, let's just say that everyone in Eastern Wu started twerking the panic button.
So what really went right for Cao Cao? Mainly the fact that he seized control of Jing Province.
So what went wrong for Cao Cao? Plenty. Firstly, he had yet to secure the loyalty of the locals. Secondly, he failed to figure in climatic factors amounting to 50% of his forces incapacitated. Thirdly, let us go back to point 1. In short, limited loyalty=limited manpower available. This is especially glaring since Cao Cao still had to deal with potential uprisings in his backyard. And to think Mario "Ba-lol-telli" Balotelli managed to torch his bathroom accidentally.
Lessons learnt in football
Whenever some gaffer comes into the dressing room, we need to know that tactics will only work once the players feel comfortable with what the new authority in trying to sell. It's just like how a child trusts his father. Cao Cao's biggest failure was down to assuming everybody in Jing Province will automatically see him as the rightful one. Sure, he's one of the three Special Ones, but not the Correct One to the Jing locals.
Most important lesson learnt here is this-If you're new, it means you're new. Players don't care whether you're King Midas the Italian or King Midas the Scot. So long as they believe you'll turn them into gold as well, then that's it. GG, kthnxbai...
So what should a new gaffer do during his first day at work? Firstly, Cao Cao never reassured the Jing people in the long term, let every gaffer learn from this cock-up (and to rub on the wound, it's not as if no one advised Cao Cao to play populist. Jia Xu did say so ffs). Players desired results, yes. But players are also human beings, they're not prepared to fight a battle with someone they dislike bossing them around.
Moral of the story-If you want to be a disciplinarian, go full rage mode only after you're sure everybody knows what you're doing. There's a weird parallel between this logic and why Zhang Fei got brutally assassinated by his disgruntled men. Go figure, guys.
How burning the fleet can affect football
Interestingly, the only details we've seen on Zhou Yu's exploits during the Battle of Red Cliffs is the fact that he accepted another general, Huang Gai's proposal to set fire on a few empty boats. Whatever written by Luo Guanzhong was merely drama, Huang Gai basically offered a plan which Zhou Yu accepted. However, due to Gongjin being the commander back then, it could also be concurred that Zhou Yu had thought up this plan as well. Only catch is that Huang Gai voiced it out first. iirc this isn't the first time we've seen this in Three Kingdoms history. In Cao Cao's war against Ma Chao, Jia Xu pulled off a Huang Gai. During the Hanzhong campaign, Huang Quan played the same blinder.
Lessons learnt in football
The gaffer should be bossing the team, every player is part of the team. If so-and-so player mentioned a harebrained plan that might really work, please don't be a dick. Whether said plan will be executed, gaffer should have the final say. But please, the dressing room is no kitchen unless your gaffer happened to be Gordon *insert correct answer here*.
How to burn correctly...
Lessons learnt in football 1
Bar the fact that Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms is based on Luo Guanzhong's bullshitting, we need to understand one very basic thing in war. Firstly, do NOT assume you're gonna have the upper hand. Cao Cao expected Eastern Wu to be his bitch, Heaven above got other plans. In the initial skirmish, Zhou Yu obtained the upper hand (i.e. drawing first blood). Yet, that was down to Cao Cao's naval forces suffering from pestilence. Back during those days, you don't have penicillin available (figure of speech ftw, I think I now sound like somebody in blue). In short, the Jing navy were in unfamiliar territory, unfamiliar territory breeds unfamiliar troubles. Basically, that means they're not used to the climate.
So what has this got to do with footie? Very simple. If you have the upper hand in quality, be very sure that shit do happen, plan in advance.
Example-Dean "The White Tower" Whitehead is now a staple force in terms of reinforcing our backline. If shit happens, it means he will be out for like... wtf, half a season? Maybe, maybe not. Championship football can be a bitch at times, that's why we get to see Swansea going so high up before Brendan "Dodgers" Rodgers decided to abandon his white Dornish lads. So if Boro kenna this touch wood moment, who to fill in? Richard "wrong Michal Carrick" Smallwood? Can he handle the heat? Can he withstand 10 human battering rams? Can he work in tandem with Jonathan "Woody" Woodgate? No 33, here's your perfect role model...
Lessons learnt in football 2
In naval standoff (or just about any other type involving Weapons of Mass Disruption), key to victory or defeat will always hinge on defence. You can score 3 goals in a row, but if you leak 4 in return, you still lugi. Basic $$$ maths will always teach you the difference between profit and loss, I actually still remember this from my primary school days (albeit I also remember a lot of shit which the relevant parties will always forget within weeks. Mr Tay Tai Ming, please do NOT try to recall whatever you told me about Shebby Singh).
Defence is never about how capable your backline is. It's about how you organise and rally. In short, who should be this bloke? Who should be the field backup? Who should be Fangorn himself?
Lessons learnt in football 3
Many people enjoy castigating this fella being slow like a turtle (unless said fella is a Carrington Welsh) or that fella not having the balls to be selfish (unless we're talking about CR7 since he'll never be generous). However, crucial factor is not down to how fast you are or whether your surname is Japanese. It's down to two things, two lagi simple basic things.
Basics 1-Where to fortify?
Defensive players will find this easy, but what about offensive players? You can try asking Joey "that Anglo-French guy" Barton on where to fortify, he'll give you an answer amounting to something like this. Try asking Neymar the same question and he will ask back in non-English format. In short, it should go something like this:
Defensive players should have a decent sense of positioning. Unless you're Jonathan "Woody" Woodgate, it means you're likely to be srsly ****ed once you become the last man tackling.
Attacking players, this is about where you should be positioning yourself. Unless you're Lionel "Hey! Do you have these?" Messi, it means you're likely to be srsly ****ed once you don't know your final destination. In short, I'm talking about how/where you should link up from the defence/middle.
Basics 2-When to gun?
Attacking players will find this easy, but not so the defensive ones. You can try asking that Portuguese Cruise Rocket 7 on where to gun, he'll give you the correct answer. Try asking Sami "die WTF?!" Khedira on where to gun and he will tell you how Rafael Nadal learn from him. In short, it goes something like this:
Defensive players, you shouldn't be running about unless you're a German, Italian, British, black, or some Slavmobile. Either you know when to pull the trigger (e.g. Grant "Lead Biter" Leadbitter) or when to call a pass (e.g. Dean "The White Tower" Whitehead). This is all about linking up ball possession ffs.
Attacking players, I don't need to say anything here. If you have a gun without ammo, it means either you got shortchanged constantly or you're just flat out stupid.
Starting and creating momentum
Opponent is playing a flat 4/5 across the middle, what to do? In actual history, the great fire merely created much needed turmoil. In short, all you need to do is this:
Try asking yourself how you will like to disrupt the opponent.
This is NOT about who you field in the team, it's about whether you want to draw first blood or bidding your time in the middle park. If you choose the former, make sure you have someone fast enough upfront with another someone good enough with the ball behind. If you choose the latter option, make sure your middle someone is intelligent enough to make a vital call. Vital call as in either we're talking about swinging a mace (i.e. disrupting opponent's tempo) or having a Bladesinger (i.e. creating link up chances). Note that this is NOT merely about positioning, but also when/where you should run.
Moral of the story:
Different approach will decide different ways of scoring. In short, goals win you games, not dummy talk.
P.S: To be continued, going to tidoh asap since got church tomorrow. Plus still need to do my Bible Study Fellowship homework. With that being said, allow me to (re)choreograph the Battle of Porto.
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