What happened when Saudi coach led two teams to win the African Cup of Nations? Come and have a look with me.
Interview with Saudi coach Leonard: I can't wait to play Messi. This is my life dream.
#2022 World Cup # Leonard is one of the most legendary coaches in the history of the African Cup of Nations. He won the championship in two different teams. Now, he has come to Asian football to coach the Saudi team and meet more difficult challenges. In the first round of the World Cup group stage, his team will face the superpower Argentina. But Leonard told 442 that this is also his life dream. ...
Renard likes challenges. From commanding Cambridge United to play in the English Football League (EFL Ancient English League) with an English dictionary in his back pocket to taking charge of Zambia, he wrote the most wonderful "dark horse" story in football, and his fighting spirit and adventurous spirit supported the French coach to move forward.
In the 2022 World Cup, he faced one of the most severe tests in his coaching career-helping Saudi Arabia win from neighboring Qatar.
"In the preliminaries, the fans told me:' We must enter the World Cup'," Leonard told 442. "Now they say they want to enter the knockout stage."
Renard has hardly made any mistakes since he coached the Saudi team three years ago. In the Asian Top 40 and 12 preliminaries, his team ranked first in the group with the score of 1, beating strong rivals such as Japan and Australia. A total of 18 games were played, and Saudi Arabia only swallowed the defeat of 1 (0-2 Japan).
In the World Cup, their opponents became stronger, and they were not a little stronger. Saudi Arabia will play Argentina led by Messi, Poland led by Levan, and finally Mexico.
"I played with Cristiano Ronaldo in the 20 18 World Cup, and now I want to play with another best player in history," Leonard said with a smile. "This is the dream of many people since childhood, and I can't wait."
Renard is a master of chicken soup. When the team meets seemingly insurmountable difficulties, he always inspires the confidence of the players.
"The players all know that this game is very difficult," he said. "They know that this is not a professional league in Saudi Arabia, nor is it the kind of international competition we play in Asia. But happiness is always more important than stress. We must strive to maintain this mentality, and faith can help us narrow the gap with strong teams. "
20 12 Africa Cup of Nations, Reina proved his ideas with actions. At that time, he led Zambia, ranked 7 1 in the world, all the way to the final, and defeated C? te d 'Ivoire, led by Premier League stars Toure, Drogba and Kalou, and successfully reached the top, which made people stunned.
"I'm so happy, this is great, this may be the best memory of my life," Leonard recalled. "Team spirit is the most important thing in football. I don't think our strength is as good as that of C? te d 'Ivoire. It's really incredible to see where our (Zambian) players are playing football. I will never forget our achievements in Zambia. "
Renard is definitely the number one star in African football. 20 15, he personally helped the "golden generation" in C? te d 'Ivoire realize their dreams and became the only head coach in history who won the African Cup of Nations with two different teams. Since then, his Moroccan team has been taken to the World Cup in Russia.
His words revealed his love for African football, so why on earth did he come to Asia to coach Saudi Arabia?
"In Europe and France, there is always such a negative comment:' Ah, you are going to Saudi Arabia to make a lot of money'," he shook his head and said, "Yes, my current (economic) conditions are quite good, but it doesn't matter to me."
"If you have good conditions, but you can't win the game and only stay for three months, what's the point? The reason why you want to be a coach in a country must be because you think you can achieve something. This is our job. Now, we must stick to it and look forward. In Qatar, we must always maintain a positive and confident attitude. "
On 202 1, the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) took the lead in acquiring the Premier League Newcastle Club. Since then, Saudi Arabia, a Gulf country, has entered the spotlight of football. Being in charge of the Saudi team also puts forward higher requirements for the coach's own social skills.
"The acquisition of Newcastle is the starting point for Saudi Arabia to further develop football," Leonard said. "I hope they (PIF) will succeed in Newcastle, which will also help the development of Saudi football."
Has Leonard, who has a good relationship with Saudi football executives, considered working in Newcastle in the past?
"No," he replied firmly, "Eddie Howe is doing well now. This Newcastle team is completely different from last season. I think Hao Dao's concept is great and I wish him all the best. "
English football also holds a special place in Reina's heart. At the beginning of 2004, Leroy, the former head coach of Cambridge United Club, retired from the background as technical director and handed over the position of coach to his compatriot and favorite pupil Leonard. Prior to this, the 35-year-old young coach had only coaching experience in France.
"I loved those days. When I first arrived in Cambridge, my English was not very good, "Leonard said with a smile. "I don't think I'm well now, but I may not be able to say a few words at that time. I take a dictionary with me everywhere. I have been studying and improving because Cambridge United can't afford an interpreter. "
Before renard took office, Cambridge United ranked at the bottom of the EFL. After he came, they began to climb slowly in the standings. Renard only worked until the end of the 2003-04 season, but he left a deep impression on the club. American midfielder Sean tudor, a veteran of Cambridge United, called him "the perfect manager". In that half season, Leonard also made the future Norwich and Wolves goalkeeper john ruddy make their career debut.
"John was only 17 years old, and I remember Sir Alex Ferguson calling me to ask about him," Leonard recalled. "Maybe Sir Alex Ferguson didn't understand my English, so John went to Everton instead of Manchester United."
1994 World Cup in the United States, Saudi Arabia advanced to 16, and Auvillain played a wonderful performance against Belgium, leaving an eternal and famous scene in the history of the World Cup. Many people think that Reina is now bringing the most promising Saudi player after 1994.
However, the Saudi team had a poor record in the subsequent World Cups. In 2002, they lost to Germany 0-8; In 2006, they lost 4-0 to Ukraine. In 20 18, they were "bloodbath" by the host Russian team 5-0 at the opening ceremony.
"We have to be like the Saudi team in 1994," Leonard said. "I told the players: think about it. If you don't play anything this time, nobody will remember you. But they have the ability to make history in one fell swoop. They can go forward 16 or even further. Everyone who participates in the World Cup has this dream, which is also our goal. "
Now, the dream is in front of Reina and Saudi Arabia. In the first round of the group stage, they will defend Messi.
How strong is the Saudi coach? He started as a teaching assistant and led the team to win the Africa Cup of Nations twice.
Beijing time1the evening of October 22nd 165438+, the first FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 was born unexpectedly. In the first round of Group C, Argentina, which aims to win the championship, was reversed by Saudi Arabia, a powerful team in West Asia, with 1-2. This is the first victory of an Asian team in this tournament.
Saudi coach's resume is not simple.
Faced with the poor historical record, French coach Leonard, who has been in charge of Saudi Arabia since 20 19, has begun to unload the psychological burden of the players. In a recent interview, he said that the team had no specific achievement goals in the World Cup.
Renard, 54, has an excellent coaching record in the national team. He coached Zambia in 20 12 to win the first African Cup of Nations in the country's history, and then led C? te d 'Ivoire to win this honor again in 20 15.
Saudi coach Hervé Renard
Hervé Renard was born in France. As a player, his grades were average and he didn't get any important honor. He retired at 29.
At the end of 200 1, he followed Leroy to the then A-A Shanghai COSCO Club as a teaching assistant, stayed in League A for more than a year, and played 39 official games with the head coach, which left a deep impression on COSCO players. In fact, it was the experience of assisting Leroy in COSCO Club that made renard truly embark on the smooth road of professional football coaching.
After leaving China, Leonard traveled all over the world.
20 1 1 He led Zambia to win the African Cup of Nations that year and immediately became the focus of media attention. Four years later, he led C? te d 'Ivoire to win the championship.
Media: Argentina lacks the real number 9.
After the campaign, some media said that Saudi Arabia could win, on the one hand, because the formation was kept very close, and Argentina was not given enough space to be good at technology; On the other hand, Saudi Arabia's offside tactics are very successful today, which leads to Argentina falling into offside trap repeatedly. In addition, the Saudi team's midfield sweeping ability is not weak, and even has a slight advantage. In fact, Saudi Arabia's two goals were attacked after the ball was broken in midfield, and Argentina's entire defense line was unprepared.
For Argentina, after gaining the upper hand in the first half, it began to despise its opponents in mentality, and many half-balls were outside the clouds, which made the Saudi team more confident and finally successfully counterattacked after being intercepted by its opponents. The other is the lack of real Argentina.
After the score was overtaken, Argentina obviously accelerated its offensive rhythm, but the tight contraction of Saudi Arabia made the space for Argentine space technicians very scarce. Although the two-wing cross is ok, there is a lack of strong center in the restricted area. In the history of Argentina, there are many masters of aerial work such as Batty and Crespo.
The upstream news is integrated from Qilu. com, Xinhua. com, People's Daily and Beiqing. Some pictures come from the Internet.
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