บท 66: Against Zenit Cшор I

From the technical area, Coach Johansen watched his players take on Zenit сшор in the quarter-final. The match turned out to be as tough as he'd expected.

The Zenit players, in their white jerseys, had the most compact defense in the tournament. They played in a 4-4-2 formation, with the defenders often feeding strikers aerial balls, skipping the midfield.

Coach Johansen kept his attention on his squad, in blue jerseys. He was looking for the occasional sign of complacency—characteristic of inexperienced players.

A team was like a machine, with several moving parts. The players were supposed to function as a collective whole. They had to complement the abilities of one another in the best way they can. Any lack of focus in just a couple of players could drastically impair the team's performance. Coach Johansen couldn't afford to let that happen. Not in a quarter-final match where a loss would lead to elimination from the tournament.