Became The Premier League’S Youngest Manager [EN]: Chapter 205

205: Amar Dedic

“No one likes us!”

“We don’t care!”

“We are Burnley!”

“Super Burnley!”

“We are Burnley!”

“From the Moor!”

“Led by the man!”

“From the east!”

“Super Burnley!”

“Super Kim!”

“Let’s go, Super Burnley!! Super Kim!!”

“Waaaaah!!!”

Burnley fans, tirelessly singing their hearts out late into the second half at New Turf Moor, recently officially named ‘Endrills Moor,’ responded to Henry Smythe’s roaring as he pounded on the large drum to lead the cheers. However, the atmosphere in the technical area was much gloomier.

“Doesn’t it look like everyone’s exhausted?”

“Haa…”

Hyeong-min let out a long sigh at Karolina’s observation.

It was great that they thrashed Ajax 2-0 at home in the second leg of the Champions League Round of 16 three days ago, with consecutive goals from Benjamin Šeško and Sebastian Szymański, securing their place in the quarterfinals with a total score of 6-0.

However, it was also true that the players were visibly accumulating fatigue.

Seven games in just 30 days since the A-match break [international break] in mid-February.

Playing two games a week, Burnley’s young squad was starting to show the limits of its depth.

Hyeong-min and the coaches were desperately racking their brains to rotate the squad and maintain their strength, but there was a limit to everything.

Even Nicolas Seiwald, who usually roamed freely in midfield, showed a sharp decline in the second half and was replaced by Tommaso Pobega. Fortunately, the defense and midfield were holding up.

However, the attack was not showing its usual brilliance at all.

“Oooooh!!!”

Burnley’s right winger, Emmanuel Vignato, broke through Chelsea’s left flank, shook off Chelsea’s left-back Marc Cucurella’s desperate defense, and crossed into the center of the penalty box, but Chelsea’s center-backs easily intercepted it long before it reached Burnley’s center forward, Benjamin Šeško.

The ball, which fell in front of Chelsea’s defensive midfielder N’Golo Kanté, who had come down to support the defense, was passed through Chelsea’s midfield and the attack began again.

The home fans sighed in disappointment at the fruitless attack, but Hyeong-min and Karolina clearly knew that the chances of the previous attempt succeeding were not very high.

Lorenzo Lucca, who was blocked by Chelsea’s central defender duo Kalidou Koulibaly and Wesley Fofana, who had finally started to click, was replaced by Benjamin Šeško around the 60-minute mark, but he didn’t show his usual spark, probably because he had used too much energy in the Ajax game.

In addition, Chelsea’s manager Graham Potter seemed to have learned a great lesson from the disastrous first half of the season. This time, he deployed four central midfielders against Burnley, ensuring they wouldn’t lose out in the midfield battle.

N’Golo Kanté, Conor Gallagher, Mateo Kovačić, and Mason Mount.

Of course, N’Golo Kanté, who still holds a starting position in the French national team, is the best in terms of defensive ability, but the other three are not far behind in terms of activity.

Moreover, the four were not lined up in a row in midfield, but densely packed in a square shape.

In that situation, the Burnley midfield, which had been accumulating fatigue, began to spin its wheels.

However, the key reason why Burnley wasn’t pushing the opponent as much as they wanted in today’s game was Chelsea’s super-sized striker, who was drawing the attention and concentration of the defense and midfield.

Victor Osimhen, the main striker for Napoli and the Nigerian national team, whom Chelsea signed in the last winter transfer market by giving Napoli’s owner Aurelio De Laurentiis £100 million.

At the age of 25, he is now at the peak of his career as a striker.

A decent physique with a height of 186cm [approximately 6’1″], fast feet, and excellent technique.

But above all, his peak goal-scoring ability is the most frightening.

Victor Osimhen, who was immediately put into the game as soon as he arrived at Chelsea, showed a fantastic finishing ability of 0.95 goals per 90 minutes, as if he didn’t need an adaptation period, and quickly became the core of Chelsea’s attack.

A whopping 10 goals in 11 appearances.

The Burnley central defenders, who were constantly exposed to danger due to the fact that they were not enjoying the same advantage in midfield as usual, had to struggle to block Chelsea’s central striker Victor Osimhen, which led to Burnley’s full-backs not actively participating in the attack.

Eventually, at the start of the second half, Guga, who started as the right full-back, was replaced by Óscar Mingueza to strengthen the defense, but Graham Potter, who seemed to have predicted this, moved attacking midfielder Kai Havertz to the left, which in turn became an opportunity for Chelsea’s attack to come alive.

Frustrated, Hyeong-min replaced Dwight McNeil with Keane Lewis-Potter and Adam Hložek with Emmanuel Vignato with about 30 minutes left in the second half, but the attack didn’t really come alive.

If they draw here, the point difference with Liverpool, who have already finished their 30th round of games, will widen to 7 points again.

To be honest, no one inside Burnley thought they were competing for the championship themselves, but they still wanted to chase to the end.

But isn’t the realistic limit a limit?

“…Is the Premier League over here…?”

“What?”

Karolina, who was standing next to him watching the game, turned to her friend and boss at Hyeong-min’s muttering, but Hyeong-min shook his head.

“No, it’s nothing.”

***

“Hey! Wake up!”

“Oh, sorry. Thanks!”

Amar Dedić shook his head from side to side in response to Anel Ahmedhodžić’s sharp rebuke.

He started as a left-back today, but he kept going forward in the frustrating game situation, almost giving Chelsea’s attacking midfielder Kai Havertz, who was moving from side to side looking for gaps, space behind his back.

Fortunately, Burnley’s center-back Anel Ahmedhodžić, who read Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount’s long pass, ran and cleared it, cutting off the counterattack, otherwise he would have given up a 1-on-1 situation that would have led directly to the goalkeeper.

“Haa…”

Amar Dedić took a deep breath and looked around.

On the surface, they came out with a 4-4-1-1 formation, but thanks to Chelsea’s unusual formation that put four central midfielders instead of wingers in the midfield to implement a square, Chelsea’s side attacks were practically only being carried out through the two full-backs, Marc Cucurella and Reece James.

Of course, they are also not able to move forward recklessly because they are checking Burnley’s side attackers, Keane Lewis-Potter and Emmanuel Vignato, who are constantly looking for opportunities, so Burnley’s side defenders should be relatively free….

Victor Osimhen, who is glaring and constantly changing positions to put pressure on Burnley’s defense, is too scary to leave his position and move forward.

And from behind that, the game continues to be in a stalemate thanks to the fierce battle in midfield.

In fact, the ball is only hovering in the midfield and occasionally comes out back and forth, but thanks to the defense that tightly checks the opposing team’s attack, goals are not being scored.

This stalemate has been going on for a whopping 80 minutes since the game started.

Chelsea, who are relatively relaxed in the 4th place competition with Tottenham compared to Burnley, who are desperate to widen the gap with Liverpool, seem satisfied with a draw and are only passively responding to Burnley’s changes.

Amar Dedić, who was watching the game, frowned at the thought that kept popping up in one corner of his head.

“Hey, aren’t you really going to concentrate?!”

“It’s not that, are you not feeling well?”

Following Anel Ahmedhodžić’s scolding at Amar Dedić’s dazed expression, a worried question from center-back partner Nathan Collins followed.

“No. I’m not sick.”

“Then concentrate on the game, you idiot! It’s obvious you’re not concentrating!”

Although he was only 25 years old, Anel Ahmedhodžić was practically recognized by everyone as the leader of Burnley’s defense.

Amar Dedić nodded at the leader’s scolding, then shook his head again at the thought that suddenly became clear in his head.

“It’s not that…”

“It’s not that what?”

Amar Dedić gestured to Anel Ahmedhodžić, who was asking bluntly without taking his eyes off the game in front of him, then realized he couldn’t see and began to explain.

“Chelsea isn’t able to attack from the sides anyway.”

“So?”

“Since Oscar came in, why don’t we just switch to a back three [three defenders]?”

“…Huh?”

In Anel Ahmedhodžić’s eyes, who looked back at Amar Dedić with an expression that said, ‘What is this friend talking about,’ the fire lit up a beat late.

“…Chelsea’s attack is only being carried out by Victor Osimhen and Kai Havertz anyway…”

“…Three people should be enough to stop them. And then if we put strength in the midfield…”

“…We might be able to break through the attack?!”

Center-back Nathan Collins, who had come near and was listening to the conversation, exclaimed.

Anel Ahmedhodžić frowned at his teammate’s rash reaction.

“Hey, changing the formation without the manager’s instructions is…”

“But there’s not enough time to get instructions right now. And it’ll be exposed to them too.”

There is too much risk that the other side will notice the change if you cross the field to deliver the proposal to the manager and get approval.

Amar Dedić plucked up the courage to suggest to Anel Ahmedhodžić, who was worried.

“I’ll explain to the manager later. So, I’ll take responsibility…”

At the words of his younger colleague, Anel Ahmedhodžić, the leader of Burnley’s defense, smiled.

“What are you going to take responsibility for?”