Became The Premier League’S Youngest Manager [EN]: Chapter 50

50: The Beginning of a Leap

As the second half began, a player Burnley had newly loaned during the winter transfer window entered the field.

Bruno Lage watched the fourth official’s board signal the substitution of number 26, Hannibal Mejbri, and turned to his long-time assistant coach, Alexandre Silva.

“Who’s that? Burnley’s number 29?”

“Ah… that’s… Nico Gonzalez. They just loaned him from Barcelona.”

“Ah, that guy…!”

Letting out a low exclamation, Bruno Lage turned his gaze back to the field.

He hadn’t had time for a proper video analysis, but he had received a brief rundown from Francisco Trincão, who had spent the previous season with Nico Gonzalez at Barcelona.

“Good passer, good defender, a versatile young midfielder from La Masia [Barcelona’s youth academy] that Barcelona cherishes.”

“In the long term, he might even replace Sergio Busquets, who holds the defensive midfielder position at Barcelona.”

He hadn’t been getting many opportunities to play this season as Barcelona’s performance plummeted, but the loan news was still quite surprising.

“But that guy is coming on instead of Hannibal? Shouldn’t he be replacing Josh Brownhill?”

Bruno Lage tilted his head, puzzled by the opposing team manager’s unexpected move, but his assistant coach, Alexandre Silva, just shrugged as if he didn’t know either.

“Well, we’ll see soon enough.”

Muttering to himself, Bruno Lage, feeling secure with Wolverhampton in the lead, waited for the referee’s whistle to signal the start of the second half.

With Nico Gonzalez’s introduction, Burnley, now with three midfielders including Nicolas Seiwald and Josh Brownhill, adjusted their midfield formation.

Burnley’s existing midfield had Nicolas Seiwald at the base as a defensive midfielder, with Josh Brownhill and Hannibal Mejbri positioned higher as central midfielders, forming an inverted triangle where Josh Brownhill distributed passes and Hannibal Mejbri made penetrating runs.

But now, Nico Gonzalez and Josh Brownhill were positioned side by side in the defensive midfield, with Nicolas Seiwald moving up to the central midfield position, forming an equilateral triangle.

And the effect was immediate.

51 minutes into the second half.

It was as if they had switched from a 4-3-3 to a 4-2-4 formation.

Nicolas Seiwald, positioned level with Burnley’s central striker Ashley Barnes, and Burnley’s forwards put the Wolverhampton defenders under immense pressure. Overwhelmed by the 3-on-4 disadvantage, captain Conor Coady played the ball into midfield, only for Nico Gonzalez to intercept it.

“Ashley!”

Like a boomerang, Nico Gonzalez’s pass flew back into the heart of the Wolverhampton defense from which the ball had just been cleared.

This time, however, it was Burnley’s central striker Ashley Barnes who received the ball.

The English striker, known for his physical play, easily shrugged off the Wolverhampton defenders with a swing of his elbows and knees, and headed the ball to Nicolas Seiwald, who was waiting nearby.

With all of Wolverhampton’s defenders effectively neutralized, Nicolas Seiwald calmly looked around.

Wolverhampton’s fullbacks were occupied with Burnley’s wingers, Dwight McNeil and Karim Adeyemi, who were positioned wide outside the penalty box, preventing them from closing in.

Of Wolverhampton’s three central defenders, captain Conor Coady and Mateo Musacchio had been knocked off balance by Ashley Barnes, leaving Toti as the last man desperately trying to block him.

Holding onto the ball for a moment, Nicolas Seiwald waited until Toti lunged towards him before gently flicking the ball with the inside of his right foot towards the penalty spot.

Bang!

While everyone anticipated and prepared for Nicolas Seiwald’s shot, it was Josh Brownhill who had sprinted from central midfield to unleash a shot.

The Burnley central midfielder, who had started his run the moment Nico Gonzalez played the ball back, stretched his body and fired a low, fast shot with his favored right foot between the legs of Wolverhampton’s goalkeeper, who was trying to narrow the shooting angle.

“Aaaaaah!!!”

The home fans’ cheers echoed behind goalkeeper José Sá’s devastated expression as the equalizing goal was scored.

Burnley’s relentless attack continued, and with only six minutes left in the second half, in the 84th minute:

[Nicolas Seiwald intercepts the ball again!]

The commentator’s urgent shout was followed by the analyst.

[He immediately passes the ball to Josh Brownhill. Josh Brownhill passes to Nico Gonzalez!]

[Nico Gonzalez splits the field with a single pass from Burnley’s penalty box to Wolverhampton’s penalty box! Burnley’s left winger Johann Berg Gudmundsson receives it completely unmarked!]

A super long-range pass that cut diagonally across the field from one end to the other, a rare sight for Burnley.

Before the commentator and analyst could even express their admiration, Burnley’s players were already advancing the attack.

[Gudmundsson easily shakes off Wolverhampton’s central defender Mateo Musacchio, who is rushing to stop him. Dribbling breakthrough! The Wolverhampton defenders rush towards the Burnley attacker sprinting into the penalty box.]

[Ah! Nicolas Seiwald! The Burnley midfielder, who has already penetrated into Wolverhampton’s penalty box, receives a pass from Gudmundsson. Shoots immediately!]

[Goal~!!!]

Aaaaaah!!!

Amidst the cheers of Burnley’s home fans echoing from beyond the TV, the commentator and analyst simultaneously exclaimed.

[Goal! Burnley’s young midfielder Nicolas Seiwald puts the finishing touch on Burnley’s counterattack!]

The analyst nodded in agreement with the commentator’s exclamation.

[Definitely a big change in the second half compared to the first half. With Nico Gonzalez’s introduction, Burnley has one more player capable of developing passes in the center, and Wolverhampton’s defenders and midfielders can no longer just focus on Josh Brownhill. Ultimately, both goals conceded in the second half originated from Nico Gonzalez, so managers facing Burnley in the future will have a headache again.]

Hyungmin’s change in the second half was simple.

With the midfield transformed into an equilateral triangle, Nicolas Seiwald was positioned near the opponent’s penalty box, launching a full-frontal press with the attackers.

Josh Brownhill also penetrated the penalty box along with Nicolas Seiwald, who was already pressuring the opponent’s goal.

Ashley Barnes, despite his physique, was not used as a subtle decoy like Chris Wood, who had good movement for his size, but rather as a battering ram, simply occupying the opponent’s penalty box, harassing the defenders, and creating havoc.

From the second half onwards, Hyungmin gave instructions that perfectly matched the aggressive striker’s personality.

In addition, Burnley’s left and right wingers, Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Maxwel Cornet, who had been substituted in, occupied Wolverhampton’s wing-backs, either spreading wide or taking turns penetrating the opponent’s penalty box, further adding to the confusion of the Wolverhampton defenders.

While Bruno Lage, the away team’s manager, was shouting to adjust the players’ positions and roles after conceding the go-ahead goal, Hyungmin crossed his arms and smiled faintly.

With Nico Gonzalez joining, Burnley suddenly had more options on the field.

Attacking development through long passes could be initiated by Josh Brownhill or Nico Gonzalez.

Pressing and defending could be executed by Nicolas Seiwald or Nico Gonzalez.

In particular, with two players capable of playing the role of a defensive midfielder who can disrupt counterattacks, the opposing team cannot predict in advance which midfielder will penetrate the penalty box.

The addition of a versatile midfielder capable of both attack and defense leads to an increase in the number of Burnley’s attack patterns and their variations that Hyungmin can devise.

Of course, when considering finishing ability after each individual’s penalty box penetration, they may be inferior to Hannibal Mejbri or Jacob Ramsey.

If the few opportunities that arose in the second half had fallen to Hannibal Mejbri or Jacob Ramsey, there would have been a higher probability of scoring the go-ahead goal earlier.

However, those opportunities might not have arisen in the first place if it had been them, so such concerns were irrelevant.

And the manager’s thoughts were being conveyed to the two young midfielders sitting on the bench.

“See? With the addition of a player capable of both attack and defense, the manager can make more tactical changes. That’s why the manager chooses players according to the situation, and the players have to play according to the situation the manager has chosen,” Arthur explained the manager’s tactical changes step by step, sitting next to Hannibal Mejbri, who had been somewhat downcast since being substituted, and Jacob Ramsey, who was listening intently.

Although they didn’t show it, all of Burnley’s players on the bench were listening intently.

“Then, would it be better to personally improve my defensive skills?”

Arthur shrugged at Jacob Ramsey’s question.

“It would be great if you could excel in both attack and defense, but that’s not necessarily the only path. Nico is better at long passes than you guys, but he’s not as good at penetrating the penalty box. That goes for Brownie and Niki too.”

“Then what would be good?”

“There’s no single right answer, but it’s best to maximize your strengths. You guys can’t match Niki’s work rate or defensive capabilities anyway. Right?”

Arthur, confirming that the two young players were nodding, continued.

“Then it might be better to hone what you’re good at and become even better at it. Being versatile is good, but it’s also good to specialize and become the best in that field. Look at AC Milan’s Pippo Inzaghi. He wasn’t particularly skilled in other areas, but he became one of the best strikers in the world with just positioning and first touch. Forget about having to play in every game, and make it so that the manager can’t help but use you in situations where your strengths are needed.”

Jacob Ramsey, with a serious expression, and Hannibal Mejbri, with a glimmer of hope returning to his eyes, nodded at Arthur’s gentle explanation and encouragement. Arthur had become a mentor to the young players after a long time.

Nathan Collins, Burnley’s young defensive prospect, who was listening to the conversation next to them, tilted his head and asked.

“But who is Pippo Inzaghi?”

“You know, Pippo Inzaghi… Filippo Inzaghi.”

“Oh… you mean Inzaghi, who was Lazio’s manager and became Inter Milan’s manager this season? But… I think that was Simone Inzaghi?”

“What, you don’t know Pippo Inzaghi, the AC Milan striker who dominated an era?!”

Arthur suddenly felt a generational gap at the young player’s words and was speechless.

And Burnley’s veterans, watching the old assistant coach, quietly shrugged their shoulders, trying to hold back their laughter.

Regardless of the game situation, Burnley’s bench was peaceful today.