O'Shea's roundabout attacking header was, of course, something Coach Zhao had designed early on.
And as for why it was him, it was because the old captain was tall and had strong heading skills, so he could be entrusted with this important task!
O'Shea was naturally very excited after scoring.
After he made the heading motion, his eyes were fixed on Middlesbrough's goal.
Upon seeing the ball go in, he immediately pointed with a smile at Januzaj, who had delivered a precise free kick, and then ran over and directly picked up the 'petite' Januzaj!
Defoe, Borini, and other smaller players who rushed up from behind also jumped up, directly pressing on O'Shea's shoulders, cheering along with the fans who wished they could climb over the stands and onto the field.
"The ball is in again! The score on the field is now 2:0, Sunderland are two goals ahead at home!"
"This goal was scored by the veteran O'Shea. He is already 35 years old this year, but he is still as sharp as ever!"
"From the slow-motion replay, this free kick was clearly well-designed, which instantly threw Middlesbrough's defenders into disarray, preventing them from defending O'Shea's header."
"This goal also shows the results of Coach Zhao's tactical drills for Sunderland recently."
"Whether it's fast counter-attacks or set-piece coordination, this Sunderland team is playing with more and more confidence!"
"Ah, Coach Zhao has also started celebrating. Just as he said in the press conference before, he is indeed a Coach who is sometimes calm and sometimes passionate!"
On the sidelines, listening to the thunderous cheers from the Stadium of Light, Coach Zhao also walked to the front of the stands, raising his arms and waving, signaling for the fans to make even more noise.
Coach Zhao knew that the team was still in a difficult situation, and the players on the field needed affirmation and recognition, and even more so, the support of the fans, which was crucial for the upcoming relegation battle!
So, he began to stir up the atmosphere.
Applause, be more enthusiastic!
Cheers, be louder!
Of course, this was also for the opposing Coach's bench nearby.
One goal to hit them in the face wasn't enough, so let's have a second!
And the Sunderland fans naturally responded enthusiastically to Coach Zhao, and the sounds of applause and cheers truly grew louder!
Normally, a young Coach, coaching a professional team for the first time, should be cautious and timid when playing a match, even keeping a low profile when their own team scores.
But the Coach Zhao in front of them seemed to feel no pressure at all.
He was always calm about the changing situations on the field, but when it was time to celebrate, he erupted like a volcano, full of passion!
And when facing provocation from opponents, he dared to confront them directly, whether it was Mourinho or Karanka.
This 'arrogant' Coach Zhao was truly winning more and more favor with Sunderland fans.
So very quickly, a unified chant began to ring out from the stands:
"Zhao Zhao!"
"Zhao Zhao!"
"Zhao Zhao!"
Coach Zhao also smiled and clapped in response to the fans.
And amidst such interaction, the referee blew the whistle for the end of the first half.
Karanka's face was dark, and he walked towards the player tunnel without looking back.
His Middlesbrough players were the same, all looking disheartened.
On the other hand, Sunderland was a completely different scene.
The players were all laughing and chatting with each other, their minds at ease.
The shadow of fourteen winless matches had gradually dissipated from their hearts, and they began to have more aspirations for the future prospects of relegation survival!
And the person who enabled them to achieve this was, of course, their Coach Zhao Zhao!
Coach Zhao was also on the sidelines at this time, greeting every player coming off the field, and then following them into the player tunnel.
In the home team's locker room, the players were still excitedly discussing the two goals from the first half, not feeling tired at all.
In fact, they had been focused on defense in the first half and performed with ease, so they really weren't too tired.
In contrast, the aggressively attacking Middlesbrough players were exhausted from running around, not only panting but also conceding two goals, which was a huge blow!
"Boss, when you suddenly said we were going to switch to defensive counter-attack, I was quite confused," Assistant Coach Breswell said, now full of admiration for Coach Zhao. "But now it seems, if we had gone head-to-head with them from the start, it might have been very difficult to gain the advantage we have now..."
But Coach Zhao put his index finger to his lips, signaling Breswell to be quiet.
Everyone quieted down as well.
Then, Coach Zhao mysteriously opened the locker room door.
The home and away team locker rooms at the Stadium of Light were not far apart, and the soundproofing was not very good.
As soon as the door opened, faint sounds of furious scolding could be heard from the away team's locker room.
Needless to say, it must have been Middlesbrough's Coach Karanka throwing a tantrum.
Smiles of understanding appeared on the players' faces.
Then, Coach Zhao quietly closed the door and laughed heartily: "Guys, these sounds are the best praise for your performance in the first half!"
"You saw Karanka's expression when he came down, it was as if he had eaten shit!"
"Now he's sharing the shit he just ate with his players! Because that incompetent guy has to vent his frustration by scolding people!"
The players laughed even louder upon hearing this.
Playing football is not a refined sport like playing the piano or violin; everyone is overflowing with male hormones, and there are constant rough actions on the field, so foul language is naturally indispensable.
Now, Coach Zhao, this handsome young man, spoke vulgarities just like the players, which further brought everyone closer.
Assistant Coach Breswell, however, was still thinking about the tactics for the second half, and he reminded him:
"Boss, we are now two goals ahead, so should we perhaps pull back a bit in the second half to avoid any mishaps...?"
But Coach Zhao waved his hand: "No."
Then he pointed to the players in front of him:
"In the first half, they were already scared by you. In their eyes, you are as terrifying as devils!"
"So in the second half, we will attack with all our might, like a group of true devils, and tear them to shreds!"
"This is a derby, and all Sunderland fans will not want us to show any mercy to our arch-rivals!"
"We're going to make them cry all the way home, back to their filthy Middlesbrough!"
Under Coach Zhao's passionate speech, the players were also infected.
"Yes, let's beat these smelly pieces of shit!"
"Let's take them down!"
"That damn Karanka even tried to get physical with our boss before the game, let him cry!"
At this moment, Coach Zhao had already picked up the tactics board and began to draw a few lines on it:
"In the second half, they will definitely counterattack desperately and commit more attacking players. But their morale is low, and their ability to compete in the midfield is not as good as ours."
"And our training this week can come in handy. We will defeat them by controlling the midfield!"
"After gaining possession in the midfield, there's no need to stick to short passes and through balls through the middle. Due to Defoe's goal in the first half, they might actually be prepared for such through balls."
"So, you need to use more switching of play to move their defenders around, just as I often emphasize in training."
Saying that, Coach Zhao drew a large arc from left to right on the tactics board, indicating the trajectory of the ball.
"When passing a threatening ball, you can diagonally pass the ball from between the opponent's center-back and full-back to the far side, letting the wingers receive it and break through."
"Our forwards have a very clear advantage, and that is speed, whether it's Defoe, Januzaj, or Borini, it's all the same."
"And for you three, I hope to see you be more flexible in your positioning in the second half, making more crosses, so that you can draw away defenders, rather than just racing in a straight line with defenders."
"If it's just one player, the opponent can easily figure out his characteristics and defend him. But if there are many crossing runs, they will be very difficult to defend, do you understand?"
The three forwards who were called out nodded solemnly.
After continuing to explain some tactical details, Coach Zhao clapped his hands and shouted:
"Okay, let's go, everyone. It's time to let those guys next door truly experience the fear of facing devils!"