I Am Scouted by Real Madrid

Chapter 129: Chapter 41: Clash of Two Giants

Spain, Madrid

The laughter couldn’t even be blocked by the office door.

”What caliber, they think they can catch up with me.” Schuster looked at Francisco, who was hiding far away, and could only vent his emotions by forcefully patting the desk.

After Real Madrid’s 3:1 victory over Santander Athletic, Barcelona, who were just 2 points behind Real Madrid, ended up drawing 1:1 with the Spanish in the recent local derby.

At first, Schuster was a bit anxious, as Barcelona’s Messi broke through on the right side of the penalty area in the 6th minute, dribbled past the opponent, and assisted Iniesta in easily scoring a goal.

This inevitably reminded Schuster of the previous season coaching Getafe, facing Messi’s ”Maradona-like five-man breakthrough goal.”

But who would have thought, at the last moment, the Spanish managed to equalize.

This widened the gap between the two teams in the league again to 4 points, giving Real Madrid more leeway on mistakes and solidifying their position at the top of the league standings.

”By the way, I heard Raul invited Chen to his happy chamber.”

”Yes.” Francisco thought of this, and couldn’t help but show a hint of worry on his face: ”I don’t know if Chen will be affected.”

There are some exceptions in Schuster’s rotation system.

For example, Raul, Ramos, and Casillas, they almost never get rotated, with Raul having participated in all 19 matches since the start of the season.

The secret behind this lies in Raul’s happy chamber.

It’s well known that Raul has a high professional ethic, taking great care of his body.

Not only is he strictly disciplined with his diet, but he also trains in icy and snowy conditions to enhance his relatively weaker flexibility and explosiveness, and even ”strictly” ensures he has half of the day for rest.

Besides these, Raul, who is already in his thirties, has managed to rejuvenate this season thanks in part to the happy chamber built with the help of Real Madrid Club two and a half years ago, commonly known as the ”hypoxic chamber.”

Raul would rest in this tightly sealed chamber for 6 to 8 hours before heading to the club’s training base for regular training with his teammates.

In the field of sports science, ”living high training low” is a very well-known concept.

The formation of this theory can be traced back to the 1960s.

After the 1968 Mexico Olympics, sports experts discovered an interesting phenomenon.

Because the host city of the Olympics, Mexico City, is at an altitude of 2,300 meters, many athletes performed poorly due to not acclimating to the high-altitude conditions of the Olympics.

However, upon returning to low-altitude areas, many athletes showed significant improvements in their performance.

After a series of studies, sports experts concluded that after living in high-altitude areas for some time, an athlete’s physical performance in normal environments would improve.

Because in high-altitude, thin-air conditions, to better absorb oxygen, the body’s hemoglobin and red blood cell counts would increase.

This kind of change can significantly boost a person’s endurance. For athletes engaged in aerobic sports, enhanced endurance can undoubtedly greatly increase their competitiveness.

As a result, after several explorations, the ”hypoxic chamber,” which can simulate the real environment of high-altitude areas, emerged as a crucial tool for realizing the concept of ”living high training low.”

It is understood that the simulation of high-altitude area environments in the ”hypoxic chamber” is mainly achieved through a set of high-tech equipment similar to air conditioners. Under the treatment of this ”special air conditioner,” the hypoxic chamber is infused with mixed artificial nitrogen, causing a decrease in the oxygen ratio in the air inside the room, thereby inducing a sense of hypoxia in the person inside.

Under such circumstances, the red blood cells of those inside will surge due to the hypoxic stimulus.

The body’s ability to deliver oxygen to muscles will also improve accordingly, delaying the onset of fatigue, and enhancing the occupants’ recovery capability from fatigue.

Real Madrid once tried to promote the ”hypoxic chamber,” but due to various factors, they still chose to abandon it.

After all, there’s only one Raul, not everyone is as strict and self-disciplined as he is.

But now, Raul invited Chen Zhong to his happy chamber, and Chen Zhong agreed, which has caused some thoughts among certain people within the club.

However, the use of the ”hypoxic chamber” also has some drawbacks.

For instance, it can affect a player’s sleep, and if the settings are too high, it might endanger a player’s health.

Finally, although the ”hypoxic chamber” can achieve effects similar to doping in enhancing athletic performance, it is not classified as illegal by the World Anti-Doping Agency since it is a natural stimulus.

However, in Italy and France, the use of the ”hypoxic chamber” is explicitly prohibited.

”I heard some fitness coaches are trying to use other methods to achieve effects similar to the hypoxic chamber.”

”Hasn’t Disalvo had any suggestions in this area after all this time?”

Francisco didn’t answer, but Schuster already knew the answer; after the success of the 433 formation yesterday, Chen Zhong was already a special one in the team in Schuster’s mind.