Chapter 223: China's national football team is in a tough battle, and the powerful French team
"It's a good match, this is quite interesting!"
"Even Zidane made a mistake, which is really rare!"
"Is the grass slippery? How could he fall during the penalty kick?"
"Thanks to Zidane for the great gift package, now both sides can continue the competition on the same starting line!"
The score did not change, which was obviously a surprise for the fans of the Chinese national team.
After seeing the referee award a penalty, everyone thought that the Chinese national team would continue the game with a disadvantage.
Unexpectedly, Zidane made a mistake. The two sides are still tied and neither team has scored a goal.
Zidane, who missed the penalty, couldn't help but shake his head, as he had previously publicly announced that he would retire from the French national team after this World Cup.
Therefore, this match against the Chinese team was Zidane's last match representing the national team in France.
That is why so many French fans came to the scene.
At least half of the fans who attended the game came for Zidane.
However, this unusual mistake made Zidane extremely embarrassed.
If this game were to end in an unexpected loss, it would probably become a lifelong regret for Zidane.
After missing the penalty, the French team's mentality was also affected to a certain extent.
In the subsequent attack, they seemed a little anxious, as if they were eager to make up for the goal they had just lost.
However, the Chinese national team has recovered from Cisse's injury and its defensive intensity has improved significantly. Although the French team stepped up its offensive, it did not get an immediate reward.
Judging from the situation on the field, the French team, with a clear advantage in the midfield, controlled the tempo of the game.
It was difficult for the Chinese team to bypass the French midfield, so they had to seek to launch attacks from both flanks.
This tactic was indeed effective. Lin Feng, Chen Tao, Gao Lin and others launched several beautiful attacks on the wing, posing a considerable threat to the French team's goal.
In the 22nd minute, Lin Feng's free kick in the frontcourt even hit the French team's post, making the French people sweat.
Even Zidane couldn't help but look at Lin Feng again!
Although Zidane has left Serie A, he is still very concerned about Serie A, especially his old club Juventus.
Last season, Juventus' main rival in Serie A was Inter Milan, where Lin Feng was located, which made Zidane notice him very early.
Zidane knew that Lin Feng was very powerful, otherwise he would not have been able to lead Inter Milan to snatch the Serie A championship from Juventus.
But he didn't expect that this kid has grown to this point. He is only eighteen years old this year.
When he was 18 years old, he barely got the chance to make his debut in Nantes in Ligue 1. Not to mention leading the team as a core, he couldn't even get a starting position and was just a marginal player in the team.
It’s so irritating that people are so different from each other!
This kid is much better than I was when I was young!
However, Zidane did not belittle himself. He thought that he was the type of person who would achieve success late in life and become more powerful as he got older. Although the opponent was better than he was when he was young, he might not be as good as he is now in the future.
Many players become famous at a young age, then become a flash in the pan and soon fade into obscurity.
There are very few players who can truly achieve continuous improvement and progress.
Lin Feng's performance stimulated Zidane, making him become serious and start to treat the game with all his strength.
After Zidane showed his power, the French team's offense improved significantly.
The powerful combination of him and Henry made it impossible for the Chinese national team's defense to resist.
In the 30th minute, Henry received a pass from Zidane and cut in from the wing to the front of the penalty area. Facing the Chinese team's defense, Henry selflessly chose to pass the ball to his teammates in the penalty area.
Trezeguet, who had just replaced the injured Cisse, received a pass from Henry and shot the ball into the Chinese national team's goal, scoring the first goal of the game.
The score became 1:0, and the French were finally ahead.
"There's really nothing we can do about this ball!"
"Yes, the players tried their best. The French team played really well together!"
"Zidane is so big, but how come he is so agile on his feet? Two or three people can't get the ball from him!"
"Otherwise, why is he called Zidane? Although he is slow, he has a good sense of the ball, a stable center of gravity, and can always get rid of defenders with all kinds of unexpected moves. If Zidane hadn't passed the ball just now, the French team's attack would not have been possible!"
"Yes, Zidane is really strong when he is in good form. His ability to protect the ball and pass the ball is so strong. I have watched him play for so many years, and I can really see Zidane's improvement every year. This guy is terrifying!"
Although it was not Zidane himself who made the assist, no one can ignore his role on the court, considering that Zidane is 34 years old this year.
Many players have retired at his age, and even if they haven't retired, their form has already plummeted.
The 34-year-old Zidane is still the core and even the soul of the French team. The team cannot do without him!
Trezeguet's goal made Zidane feel relieved, as it was a goal that came 20 minutes late.
But it’s good that he scored. As long as they win the game, then his previous missed penalty will not be a big deal.
Without the offensive pressure, the French team's performance became even better. Several big-name stars often played pleasing cooperation on the court, causing the audience to cheer from time to time.
The Chinese fans sitting in the corner were suffering at this moment.
The situation was already unfavorable for the Chinese national football team. After the French team scored the first goal, the situation faced by the Chinese team became even more severe.
During this period, the French completely controlled the situation and the game was basically conducted in the Chinese team's half.
The Chinese national football team even has difficulty passing the ball through midfield!
This makes the fans of the Chinese national football team nervous and they live in fear every moment.
"Alas, it is still too difficult to beat the French team!"
"If this continues, we'll be lucky if we don't lose by a big margin, so don't even think the Chinese national team can win!"
"Yes, with the strength shown by the French team, it is acceptable for the Chinese national team to lose within 3 goals in this game!"
The unfavorable situation on the field and the gap in strength between the two teams made the previously overly optimistic fans face the reality and abandon their fantasy of defeating the French team.
Fortunately, the Chinese team was united and tenaciously withstood the fierce attacks launched by the French during this period.
We didn't concede any more goals in the first half, and the score remained 1-0 until the end of the first half.
During the half-time break, the Chinese national team players looked a little frustrated.
Not only did the fans see no hope of winning, but those who were playing on the field also felt the opponent's strength very intuitively.
As the favorite to win the World Cup, the French team is really strong!
"Okay, cheer up. Losing the ball is no big deal. It doesn't matter even if we lose. Do you really want to beat the French team?"
Zhu Guanghu saw that the players were all demoralized and dejected, so he did not want to continue criticizing them. Instead, he began to encourage the players and give them a boost. "We played well in the first half, and the opponent only scored one goal, which proves that our defense was very good. Keep it up in the second half!"
The defenders, who had already prepared themselves to be scolded, raised their heads in disbelief after hearing Zhu Guanghu's words.
What a situation?
The coach has changed his personality today and stopped swearing?
If it had happened in the past, if the defense had made a mistake and conceded the ball, Zhu Guanghu would have definitely scolded them.
But today the sun rises from the west!
"Why are you looking at me like that? Do you think I'm an unreasonable person?"
The players nodded subconsciously, and then shook their heads quickly after realizing what was going on:
"No, no, Coach, you are very kind and amiable. You are the kindest and most benevolent old man we have ever met!"
"Go away, am I as old as you say?"
Zhu Guanghu pretended to be angry and kicked the grinning Gao Lin. His action was exaggerated, but he actually didn't use much strength.
Zhu Guanghu is indeed not old. Born in 49, he is only 57 years old this year.
This age is considered relatively old among coaches, but he still has a few years before retirement. If he retires at 65, he can still coach the national football team for at least another eight years.
Of course, given the Chinese national football team’s record, few coaches can stay in the national team for so long.
Most of them were fired by the Football Association because of their poor performance.
"Okay, no more jokes. In the first half, our attack from the wing had a certain effect. The opponent's two defensive midfielders were successfully mobilized. So in the second half, we changed our thinking. While seizing the opportunity to attack from the wing, we also occasionally attacked from the middle. Zhao Xuri, Lin Feng, Zheng Zhi, the others, try a few more long shots. The opponent's midfield is more aggressive and easily disconnected from the back line. It is easy for gaps to appear in the middle. As long as we seize the opportunity, there might be a surprise!"
Zhu Guanghu did not do nothing in the first half. In fact, he was carefully observing the flaws of the French team.
There were no obvious flaws in the French team as a whole, but due to their huge advantage and the fact that they controlled the midfield, their formation was pressed forward. When they were counterattacked by the opponent, their defensive midfielders liked to take the initiative to intercept, which made it easy for them to become disconnected from the back line.
This kind of opportunity is not easy to seize, but if you really seize it, it is a great opportunity.
Given the past results, the players naturally listened to what Lao Zhu said.
After the start of the second half, the Chinese national team indeed increased its attempts at long shots.
In the 47th minute of the second half, the Chinese national football team launched an attack from the right side. After Lin Feng dribbled the ball to the frontcourt, he cut inside and took away the defensive player on this side. He then passed the ball back to the middle. Zhao Xuri followed up and shot the ball with a powerful long shot.
The quality of this long shot was very high and the football went straight to the goal at an extremely fast speed.
The French goalkeeper jumped with all his strength but still failed to touch the ball.
But unfortunately, Zhao Xuri's shot was slightly higher than the crossbar and flew out of bounds.
Seeing the ball fly out of bounds, countless Chinese fans sighed.
Judging from the perspective on TV just now, they really thought the ball would go in.
Unfortunately, it was still a little off in the end.
Although the goal was not scored, the Chinese national team's threatening shot at the beginning of the second half still cheered up many Chinese fans.
As long as we don't get suppressed by the French team like in the second half of the first half, it doesn't matter whether we score a goal or not, as long as we can attack.
Zhao Xuri's shot did not arouse the French team's vigilance. After all, the situation was still under their control.
The French team tried to increase their interception of the Chinese team's passing point, preventing the Chinese team from smoothly passing the ball to the frontcourt.
As long as we contain the Chinese team's counterattack points, we can nip the Chinese team's counterattack at the source.
The target that the French team focused on restricting was naturally Lin Feng.
"Have you noticed? In the current national football team matches, opponents almost always target Lin Feng!"
"Yes, I saw it from the first match against Ecuador. Lin Feng was really miserable. He was targeted in every match!"
"Haha, the fact that he is targeted by his opponent shows that his strength is recognized by his opponent. If the opponent thinks he is not a threat, they will naturally not choose to target him!"
"Of course. After all, he is the absolute core of the Serie A champions. It is only natural that the opponents give him due respect!"
“Haha, although Lin Feng is young, he is also well-known, but this is not a good thing for the national football team!”
"It's okay, we still have Chen Tao. If the other party only restricts Lin Feng and not Chen Tao, then they can expect to suffer!"
Lin Feng was not surprised by the French targeting. Now, whether in the club or the national team, if he was not targeted in a certain game, Lin Feng would not be used to it.
The French team only started targeting him in the second half, and to be honest, they were a bit too confident.
After being targeted, Lin Feng immediately changed his playing style, reducing the number of times he took the ball as much as possible and instead covering his teammates.
Seeing that Lin Feng didn't have the ball, Makelele abandoned him and rushed towards the Chinese national team player who had the ball.
But as soon as he left, Lin Feng immediately reached out for the ball. His teammates had been watching the situation on his side for a long time, and when they saw Lin Feng asking for the ball, they passed the ball to him immediately.
Makelele had no choice but to come back and continue to guard Lin Feng.
But the time it took for him to leave and come back was enough for Lin Feng to complete the transaction.
So, although the French team targeted Lin Feng, it seemed that the effect was not very obvious.
Although Lin Feng's number of times taking the ball and handling the ball decreased, the threat he posed did not decrease.
Even because Lin Feng attracted several French players, his teammates got extra opportunities.
During this period, the Chinese team's offense was not only not curbed, but became better and better.
Seeing this, Zhu Guanghu decisively made a substitution and replaced Dong Fangzhuo, who had scored the equalizer in the previous game.
After Belgian B League striker Dong Fangzhuo came on the pitch, the number of players in the Chinese national team's frontcourt increased further, creating several beautiful attacks in a short period of time.
Especially in the 55th minute, he headed the ball from his teammate's corner kick and almost equalized the score.
Although Gao Lin is the same height as Dong Fangzhuo, when it comes to heading ability, King Dong is still better.
His prediction of landing points and awareness of heading competition are obviously better than Gao Lin.
Moreover, Dong Fangzhuo has more heading skills. Facing balls coming from different angles and speeds, he knows how to respond appropriately. I am afraid no one in the entire national football team can do better than him in this regard.
It’s a pity that he headed the ball a little too high.
Including Zhao Xuri’s long shot and Lin Feng’s hit the post.
The Chinese national football team has created several chances to get close to scoring in this game!
But it just lacked a little bit of luck. If these three shots had been off by a few centimeters, the score might have changed!
But with so many scoring opportunities created, can a goal be far away?
(End of this chapter)
