Chapter 920 Sense and Emotion
"Chen Xingyi! Run!"
After Zhang Qinghuan roared on the court, Chen Xingyi suddenly stepped forward, but there were Algerian defensive players following him. Seeing this, Zhang Qinghuan did not pass the football to him, but passed it into the space he pulled out.
Hulay crossed over and competed with Algeria center back Zakaria Mousavi for the ball.
Under Mousavi's close defense, he was completely unable to shoot. At the same time, he lost his balance during the confrontation and slipped to the ground.
However, the experience brought by playing in Europe allowed Hulay to reach for the football even if he fell to the ground, and snatched the football back before Mousavi.
Tenacious, he did not give up the attack. Instead, he supported the ground with his hands, turned his body on the turf in the penalty area, and swept the football up with his feet to another Algerian defensive player who came to make a clearance.
The football hit the opponent's calf bone and flew out of the baseline.
Even if you can't complete the shot, it's still good to get a corner kick!
"Hu Lai won a corner kick for the Chinese team!" He Feng in the commentary box said loudly amidst huge cheers.
In this game, nearly two-thirds of Atlanta's Mercedes Stadium were filled with Chinese fans, and the remaining one-third was made up of local American fans and Algerian fans.
In terms of momentum, Chinese fans completely have the upper hand.
From the very beginning of the game, the Chinese fans kept shouting and shouting. Coupled with the slogans and flags in Chinese characters that could be seen everywhere in the stands... it made people think that this was the home court of the Chinese team.
Before the game, some media said that all Chinese across the United States had gathered in Atlanta. This was a bit exaggerated, but it fully demonstrated the enthusiasm of the Chinese and overseas Chinese.
This is the first time that the Chinese men's football team has appeared in the World Cup. It is not only a carnival for domestic fans in China, but also a grand festival for overseas Chinese scattered around the world.
Therefore, there are many people cheering for the Chinese team in the stands of Mercedes Stadium, but they are not actually from China.
After the opening, the Chinese team's performance did not disappoint them.
Before the game, some people were worried that the players of the Chinese team would not be able to relax during the game due to nervousness.
But actually the performance of the Chinese team was pretty good.
At least I didn't see any obvious stage fright.
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In front of the coaching bench on the sidelines, Shi Wuyin suddenly said to assistant coaches Li Zhifei and Hong Renjie: "I think we made a mistake!"
"What?" Li Zhifei asked.
"Of course I couldn't sleep because I was nervous, but it could also be because I was excited! Nervousness is fear, excitement is anticipation!"
After hearing this, Hong Renjie nodded slowly and thoughtfully.
Judging from the first ten minutes of the game, it is certainly not true that the Chinese team players are not nervous at all. But it’s not like they were worried that they were so nervous that they couldn’t move their legs...
They played relatively normally.
Considering that this is the Chinese team's first World Cup game, it is already an amazing performance to be able to play normally.
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"This was the Chinese team's first corner kick of the game, and it was taken by Zhang Qinghuan... He kicked the football directly to the forward point! Yao Huasheng didn't hit it, and the football was cleared with a header! Algeria took advantage of the situation and launched a counterattack... Be careful!”
"Jiang Wanqing! Jiang Wanqing appeared at the most critical place and destroyed the opponent's counterattack in time!"
Jiang Wanqing, who kicked the football out of the sideline before the opponent's players and completed the clearance, did not make any special moves when he appeared on the broadcast screen. He didn't even clap his hands and yell twice, he just retreated and returned to himself. position.
It’s completely impossible to tell that this is the captain of the Shanhai Mariners, a veteran team that has won the Chinese Super League championship.
Although he once left the national team because of Shi Wuyuan's appointment. But I have to say that Jiang Wanqing, who has now returned to the national team, is still very calm and worthy of trust.
In the ball just now, when the two central defenders of the Chinese team were preparing for a corner kick attack, he was dragged at the back to act as a temporary central defender.
And at the critical moment of Algeria's counterattack, he accurately judged the opponent's counterattack intention, started it in advance, and finally got ahead of Algeria's right midfielder Sofian Hadgaoui and kicked the football out of the boundary.
Although it is just a rescue, there is no exciting technical component in it.
But the role of an excellent defensive player is reflected here. He appears in a key position at a critical moment and then makes a key defense - even if it is just a big-footed clearance, it is a key defense.
Another defensive midfielder, Gao Ruimin, who went up to participate in the corner kick attack and then returned to defense, expressed his gratitude to Jiang Wanqing.
Jiang Wanqing's expression was calm and he waved his hand.
The two of them are defensive midfield partners and are originally one. After Gao Ruimin went up, it was his duty to guard the rear.
No need to be thanked.
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Although the Chinese team's performance in the opening 20 minutes was pretty good, their opponent Algeria also performed very calmly.
If the Chinese team's opening performance does not look like it is the first time they have entered the World Cup, then the same goes for Algeria.
Nabil Oede, who wears the No. 10 jersey, is very active. He frequently raises his hand for the ball and uses his excellent skills to threaten the Chinese team's goal.
Although the Chinese team has made defensive arrangements against him, Ode's personal ability is indeed very strong.
In Ligue 1, Odé is not considered a top forward, but he is enough to deal with the Chinese team's defenders.
In the 21st minute, Algeria launched a quick attack in the frontcourt.
After Odeh got the ball in the left rib, he tried to break through the base. He deceived the Chinese team's right back Bai Di to turn around and retreat, then moved the football to the center and cut inside!
Wang Guangwei, who was waiting in the middle, quickly came up and got stuck inside him to prevent him from entering the penalty area.
At the same time, Gao Ruimin also came over to defend Wang Guangwei one after another.
Their attention was directed to Erd. Unexpectedly, the Ligue 1 striker suddenly knocked his heel while dribbling horizontally!
In this way, the football was passed to another Algerian forward Abderauf Devno in the penalty area!
"Ode... pass the ball! Devno! Be careful!" He Feng exclaimed.
Because Wang Guangwei came up to guard against Ode, Devno, who crossed over to his side, was in an undefended situation!
After receiving the ball, Devno made a slight adjustment and shot!
At this critical opportunity, Bai Di, who had been knocked away by Erd before, had come back from the side and blocked it with a flying shovel!
The football bounced off his foot!
But neither the fans of the Chinese team at the scene nor the Chinese viewers in front of the TV had time to breathe a sigh of relief for the Chinese team to escape the disaster. They saw the football bounce back to Ode's feet!
After passing the ball, Oede took advantage of the Chinese team's defensive attention being taken away by his teammate Devno and walked into the penalty area.
The football blocked by Bai Di bounced right in front of him!
It's too late for Yao Huasheng to come up...
Erd adjusted his pace to meet the rolling football and shot directly with his left foot!
A very comfortable kick, the football flew from Wang Guangwei's side towards the goal!
Although Lin Zhiyuan made a save, facing such a close shot, his movements were still a little slow by half a beat...
When he was in the air, the football flew into the goal behind him!
"Ah——! Alas!!" He Feng and Yan Kang exclaimed in unison, and then sighed heavily at the same time.
Still lost the ball...
"The Chinese team's defense is actually very good. In fact, Bai Di was able to block Devno's shot, which was unexpected. It's just..." Yan Kang couldn't go on.
He Feng continued: "It's just that Oder is too strong. His movement around the penalty area after knocking the ball with his heel was too bad... and the football happened to bounce right on his side, making him very comfortable." Start shooting without even adjusting..."
Yan Kang had quickly adjusted his mood and continued: "But it doesn't matter. Apart from this conceded goal, the Chinese team performed very well. Don't be affected by this conceded goal. I believe that in the plan of Director Shi, it must be Taking into account the situation of losing the ball...so don’t panic and recover from the disappointment after losing the ball as soon as possible!”
When he spoke later, his voice was already loud, as if he was shouting.
Because he knows how much psychological impact it will have on the players after losing the ball.
His performance was normal before he lost the ball, but once he lost the ball, he no longer knew how to play. He made frequent mistakes and his brain was confused. If he couldn't control it, it would be normal for him to lose another goal in a short period of time.
This is not a common problem in Chinese football, but a crisis that almost all teams around the world will encounter.
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"It's okay, it's okay!" Xie Lan saw the disappointed Chinese players on the TV screen and clapped her hands and said loudly, as if she was comforting her players on the coaching bench.
Li Qingqing couldn't help but cast a glance at her after hearing this.
This aunt who was so nervous before the game that her body was shaking now seems to believe that her comfort can really soothe the hearts of the Chinese team players...
Hu Lai’s mother is such a kind person!
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"Damn!" Yan Yan and his friends cursed in disappointment in the KTV box.
Of course they know that given the strength of the Chinese team, it is actually normal for them to lose the ball. You know, you know.
When the goal did come up, it was still difficult for them to accept it emotionally.
Before the game, everyone was somewhat lucky, hoping that the Chinese team could defeat Algeria, and maybe even qualify for the group stage.
But now that they have lost a goal, it means that it will be more difficult for the Chinese team to defeat Algeria than they expected.
After swearing "fuck", they continued to watch the game in their original positions without any further discussion or words.
They are different from those who just use Chinese football to vent their anger. They will not wipe out all the efforts of the Chinese team just because of a conceding goal, and say nonsense such as "Why play after playing like this? Just disband."
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After conceding the ball, the Chinese team did experience a period of chaos and tension. After all, no one wanted to concede the ball. After losing the ball, the players will inevitably carry a heavy burden, the psychological burden will increase, and their thoughts will not be unified.
Confusion arises as a result.
During this period, the Chinese team seemed very impatient in its offense, choosing more through balls, hoping to send the football behind the opponent's defense in one step. The result of eagerness for success was that the success rate was greatly reduced.
The defense looked very embarrassing again, and the fans watching were very anxious, fearing that Algeria would score another goal in the attack.
Fortunately, after head coach Shi Wuyin's adjustments, they finally withstood Algeria's continuous offensive.
And in the 30th minute, a counterattack threatened Algeria's goal.
At that time, when Chen Xingyi received a forward pass from Qu Lu on the wing, he slipped the football between the legs of the Algerian player who was guarding him, and at the same time turned around and ran forward. This caught the defensive player off guard.
It's a pity that Hulay pushed the football high due to Mousavi's personal defensive interference.
"What a pity!" He Feng sighed reflexively, and then said: "But under the close defense of Mousavi, who is 1.87 meters tall and weighs 87 kilograms, it is enough to say that he can still hit the ball. Hulay's judgment of the football placement is so good. It's a pity that the power gap between him and Mousavi is still a bit obvious..."
"Yes, Hu Lai is not the kind of forward who can confront the opponent's central defender head-on. He is better at finding opportunities to seize opportunities..." Yan Kang agreed, fearing that the fans in front of the TV would blame Hu Lai.
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"Why is that person so annoying!" Xie Lan pointed at Mousavi and said angrily. “I didn’t do anything during the whole game, I just followed my son!”
"The head coach of Algeria must have specially arranged for Mousavi to defend Hulay before the game." Li Ziqiang explained to his sister-in-law. "As the Premier League Golden Boot last season, Hu Lai will definitely encounter the toughest defense from his opponents in the World Cup."
Hu Lixin also nodded in agreement with Li Ziqiang's statement: "Yes. Just like the Chinese team is obviously encircling Odé, Algeria is also encircling Hulay."
Xie Lan turned his head and looked at the two men who were singing along, but said nothing.
"But it doesn't matter..." Li Qingqing said softly beside her, "Although Hu Lai is not the kind of striker who attacks head-on, he is the kind of striker who makes opponents dare not relax for a second. Not many defenders can stop him. You will never make a mistake under constant torture.”
After saying that, facing Xie Lan's gaze, she smiled slightly and offered comfort.
The Algerian head coach happened to appear in the broadcast, a bald middle-aged man, Frenchman Jimmy Durand.
Although his team successfully defended the attack, he was still not very satisfied with the team's defensive performance and was waving his arms and yelling.
He was probably dissatisfied with his players' failure to prevent Chen Xingyi from turning around and breaking through, which was why Hu Lai got the chance to shoot.
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PS, three updates today.
Second update at 1:00 noon! (End of chapter)