Chapter 160 The successor of Shuangde? That’s okay [please subscribe! 】
Basel is the third largest city in Switzerland, located in the Rhine Bay.
The entire city has a population of only 160,000, but it is an important transportation hub connecting Germany, France and Switzerland.
There are ample sunshine hours every day, and it is known as the city with the best weather in Central Europe.
Sitting on the temporarily rented bus, Ling Feng watched the bright sunshine falling on the streets and pedestrians, giving people a sense of tranquility and relaxation.
You know, in England, sunshine is a rare thing
And in this city, there is one of the most successful clubs in Switzerland.
That is the Basel Club named after the city!
FC Basel is the team that has won the second most Swiss Super League titles, second only to Grasshopper Club Zurich.
Since winning the championship in the 2009-10 season, Basel has won the Swiss Super League championship in the past five seasons!
It is no exaggeration to say that Basel is the current overlord of Swiss Super League!
There are many famous stars who made their debut at Basel Club, or used Basel Club as their first stop in Europe to move to the five major leagues.
For example, Croatian star Rakitic has just transferred to Barcelona from Sevilla;
For example, "Pharaoh" Salah, who transferred to Chelsea in the winter window;
Another example is Granit Xhaka, who plays for the Bundesliga powerhouse Borussia Monchengladbach!
It is worth mentioning that Xhaka's national team debut was in the European preliminaries against England three years ago.
Three years have passed, and Xhaka has grown from a rookie selected for the national team for the first time to one of the best midfielders in the Bundesliga and the core midfielder of the Swiss national team!
This Swiss national team is full of familiar names.
The eighteen-man roster is composed of most of the players playing in the five major leagues, as well as a few players from the two domestic league clubs Basel and Grasshopper.
Benario, Sommer, Xhaka, Shaqiri, Lichtsteiner, Behrami, Inler, Zemayili.
This Swiss national team has experienced Mesozoic veterans such as Senderos, Lichtsteiner, and Inler, as well as rising young stars such as Xhaka, Shaqiri, and Rodriguez.
It is no exaggeration to say that Switzerland now ushered in their golden generation!
During the World Cup in Brazil, Switzerland, which qualified second in the group, encountered the Pampas Eagles led by Messi in the quarter-finals.
I thought that Argentina could defeat the Swiss in an overwhelming manner, but unexpectedly, Switzerland tied with their opponent within 90 minutes and dragged into overtime.
Since then, the Swiss’ tenacious fighting spirit and unyielding spirit have been widely recognized by world football.
Compared with the solid midfield and backfield, Switzerland's forward line is average.
With the aging of former Swiss striker Alexander Frei, Switzerland's offensive burden has been entrusted to Shaqiri, who plays for the Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich.
In addition to Shaqiri, who is known as the "Swiss Messi", Drmic, who scored 17 goals in the Bundesliga last season, is also considered another good candidate for the Swiss striker.
Aware of the strength of his opponent and the fact that he was playing away from home, in the locker room before the game, Hodgson repeatedly emphasized that he should defend first and then wait for an opportunity to counterattack!
In this away game against Switzerland, Hodgson also prepared his strongest lineup.
Goalkeeper Joe Hart.
The back line continues the four players from the World Cup in Brazil, Baynes, Jagielka, Cahill and Glen Johnson.
As for the double midfielder position that attracts the most attention from English fans, Hodgson has formed a new combination that is relatively defensive:
Henderson partners with Milner!
The left and right wingers are Welbeck and Sterling, and the attacking midfielder is still Ling Feng, who is firmly in the starting lineup.
The one holding the arrow is Wayne Rooney, the British captain who scored twice in the last game and is in hot form!
The St. Jacobs Park stadium, which can accommodate 38,000 people, was almost full of home fans wearing red Swiss jerseys and singing loudly.
They have no reason to be unhappy.
Because, from the beginning of the game, the home team took the initiative on the field.
Compared to Norway's weak defense, Switzerland's defense is much more stable.
The strong central defender combination composed of Djuru and Schar almost kept Rooney in check.
Perhaps it was the strong sense of contrast that made Rooney feel like a headless fly on the court, not knowing what to do.
At this time, Rooney's body had begun to show obvious signs of decline.
The forward's ability to hold and protect the ball has shown obvious regression.
As long as the 1.9-meter-9 Djuru collides with the 1.86-meter Scheer, it will be difficult for him to control the ball at his feet, let alone help his teammates.
This is one of the important reasons why Ferguson chose to move Rooney back to serve as a wingman after buying Robin van Persie from Arsenal last season.
Sirius Sir Alex has long seen that Rooney's ability with the ball has declined significantly and he is simply unable to continue to shoulder the important task of attacking the front line!
In addition to the severe decline in his ability with the ball, "Lu Xiaopang"'s running speed without the ball is not fast enough.
Even if Ling Feng passes him some through balls or overhead balls, he can't catch the ball before the opponent's defender clears the ball and complete the goal.
When advancing, you cannot run into the space behind the defender and shoot immediately; when retreating, you cannot act as a fulcrum center, stand still in the penalty area, and play with your back to the ball.
Now Rooney, except for his good shooting skills, is like a different person!
Playing against a weak team like Norway, he can also receive Ling Feng's very comfortable pass and rely on his superior personal ability to kill randomly.
However, it is not that easy against a traditional strong team like Switzerland.
On the court, Ling Feng felt awkward cooperating with him.
It is easy to lose the ball if you pass it, and it is not easy to pass it.
As the new captain of the Three Lions and the number one player in England, Hodgson would not be able to take him out of the starting lineup as long as Rooney did not say anything about it and there were no injuries.
And this made things difficult for Ling Feng, who was the frontcourt organizer.
Until this time, he finally experienced for the first time what it felt like to be pitted by teammates.
Fortunately, Switzerland's forward level was not much better.
Shaqiri repeatedly set off waves on the right, attacking England's left, posing a considerable threat.
But in the final blow, Drmic, who had high hopes from Swiss coach Petkovic, did nothing.
The forwards of both sides were targeted, and they could only make some efforts on the wing.
In the first half of the game, the most active player in the Three Lions formation was undoubtedly "Happy Boy" Sterling!
The departure of Suarez and the injury of Sturridge have made this young man, who is only 20 years old, the most reliable sharp knife in Liverpool's front line!
In the first three rounds, he contributed two goals and one assist. He is the best young player in the entire Premier League except Ling Feng, who performed even more explosively!
After returning to the national team, he had Ling Feng's constant support, which made him even more powerful and almost unstoppable on the wing.
As Ling Feng kept dividing the ball, England gradually regained the ball and repeatedly blasted from the side, threatening the gate guarded by Benaglio.
In the 28th minute of the game, Sterling broke through from the right and caused a foul on the opponent's full-back. The Three Lions got a good free kick opportunity on the right side of the penalty area.
Taking this opportunity, Ling Feng came to Rooney who was standing in front of the ball, covered his mouth and whispered his suggestion:
"Wayne, you drop back more to catch the ball, and we play more against the wall to cooperate, or I push forward and open the central defender for you. This way you can also avoid the entanglement with the central defender and complete the shot."
“Or, after I give the side to Raheem and Danny, they can also find love in a triangle.”
Hearing Ling Feng’s words, Rooney, who was playing with the ball, stood up straight. After turning around, he nodded seriously:
"I understand."
After Shuangde retired from the national team, Rooney, as the team's veteran and new captain, naturally became the key player in the locker room. The boss.
He's not stupid either.
Having played in the Premier League for many years, Rooney knows very well that after taking over the captain's armband of the Three Lions, every move he makes will be amplified by the media frame by frame.
If you perform well, the media will definitely praise you as a correct decision to serve as captain;
On the contrary, the media will definitely add insult to injury mercilessly, and even dig into old scores and use their own The shitty things I did off the field made me sick.
So, of course, he hopes that he will always perform well and silence all the media and doubters.
So, how do you do this?
In Rooney’s view, he needs his teammates to give him enough support so that he can score more goals!
Especially Ling Feng!
This young man, ten years younger than himself, possesses unimaginable talent and superior strength, and has become the new midfield core of the Three Lions.
Moreover, he used his sustained and stable performance on the court to prove to his coaches and teammates that he is definitely worthy of the title of "successor of both virtues".
As long as Ling Feng is willing to keep passing the ball to himself, he will definitely score many goals!
What surprised Rooney the most was that Ling Feng consciously provided him with assists again and again without having to say it explicitly.
In the last friendly match against Norway, Ling Feng used actions to support his new captain of the Three Lions.
Keep feeding him balls and stuffing the cake into his mouth!
If he hadn't played as a forward for a long time and his footwork wasn't very smooth, he could even have scored a hat trick or a big four!
It was precisely because of Ling Feng's personal strength and importance in the team that Rooney recognized him, so he listened carefully to Ling Feng's opinions.
Otherwise, if a newcomer to the national team who has played less than ten times dares to give advice to him, Rooney will definitely not look good.
What kind of status do you dare to give advice to me, the red devil and the double captain of the Three Lions? !
Oh, the successor of Shuangde, right?
That’s okay.
Although Hodgson's first free kicker was Ling Feng.
However, Rooney always takes the free kicks that are closer to the goal.
This is the privilege of the team captain and number one!
After observing the position of the wall, Rooney hit a curve ball directly after running up!
The ball crossed the wall, but was slightly higher than the goal crossbar and flew out of the baseline.
Seeing this, Rooney just raised his head and sighed, then turned around and walked back.
He is Wayne Rooney, never Beckham
After this free kick, Rooney obeyed Ling Feng's advice and began to frequently drop back to catch the ball.
Ling Feng also penetrates forward from time to time to help him attract the attention of the central defender.
The two men's frequent position changes and movements disrupted Switzerland's central defense.
Until the 42nd minute of the game, the two hit the wall continuously in the midfield!
Ling Feng made a precise short pass, passing between the two midfielders Xhaka and Inler and reaching the feet of Rooney who retreated to receive the ball.
The latter didn't stop the ball and directly knocked it back. Ling Feng, who was advancing at high speed, took advantage of the situation to advance with the ball.
While dribbling the ball to the edge of the penalty area, attracting the central defender to attack, Ling Feng flicked his ankle and lightly passed the ball to the left, creating an opening for Rooney to shoot. Chance.
The British captain was not polite, he went straight to the near corner of the goal and finally penetrated the door guarded by Benario!
One to zero!
England took the lead in Basel!
After scoring the goal, Rooney immediately turned around, showing a naive and hearty smile, and did not forget to raise his hands and point at Ling Feng to express his gratitude.
Watching Ling Feng and Rooney hugging each other, Hodgson on the sidelines couldn't help but smile.
As a head coach, I am naturally happy to see that the new captain of the team and the future core of the team can get along harmoniously.
At this time, assistant Livington's somewhat gratifying words also sounded in his ears:
"Wayne and Ling have a tacit understanding more and more."
"I have never doubted the two of them. Personal ability."
As he spoke, he cast his sights in the direction of the midfielder.
What makes Hodgson gratified is that as the game progresses and gets used to each other, England's new midfield partner becomes more and more calm.
Compared with Gerrard who likes to attack forward from time to time, Milner's offensive attributes are slightly weaker, but his defensive attributes are stronger.
Both he and Henderson are engineer players with strong running ability, wide coverage area, and diligently completing the head coach's tactical arrangements.
Especially when they are not required to organize offense and full-time defense, this new combination of Three Lions used active running and sweeping interceptions to stop Switzerland's offense time and time again.
The presence of the two of them also allows Ling Feng in the frontcourt to hardly have to retreat to defend and can organize the offense with confidence!
In the end, with Rooney's goal in the first half and Sterling's goal in the second half, England narrowly defeated Switzerland and achieved its first victory in the European preliminaries!
Ling Feng, who organized the team's offense in an orderly manner and provided an assist, became the best player in the game.
The next day, all major British media reported the process and results of the game.
In addition to praising Hodgson's employment choices, he also greatly praised Rooney's hot state after becoming captain.
Of course, Ling Feng, who won the best of the match, was also given a new nickname by the media:
The flag bearer of the Three Lions!
During the game, wherever his battle flag goes, the Lions of the Three Lions will launch a fierce attack!
The Times directly used the photo of Ling Feng and Rooney hugging each other as the cover of its sports section.
And a very eye-catching and thought-provoking title:
"The Three Lions ushered in a new era!"
(End of this chapter)