Chapter 352 The first half of the dream! Advance to the quarterfinals!
Since the number of participating teams in this cup has been expanded from 16 to 24, the qualifying rules have become more complicated than in previous years. In addition to the top two teams in the 6 groups directly advancing, the higher scores in each group The best four third-place finishers will also get tickets to the knockout rounds.
It is in this format that the competition in the group stage has become more exciting, intense and full of variables.
However, the situation in Group B became clear early due to England's unexpectedly strong performance.
Victory over Russia, reversal of Wales, victory over Slovakia
The Three Lions sang all the way in Lingfeng, and finally won an astonishing record of victory in the group stage!
This is also the only team in this European Cup that has won all the group stages!
Not only that, they won all three games, scoring eight goals and conceding only two. It also set the best record in the history of England in the group stage of the European Cup!
This is a feat that even the golden generation could not accomplish!
However, in large-scale international cup competitions, it is not a good thing to show the state too early.
In the history of the European Cup, a total of ten teams have achieved a record of winning the group stage.
But only France in 1984 and Spain in 2008 finally lifted the championship trophy.
Therefore, at the post-match press conference, facing the congratulations and praise from the media, Hodgson only appeared very humble and cautious:
“The group stage and the knockout round are completely different. We must play well in every next game to get ourselves a chance to go to the Stade de France!”
This statement may sound modest at first glance.
However, if you think about it carefully, you will know what it represents behind this sentence
The Stade de France is the venue for this European Cup final.
In other words, as the coach of the Three Lions, Hodgson’s goal is to reach the final!
As the flash lights flashed one after another at the scene, the major media rushed to report on it, all of which exposed Hodgson's naked ambition!
As for the media's hype, Hodgson is very calm.
Coaching in England is going to be under a flashlight and a microscope.
Anyway, FA Chairman Dyke has publicly claimed that the team can win the championship.
Even if he shouts the slogan and reaches the finals, nothing will change.
Besides, since I have the opportunity to lead the team to participate in international competitions such as the European Cup, it must be a lie to say that I don’t want to win the championship.
Even though he is nearly 70 years old, Hodgson's inner desire for the championship is by no means smaller than that of any other young head coach.
As the saying goes, an old man is always willing to aim for a thousand miles!
A coach who doesn’t want to win a championship is not a good coach!
However, he doesn’t know whether he can lead the team to a breakthrough in this tournament.
Who can guess the future?
Just try our best
. . .
With the Three Lions firmly winning the first place in the group, the other three teams in the group can only fight for the second place in the group.
In another final round of the group that ended at the same time, Wales defeated Russia 3-0 in Toulouse. With two wins from three games and one loss, it accumulated six points and qualified for second place in the group!
As for Slovakia, which is third in the group with only three points, it has to compete with the third place in other groups.
Whoever has a better record will be able to enter the knockout round through the reform of the competition system.
Of course, for the Three Lions and Ling Feng, this has nothing to do with them.
With the victory, the Three Lions players were warmly received by Prince Harry and FA Chairman Dyke as soon as they returned to the hotel.
Then everyone also tasted a very sumptuous French meal.
After feasting, Hodgson also announced in public that as a reward for winning the group and qualifying, they would get a day off!
They can use this day to go out and visit Paris, the "fashion capital", or meet their family and girlfriends to express their longing for each other.
Of course, at the end, Hodgson did not forget to tell his disciples who had already forgotten happily:
“Remember, don’t cause any trouble for me! Otherwise, you won’t have to play in the next game. ”
He knows the virtues of his disciples very well.
Except for a few players such as Ling Feng, Kane, and Rashford who don't like it or are not old enough to hang out, the others are all loyal fans of nightclubs and bars.
Especially if the disciples spend all their energy on women, how can they still have the energy to run on the court? !
As all the matches in the European Cup group stage have come to an end, all the top 16 teams in the knockout rounds have also been born!
The six groups ranked first, namely France, England, Germany, Croatia, Italy, and Hungary
The six groups ranked second, namely Switzerland, Wales, Poland, Spain, Belgium, and Iceland
The three best performing groups are Slovakia, Northern Ireland, Ireland and Portugal!
The promotion results are not surprising. Traditionally strong teams have basically advanced to the knockout rounds.
Among them, the most thrilling road to promotion is naturally Portugal, which has Real Madrid's top superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.
Portugal's start was far from as strong as England's, and instead was very bumpy.
In the first round against Iceland, they were tied by the Vikings, who were participating in an international competition for the first time.
In the second round against Austria, Ronaldo scored a penalty even though he was heavily targeted by his opponent.
However, the Real Madrid superstar, who has a very high penalty rate, shot the ball on the goal post.
Even though a goal was scored in the end, it was called offside and was ruthlessly ruled out.
In the end, Portugal, whose offensive only bore fruit, could only draw Austria flat.
Until the last round of the game against Hungary, Ronaldo finally burst out with huge energy!
After falling behind in the first half, Ronaldo in the second half was like a god!
With a header and a wonderful back-heel goal, the score was tied at three to three!
This game was also called by the media as one of the best games in this tournament so far.
In the end, under the influence of Ronaldo, Portugal, which had three consecutive draws in the group stage, was able to get the last ticket to the knockout rounds by virtue of its record advantage!
However, in addition to helping Portugal advance thrillingly at the last minute, another football superstar, the Swedish god Tayib, who once had a peak showdown with Ronaldo in the qualifiers, ushered in this European Cup. A tragic moment in his national team career.
With one draw and one loss in the first two games, Sweden's qualifying situation is in danger.
Before the final round of the group stage, Ibrahimovic suddenly announced at a press conference that he would retire from the national team after the end of this European Cup!
Once the news was announced, it became the focus of public and media attention.
At that time, when I learned the news
In Ling Feng's opinion, the original intention of announcing the big news on the eve of the Ibrahimovic war might be good.
I hope to use my last game to inspire myself and my teammates before the life-and-death battle against Belgium.
However, the strength gap between Sweden and Belgium is really too big.
Even if Ibrahimovic and his teammates fight against the odds. But he couldn't knock on the door guarded by Courtois.
In the end, with Nainggolan's world wave long shot, the proud Swedes were sent back to the cold Northern Europe.
The famous "Forcing King" Zlatan Ibrahimovic also bid farewell to his national team career with a brutal defeat.
However, Ling Feng knows very well that Ibrahimovic's football legend is not over yet.
Veterans will not die, they will only wither away!
. . .
As the top 16 came out, the results of the knockout matches were also announced:
Due to winning the first place in the group, England did not enter the major teams as it had historically. The lower half of the area, but entered the upper half with weaker overall strength!
And their opponent is Northern Ireland, the weakest among the top 16!
The opponents in the same top half are Switzerland or Poland, Croatia or Portugal, Hungary or Belgium!
Compared with the opponents in the lower half, the majority of England fans directly knelt down in their living rooms to celebrate!
Because, compared to the upper half of the area where fish and bellies are crowded together, the lower half is the half of death!
The eight teams in the bottom half are Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Wales, Slovakia, Ireland, and Iceland!
Especially Germany, France, Italy, and Spain. These four teams combined have ten World Cup championships and nine European Cup championships!
So scary!
For the team to actually enter the fantastic top half, the British media sang and danced, and began to conduct detailed analysis and discussion around the issue of "Can England win the championship":
Among the opponents in the top half, only three teams, Croatia, Portugal and Belgium, can pose a threat to England.
And in the quarter-finals, Croatia and Portugal will decide the winner, and only one team can advance to the next round.
So, strictly speaking, only the winner between Belgium, Croatia and Portugal can prevent them from entering the final stage!
In the second half of the death zone, there will be at least one giant showdown in each knockout round.
In comparison, they are simply too happy!
Even the "Guardian", which has always been rigorous and fair, said bluntly:
"This may be England's best chance to reach the European Cup finals!"
You know, England's best result in the European Cup was only the third place in the first European Championship in 1968.
They have never reached the finals!
At a time when public opinions are swirling outside, the Three Lions generals are taking a short vacation after a month.
On the short one-day holiday, Ling Feng, like many of his teammates, chose to spend it with his family and girlfriend.
As a member of the England Wives Team, Barbara wears Ling Feng’s No. 7 jersey in every game and cheers for her boyfriend in the stands with Ling Feng’s parents.
After a brief meeting, Ling Feng walked out of his girlfriend’s hotel room with lipstick on his face, and then got a small task from his girlfriend:
"The next goal he scores will be under the eyes of the whole world as a gift to her!"
Ling Feng naturally agreed to this
Soon, the three A few days later, it was time for him to complete his mission.
The second quarter-final of the European Cup, England versus Northern Ireland, started at Paris Saint-Germain’s Parc des Princes Stadium!
Like Wales, Northern Ireland has reached the finals of the European Cup for the first time.
In the group stage, Northern Ireland was placed in the same group as Germany, Ukraine, and Poland.
As a new team in the European Cup, Northern Ireland lost to Germany and Poland by one goal, and won Ukraine 2-0. It was able to enter the knockout stage as the third best among the four groups.
The most famous player in this Northern Ireland team is Jonathan Evans, the elder brother of the "Evans Brothers"!
Except for central defender Evans, who once played for Manchester United and won the Premier League and Champions League championships with the team, there are only a few players in the team who play in the five major leagues.
The overall lineup is dim and the players are of varying levels.
In this game, Northern Ireland showed united determination in the face of England, which had exhausted its main force.
Unfortunately, the strength gap between the two sides is too big
In the 27th minute of the first half, Northern Ireland's goal was declared lost!
The one who opened the door to victory for England was Ling Feng, the "sharpest sword of the Three Lions" wearing the legendary No. 7 jersey!
“Wow!”
"Smooth cooperation!"
"Kane knocked the ball back, and Ling Feng fired an angry shot. The ball was like an indestructible sword, mercilessly piercing the heart of the Northern Irishman! "
"The England number seven scored the third goal of this European Cup!"
"It is also currently ranked second in the scorer list, second only to three goals in three games! Bell of the ball!”
“At the same time, this talented super golden boy has sent four assists in three games and is also the top of the European Cup assists list!”
"With both goals and assists, the Three Lions' new No. 7 has become the most indispensable member of the team!"
After scoring the goal, Ling Feng was also the first to come to the sidelines. , and then blew a kiss to his girlfriend in the stands!
The live broadcast camera was also aimed at Barbara for the first time.
I saw this Hungarian supermodel with smoky makeup. Regardless of the eyes of the millions of fans around her and in front of the TV, she blew several kisses back to Ling Feng.
After taking the lead, England played more relaxedly.
The four frontcourt players Ling Feng, Sterling, Kane and Rooney also frequently ran to support each other and played continuous short passes.
Such a picture also makes some old England fans feel incredible.
Is this still the technically rough England team they remember?
In their memory, England's rough guys can only pass long balls to the goal, and can only cross from the wing after both wings fly together.
And now, they are actually playing the Spanish style of ground passing? !
Of course, they soon discovered that it was all thanks to Ling Feng!
The British No. 7 keeps running and connecting in the frontcourt, allowing the ball to continue to pass!
In the first half, England had the advantage and entered the dressing room with a one-goal lead.
In the second half, England changed sides and fought again. After England controlled the ball to attract the opponent's formation, then with a sudden change of rhythm, they penetrated Northern Ireland's goal again!
After Ling Feng and Rooney switched positions and came to the right, and after a collision with Rooney, he broke into the penalty area from the ribs between the full-back and the central defender.
Looking at the goal, while preparing to shoot, he suddenly sent a very penetrating inverted triangle cross.
Kane, who defeated Vardy to get the starting opportunity, did not disappoint Hodgson!
After taking a step back and getting rid of the defender, he swung his foot and shot the ball into the lower left corner of the goal!
After completing the exchange of shots, Ling Feng and Kane also hugged and high-fived with smiles on their faces.
This frontcourt attacking combination, which once led England U21 to the European Youth Championship, has continued their extraordinary chemical reaction in the adult national team.
When the game reached the 83rd minute, with time running out and a two-goal lead, Hodgson replaced Ling Feng, the core of the team who had completed the pass and shot again, and asked him to accept the fans. of applause.
In the end, England relied on Ling Feng and Kane's passing and shooting to defeat Northern Ireland, the "little brother of England", 2-0, and successfully advanced to the quarterfinals!
(End of this chapter)