Chapter 627
China vs. Australia: A Perfect Ending to the World Cup Qualifiers!
Verbeek was stunned. He was still planning a counterattack, but instead, the Chinese team delivered the fatal blow first.
Being down by two goals is not the same as being down by one goal. When you're down by one goal, as long as you manage to score one goal, you can bring both sides back to the same starting line.
But falling behind by two goals won't be easy to come back.
Therefore, in most matches, a two-goal lead is considered to have secured the victory.
The weather in June is extremely hot. Although Beijing is located very far north, the summer heat is no less intense.
Vibeck's forehead began to sweat; he couldn't tell if it was from the heat or from nervousness.
The Australian players on the field were drenched in sweat. Facing the Chinese team, they felt like they were playing in the World Cup, against a traditional European powerhouse.
After scoring consecutive goals, the Chinese team became increasingly excited, displaying a variety of imaginative and effortless combinations. Every brilliant play earned them applause and cheers from the fans in the stands.
Stimulated by the atmosphere at the stadium, the Chinese team played with increasing abandon.
In the 42nd minute of the first half, the Chinese team played a series of short passes in the attacking third, and the Australian defenders were initially able to keep up with the pace.
But as the ball was passed around by the Chinese team, and with a series of quick passes, they gradually started to fall behind.
Even more critically, under the total football strategy, the Chinese players frequently intersected, moved, and switched positions, causing the Australian players to be overwhelmed.
The players who were originally marking their man lost their target due to the Chinese team's constant positional changes; the players who were originally marking the ball lost their defensive positions due to the Chinese team's constant passing, and were like a bunch of headless flies, running after the ball.
Seeing that the opponent's defensive formation was completely in disarray and the defensive line was no longer intact, the Chinese fans in the stadium shouted excitedly, they could smell the scent of a goal coming.
On the sidelines, Australian coach Verbeek shouted loudly at his players, trying to remind them to maintain the integrity of their defense and to calm them down.
But the Australian players were already overloaded and unable to process any instructions.
In fact, given the level of noise at the stadium, the Australian coach might not even be able to hear his commands from the sidelines.
Lin Feng was the first to spot the opportunity. He consciously increased the pace of the game, aiming to overwhelm his opponent.
And now, he has achieved his goal.
Under constant pressure from the Chinese team, the opponent's defense was wide open, giving the Chinese team the opportunity to launch a fatal blow.
With this in mind, when Lin Feng received the ball again, he did not pass it out. Instead, as if he had eyes in the back of his head, he flicked the ball to the right. In reality, after deceiving the opponent's center, he quickly spun the ball to the left and completed a turn. With one step, he dribbled the ball and rushed into the penalty area from outside the penalty area.
Australia's center-back immediately abandoned Gao Lin and headed for Lin Feng.
Lin Feng seemed to have anticipated the opponent's movements. As the opponent pressed forward, he made a precise pass, and the ball went through the opponent's legs and came diagonally to Gao Lin's feet.
Gao Lin received the ball and wanted to shoot, but seeing the Australian goalkeeper rushing towards him, he quickly weighed his options and abandoned his shooting plan. Instead, he passed the ball across to the middle.
The ball returned to Lin Feng's feet. After completing the pass, he didn't stand still and watch the show. Instead, he accelerated and rushed towards the penalty area.
As if he had anticipated that Gao Lin would pass the ball to him, he appeared perfectly behind the ball the instant Gao Lin's pass reached the penalty area.
Facing an empty goal, Lin Feng deftly pushed the ball into the net, easily making the score 3-0!
The Bird's Nest Stadium erupted in cheers the moment the goal was scored. The fans in the stadium were ecstatic. The Chinese team's goal just now seemed as if they had passed the ball into the opponent's goal with a series of passes.
Apart from Lin Feng's spike that dribbled past his opponent, the Chinese team completed eleven consecutive one-touch passes during this attack.
[Where the hell did this come from? Is this still the Chinese team?]
If it weren't for the players wearing red jerseys and being all yellow-skinned with black hair, I would have almost thought it was a Barcelona match!
[The Chinese national football team's attacking play is truly a feast for the eyes, so beautiful to watch!]
Haha, look at the bewildered expressions on the Australian players' faces! They're definitely questioning their existence!
Tim Cahill, the midfield maestro for the Australian team and a player for Everton in the English Premier League, stared blankly at the blood-red score numbers on the big screen, as if he were dreaming. He found it hard to accept and even more unbelievable what had just happened.
Halftime! Only halftime!
They've already been thrashed three times!
The Chinese team was terrifyingly strong, so strong that it felt like a foreign concept to him!
Playing against them felt like playing in the English Premier League.
Both the pace of the game and the intensity of the physical confrontation far exceeded the matches they had experienced in the World Cup qualifiers.
Is this level of intensity in a match what Asian football should be at?
Like his teammates, Cahill didn't initially think the Chinese team was that strong.
After all, in the first leg of the match between the two teams, the Australian team forced the Chinese team to a draw. In that match, the Australian team even made the Chinese team look very embarrassed by their strong physical confrontation.
So before the match started, the Australians still had some illusions about it.
They felt that Lin Feng was the only difficult player to deal with in the opposing team, but the other players were not stronger than Australia, and were even weaker.
Therefore, the Australians believe this should be a closely contested match. Even if they can't beat their opponents, they should be able to secure a draw if they play it safe.
But once the match started, the plot took a completely different turn than they had anticipated.
By halftime, they were already down by three goals.
Moreover, judging from the situation on the field, they were completely dominated by the Chinese team.
Since the start of the match, Australia has had less than 1% possession, fewer than four shots, and only one shot on target.
In contrast, the Chinese team not only had over 60% possession, but also a passing accuracy of 88%.
China completely overwhelmed their opponents in terms of shots. In the first half, the Chinese team unleashed a total of 14 shots, and these were not just wild shots from outside the penalty area, but shots that entered the penalty area through various passing combinations. Eight of these shots were on target!
If it weren't for the goalkeeper's heroic performance in saving many of China's shots, the score would definitely be more than 3-0 at this point. They might have suffered a crushing defeat in just the first half.
Not only were the Australian players on the field dejected, but even their coach felt anxious and uneasy:
How could the opponent's strength have evolved to this level in just half a year?
Verbeek realized he had underestimated the Chinese team's head coach; that harmless-looking fat man seemed to have no real ability.
Many people believe that the Chinese team's excellent performance in recent years is entirely due to good luck, and that they simply drew Lin Feng, an SSR character.
But after this match, Verbeek no longer thinks so.
If the opponent is truly incompetent, can they digest and absorb the Dutch total football style and adapt it to suit their own lineup?
Even he, a Dutchman, couldn't guarantee something like this!
"Well said!"
Lin Feng's second goal was even easier than his first, mainly thanks to Gao Lin's selfless assist.
In fact, given Gao Lin's position just now, no one would blame him even if he had chosen to shoot himself.
But he still chose to pass the ball out, and this kind of team spirit is commendable.
Therefore, after scoring the goal, Lin Feng did not choose to celebrate wildly, but instead took the initiative to walk over to Gao Lin and give him a high-five.
Gao Lin was very proud and began to boast, patting his chest:
"I'm not bragging, but with my vision and passing skills, most midfielders might not even have them. Our club's head coach really admires me and even begged me to let him play as a winger. That tells you how valuable this goal is, right?"
Lin Feng swallowed back any further praise he could have given, rolled his eyes in exasperation, and resolved never to praise this guy again.
He's really someone who'll take advantage of any opportunity to do something drastic!
A few minutes later, the first half ended.
The Chinese team returned to the locker room with a huge lead.
Coach Zhu was very satisfied with the team's performance in the first half, and specifically praised Gao Lin and Dong Fangzhuo for their outstanding performances.
Dong Fangzhuo's first goal played a crucial role in opening up the game for the Chinese national team. If they hadn't scored so early, the team would never have been able to play so smoothly.
Although Gao Lin did not score, his presence on the field and the assist he provided in the last few minutes of the first half were crucial.
Having received praise from the coach, the two young forwards beamed with joy, as if they had eaten honey.
Gao Lin, in particular, boasted to everyone he met about how amazing his pass was, claiming it was at a level several stories high.
"Alright, quiet down!"
Old Zhu stopped Gao Lin's antics, tapped the table, and said in a deep voice:
"This is our last World Cup qualifier. There are 70,000 to 80,000 fans here, and tens of millions, even hundreds of millions, of people across the country are watching this match. So we must play with style and skill and give the people of the whole country a satisfactory result!"
Everyone thought that Old Zhu would, as always, remind them not to be arrogant or underestimate their opponents—the same old advice they'd heard countless times before.
Unexpectedly, Old Zhu changed his tune and gave a completely different explanation.
This was quite novel to everyone, and it immediately lifted their spirits.
"Therefore, continue the attack in the second half and present this great victory as a gift to the people of the whole country!"
Everyone was still having fun, and when they heard the coach say that, they all naturally agreed.
Inside the Australian team's locker room, Verbeek, who had just finished explaining the tactics for the second half, heard a commotion coming from the locker room next door and felt a sudden tightness in his chest, as if something bad was about to happen.
After halftime, the two sides switched sides and resumed the game.
Neither team made any substitutions, and the Australians, who had just caught their breath in the locker room, immediately returned to the suffocating pace of the first half.
The Chinese team immediately set the pace of the game extremely fast.
Flanking maneuvers, central penetration, short passing combinations, 45-degree crosses, long passes behind the defense, long-range shots, set pieces...
The Chinese team employed a variety of offensive tactics, effectively pinning the Australian team in their own half and rendering them unable to move.
Australia's head coach, Verbeek, turned pale. The attacking tactics he had devised for the team during halftime were completely rendered useless by the Chinese team's all-out offensive.
The Chinese team maintained firm control of the ball, giving them no chance to launch a counterattack.
The Australian team could only run frantically on the field, achieving nothing.
Even so, they still couldn't stop the Chinese team's attack.
In the 55th minute of the second half, Lin Feng and his teammates executed a series of one-two passes before Lin Feng dribbled into the penalty area.
Facing the goalkeeper, just like Gao Lin in the first half, he selflessly passed the ball to his teammate in the middle when he had the opportunity to shoot.
Coincidentally, the one who caught the ball was none other than Gao Lin.
Receive the ball, shoot, and score!
Gao Lin's move was executed flawlessly, making the score 4-0, and the Chinese team once again breached the Australian team's goal.
The roar of the Bird's Nest stadium was deafening, and the fans who came to the scene excitedly started doing the wave.
This ticket was totally worth it!
Seeing the Chinese team achieve such a resounding victory on home soil was absolutely worth the ticket price!
As if infected by the joyful atmosphere, even Yao Ming, who had previously looked gloomy, seemed to have his gloom dissipate considerably. He raised his arms and joined the crowd in creating a human wave.
As for Liu Xiang, this guy somehow got hold of a megaphone, abandoned his girlfriend, ran into a group of die-hard fans, and started chanting slogans with them, completely disregarding his status as a star.
"Don't mind him, he's only like that occasionally. He's usually quite reliable!"
Seeing that Liu Xiang's girlfriend was sitting there looking a little embarrassed, Ye Li grabbed her hand and spoke up for Liu Xiang.
"No, it's okay. I just like his childlike side."
Yao Ming and Ye Li exchanged a glance and smiled at each other, both relieved.
The Australian team seemed genuinely terrified. After conceding the fourth goal, they cowered near their own penalty area like startled clams, completely losing their will to counterattack.
I just pray the game ends soon so they can get through the rest of the second half without conceding another goal.
Being so far behind, to still dream of equalizing or even winning is pure wishful thinking.
But even clay doesn't give people a shred of spirit. Under normal circumstances, when they're down by so many goals and there's no hope of a comeback, they should go all out and try their best to score a goal to salvage some pride.
But the Australian team had no such idea. The Chinese team's offensive firepower was too fierce. Even if they stayed in their own half and defended with all their might, they couldn't hold on, let alone attack.
Losing by four is indeed embarrassing, but they still have a Japanese team below them to put them at the bottom.
But if they recklessly attack and end up losing by a larger margin than the Japanese team, that would be truly shameful! (End of Chapter)