Chapter 641
: China vs. Argentina, the favorites to win the World Cup!
[Don't Argentina and England both have World Cup qualifiers to play? Why arrange a friendly match with the Chinese national team?]
[Because this FIFA international break is quite long, with both teams' matches around October 11th, there are six or seven days between the start of their training camp and the start of the matches. Such a long period of time isn't enough for just training; they need to find an opponent to practice against and test the team's training results and the players' competitive form, right?]
The Chinese team has actually attended; teams of this caliber usually don't invite us to play friendly matches!
[Haha, before, the Chinese team was too weak, and strong teams didn't bother to play against us, feeling that playing against us wouldn't be effective for training. Now, the Chinese team's strength has improved, but it's not strong enough to compete with truly top-tier teams, so we're a very suitable warm-up opponent for them!]
[Argentina is definitely a tough opponent, but I don't think England is that reliable. Although they are much stronger than us on paper, I always feel that this England team is very weak and may not be able to beat the Chinese national team easily!]
[Are you getting cocky? The England team has stars like Rooney, Gerrard, Lampard, and Beckham. While they're slightly weaker than Argentina, Brazil, Spain, and Italy, they'd still easily beat the Chinese national team!]
I'm not so sure. While England has many star players, their tactical system is a mess. They're still clinging to the outdated 4-4-2 formation. Although their midfield is packed with stars, their actual performance is terrible, a far cry from a truly powerful midfield like Spain!
Indeed, without resolving the issue of Gerrard and Lampard's inability to coexist, this England team could easily stumble against any slightly stronger opponent. Although the Chinese national team is weaker on paper, I think the outcome of this match is about 30/70.
After the Chinese national football team announced the schedule for these two warm-up matches, domestic fans quickly launched into a heated discussion.
Although it was just a friendly match, the fans didn't take it lightly.
After all, these two teams are quite prestigious, and it's usually very difficult to arrange a friendly match of this caliber.
Therefore, fans attach great importance to it and regard it as a touchstone to test the national team's fighting ability and judge the gap between themselves and the world's top teams.
Not only them, but also the Football Association and the national team's coaching staff are admonishing the players to take the game seriously.
"This time we must play seriously. We don't need to pull off an upset, but we must make good use of the opportunity to play against strong opponents, test our own abilities, expose our team's weaknesses and shortcomings through actual combat, and strive to correct them before the World Cup starts!"
Since leading the national football team to the World Cup, Zhu De's demeanor has completely changed.
Having just celebrated his sixtieth birthday, he stood tall and straight, radiating a strong sense of confidence.
His ruddy complexion made him look nothing like a sixty-year-old man; rather, he resembled an energetic and enthusiastic young man.
Now, wherever he goes, everyone gives him face and respectfully calls him Coach Zhu.
After all, leading the team to the World Cup, winning the Asian Cup and the Asian Games, and pushing the Chinese team's world ranking into the top 20—such achievements have never been made before!
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him the godfather of Chinese football!
Old Zhu originally planned to retire after coaching this World Cup.
However, because his coaching achievements were so successful, he enjoyed a very high level of recognition among the public and in the football world.
The Football Association was unwilling to let him retire and repeatedly begged him to stay on for a few more years so that he could contribute to Chinese football.
The vast majority of fans are genuinely afraid that if Zhu Rongji retires, the Football Association will replace him with an unreliable new coach who will mess things up and drag the national team, which has finally shown signs of improvement, back into the mire.
This kind of thing has happened before, and fans are like those who have been bitten by a snake once and are now afraid of ropes for ten years.
Even after learning from Milutinovic's mistakes, the majority of fans are extremely tolerant of Zhu Guanghu. Even if the Chinese team still fails to achieve any results in this World Cup, they will definitely not kick Zhu Guanghu when he is down like they did back then.
The way the Football Association and the fans treated him made Old Zhu feel an urge to die for someone who understands him.
Even if it costs him his life, he is determined to lead the national football team to achieve something in the World Cup.
Therefore, after the Chinese team secured their ticket to the World Cup, he personally oversaw every aspect, from the team's tactical training and warm-up match arrangements to assessing player condition and selecting suitable players.
"Old Zhu has become so long-winded! I don't think he was ever like this before!"
"Is it because I'm getting older, or am I going through menopause?"
"Menopause? Isn't that something only women experience?"
"Nonsense, there are men too, but shouldn't Old Zhu be past menopause by now?"
While Mr. Zhu was giving a speech, the players were daydreaming, and unsurprisingly, they were punished:
"Gao Lin, Hao Junmin, Zhu Ting, and that other guy, you guys run 20 laps around the court!"
……
On October 5, the Chinese national football team arrived in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, by plane to prepare for a friendly match against Argentina.
South America has a very strong football culture, and almost all of the 10 countries in South America are football powerhouses.
Every time, the competition for those 4 or 5 spots is fierce, with teams fighting tooth and nail. Even world-class teams like Brazil and Argentina often pull off upsets here.
In a region with such a strong football atmosphere, the Chinese team immediately attracted the attention of the Argentinians upon their arrival.
Argentinians showed great curiosity about this football team from the mysterious East.
Within the entire Chinese team, apart from Lin Feng, Messi's rival, and Feng Xiaoting, Messi's teammate, the average Argentinian knows almost nothing about the other players on the Chinese team.
There's no way around it, Argentina has just too many star players. Who would pay attention to some Asians who aren't even star players, look pretty much the same, and whose names you can't even remember?
But it is precisely because of Lin Feng's presence that this Chinese team has become extraordinary.
Many Argentinians have heard debates about whether Lin Feng or Messi is better, and are therefore very curious about someone who can be considered on par with Messi.
I heard that the Chinese team, led by Lin Feng, has already secured a spot in the World Cup, making them one of the first teams in the world to obtain a ticket to the World Cup.
Perfect opportunity to test Lin Feng and the Chinese team's strength and see how good they are!
On paper, the Chinese team and the Argentine team are not even in the same league. If the two teams meet on the field, a 90/10 chance would be considered a respectful assessment of the Chinese team.
Therefore, Argentina's head coach and former football legend Maradona held the Chinese team's performance in contempt:
"They're just here to be our stepping stones, so don't feel any pressure, just enjoy the game!"
When he said this, Maradona glanced at Messi.
He had heard that Messi had almost never won against Lin Feng. So he specially arranged a friendly match with the Chinese national team, hoping to help Messi overcome his mental block.
As for finding a sparring partner for the team to test their form, that's just a side effect.
Messi was unaware of Maradona's good intentions, but that did not stop him from treating this friendly match as a real game.
He will do his best to prove himself in any match that includes that guy!
……
"Argentina is very strong, but Maradona's tactics are somewhat disorganized. He advocates letting the star players in the frontcourt play freely and relying on individual skills and impromptu combinations to finish the game. The overall attack is not systematic, which gives us room to maneuver!"
Old Zhu had obviously gathered information about his opponents beforehand. He respected Maradona's achievements as a player, but he disagreed with his coaching philosophy.
Taking Argentina's usual tactics as an example, in the team's overall tactics, the responsibility of midfield defense almost entirely falls on Mascherano alone.
When facing weaker teams, Old Ma likes to use a 4-3-1-2 attacking formation. This formation has a lot of offensive pressure, but it has a lot of hidden dangers when defending because there is only one defensive midfielder in the team.
Although Mascherano is very strong, no matter how strong he is, he cannot cover the entire midfield by himself.
The reason his tactics haven't gone wrong is because the teams he's facing so far haven't been strong enough to put enough defensive pressure on Argentina.
If Argentina encounters a strong team on the field, the disadvantage of having only one defensive midfielder who cannot cover the entire field will definitely become apparent.
At that point, Argentina may face a crushing defeat.
However, on the other hand, the Chinese team is clearly not the kind of team that can overwhelm Argentina's top powerhouse with its offense.
Therefore, Lao Zhu wouldn't be reckless enough to engage in a direct attacking battle on the opponent's home turf. He plans to focus on defense and look for opportunities to steal a chance by attacking the opponent's lone defensive midfielder during counter-attacks.
Although the Chinese team is likely to lose this match, even if they lose, they should still put on a good performance.
We can't just take the beating without fighting back!
On October 6, at 10 p.m., the Monumental Stadium, which can accommodate 57000 spectators, was packed to capacity.
As the main venue for the Argentine national team, this stadium hosted the opening ceremony and final of the 1978 World Cup and witnessed Argentina's first-ever World Cup victory.
In such a lucky venue, facing a team ranked far below themselves, most Argentine fans came to watch the game expecting a resounding victory.
Before the match even started, enthusiastic Argentine fans had already erected two huge posters on the north and south stands of the stadium.
The two posters feature Maradona and Messi. Maradona was instrumental in leading Argentina to victory and is also known as the King of Football.
It's not surprising that Messi receives such fervent support and adoration from Argentinians, but he has not achieved any national team honors since his debut, yet he has received such treatment.
This shows just how high the Argentinians' expectations are for him!
"Great poster! That kid will definitely follow in my footsteps and become the next football king!"
Maradona, who had already entered the stadium, smiled with satisfaction upon seeing the two posters.
Everyone knows how much he favors Messi; even Aguero, who married his daughter, doesn't receive a fraction of the love he shows Messi.
Although Maradona often criticized Messi for not being passionate and outgoing enough, saying he was like a hothouse flower rather than a wild Pampas eagle.
But before the World Cup defeat, no one could shake Messi's position in his heart, until that crushing defeat against Germany...
Inside the players' tunnel, players from both the Chinese and Argentinian teams were ready to take the field.
Despite the significant difference in skill level, the Chinese team members did not feel particularly nervous.
Firstly, this is just a warm-up match, so the outcome won't have a significant impact.
Secondly, their opponents are far stronger than them. Even if they lose, it doesn't matter, but if they win, it's a huge gain. So they not only have no psychological burden, but are also eager to try and bring down Argentina, the favorite to win the World Cup.
As for the Argentine team next door, they didn't take the Chinese team seriously at all, so naturally they weren't nervous.
At 19:30, with the referee's whistle, the match between Argentina and China officially began.
Because Argentina is 13 hours behind China, this time is slightly inconvenient for many Chinese fans.
It's 7:30 pm in Argentina, which is exactly 6:30 am in China.
Getting up so early to watch the game is not a friendly thing for night owls who like to stay up late in the mobile internet era.
Even so, many fans still got up early and stayed in front of the TV.
Brothers, do we have a chance in this game?
I think it's unlikely. Argentina has basically fielded their strongest lineup, with Messi, Higuain, Di Maria, Mascherano, Veron, Gutierrez, Samuel, and other key players all on the field. They're not holding back at all. Given the Chinese national team's strength, it will be very difficult for them to win!
Indeed, Argentina is the favorite to win this World Cup, and if they go all out, the Chinese team really has little chance!
I don't dare to hope for victory; I just hope the Chinese team can lose by a small margin and not be thrashed so badly!
Because of the huge gap in strength between the two teams, the fans had already prepared themselves mentally before the match.
This match isn't about winning or losing; I just hope the national team avoids a disastrous defeat and tries their best to play to their full potential.
Just as the fans thought, the lineup arranged by the Chinese team in this match looked very conservative.
In order to protect their own goal, Zhu Guanghu specifically arranged three defensive midfielders to limit the opponent's attack, compress the opponent's space as much as possible, and reduce the coordination between Argentine players.
The opponent's individual strength is already stronger than that of the Chinese team. If they are allowed to play smooth combinations in the frontcourt, the Chinese team's defense will have no chance to stop them.
Therefore, the only option is to find a way to disrupt the opponent's formation and force them into a situation where each side fights independently.
Of course, with Messi and Di Maria present, even if the opponent relies solely on individual skill, the Chinese team's defense could still be breached. (End of Chapter)