Green Field Eunuch

Chapter 634 A successful defense is the beginning of a successful offense

In the seventh minute of the match, Colombia finally organized a threatening attack.

However, when Jackson Martinez attempted a breakthrough on the edge of the penalty area, he was cleanly and decisively intercepted by Feng Xiaoting.

"Feng Xiaoting, beautiful interception!" He Wei was very excited. Seeing the Chinese team's excellent performance, he immediately praised them without reservation: "Accurate tackle, perfect positioning, clean and decisive!"

"Although he is somewhere between a starter and a substitute at Granada, Feng Xiaoting's growth is obvious to the naked eye, and it is not easy for Martinez to force his way through his defense!"

This is not over yet.

For the past month, Gao Hongbo and Shan Yongzhuo have been instilling the idea in the team members that every successful defense is the beginning of a counterattack.

Although the work is still relatively limited, the initial idea has been formed.

This is clearly demonstrated in Feng Xiaoting.

That's how he played in Granada. After two seasons of learning alongside Van Dijk, he's already showing some of the characteristics of a counter-attacking center-back.

Although his footwork isn't top-notch, it's good enough.

That's how it is this time.

Feng Xiaoting's long pass found Hao Junmin, who was making a quick forward run.

Hao Junmin, who performed well in the last match and scored a crucial goal, has once again earned Gao Hongbo's trust and has been placed in the starting central midfield position.

This is also a consideration for Gao Hongbo regarding the quality of his counterattack.

In the first match against Ivory Coast, Chen Tao dropped back, but lacked the awareness to push forward, resulting in frequent disjointed counter-attacks and a lack of a transition point to connect with Shan Yongzhuo.

Therefore, he put Hao Junmin in the starting position for this game.

Although Hao Junmin is not fast, he has excellent footwork skills and is one of the few national team players who can protect the ball even when facing strong teams. He also has a strong sense of forward movement and attacking awareness.

This time, Hao Junmin successfully received Feng Xiaoting's long pass and advanced forward. While entangled with Guarin who was closing in, he still managed to hold onto the ball and did not lose possession.

"China's counterattack is on!"

After entangled with Guarin for a while, Hao Junmin found a passing space and pushed the ball forward to Shan Yongzhuo, who had retreated to receive it.

Shan Yongzhuo dropped back to receive the ball. Valdes was on his left and Balanta was on his right. The two center-backs formed a pincer movement to double-team Shan Yongzhuo.

He glanced at the defense behind him, then looked at the goal.

Shan Yongzhuo also felt a bit of a headache.

The opponent's defense was well set up, and based on his experience, the chances of successfully using his skill were slim.

On the other side, Hao Junmin, the only receiving point, was also making forward runs, but he was tightly marked by Guarin, and even if he passed the ball to him, he wouldn't have a good chance.

Without hesitation, Shan Yongzhuo, who had a sudden inspiration, did not hesitate. He also did not want to waste this counterattack.

He glanced at the fans, then lobbed the ball up and unleashed a bicycle kick, sending the ball flying rapidly toward the goal behind him.

"Look at this ball!"

He Wei shouted excitedly.

At the Pantanal Stadium, whether it was the Chinese team's goal, the Colombian fans, or the neutral Brazilian fans, everyone was watching the ball with gasps of amazement.

The football was lobbed high, spinning sharply and curving rapidly toward the goal.

Despite the distance of thirty meters, the ball still posed a significant threat. Colombian goalkeeper Ospina dared not relax for a moment, aiming at the direction of the ball and leaping high to dive into the right corner of the goal.

"Ding!"

A noise.

The ball struck the junction of the crossbar and post, landed inside the penalty area, and bounced powerfully off Arias.

The ball had great power, and Arias was unable to control it, watching as it bounced out of bounds.

"Hula..."

The sound of Chinese fans expressing their regret rang out from the stadium.

Ospina breathed a sigh of relief, but immediately directed his teammates back, signaling them to defend the corner kick.

"An extremely dangerous shot. Colombia must take Shan Yongzhuo very seriously. They must know that they are facing the world's number one star, the greatest goal-scoring machine in football history. Any lapse in concentration could have fatal consequences..."

The Colombian commentator wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said with lingering fear.

However, he then saw Shan Yongzhuo heading towards the corner flag and immediately warned, "The time to test Ospina has come; Shan Yongzhuo is heading towards the corner flag."

"We all know that Shan Yongzhuo is best at scoring directly from corner kicks; his corner kick scoring rate is very high. This goal..."

"Look at this ball..."

Before the Colombian commentator had even finished speaking, Shan Yongzhuo had already taken the corner kick.

Under the powerful kick, the ball soared high into the air, made a wide turn, and followed a very deceptive trajectory with a curved line before finally plunging at high speed into the far corner.

Ospina felt a chill run down his spine. Inside the penalty area, several players were trying to head the ball, but none of them succeeded, and he had chosen to position himself near the near post.

By the time he realized what was happening, Ospina sprinted with all his might toward the far corner, but he was just a hair's breadth away from stopping the ball from going into the goal.

"Shan Yongzhuo! Shan Yongzhuo! Shan Yongzhuo! Beautiful! A beautiful corner kick goal! In the 8th minute, the Chinese team broke the deadlock!" He Wei almost jumped up from his commentary seat in excitement: "A very beautiful goal!"

"The game has only been going on for 8 minutes, just 8 minutes! The Chinese team has taken the lead!"

"Shan Yongzhuo scored directly from a corner kick, his most proficient and skillful technique, helping the Chinese team break through the Colombian goal and also scoring his sixth goal in the World Cup!"

"Now, the Chinese team has the upper hand in the battle for qualification from the group stage!" He Wei continued, "If this score continues, the Chinese team will become the group leader with 7 points!"

Meanwhile, the Colombian commentator on the other side exclaimed with regret: "As expected, he scored with his signature corner kick!"

"Colombia must take this issue seriously enough..."

Shan Yongzhuo's goal ignited the passion of all the Chinese fans in the stands of the Pantanal Stadium. They all jumped up from their seats and cheered.

The Pantanal Stadium was filled with the cheers of Chinese fans.

The goal scorer, Shan Yongzhuo, was also very excited. He rushed to the Chinese fans' section, raised his hands, and the Chinese fans responded with even louder cheers.

Then, the Chinese team players rushed over and surrounded Shan Yongzhuo.

Everyone was cheering.

Only the Colombian players were holding their heads in disappointment, seemingly still unable to process what had happened.

(End of this chapter)