Green Field Eunuch

Chapter 682 A Steady Argentina
Fifteen minutes passed quickly.

The fans were already waiting anxiously in the stands.

Shan Yongzhuo and Zheng Zhi walked out of the players' tunnel together. When they passed the gleaming World Cup trophy on the table by the field, Zheng Zhi couldn't help but take a few more glances.

Following his gaze, Shan Yongzhuo couldn't help but look over as well.

The World Cup Trophy.

It seemed to possess some kind of magic, deeply attracting the two of them. It was right before their eyes, within easy reach, yet it also seemed so far away...

Even Shan Yongzhuo felt a great desire at this moment.

He desperately wanted to lift the World Cup trophy.

"stop looking."

"Let's win the game first," Zheng Zhi said with a wry smile, patting Shan Yongzhuo on the shoulder.

"Well, I will."

Shan Yongzhuo nodded seriously.

"I believe you."

Under the dark night sky, the Maracanã Stadium was the brightest star, as 22 warriors returned to the pitch.

China did not make any substitutions and maintained the same lineup as in the first half.

Argentina opted to make a substitution.

Sabella substituted striker Lavezzi with another center-back, Basanta.

Argentina also changed their formation to 5-3-1, and their intention was very clear.

According to Sabella's idea, this lineup uses three center-backs to limit Shan Yongzhuo.

During counter-attacks, the formation will immediately switch to 3-5-1, with the two full-backs Zabaleta and Rojo quickly moving forward to support the counter-attack.

This is Sabella's response in the second half.

The intention is very clear: Argentina is going to play a defensive counter-attacking style.

The Chinese team's formation has also changed.

Following the suggestions of Shan Yongzhuo and Gao Hongbo, the Chinese team moved its overall formation forward, becoming a traditional 4-4-2.

Hao Junmin dropped back to midfield and moved to the right wing.

Gao Lin moved from the right wing to the center, forming a forward partnership with Shan Yongzhuo.

Crossing from the wing is actually a classic attacking tactic for the Chinese team.

In reality, over the years, the Chinese team has tried to learn from this and that, but in the end, they have found that they have not actually learned anything.

What they are best at is actually the old routine they've been playing skillfully since the 90s: crossing from the wing and the center forward heading the ball in the penalty area. This relatively simple and straightforward tactic is what the Chinese team is best at and most suited to.

Therefore, 442 is the most suitable formation.

Gao Hongbo was also helpless about this, but he still accepted Shan Yongzhuo's suggestion.

Over the past few years, he has tried various methods.

Initially, he wanted to transform the Chinese team into a possession-based team like Spain.

However, this is basically wishful thinking.

The Chinese team's players are probably only capable of putting up a fight against amateur teams like Laos and Nepal.

Later, because of Shan Yongzhuo's presence, Gao Hongbo considered turning the Chinese team into a team like Italy, relying on iron defense and counter-attacking as their core strength.

When it came to the World Cup, Gao Hongbo did indeed consistently implement this tactic.

But in reality, it was not very successful.

The gap in fundamental strength cannot be easily bridged by simply relying on sheer numbers.

Imitating Italy isn't as simple as just copying everything they do with the Sharingan.

After all, many Italian players are instilled with a systematic defensive philosophy from a young age.

Many players aspire to become world-class defenders.

This has led to the emergence of many seasoned defenders in Serie A who are not well-known but have considerable skill, making Serie A the most difficult league for strikers.

This kind of natural difference, formed from childhood, cannot be replicated simply by using the Sharingan.

Therefore, even though the Chinese team made it to the final, they are still the team that conceded the most goals in this World Cup.

The team was able to reach the finals thanks to Shan Yongzhuo's phenomenal performance, scoring more goals than his opponents.

The Chinese team's tactic of overwhelming numbers doesn't rely on the chain defense that Italy depends on, but rather on the simplest method of stacking players. It's even more excessive than Mourinho's "park the bus" strategy.

The Chinese team's ability to reach the finals was due to their extremely shameless swarm tactics and Shan Yongzhuo's unparalleled goal-scoring ability.

and so.

Now we've reached this desperate situation.

Gao Hongbo realized that he didn't have any other good solutions.

Finally, he discussed it with Shan Yongzhuo.

The two decided to use this 4-4-2 formation and the simplest, most straightforward tactic of crossing from the flanks in the second half.

……

Soon, both sides took their positions.

Referee Rizzoli blew the whistle to start the second half of the match.

The match had just begun.

The media and fans noticed that the situation seemed to have changed slightly in the second half.

The Chinese team moved their formation forward and took the initiative to attack.

Argentina, on the other hand, deliberately tightened their formation.

They didn't put the same pressure on the Chinese team as they did in the first half.

Argentina opted for the safest approach: counter-attacking.

In fact, this is also Argentina's favorite tactic in this tournament.

Although this tactic was criticized by many Argentine fans and legends, the benefits were obvious.

They successfully advanced to the finals.

Shan Yongzhuo was not surprised by this; in fact, it was within his expectations. That's why he dared to suggest to Gao Hongbo that the team move their overall formation forward and take the initiative to attack.

It's normal for the Argentine team to want to play defensively.

First of all, this is the World Cup final.

Given this favorable situation, counter-attacking is undoubtedly the safest tactical choice.

Argentina chose to secure the World Cup trophy in the safest way possible.

in fact.

There is a ticking time bomb in the Chinese team that the Argentine team is deeply wary of.

That's Shan Yongzhuo.

Argentina dared not gamble on how Shan Yongzhuo would perform in the second half.

Although Shan Yongzhuo didn't perform well in the first half, Argentina, including Mascherano, didn't believe they had contained him.

Many of them knew that it was simply because Shan Yongzhuo hadn't received any good opportunities.

But in the second half, the Chinese team will definitely launch an attack.

Therefore, instead of going head-to-head with the Chinese team, it would be better to consolidate all options and use numbers to put pressure on Shan Yongzhuo.

Five minutes into the second half.

The game's offense and defense then completely changed hands.

The Chinese team launched two offensives, but the Argentine team retreated into a more defensive formation and resolutely implemented a counter-attacking strategy.

Their first step was to strengthen the defense on the flanks, preventing the Chinese team from making runs down the flanks, and frequently engaging in tackles and fouls on the flanks.

As for Shan Yongzhuo, Argentina chose to surround him without attacking.

They used their numerical advantage to suppress Shan Yongzhuo.

Mascherano, Demichelis, Garay.

Three players were tightly surrounding Shan Yongzhuo, but they didn't try to tackle him easily. Instead, they were trying to cut off his passing lanes by blocking him.

This resulted in the ball failing to reach Shan Yongzhuo's feet on both occasions.

On the Argentine coaching bench, Sabella couldn't help but nod in approval upon seeing this situation.

It must be said that this method is actually the best choice to deal with Shan Yongzhuo.

Meanwhile, Gao Hongbo, the coach of the Chinese team, watched the situation on the field with great anxiety, but couldn't think of any good solutions.

(End of this chapter)