Football: Starting with the Crescent Moon Slash

An afternoon in Spain.

Benitez sat in his yard, leisurely sipping red tea.

"Your apprentice is really thoughtful."

Benitez's wife also held a cup of black tea, which Jiang Yan had sent from China.

Not only did he send Benitez a black tea, but he also specially sent him an old man's rocking chair and a palm-leaf fan.

"Yes, he is filial. When that day comes, we can entrust everything to him with peace of mind."

"Haven't you made up your mind yet?"

"It'll be soon...it'll be soon."

"By the way, your apprentice seems to be playing a crucial role in the national team right now. Aren't you, as his master, going to come and check it out?"

Benitez took a leisurely sip of tea: "What's there to see? I'll wake up to another resounding victory."

"Is this the composure of a legendary coach...?"

……

The match is in its 85rd minute.

The Shaanxi Gymnasium in Xi'an was bustling with activity.

"Jiang Yan, he's just too versatile!"

"He alone disrupted Qatar's five-man attacking tactic, which had been working repeatedly in the first half."

"His positioning, steals, and one-on-one defense are virtually unstoppable; he's practically a nuclear weapon!"

"Throughout the entire match, Jiang Yan was merely the last fig leaf for the Chinese national football team! Wake up, national team! Wake up, Gao Hongbo!"

……

Even the Qatari players couldn't understand why their five-man attack, which had been so effective in the first half, was no longer working.

The mere appearance of one Chinese person disrupted their five-man attack, which they had practiced countless times.

But gradually, they also discovered that this Chinese man was everywhere.

He always manages to appear in the most threatening positions.

Qatari teams have never encountered such a terrifying enemy.

Even veterans with countless competition experiences were shocked after seeing Jiang Yan's performance.

After the match, Tabata, looking distressed, told the media:

"He's practically China's Messi!"

……

"After Jiang Yan came on, not only did the defensive formation become more stable, but the attack also saw a qualitative leap."

"The Qatari players looked like green recruits in front of him."

"Even so, the match is about to end, and the score is still tied at 2-2. Time is running out for the Chinese team!"

With 5 minutes left in regulation time and stoppage time included, there are less than 10 minutes left. Jiang Shen, unleash your power!!

[Don't just defend and sweep, attack, Jiang Shen!]

[Can't you guys see this? It's clearly the national team's defense that's been terrible! Jiang Shen has been cleaning up their mess all this time!]

[Damn it, the team's star player is on defense, what are the rest of the players doing? Are they just sitting around doing nothing?]

[The Chinese national football team's veteran players are too old; how many of them still have the stamina to play on the field?]

[Jiang Shen is completely carrying the Chinese team alone; if this continues, China will have no future!]

[Never mind all that, let's just focus on qualifying today! Can we qualify standing up?]

……

Opportunities are earned through hard work.

Near the sideline.

Jiang Yan and Hao Junmin both have experience playing abroad and have played in similar positions, so they are very much in sync.

The two players pressed simultaneously, successfully causing Afif on the wing to make a mistake and dribble the ball out of bounds.

"The referee has blown the whistle! It's a throw-in for the Chinese team!"

"Afif seemed to be complaining to the referee, believing that Hao Junmin touched the ball out of bounds."

"But...the referee ignored it and firmly awarded the throw-in to China!"

Afif reluctantly retreated to his own half to defend.

China's sideline ball.

Hao Junmin was panting heavily; having just completed that pressing attack, his stamina was almost depleted. He subconsciously looked at Jiang Yan.

"Jiang, let me take the throw-in. Whether China can advance depends entirely on you."

Jiang Yan merely nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping across Qatar's entire defensive line, his tone eerily calm:

"Don't worry, I've already found the best route to score."

Hao Junmin was taken aback, then smiled and walked out of bounds.

I never expected that even at a time like this, he could remain so calm and confident.

The scariest thing is...

Hao Junmin, who had previously studied abroad, was now panting heavily, his clothes soaked with sweat.

Jiang Yan, on the other hand, was not panting heavily like him, and he didn't even have any sweat stains; only the hem of his clothes was slightly dirty.

"Could it be that he hasn't used his full strength yet?" Hao Junmin couldn't help but think.

Hao Junmin stood on the sidelines holding the soccer ball and took a deep breath.

Tens of thousands of eyes in the stadium were fixed on the ball in his hand.

Qatari players were on high alert, with five players clustered around the edge of the penalty area, completely blocking the middle.

Everyone seemed to believe that the Chinese team would take advantage of this throw-in opportunity to lob the ball into the penalty area.

Only Afif was still staring intently at Jiang Yan, his eyes filled with both fear and resentment.

He didn't believe that this unassuming Chinese man could single-handedly tear apart their entire defense line.

Hao Junmin took a running start, his arm veins bulging, and threw the ball with tremendous force!

The football traced a sharp parabola, heading straight for the midfield area.

"Not thrown into the penalty area! But into midfield! The target is..."

Qatar's players immediately looked up to observe, trying to be the first to judge where the ball would land.

But the next second, their pupils shrank.

Jiang Yan shifted his body slightly, without jumping, and the ball obediently remained at his feet.

Modric's "Ball Washing Master" skill is triggered.

Facing Hao Junmin's powerful throw-in, Jiang Yan gently deflected and controlled the ball with the outside of his right foot, then turned and broke through in one smooth motion.

In just one second, he broke free from the two men's encirclement.

"Beautiful! Jiang Yan gets the ball!"

"It's started! It's so fast!"

He Wei's voice almost cracked.

Realizing they had been tricked, the Qatari players began running frantically toward Jiang Yan, even resorting to fouls to try and interrupt the attack.

But every step they took was exactly what Jiang Yan had anticipated.

De Bruyne's "God's eye view" allowed him to see the situation on the field in advance and make timely adjustments.

"Jiang Yan is still advancing! Every step he takes is terrifyingly precise; the Qatari players can't even touch the ball!"

"What terrifying computational power!"

"He's already at the edge of the penalty area! Is he going to unleash another powerful shot?!"

Jiang Yan braced himself on his left foot and suddenly pulled his right leg out like a fully drawn bow.

"He's going to shoot!!!"

Seeing Jiang Yan prepare to shoot, the Qatari defenders panicked, and all their defensive focus was drawn to him.

"Oh no! Qatar has three defenders blocking his way; there's no space for him to shoot!"

Just then.

Jiang Yan gently tapped his right foot.

The body moves accordingly.

"It was a feint! He wasn't going to shoot! He just made a shooting feint!"

"Qada's defenders have already shifted their focus! They simply don't have enough time to mark Jiang Yan!"

Jiang Yan made an elegant turn, getting past the outermost defender.

"A skillful dribble past the defender! Another Bergkamp-esque move!"

"He's going to take on the goalkeeper one-on-one!!!"

After getting past all the defenders, Jiang Yan once again had the opportunity to go one-on-one with the goalkeeper.

This time, Qatar's goalkeeper is Amin.

Having learned from the previous experience, we did not choose to launch a blind attack.

Instead, he lowered his center of gravity and stared intently at the ball at Jiang Yan's feet.

"Come on! Shoot if you dare!"

He had seen countless strikers, but he had never seen a killer as calm and deadly as Jiang Yan.

The entire room fell silent.

Tens of thousands of fans in China, Qatar, Spain, and even around the world are watching this match in different ways.

……

In the courtyard of Spain, Benitez put down his teacup and held a smartphone playing the game in his hand.

The woman behind him chuckled softly, "Didn't you say there wasn't much to see?"

The veteran coach smiled slightly, remaining composed, but a sharp glint lurked in his eyes that went unnoticed.

……

Inside their villa in Croatia, Kovacic and Modric were watching the match together.

"Master, you absolutely have to score!"

Modric looked relaxed: "It'll definitely go in."

Why do you say that?

Modric paused, then added, "Because he is Jiang Yan."

……

Wells, Royal Bosco Golf Club.

"Gares, what are you looking at? My ball is about to hit the green!"

Bell sat in the shade of a tree, his smartphone playing the match between the Chinese national team and the Qatari national team.

"A very interesting match, but it's almost over."

……

In Brazil, Casemiro was in his villa when he opened the refrigerator and saw a row of Yakult in front of him.

"Should I drink it... or not?"

"Honey! Come quick! It looks like they're about to overtake us!"

"What!?"

……

"The pressure on him facing the goalkeeper one-on-one is unimaginable. If this ball goes in, the game can be declared over!"

Aming lowered his center of gravity, not daring to make the slightest unnecessary movement. He staked all his professional experience on waiting for the moment Jiang Yan would make his move.

Everyone thought it would be a calm, controlled shot, or a tricky shot into the far corner.

"What will he choose?"

The two commentators in the commentary booth held their breath at that moment.

next second.

"Jiang Yan has made a move!"

Without the slightest hesitation, and without any dazzling dribbling or feints.

They were just gradually getting closer to Amin.

In the end, it was the goalkeeper who couldn't withstand the pressure first in the standoff between the two.

"Amin's save!"

Amin's body was very stretched out, using both his hands and feet to expand his coverage area and block the route in the far corner.

Just then.

A smug smile crept onto Jiang Yan's lips.

Just as the goalkeeper was about to rush out, he suddenly raised his right foot.

"Since you want to compete with me, then I'll grant your wish!"

Villa's [Small Space End] skill pack is triggered.

Suddenly, he lashed out with his right foot!

boom!

The ball shot towards the near corner of the goal like lightning!

"Near post! Jiang Yan has chosen to shoot near post!"

"The angle of that ball is too tight; it looks like it's going to be difficult to score!"

With the divine skill of [Small Area Termination], Jiang Yan's archery skills have reached the pinnacle of Asian mastery.

It would be very difficult for an ordinary goalkeeper to save his goal.

Swish!

The ball flew right under the goalkeeper's arm.

It crawls into the net.

"Goal...!"