Football: Starting with the Crescent Moon Slash

Three days after defeating Wolfsburg, Real Madrid will travel to Getafe for an away game.

The first battle against Getafe is still fresh in my mind.

On December 5th, they faced Getafe for the first time.

Jiang Yan was suffering terribly from Getafe's logging tactics and their tough physical confrontations.

Fortunately, the final result was good.

Now, Jiang Yan has arrived at the Alfonso Pérez Stadium.

Jiang Yan is full of confidence for this rematch against Getafe.

He's no longer the weakling he used to be. After acquiring the Nedved - [Iron Body] skill pack, he's now completely fearless in physical confrontations.

……

"Welcome all football fans to tune in to CCTV5 for the rematch between Jiang Yan and Getafe. What kind of sparks will fly?"

"We'll wait and see."

"The last time Jiang Yan faced Getafe was in December. The inexperienced Jiang Yan struggled against Getafe's physical confrontations."

"Jiang Yan's body has visibly grown stronger; I wonder if Getafe's tactics will still be effective!"

……

Getafe's new manager, Duran, took office on April 1.

In this match, he still used his usual logging tactics, employing unconventional methods to limit Jiang Yan.

But Jiang Yan's physical condition is no joke.

Faced with Getafe's endless dirty tricks, Jiang Yan remained silent, only engaging in physical confrontation.

Benitez, standing on the sidelines, also appeared particularly surprised.

I thought Jiang Yan's muscles had only been slightly strengthened, but I didn't expect him to be strong enough to fight three people in a row without being at a disadvantage!

Duran's tactics completely failed, and Real Madrid easily secured a resounding victory.

Real Madrid defeated Getafe 5-1.

……

Not only La Liga matches, but also the draw ceremony for the FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers Round of 12 began at 4:30 pm Beijing time.

CCTV broadcast the lottery ceremony live.

Jiang Yan and Isabella also watched the lottery on TV right on time.

The television feed has switched to the Asian Football Confederation headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.

The host spoke at breakneck speed, and the stage lights flashed incessantly.

The specific rules for the top 12 are as follows:

The 12 teams are divided into two groups, A and B, with six teams in each group. The top two teams from each group automatically qualify for the World Cup main tournament.

The two third-placed teams from each group will then play a two-legged playoff.

The winner of the play-offs will be drawn against other play-off teams from other continents for a two-legged home-and-away play-off.

After the specific rules were explained, the group draw for the top 12 teams officially began.

Group A: Qatar, Uzbekistan, Syria.

Group B: Saudi Arabia, Australia, UAE

"The next spot in Group A..."

The guests at the lottery ceremony drew a small ball from a transparent plastic container.

After opening it, take out the slip of paper with the country name written on it.

Slowly stretch out.

"South Korea! Group A!"

"Thailand! Group B!"

"Japan! Group A!"

"Iraq! Group B!"

As the number of balls in the container decreases, the grouping situation becomes increasingly clear.

In the end, only the Chinese team and the Iranian team remained.

Isabella looked nervous in front of the television, while Jiang Yan appeared much calmer.

"It's my country's draw, why are you so nervous?"

"Boss, aren't you nervous at all?" Isabella clenched her fists, her palms already damp with sweat. "Judging from the current situation, Group B is definitely the best draw, with only Saudi Arabia and Australia as two formidable opponents. Group A, on the other hand, has strong teams like Japan, South Korea, and Uzbekistan!"

Jiang Yan shrugged.

"Actually, they're all the same."

Isabella turned her head to look at him.

"What do you mean?"

"Group B is indeed a better choice, but... China has old and new grudges with Japan and South Korea, and we always have to settle them."

As the guests drew lots took out their slips of paper and unfolded them, the commentator almost blurted out the answer.

"China, Group A!"

A single sentence was uttered.

The scene at the AFC headquarters in Kuala Lumpur was in uproar.

In front of the television, Isabella instantly covered her mouth, her eyes filled with disbelief:

"Oh my god...we're really in the group of death! Japan and South Korea are both in Group A!"

Jiang Yan merely raised an eyebrow slightly, a faint, cold smile playing on his lips.

He wasn't surprised at all; to him, this was perhaps what they called destiny.

The group stage draw for the 12-team qualifying round of the Asian FIFA World Cup has now been officially completed.

The teams that have advanced to Group A are: Qatar, Uzbekistan, Syria, South Korea, Japan, and China.

……

Besides Jiang Yan, Gao Hongbo, who was in China, and other Chinese players also watched the draw ceremony.

After the draw ceremony, Gao Hongbo and the core team of Chinese football all had furrowed brows.

Given the current state of Chinese football, this is not a good draw.

"Japan, South Korea, and Udinese—these are all top-tier teams in Asia. Even with Jiang Yan, qualifying smoothly will inevitably be a challenge..."

"We will qualify," Gao Hongbo said firmly. "We will definitely qualify. The national team has waited 14 years... For the future of Chinese football, we will fight tooth and nail to qualify!"

Meanwhile, back home, the lottery results had already caused an uproar.

The live stream chat rooms on major sports platforms were instantly flooded with comments. Fans' mood plummeted from anticipation to rock bottom, and a sense of resentment arose amidst despair.

[Oh no, this is definitely the group of death! How are we supposed to compete?!]

With Japan and South Korea both present, and Uzbekistan not to be trifled with either, the Chinese national team could consider it a success if they finish third...

Don't be discouraged! We have Jiang Yan! He can dominate European defenders at Real Madrid, and he's absolutely dominant in Asian competitions!

This time, Jiang Yan led us to break through!

What's the point of charging out? Three defeats and you'll still have to slink away in disgrace.

[They're at it again with the criticism. With Jiang Yan around, as long as the coaching staff's tactics are sound, making it into the top three shouldn't be a problem, right? What little Japanese? What little Koreans? What little chickens? They'll all kneel down!]

……

In Japan, not far away, the coaching staff could hardly contain their smiles after seeing the group assignments.

"Yoshi! Yoshi!"

"This time's のグループ分けのリストは本道にSuharuらしいですね (This time's group list is really great)."

"Korea is a threat and is a threat (Korea and black chicken are not a threat at all)"

"Huaguo Team?"

"Oh!"

Makoto Kuramori, assistant coach of the Japanese national team, snorted coldly.

They might have been a little wary of the Chinese national team in the past, but the current Chinese national team is not even in the same league as the Japanese national team.

"They're just a bunch of pushovers, destined to become stumbling blocks on our path to the top!"

……

The South Korean team had almost the same idea as the Japanese team.

"The only team we need to be wary of is Japan; they're aiming for second place and even hoping to finish first in this round of 12!"

……

Even at night, the area near the business district in Spain is bustling with activity.

"I'm leaving everything to you. I've already spoken to Gao Hongbo."

Jiang Yan put his hand on Isabella's shoulder.

"Don't worry, it's not like I'm not coming back. This is the first time I've been involved in the national team's work."

In preparation for the upcoming final round of 12, he introduced Isabella, a top video analyst, to Gao Hongbo.

Before the start of the final round of 12, she led her team to conduct video tactical analysis of each of the twelve teams.

Be careful in everything.

Isabella looked at the young man in front of her, who had grown from a La Liga rookie to a Real Madrid core player in just a few months, and now had to shoulder the hopes of the entire country's football.

She suddenly realized that the so-called "group of death" might not be a desperate situation at all, but rather a stage for a new king to ascend the throne.

She was willing to serve as a servant to the new king.

"I see."

……

The next morning, Isabella boarded a flight to China.