Chapter 261 "Blessed Enemy"

Zhou Yi said it right, Yan Min is really an "intern" of the national team. Ｅ┡NovelＷｗㄟＷ. Ω1XIAOSHUO． COM

After Sun Pan returned to the team, the Chinese team made final preparations for the game against Kaman. In the team's training matches, it was already obvious which players would be the players to play against Oman next.

But Yan Min was not among them.

It can already be seen from the team training matches who will appear on the roster against Oman.

Gao Hongbo's roster is basically the same as before. All the five returning dragons will appear, even Sun Pan, who has just arrived in Oman three days ago and may not have recovered from jet lag, is the same.

Since the unexpected loss to Qatar at home, the Chinese team's points have stagnated. On the World Cup qualifying day on March 26 this year, the Chinese team had a bye. Japan defeated Qatar 2:1 in an away game. The points went from eight to 11 points. They surpassed the Chinese team with ten points and became the first in the group. one.

If the Chinese team loses to Oman again in the away game, the situation will be further unfavorable to them.

Although the Chinese team still has a five-point advantage over third-ranked Oman so far, if it loses to Oman, Oman's points will become eight points, and the Chinese team will only lead by two points.

For Oman, it is just a stone's throw away.

And for Gao Hongbo, if he can lead the Chinese team to defeat Oman in an away game, then regardless of the result of the match between Japan and Australia, the Chinese team will get the right to qualify for the World Cup in advance - now the Chinese team has ten points and is second in the group. , Oman, who is third in the group, has five points. If the Chinese team defeats Oman and accumulates 13 points, Oman will still have five points. The difference between the two teams is as much as eight points. Even if Australia defeats Japan and reaches six points, passing Oman and becoming third in the group, there is still a seven-point gap between the Chinese team and Australia. With the remaining two rounds of the group stage, even if the Chinese team loses all, Australia wins all. It is impossible to pass the Chinese team, so the Chinese team is equivalent to qualifying early.

Therefore, this is a game that absolutely cannot afford to lose.

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Before this game, China was also paying close attention to it.

After all, if the Chinese team can defeat Oman, it can qualify for the World Cup finals two rounds in advance.

Since the top ten in 2001, it has always been a dream of Chinese fans to be able to reach the World Cup finals again.

Now this dream,

Finally there is hope.

Everyone is talking about this game.

Some people also brought up the "theory of fate". It is a bit strange to think that Oman is the "lucky enemy" of the Chinese team. Everyone knows "vice general", but what the hell is "lucky enemy"?

Twelve years ago in the Top Ten Tournament in 2001, when the Chinese team was in the last three rounds of the Top Ten Tournament, the situation was surprisingly similar to today, or a little better than the current Chinese team. As long as the Chinese team at that time could If you draw your opponent in Shenyang, you can qualify early.

And that opponent is Oman!

Yes, the exact same opponent as today.

On October 7, 2001, the Chinese team defeated Oman 1:0 with Yu Genwei's goal at Shenyang Wulihe Stadium, qualified from the Asian Division two rounds in advance, and won the right to participate in the 2002 Japan and South Korea World Cup. .

Twelve years later, when the Chinese team once again stood at the crossroads of qualifying early, their opponent was still Oman.

Is this a fateful coincidence?

Twelve years ago, the Chinese team was able to defeat Oman under huge pressure and qualify two rounds in advance. Twelve years later, can the Chinese team also withstand huge pressure, defeat Oman and qualify two rounds ahead of schedule?

In the past few days, China has been full of reports and speculations about this game.

Chinese fans are looking forward to and nervous at the same time.

It's easy to understand what to expect.

I am nervous because I am worried that the "good tradition" of the Chinese team failing at critical moments will come into play again...

In addition, this is an away game after all, who knows how far Oman will take the "home advantage"...

Some people have even thought about their escape route in advance - it doesn't matter if they can't win, as long as they don't lose, the Chinese team can draw Oman away. With two games left, there is still hope of qualifying.

But there are two opponents left, one is Japan and the other is Australia, and the game against Olidaya is an away game, so the result is unpredictable. If the hopes of qualifying are really pinned on these two games, it may not be a good thing for the Chinese team.

Therefore, if you want to qualify, it is best to use Oman.

Before the game, when the players of the Chinese team were interviewed by reporters, they were also asked about qualifying early.

"Don't think so much, just play every game well." Hao Junmin behaved very low-key. He didn't talk about qualifying. He seemed to hope that this would reduce the pressure.

But Sun Pan didn't think so: "Qualifying early? Of course! Of course I have to qualify early! Isn't it too embarrassing if you can't qualify even after this?"

He answered very definitely and spoke very confidently.

But that's his style. When he was in the National Olympics, he made a bet with the South Korean Olympic team, saying that if the opponent scored a goal, he would live broadcast it. Those words were also very full, but in the end he really did what he said and did not let the Korean team score a goal.

As the core of the Chinese team, Zhou Yi's attitude is somewhere between that of Sun Pan and Hao Junmin. He neither avoids talking about it nor is he arrogant, and he also shows respect for Oman as an opponent.

"After all, this is Oman's home court. Talking too much about qualifying early is a bit disrespectful to our opponents. We respect them very much, so we will go all out in the game. As for qualifying early? That's just incidental."

"Will there be any pressure?" a reporter asked.

"Of course there will be, but don't professional players have to face pressure?" Zhou Yi shrugged, not taking the pressure too seriously.

Zhou Yi seemed very calm, but the fans and reporters couldn't be calm.

They were all excited.

All the talk on the Internet is about qualifying early.

Many people have begun to look forward to how the Chinese team will perform in the World Cup, what opponents they will encounter, what ranking they will achieve, whether they can break the embarrassing record of the last time they participated in the World Cup, whether they can score goals, and whether they can score points. , can you... reach the knockout round?

These are topics of heated discussion.

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China attaches great importance to this game, but the atmosphere is relatively relaxed. After all, there are three opponents left, and the weakest one is Oman.

It’s easier to fight Oman than Japan and Australia, right?

But Oman himself doesn't see it that way. When the Chinese team is bent on stepping on them to qualify early, Oman is not at a loss and can only sit back and wait for death.

Playing at home, they also want to defeat the Chinese team here.

Because they also have a dream of qualifying for the World Cup.

In this top ten competition, Oman performed well.

After five rounds, they ranked third in the group with five points. Everyone originally thought they were at the bottom of this group, but they didn't expect that Australia is now at the bottom...

This game is a direct dialogue between the second and third place in the group. If Oman can defeat the Chinese team, they have eight points and the Chinese team has ten points, then there may be hope.

Of course, the Chinese team has two games left, while Oman only has one game.

But who will the Chinese team's opponents be in the next two games?

Playing Japan at home and Australia away.

Oman is playing an away game against Qatar.

It's not like there's no chance at all.

Besides, even if the Chinese team is allowed to qualify directly in the end, eight points can help Oman consolidate the third position in the group and then participate in the play-offs.

It's better than dying in this game, right?

Why do Oman think they can beat the Chinese team?

First of all, this is their home court, and the home field advantage is very strong. Qatar defeated the Chinese team in their last game away from home. Why can't we defeat them at home?

Secondly, although the Chinese team has returned players to support them in this game, they have just experienced a European season and played dozens of high-intensity games. They did not even have time to rest, so they came directly to Oman to prepare for this game. How much has your physical fitness recovered? How good can they be?

Third, in the first meeting between the two sides in the top ten, although Oman was an away game, it did not fall behind at all against the Chinese team. In the end, it was only a small loss by a goal, and it almost took away the Chinese team’s home court. one cent.

Therefore, Oman's goal of defeating the Chinese team at home is well-founded and not wishful thinking.

If they do a better job at home, their chances of victory will be greater...