Chapter 41 Four Hundred and Thirty-Three versus Three Hundred and Forty-Three
The New Water Source Stadium is a large stadium that can accommodate 55,000 fans. Like most World Cup stadiums, it was renovated based on the construction of the original football stadium to increase the fan capacity while complying with the minimum requirements of FIFA.
There are still two full hours before the start of the game, and the New Water Source Stadium has been basically filled with fans from both sides. The red Chinese fans and the orange Dutch fans are clearly separated, occupying about 4/5 of the entire stadium stands.
The remaining 1/5 of the fans are occupied by local fans and other fans, who are called neutral fans.
They came to feel the fanatical atmosphere of the World Cup, and some came to see world-class superstars such as Tang Zheng, Robben, Robin van Persie, and Sneijder.
No matter what the purpose is for them to come to the New Water Source Stadium, in short, they are adding to the fanatical atmosphere of the World Cup and cheering for both sides of the struggling game.
At the same time, the third quarter-final match at the National Stadium in Brasilia has ended. With Higuain's lightning goal in the eighth minute of the first half, Argentina finally defeated the European red devil Belgium 1:0 and became the third A national team that advanced to the semi-finals.
At the end of the game, Argentine coach Sabilia and the players were more concerned about the quarter-finals between the Chinese team and the Netherlands, because the winner between the two teams will be Argentina's opponent in the semi-finals.
In fact, many people knew the result of the match between the Chinese team and the Dutch team before the quarter-finals started. The Dutch team's overall strength was significantly stronger than the Chinese team, and the Chinese team's advancement to the quarterfinals was due to a lot of luck.
If nothing else happens, Argentina's opponent in the semifinals is likely to be the uncrowned king, the Netherlands.
Despite this, Argentina's star and captain Messi is focusing on Tang Zheng.
In today's world football, the one he really regards as his opponent is no longer Cristiano Ronaldo, but Tang Zheng.
Cristiano Ronaldo can score many goals in a season, but only Tang Zheng can be both a finisher and a creator.
Such an opponent deserves attention.
Even if the Chinese team eventually loses to the Netherlands, Messi believes that he can see Tang Zheng's technical flaws.
The Chinese team missed the quarter-finals because captain Zheng Zhi received his second yellow card of the World Cup in the quarter-finals. Tang Zheng will wear the captain's armband to participate in the first quarter-finals in the history of the Chinese men's football team.
With less than ten minutes before the start of the game, the staff of the New Water Source Stadium of the World Cup in Brazil knocked on the doors of the locker rooms of both teams to remind them that the game was about to begin.
The Chinese players in the visiting team's locker room slowly stood up from their seats and prepared to walk out of the locker room.
"Pa bang bang~"
At this moment, Tang Zheng suddenly clapped his hands, and everyone looked at him, including head coach Lippi and assistant coach Madaloni.
When everyone looked over, Tang Zheng's serious expression changed. He stretched out his right hand, palm down, and said with a smile: "Brothers, give yourselves a boost."
**, Wu Xi, Yan Junling, Lu Liang and other teammates stretched out their right hands one after another and folded them on the back of the previous teammate's hand. Even head coach Lippi and his coaching team also overlapped.
Tang Zheng said to himself: "This game is very likely to be our last game in the World Cup! So we don't need to think too much and play to our best level. I know many people want to change to a better environment. Play football and get better salary and benefits. The World Cup is the best stage for you! Play well and believe in yourself!"
As soon as he finished speaking, his voice suddenly rose an octave higher: "Come on!!"
"come on!"
The other team members were in high spirits and sang together passionately.
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In the player tunnel, except for the substitute players and coaches who walked straight to the court, the starting eleven of both teams stayed in the player tunnel, waiting for the referee team to lead the team into the field.
Before the starting players of both sides enter the field, the players of both sides still have a relatively free period of time.
The on-site guide was very professional and got to the players' tunnel as soon as possible.
Chinese team Hao Junmin and Dutch team Huntelaar are teammates at Schalke 04.
Huntelaar did not start the game. Their encouragement was simple, they hugged each other and chatted a few words.
Tang Zheng has been teammates with Dutch players, but he has many opponents.
Robben, Huntelaar, Van Persie and Blind have all played against Tang Zheng, but Van Persie and Blind have played against each other less frequently and have not had much interaction with each other.
Huntelaar and Robben played the most games with Tang Zheng, especially Robben. As a Bayern Munich player, he participated in most of the German national derbies, but these games were a bit unbearable for him.
In fact, Huntelaar is not much better. Schalke 04, as Dortmund's derby opponent in the Ruhr area, has a disastrous record with each other.
However, Robben and Tang Zheng still have a pretty good relationship in private. Before the game started, the two of them were very familiar with each other. Tang Zheng patted Robben on the shoulder, and Robben patted Tang Zheng on the waist with a smile on his face, as if There are endless topics to talk about.
Lippi and Van Gaal, who met in the players' tunnel, also shook hands and greeted each other, but they were obviously not as relaxed as the players, and their expressions were very strict. After a simple handshake, they separated from the players' tunnel and walked to their respective coaching benches one on the left and the other on the right.
The broadcast screen kept showing Tang Zheng and Robben. As the substitute players from both sides walked towards the court, their conversation came to an abrupt end and they returned to their respective queues.
Tang Zheng stood at the front of the team, head held high and chest held high, feeling the fanaticism rushing towards his face. He took a deep breath and murmured: "Come on!"
Not long after, Mexican referee Marco Rodriguez and members of the refereeing staff signaled that players from both sides of the match could enter the court.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch"
When the players from both sides of the match appeared at the New Shuiyuan Stadium, deafening cheers erupted above the stadium.
The red sea and the orange sea are tit for tat, but what the fans sitting in front of the TV feel is the unique fanatical atmosphere of the World Cup.
The match time between the Chinese team and the Dutch team is at 4 a.m. Beijing time, but there are hundreds of millions of fans waiting in front of the TV or computer.
In particular, they eliminated Costa Rica in the 1/8 finals and made a historic breakthrough into the quarterfinals. CCTV's publicity was unprecedented, so this quarter-finals received huge attention.
The Chinese fans at the New Water Source Stadium are extremely proud of the Chinese players on the field. With the general progress of football over time, Asian teams have not entered the quarterfinals for a long time. The Chinese team has reached the quarterfinals under this background. The Chinese The sense of superiority is unprecedentedly replenished, and attention naturally increases.
From young children to gray-haired old men, everyone is paying attention to the quarter-finals between the Chinese team and the Dutch team.
Players from both sides entering the stadium lined up with the American referee team at the center, and then the Chinese national anthem "March of the Volunteers" was played, followed by the Dutch national anthem "Ode to Wilhelm"...
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Players from both sides took the final group photo before the game, and the commentators in the on-site commentary box made reports on the lineups of both sides. The Chinese team officially reported that the formation was different from the previous one, and unexpectedly chose a more offensive 433 formation.
Of course, we have to wait until the game starts to decide whether it is really a four-three-three formation.
In terms of the starting lineup, the Chinese team has made three position adjustments compared to the 1/8 finals.
The goalkeeper has not changed and is still Yan Junling. The left back Li Xue replaces Jiang Zhipeng. Liu Jian partners with Feng Xiaoting who has returned from suspension. ** will serve as the right back. The three midfielders are Tang Zheng, Cai Huikang and Hao Junmin. The three forwards are Lu Liang, Gao Lin and Wu Sanshi.
The official formation of the Dutch team is the 5-2-3 formation, but according to the Dutch team's usual play style in this World Cup, it is a variant of the 3-4-3 formation.
Goalkeeper Cillessen, the five defenders are Blind, De Vrij, Vlaar, Indy and Kuyt, the double midfielder is Sneijder and Wijnaldum, and the three forwards are Depay and Van Persie and Robben.
Tang Zheng, who played for the first time as the captain of the Chinese team, won the right to pick the side in the coin guessing session and naturally lost the right to kick off.
It actually doesn’t matter when it comes to choosing a half, because the game that kicks off at 5 pm local time in Brazil will not have the so-called yin and yang field conditions, which means that the players will not be affected by the sun.
However, Tang Zheng was still very cautious in choosing the half. He chose the direction of attack to face the north stand where his own fans were, which was equivalent to having the Dutch team's attack at the beginning of the first half be directed towards the south stand where his own fans were.
If the average captain will definitely start the game according to the half where the players of both sides are currently standing, a few captains will consider that they should hold firm at the beginning of the game. With their own fans cheering behind them, they will definitely get twice the result with half the effort.
And in the second half, changing sides and fighting in the offensive direction again will be of great help to the offense in the face of the excitement of our own fans.
But Tang Zheng did the opposite and first let the Dutch team's offensive direction face his own fans in the first half!
Of course, Tang Zheng's idea is very simple. The game is a ninety-minute battle, and the tasks assigned by head coach Lippi before the game are more focused on defense.
Although the overall strength of the Dutch team is very strong, Lippi and his coaching team believe that the Dutch team coached by Van Gaal will definitely not attack aggressively. If they can maintain the 0:0 score in the first half, in the second half amid the shouts of Chinese fans It is not impossible to maintain the tie, and it is even possible to drag the game into a cruel penalty shootout.
In the last two practice sessions before the Chinese team's 1/8 finals and 1/4 finals, Lippi consciously asked the players to practice penalty kicks, obviously to prepare for a possible penalty shootout.
"Beep~"
With the whistle of Marco Rodriguez, the referee on duty, the last quarter-final of the 2014 Brazil World Cup kicked off at the New Water Source Stadium.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch"
Van Persie had just kicked the ball to Robben, and the Dutch fans roared loudly above the New Water Source Stadium.
"Uuuuuuuuuuuuu"
The Chinese fans in the stands did not hesitate to give in. They blurted out almost subconsciously and made deafening boos for the Dutch players who kicked off the ball.
Most of the Dutch players are players who are accustomed to the big world. They are not affected by off-field factors at all. They still follow the rigorous tactics laid out by the head coach before the game to pass, cut, move and create opportunities.
Like most media speculation before the game, the Dutch team, which had the overall advantage, did not adopt a strong attack, but adopted a tentative attack.
The Chinese team's game tactics are very simple, first defend and then seek opportunities to counterattack.
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"Five minutes into the game, the Dutch team changed its formation and the Chinese team chose a safe offensive method. Of course, this is directly related to the very good defense of our players. Cai Huikang's offense is criticized, but the role of the defensive end is still very obvious. His body and interception effects are fully demonstrated. Tang Zheng, who serves as the captain in this game, has a strong ability to read the game, timely defense, and there are no loopholes in the defense in the middle..."
At the fifth minute of the game, the central 5 commentator He Wei patiently explained the game in a slightly hoarse voice.
Dutch National Sports TV commentator Van Vincent was obviously very dissatisfied with the Dutch team's offense. He said in a scolding tone: "The Chinese team completely retreated to half-court. We should attack with all our strength instead of worrying about the Chinese team's counterattack. Don't forget that we are the ones pressing high. The reason for advancing so fast is that don’t be afraid if you lose the ball, just get it back. Although a tentative attack can easily get the ball when switching from offense to defense, the offensive threat cannot be compared with the rapid counterattack after successful high pressure. Louis Van Gaal should Be bolder!”
In fact, it cannot be said that Van Gaal is not bold enough, it can only be said that he advocates careful sailing.
When the game reached the quarter-finals, the team had no way out, because losing would mean elimination. Even if the Dutch team was stronger, there was no shortage of cases in world football where the weak defeated the strong.
To use an old saying, football is round and anything is possible!
In the group stage, the Chinese team has gone from leading to falling behind, and then from falling behind to reversing the game. In the last game against the powerful Colombia, they were able to score two goals in a row after conceding two goals in a row. The coach of the Chinese team The head coach is Lippi the Silver Fox again, so Van Gaal has to be careful!
In addition, Tang Zheng, who ran without hesitation at the beginning of the game, gave Van Gaal a very dangerous feeling. He was more worried about the two spaces behind the three-four-three formation being exploited. Lu Liang and Wu Sanshi were very fast.
The Dutch team, which used a three-four-three formation in this World Cup, has shone brightly and achieved unprecedented success. If we have to find a flaw in the formation, it is the absolute lack of speed of the two wing-backs.
Kuyt may have been very fast when he was young, but at the age of 34, all of his physical qualities have declined to varying degrees.
Blind is young, has strong ability to read the game, and is accurate in long passes, but his tracking speed is an issue.
To sum up, Van Gaal finally decided to focus on stability at the beginning of the game, and then use the feelings of the players on the field and the tactics arranged before the game to find the Chinese team's defensive openings.
In the first five minutes of the game, Robben, one of the three breakthrough kings in this World Cup, has not tried once.
Because Tang Zheng's arrival rate is extremely high, he often appears in Robben's field of vision when he is about to accelerate a breakthrough, so that Robben is disturbed and gives up the breakthrough and cooperates instead.
Robben's breakthrough from the left and right has always been one of the most important tactics in Van Gaal's tactical system. Now that Robben "dare not" break through, it means that the Dutch team's offense has weakened a lot.