Chapter 61 Volley

"Oh oh oh——"

When Tang Zheng swung his right foot unmarked, Barcelona fans subconsciously screamed in surprise above the Mestalla Stadium.

This sound became louder as the football flew toward the goal. It was not until the football hit the net in the upper right corner of the goal that it was replaced by the hysterical chants of Real Madrid fans.

“Goooooooooooooooooal——”

British Sky commentator Andy Gray's selfless and drawn-out voice, and his partner Martin Taylor followed up with a tacit understanding and shouted passionately: "Incredible goal! Incredible pass! Incredible Don! He was in 2014- In the 2015 Copa del Rey final, he once again proved his infinite energy! When Real Madrid was two goals behind, he scored two goals in a row with his extraordinary strength!!"

He Wei, the CCTV commentator in the commentary box, was also overflowing with enthusiasm. He raised his arms and shouted: "The goal is in! The goal is in! In the 64th minute of the game, Tang Zheng used a powerful long-range shot to help Real Madrid equalize. Score! 2:2!! There is still plenty of time left for Real Madrid, so we have reason to believe that Real Madrid will eventually defeat Barcelona again at the Mestalla Stadium and defend the Copa del Rey title!"

The live director's close-up shot was aimed at Tang Zheng, and the fans sitting in front of the TV could see Tang Zheng in a state of madness.

Tang Zheng, who is recovering during this period, is actually under a lot of pressure. After all, he has never suffered such an injury in his career, and it is inevitable that there will be some small psychological fluctuations, especially when he comes back to play Barcelona. He does not know his Will the state be like that of Juventus half a month ago, so scoring two goals alone will relieve a huge pressure.

Seeing Cristiano Ronaldo surrounded by his teammates in the center, he had mixed emotions. He wanted to take advantage of Tang Zheng's injury and unable to play to prove that he could save Real Madrid better than Tang Zheng.

But it turns out that Tang Zheng is Real Madrid's savior.

Thinking that he has entered his thirties and is approaching the twilight years of his career, compared to the twenty-five-year-old Tang Zheng, he... seems to be old.

Are you really old?

Thinking of this, Cristiano Ronaldo shook his head and pushed these negative thoughts away from his mind.

How can you be considered old when you are thirty?

No!

At the same time, the live broadcast showed close-ups of many Barcelona players.

Messi, Neymar, Suarez, Iniesta, Busquets, Xavi and others,

The close-up shot stayed on Messi's face for the longest time, for a full five seconds.

In fact, by analyzing Messi's facial expressions, you can read the mood of other Barcelona players, or Messi's expression is a microcosm of the entire team.

Including Barcelona coach Enrique, who was shown in the subsequent broadcast, the trace of brilliance he showed in the first half had completely disappeared at this time, replaced by endless worries.

In the first half, they led by two goals, and there were many attacks to expand the score and kill the game. In the second half, the mercury-like offense stopped, and it became a constant defense. The pressure became more and more as time went by, and finally Tang Zheng scored consecutively. Two goals.

This is not the case with the tactics and ideas he laid out before the game and at halftime, but in many cases the reality is that they will not be implemented according to the plan.

"damn it!!"

Enrique believes that it is time for the team to make substitutions again.

But he has been unable to make a decision, because the second goal conceded came from Xavi coming off the bench. If adjustments are made again, will the defense be exploited by Real Madrid again?

And...who should I replace?

Iniesta?

Busquets?

Neymar?

Suarez?

Messi? ?

It's obviously impossible, because none of the players sitting on the bench is as good as these players, even if these players don't perform well.

The moods of the two fans at the Mestalla Stadium became completely opposite after Tang Zheng's second goal of the game. Real Madrid fans went from being frightened to expecting to overtake, while Barcelona fans went from being excited to being extremely depressed now.

Except for the ardent Barcelona fans, most Barcelona fans seem to have no fight.

The entire Real Madrid fans chanted Tang Zheng's name, and even the fans sitting in front of the TV could hear it clearly, so the Chinese fans thousands of miles away were particularly proud.

Although this is the norm in Tang Zheng's games, this norm is never enough for Chinese fans who lack convincing football history in the past.

Why?

Everyone has a sense of superiority, vanity and national pride.

Compared with the ridicule that was received when traveling around the world a few years ago, today's travel and tourism can be said to be full of scenery.

Closer to home, the game restarted. Barcelona, ​​which had a kick-off advantage, quickly organized a threatening offensive under the leadership of Messi, but because the football did not pass through the organization of Xavi and Iniesta, it became very direct.

Real Madrid's defense is not afraid of this kind of unlayered offense at all.

as expected!

Barcelona's first attack to equalize the score ended with no threat, and even caused a burst of laughter from the Real Madrid fans in the stands, laughing at Messi who tried to rely on his personal ability to help Barcelona exceed the score again.

※※※

When the time came to seventy minutes, the physical fitness of both players had declined to a certain extent, and the frequency of switching offensive and defensive rhythms was very different from previous games. However, this is the most normal change in football matches, because humans are not machines and have limited physical capabilities. .

Two minutes later, Barcelona, ​​which was in a passive situation, had not yet made any substitution adjustments. Real Madrid took the lead in making the second adjustment of the game. Isco replaced James Rodriguez, who was in a sluggish state.

Although Isco's playing time was greatly reduced when James Rodriguez came to the Bernabeu last summer, he never gave up competition or neglected training. He worked hard and maintained a very high competitive level. At critical moments, head coach Ancelotti will always choose to send Isco to change the offensive method.

Isco is not very fast, but he is extremely skilled with his feet and has a very strong sense of rhythm, so he can often form breakthroughs even when his speed is not fast.

Ancelotti's intention of replacing Isco was obvious, which was to use Isco's dribbling ability to find free kicks.

Tang Zheng was in very good condition, and his head kicks helped the team equalize the score.

The second goal in this game made waves all over the world. It is not difficult to see that he is in hot condition.

Ancelotti hopes that Isco's breakthrough will help the team get a better free kick position, and then use Tang Zheng's excellent form to score the go-ahead goal!

In addition to Isco strengthening his breakthrough, Cristiano Ronaldo also tried to cut inside.

However, Tang Zheng and Cristiano Ronaldo's free kicks don't seem to be very good, either high or off.

Real Madrid received consecutive free kicks in the frontcourt. Enrique also realized Ancelotti's intention to replace Isco, so he took advantage of the dead ball opportunity to pull Xavi to explain a few times, asking the players on the field to give priority to their positions and not to Make a blind move.

Enrique saw the move, but Ancelotti did not give up the tactical idea of ​​​​causing fouls, because free kicks are as rare as long-range shots. Anyway, the current conventional offensive methods cannot find the loopholes in Barcelona's defense, so it is better to try Tang Zheng And Cristiano Ronaldo's feet.

It is worth mentioning that after the dispute over the free kick in the second round of the Champions League semi-finals, Cristiano Ronaldo no longer competed for the absolute right to take the penalty, but maintained the penalty system with Tang Zheng last season.

Cristiano Ronaldo's feet are, as they have been for most of the season, poor.

Tang Zheng's control of set kicks is very good, and he is directly willing to pursue angles when it is high or on the side, because his free kicks often don't go too far.

Tang Zheng knew that Ancelotti wanted to solve the game through free kicks, but Tang Zheng did not think about relying on free kicks alone, so in this relatively stalemate situation, he observed the strategy, position selection and defense of Barcelona's defensive players. .

Although no problems have been exposed so far, and Barcelona's two goals conceded were due to set pieces, it does not mean that Barcelona's defense is impeccable. After all, Barcelona is known to the world for its traditional Tiki-Taka tactics, which are offensive.

Even as Harvey ages and fades out of the starting lineup, this traditional style of play is still being passed down, but in many cases the edge is overshadowed by the MSN combination.

※※※

Between seventy and eighty minutes, both Barcelona and Real Madrid became more cautious in their defense, because during this period everyone's physical fitness was greatly affected. Once the ball was lost from behind, it could be fatal!

Barcelona wants to win the first championship of the season, and Real Madrid wants to win the second championship of the season, so neither one wants to lose to the other.

Besides...this Spanish El Clasico has attracted the attention of more than a hundred countries and regions around the world, and everyone can imagine the consequences of losing.

However, the game went from 0:2 to 2:2, and most of the commentators in the on-site commentary box favored Real Madrid who equalized the score.

Since Tang Zheng joined Real Madrid, Barcelona has not defeated Real Madrid, and they have lost more than they have drawn.

Tang Zheng is in such good shape, why does Real Madrid have no reason not to win?

It's only a matter of time before we overtake the score!

As time gets shorter and shorter, Barcelona coach Enrique becomes more and more nervous. He has an ominous premonition that Real Madrid is likely to overtake the score!

The fanatical atmosphere at the Mestalla Stadium is inversely proportional to the time left. The less time, the greater the momentum they erupt.

Of course, this is for Real Madrid fans.

At this moment, Bayern fans and Barcelona fans sitting in front of the TV watching the Copa del Rey final have a similar feeling, as if they have returned to the dark time of Bayern Munich between the summer of 2009 and the summer of 2013.

In the blink of an eye, the game reached the 85th minute, and Barcelona made its second adjustment of the game.

French defender Mathieu replaces Iniesta.

The CCTV commentator looked at Mathieu who was about to enter the court and raised his eyebrows: "Could it be that... Enrique wants to drag the game into overtime?"

Soon, he got the answer.

Mathieu, who came off the bench, partnered with Pique, thus pushing Mascherano to the midfielder, partnering with Busquets, and the offensive organization was completely handed over to Xavi.

After all, Harvey is too old. Even if he comes off the bench, he cannot be expected to shoulder the defense while attacking.

Enrique is relieved to leave the defense of the center completely to Mascherano and Busquets.

In other words, Enrique's adjustment is aimed at defense. He is more worried that Harvey's lack of defense will bring disaster to the team at the last minute.

In fact, Enrique's choice was not wrong. Xavi and Iniesta's defensive awareness is weak. It is unrealistic to expect Busquets to be one man. Moreover, Mathieu can increase the height of Barcelona's defensive set pieces.

However, the Catalan Sports TV commentator was quite dissatisfied with Enrique's adjustment: "Strengthen the defense? No! We need to attack. We have an MSN combination that is feared by any team in the world. Why should we strengthen the defense?"

However...Barcelona's defensive problems also arise here.

Mathieu's position as a substitute is as a central defender, which is very important. Before he had time to adapt to the rhythm of the game, Real Madrid launched a wave of extremely threatening offensive. If Pique hadn't been in place to cover up, Cristiano Ronaldo would have If you fall to the ground and put down a shovel before completing the shot to kick the ball out of the baseline, the consequences will be disastrous!

Enrique took a long breath and held his breath at the same time, because... Real Madrid's set-piece offense is extremely threatening!

Players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema, Tang Zheng, Ramos, and Pepe are all experts in competing for the top. Let's look at the average altitude of Barcelona players...

It's understandable why Enrique felt nervous.

Immediately, Modric raised his left hand high, raised only one index finger, and took off.

A very obvious corner kick tactical gesture!

At the same time, Tang Zheng suddenly made a false impression of running towards the starting point, causing Busquets and Neymar to rush forward, then suddenly stopped and retreated.

"Watch him!"

Busquets is tall and has long legs and a high center of gravity. It is a bit difficult to passively keep up with Tang Zheng. Neymar rushes too hard and cannot brake in time due to his excessive explosive power. Therefore, Busquets can only ask Suarez, who is guarding Ramos, for help. .

At this moment, Modric took a corner kick.

As a forward, Suarez's defensive awareness certainly cannot be compared with that of defensive players, so he chose to continue to follow Ramos.

By the time Suarez realized that the ball was passed to Tang Zheng, it was too late to defend...

Eight yards away from the goal, Tang Zheng bypassed the players on both sides and retreated to the penalty area line near the front point, measuring his steps and preparing to take off.

Because it was too far away from the goal, Barcelona players did not pay much attention to it and focused on the second landing point.

Originally, Tang Zheng was planning to fight for the landing spot for his teammates, but from the corner of his eye, he saw that the Barcelona players were a bit far away, so...

He took a big step back to the left, widened the angle, and then, amid the exclamations of everyone in the audience, he raised his right foot and fired a volley shot at the flying football!

Suarez, who was closest, subconsciously made a blocking movement, trying to block the football with his body.

Real Madrid players who might be on the trajectory of Tang Zheng's shot moved out of the way...

Central 5 commentator He Wei's voice suddenly rose an octave: "Tang Zheng! At the line of the penalty area! Volley shot!"

"Oh oh oh——"

There was a burst of exclamations above the Mestalla Stadium.